Elijah Daniel was born =)

I will post pictures, but haven't had time to look through them all yet....so I thought while Eli is napping, I'd jot down some thoughts and put up pictures later today.

*The big news: MY BABY'S HERE!  We feel so extremely blessed to have this tiny baby.  He is beautiful.  7 lbs 15.6 oz, 20 inches long.

A little bit about my labor.....
*I've been saying all pregnancy how completely different this pregnancy was compared to my pregnancy with Jaden.  Labor wise, that has been true also.
*My labors I think are just going to be long.  LOL.  I labored with Eli for 24 hours.  Most of it was at home, which was a huge blessing.
*Contractions started at 2 am Monday.  I walked, and rested, and ate Chick Fil A, and walked some more.  By 3, my contractions were long and strong, but hadn't gotten closer together so my doula recommended me go to my ob's office to get my membranes swept.  Derek took me over to their office and the nurse practitioner checked me.  Low and behold, I was 5 cm and 90% effaced.....and she gave me the go-ahead to go to labor and delivery.  I chose to labor for a few more hours at home with my doula and Derek...and by 7 we were headed to the hospital!
*Once I got admitted, I was 7 cm and completely effaced.  I labored for another 8 hours, and finally Eli was born at 213 am Tuesday March 19th.
*I was able to do natural/drug free child birth this go round!  Let me just say, labor is HARD.  But there's this HUGE sense of accomplishment when it's all said and done without drugs.  I felt empowered.  I felt like I could conquer the world.  Definitely, it was not easy.  Especially at the end, during transition.  I am thankful for the experience.  I think the natural child birth has helped my recovery and definitely helped Eli when he was born =)

Getting home with the baby....
*I had planned for people to take Jaden while I was in labor.....and totally forgot to plan for the few days you spend in the hospital after delivery.  Thankfully, we had faithful friends who were able to help out until we were able to come home with Eli.
*The first night at home went MUCH BETTER than I thought.  I had this horrible picture in my mind.........and not to say bad nights aren't coming, but I was very thankful the first one went well.  Jaden woke up this morning and said he didn't even hear Eli at all...and that must have been true because he didn't wake up at all.
*Eli nursed every 3 hours, but slept really well in between feedings, so both Derek and I were able to get solid rest.  Also a huge blessing!

Some prayer requests......
*Continue to pray for our transition into a family of 4.
*Pray for Derek, as he prepares to go back to work while dealing with a newborn baby at home.
* Pray for Jaden, as we're trying to keep his schedule as routine as possible.  Pray for his little heart to grow to love Eli and want to help with him.  Pray for him to remember that we still love him, and he is still important.
*Pray for me.....as I adjust to staying home with 2 kiddos.  As I try to figure out the nursing baby/5 year old life.  Pray for my hormones, they're all over the map right now.  Pray for me to allow myself grace to rest and not be GOGOGOGO all the time.

Thanks, friends!  Updates will come soon.