Showing posts with label motherhood. Show all posts
Showing posts with label motherhood. Show all posts

Monday, July 23, 2012

four months

Man, four months have flown by! Each day with Nora is so sweet, and, although at times it seems the hours drag when waiting for Mr. Allen to get home, the days pass too quickly. Being able to be a stay-at-home-mom for the past month has been unforgettable and perfect, and I will desperately await my summer break next year to spend with my sweet girl. (Because in a week I will start with my first teaching job!)

Last week, little Nora Jean turned 4 months old. I waited (too long) to update until after her doctor's appointment so I could share numbers for those who wish to know them. But let's be honest, what you're desperate for is the pictures! So, without futher ado, here they are:



Nora didn't grow like a weed these past few months, but she is still doing just fine on her little growth curve. She is now almost 13 pounds and 24.5 inches. Her turning-4-months-old-week was a big week for her:

She wants to show you all that she has teeth coming through. That's right - plural TEETH. One made its gummy appearance last weekend, and, once it started pushing through this past week, the next one started to float to the top. Needless to say, it's been a rough week for little lady with a runny nose and fusses of pain.

She started rolling all ways (front to back, back to front, you name it - she does it) last weekend as well. She had done it a few "accidental" times before, but now it's the real thing and there's no containing her. I swear that secretly she can crawl too, because the positions I find her in after nap... man, that girl can squirm and move.

Dr. Roy gave us the "okay" to start her on "solids". Here she is trying her first spoonful of rice cereal. Don't let her fool you, she loves it. She's already a pro on day 3, leaning in for more and more.
All this progress in just one week. Man, we have our hands full (blessed beyond our dreams full.)
I still stare at her daily in amazement that she is ours. God is so good to give us children. (I hope that mindset never changes.) I am completely in love and smitten with this little lady.

...leaving her in a week, well - let's not talk about that.

Friday, June 22, 2012

productivity

This week, my first week as a stay-at-home-mom, has been one of the most productive weeks. of my life. Seriously, let's take a look:
(not listed in order of importance)

1 Obviously you in the blogging world have had some attention. Although most people would say that time on the computer is not always productive, I'm glad to be able to have some time (albeit a little too much time) to spend doing computer-y things I love: blogging, pinteresting, facebooking. You can't honestly be mad that I'm back. Or maybe you can.

2 I have gotten to cuddle, tickle, kiss, hug, kiss, smooch, poke, kiss, touch, SOAK IN my baby... in ways that I was never able to before. Before I returned to work she was still a little too young to really be playful and enjoy my presence, and once I was at work, I barely had time to get 2 words in with her. But now, oh now, I am overwhelmed at the possibilities of time we have together. I could just talk to her for eternity and be completely smitten. [However, I really do want her to keep her ability to play by herself on the floor, so I have to remember to put her down and leave her alone every once in a while.]

3 I have spent time with God. Honestly, this was lacking. a lot. I kept on making excuses about how busy I was with work and the demands of home. And probably a lot of it was true, because I was seriously busy, but no excuse is good enough. And I have loved being refreshed with time in prayer and time in the Bible this week. I can feel myself getting closer to the heart of God. I am so, very thankful for the opportunity to sit in silence (when Nora decides to nap) and meet God in my very home. It. feels. great.

4 I ran three days this week. Before this week, I had only ran once since Nora was born. Running wasn't easy this week, but it was really good. I was in so much pain for a lot of it [obviously my lungs didn't get the memo that they should be able to last more than half a mile] but afterward, when I took my cold shower and stretched out, I knew I was doing something awesome with my body. I am so excited to be able to get back into running. (And thankfully, Nora doesn't mind the jogging stroller... one day she even slept for half of the run.)

5 Remember those cloth diapers I started back in... July 2011? Yeah, it's almost July 2012. But guess what: yesterday I finally finished them. A set of 20 cloth diapers are done (praise the Lord) and ready to be washed today...and if they dry overnight, worn tomorrow. Our baby is going to be a convert!

6 There has been so much "housework" that I'm sure I was able to get to before when I was working, but I can actually feel like I have a handle on it now. I got ahead in bill paying, wrote a letter to my grandma (a little late on that one), crossed off many of the eventually-to-do list items (that had been piling up over the past month or so), and am going to get a new laundry/cleaning schedule started today that will have me doing little things everyday (rather than one Saturday a month I do absolutely every chore in the house and hate myself afterward for letting it get that bad.)

