who
loves
her
Uncle Mike!?
Norah Does!!
Oh, and look who is all smiles now!?!?
Monday, February 28, 2011
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Sick Days
A couple months ago, while I was still preggers with Makaela, I remember secretly dreading winter, and all that it brings. Cold. Snow. Short days. Cabin Fever. But mostly, I dread cold and flu season. I know that it's inevitable, especially when Harmony goes to day care, and is in a class of 15 (give or take) three-year-olds at church on Sundays. And I knew that it would be even harder when there were two. I thought I had prepared myself for it.
But I didn't prepare myself enough.
Not at all.
It hit our home on Valentines Day. Harmony all of a sudden darted from the dinner table to throw up. The next day, a cough started. And by the end of the week, her fever spiked. High. It was over 103, and it freaked me out. And through it all, Makaela became heavily congested, and wasn't sleeping well at all. I also feared that she would catch whatever was causing Harmony's fever.
Oh, and did I mention I had the flu? Icing on the cake, people. Icing on the nastiest, ugliest, grossest cake you ever saw.
So you can imagine my panic on Tuesday when Harmony's fever was STILL high, Makaela still wasn't sleeping for more than 30 minutes at a time (during the day- at night she was still doing very well- thank goodness, since Harmony was up every hour), and COMPANY WAS COMING. Mike's sister was coming to visit with a friend of hers, and also his mother was coming for the weekend. And my house was TRASHED. It was almost comical. ALMOST. This is what it looked like:
My table was caked in food.
My kitchen had dishes everywhere.
My living room had clutter everywhere.
And oh, my closet. Laundry piled high.
My bathroom had bath toys, damp towels, and my toiletries everywhere. (and yes, those are my winter boots in there. Don't ask)
God was feeling sorry for me, so he cut me a break. I put Makaela down for her mid-morning nap, and I put a movie on for my sick little girl and hoped for the best (just look at her- so miserable. She has a terrible cold sore, hence the bandaid on her face).
I got to work. And two hours later, I finally had a clean home. Harmony watched the entire movie and Makaela slept the whole time. And I was a cleaning maniac. It was almost therapeutic- to rid my house of germs, to make progress on SOMETHING. To get my mind off of worrying about the girls.
And it felt good. Clutter makes me stressed. Even watching house demos/renovations on TV makes me anxious. So to see my house that messy, and to not have time to do anything about it made the whole thing even more difficult. But the girls came and always will come first. We aren't out of the woods yet. We're pretty sure H now has an ear infection, and M is still having a hard time breathing. I still hate cold and flu season, and how awful it makes my girls feel. But my house is clean, and that's a start.
But I didn't prepare myself enough.
Not at all.
It hit our home on Valentines Day. Harmony all of a sudden darted from the dinner table to throw up. The next day, a cough started. And by the end of the week, her fever spiked. High. It was over 103, and it freaked me out. And through it all, Makaela became heavily congested, and wasn't sleeping well at all. I also feared that she would catch whatever was causing Harmony's fever.
Oh, and did I mention I had the flu? Icing on the cake, people. Icing on the nastiest, ugliest, grossest cake you ever saw.
So you can imagine my panic on Tuesday when Harmony's fever was STILL high, Makaela still wasn't sleeping for more than 30 minutes at a time (during the day- at night she was still doing very well- thank goodness, since Harmony was up every hour), and COMPANY WAS COMING. Mike's sister was coming to visit with a friend of hers, and also his mother was coming for the weekend. And my house was TRASHED. It was almost comical. ALMOST. This is what it looked like:
My table was caked in food.
My kitchen had dishes everywhere.
My living room had clutter everywhere.
And oh, my closet. Laundry piled high.
My bathroom had bath toys, damp towels, and my toiletries everywhere. (and yes, those are my winter boots in there. Don't ask)
God was feeling sorry for me, so he cut me a break. I put Makaela down for her mid-morning nap, and I put a movie on for my sick little girl and hoped for the best (just look at her- so miserable. She has a terrible cold sore, hence the bandaid on her face).
