Kiddo #3: He’s here!

He’s here! Our sweet baby boy finally came (yes, technically he was a few days early, but, believe me, I was ready for him to come). Labor was long (I am good at a lot of things. Labor is not one of them) but all in all things went well and he’s been healthy and (mostly) happy since he made his debut.

His name is Owen Douglas. Boy names were really difficult for us, but once he was born there was no denying what his name was meant to be. We decided on Owen, after my grandpa, and Douglas after Ben’s dad and I think it suits him rather well.

The girls have been totally obsessed with him from day one. I keep waiting for the excitement and adoration to wane, but it’s holding on strong even now and he’s almost a month old. Both girls regularly ask to hold him, coo at him, go on and on about his cuteness, and generally won’t leave him alone. But he’s quite patient with all the attention or he simply sleeps through it.

Wendy in particular loves holding Owen. In fact, if she’s being a stinker and I ask her what’s up, she blames her sass on not having enough time with the baby, silly girl. One time she was holding him and he was bawling. I asked if she wanted me to take him and she said no. She seemed totally unfazed by the screaming. (Not to worry, I took him shortly after that). She talks to him and sings original songs to him and it is very, very cute.

Greta holds him as well, although not as persistently. She’s a great helper when it comes to fetching things for me and choosing what he’s going to wear.

The only one who’s really struggled with the new addition is our dog, Jaeger, bless his heart.

(Yes, the general mood around our house has been crazy hair, don’t care).

As far as transitioning from 2 kids to 3, it’s gone pretty well. I’ve been able to do most of our regular activities-going to the store, going for a walk-with relative success and without Ben (school stops for no one; we’ve never enjoyed the luxury of paternity leave). The most noticeable change has been just how long everything takes to get ready for and then to do. It’s a crap shoot and I’m just grateful we are still living a life with relatively few demands (Wendy’s not in school yet and Ben gets himself to work/school. Most everything else we do is not time sensitive).

And as for me, I have actually been feeling pretty good. I believe this has been my easiest recovery and mentally I feel fairly healthy. Of course, every day is different and comes with different challenges. And sleep isn’t what it used to be. But overall, I’ve felt good and capable. I heard the phrase “I am right where I need to be” in a yoga video and it’s something I’ve been repeating to myself often. There are a lot of things I could find to complain about, especially physically, but it helps when I remind myself that I am right where I need to be.

And Owen. Sweet, sweet Owen. He’s had a couple of fussy days, but mostly he’s very sweet, very mild, and very sleepy. Ben teases him for being a “sober boy” and he does seem to be very serious but we have seen a handful of glorious little smiles (both while asleep and awake). He’s being growing incredibly fast. Both our girls stayed little for such a long time, but Owen has gotten big really fast. We visited family this last weekend and everyone commented on how he’d already passed out of the newborn stage. Our favorite features on him are his big hands and feet. Most of the nurses at the hospital commented on how big his hands and feet were. One nurse said, “They’re like paws on puppies!” He was also born with a good head of hair. It seems to be getting lighter and lighter.

Anyway. We are so happy to have our new little one. We are making our best go of adjusting to having a family of five. Forgive my stumbling writing as I’m out of practice and perhaps my brain isn’t functioning quite at the level it’s supposed to. Things may be slow going, but I do hope to continue posting semi-regularly. Thanks for reading!