She's Here!

Yesterday's induction went fabulously and our little Leyla Grace Eich was born yesterday afternoon! The details:

Tuesday, September 14, 2010
4:51pm
6 lbs, 14 oz (a little peanut just like her big bro was!)
19.5 inches

The whole day went really smoothly (minus the whole heinous pain of labor part but whatever- its over). I think having been through this before I was remarkably calm throughout-- knowing that what I was feeling was awful but normal, I wasn't going to die, etc. Being able to communicate with the nursing staff this time around really helped too! I'm feeling great, Leyla's doing great, all is well and we're so happy that she's (finally) here!

Here she is just minutes old:

First time in Daddy's arms.

A couple of iphone pics.



Andrew brought my Mom and Connor over to meet Leyla this afternoon and it was so fun. Connor held the baby for a bit but asked that she be taken away pretty quickly. I believe his exact words were "I all done holding Yay-ya (how he pronounces her name), someone please take this baby away now!" As always, he was extremely gentle, giving her lots of sweet kisses on her head, etc. That said, he was way more excited about the new yellow train that Leyla brought for him as a gift!
Mom and Leyla.



Ash also came to visit today. It was so great to see her and her baby bump! Our little girls are going to be future roomies at UMD just like we were ;)

In anticipation of Ash's arrival I combed my hair ;)

The gorgeous flowers we got from Andrew's company.

Happy Birthday to my Dad and welcome to the world Leyla Grace!! I still can't get over that they will share a birthday, so fun. Thank you to everyone for your well wishes, they have been much appreciated!! And a really huge thank you to my Mom for sticking around as long as she has to take care of Connor- we just don't know what we would have done without her! She will head home Saturday morning :(

I took a bunch more pics tonight but will download later and post tomorrow morning.

1st Day of School

This past Friday was Connor's first day of pre-school. He was so so so excited to go. Unfortunately he was not in the mood for picture taking and to be honest I was too hot/slow/big/generally disgruntled to put too much effort into getting the perfect "first day of school" picture. Another time! Trust me, he looked very handsome and I was one seriously proud mama!

He was much more interested in taking pictures of us instead.

Taking a great picture of Dad.

As soon as we got to school he found a pretend phone and "called" Andrew to check in. It really makes me laugh how many times a day he pretends to call Andrew.

A few weeks before school started they sent out the roster and contact info for Connor's class. One of the other Moms emailed the mothers of the 5 boys in class to see if anyone was interested in getting together for a playdate before the start of school. I thought it sounded like a great idea, so we ended up getting together with them several times. It was so great that Connor had Cole (his new buddy) as a familiar face on the first day of school- they paired off instantly and went off to play!


After my Mom and I picked Connor up from school we took him to Crumbs bakery for a very special cupcake to celebrate the very special day.

My boy loves cupcakes.


We brought one home for Andrew (who was working from home) too!


Baby #2 update below!

And Tomorrow It Is!

Had my weekly doc appt this morning and they've decided to go ahead and induce me first thing tomorrow morning- hallelujah! While I have absolutely loved being pregnant, these last couple weeks feel like they've gone on forever. We couldn't be happier, or more nervous, or more excited for tomorrow! It just so happens to be my Dad's birthday tomorrow too- which we view as a great sign- we already know its a great date. Tonight while I was putting Connor to bed he said to me "Mommy tomorrow you go get my baby sister and then you come back?" Yup, that's just what we're going to do!

Another Update

Had my weekly doc appt. this morning and... still no progress from last week. We discussed the "I" word (induction) but she said if the baby isn't in the 100% ready position (and apparently she isn't quite there) I'm basically guaranteeing myself a c-section, which I'd really like to avoid. Now if we're still in the same place this time next week than I just might ask them to slice me open right there, ha! It's really a shame that pregnancies aren't 38 weeks long, because that's about when things start to get really messy. And beyond 40 weeks, well its just not fair! On the way home from the doctors I was feeling really down- just so uncomfortable and so frustrated. I was even crying a little. Which is when the Rolling Stones song "You Can't Always Get What You Want" came on the radio and I just had to laugh out loud. So true, and I got the message loud and clear. When I got home Connor came running up to me (he had stayed home with my Mom) with a big hug and kiss. He said "I glad you're back Mommy, I missed you and I so happy to see you!" Then he proceeded to show me the 8 or so pictures he had drawn of me while I was gone. A great reminder (as Connor was born 6 days late) that good things come to those who wait.

