H is for Hannah

Notice that I am not out of family members yet!!!  Sorry to the rest of you, who had to share your letters with other family members!

Our first grandchild is Hannah Gabrielle Bennett.  The first grandchild on both sides of the family, she has brought delight to us from Day One, and set us all up to love being grandparents!  She is bright, intelligent, engaging, cheerful, helpful…everything a first born should be!  She got off to a rough start.  Linda (her Gran) was there for the first grandma visit, and I followed with my visit.  It was the night before it was time for me to leave, when Daniel woke me up in the middle of the night, telling me something was wrong and should we call 911. 

The rest of the night was a pile of miracles, one on top of another. It turns out Hannah had refluxed, then aspirated fluids into her tiny lungs. 

1.  Whitney had noted in the hospital that when Hannah got a little choked, the nurse used a syringe to remove the mucous. When I got upstairs, Whitney was using the syringe, which the medics said probably saved her life. 

2. I called 911, and miraculously remembered their address when I called because so many people had asked for it to send them congratulations cards. No time was lost through hesitation.

3.  The ambulance was less than 3 minutes from their house, which was a spot they waited in occasionally.  Miraculous that it was their night to be there.

4.  They grabbed her, went to work, and rushed her to a most awesome hospital.  They later told us that we had come within minutes of losing her.  Another miracle.

5.  Most miraculous of all was the work God did in Daniel and Whitney that night.  As Daniel sat there, waiting, he verbalized that he was trusting God, no matter what the outcome, that God was sovereign and he trusted Him with Hannah.  Can you imagine what an impact that night has had on Daniel’s ministry being pastor of a church, and on Whitney as she compassionately ministers to mom’s?

I know that isn’t Daniel’s favorite memory, because of how hard it was, but I remember it with great joy, because I saw God graciously allow us to keep our Hannah, and because I got to stay for a month, doing night duty, getting to feed Hannah and hold her upright at night.  We bonded.  How often does a Grandma get that kind of time with a grandchild hundreds of miles away?  How often do you get to serve your children when they are states away? 

Hannah is a neat girl…about to be 10 this month! She’s talented, happy, helpful, and smart!  She has her Daddy’s sense of humor and love for reading, and her Mommy’s gracious nature and gentle heart of service.  Happy Birthday month to you Hannah, the subject of the letter H!