Adalynn Hope

Adalynn arrived on June 26 at 2:40pm weighing 8 pounds 8 ounces and 19 1/2 inches long.
Her arrival was scheduled, I was 39 weeks and chose to be induced. In late June in Texas it's uncomfortably hot and being pregnant in the 100 degree heat made me feel like a beached whale! I was very ready to meet & hold our little angel as well as no longer be pregnant.

Her delivery was laid back & to be honest, pretty easy. With Adalynn being our fifth child to be delivered at the same hospital I knew exactly what to expect with the whole process. One thing that I was pleasantly surprised with is after she was born she was placed directly on my chest for almost 10 minutes, then was quickly examined for her Apgar score & returned to me. After I nursed her, we allowed our other children to come in with both sets of grandparents, two aunts & an uncle. We all got to watch her be examined by the nurse and given her first bath and footprints. It was such a special memory to have all of us there to see this. With all my other children they were taken to the nursery an hour or so after delivery and so I had never seen  any of them receive their first bath.

Hudson, age 3, was bright-eyed and staring at Adalynn, he quietly walked over to the side of my bed and asked "Mommy, are they going to put her back (in your tummy)??"  :) It's so funny how their little minds work!! The kids were in love with her and SO excited to get to hold her. They each took their turns and it was so sweet to watch. Hudson and Trinity didn't understand why we couldn't take her home that very moment.  Because of the kids I decided to ask if I could be discharged after 24 hours, so we were home by dinner time the next day. I was a little overwhelmed with the thought of going home where everyone yells "Mommy" and needs something! But the nurse made me promise that I would rest. (yea, right.) And I did sleep much better at home; I can never get any sleep in the hospital.

She is 5 weeks old & we've gotten into a pretty good routine, or at least as much as we can with the lazy days of summer. The girls love to "mommy" the baby and they can be quite helpful. Although, on occasion, Adalynn is missing from her bouncy seat & one of them has picked her up because they claimed she was fussing. Brayden, our oldest has been a life-saver! At 11, he's pretty responsible and very affectionate and caring to his baby sister. I think we've all adjusted really well. Maybe, I'll have just one more!!..................
JUST KIDDING! We are definitely done and our family feels complete.