My new grandson

My oldest nephew celebrated his 32nd birthday on Sept. 2. He was born on Labor Day in 1990. I still remember how I teased my sister-in-law about waiting until “Labor Day” to go into labor. Our entire family was excited to welcome my brother and sister-in-law’s first child. He has grown into a fine young man and is doing a great job of managing the business my brother built before he passed away last December. His dad was proud of him before his death, and I believe is even more proud of how he has stepped up to oversee the family business and look out for his mother as she adjusts to life without my brother.

Little did I know that exactly 32 years after my first nephew arrived, I would welcome my first grandchild. I am extremely proud of our new little guy and am happy to report my grandson and his mother are both doing very well.

Since the moment my wife and I learned my daughter was expecting we have been very excited about our coming grandchild. Although I was aware of my growing excitement, I was not fully prepared for the deep emotion I felt the first couple of times I held him. My eyes filled with tears as I looked into the face of Baby J and thanked God for him.

I became a dad when I was 24 and increasingly since that day have been anticipating the time when I would become a grandfather. My wife Kelly has repeatedly told me the baby is perfect. We have done what almost all parents and grandparents do – admired his cute face, counted his fingers and toes and have fallen completely in love with our little gift from God.

My daughter and son-in-law love their baby and are adjusting well to their role as new parents. Every member of our family is looking forward to seeing him grow. Baby J will soon discover his toes, ceiling fans, cartoons, baby food, and a thousand other things adults simply take for granted. In the years to come he will amaze us, delight us, sometimes frustrate us, and occasionally infuriate us.

Those who have raised children know that raising kids has moments of pure joy and times of frustration when the parents are unsure of what is best for their child. To a lesser extent, the same is true for each baby’s grandparents, aunts and uncles.

However, no matter what comes, in both the happy times and sad times, every family needs to occasionally be reminded of scripture’s wonderful perspective. “Children are a gift from the Lord…” (Psalm 127:3, NLT) Whether they are currently challenging us or making us smile, they are God’s gift; a miracle entrusted to us for a short time to teach, train, and one day launch into the world.