I got to work. And two hours later, I finally had a clean home. Harmony watched the entire movie and Makaela slept the whole time. And I was a cleaning maniac. It was almost therapeutic- to rid my house of germs, to make progress on SOMETHING. To get my mind off of worrying about the girls.
And it felt good. Clutter makes me stressed. Even watching house demos/renovations on TV makes me anxious. So to see my house that messy, and to not have time to do anything about it made the whole thing even more difficult. But the girls came and always will come first. We aren't out of the woods yet. We're pretty sure H now has an ear infection, and M is still having a hard time breathing. I still hate cold and flu season, and how awful it makes my girls feel. But my house is clean, and that's a start.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Bragging
I was going through my computer to "clean out the clutter" so to speak, and I was putting a bunch of pictures onto my external hard drive, and when I usually do that, I tend to get all nostalgic and look through all my old pictures. While doing that this morning, I came across Norah's one week pictures, and I stopped at the pictures of Norah's quilt. And it prompted me to brag a little bit about my mother's quilting abilities, and that she has taken the time to make them for all three of her granddaughters.
Makaela
Norah
Harmony (better late than never)
All were made with love by their Grammie. :-) Thank you, mom! I know we will treasure them forever!
Makaela was lucky enough to have TWO quilts made for her. One was made by Mike's mom, and it's awesome! She is one lucky girl! As soon as Mak (or KayKay, or Kaylee, or Reesie- she's getting quite a few nicknames these days- wakes I'm going to try to get some pics of her on that quilt too.
Makaela
Norah
Harmony (better late than never)
All were made with love by their Grammie. :-) Thank you, mom! I know we will treasure them forever!
Makaela was lucky enough to have TWO quilts made for her. One was made by Mike's mom, and it's awesome! She is one lucky girl! As soon as Mak (or KayKay, or Kaylee, or Reesie- she's getting quite a few nicknames these days- wakes I'm going to try to get some pics of her on that quilt too.
Monday, February 14, 2011
One Month
Our sweet girl turns one month today. I have a hard time believing it. It's strange because it feels like we just had her yesterday, yet we cannot remember life without our incredible little girl. She truly is amazing.
So far, Makaela has proved to be an easy going baby. She settled into a routine fairly quickly, eating every 2 to 3 hours, with an hour to 2 hour nap in-between feedings, except for evenings. She tends to cluster feed, so she eats about every 1 1/2 to 2 hours. It tends to be a little difficult only because it's Harmony's bedtime- trying to get her into her bath, her pajamas, and bed isn't easy when you have a baby who wants to constantly nurse. When Mike is home it's a non-issue, but there are a few nights a week he isn't, so it's.... interesting. :-) But I have to applaud Harmony for how well she is doing with a new baby sister. She LOVES her. Makaela is smothered in hugs and kisses during her wake times. It's adorable, yet she is a little too aggressive with her love that we have to constantly tell her to be gentle. But we try to include her in all we do with Makaela. If she cries, we ask Harmony what she thinks Makaela wants, so that way she feels important by being able to help make the decision. Best thing we ever did. She loves to help change diapers, change clothes, give her baths, and to shush her while she cries. She doesn't love when Makaela cries in the car, or when she is on mommy's lap when Harmony wants to be, but other than that, it's been a surprisingly smooth transition. Yay for big sister, Harmony! P.S, she is looking so grown up these days.
At Makaela's one month appointment, she weighed 8 pounds, 10 ounces (up from 7p 6oz at her two week), and was 20 1/2 inches (up from 20 at her 2 week). She had a bout of gassiness at around 2 weeks, but with a diet change, it already seems to be going away. Thank goodness. It was sooo hard to see her in pain.