If you couldn't tell, I am overjoyed to be at home. Even if it was just for this one week, I would be thoroughly satisfied to enter back into the working world. But I have the blessing, as I wait for a teaching job to find me this fall, to stay where I am and live fully in this moment, in this house, with my beautiful daughter. And I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. (Although, wouldn't it be just grand if Mr. Allen could be home with us all day too? :])

Thursday, June 21, 2012

the nursery reveal

Two months ago (wow, has it been that long) we moved into our new apartment, which we LOVE. Our old apartment was in a building with 5 other apartments and we liked it a lot, especially since it was our first home. But our new place is in a three-flat, which is the most common housing in Chicago. It's a 3-story house that (usually) features three apartment units, one on each floor. Our bulding is the exception. Our house in only 2 units -- we live on the first floor (completely above ground) and another family lives on the two above us.

That's another thing, we are so very blessed with housemates. We live under one of the pastors from our church and his family and they have become our family. They have us for dinner, we have them, we watch their kids (who happen to adore Shane and I, and we just might love the attention.) They seriously take care of us. But enough gushing about that. Last one, I promise: God has just majorly blessed us with them.

So one of the huge advantages to our new place was that there was room to set up a nursery. In our old apartment Nora had a dresser and crib in the corner of our room, which was fine since she still needed to sleep with us. But here, she has her own room (which she started sleeping in at 6 weeks) and we have our own room (thank you, Jesus!)

And here is the final reveal of her nursery. I was so eager and excited to set it up that it was the first thing I did as we moved everything into the apartment.

It was very DIY. Our original plan, back when we didn't know our baby's gender, we had made a little collage of things we liked and picked the colors gray and green. We said that if it was a girl there would be some pink accents and if it was a boy there would be blue. Well, let's just say once we knew she was a girl, the pink took over. Here's a look (at our PINK and gray and green nursery):


[crib: Target, book bin: leftover from my high school graduation open house where it was used to hold pops and ice, rug: Ikea - thanks to my mother-in-law for buying that, floating flower balls: via this tutorial - it worked perfectly and I love how they turned out. I originally planned another gray one, but loved the look of the two (and I ran out of energy. It was extremely time consuming.), storage bin: Target, lamp: Ikea - my mother-in-law's purchase again, blanket: handmade by my aunt - it is beautiful, right?!]


[balls: 2 - 12" Chinese lanterns (which I found green ones on clearance at a party store for $3 [pack of 3] and made them work just fine.), fabric: Joann Fabric, string: fishing wire that came with the lanterns]


[moving counter-clockwise... dresser: found (see original condition below) in an alley next to our old apartment - we removed the handles and painted it our gray color but it was scratched up in the move and I haven't touched it up yet, changing pad/cover: BabiesRUS, bunting: ribbon and paper bears - story to follow, humidifier: BabiesRUs, "n" frame: handmade gift from my friend Liz, curtain: our old shower curtain from Target]


And for the wall opposite of the dresser:


[shelving unit: found in alley next to our old apartment - we originally used it in our pantry and then I discovered that the storage bins fit perfectly inside]

And the artwork hanging on the wall was a piece done by my best friend, Danielle. I had sent her a picture from this nursery as inspiration. Here's a close-up.


Nora's initials are "carved" into the tree. I can see this painting being an inspiration for her "big girl" room too, since the colors are so feminine, yet universal for many themes.

And there it is. I am still completely thrilled by it and love that Nora has a special place to call her own. The bear bunting is a crafted-gift from one of my baby showers. Each bear has a verse on it and on the back the guests of the shower (close family and friends) each wrote a prayer for Nora based on the scriptural truth found on the front. It is such a sweet addition to the room. I started reading the verses and prayers to Nora yesterday and already have cried a few times. What a blessing it is.

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Monday, June 18, 2012

Ella tiene tres meses.

Today Nora turned 3 months old. A quarter of a year... practically a quarter of a century. Our little lady is most definitely still a little lady, but she's growing faster than we can keep track of. I swear each time she wakes us she's 4 pounds heavier and an inch larger. (Neither of those are true, but it sure seems that way.) Unfortunately we have to wait to go back to the doctor's office until her 4-month check-up, so we don't have new weights or lengths.

