Father of the Year!

Katy finally went into labor on Friday evening, and called me, the midwife,and her other friends and family that were going to attend her during her delivery. I dropped the kids with my folks and busted a move on up to Kirksville as fast as I could. Right at about LaPlata, which is 15 minutes outside of Kirksville, my phone rings, and it's them. Here is the conversation as I remember:
Me: Hello?
Chris: Hi. This is Chris Korte.
Me: Yes, I know, Chris Korte. What's up?
(Katy, the background: It's Erin Ramsay! I had you call Erin!)
Chris: The baby's out!
Me: The baby's out!? You delivered the baby?
Chris: Yes. Oh my God, I've never been so scared in my life.
Me: Is the baby breathing?
(screaming baby in background)
Me: That's good - I can hear it crying. Okay, what you need to do now is dry and stimulate it. Put it on Katy's chest and cover it them with a dry towel.
Chris: Cover them with a dry towel.
Me:The important thing is to keep it warm and pink and breathing. Did you call the midwife?
Chris: She should be here any second. The cord's still attached.
Me: Don't worry about the cord. The midwife will take care of it when she gets there. Just keep the baby warm and pink. I'll be there in 10 minutes. Are you okay?
Chris: Oh my God, I was so scared.
Me: You did great! Congratulations!

By the time I got there, the midwife was there and had tied and cut the cord. Evidently, around 7pm Katy's contractions suddenly got more intense and she felt the need to push, and she told her husband so. Their friend Sara had just walked in the door when Katy started pushing. Sarah started taking pictures. Zoe was there the entire time (they had sent Isaiah to a friends) and sat on the steps down into the back room and watched the whole thing. She was very brave and very mature throughout. The head delivered, and Katy told Alvin to check for a cord around the neck. There was indeed a nuchal cord, and Katy told Alvin to get the scissors. Well, Sarah looked, reached over, and looped her finger around the cord. Alvin was then able to slip it over the baby's head and deliver the shoulders and the body. Katy turned around, sat down in the tub, and he handed her the baby, washed off his hands, and called me. And so Eleisa Renea came into the world.

She's about ten minutes old here. The blueness of her hands and forhead are normal. She weighed 9 lbs 8oz, and was 22 inches long.

Zoe was amazing. She handled the whole delivery like a much older girl. Afterwards, of course, she was a maniac. But here she is, quiet and mature and holding her baby sister.

Katy and Eleisa.



This is the Mennonite midwife, Nancy.

Isaiah meets his sister. He was unsure at first, but he warmed up to her.

The new, improved Korte family.

Zoe is wearing a sorcerer's costume her aunt brought her that night as a gift.