Miss Evelyn

It's hard to believe that it's been almost 3 months since Evelyn was born. Time has flown by, but we've been cherishing every moment with my girl. Maternity leave has been wonderful, and I've been taking full advantage of being able to cuddle all day long with my girl. So it's basically been 3 months since I've blogged, baked, bathed, or been out of the house (just kidding, sort of). So now I'm finally blogging all my random thoughts and feelings from the last months. It's been such a blessing to be on this journey, and I can't begin to document it well enough. But I'm finally getting around to updating the blog with a some pictures to keep it interesting:)

Here I am at 40 weeks- last belly photo!                And here we are leaving for the hospital at 5am:)

After 25 hours of labor and a C-section, we had our little girl at 8:00 pm on Friday night, November 9th. She is perfect in every way. The labor and delivery were not at all what I had pictured or even wanted, but none of that mattered because I got to hold my sweet Evelyn and she was so healthy and so beautiful. Her stats were 9 lbs, 15 oz and 21 3/4 inches long. We couldn't believe how big she was, but we are so proud of our big girl. And the most amazing thing was how she knew us right from the start.

In the delivery room, before knowing the day would end with a cesarean. Brandon was so good to me, even though I was acting like a crazy woman for those last few hours. All my sweet family got to see very emotional side of me, but no need to go into all that:)

Looking for Mommy

Meeting our sweet baby

I couldn't believe I was finally holding her after 9 long wonderful months of 

wondering what she would be like.

First family photo.

My family and Brandon's sister were all able to make it in town in time to see me before surgery, and it somehow worked out perfectly for them all to be here. After surgery, we took a few minutes to ourselves, then Evelyn got to meet my family. She got checked out by the nurse in our room, and I was pretty loopy from the drugs. Brandon's parents got here early the next morning, so they got to see me once I was done with the crazy surgery drugs. It was so wonderful to finally have our little girl with us. And Brandon was IMMEDIATELY smitten. He was worried about me, but soo obsessed with our little girl. It was amazing to watch him be such a perfect husband and daddy in those first few stressful hours. And having everyone there was such a blessing. So many things came together so perfectly for everyone to be there. And those first few days were absolutely priceless. God is so good.

Her greatest admirers.

Sweet friends and family who came to meet her in the hospital. Apparently my cell phone didn't send out many of the texts that I tried to send people because the reception in the hospital was so horrible, but several people still made it by to come see our girl. 

Heading home! After 3 nights, we were so ready to get out of that hospital room and just start normal life. It was so wonderful to introduce Evelyn to our world.

Evelyn is an absolute joy. We have loved every second with her. It's hard to keep from kissing those cheeks and pinching her chunky little legs all the time! It has been a huge adjustment, but really somehow easier than I'd expected. The sleepless nights, crying fits, and poopy diapers are really such a natural part of taking care of the baby we love so much. It makes it easy when you look at that precious face. Brandon has already been so wonderful with her. He is so sweet to her and it just melts my heart. He can't get enough of her. And we're learning about the things she wants and how to anticipate what she needs. It really is instinctual and the bond I already share with her is so special. What a blessing to fulfill her needs and be her comforter. There's no way not to relate the feeling to our relationship with God, how He is the only one who can wholly comfort us and guide us. How He yearns to hear from us and wants us to desire a relationship with him. I'm left completely speechless and in awe of how God created this person for me to care for. I yearn to hear from her and understand her in the same way I know He wants to hear from me. What an incredible blessing. I can't even type this without a flood of emotions- awe struck at His majesty, gratitude for His gift to us, peace with His perfect plan, and pure joy and love for my daughter that can only come from Him. We feel so blessed to be the ones through which God is showing her His perfect love.

**Many of these photos were done by Brandon's sister. I am so grateful that she was able to help us document our big day. If you haven't already, you need to check out Coati Photography. Thanks again Kim!!