Miss Eloise

On January 3rd, I woke up, showered, got dressed, did my hair and makeup, kissed Penny goodbye, and went to the hospital.  I put on a hospital gown, chatted with my parents, walked into an operating room, and came out an hour later with a smaller tummy and a perfect baby girl.

Eloise's birth was, thankfully, the complete opposite of her big sister's.  I was nervous, but this time I knew what to expect and I was prepared for it.  The worst part was getting the spinal, but even that wasn't as bad.  A planned C-section is the way to go!  Once we got into the operating room, things moved so quickly, that I hardly had time to worry.  We all took bets on how big Eloise was going to be, none of the guesses were under 8.5 pounds.  

I asked Andrew to bring my camera and document the whole thing.  He was grumpy about this because it made him feel like a tourist.  He complained a great deal, but he took some wonderful pictures.  

In this operating room, they had a spot in the corner of the room where they took the babies to be cleaned, weighed, and tested (with Penny, it was an adjoining room).  I could not see them but I was comforted by the little cries and noises Eloise was making.  I think everyone was anxious to know how much she weighed and we were all shocked to discover she only weighed 7 pounds and 5 ounces, exactly 2 pounds less than Penny.  For my family, this is a tiny baby! 

Andrew was able to bring Eloise over to me while the doctors were finishing putting me back together.  It was so nice to be well rested and able to be more present in the moment.  Eloise was soon placed in my arms as I was wheeled back into the recovery room where my parents were waiting for us.  

The rest of the day was a happy blur.  I was able to get up once my spinal wore off.  Penny and my sisters came to visit.  I was even able to eat at some point!  

It was really neat to watch Andrew with Eloise.  He was so much more confident this time around. With Penny, he panicked when I told him I was going to take a shower and he needed to watch the baby.  He told me I needed to be quick!  There was a whole hospital full of people a button's push away!  This time, he was excited to take over my hospital bed and happily snuggled Eloise while I showered.

The hardest day of C-section recovery is the second one.  That's when the morphine had worn off and my stomach began to ache.  Thankfully, it is such a relief to not be pregnant anymore and it's such a joy to finally get to hold that precious little baby, that the pain is bearable! 

Now, suddenly, I am home and Eloise is two weeks old.  I know it's only going to keep flying by.  I am still recovering, but I no longer need my pain medicines! This week was my first time being left at home with both of my girls.  We have had some great moments and some hard both-girls-are-crying-the-floor-is-covered-in-yogurt-and-the-plumber-just-rang-the-doorbell moments.  Penny is sad that I cannot pick her up for the next few weeks. She is also excited every time she notices Eloise and covers her with kisses.  Hopefully we will all find our new normal soon.  For now, I am loving having a tiny baby to snuggle all day long!