Where have you been?

Well, birthing and parenting! It's been quite some time. What can I say, giving birth was exhausting and my recovery was slow.

Here's what happened:
-I was due December 26, 2010. I was over due and was induced January 1, 2011.

-Most people thought I was having a boy, GASP! I give birth to a beautiful girl, and I let The Bear come up with her first name. Her middle name is her gma's middle name-one of the most awesome ladies I know.

-Induction is uber painful, I only lasted 5 hours before I begged for my epidural.

-My epidural was fabulous. So fabulous that I couldn't lift my leg 2 hours after my baby girl was born. Thank goodness because I needed an hour of repair work.

Here's what I wasn't prepped for:
-How freakin' sore I would be! Not just my bottom, my back, my arms, etc.

-How hormonal I would be. The crying for no reason. The feeling like I was going to be permanently stuck in that emotional state.

-How difficult breastfeeding would be. And guess what, it's still not easy!

Here's what I love:
-The million names that I have come up with for this little one, including; peepers, gremlin, kitten, Lady Jane, sweet pea, and Muffin

-The smiles and grins, even if they are in her sleep or at the ceiling fan. Every once in a great while, she makes eye contact and smiles.

-How intently she listens to me when we have our chats on the changing table.

-Staring at her face after her eyes have closed during a late night feeding. The way her eyelashes fall against her cheek and the smooth skin that is the exact same shade as mine.

There are so many more things I love about this sweet girl, I can't even begin to capture them all here. I hope to keep blogging...it was a journey for us to get here and I know we will keep having adventures with this little individual.