It's a GIRL!!!

Elizabeth Mae Exum

Sunday, 9 October 2011

10:46 at night

7 lbs. 5 oz.

20 inches

We are so excited to announce the arrival of our sweet baby girl, Elizabeth. Labor started around 4:15 on Sunday afternoon and she was born at home at 10:46 that night. Her labor and her birth were absolutely wonderful. I am so grateful to the Lord for blessing me with such an incredible experience of bringing her into our world. We had a sweet photographer photograph her birth for us, so I'll wait for those photos to tell her birth story. Until then, here are some photos of our first days with Lizzie Mae. We are all so in love with her!

The kids stayed up to watch me labor and to see their baby sister be born. Unfortunately, they missed her coming out by less than a minute because she came so fast, but they got on the bed with me and enjoyed those first several hours following her birth. It was the sweetest experience to share with our children. They love Elizabeth so much. Jackson couldn't wait to lie beside her. It was almost 3 in the morning when we finally went to bed, but I can't imagine not sharing those first 4 hours together as a family of 5!

My friend Michelle flew in from Colorado to hopefully be here for the birth. I prayed so hard asking the Lord to please bring the baby while she was here. I have a history of going past my due date (10 days with Jackson and 9 with Allison) and Michelle was leaving on the 8th day past my due date. I was hoping the baby would come before she left. The Lord was so gracious to bring on my labor while shopping with Michelle on Sunday afternoon and then to bring our baby girl that night while she was here. Sadly, she also missed the actual birth because she was hurrying up the stairs with the kids when Elizabeth came out. We've been friends for 10 years. We met the Madrids in Italy at the end of 2001 and our family has been so blessed by our friendship with them.

Jackson and Allison are so excited to have their baby sister here.

Jackson really wanted the baby to be a girl. And when we were grabbing a blanket this morning (the first day), he made me choose this one because it was mostly pink!

Jackson stayed home with me for our first post-partum appointment while Jason and Allison took Michelle to the airport. Everything looked great with me and Elizabeth and Jackson was such a big helper. He doesn't like it when Elizabeth cries. The night of her birth, the midwife told him that he could put a clean finger in her mouth to settle her down while she was examining her. He remembered that and whenever she cried, he kept wanting to put his finger in her mouth!

Our birth day cake for Elizabeth. Everyone wanted a cookie cake this time!

Allison loves being a big sister. She reads to Elizabeth...

...and sets up picnics for her in the room that they'll eventually share. (I'm so excited for them to have each other. I LOVED sharing a room with my sister when we were growing up.)

I wanted to make sure she didn't get too jaundiced, so we had a nice nap in the sun.

At our second post-partum appointment, Elizabeth was 4 days old and she weighed 7 lbs. 6 oz. - 1 oz. more than her birth weight. Breastfeeding is obviously going well!

Poor Jason got a stomach bug on the first day of Elizabeth's life. Jackson and Allison had it the Wednesday and Thursday before she was born and I got it the day before she was born. It was so sad because he couldn't be around us that first day and didn't hold her until the end of her second day. He was so concerned about not getting her sick. We had to get some daddy-daughter pictures to make up for those first two days. Elizabeth actually looks a lot like her Papa, Jason's dad.