One Small Christmas Present

Dear Friends and Family:

Our true Christmas Story:Apparently the Inn with a Room was in New Westminster!

I am sitting here on Christmas Day, 11:16 at night having a fine beer (thanks Marg). There are too many stories to tell, so I will keep this very short. After a regularly scheduled visit to the doctor on Friday, December 23, some possible concerns came up regarding Bev's pregnancy. Then yesterday morning (Christmas Eve), Bev had a suspicion that something was out of kilter with the pregnancy and we headed to the hospital for an extra check up. After it was discovered that Bev had extremely high blood pressure and very high protein levels in her blood, the decision was made to admit her to the hospital. Due to the fact that the due date is seven weeks away, and the doctors (and us) were very concerned. Bev was transferred quickly by ambulance to Burnaby, where after another exam the size of the baby was seen to be smaller than anticipated, and she was tranferred by ambulance to Royal Columbian. We soon discovered why Royal Columbian is the best! We arrived Christmas Eve at 7:00 and Bev was given her own nurse, special attention, and hooked up to a few IV bags and different monitors. After assessing the situation and getting her blood pressure down, eventually the decision was made to deliver the baby this afternoon by C-section (Christmas Day), and just after 6:00 p.m., this modern day Joseph and Mary story came to fruition.

Madelyn Elise Martina Beimers entered the world weighing a boisterous 2lbs-13 ounces (bigger than they thought) in New Westminster, B.C. S

She is being helped with oxygen but doing "amazing", and "couldn't be better" (quoting doctors and nurses.) So well that we were actually allowed to hold this little peanut before they brought her to intensive care where she will remain for a few weeks. As the doctors reminded us, there are still going to be peaks and valleys (peaking now, valleys possibly to come), but she was constantly described as "feisty" (which pretty much fits the other three girls we already have in the house.) We've never cried so much in a weekend, we feel bad that our girls missed Christmas with mom, but God has put a hedge of protection around Bev and Maddy and we covet your prayers as the next few days are critical. The fact that she screamed when she was born was the most encouraging sign of the night!

Where am I emotionally? Spent. Spiritually? Glory to God in the Highest!

And now for my Academy Awards Speech: We just want to publicly thank everyone who helped over the last few days! To my wonderful daughters, Anneke, Corina, and Emma, who missed Christmas, missed us, and who still had so much fun with family. To Mike and Gino and Joel for the humour of text messaging, for John and Lynn stopping by today (and Lynn, I cleaned off the plate of food; John, that beer goes on the mantle on the fireplace--but way to smuggle a cold beer into the hospital) for Marg and Ed and girls last night and for phone calls of support, for Andrew calling me on the way to the hospital on Thursday and for your email of encouragement tonight, for Soph and Els and Luke and Anna and Elise and Michael and everyone for taking care of kids (and offers from all family to watch the kids) and for making Christmas still so special for them, for Mom and Dad sleeping over last night and for loving me like only mom and dad can, to Pastor William coming to the hospital on Christmas Day and letting the girls light advent candles in church this morning, to good friend Joel for calling from Terrace, to Mark for letting me just call because I needed to call... And to Dr. Chapman, Dr. Abraham, Dr. Abhu, Dr. Beauchamp, Nurses Madeleine, Dinah, Dorothy, Betty, Wanda and the whole Infant Instensive Care Response team crew whom we got to know so well...and if I forgot any of you, sorry...you know who you are...and to Danny and Heather, because we love you and I love making sure Danny gets credit for something and you our kids love you both so much!

I am crying as I right this. Crying because Maddy's birth is hopefully not the end but the beginning, crying because I love my family and friends so much, humbled because I see again how much our God loves us and why we need a Saviour, and I can not express enough how AMAZING, from Langley to Burnaby to New Westminster, the nurses and doctors and specialists in our hospitals, had 100% had Bev and Maddy's best interests in mind, and they did it with a smile on a face, and how often when your child is born do you get high fives, hugs, kisses, and everything else from an entire floor of medical experts!

Maddy will be in the hospital, the Lord willing, 4-6 weeks. The prospects of Maddy making it are good, but there are miles to go before we sleep! Please pray for that peanut; and I thank you all for everything that you have all done and will continue to do for us. Seriously, Praise God from Whom all Blessings Flow! Oh yeah, Merry Christmas to all!

Pressing On,

Beim