She's a pretty darn good sleeper at night- usually hitting the hay between 10, then up like clockwork at 2:30 and 5:30. She usually is up around 9ish, which is nice cuz we have an hour where Harmony has us all to herself. We eat breakfast and get dressed for the day, and usually by the time we are done with our morning routine, she is begging to get her sister up. I still send Harmony to day care two days a week. She would go insane if she stayed home every day, so it's so good for her to have that time with her friends. She BEGS to go to school. So she goes Monday and Wednesday, and is home with us Tuesday and Thursday, and Fridays are our family days. It's been a great routine for us, and it's so nice to have these quiet days with just Makaela and I. Lots of snuggle time. :-)
As for Harmony, she is our constant chatterbox, who needs to be doing something/going somewhere/seeing someone at all times. She is one of the most social children on the planet. On the days she is home, I try to find play dates for her, or think of creative things to do at home. Like playing with bubbles in the sink.
Her most favorite thing to do? Dance. All the time. We soooo need to put her in ballet classes.
Overall, we have a good routine going here at the Shipman home. We're loving life, and we constantly are thankful for our beautiful, healthy little girls.
Speaking of beautiful, I still see a lot of Harmony in Makaela, but at the same time, she looks so different. Maybe it's the blue eyes that get me, or that she is chubbier. What do you think?
Makaela
Harmony
Either way, I can't get enough of her. We're a big fan of Makaela Reese around here. We'll keep her.
So far, Makaela has proved to be an easy going baby. She settled into a routine fairly quickly, eating every 2 to 3 hours, with an hour to 2 hour nap in-between feedings, except for evenings. She tends to cluster feed, so she eats about every 1 1/2 to 2 hours. It tends to be a little difficult only because it's Harmony's bedtime- trying to get her into her bath, her pajamas, and bed isn't easy when you have a baby who wants to constantly nurse. When Mike is home it's a non-issue, but there are a few nights a week he isn't, so it's.... interesting. :-) But I have to applaud Harmony for how well she is doing with a new baby sister. She LOVES her. Makaela is smothered in hugs and kisses during her wake times. It's adorable, yet she is a little too aggressive with her love that we have to constantly tell her to be gentle. But we try to include her in all we do with Makaela. If she cries, we ask Harmony what she thinks Makaela wants, so that way she feels important by being able to help make the decision. Best thing we ever did. She loves to help change diapers, change clothes, give her baths, and to shush her while she cries. She doesn't love when Makaela cries in the car, or when she is on mommy's lap when Harmony wants to be, but other than that, it's been a surprisingly smooth transition. Yay for big sister, Harmony! P.S, she is looking so grown up these days.
At Makaela's one month appointment, she weighed 8 pounds, 10 ounces (up from 7p 6oz at her two week), and was 20 1/2 inches (up from 20 at her 2 week). She had a bout of gassiness at around 2 weeks, but with a diet change, it already seems to be going away. Thank goodness. It was sooo hard to see her in pain.
She's a pretty darn good sleeper at night- usually hitting the hay between 10, then up like clockwork at 2:30 and 5:30. She usually is up around 9ish, which is nice cuz we have an hour where Harmony has us all to herself. We eat breakfast and get dressed for the day, and usually by the time we are done with our morning routine, she is begging to get her sister up. I still send Harmony to day care two days a week. She would go insane if she stayed home every day, so it's so good for her to have that time with her friends. She BEGS to go to school. So she goes Monday and Wednesday, and is home with us Tuesday and Thursday, and Fridays are our family days. It's been a great routine for us, and it's so nice to have these quiet days with just Makaela and I. Lots of snuggle time. :-)
As for Harmony, she is our constant chatterbox, who needs to be doing something/going somewhere/seeing someone at all times. She is one of the most social children on the planet. On the days she is home, I try to find play dates for her, or think of creative things to do at home. Like playing with bubbles in the sink.
Her most favorite thing to do? Dance. All the time. We soooo need to put her in ballet classes.
Overall, we have a good routine going here at the Shipman home. We're loving life, and we constantly are thankful for our beautiful, healthy little girls.
