Eliza Ruth

Eliza Ruth decided that she wanted to come into the world on her own terms. My doctor had scheduled us for induction on June 30th, the day before her due date. I had my alarm set for 6:30 am but woke up at 4:00 to some more serious contractions and decided that it would be better to be early rather than late so we called my sister to watch the kids until they woke up.

Our beautiful Eliza arrived at 6:11 am. She weighed 8lbs 0.9 oz. And was 20 1/4″ long. She came with long nails, dark eyes, and a lot of dark hair. 

We snuck some good snuggles in before Jacob went home to get the older siblings. It was magical to see them greet our newest family member. They clamored to hold her, loved talking to her and giving kisses. And our sleepy  girl took it all in stride.

We were surrounded by family. My mother and sister spent our first afternoon with us. Eliza mostly slept and my family just took in how tiny this new human was. They brought me snacks and her baby quilt, which helped me feel at home in the hospital for my stay.

We stayed in the hospital two days to make sure she was eating well. And since it was the holiday weekend we had to head back in on day three for a weight check. But soon enough we were back in our home, with our own food and our own family. She’s a very content little girl. Quiet. Happy. She slept easily in the crib. I’d love to blame improvements in our parenting techniques but I can’t take credit for her natural temperament which has been a gift to thwart some of my anxiety with the realities of growing to a family of five and taking care of all my kind, wonderful children. We sure are blessed and I’m excited to see her grow.