Here are the treasures:




This month was a pretty big one for her, although I'm sure the past 2 months and next 18 or so all will be big ones because as my mom says, "She changes so much so quickly." (This is also her excuse of why she needs to have "Nora-fixes" so often.) She really is changing and growing. Until about a week ago, she was sleeping all of her naps and at night swaddled. We decided to pull the plug last weekend for good. It took her about 2 nights of laying awake too long while letting us all know that she was uncomfortable, and then she settled into the new pattern, and I'm sure she would never want to go back. As I'm typing this, she's snoozing away in her crib -- arms free, legs free.

I think I might be the only mom ever that doesn't wake their baby up at 11 or so for a feeding and then have her sleep until morning. I do the opposite. I put her down at 6 or 7 and then let her wake up between 2-4 am to eat, and then she sleeps until morning. It didn't make sense for me with my job to do the other. I had to be up at 5 am, so I needed to go to bed around 8:30, which meant that feeding her at 11 was just inconvenient all around. Nevertheless, when people ask me if she sleeps through the night, I can say "Yes, she does." Because she sleeps from 6 until her morning feeding, and then promptly falls back asleep until 6 or 7 am. She's a great nighttime sleeper and always has been. Her naps, however, leave much to be desired. She has a hard time passing through from one REM cycle to the next, so she often wakes up crying at 40-45 minutes and has a hard time going back to sleep. Every once in a blue moon (maybe once a week) she randomly makes it through and sleeps a solid 2 hours. Yesterday afternoon was a prime example of this: we put her down for a nap, I decided I would let her cry it out at 45 minutes and put herself back to sleep, and then she just slept right through for 2 1/2 hours with no mid-cycle wake. Today was not the case though. But you can't have it all, right?! I'm just so thankful for her brilliant nighttime sleeping skills.

This month she also experienced her first cold. Luckily it only lasted about a day and a half and was just a stuffy/runny nose. But poor little girl, she just broke my heart with her misery. Who am I kidding - she didn't feel well, but still gave out just as many smiles. She just knew she wasn't feeling right and couldn't figure out why... but that didn't stop her from trying to enjoy herself.

She's getting close to rolling over from her back to her front. She's quite the squirmer when she's lying on her playmat. She has rolled over accidentally from her front to her back probably 5 times or so, but mostly because she forgets to put her hips down on the floor when she's on her tummy and flops over.

We start our cloth diapers this week - so we'll see how that goes. Hopefully they are a huge success, because they were quite the investment of money and time, and we really don't have a back-up plan. We decided, after the last huge box of Pampers, we were done buying disposable diapers and we are ready to move to the cloth. I finished a few up today during her naps and tomorrow I will finish up the rest; then I will wash them all, test how long they take to dry, and hopefully by Friday she will be one eco-friendly baby!

That's all the Nora-news for now. As of this week, I am a stay-at-home-mom for a few months, so I should have more time for crafting, pictures, etc. which means more blog updates! (Finally - I know right?!)

Coming soon: Nursery Reveal (better late than never?), One Year Later, and Being Candid

Sunday, May 20, 2012

two months old.

Hello everyone! So sorry for all the time off. But, you know, there's a little baby that is running my life right now. And then add yet another baby when I'm at work, and, well, you get one tired out woman... who has no time to blog.

But our little lady turned two months old on Friday, so there is need to update the blog and celebrate her new milestone.

If you are a mother, you know that turning two months old means that Nora had her two-month doctor's appointment. That means that she had to get a round of vaccines. So, we didn't really get her two-month pictures on Friday because the aftermath of said shots plus a lack of afternoon nap added up to one fussy baby that would not have done so well with a photo shoot.

But here are her two month old pictures, taken Saturday (with one happy little lady, I might add.)



She is now 22.5 inches long (growing 1 inch since last month) and weighs 11 pounds 6 ounces (gaining almost 2 pounds.) Unfortunately she has lost most of her "Noisy Nora" noises at night, but she is, however, quite the nighttime sleeper. She sleeps at least 6-7 hours straight at night, wakes up for a feeding, and then back to sleep for 4-5 hours. For Mother's Day she decided to treat me to 9 1/2 hours of straight sleep before waking up -- what a nice surprise that was!

Nora is a big talker and smiler. She recognizes her daddy and me extremely easily and is content to carry on a "conversation" with us for 20-30 minutes straight. She coos and talks often; so much so that Mr. Allen and I asked each other why we even liked her before she could smile and talk. We are convinced that she must have been so boring back then. :] We are completely smitten with her.

