Teresa Santoski

The season of Advent is a time of anticipation, culminating in the celebration of the birth of Jesus on Christmas Day. Though there are other aspects to Advent, it can be thought of, in essence, as waiting for the birth of a very special baby.

Our family has been waiting for the birth of another baby ever since Oldest Younger Brother and Sister-in-law announced their pregnancy earlier this year. They are already parents to Niece #1, who is now a year and a half, and they were overjoyed to find out they were expecting another girl, who shall henceforth be known as Niece #2.

Since Younger Sister has expressed her intention to have children in the future, I figure it makes the most sense to number my current and potential nieces and nephews according to their birth order rather than going with Oldest Niece, Younger Niece and so forth.

All numerical references are strictly chronological and are no indication of favoritism – at least until someone buys Aunt Teresa a condo in Florida.

Given that Niece #2 was supposed to arrive the Monday before Thanksgiving, we did not expect the wait would continue into Advent – and indeed, into the wee hours of the first day of December.

Whether you’ve had a baby yourself or have eagerly awaited the birth of a friend or family member’s baby, you know that the anticipation mounts as the due date draws closer. And even though due dates are not necessarily an exact science, if the due date passes and the baby has yet to arrive, that anticipation becomes tinged with apprehension.

Thankfully, Sister-in-law’s doctors found no cause for concern. Niece #2 was perfectly healthy and doing just fine in utero, and Sister-in-law wasn’t experiencing any complications – apart from, you know, being very much ready not to be pregnant anymore.

It’s possible that there was a simple miscalculation of the due date, but I have my own theory as to why Niece #2 decided to take her time. The only people in our immediate family who share a birth month are Oldest Younger Brother and Sister-in-law – their birthdays are actually a year and a day apart, which is quite romantic.

But it’s not quite so romantic to have to share a birth month with a sibling, especially when you’re growing up. You don’t want to have a joint celebration and a cake with both your names on it – you want all the attention to be on you for your special day.

Dad, Mom, Youngest Brother, Younger Sister, Younger Sister’s boyfriend, Niece #1 and I were all born in different months. When factoring in Oldest Younger Brother and Sister-in-law’s birthdays, we have cake and presents every month for six straight months.

Niece #2, however, was not only due in Mom’s birth month but also very close to Mom’s birthday. Since no one in our immediate family has a December birthday, I believe Niece #2 decided to hold out for her own birth month.

It’s therefore no coincidence to me that Oldest Younger Brother and Sister-in-law left for the hospital shortly after midnight on December 1. Niece #2 was aware of the calendar change, and she decided it was time to make her grand entrance.

After waiting in the birthing suite for a few hours, Sister-in-law figured she still had some time before she went into full labor. Niece #2 had been a bit of a slowpoke so far, so surely, Sister-in-law reasoned, she could take a quick shower before everything got underway.

And that’s how my niece was born in the handicap accessible shower in the birthing suite. To say that Sister-in-law is a trooper is an understatement.

Niece #2 is healthy, adorable and very, very chill. She makes a nice complement to Niece #1, who is a ball of energy. I can only imagine the kinds of adventures they’ll have as they grow up together, but I can certainly envision a lot of gray hair in Oldest Younger Brother and Sister-in-law’s future. I’m still amazed that Mom and Dad aren’t completely gray after everything us kids have put them through.

Though Niece #2 wasn’t born according to our timetable, we know she arrived at just the right time because God’s timing is always perfect. His timing doesn’t always look perfect from our human perspective – I imagine Mary wasn’t expecting to give birth in a stable, much like Sister-in-law didn’t anticipate delivering Niece #2 in the birthing suite shower – but we can trust that He knows what He’s doing.

Jesus was born at the right time to save us from our sins so that we might have eternal life with God, and Niece #2 was born at the right time to secure her own birthday month amongst our immediate family. And not only that, but she was born at the right time to not have her birthday combined with Thanksgiving or Christmas.

The stakes are certainly much higher in regard to Jesus’ birth, but I’ll take the timing of Niece #2’s birth as its own kind of Christmas miracle.

Merry Christmas to you and yours, and may God bless.

Tete-a-tete is published monthly. Teresa Santoski can be reached at tsantoski@gmail.com or via www.teresasantoski.com.

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