1 month

One month old already! I can't believe it has gone by so fast. We didn't anticipate you being as skinny as you are, so you are mostly still wearing newborn sized outfits. Also you wear newborn diapers, but we are trying to fit you into the size 1. You are eating about every two to three hours now. Still you have bouts of hiccups, they make me giggle as I remember how often I felt them while you were in my tummy. Sitting still is not something you do very often, unless you are sleepy. You move so much already and try and lift your head up all the time. I feel like you are trying to grow up too fast already. Your hands are always by your face or up above your head. Looking back at your ultrasound pictures not much has changed, since that is where they can be seen in multiple shots.  Sometimes you even mange to find your hands to suck on. When you are awake we love looking into your big beautiful eyes. Right now they are a pretty blue color, but we wonder what color they will settle on. Slowly, we have been getting your days and nights switched back around. We still let you sleep in our room right now so we are close to you. However, you are a loud sleeper and even snore sometimes. It is also kinda cute when you dream and will make little "cooing" sounds or even cry without waking yourself up. Although, it makes Mommy and Daddy jump right out of bed to see if you are actually awake. Daddy is great and at any chance to he likes to change your diaper or burp you after you finish eating. I think we make a pretty good team. You are such a happy baby and bring so much joy to our lives.

The last visit to the pediatrician you weighed in at 8lbs 3oz and measured 20.5 inches in height. Head is measuring at 13 3/4 inches. Doctor said you are looking great! The first bath (more like a spit bath) we gave you was not your favorite thing. You cried during the whole thing and as much as I know it should have made me sad to see you cry, the way your your lip quivered had us kinda laughing. Needless to say, we got you all dried off and warmed up and you calmed right down. It seems like you are starting to fuss less and less with each one we give you. You are lucky to be a summer baby, you have got to do already a lot in your first month of life. We celebrated the 4th of July by going to your first movie in the theater, "Finding Dory". I was so impressed at how well you did thru the whole movie. Lets hope you love Disney as much as Mommy. After the movie, we had a BBQ at Gigi and Poppy's house. It made a long day for all of us, and so we decided to go to bed early that we missed fireworks this year. Last time you went to the reservoir you were still in Mommy's tummy. This time you were able to wear your own life jacket and lay Daddy's arms so that Mommy could wakeboard. You look so tiny in that lifejacket. The boat must be a comforting sound since you mostly slept while the boat was in motion. All in all, lots of firsts in one month. 

0 months

The first 24 hours of your life seemed to go by in a blink of an eye. After your birth both your Grandpa and Grandma Stokes and your Poppy and Gigi Newsom spent some time with you. Then your Daddy accompanied you to the nursery to get your first bath and have some tests done. He even got to pick out the cute little bow for your hair afterwards, an adorable pink one with white polka dots. You passed your hearing test even if you were a little fussy about it. We had several visitors come see us at the hospital, which was so sweet. I just am overwhelmed at all the support and love we have. You are one lucky lady. Everyone absolutely adored you, but no one more than your daddy. He loved introducing you and showing off your cute little attributes. Everyone says how much you look like your Daddy. It really comes out when you scrunch your face and your eyebrows show concern, I have seen that look when your Daddy is concentrating.  I love seeing how excited he is to be your daddy. We brought you home on Wednesday June 22nd to our house on Hershey Loop. To celebrate your arrival home there was a cute little banner across the garage door and pink balloons on the front porch. You had your days and nights mixed up, so it was a bit of an adjustment for all of us at first. Two days later went to the doctor for a check up since you were born. You dropped in weight down to 7lbs 2oz, but doctor says its all very normal. The next few weeks we will be spending all our time together working on a routine and bonding even more. We love you Aria!

Aria's Birth Story

June 20th, 2016 

Officially two days from your due date. We had been monitoring my blood pressure due to a few high readings and the doctor felt it was best to induce.  After working all day, we called in to check and see if we would be going to the hospital that night. They had a vacancy and instructed me to eat some dinner, get cleaned up, and then to come to the hospital. Your father and I checked three times to make sure we had everything with us. We were both so anxious, but me most of all. Then your father gave me a blessing.
Once at the hospital, they quickly got me into a room and a hospital gown. Your father and I both received bands that would identify you to be ours. They placed monitors across my belly to track your heart rate and my contractions. I was registering consistent contractions at about 8 minutes apart, but not dilated. They placed an IV in my arm, which I have never been a big fan of, but they were very nice about it. After verifying everything, our nurse introduced us to a resident Doctor. He confirmed with an ultrasound that you were indeed head down, then they placed what looks like aspirin to begin labor. We then began our waiting. Gigi came to sit with us through the night, which was extremely nice of her. It took two doses of the aspirin before we began to notice any change. I was able to walk the hallways with your father and it was pretty quiet on the labor and delivery floor. Seems like there was only one other room being occupied at the time. 

