My Little Girl

"I'd love to go to your party, but my water just broke. I know the timing isn't the best, but I can't help it. No, the baby is on time. No, I don't know the gender. Yes, I have clothes for a boy or a girl. Yes, I really am going to the hospital. Okay. Thank you."

My friends all were at a party that I didn't really want to attend anyways. Fine by me. The next person I call is my husband. "Honey, I need you to come home. No, yeah my water broke. You do but don't need to hurry. I think it will be....... a little bit before the baby comes." All I could think about was the pain. It wasn't too bad yet, but it still hurt.

It didn't take long for my husband to get home. It was humorous to watch him, like a tornado, throw everything into the truck and then slowly help me in. I gave him a kiss on the cheek before he closed the door and ran to his side.

Quickly, but carefully, we got to the hospital. He ran inside and got a nurse with a wheelchair. They got me inside and hooked up to monitor contractions and our heartbeats.

"What's baby's name?" The kind nurse asked after I was all hooked up. "Oh and the doctor will come in for the epidural."

My husband looked at me and replied to the nurse. "If the baby is a girl, Ariel. If the baby is a boy, Toby." He smiled at me.

Those names had meaning to them. His grandfather passed away when he was seventeen. We had been dating two years. His name was Toby. My grandmother was my guardian. She raised me since I was nine years old. She passed the year after his grandfather did. Her name was Ariel. We couldn't wait to meet our child.

Twenty minutes later, the nurse smiled at us and we heard our baby cry. "Congratulations mom and dad. Would you like to meet Ariel?" Tears rolled down our faces as we happily met our baby girl. Our world was complete.