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| We joyfully welcomed Ava Marie on September 12 at 4:39am. She was a healthy baby, weighing 6lbs, 10.6oz and measuring 19.5". |
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| They say one child's labor and delivery means nothing about the next, and my experiences would agree with that. Jameson's and Ava's birth stories are different from each other in numerous ways. Jameson's labor began with my water breaking, Ava's with increasingly painful contractions at home. Jameson was born 23.5 hours after my water broke, which included 3 hours of intense pushing; Ava was born 5.5 hours after calling the doctor from home, and after pushing through just 5 contractions. Jameson was born with a fever (likely due to the lengthy labor) and had to go immediately to the NICU, whereas Ava was born without any complications and was able to rest in my arms for over an hour of snuggling before they took her for vitals. Jameson had to be monitored in the NICU for the duration of his stay, but Ava spent all of her hours with us in the maternity unit, and we were able to discharge a day early. Hooray for things being somewhat easier the second time around! |
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| Cuddle time in the delivery room. |
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| First time checking those vital signs. Happy baby!!! |
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| Daddy's first time holding his little girl. |
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| On the evening of the 12th, Jameson got to finally meet his little sister, "Aya", as he likes to call her. He was immediately curious and intrigued. He would become easily distracted, but come back to wanting to touch her or look at her. |
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| Fortunately, Grandma "Lou-Lou" and "Papa" were already in town due to a false alarm the prior weekend. It was so helpful having them around, allowing us to get more done before Ava arrived and to get a little bit of rest. My Dad stayed busy painting the basement and my Mom spent a lot of time with Jameson and prepared tons of meals for us to freeze. |
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| Sweetness and curiosity make the cutest combination. |
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| He's so gentle with Ava. |
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| Bundled up and ready to head home. |
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| Two of my favorite moments following the births of Jameson and Ava have been exposing them to the outside air for the first time. I'm not sure what about it is so exciting to me, but I cherish it more than walking them into the house! |
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| We were so happy that Ava blessed us with her arrival in time for Grandpa to see us bring her home. |
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| A fun new toy from Grandma and Grandpa for Jameson to be excited about during this time of transition. Jameson took some initiative in grabbing a tool and joining dad in putting the new bike together. |
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| His first set of wheels. |
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| Thank you Grandma "Lou-Lou" for helping us over the past couple of weeks ease into life as a family of four. Jameson seems to be taking fondly to his new role. |
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| As soon as we walked through the door with Ava, Jameson ran to the basement door, eagerly wanting us to follow. While we were at the hospital, "Papa" finished painting the trim (to cap off several days of marathon painting), and the electrical work was finished and carpet installed (so close to being done!). We followed Jameson downstairs and got so much joy out of seeing him excited about the space. He kept saying "run, run, run!" while running circles around the room and playfully throwing himself onto the floor and rolling around. Big smiles all around! |
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| Our little Ava is what I would - so far - call an easy baby. She loves to sleep, eat, and be held. She can stay asleep in your arms for hours. :) |
