Oh Baby!

Ella Grace has arrived! She officially missed her due date by 12 minutes coming into the world at 12:12am Saturday, July 26th. Weighing in at 7lbs 2oz Ella is a whole pound smaller than her big sister was, and meauring at 20 inches long she's a half inch longer. She just seems so tiny, even compared to how tiny Sycely seemed as a newborn; she definitely has less bulk to her. I guess that's the12 additional pounds I gained with Sycely :) I started having contractions around 9:15pm and we started timing spacing and duration around 9:35. They were about 5 minutes apart and a minute long so around 10 we called the midwives. We were on the road headed to the Midwifery in Wasilla by 10:30. The ride out was definitely less comfortable this time than with Sycely as my contractions were alot more intense by the time we were driving out. We arrived at the birth center around 11:2o. When we got there I was at 8cm and expecting I had a couple hours yet, started to get myself settled in to labor in the shower and tub, but after only 2 contractions in the shower Ella was ready and it was time to push so I got into the tub and about 10 minutes later Ella entered the world, much like her sister, in a big tub of warm water, caught by her daddy, smelly candles, dim lighting and the sound of ocean waves filling the room. It was very similar (though even faster!) than Sycely's birth and we're so grateful and blessed that both of our girls have had peaceful, natural, tranquil entrances into the world surrounded by joy and prayer. We're so very thankful for our midwives and can't imagine a more splendid birth experience for our girls. Because of my history of "shocky fainting" the midwives were keeping a close eye on my bleeding and such so we stayed at the midwifery until around 1:00pm Saturday. Fortunately, with no tearing this time, I'm facing a much easier recovery despite the super fast delivery, which I am stoked about! Nanny and Papa spent the night Friday night with Sycely and they came out Saturday morning so that Sycely could meet her baby sister. She brought out the elephants she made at build-a-bear and wished Ella a "happy birth-day!" So far she's been pretty enamored with her baby sister. We got about 50 rounds of "Look! She's so tiny!" and she told me last night, "Baby Ella is the best baby sister ever!" (as if she's got grounds for comparison or something) Sycely keeps asking us, "Isn't she adorable?" and is pretty attentive to her needs responding immediately is she hears Ella fuss at all. She's being pretty helpful and is in high spirits and has been enjoying time playing with her Far Nanny and Papa Scott who arrived late Saturday night. We will continue to post more updates and pictures as we rest up and continue to adjust to being a family of four !