16 years ago at this exact moment I was sitting in a
hospital room getting my very first epidural. My mother and father were there
along with Nathan and Louie. It was indeed a family event. We were waiting on
our sweet Raychel to join our family. At 2:25 pm our “Ray” of sunshine was born. She was 10 lbs. and 21 inches long with the most vivid birthmark on her forehead where
the angels gave her one last kiss before sending her down.
We knew Raychel was not the average baby from the moment she
cried her first cry. She was louder, bigger, more alert and more demanding than
the other babies in the nursery. Raychel was being passed around in the stands at her 14 year old brother's basketball game the week she
was born. At three weeks my dear friend Janet Niemeyer was feeding her honey and sopapillas
when we had a Lorena High
School Boys basketball dinner at El Chico. She also introduced Raychel
to iced tea that she gave her drops of from her straw. From that day on Raychel
was not satisfied with milk and we had to put her on cereal and fruit. Raychel sat up, crawled and started babbling well before she was six months old. At 9 months she was walking all over the house and getting into
everything. I was not used to this since Nathan was the “perfect” child. He
never got into trouble and always minded. However, our Raychel broke every rule we gave her
and without even realizing it, everyone around her would end up following HER
rules. Raychel had so many wonderful “moms”
and since most were teachers she learned to talk in full sentences before the
age of two. This led to some very interesting conversations about heaven, God
and where she came from before she came to earth. Raychel would talk to spirits, visited random
graves and would tell me all about the person buried there. I had to warn
everyone who came in contact with her that she might talk about things that
were not “normal” and had to assure them that Raychel was not in need of
therapy. Shopping was always a bit awkward since we had to make room in the cart for all her "friends" and had to wait on all of them to get in the van before I could close the door. Yes, anyone who witnessed this thought I was crazy. I would smile and whisper for everyone to hurry and get in! (sigh)
Raychel had the pleasure of being raised with her amazing brother and a wonderful
group of teenage boys who were all 14 years older than she was. They played
with her, let her fix their hair, performed concerts at Christmas for her,
threw her in the swimming pool and now protect her like one of their own
family. Before she would date a boy, he had to meet and be approved of by her
brother and two of his closest friends.
Through the years we realized that God had truly blessed
Raychel with so much talent and a soul that is wise beyond it’s years. In spite
of being stubborn, mouthy, demanding and messy; she is smart, funny, loyal and
forgiving. Raychel will stand in front of anyone who needs protecting, get
involved in causes that make the world a better place and stand firm in her beliefs
and morals. When she is the topic of rumors and High School drama she tries to set
the record straight but then ignores it since her priority is what God knows to
be true. During the week you will find Raychel in a gym playing Basketball or
Volleyball or at home doing her homework. On Sunday you will find Raychel at
church from 3-6:30pm singing with the church band. If you ask her why she
devotes most of her Sunday to singing in church she will gladly tell you what
she told me, “When I sing for God, I feel whole.”
There is not a day that goes by that I do not thank God and
the Angels who brought her to us. Even
though she has made Louie and I age faster than we should have, makes me drink
that second glass of wine and causes us to both lay awake many nights wondering
what on earth we are going to do with her, we are truly blessed to have her in
our lives. She will always be our baby girl.
Most of you already know she was named “Ray”chel because her Opa said that the day
she was born was the day the sun shined the brightest. I believe he was right.
Happy 16th Birthday Sunshine! You are amazing! Your father and I cannot wait to see you take on the world!
