Drop by drop, Paddy Garin dribbled out pieces of Minnesota history Wednesday.

“Just put it in!” said his wife, Angela, impatiently, as he squeezed the state’s first legal marijuana oil into a small bottle.

She then spoon-fed the oil mixed with yogurt into the mouth of her epileptic son. The boy swallowed, and his dad let out a victory cry.

“Freedom in America!” he shouted.

The family is finally free to buy medical marijuana in Minnesota.

Thirteen months after state lawmakers took action and the program was put in place, the Garins and more than 30 other families on Wednesday bought marijuana pills and oils, as dispensaries opened in Eagan and Minneapolis.

Most of the families had been hoping for this moment for years. They emerged from the clinics, medicine in hand, thankful and relieved.

“It’s very emotional for me,” said Jessica Hauser of Woodbury, as she left the Minneapolis clinic.

She will no longer consider moving to another state to get marijuana for her 3-year-old son Wyatt, who has more than 100 seizures a day.

“It’s almost surreal, seeing medical marijuana in my home state,” Hauser said. She held up a bottle, with a one-month’s supply of the drug, costing her $240.

Marijuana’s Minnesota debut drew people celebrating for other reasons.

Andrew Henderson of Little Canada drove to the Minneapolis clinic to pose in a picture with a sign saying, “Legalize marijuana in MN.”

“This is the first step down the pathway to full legalization,” he said, clutching the sign. “I am happy about it.”

Rubber-neckers also stopped.

Ken Bergstrom of Minneapolis pulled up in a pickup truck, looking at the reporters — but no patients. “I thought there would be 100 or so people here in line, for recreational or medical use,” he said.

Instead, both clinics reported a steady trickle, as patients arrived by appointment.

The Minneapolis clinic of Minnesota Medical Solutions reported that an estimated 22 patients were expected to buy the marijuana Wednesday. No patient estimates were given by the Eagan dispensary, owned by LeafLine Labs, but a spokesman did say patient traffic was steady.

Several patients said they felt lucky — as being among the 90 people registered to get the drug, out of an estimated 5,000 eligible Minnesotans.

“It’s bittersweet. It’s great for us, but there are so many other people who have been waiting too long,” said Angela Garin of St. Paul. “They can’t afford it, or they can’t get to a clinic.”

“There is still a lot of work to be done,” agreed Hauser, the Woodbury mother.

Officials raised the possibility of expanding the program — before it was even one day old.

Gov. Mark Dayton said at a news conference that he might support adding chronic pain to the list of ailments that qualify people for marijuana.

“I certainly don’t want anybody out there who would benefit medically from this substance to be denied legal access to it in Minnesota,” Dayton said.

Minnesota House Speaker Kurt Daudt, R-Crown, said the Legislature may look at expanding the use of marijuana.

“If there is a need, we probably should look at that,” Daudt said.

Marijuana is currently available only to people with the following conditions: cancer that causes pain or nausea, glaucoma, Tourette syndrome, Lou Gehrig’s disease, AIDS, epilepsy, Crohn’s disease, multiple sclerosis or any painful condition expected to kill the patient within a year.

The Garins piled into their car Wednesday morning, along with epileptic son Paxton, 6, and his newborn sister.

It was a pilgrimage they had dreamed about for years. The only time Paxton had taken marijuana was during a trip to Oregon — and the Garins were amazed at how much it helped him.

Until Wednesday, they would have had to travel hundreds of miles to get it — instead of traveling to Minneapolis.

“When I was driving there, I was so anxious and excited that I thought I would throw up,” Angela said.

They checked in, and had a one-hour consultation with a pharmacist. Paxton had a seizure while in the office.

They bought marijuana oil, and were surprised at the price — $160 for a one-month supply, with a discount. They were expecting to pay more than $200.

They arrived back home, and immediately got to work preparing the medicine.

Paddy heated up coconut oil to liquefy it, so it could be mixed with the marijuana oil. Measurements had to be precise — 1.4 milliliters of marijuana oil for 35 milliliters of coconut oil.

Paxton can’t chew every variety of food, so Paddy needed to find a soft food to mix with the oil.

“What do it we put it in?” he said.

“All I have is that Go-Gurt crap,” said Angela.

Paddy brought some from the kitchen, and mixed the coconut-marijuana oil into the pink goo. Angela spooned it into her son’s mouth.

Reading the instructions, Paddy said that Paxton would need 0.65 milliliters of the mixture every three hours, round-the-clock.

“No problem — he doesn’t sleep at night, anyway,” said Angela.

Paddy sucked up some yogurt into the marijuana oil syringe, just to mop up any last bits of the oil.

“You have got to get the residue,” he said.

Then they began to wait.

Based on their experience in Oregon, said Angela, the symptoms should abate.

“We do expect him to chill out, to not have so many tantrums, to eat more and for the seizures to decrease,” she said.

Are they sure it will work?

Angela gazed longingly at her son, lying on the floor and making sharp screechy noises.

“I know,” she said, “he’s in there.”

Her dream is to see him — the boy inside, not just the epilepsy. She hopes that marijuana will be able to show him to the world.

“I hope to see his personality more,” she said. “Our hope is to talk with him someday.”

At 5 p.m. Wednesday, five hours after giving him the marijuana, the Garins did not see any change in Paxton’s symptoms. But that was too soon to tell, said Paddy.

“We are not expecting miracles,” he said. The initial doses are small, he said, but they might be increased later.

Rachel E. Stassen-Berger contributed to this report. Bob Shaw can be reached at 651-228-5433. Follow him at twitter.com/BshawPP.