Welcoming Baby Eli

-Settle in, this is a long post, with many gratuitous baby photos




We are officially welcoming to the world Eli Bradley Platt, 7lb 8.2oz 21.5 inches February 17, 9:16pm.

     Most of you know that I had a challenging birth that went the complete opposite of my birth plan, but that post is for another day. Today, today is for celebrating. This whole month, year, lifetime is for celebrating. I'm so overjoyed with this life I'm living.  Kenny and I had talked so often about having children and the timing was never right. Turns out God's timing was perfect, because this little surprise has brought so much to our lives, I can't imagine what we were spending our time on before him. We have been so lucky to be enveloped in friends and family that were supporting us, praying for us and guiding us during this time. Now that Eli is here, it feels so normal, so right. I was terrified that I wouldn't bond with him, that I would love my animals more. The first night, I couldn't sleep because I just wanted to get to know him. I wanted this sweet baby to wake up just so that I could tell him how much I love him and shower him with kisses. I'm so happy those fears were completely unfounded.

     Now let's get everyone caught up on Eli. Where do I start? Obviously he is the smartest, most beautiful, happy, strong, best baby anyone has laid eyes on :).  Truthfully, Eli is a very curious baby, he loves to look at new things and makes the most adorable little "o" mouth with these wide eyes.

He makes his sweet little "o" mouth face towards the very end and its my most favorite thing he does.

      He is an eater like no other, which is perfect because everyone loves a chunky babe. He was a pretty great sleeper and then realized that the world was a little too interesting to sleep through, so daytime sleep is a bit of a battle right now. He looks just like his dad, so far the only thing this kid has gotten from me is giant hands. He's calmed by running water, maybe this boy will take after me and be a water baby. Our furbabies are adjusting quite well to our new baby. Cole is playing the part of protective big brother, checking on Eli every time he fusses. The cats are playing the part of injured middle children and ignoring the baby. A note for all the prospective moms out there, I did a lot of research on EVERYTHING baby related before this little guy got here and while it's been nice to know that after days of elation the lack of sleep will set in and you'll cry; I found that much of my research sets you up for something much worse than what has actually happened. Breast feeding has not been the incredibly arduous journey I was expecting. Recovering from a cesarean, not nearly as bad as I thought it would be.

Mama's ginormous gift                Check out the belly button!

   

Celebrating our every milestone, clearly first time parents.

     We finally got Eli's room finished, minus a lamp. I already feel bad for my subsequent children, this room is all custom. From the floor that my family and Kenny worked on to the crib my step dad built to the giraffe painting my mother in law did, to the cushions my mom sewed; everything has a handmade touch to it. We are so happy with how it turned out. The room was looking a little austere for awhile, but the rug really warmed everything up and now it's perfect.

        A quick note about thank you cards. Since I was taking so long to send them out, I decided to wait till after his birth when I can include a sweet little photo. I wasn't expecting this guy to stay in for an extra 11 days and now all the cards are way late. Rest assured, you'll be getting thank you cards (with a photo!) which is way better than a boring card anyway!

Melt my heart...