Introducing Luci Anneliese Shifflett!!!!

"But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God." Luke 18:16

Our precious granddaughter made her grand entrance at 7:36 p.m. Mountain Time at the St. Lukes Regional Medical Center in Boise Idaho on Monday, July 27, 2009 . She weighs 7 pounds, 14 ounces, and is 19.5 inches long. I must admit the day was long for me and I am sure longer for John and Melissa. Melissa and John arrived at the hospital at 7:00 a.m. I fought off calling them until around 1:00 p.m. (11:00 a.m. their time)Virginia time. Things were moving slow and she had dilated around 2 cms. I asked Jeremy to text message them on the way home from work around 5:30 p.m. (3:30 p.m. their time). She was at 3 cms. I had been praying through out the day as I have delivered two babies and I know that while it is the most wonderful experience to bring a baby into the world, it is also a painful experience. I so longed to be with my son and daughter-in-law.

I prepared myself for a long sleepless night and was sitting in the recliner when the phone rang around 10:15 p.m. John was in the computer room and his reach was quicker than mine by a few seconds. We both answered it on the first ring. It was John Anthony (I try to refer to him as "John" but always called him "John Anthony" as he was growing up) and I could feel his excitement. The baby was born! What a joy and a relief! Now the wait for pictures....... Melissa had a friend at the hospital that was uploading pictures to Facebook but we were not able to see them on our end. John had e-mailed several to Jeremy on his cell-phone but Jeremy was out playing basketball. After around 45 LONG minutes, Jeremy came home and we saw her for the first time! Mandy, Sharon, Kelsey and Nicholas were also hanging onto the laptop hoping for pictures of Luci so Jeremy walked over to show them his pictures on the cell-phone. I called Susie and Lorene with the exciting news. I think she is beautiful and I can't wait to hold her. While I rejoice that I have a granddaughter, I am also sad that I can't be with her right away. I have to pray for God's patience and guidance in this matter.

What a wonderful gift that God has blessed my son and daughter-in-law with and I can't wait to share more and more pictures with you all!!!!