Speaking of beautiful, I still see a lot of Harmony in Makaela, but at the same time, she looks so different. Maybe it's the blue eyes that get me, or that she is chubbier. What do you think?
Makaela
Harmony
Either way, I can't get enough of her. We're a big fan of Makaela Reese around here. We'll keep her.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Norah Kathleen
Aka Junie Bug
Norah Beaner
Norah Kate
And my favorite: Sputnik :-)
I love her like I love my own girls. Truly.
Happy 9 Months, Junie. TiTi loves you so much.
Norah Beaner
Norah Kate
And my favorite: Sputnik :-)
I love her like I love my own girls. Truly.
Happy 9 Months, Junie. TiTi loves you so much.
Wednesday, February 09, 2011
Fridays
Our one day off. We always take full advantage of our family days- even more so now that Makaela is here. Us girls let Mike sleep in a little while we get the coffee started, and let Harmony eat her breakfast while watching a TV show. Once Mike rolls out of bed (usually about 30 minutes after we get up), he starts a fire and we drink our coffee and catch up on our week. And now added to our morning routine is a suggle fest with our sweet girl.
Daddy is a baby hog, i might add.
Not to be left out, Harmony needs Makaela snuggle time too. :-)
Once the coffee is gone, we rummage up some yummy breakfast, and this past Friday, we feasted on pancakes made by Mike and Harmony. It's her most favorite thing to do ever- she pulls up her stool and gets to work. She is finally at the age where its becoming fun (ie, I don't have a mess all over my counter and floor after I let her stir the batter).
Our finished product
I love this picture because it depicts all what we did that morning- we have the pancakes and syrup, plus the ipad where Harmony and Mike played games and read interactive kids books, and two pairs of sunglasses, because Mike and Harmony claimed it was so sunny that they had to wear them. So I scrounged up two pairs of my sunglasses, and giggled while my manly husband strutted around in them. I should have gotten a picture.
I wish I could tell you that we spent the day all snuggled up in front of the fire, but we didn't. I wish I could tell you we went somewhere fun and exciting together, but that wasn't the case either. Instead we cleaned up the kitchen, threw on clothes, and carted our girls to the mall. I hate the mall. But Mike was in desperate need of new clothes, so we went. It was a bit hectic with the girls- correction- it was a bit hectic with HARMONY (Makaela slept the whole time). By the time we left the mall she was in full blown melt down mode. Fun. We learned our lesson: Don't go to the mall before nap. The end.
Not every Friday is drama-free, but we look forward to it nonetheless. It is OUR day. We cherish it, and we protect it. Family days rock.
Daddy is a baby hog, i might add.
Not to be left out, Harmony needs Makaela snuggle time too. :-)
Once the coffee is gone, we rummage up some yummy breakfast, and this past Friday, we feasted on pancakes made by Mike and Harmony. It's her most favorite thing to do ever- she pulls up her stool and gets to work. She is finally at the age where its becoming fun (ie, I don't have a mess all over my counter and floor after I let her stir the batter).
Our finished product
I love this picture because it depicts all what we did that morning- we have the pancakes and syrup, plus the ipad where Harmony and Mike played games and read interactive kids books, and two pairs of sunglasses, because Mike and Harmony claimed it was so sunny that they had to wear them. So I scrounged up two pairs of my sunglasses, and giggled while my manly husband strutted around in them. I should have gotten a picture.
I wish I could tell you that we spent the day all snuggled up in front of the fire, but we didn't. I wish I could tell you we went somewhere fun and exciting together, but that wasn't the case either. Instead we cleaned up the kitchen, threw on clothes, and carted our girls to the mall. I hate the mall. But Mike was in desperate need of new clothes, so we went. It was a bit hectic with the girls- correction- it was a bit hectic with HARMONY (Makaela slept the whole time). By the time we left the mall she was in full blown melt down mode. Fun. We learned our lesson: Don't go to the mall before nap. The end.