She joins us at the dinner table every night in her high chair (which reclines back until she's ready to sit-up completely) and will talk and watch us as we eat and chat away. I really can't believe how much of a big girl she's becoming already. During bath time at night, she watches Mommy and Daddy in the mirror while they wash her and sits contented, smiling the whole time.

Two months seem like forever in an awesome way. I feel like life before her was just a far-off dream. She completes us Allens in so many ways. We are so blessed to have her, to hold her, to giggle with her, to bathe her, to feed her, to read to her, to snuggle her, to kiss her, to know her.

Nora girl, we love you deeply and passionately. We are so glad you are ours!

Saturday, April 21, 2012

one month old

Well, friends, say goodbye to your weekly pictures of our little girl. She is still turning one week older each Sunday, but I'm not going to be capturing it quite that often. I will still be pulling out our camera often to catch those little moments throughout our days (which can be found on facebook), but you will have to chart her growth via the blog only at monthly milestones from here on out.

So, here are her ONE MONTH PICTURES.



On Wednesday Nora turned one month old! And I handled it a lot better than I had anticipated - no tears. I just kept staring at her in awe of how much she has grown and changed, and I just can't fathom how quickly she is growing up. (I'm already saying this stuff... imagine me in 15 years.) I waited to post pictures until after her one-month doctor's appointment, which was yesterday. Little Miss is 21.5 inches long and 9 pounds, 10 ounces. She has gained 2.5 pounds since birth and grew 2 inches! She's quite the little bowling ball now... not so easy to hold for long periods of time. :]

In the last 2 weeks, she has learned to create that melt-my-heart social smile (it's not just gas anymore , folks), and it seriously gets me EVERY time. She also learned to coo/talk to friendly faces (and the ceiling fans, picture frames, and any other easily-spotted inanimate objects.) She is incredibly alert and active when she is awake, loving tummy time (a weird baby, I know), holding her head just fine on her own, and kicking those strong legs constantly.

We went to Michigan last weekend for my birthday and to celebrate my best friend's upcoming wedding with a bridal shower. I was an awful mommy: ONLY in the sense that I took NO pictures of Nora meeting so many new family members. I'm sorry everyone. I really dropped the ball on that one. Big time. Hopefully our next child will be an identical replica of baby Nora and we can take those pictures and just say they were Nora and baby #2.

Nora did amazing traveling. We were worried about the car ride to Michigan, since the longest we ever drive with her in the city is 20-30 minutes (and that is really like 5 miles, just considering Chicago traffic.) We had done a few trips out to the suburbs last week, which takes about 45 minutes and she had slept on all those trips. But she did great in the long car ride, sleeping the whole way. And on the way back, Nora and I took the train, which was supposed to take 3 hours and ended up being a 5 hour trip (plus commuting on public transportation once we got into the city) and she was a gem through it all. Thank God for such a good baby!

And, as I write this, I can hear that little one sleeping her little heart out (per usual)... along with her daddy who joined her 8 pm bedtime tonight (late for her, early for him) because he is feeling a little under the weather. That being said, Mommy gets some time to update the blog for all you lovely readers.
...and maybe a little Martha Stewart time too(?).

Sunday, April 8, 2012

3 weeks old

Our little girl is 3 weeks old and is a growing machine.

Here are her 2 week old pictures from last Sunday:



She was really rocking that leopard print. :] As of a week ago Friday (a few days before these pictures were taken), she had gained 12 ounces between week 1 and week 2, weighing 8 pounds at the doctor's office. The doctor was so happy with her weight gain, so we're obviously doing something right.

Today, Easter Sunday, Nora is 3 weeks old! I can't believe it. I feel like we have had her forever, in a great way, and at the same time, I can only imagine the tears I will cry next week as my little baby will turn 1 month old. It's unreal in every possible way.

If you didn't have the chance to see my facebook status tonight... Nora was dressed in a fancy, beautiful pink dress for Easter this morning, and after about an hour of church, she decided to have her first explosive diaper. She pooped through a onesie, through a pair of tights, and into her beautiful dress. It was a good thing Mom decided to grab an extra whole outfit for the day. (Usually I just pack a t-shirt onesie.) We did get one picture this morning in her dress on Mr. Allen's cell phone.


 And for her 3 week old photo: (check out that belly!!)


