Baby Cali Has Arrived!!!

A week ago Thursday, while the kids were in music class, I opened my cell phone to call the insurance company about a minor car accident I had had the night before. Instead, I got a very special surprise. The phone said that I had a voicemail from Allen, and I instantly knew that baby Cali must have arrived. After listening to his excited message, I rushed around the school telling everyone I could find that Cali was here! They all thought that she was my niece until I explained that she was the daughter of two of my kickball teammates. My day had instantly improved. I coasted through the rest of the day, anxious to call Allen and check in. As soon as my school day was over, I called him for the details. Cali was born at 5:35 in the morning, and both she and Cattina were doing well. Since I was just minutes away from the hospital, I naturally asked if it would be okay for me to stop by and meet the baby. It was such a neat experience because I got to the hospital just in time to see some major events take place. I got to see Cali be foot-printed and got to see all of the proud grandparents hold her for the first time. I was so happy for all of them. Then, I got to hold Cali! While I have held a lot of babies in my time, I must admit that I have never held one so young or so small! She was only 12 hours old at the time! I just remember staring at her and thinking that I couldn't believe we were all that small at one time. I also couldn't believe that two people I have known for so long (since high school) were actually parents. Cattina is really my first close friend to have a baby, so it was pretty surreal to me. Still, it didn't take me long to realize that both she and Allen are going to be fabulous parents. They already seemed to change somehow (not in a bad way, of course)! Seeing the two of them with Cali really made me understand the line from the movie Where the Heart Is where Novalee holds her daughter for the first time and asks, "How can you love somebody so much that you just met?" The entire thing was truly a miracle, and I am so honored that they let me be a part of their special day! I can't wait to watch Cali grow and change through the years.