PS- all has not been lost with having had my Mom here all week because she's been unbelievably helpful with Connor. She's extremely hands on with him and he just could not adore her more! Especially with me being so tired and slow these days, I am forever grateful. Here they are in the backyard this morning, Connor was giving a "how-to" demonstration on his new fave trick- "bake-dancing."

Still Hanging in There

Today is my official due date and sadly, there is no baby yet. Apparently she's already taking after her big bro in making us wait this out yet again. "Labor Day" was a farce ;)

Thanks to those that have been thinking of us and sending well wishes our way- your thoughts and prayers are much appreciated! Hoping for some action this week!

Nice Little Saturday

Over breakfast yesterday we decided that we just can't hang around New Canaan all weekend waiting for this baby to come- we'll go nuts! So I suggested heading into NYC for the day- great idea! The city always empties out on holiday weekends so we were able to drive into the city in under 40 minutes, awesome! Connor was so excited to be back, he was especially thrilled to get to ride in a taxi again- not once but twice. We did a lot of walking around Central Park and visited an amusement park that is open just during the summers (the ice skating rink is there during the winters). Then we met up with Annie and John and baby Sadie for lunch at (where else?) Brother Jimmy's. Yum.

Ok so it's no Disney World, but there is definitely something magical about an amusement park in the middle of Central Park, in the middle of my very favorite city in the world. What a perfect day for it too. It was in the mid 70's yesterday, sunny and not a bit of humidity.

It was all kiddie rides- perfect for kids Connor's age. That's him in the airplane.

C's first roller coaster ride. He held his hands up like that that whole time!

Boating with Dad. I love how C always puts his hand on our leg when we sit with him.

He later said this was his favorite ride.

Playing the water gun game where Andrew beat all the little kids by like a mile. Here he is explaining himself, I think he said that his "competitive spirit just takes over and he can't help himself." Ha. At least he let Connor have the stuffed snake he won.

I thought for sure all that walking around might kick start some labor action but no dice. I even went for another long walk once we got home- still nothing! So after we put Connor to bed Andrew built a great fire on the back patio and we just hung out. Enjoying the calm before the storm (meaning the baby, not Earl- he was a no show).

My Mom arrives this afternoon and will be staying until the baby arrives. I will be so glad to have her here, now we'll know Connor is well taken care of when the time comes for us to go to the hospital. We had a list of people we could call should I have gone into labor early (wishful thinking obviously) but it will be nice knowing he'll be here with someone who already knows his routine and that he's already really comfortable with. That means that last night was the last night in our house with it being just the 3 of us. This makes me both really sad and really excited!

Last night when we put Connor into his crib he said to us "I had a great day! Can Mommy Daddy take me back to the big apple again tee-mano?" Tee-mano is my favorite mispronunciations of his, he means "tomorrow." But he was right- it was a really great day!

39.5 weeks

So close! And this my friends, is probably the last pregnant picture you'll see of me. I'm starting to look a little "busted" these days, ha. This is a bit of a running joke among my friends that have recently had babies- its such a compliment when someone says, "you still look great! Not busted at all yet!" Because many times (usually right at the end) you can start to look a little "busted" and that's exactly whats happening over here. I've started to swell. My hands, my thighs, my butt, my face, my arms, my stomach- they are not mine (at least I hope they aren't going to be mine for much longer). It's the worst feeling to be so uncomfortable in your own skin and that's how I'm feeling right now. Just totally Blah. And as Andrew pointed out, its hard to focus on all the other stuff going on (work, house stuff, etc) when there's such a major life event that could occur at any moment. It's pretty much all we're thinking about these days, really hoping she decides to come soon!!

Happy Labor Day weekend- here's hoping!!