Not every Friday is drama-free, but we look forward to it nonetheless. It is OUR day. We cherish it, and we protect it. Family days rock.
Monday, February 07, 2011
Our team may have lost...
But we sure looked cute!
Makaela slept her way through the game :-) We"ll make her a Steeler fan yet.
Makaela slept her way through the game :-) We"ll make her a Steeler fan yet.
Sunday, February 06, 2011
You've got a friend
They are my sanity. My lifelines. They know more about my fears and my marriage than most people. They talk me off my ledge when all I want to do is jump. They celebrate with me, they laugh with (and sometimes at) me, and I just adore each one of them. They are my girls.
(yes this is an old pic, but it's the only one I have of all 4 of them!)
We began having girls night about a year ago- just dinner and coffee, and TONS of talking. And we've made it not only a regular occurrence, but a necessary event that each one of us crave. We will all admit that we don't do it enough (kids, work, and life, and moving- grr, Ash- make it hard to all have the same night free), but when we do, it's BREATH.
We were able to get together for lunch the other week (tho we were down one since her little boy got sick), and as always, it was so nice to let our guards down and to express our challenges and our accomplishments. We ate home made mac and cheese while all our kids played together. I hope they all grow up to be as close as their mommies are.
Carrie was on vacation when Makaela was born, so this was her first time meeting her!
Introducing Makaela and Trey :-)
Gracie always giving me those sweet smiles. She is such a ham.
Love these girls.
(yes this is an old pic, but it's the only one I have of all 4 of them!)
We began having girls night about a year ago- just dinner and coffee, and TONS of talking. And we've made it not only a regular occurrence, but a necessary event that each one of us crave. We will all admit that we don't do it enough (kids, work, and life, and moving- grr, Ash- make it hard to all have the same night free), but when we do, it's BREATH.
We were able to get together for lunch the other week (tho we were down one since her little boy got sick), and as always, it was so nice to let our guards down and to express our challenges and our accomplishments. We ate home made mac and cheese while all our kids played together. I hope they all grow up to be as close as their mommies are.
Carrie was on vacation when Makaela was born, so this was her first time meeting her!
Introducing Makaela and Trey :-)
Gracie always giving me those sweet smiles. She is such a ham.
Love these girls.
Wednesday, February 02, 2011
A Birth Story
It's my new years resolution. BLOG MORE. Thee end.
It's only taken me a month to get cracking. But January... it was a busy month :-)
Yesterday I was at this pretty lady'shouse, and she inspired me to blog more for the sake of the friends and family who don't live around here, and I am going to try my hardest to stick to it!
So so much has happened since my last post- most importantly, I got preggers and had a beautiful baby girl. Just in case you didn't know :-)
I was looking back at my posts about Harmony and her birth, and I absolutely love that I have her entire birth story all written out to have forever. It's only been three years, and I was surprised at how much I forgot about that day. So I thought it fitting that my first blog of 2011 is Makaela Reese Shipman's birth story.
Ever since we found out I was pregnant, Mike and I both agreed and were excited about the chance to have a VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean) since we had to have an emergency C-section for Harmony. It was a very hard recovery for me, and I did not want to go through it again. So we told our OB, and he was completely on board with it. THEN, I got gestational diabetes. No biggie I thought. Diet change. Checking sugar levels. No problem. The one snag was that I just had to have her very close to my due date. But as that due date got closer and closer, we realized that we needed a plan B. I was not happy about it at all. I avoided the word "c-section" my entire pregnancy, and in those last two weeks I heard it said to me dozens and dozens of times. It was very frustrating. I made an appointment with my doctor the monday before my due date (which was that Friday, January 14th), and he checked me out, and told me that I had not progressed AT ALL. He was confident that Makaela wouldn't make her due date, so I essentially had very few choices. You can't induce a woman who previously had a c-section, so that was out. And because of my GD, I wasn't comfortable going past my due date and risk anything happening to her. So I talked to my Dr (who is the most fantastic man ever- i recommend Dr. Tripp to everyone) about the issues I had in my last c-section, and he was confident that he could avoid all of them, so we booked an OR for January 14th, at 8AM.