June 21st, 2016
Around 1AM, I noticed that my bed appeared to become a little wet. I called for the nurse to come check. She discovered a little liquid and tested the moisture with a test strip. No sooner had she finished when my water broke completely on its own. It startled me because I figured I wouldn't be able to do it on my own. The color indicated that a bowel movement was made in the womb, and in turn they would monitor you closely. After getting cleaned, up we laid in bed and labored some more. Contractions were getting stronger and the check showed I was dilated to a three. I decided to sit on a medicine ball to help change position. It really helped take some of the pressure off, plus you like the bouncing as much as I do. 
As the morning kept going on, I began to get really tired and could feel that the contractions were getting stronger. I decided it was time for an epidural. Then buzzed the on-call Doctor and told us if might be about 20 minutes. Only a few minutes had passed when the Doctor came in around 4:40AM. Nathan was so sweet and held me close as they administered the epidural. He had to poke twice due to a blood vessel encountered. There was a little pinch and a "zing" or shock following. Once he finished, I began to notice a little tingling in my legs as I laid back down in bed. Exhausted from anticipation, I laid down and rested for a while. A couple hours later the nurse came in to tell me that your heart rate wasn't fluctuating as much as she would like. They put an oxygen mask on me and tried turning me on my sides to see if that would help. Somehow I knew you were ok. After being checked again at about 10:30AM, they discovered I was dialated to 6 cm. We were all super excited to have such great progression so quickly. Even our nurse was bursting with excitement for us. She kept cheering me on. Gigi had been keeping everyone updated on where we were at in the process. Poppy came to visit us in the morning to see how we all did through the night and we explained all that had happened.

Once he heard how things were progressing, he waited in the waiting room with Grandpa and Grandma Stokes. We knew things were going to go fast and I began to get nervous. Daddy was right there to hold my hand and even fed me some ice chips in the meantime. Aunt Mickenzie came to see us in the hospital and took a few photos. Bobbi Jo was able to move around her work schedule just to come help document your birth. A little later and I began to feel something had changed. There was pressure and I felt you had moved down even further. The nurse checked me and said we were 9 cm. She had me try 3 practice pushes. It was hard to know if what I was doing was right with the epidural. The nurse had me grab the back of my knees and pull back as I tucked my chin to my chest and pushed. She told me that my first push was correct and that when it came time for delivery, that was exactly what I was supposed to do to help you out. The practice pushing actually put a little stress on you so Doctor said no more practice until he can be in the room with us. Next, lots of different people came in to prepare the room for you. Your little bed was turned on so it would be nice and warm. Lights where positioned and the stirrups were out. They helped get my legs into the right spot and the resident doctor examined everything prior to our Doctor's arrival.
Once things were ready to go,  Doctor Joel Carlson came into the room. Daddy helped me round my back up like I was doing a sit-up and I grabbed the back of my knees and pull them back as I pushed. I tried so hard to make sure that I was doing what I needed to get you here safely. Gigi and your Daddy assured me that I was doing a great job and I remember them telling me that they could see your head and some of your hair. I pushed approximately ten times and then I could start to see your head myself. One final push and you came right out. 12:02 pm on June 21st. The first day of summer. They quickly wrapped you up and placed you on my chest. I was awe struck as they laid you down. I couldn't believe you were ours. Both your father and I cried with your arrival. They cleaned out your mouth with a suction and wiped your face with a clean towel.
You cried softly, letting us know you were alright. We thought you were just the most beautiful thing we had ever seen. They asked what your name was going to be. When your Daddy and I looked at you and then each other we knew you would be our little Aria Noelle Stokes. Then, the nurse gently grabbed you from my chest and took you over to your bed. I couldn't go over there but I made sure your Daddy stayed with you. They said that you swollwed a bit of the fluid before you delivered so they placed oxygen on you for about 7 mins. They would continue for the next 24 hours to watch and make sure you got all those bubbles out. They measured your weight at 7 lbs and 13 oz. (exactly 1 oz different from when your mommy was born). Your height recorded was 21 inches and your head circumference was 13.5 inches. They took your foot imprints and you loved to stretch out those long long toes of yours! Daddy tells me you were a good girl while the nurse looked you all over. When they finally got mommy all taken care of, and they said you looked good, the nurse brought you back over to me all clean and swaddled up. In just that short while you changed in color. I was able to notice the small birth mark on your forehead. Your hair was so soft and dark. You must have been exhausted because you kept trying to close your eyes. This is was my favorite part of the whole day, as you lay in my arms, Dad came and encircled both of us in his arms. This is the point I relized we were a family. We had everything I could have ever wished for right there with me. Aria Noelle, you were so worth the wait! We love you more than words could ever say.