Now Introducing . . .

We are overjoyed to announce the birth of our daughter, Giselle Shiloah Jen Ford.

Here are her stats:
Weight: 5lbs 8.3oz (tiny!)
Length: 19"
Hair: black and long and straight
Face: red complexion and beautiful, with a pointy nose!
Date of birth: Sunday, January 3rd.
Time: 9:02pm


We didn't have mittens with us, so we used socks for her hands to prevent scratching her face.

Meaning of Names:
Giselle means "pledge" or "promise". Shiloah represents peace or peacefulness, as in "the gently flowing waters of Shiloah...", mentioned in Isaiah 8:6. Shiloah symbolized the Lord's gentle, silent protection rather than worldly sources of strength. When one trusts in the Lord, the Lord promises his gentleness and peace, as referenced also in Psalm 23: "he leads me beside the still (or quiet) waters". After we lost Lael in December 2008, despite the profound sadness we experienced, we knew the Lord's peace in a very intimate way. And now one year later the Lord has blessed us with this daughter, whom Cristina has perceived as being gentle ever since months ago in the womb. And now after birth she seems so gentle and peaceful. So this meaning fits her well. Moreover, the Lord blessed us with a beautiful birth. Jen is Cristina's sister's name, and she has been an instrumental part of the last 4 births Cristina has gone through. So we wanted to honor her by using her name as the second middle name.



Labor and Delivery:
Labor began Sunday morning around 10:30am, to my ignorance. Only later in the afternoon, did Cristina inform me that she "may be in labor". Around 2-3pm, the labor got more intense, and we were discussing when to call her sister, Jen, who is a midwife, to help Cristina labor. Jen was with us for the births of Ethan and Carmelita, as well as Lael's delivery. She has been such a valuable support. Cristina kept expressing her fear of the labor stopping all the sudden, or not laboring long enough and showing up at the hospital with minimal progress. We were waiting to call the doctor until ready to leave for the hospital. Cristina packed our hospital bags while enduring contraction after contraction. Martin juggled getting other items ready, like the carseat and cameras, so we could have plenty of room for taking pictures and video, along with comforting Cristina through contractions occasionally. Finally Cristina agreed to call Jen when the contractions started getting really intense. Jen brought Kiana to help watch the kids with Uncle Daniel. Cristina's mother was sick. After Jen arrived, we called to ask Uncle Daniel to come over. After his arrival, we immediately left for the hospital, at emergency speeds, because Jen said we needed to hurry; she knew the baby would be coming out very soon. After getting to the hospital I found a wheelchair and wheeled her running with the guidance of a security guard to the elevator and up to Labor and Delivery where they took her in and wanted to calmly get all the info and waivers signed. But when they saw Cristina break into her contraction, they knew they had no time to spare, exclaiming, "She's ready to push! Get her to a room fast!" So we and 3-4 nurses went running through the hallways to a delivery room. They put her into a gown, broke down the bed into delivery mode, and within 15 minutes after arriving to the room, the baby was born in all of her beauty. Cristina, although having expressed repeatedly that she couldn't do this, did push the baby out and endured through a drug-free labor for the first time in all her deliveries- a long-awaited dream fulfilled! We want to thank the One who made it possible- Jesus Christ, who did in fact give his life for us, and gave my Cristina the strength she needed to push our baby out when she was at wit's end. She repeatedly expressed her desperation and called on the Lord for His help and recounts with all her heart that she couldn't have done it without His strength. Jesus deserves all the glory and credit! Cristina deserves credit for enduring and trusting in her Savior to bring her through this greatest life challenge.

We want to thank you for all your prayers for a safe birth and baby.

Mommy and baby are resting well after the marathon (or shall I say sprint?).

With love in Christ,

Martin and Cristina Ford