Birth: John

When my first baby, John, was born, I had a hard time having him. He was born at home. We called the doctor. He came and delivered the baby. John weighed nine pounds. That is big for a first baby. After the doctor went home, I started to bleed very fast. I called my oldest sister-in-law Rose. She had been through a lot and understood about many things. I said, “Rose, I feel as though my bed is going up and hitting the ceiling and I feel so peaceful.” She lifted the sheets and called for her brother and sent him to get the doctor right away. She begged him to hurry. I was bleeding so much that I was passing away. My husband went and explained everything to the doctor. The doctor gave him a bottle of medicine and he told my husband to give it to me right away. When my husband went to open it, he read the word Poison on the bottle. He was afraid to give it to me. So back to the doctor he went. This time he put the doctor in his Model-T Ford and drove him to our house. The doctor gave me the same medicine. The blood started to ease up with the help of an injection. It took me two months to get better.

The morning after John was born my husband handed cigars to all his co-workers and friends. The cigars read “It's a boy.” Of course, his mother and sisters were thrilled for their brother and the baby was named after their dead father. When we christened the baby, my sister-in-law Louise and a young man friend of my husband, named Al Petrocco, were the sponsors. It was a big christening; both families attended. John received many beautiful gifts.

Then I started to get pains across my chest and under my shoulder blades. Doctors took x-rays, thinking I had gallstones. No stones showed in the x-rays. They wanted to do an exploratory operation. My husband said, “No!” He was not going to have me cut up unless he knew what they were looking for, so they gave me medication. That helped the pain.

I nursed my baby. He was a big hungry baby. He sucked so hard that the nipple on my right breast got infected. The doctor suggested I give the baby a bottle along with my nursing. In those days not many people gave their babies bottles, but I gave my baby a bottle. When my in-laws came, I would hide the bottle and my baby would keep crying. He was a colic baby. He did nothing but cry for three months. Sometimes my husband would bundle him up and take him for an automobile ride around the block. That was the only way the baby would fall asleep. After three months, he was a good baby. He ate and nursed. He laughed when we played with him.

When John was six months old one of his large toes got infected. It was very uncomfortable. We felt sorry for him; after that John was fine.

I was still with pain in my chest and across my shoulders. I couldn't eat anything. The doctor said that I shouldn't have any more children. I used to get depressed. Sometimes I wished I could die, the pain was so bad. My mother would come to visit me and bring me a new dress.

My parents bought me the baby carriage and a baby stroller. My mother would talk to me and say that God didn't like my saying that I wanted to die. I had a lovely husband and a healthy, pretty baby and a home of our own. I had a lot to live for. My parents felt bad for me, because they loved me very much.

My mother-in-law and sister-in-law Louise helped me with the baby. They were good to me. My mother-in-law showed me how to bathe the baby and give the baby certain exercises to help the baby grow strong.