Fifteen Years With Wild Man

Fifteen years ago today, Wild Man entered the world with all the hoopla and pizzazz that we’ve come to expect from him!

On his due date, May 1, we started a labor induction with Pitocin because my blood pressure had started to go up. I had had a nice, quiet birth without medication with my first pregnancy and hoped for the same with this birth. Ha! I already had great respect for Pitocin, having used it in the practice of medicine for several years, but now I got to see first-hand what it was like. And it was rough! Within just a couple of hours, I was 4 cm dilated, but in serious pain. The nurses were turning the Pitocin down because my own labor had kicked in and they gave me an iv narcotic which didn’t seem to do a thing. In another hour, I asked for an intrathecal injection (similar to an epidural), but my doctor told me, oh so sweetly, that I was 8cm dilated and it was too late for more meds. By this time, I was well past calm and quiet – contractions were one on top of another, and I was in pain!

Within just a couple of contractions, I was ready to push! My doctor gave me the go-ahead. The nurses were getting a table in the room. My husband was getting on some gloves to help with the birth. My doctor was helping the hubby with the gloves. My mom was manning the heart rate monitor to check Wild Man’s heart rate every contraction or two. It was crazy! And I pushed! My water broke as the baby’s head descended from almost out of my pelvis to just about crowning! The nurse said, “Doctor, I see the baby’s head!” One more push (with a scream for good measure) and Wild Man was out and my doctor put him on my chest.

Wild Man had the cord around his neck, so he came out rather blue. But, since I was holding him against my bare skin, I could feel that he had great muscle tone and that he was making excellent respiratory effort, so my doctor and I weren’t a bit worried. Unfortunately, PWM didn’t have all that info at his disposal, but he calmed down as Wild Man turned very quickly pink.

Wild Man came into the world ready to eat. He turned his head to find the breast and didn’t want to let go for the next six months! He was a bit of a picky eater for his first five or six years, but now, at age 15, the boy will eat just about anything! And he’s smart – he likes his mama’s food the best!

One of the funny things about Wild Man is how verbal he is. Well, you’d expect a child of mine and PWM’s to be verbal. But, Wild Man was very late to talk. I remember when he was three years old that he would stand at the refrigerator and kind of grunt. I used to say, “pick a word, any word!! Even if it’s the wrong word!” Somewhere along the way, he learned to talk and now we can’t seem to get him to quit.

When Wild Man didn’t learn to read by the time he was nine, we got rather concerned and had him tested and found that he’s dyslexic. Wild Man has had to work hard at it, but he reads quite well and reads everything I assign (which is a good bit since we use Sonlight curriculum) without problem. He’s had to work at his reading, writing, and spelling, but he’s making progress. And I’m glad to see that he’s willing to put in the work.

We are a musical family, and Wild Man is no exception to that rule! He took piano lessons when he was young, but I think he was frustrated with reading music because of his dyslexia (which wasn’t recognized at the time). However, he was in dance for several years which he enjoyed and at which he excelled. When he started 6th grade, he joined the middle school band, mostly because I told him he had to take a class at the public school. He’s been playing percussion in the band and drum kit in the church youth band since then. At some point in the last few years, he started learning guitar. Now he plays acoustic, electric, and bass guitar. He has been known to play any of the for the adult and youth worship teams at church.

Mostly, though, Wild Man is just a great kid. He has always loved his hugs and kisses. When he sees me at church (since he’s usually there before me), he runs over and gives me a big hug and kiss and doesn’t care how many of his friends see him. He loves to laugh and have fun, but he can be serious, especially when it comes to leading worship. I love that he loves Jesus so much!

God has blessed me and PWM tremendously with our children. Wild Man has been a joy and challenge to raise. He makes us laugh and makes us want to tear out our hair. But, as Wild Man has grown, so have I. I’ve learned not to take myself so seriously. I’ve learned to relax about education. I’ve learned how to help my incredibly smart dyslexic boy learn to read as well as understand his other subjects. I wouldn’t trade these last 15 years for anything in the world.