Welcome to parenthood!

I want to begin our labor story with the person who deserves far more praise or recognition than he'll ever get, the true hero of this past weekend, and that's my husband. From the moment our midwife told us that we were not, in fact, going back home on Thursday morning but rather to the hospital to get the party started, GP3 immediately became my hero in a completely new way. So, here is where he gets a HUGE shout-out: Gib, you are amazing. From perfecting the "labor playlist" to holding my hand when I cried out in pain, to spending time in prayer before any decisions were made, he was/is my rock and I am so thankful for him on a deeper level than I ever thought possible.

As I have the tendency to write novel-length things, whether they be e-mails or facebook messages, I'll try to stay on point here:

Our Thursday morning began with a normal trip (albeit it on icy streets!) for a check-up with our midwife, Leanna, who truly deserves a blog post of her own because she is so incredible. We learned that Levi was breaking an important rule of things not to do while in your mother's tummy by messing with his umbilical cord, which resulted in the news that we were going into labor that very morning. (Evidence that our baby was his father's son long before I knew what he would look like... oh, the mischief!)

Thirty-eight hours later, we heard the first cry of our baby, and I think I speak for both of us when I say our hearts completely melted. The entire medical staff we worked with was so excited that we didn't know the gender, and our midwife instructed all of them to wait to say anything until Gib had seen the baby and made the announcement, "It's a boy!"

One week later, it's amazing to look back and see how our lives have already changed. We've spent the last seven days learning our baby's cues, changing diapers (actually, I have to be honest here - I haven't had to change one yet, thanks to GP), napping whenever possible, meeting our pediatrician and staring with awe at this perfect little boy God has given us. He's a mini-Gib in so many ways and we are so, so in love with him!