The day before was one of the most emotional days I've ever had. I was scared, nervous, anxious, excited.... but mostly, all I could think about was Harmony. I felt like I was ruining her life by having another baby. I was afraid she would hate her. What if our relationship changed? I was a mess. I cried most of the day- all in private because I wasn't sure if anyone would understand how I was feeling. And I think Harmony could sense that I was not myself. She wouldn't let me go all evening. When I put her to bed that night, I cried, and she just stared at me, not knowing what to do with her mother. She was up most of the night, but so was I, so I laid with her for hours. We whispered secrets to each other, I rubbed her back, she rubbed my belly... and it was just what I needed. Those last moments with her as my one and only. It was awesome. I was dog tired by 5:45 when our alarm went off, but adrenaline kicked in quickly, and we were out the door and at the hospital by 6:15.
I was prepped and ready to go at 8:00, but they didn't get a chance to take me to the OR till 9:00. I got my spinal and all that jazz (which is what i was most worried about, but my anesthesiologist was AMAZING, and it was a cake walk), they brought Mike into the OR at 9:20, and got started. I began to have trouble taking deep breaths soon into the surgery, and it scared me a bit, but my anesthesiologist assured me it was ok, so I tried to stay calm, and concentrate on seeing my little girl. And at 9:28, she arrived! And she was mad! She cried and cried, but I didn't care. It was amazing, and she was beautiful!
They ushered Mike over very quickly to see her and to have him take pictures of her first moments. I don't have any from Harmony's delivery, so these shots are priceless to me. One of the nurses (who was there for Norah's birth- how cool is that!?!?) took the camera so we could have some photos with Mike in it.
I was wheeled into recovery soon after I was all sewn up, and I was so glad I could have Makaela the entire time. I didn't get Harmony for about an hour and a half after she was born, and that was a concern of mine, but they were awesome and I had skin on skin contact with Makaela the moment I was in our room. It was so nice for Mike and I to have such quiet moments with her, and we will cherish those moments forever.
Once the nurses had made sure I was ok, I was finally able to introduce her to my family! It was so awesome to have them there, along with Amy, Mattie, and Alana. My girlfriend Aimee was there for the birth, but had to go back to work before I was finished in recovery, but she in fact was there! Makaela was passed around, and ooh's and ahh's were heard, but the moment of all moments was when Harmony walked into that room. Mike and I just lost it. We cried and cried at the sight of our first love. It's so hard to describe how I felt. Makaela expanded our hearts the moment she was born, but Harmony was the little girl who CHANGED our hearts, and we were overwhelmed by her presence, and at her first meeting of her sister. I still cry every time I look at those snapshots because I am immediately brought back to that moment. It was electric.
The rest of the day was filled with visitors, with rest, and of course, filled with hours of staring at our sweet new addition. I adore everything about her, and I am so so enjoying life with my two daughters!! Here is the birth announcement for you all!
It's only taken me a month to get cracking. But January... it was a busy month :-)
Yesterday I was at this pretty lady'shouse, and she inspired me to blog more for the sake of the friends and family who don't live around here, and I am going to try my hardest to stick to it!
So so much has happened since my last post- most importantly, I got preggers and had a beautiful baby girl. Just in case you didn't know :-)
I was looking back at my posts about Harmony and her birth, and I absolutely love that I have her entire birth story all written out to have forever. It's only been three years, and I was surprised at how much I forgot about that day. So I thought it fitting that my first blog of 2011 is Makaela Reese Shipman's birth story.
