Sisters, sisters...

There were never such devoted sisters.

 

Sunshine says, "There is nothing better than having a baby fall asleep on you."

These were taken a few days ago. We spent most of the afternoon today at the eye doctor. It wasn't a difficult visit but one of these lasses will soon be in glasses. : )
Do you want to guess who?

hello world!

I was working on a birth announcement to send to some relatives who aren't online. These are just some pictures I took here at home. I've used Snapfish before and I like the convenience of having them printed off at the Walgreens just down the road but I'm wondering though if anyone here would recommend another service? Thanks!

Also, did you see the beautiful pictures of Robina's family? How blessed to have a such a talented friend!

 

One month

Because Cupcake arrived earlier than we expected, there were a lot of things I had planned to do that didn't get done before she arrived. I had planned on making a giant cupcake using the pans that a friend gave us at the baby shower with the intention of letting the kids decorate it for her homecoming. I ended up letting my girls make the whole thing themselves and then gave them free reign of the decorating. 

We enjoyed their cake and ice cream yesterday to celebrate her month day!

I can't believe she's been here that long!

 

One handed photo shoot

subtitled... bleary eyed blurry pictures

The girls whipped up some Devil's Food cupcakes for Michealmas today and BigBoy decorated them with the only kind of blackberries my kids like... candy ones. (They used extra cocoa and coffee instead of water in the recipe.) I can't tell you how much they are delighting in having the run of the kitchen while my hands are full! 

St. Michael is The Professor's confirmation patron. He asked if he could show off this LEGO minifigure he designed and built. Yep. It's St.Michael.

Again, sorry for the blurry pics. I confess... my other hand was holding a cupcake.

See!

Quiet

Someone sent me an email and mentioned that I've been quiet. She was checking up on me and poor dear, caught me on a really bad day but thankfully... God sent her into that situation to rally the prayer troops which she did and for that I am most grateful!

Things have been... OK. If you count a trip to the ER to rule out a possible infection and a waterfall of tears as... OK. First, let me just say that I am talking with my doctor about postpartum depression and keeping a close eye out for anything severe. I take that very seriously and would not hesitate to get help for it if my husband or doctor or therapist determined a need for it.

I have always struggled with postpartum emotions. It usually shows up as anxiety although after Shortcake, it was more like depression but not too severe. I so envy those moms who give birth and then sit back and bask in the glow of a sweet smelling newborn and just take it all in, every scent, every coo, every nuzzle. They might be tired from the lack of sleep, but other than being a little bleary eyed, they truly do enjoy their "babymoon".

I have never been that way.

I worry and fret and cry... a lot. Is she eating enough? Is she eating too much? Am I producing enough milk? Is she warm enough? Is she too warm? Is she crying because she's in pain? Did I do something wrong? All of my worst mothering insecurities come out in stark relief. This time around, with all the anxiety that happened prior to her birth and now with some of the minor complications we've had since she was born and the difficulty of a C-section recovery, it's been... significant.

And now we suspect that Cupcake has acid reflux. We'll be talking to the pediatrician tomorrow to see what he thinks. She's eating well and growing so I'm not worried about it, but it makes for a very fussy, frustrated little one. And that plays right in to all my fears and worries.

So, I'm a little quiet now because I'm processing it all out. I'm talking it out with my husband and some close friends. I also have my therapist on speed dial, just in case. And I'm also keeping my eye on this lovely prize:

Thanks again for your prayers and concern and thank God for friends who check up on you.

Who does she look like?

Thank you to everyone who has expressed congratulations and concern for our recovery. I wanted to tell you that I am being so very well cared for, spoiled even I'd say, by my mother, husband and older children. The girls have put together "healthy nursing snacks" for me (fruit cups and granola bars) and have brought me every Jane Austen movie in our collection! While they are not able to really help care for Cupcake, they are quite capable of taking care of themselves and household chores like laundry and dishes and that is a tremendous help. My mom has completely taken over the kitchen and our meals making some of her specialities and even attempting some of our favorites. Sean went back to work this week but plans to take off next week once my mom has to leave. We also had some incredibly generous friends who collected and dropped off baked goods to stock our freezer.  Delicious dinner rolls, loaves of bread and spice cake. We are being taken care of in the best way!

I sit here a little stunned today. It is the day I was due and yet, she has already been here almost 2 weeks! My babies always came late so I'm used to seeing that circled date on the calendar fly by. Never thought I would experience a day like this, but here it is. God is good!

Everyone has been telling us who they think Cupcake looks like. I have my own opinions when I see her sweet face looking up at me, but I thought it would be fun to let you all see baby pictures of the big kids and decide who you think she looks like most. 

 Cupcake

 The Professor

Sunshine

Shortcake 
(being held by a two year old Professor)

BigBoy

On this glorious feast of Our Lady's birth

Let me introduce you a little more to our little lady who is named for our dear Heavenly Mother under one of her most beloved titles...

This is Avila Ami  (or Baby Ah-lah-lah, according to the two year old speak of Baby O). She has only been outside the womb for not even a week, but we can tell she already has a magnetic personality based on the way her siblings flock to her every chance they get. BigBoy even commented this morning, "Why was I ever mopey about a little sister?" He originally thought a little brother would be a better idea but understands now that God knows best.

She is the teeniest, tiniest baby I have ever had, weighing a full two pounds less than The Professor when he was born. I can't tell you the number of times we've all said, "She's sooooo tiny!" because she is!!!

Obviously, her first name comes from St. Teresa of Avila, who was a spiritual mother to St. Therese and all the Carmelites, who's intercession we are most thankful for regarding this little one's presence in our family. It also means "little bird" which seemed to fit the direction her room was shaping up! Now Husband wasn't keen on it right away. He doesn't like "place names" that much, you know... Cheyenne, Dakota, Georgia. But he came around to Avila all on his own, especially after seeing a picture of Margaret's little First Communicant in Faith and Family magazine and realizing that she was a fairly normal kid so maybe it wasn't too weird of a name after all. :)

As Margaret pointed out, her middle name can be pronounced "uh-ME" like the french word for loved one or friend, "amie". But since she will most likely be spending the bulk of her childhood in Texas, it will also be pronounced "Amy" because it's just easier to say it that way and have people understand... I guess it just depends on whether or not I'm in a foreign frame of mind at the time.

Now, I had spent some time looking at September feast days and talking with this little one about which days would make a great birthday. (I will write up her birth story soon, once the shock and awe wears off a little. Suffice it to say that the Holy Spirit was in charge of this birth plan and we know for a fact that "miracle" is not too melodramatic to describe the situation at all.) The 5th was Blessed Mother Teresa's feast day. Today, the 8th, is the birthday of the Mother of God, who wouldn't choose today as a birthday? The 12th is the feast of the Most Holy Name of Mary and a very special day in our family's liturgical year. I even looked at my due date, the 15th (Our Lady of Sorrows) and the 23rd (St. Padre Pio). Never did I think to check the 2nd! In fact, I remember not even really considering the 5th as a possibility telling a friend that that would be "WAAAAY too early for me to have a baby!" It wasn't until we arrived home that I had a chance to look at the liturgical calendar and discovered that the 2nd is the feast day of the Martyrs of September, a group of French seminarians who were martyred during the French Revolution!

So if this little one someday jets off to study French at the Sorbonne, I will not be surprised.
 

P.S. Sorry to cut this short so abruptly but I've been told that the problem with being severely anemic and having had major abdominal surgery is that I can't even think about starting iron supplements for two weeks since they can have a negative effect on the digestion. So when my energy is gone, it's gone! It's taken me two days to put even this much together.