We have all experienced the newborn baby and have relished at the amazing miracle of life that he or she brings into our lives.  My son was adopted, so I didn’t get to have that experience of the birth, but when his mother and I brought him home for the first time it was so amazing what we just brought into our lives.  He was so happy and well contented with the way his life was proceeding, this brought joy and pleasure into our lives that my wife and I never had dreamed we would experience this moment, it was something magical, something so warm and life changing.  He had changed our lives forever and he never even knew anything was happening.  As he began his adventure in growing up he had a few minor health problems the first one happened on one Saturday morning at our home in Greencastle, he was having a problem breathing which scared his mother and I into a almost panic mode.  We rushed him to the Waynesboro Hospital to his doctor, I can still remember seeing the expression on his Doctors face when he first saw him, he very calmly looked at us and said Oh he is having an asthma attack and with this medication he will be fine in about ten minutes.  Of course I said yea right.  First lesson don’t panic, he was breathing fine in about ten minutes and life continues on.  The minor problems with the cuts and bruises while Patrick was growing up had their moments.  Each problem we tried to handle with calm and care always trying to keep him safe and stronger for the next event.  From the very first day we brought Patrick home he was back then My # 1 son.
 
      Moving ahead thirty five year he is now the proud father of a son, my # 1 grandson, Ryan was born on 06/07/08 but, Ryan’s life was much different than his fathers was.  Ryan was born premature two months early at St Peters Hospital in New Brunswick, NJ.  Here Ryan spent the first two months of his life.  The very first time I got to see my Grandson I could hardly stop the tears from rolling down my face, he laid in his little bed inside an incubator with tubes down his throat,  patches on him that led to monitors to let the nurses know when he stopped breathing, this experience made me feel so helpless and sad, but I must tell you that this place was the best place for Ryan at this time in his life.  This place was called the NICU, here is where the doctors and nurses earn their money, they are the best of the best and deserve what ever they need to care for these children.  

     Today Ryan is the happiest baby, he’s growing and gaining weight advancing ahead of where he would have been if he had gone the full term.  Ryan took his first multiple steps just a few days ago, I wish I could have been there as I’m sure his father was as proud of his son as I was of him when he took his first steps.