Nora hit her first growth spurt this week. On Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, she was crazy about eating. I swear it was practically every hour and a half that she was hungry. I mentioned it to my sister-in-law, and she told me to expect a few days of heavy sleep coming afterward. Boy, was she right! Yesterday Nora was awake from 7am to 8am, and then slept practically the rest of the day with the exception of waking up to eat. Today, we went to an Easter dinner, and she slept through it all. (No worries - she ate again, mid nap.) This being said, she is still sleeping all night. Oh boy, I needed these past two days to relax a little myself, not having as eager of an eater. Maybe tomorrow or Tuesday we'll be back on schedule and to normal life. (Doubtful since Tuesday is our moving day, and then we'll be settling into our new apartment.)

Please pardon my lack of adding the weekly pictures on time, we are going through a lot right now as a family: you know, adding a newborn, adjusting to said newborn-family-life/sleep-deprivation, and, on top of that, we're moving this coming week and are trying to get everything packed up. It's a whirlwind life right now, but a beautifully blessed one. 

Thursday, April 5, 2012

NJFacts [part 2]

More Nora-provoked facts:

#1: This post has to be short, because a little girl named Nora Jean not only takes all my time, but all my energy. I keep having to-do lists to accomplish once Mr. Allen gets home from school and can back me up on Nora-duty, but then most nights (like last night for example) I run out of energy way earlier than even looking at that to-do list, let alone tackleing it. Last night, Mr. Allen got home at 5:00 (to a cranky, tired baby) and then we tried to eat dinner while she napped. The nap lasted 20 minutes and we had a crier. Then, at 7:00, she was finally bathed, fed, and asleep in bed, and I immediately climbed in bed too. Not much more can get accomplished when that happens.

#2: When we told our families and the world that we had picked the name "Nora" for our little girl, my mother-in-law quickly told me about a book she used to read to her daughter, my sister-in-law, Erin, often when she was little. Here it is:

source 
As a new grandma, not only was she excited for her new granddaughter, but excited also for the chance to share this book again with a little one, especially a little one named "Nora." Last weekend, when Grandma was here, she was able to introduce Nora (and myself) to this little book... so cute.

The fact I'm trying to share here, is that Nora is most definitely living up to the name "Noisy Nora". I mean, I've been around my share of children and babies, but this girl is the loudest sleeper I've ever met. She falls asleep peacefully, then as she shuffles between REM cycles and deep sleeps, she makes noises... LOUD noises: grunts, squeaks, more grunts. She just makes sure her father and I know she's still around. Oh, lady, we could never forget about you; but thank you for the reminder. Mr. Allen and I have decided she may be part goose with all those un-human-like noises.

But, we sure do love our little noisy Nora!

Some night, if I remember, I might take a video of her mid-cycle-"soundtrack" for you all to experience and enjoy.

PS - Two week old pictures were taken last Sunday; do not worry! I just haven't had a chance to load them from the camera. (Remember that no time/no energy thing? Yeah... I can't wait for that to go away.)

Thursday, March 29, 2012

NJFacts [part 1]

Here's a new series for you: NJFacts: Nora Jean Facts. I say "series" because I'm sure that, as she grows, she will produce more and more facts for me to share with you. As for today, here's 3 facts for your enjoyment. (Three facts in 11 days; this girl is pumping them out!)

#1 - As of 4 days ago, Nora's stomach was the size of a ping-pong ball. How cute is that. I'm sure it has grown by now, since she is growing each day, but I love that imagery. [It's almost as cute as the fact that back in week 8 of my pregnancy when she was the size of a raspberry.]

#2 - Nora has acquired the skill of shooting milk out her nose. It's cute. It also scares me a little, because I think it is a sign that she's not really breathing fully while eating, but I'll let the doctor tell me tomorrow exactly what's going on. As for now, it's cute. ...and a little gross.

#3 - There is so much bodily fluids between this little girl and I that I don't know what is what and whose is whose. It's kind of super gross, but I think that's life with a newborn. I'm just going to have to deal with the fact that as of last night there are two new stains on our bedding (joining the many others created this week) that I just can't pinpoint their creator or substance. [I think new bedding may be in our future. ...you know, after the milk coming out the nose and other creative spurts subside.]

Bonus fact: She is the best thing. ever. And that is a fact.