Ever since we found out I was pregnant, Mike and I both agreed and were excited about the chance to have a VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean) since we had to have an emergency C-section for Harmony. It was a very hard recovery for me, and I did not want to go through it again. So we told our OB, and he was completely on board with it. THEN, I got gestational diabetes. No biggie I thought. Diet change. Checking sugar levels. No problem. The one snag was that I just had to have her very close to my due date. But as that due date got closer and closer, we realized that we needed a plan B. I was not happy about it at all. I avoided the word "c-section" my entire pregnancy, and in those last two weeks I heard it said to me dozens and dozens of times. It was very frustrating. I made an appointment with my doctor the monday before my due date (which was that Friday, January 14th), and he checked me out, and told me that I had not progressed AT ALL. He was confident that Makaela wouldn't make her due date, so I essentially had very few choices. You can't induce a woman who previously had a c-section, so that was out. And because of my GD, I wasn't comfortable going past my due date and risk anything happening to her. So I talked to my Dr (who is the most fantastic man ever- i recommend Dr. Tripp to everyone) about the issues I had in my last c-section, and he was confident that he could avoid all of them, so we booked an OR for January 14th, at 8AM.
The day before was one of the most emotional days I've ever had. I was scared, nervous, anxious, excited.... but mostly, all I could think about was Harmony. I felt like I was ruining her life by having another baby. I was afraid she would hate her. What if our relationship changed? I was a mess. I cried most of the day- all in private because I wasn't sure if anyone would understand how I was feeling. And I think Harmony could sense that I was not myself. She wouldn't let me go all evening. When I put her to bed that night, I cried, and she just stared at me, not knowing what to do with her mother. She was up most of the night, but so was I, so I laid with her for hours. We whispered secrets to each other, I rubbed her back, she rubbed my belly... and it was just what I needed. Those last moments with her as my one and only. It was awesome. I was dog tired by 5:45 when our alarm went off, but adrenaline kicked in quickly, and we were out the door and at the hospital by 6:15.
I was prepped and ready to go at 8:00, but they didn't get a chance to take me to the OR till 9:00. I got my spinal and all that jazz (which is what i was most worried about, but my anesthesiologist was AMAZING, and it was a cake walk), they brought Mike into the OR at 9:20, and got started. I began to have trouble taking deep breaths soon into the surgery, and it scared me a bit, but my anesthesiologist assured me it was ok, so I tried to stay calm, and concentrate on seeing my little girl. And at 9:28, she arrived! And she was mad! She cried and cried, but I didn't care. It was amazing, and she was beautiful!
They ushered Mike over very quickly to see her and to have him take pictures of her first moments. I don't have any from Harmony's delivery, so these shots are priceless to me. One of the nurses (who was there for Norah's birth- how cool is that!?!?) took the camera so we could have some photos with Mike in it.
I was wheeled into recovery soon after I was all sewn up, and I was so glad I could have Makaela the entire time. I didn't get Harmony for about an hour and a half after she was born, and that was a concern of mine, but they were awesome and I had skin on skin contact with Makaela the moment I was in our room. It was so nice for Mike and I to have such quiet moments with her, and we will cherish those moments forever.
Once the nurses had made sure I was ok, I was finally able to introduce her to my family! It was so awesome to have them there, along with Amy, Mattie, and Alana. My girlfriend Aimee was there for the birth, but had to go back to work before I was finished in recovery, but she in fact was there! Makaela was passed around, and ooh's and ahh's were heard, but the moment of all moments was when Harmony walked into that room. Mike and I just lost it. We cried and cried at the sight of our first love. It's so hard to describe how I felt. Makaela expanded our hearts the moment she was born, but Harmony was the little girl who CHANGED our hearts, and we were overwhelmed by her presence, and at her first meeting of her sister. I still cry every time I look at those snapshots because I am immediately brought back to that moment. It was electric.
The rest of the day was filled with visitors, with rest, and of course, filled with hours of staring at our sweet new addition. I adore everything about her, and I am so so enjoying life with my two daughters!! Here is the birth announcement for you all!
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