Lila Kate was born on June 4 at 2:15 pm. She weighed 8 pounds and 1 ounce and was 20 inches long.  

She came out with a head full of fuzzy dark brown hair and big alert eyes. 

She has been such a joy in our lives since the second she arrived. There is something so magical about the first few days with your new baby. Call me crazy, but I love the birth/hospital experience. I love the bond I feel with my husband through it all and the magical moment when you first see your little miracle. There is just nothing like it! I want to always remember this special time, so I wanted to write about it. 

When I was pregnant with Lila I had soooo many emotions goin on. Like, would I be able to love her as much as our first daughter?, would I be a good mom to two girls?, would I connect to her as well as I did with her sister?

But let me just tell ya, all of my fears went away the second I saw her! The doctor handed her to me and laid her on my chest and I was instantly in love. I looked at Seth and we both cried. We were so relieved and happy she was here. My labor with her was soooo long and we had many moments of discouragement. We didn’t sleep all night and I didn’t get to eat for about 21 hours…so to say we were exhausted is an understatement. But it’s funny how as soon as sweet Lila was born, all of that didn’t matter anymore and we didn’t want to take our eyes off our sweet baby girl. All I could think about was how much I loved her and how much I loved both my girls now!

The sweetest moment I will never forget, is Emma meeting her sister for the first time! She walked in the room with all her grandparents and she had the biggest grin on her face when she saw us and baby sister. I was so nervous she would be jealous or she wouldn’t understand what was going on. But I honestly couldn’t have been more relieved to see how sweet she handled everything. She sat on the bed and let us place Lila in her lap and she had the cutest little smile. It was almost surreal seeing Emma with her. Seeing our first baby (now almost 3) with our new baby was just the most special and crazy thing. I know I am getting all sentimental and mushy, but I think being a mom has made me realize how quickly time flies and how we need to cherish each and every moment we have together. 

I wish I had a clearer photo of all the grandparents meeting her for the first time, but this phone photo will have to do. They had been waiting since 4 pm the previous day when I went into labor.  My parents, Seth’s parents, my brothers and my brother’s girlfriend all waited at our home with Emma while Seth and I were at the hospital all night. We didn’t have Lila until 2:15 the following day, so they were all very eager to get the phone call and text saying she arrived. We had the grandparents and Emma come in first and they came bursting into the room with beaming smiles on their faces. Its so fun and special to see our parents meet our child. There is nothing like a grandparents love I have learned. They seem to appreciate little ones so much more because they have already raised their babies and they understand how fleeting time is. I loved watching their expressions. 

There is nothing to describe the first few days with your newborn! It is exhausting, yet exhilarating. It’s a magical time of sleep deprivation. Haha. What most people don’t tell you or what they don’t show in the movies is that you have a ton of pain, cramps, and other fun things we won’t get into happening after birth. Your body is sore and aching. You are tired and trying to get the hang of feeding your new baby. Nurses and visitors keep the room full most of the day, so resting doesn’t come east. You are getting to know each little feature of your new baby, studying their noises, figuring out what they like/dislike, snuggling, bonding…there is just nothing like it. It is all just so magical and beautiful. I don’t know if I am crazy but I would just keep having babies because of how much I love those first few days! These photos don’t even do it justice, but they give a little glimpse of the love that we feel for our little girl! 

Here are more photos from the Hospital!