She was born last Saturday, June 22nd, at 11:20 PM. I started having contractions off and on starting at 6:30 AM but we weren't sure they were anything more than Braxton Hicks until about 5 PM. So during the afternoon we ran errands and I even made a trip to the Apple Store solo to replace the phone I had dropped the previous day. Definitely had a contraction while I was there and had to casually take a seat while chatting with one of the employees.
I was fortunate enough to have a helper as I waited through some contractions at home.
And after we figured out that yes indeed, this was the real deal, we dropped Bradley off with our amazingly nice friends Jayme and Tim who are mommy and daddy to Bradley's little friend Eli. Bradley barely even noticed us saying goodbye, he instantly started playing with toys and having a delightful time.
We arrived at the hospital at about 7:15 PM
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| Baby wants out! |
Labor was pretty nice, I got an epidural after we had been there about an hour and had to push through four contractions and that was it! I even got to pull her out at the end. Sounds more hardcore than it is, she was mostly out already and the doctor told me that I could pull her out if I wanted to so I just leaned down and pulled her onto my chest. Hurray!
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| This picture was taken about an hour after she was born |
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| I can't believe how tiny she is. Especially since I gained about 10 lbs more this pregnancy than I did with Bradley. I was fully expecting a 9 lb baby. Nope! |
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| It doesn't get much more fresh baby than this |
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| Poor sad child |
So while that was going on we were doing this with little Eleanor. Bonding and loving her up!
Nathan took Eleanor's first official video
And he is so so happy with another infant to snuggle with. Someone is definitely going to be a daddy's girl.
I was pretty excited to have an infant to snuggle with as well. I keep saying that I'm enjoying Bradley more and more as he gets older but man, there is just something about having a tiny infant in your arms that is just amazing.
One of the things we were immediately struck by when we first saw her was just how much she looked like infant Bradley. Their faces are pretty much identical. I found a picture of newborn Bradley for comparison. No question that they are related!
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| And yes, looking at this photo of infant Bradley made me a bit melancholy |
Nathan went and got our sweet Bradley man so he could meet his little sister in the hospital. He was very interested in her until he spied her little snot sucker stuck in the clear hospital bassinet and decided it looked kind of like a ball and needed to play with it immediately. Not five minutes into being around his sister and already stealing her things.
But he was very sweet with Eleanor and all my worries about him hating her or hitting her seem to be not much of a concern at the moment. Until they're both toddlers. But surely MY darling children will get along perfectly!
He was very worried about her during her first bath, which he got to watch. She did not enjoy it and Bradley was very concerned when he saw her cry. Such a sweet boy.
We took him back to his friend's house after a fairly short visit. Thank goodness for meeting some wonderful people in the short time we've lived in Kansas City, I was originally very worried about what we would do with Bradley while we were in the hospital but everything worked out beautifully.
Speaking of beautiful ... I originally said I wasn't a big pink fan and preferred red for my little girl but I think it's apparent that I've changed my mind.
Yup. A bit of pink going on here. And a bow! We have a GIRL! I get to do these things! Hurray!!!
And it's fun to see how different Eleanor is from Bradley already. Nursing with her has been a breeze from the get go but she definitely does not have Bradley's voracious appetite. But she constantly wants to be sucking on something, anything, and has already discovered her fingers which never happened with Bradley.
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| I love this picture because when I was a kid I didn't suck my thumb, I used two of my fingers instead. And here she is doing the same thing. I guess it's genetic! |
We were really happy when we got to leave the hospital and it was amazing to see a tiny baby in this carseat once again.
Yes, I'm leaving the hospital in the same dress in which I arrived. Fits a bit easier now!
Last time with Bradley we were able to get some amazing photos just from the photography service at the hospital but we had no such luck this time around. Luckily, I made a new friend at Bradley's swim class who is both nice AND great with a camera so we're going to just try to see what we can do on our own. Got some great shots already, we're going to try for more later this week!
So so grateful for people with photography hobbies. I'm also grateful for my smartphone, which I pretty much always have on me so I can seize the moment when Eleanor is being adorable.
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| Excited face |
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| Serious face |
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| Eleanor passed out across my stomach. Such a sweet, tired girl! |
Bradley won't leave you alone if you have Eleanor. It's amazingly sweet and rather surprising. He didn't seem extraordinarily interested in her at the hospital but now that she's home he gives an excited cry if he sees a parent holding her and runs over. He typically does this:
But he'll also do this.
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If not for Eleanor, the following would have been my blog post for the week. Bradley has been a rock star at his little swim class and continues to amaze both me and Nathan with his complete disregard for personal safety and comfort in his efforts to move move move and explore explore explore!
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| Climbing out of the pool is actually the one aspect of his class in which he's rather average because he doesn't see why he would want to leave the amazing pool of fun. |
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| A GIANT waterfall? Get me in there, Daddy! |
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| There's also a fountain area. These are five dollar swim classes and they let you come early and stay late at the coolest kid pool around. We love how family friendly this place is. |
He's also been getting his molars so he's been a bit fussy lately and has been getting his pacifier a lot more during the daytime. He also gets more cuddle television time that in theory is relaxing.
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| Starting position |
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| Oh wait, if I could do this on Mommy somehow that would be ideal |
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| Yes yes, this is how I prefer to watch my show |
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| Or perhaps like this. Yep, that's my very pregnant belly in the bottom of the picture. |
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| Bradley has also become quite the help around the house, here is he helping me vacuum. |
Three days before Eleanor was born I took Bradley out for gelato on a hot day. One of the wonderful things about Bradley is that there are few questions regarding his wants and desires.
There was even accompanying sound effects as he grunted and yelled and generally worked hard to earn every bite of gelato he got.
Bradley had grown increasingly interested in my big belly over the last few weeks. He would laugh and poke at my belly button if I pulled up my shirt. I thought it was cute when he would try to pull up my shirt to get at my belly button but it got a little less cute when he tried to do it when I was wearing a dress. Didn't see the shirt thing turning into that, we stopped having our special belly bonding time soon after a few woohoo dress moments.
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| But it was pretty adorable while it lasted. |
Bradley is on the path to independence at mealtimes. It's a messy path, but it's a path. Here he is feeding himself a smoothie.
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The video is priceless. Nathan and I were cracking up.
And because I can't leave without one last picture of Eleanor ... here is one of her first smile caught on camera! We just melt whenever we look at her. It's hard to believe she's only been in our lives for a few days, we love her so much!
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