introducing, our little sister

She's here!
Clara Rose Willard.
Born Thursday 2/9, 7lb 13oz, 21.5 inches long.
We absolutely love her.
Thank you all for the fun comments and excitement. They were really fun to read while sitting in my hospital bed, getting to know this little girl.

Clara is the best baby I've had so far.
Fingers crossed that things stay that way. But really, she's just a happy girl. Eats, sleeps, and when she's awake, just looks around with her pretty little eyes. She seems so curious.
She has chubby little cheeks like the other kids did, the most hair of any of them (which I'm sure will fall out and come in blonde), and the wrinkliest feet I've ever seen.
The delivery went great....just as you all predicted.
In fact the doctor almost missed it all. I went from being "almost ready" to "um, there's the head. Quick call the doctor" in a very short period of time. My doctor walked in the room, threw on her gear, I pushed, and there was Clara. I feel very fortunate since it's made the recovery all that much easier.
It all felt surreal, moving that fast. But man, there is nothing in life that compares to experiencing birth....whether you're the mother, the father, or the nurse in the room assisting with it all. In fact, after Lucy was born I wanted to become a nurse because I was so touched by the whole birth experience. I started the schooling but didn't get far because then Owen was born. And now with the amount of time I spend on creative outlets, it may never happen. But I have such a respect for the care those nurses gave me. They were all fabulous and I'm jealous that they get to witness births every day. How cool.
We brought the Heart Garland with us to decorate our Valentine's crib.
The nurses all thought it was pretty funny.
And the kids weren't quite sure what to make of Clara at first.
They were super excited and smiled when they saw her...but then glanced out the window, "hey Mom, there's a park down the street!" And when she started crying they both plugged their ears because it was "just too loud."
They've got a lot to look forward to!

Little by little though, they warmed up her.
getting closer and closer,
so we could take a pic of all three kids.
and then it was back to playing games on Dad's phone.
Since we've been home though they've been more interested in what Clara is doing and wanting to help out where they can.
We're so blessed to have another sweet child in our family.
Thank you for your emails, comments, prayers, and thoughts. It's fun to share this moment with you guys. I'm not sure what the next few weeks hold or how much I'll be blogging. I don't feel super motivated for it at the moment. But when the time is right, I'll pop in. And I do plan to do a mini "Celebrate Baby" sometime soon since I have a few baby projects stock-piled.
Have a great week,
- Dana