Hannah Amanda Ruth Mustard was born to David B. and Elizabeth J. Mustard at 1:36 pm on Monday Oct. 5, 2009--the same day as her uncle Ed's birthday! Both baby and mom are fine. Hannah weighed 8 pounds 9 ounces (the same as her oldest brother David) and was 21 inches long, the longest of the five children who beat Mary by .25 of an inch. 

   Elizabeth and I are intentional about our children's names. For a first name we always choose a Biblical name of a person we admire and who has characteristics that we would like our children to exhibit. The name "Hannah" means "grace of God". In the Old Testament, Hannah and her husband Elkanah were childless. Hannah asked God for a son and promised that he would serve as a priest. Hannah then became the mother of Samuel, a priest, prophet, and who many consider the last judge of Israel. 

    Elizabeth and I both have always liked the name "Amanda", which means "lovable" or "to be loved", which we thought aptly described this little one.  

    "Ruth", Elizabeth's mother's middle name, means "friend" and "companion". Ruth was a young Moabite woman whose husband and father-in-law died. She promised her mother-in-law Naomi, "Where you go, there I shall go also; your people will be my people, your God, my God." Ruth left her home in Moab to accompany Naomi on a long and dangerous trip back to Israel. We have always loved the story of Ruth, an impoverished widow with little earthly hope, who God richly blessed and became the great-grandmother of King David and eventual ancestor of Jesus. 

   These pictures are from the first 20 minutes after Hannah was born
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Dad with David Andrew, Stephen, Mary, James, and Hannah. 

Mary and Hannah--about 20 minutes after she was born.

James and Hannah. As Hannah was passed from person to person, little James earnestly looked up and sweetly asked, "May I please hold the baby now?"