Most of you already know this, but Baby Girl arrived last Sunday, August 7!
This photo was taken by Mr N moments before we left for the hospital. The kids were SO excited. They went to some friends' of ours, who took them to church. This photo was taken around 7am. I didn't realize I wasn't turned enough for the full effect of the belly to be appreciated. I was alllllll belly.
Baby C was born at 5:45 pm, weighed 8lbs2oz, and was 20 inches long. She was born 12 days before her due date, for which I am eternally grateful. She was posterior for a while, which stalled labor for about 6 hours (also grateful for epidurals!), but once we got that resolved and I was fully dilated, she arrived in less than 10 minutes! Very fast, just 7-8 pushes. It took about an hour for my brain to catch up to the fact that it was all over!
We came home on Tuesday. The babysitter snapped this photo, the first of all of us. We are a family of five!
She is a sweet baby, great at nursing, and beloved by all of us. Miss E loves to sing to her, and pick out her outfits. The kids love to put "hanitizer" (hand sanitizer) on so they can touch her. They are both great at being gentle. They are also being helpful, getting burp cloths or new blankets for swaddling.
The other day Miss E said Baby C was cute. "No!" shouted M. "She not cute!"
"What is she, M?" Mr N & I asked.
"She's pretty!" he answered.
Awww.
She likes to have one hour-and-a-half fussy period each night. She likes to mix it up so we never know when it will strike. Fun. But other than that, she is doing so well. Her weight got a little low post birth. At four days old, she was down to 7lbs5oz, so we had to go back to the doctor the next day for another weigh-in. Fortunately she was up an ounce, so no supplementing is necessary. Her favorite place to sleep is in her parents' arms (of course)!
Mr N is off work for paternity leave which is marvelous. He is home through the rest of the month. We have mostly been splitting the labor as I take care of the baby, he takes care of the older two. However, now that it's been a week I'm feeling more able. Plus we can tell the kids want to spend more time with me than they have lately. But it is really nice that Mr N can take the kids out and about, so they don't get stir crazy. I am a bit hermit-y after a new baby arrives. I think I barely left the house for three weeks after Miss E was born. Though we have already been out as a family a couple of times this week. My hips are still recovering from pregnancy so I still can't stand or walk too much at one time or I get very sore & stiff.
We are in serious baby love here at the N house!
