My Baby

This week she feels like mine. My Baby. My beautiful, silly, cranky, puzzling, wonderful baby. I love my baby.

Thank you all for all the encouragement. God has continued to meet this little momma with grace and tho Baby is still bewildering at times (don't you love that word?), it's getting better. I feel a lot better. The physical pains are diminishing daily and I'm getting more rest. The past 3 nights have been encouraging. Eva sleeps rather well (3 hour stretches) between the hours of 2am to 7am, waking only briefly for feedings. I can handle that. :) She's eating a lot, tho not consistantly. We'll figure it out.

These past weeks we've seen the doctor a couple times to check weight and measurements. Evangeline is a healthy, growing girl! Her head is a little tiny (25%), but it's growing! She gained a whole pound last week too! Mommy is doing her job well, said Dr. Gunter. (we love him)

She's outgrown her premie clothes that Grammy bought her the day she was born. (That's all that would fit!) But she still looks funny in a lot of her regular sized stuff. I know, I know... "She'll be big before I know it!"

Oh! and oh-happy-day, her cord-yucky fell off yesterday! Hooray! No more icky black thingy! (I know it's called her "imbilicus" but that sounds so steril. not gross enough.) Now her perfect belly button, an innie-outie for now, can show it's ultra cuteness.

Speaking of ultra-cuteness, here are some much-demanded new pictures of Baby Girl for all her many fans to enjoy.

A Week of Mothering

Baby Eva is a little more than a week by now and getting fatter! She needed some chub, and it's encouraging to a young mom to see that the food she provides her child is having a good effect!

Breastfeeding is uniquely challenging. I'm really having to fight for faith and joy though this season. Sometimes the little girl wants to eat every hour and a half, (that was last night) but then she falls asleep after only 3 minutes of feeding. It's overwhelming. Mom keeps reminding me, "She's only a week and a half, darling. She will get better, you will get better. Trust God and let some time pass."

In addition to that, I've been having a case of the blues. My poor husband, some nights he holds both his girls to keep them from crying. I'm praying through the emotion. I know that my feelings cannot be allowed rule me. I spent some time praying in tongues last night, pouring out my burdens to the Lord. Sometimes words don't express the heart well. I'm glad He knows what I need even if I don't know how to ask.

Thank you for praying for our new little family. Please keep it up! Pray that Adam will get some rest and be peaceful about work getting done. Pray Evangeline will sleep regularly, continue to grow, learn to eat well, and ultimately that she will come to know the Lord. Pray that I will trust God and feel His nearness in my trials. Pray the pain will lessen or go away, sleep will be granted, hormones would balance, and that I will enjoy my baby and not feel guilty.

This quote from Kristin on the Girl Talk blog is a good reminder and an encouragement. She writes:

"During mothering weeks like these, I must reach out for the life preserver of God's Word to keep me afloat. A verse someone shared with me when Andrew was little has continued to sustain me through this intense season with three small boys. It's a well known truth from Gal. 6:9 "Let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up."

I'm doing a lot of sowing right now. It's not harvest season. The harvest won't come today. And it won't come tomorrow. Not even next year. But I must simply be faithful to sow today. Faithful to train. Faithful to teach. Faithful to love. Or, as it says in the passage, faithful to "do good." And I must trust God that He will fulfill His promises. That I will reap a harvest in due season if I do not give up."

Going Home

Thursday:

Happy to be headed home.

In our soft 'n safe...

...and giant car seat.

Playing with Daddy

Getting "thrown around."

Napping on her warm Daddy

First Outing

More Eva

Minutes after birth. No likey eye-droppies.

Weighing-in

Getting her hair scrubbed. Aaaahh, happy little one.

Everything moves so fast in this new world, doesn't it, Eva?

Daddy soothes his fearful baby. (Raising her core temp on the "baby tanning bed.")

"I'm cold!"

More alert today.

Being born is rough!

Her most possessive uncle Taylor. He can't get enough Eva! He and devoted uncle Patch flipped a coin today to see who would hold her first.

Mommy and Daddy love Evangeline Emma...

So do Grammy and Grandpa!

Crazy uncle Joe, adorable aunt Jeni, and beautiful aunt Elissa come for a visit.

Our little Evangeline bean

Praise God for Evangeline Emma Campbell!

First little Pooh

First big poo : )

After 2 and a half hours of induced labor (no epidural, folks) and 4 pushes at 11:08am out came our little navy-blue-eyed red head! She's 6lbs. and 12oz, and 20 inches of adorableness (as you can see). Eva eats well, but it's not too comfortable. Momma is doing well tho, Baby and Papa are blissfully fast asleep.

Thanks to all who prayed and are still praying. God was powerfully in this room with us this morning and I'm grateful that He doesn't plan on leaving any time soon! Now that Baby is done eating and poo-pooing Mommy gets to sleep... for a little while. 

Please continue to pray that Eva will eat well and sleep well. But even if not that we will rely on our Good Shepherd to restore our souls as only He can. 

Sweet dreams, everyone.

At the Hospital

Departure for hospital: 6:15am

Check-in 6:32am

Doctor evaluation and water-breaking 7:55am

Pitocin started 8:00am

Ok let's get movin' little girl, it's GO time!

Progress

Went to the doctor today. She said I've made great progress, praise God. ( 3 cm. and 100% eff.) So, I have a good chance of having Little Girl before the induction. (scheduled for this coming Tuesday 13th at 6:30am.) I'm pushing for (and hopefully on, haha) Mothers' Day.  

It would be awesome to go into labor naturally, but I'm not worried about being induced. God will do what He wills when He wills with whom He wills... and it's all good. (but i do put in a request, dear Lord...)

Pray for good sleep for both Eva's parents... we're really tired.

Ps. 28:7 The Lord is my strength and my shield, in Him my heart trusts and I am helped.

(In case you didn't guess...a Kennedy 50 cent piece is 3cm.)

Due Date

May 7th came... and went. No baby.

Passing the Time

We do what we can in the Campbell household to help the time to pass as we wait for Baby. Some of our favorite pastimes include: taking many long walks, watching political bobble head discussions, praying, eating lasagna, celebrating false... er, I mean new "holidays," and baking! 

I've never been a good baker, (just ask my sister how my cornbread is) BUT desiring to serve my Beloved, I began a search for the perfect oatmeal raisin cookie recipe. And I believe I have found it! Adam has fallen deeper in love with me these past weeks as I have excitedly presented him with not one, but TWO successful batches of with warm, chewy, oatmeal raisiny deliciousness. (with a glass of milk on the side, naturally.) 

These cookies really do turn out great, (hint: remove them from the oven when they are barely browned and still rare) and they stay chewy for several days following, which was what sold me on this recipe. I've tried others. They're soft at first, but harden to a granola bar consistency within an hour. And my Prince likes his cookies chewy, so this could not be, and so my search began... and now it continues with The Quest for the Perfect Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie! (To be continued...)