Becoming a father

Nathan Routledge

The above little miracle arrived nearly a week ago, and, whilst we knew very well that it would be life-changing, there's a difference between knowing it and experiencing it! All of a sudden, mine and Clare's lives revolve around the newest member of the family. It is very tiring(!) but we wouldn't have it any other way!

The hospital experience was long. Clare went in to be induced last Sunday, but we spent all day Monday waiting for a bed to become free in the Delivery Suite...it never came. So things didn't start properly until Tuesday. I have never been as proud of Clare as I was during the 14 hours of labour she went through - you'd never have thought it was her first baby, so calm and collected she was. This is her within half an hour of the birth:

So Nathan John Roger has entered our lives! His middle names are in honour of his two grandfathers; whilst Nathan has been his chosen name for a long time! It's a name which Clare chose, and I am very happy with - and has the wonderful meaning, "gift from God". After the epic journey it has taken us to get here, I cannot think of a more appropriate name - he truly is a gift as well as a miracle.

Nathan is here!

Very brief update as the last week has kind of passed by in a whirl!

Nathan Routledge arrived safely on Wednesday 22nd September, 13 days late! 8lb 3oz, so a nice healthy weight. Clare was amazing - I am one proud husband and dad!

A longer post will follow, but right now I am just too tired! (But happy!!)

Prospective fatherhood

Well, this is it! If nothing happens in the next 24 hours, Clare will be off to the hospital tomorrow afternoon to begin the induction process. In less than 48 hours, baby will be here, and we will be parents!

Of all the things that have happened in my life over 37 years, this is both the most exciting and the most daunting. Becoming parents is something we've longed for for so long, and now it is almost here, I am literally giddy with anticipation and a huge sense of responsibility. The awesomeness of what is about to happen is hitting us both - and, whilst we cannot wait to meet our little miracle, we're very aware that we are about to embark on a huge adventure which we feel pretty unprepared for! The antenatal classes have been great - but that was all theory - we're about to find out that babies don't follow any standard pattern!

Keep an eye open for pictures on the blog! They should be here in a few days!

Curacy!

We're still waiting for this baby to decide that he/she wants to leave the comfort of the womb, so in the meantime, how about some curacy news?

The news is that we know where we will be going next year! It has been announced in the parish, so I am now free to tell people: I will be curate in the Ebbsfleet Team Ministry, which is the parishes of Northfleet & Rosherville.

Clare & I went to visit a few weeks ago, and met the Team Rector and a few people from the churches and community. Lawrence (the Rector) seems like he will be a great colleague to work with, and the community, whilst fairly needy in places, has a good feel to it. The day we visited was a fun day organised by and for a particular street, with the church being involved, and there was a great atmosphere about the place. Everyone we met was enthusiastic about the possibility of us going there, which was nice and affirming! We will be making another visit at some point this autumn.

With everything else happening, it is really good to know where we will be going next year. There are details to be sorted out, of course, but it leaves me free to focus on the new college year, as well as being a dad, without having to take lots of trips back to Rochester Diocese.

There's only a few of us who are leaving next year who have our curacies sorted, so please pray for everyone who is still looking, especially those who are being released by their sending Dioceses.

The waiting time

The last few days have been kind of strange. I feel very much in an 'in-between' time.

With all the work done, including tweaking the essays after tutor comments, I now feel as ready as I'll ever be for baby's arrival. But baby isn't here yet! And, with Clare showing no signs of going into labour whatsoever, I'll be surprised if baby does make an appearance on the due date (Thursday).

So it's a time of waiting. A time for patience. And a time to enjoy being a couple while we have the chance!

Work done, baby imminent!

Phew! Time to end the silence of the last few months, as today I finished my second Long Essay, just in time for baby's arrival!

The last few weeks have been pretty much full of activity either baby or essay related! We've been getting the nursery ready and going to antenatal classes, as well as the regular trips to see the midwife and consultant. Clare is now less than a week from her due date (9th September), and looking very good! At the last midwife appointment (Tuesday), we found out that baby was 3/5 engaged, so things really could happen at any moment!

As I mentioned above, both Long Essays are done. They will need a little tweaking, once the tutors have cast their eye over them, but I feel good enough about them that I could hand them in as they are, if necessary. As with the exams, I'm not expecting to get a First for either of them; as long as they are good enough to pass, that's the important thing. More importantly, the reading and writing of them has where the real learning has been for me.

There are 3 weeks until term begins now, so, assuming baby arrives on time, we will have a couple of weeks together before I get back into college life. It's kind of weird being a 2nd year, meeting all the new arrivals, but fun too!