Sunday, March 25, 2012

1 week old [labor & delivery]

stretching to show her whole 19.75 inches

not a happy camper
Nora Jean is one week old today. We have been home since Tuesday around noon, and we are quickly adjusting to life with a little one. She's a very easy adjustment for the majority though -- a little doll with a wonderful temperament. She sleeps through the nights, eats every 2-4 hours, and does all of her "business" perfectly too. Her resume is quite impressive.

She has been out and about a lot this week too for only her first week. We took her to Target just a few hours after we got her out of the hospital. She slept through the whole experience, which probably means she loved it. She's been back to Target a second time (it will feel like a second home to her, I'm sure), on the CTA buses (for an appointment), to the doctor's office, to the DHS (human services) office, to the park for a walk, and this morning we ventured out to church. She's quite the well-traveled baby, and she snoozes in her car seat and Lulu wrap easily.


Her Arrival Story:
(Warning: If you don't want details, don't read any further!)

Last Saturday, March 17th (St. Patrick's Day), I started to have contractions mid-afternoon. But these were funny contractions, because they didn't hurt at all. I just knew it was a new feeling, with definite tightening in my abdomen, and we started timing them to check their frequency. They were 2 minutes apart and very regular. I knew I needed to get up and start walking around to really activate them and see if they were the real thing, and since we needed to go to Target for a few things anyway, we decided to get all the hospital-things around and head out. (Big surprise, we went to Target, huh?!) The contractions still continued to be very regular, and still didn't really bug me much, as I was able to talk and laugh through all of them, but they did start to increase intensity.

We called the doctor from the Target parking lot, and she told us to come on in and get checked out. (Side note: I was very relieved to hear that one of my preferred doctors from my practice was on-call for the night.) We went to the hospital and got checked in, and they measured me at 4 cm. I had been 3 cm. earlier that week at the doctor's office, so this wasn't really much progress. They told me that the doctor would probably want to break my water sometime that night if the contractions didn't really turn up the heat, but I could start walking to see if that would help. So Mr. Allen and I walked the very small loop of the triage floor for an hour. Then I was rechecked and measured at 5 cm. The nurses were satisfied with this progress and said they expected me to progress at about a centimeter per hour. I figured that to mean, since it was then 7 pm, the delivery would happen around midnight, which seemed a long time off. I had called my mom during our hour of walking and discussed breaking my water and I decided that I wanted that to happen so we could "get this show started."

I was then moved to the labor and delivery floor and a doctor broke my water. Let's just say, things definitely started to change. We continued to walk on the new floor and my contractions picked up quickly. I was having to stop and breath through them, struggling to stand at times because of the pain. I dealt with nausea and almost passed out at one point, and around 10 pm, I decided to head back to my room and rest for a little while. The contractions continued at 2 minutes apart and I, well, was in a LOT of pain. At midnight, I asked to be checked again for progress, and in my mind was at the end of what I could handle. I thought to myself, 'I want to be at least at 8 cm to keep going without medicine.' But when the doctor checked, I was at 6.5 cm and I asked for the epidural.

After the medication, I felt amazing. Mr. Allen laid down to sleep and I rested for a few hours. I was such a happy camper when he came back in the room after they gave me my first dosage that he texted his mom and asked "Who is this? And where did they take my wife?" I really was a different woman. Around 3:30 am the nurse checked me again and said that I was at 10 cm and fully efface, it could be game-time at any moment. She said that my doctor wanted me to "labor down," which means let the baby come down lower and lower on her own, letting the contractions do their work since I wasn't experiencing severe pain, which would result in less need for extended pushing.

At 5 am, they woke me up (I finally fell asleep for 15 minutes), and I woke Mr. Allen up, and we got ready for go-time. We were about to start practice pushes, and then the doctor walked in and said, "Let's make them real pushes." They said Nora was already visible before I even started pushing, thanks to the laboring down. At this point, I could feel my contractions working because I hadn't re-dosed the medicine in a few hours. I was ready to push and felt excited to know that an end was so close and we would finally meet our little one. To be honest, I thought the pushing-part was so much fun. I was ready to be done and I knew that I just needed to get through this little bit. And a little bit it was - after just 20 minutes of pushing, at 5:37 am, Nora Jean Allen was born. She cried immediately and they put her on my chest. I was overwhelmed, too much so that I don't think I even cried. I just stared at her and was so, so much in love.

Her stats:
born at 5:37 am on March 18th, 2012
19.5 inches
7 pounds 4 ounces
(and so so beautiful)