Introducing Our Baby Girl Grace Catherine

On Sunday, April 14, our baby girl arrived into the world. Grace Catherine was born three weeks before her due date, catching my husband and I off guard. Towards the end of my pregnancy, we had a feeling our little lady was going to arrive early, but not that early. Well, Grace had other plans.

When I left work on Friday, I thought for certain I’d be back on Monday. Like I normally do, I mapped out what I wanted to accomplish the following week, thinking of all that I needed to get done before heading on maternity leave.

My husband and I also hadn’t even finished packing our “go” bag for the hospital, so at 2am in the morning we were throwing last minute items into our suitcases (I realized after the fact I didn’t need half of the stuff I brought, but that’s a blog post for another day).

Grace is a beauty, weighing in at 6 pounds 6 ounces and 19 inches. She’s already grown so much in her first five weeks and we’re so thankful she’s healthy, happy, and slowly but surely learning how to sleep (because for a while there, things were rough). Now I know why everyone told me before giving birth, “Enjoy your sleep while you can!” That is a true statement.

Grace loves eating, cuddling with her mommy and daddy, and tummy time, and despises diaper changes as well as getting her clothes changed. She is a strong little thing … She could lift her head on her own even moments after birth.

Everyone asked me before Grace was born if we had a name picked out. I’d tell people we were keeping it under wraps and would make our decision when we saw her for the first time in the hospital. Truth be told, we pretty much knew her name before we even got pregnant.

We had one back up name ready to go just in case Grace didn’t “fit” her, but it certainly does … It’s a name meant for a princess and that’s what she is to us. Catherine, her middle name, also has special significance because it’s my 94-year-old grandmother’s name.

As new parents, my husband and I are slowly but surely getting the hang of things. Grace is definitely keeping us on our toes and also keeping our hands – and hearts – full.