Reagan's Amatuer Photo Shoot

So, I was really kicking myself for not getting the professional baby pictures offered while we were in the hospital. I figured I would try to capture some myself and failed quite miserably. She was wide awake (no sleeping naked baby pics) for most of the pictures on the day I decided to shoot. Her eyes were wandering and she was pulling all kinds of funky faces. Consistant with all true mothers, I still think she's cute!

We love our boppy and McKenna loves to say the word "boppy"

RJ is so frustrated that he can't get her to smile. He thinks that Hunter and McKenna both smiled at him coming out of the womb.

Our neighbor in Albany made this outfit and blanket for Reagan. I think she looks pretty cute all wrapped up in yarn.

Grandma Morrison made this white blanket. She finished it while she was here and tore out the edging at these four times. I hope she is happy with the final product. We are.

This is a rose from the boquet RJ gave me.

I love these cute little booties Beth gave me.

The Grandma's of Maple Grove make hats and give them to the hospital. We picked out this one.

Maren crocheted this adorable hat. She even made up the pattern. It has a crocheted flower on it.

I bought the pattern for this blanket for mom for Christmas last year. I loved this blanket. I think it is so beautiful!

Our Last Sunday as a Family of 4

Sunday, October 24th was the primary program at church. The primary consists of about 100 children and Hunter got a part. He memorized "Jesus Christ restored the fulness of the gospel through Joseph Smith." We practiced it so much that McKenna even learned it. Hunter did a great job in the program. He gave us a sneak peak of the program by practicing in the van on the way to church. I was impressed that he knew all of the words to all of the songs. Way to go son!

I wanted one more picture with us as a family of four.

Grandma Comes

Mom was supposed to fly in at 6:40pm but because of strong winds, she didnt' arrive until about 9:30pm. Poor mom. We had planned on celebrating her birthday with her that night by ordering chinese, opening presents and eating my first ever homemade carrot cake.

As it turned out, RJ picked her up by himself so we didn't see her until Thursday (the big day) morning. She ended up bringing presents for the kids which they eagerly opened that morning.

Hunter was thrilled with his Pokemon cards. He also got colored pencils and art paper. He has been big into coloring and crafts lately. Boy does grandma spoil them!

McKenna got an Ariel barbie.

Grandma then got to open her presents. We got her a puzzle and picture album to fill with pictures of her trip.

She's always so grateful even for the little things.

Baby Girl Reeve

Check-in time was 9:30 am, so we snapped some pictures before taking off. I was not allowed to wear contacts, so I have my glasses on for the first two days of pictures which I regret.

I was wishing I could have been in RJ's shoes. He was just along for the ride and knew he would have a baby girl in a matter of two hours.

Hunter and McKenna were excited to finally see if in fact there was a baby in my belly.

It was a blessing to have mom come out to be with the kids so that RJ could be with me.

I am very happy with the new OB I found here in Minnesota. Her name is Taryn McEvoy. I did however have a horrible dream the night before in which I discovered that Dr. McEvoy didn't know how to perform a c-section. I was then referred to a male doctor who took me into a surgical suite with bones on the floor and mucus membranes on the tables. I woke up and thought that maybe I should check with Taryn and make sure she had done this surgery before. It turns out that she has done several hundred. Phew!

I was really impressed with the hospital staff and how friendly they were to me and each other. They explained every step of the way to me and tried to make me as comfortable as possible. I didn't really realize that the surgery had started until I was told that there would be a lot of pressure from the doctor pushing on the top of my uterus. I heard something about lots of dark hair (at which point RJ questioned my fidelity). Then came a reassuring announcment- big cheeks (he knew she was ours). I heard something about another chin, a big girl and the number 9. Wow, nine pounds? I thought. It turned out that she was 7 lbs 9 oz, 19 inches long. She was born at 11:53 am and started screaming immediately.

I was so relieved to see her nice pink color and hear her beautiful strong lungs.

I had an oxygen tube in my nose. Combine that with my funny hat and glasses and I look a mess.

Looking at my new baby girl seemed unreal. I couldn't believe that 9 months had come and gone. I couldn't believe that she was here. I couldn't believe that she was mine and I got to take her home.

After they took her away and began putting me back together, I felt super sick to my stomach. Thankfully, the nurse anesthetist, was aware of this side effect and shot something into my IV that eventually took that aweful feeling away. When they were finally finished, there was a big to do about taking me to the first floor of the hospital to recover for an hour. Apparently I wouldn't be able to be with the baby or RJ during that time. My OB duked it out for me and was able to get me straight to my room to be with RJ and baby.

When I first looked at her, I didn't think that she looked like Hunter or McKenna. I have since called her McKenna on more than one ocassion.

After my one hour recovery period, Grandma brought Hunter and McKenna.

They were so excited to hold her and wanted to pass her around like a hot potatoe.

I had forgotten just how much babies slept.

It was hard to keep calling her baby Reeve. Throughout the end of my pregnancy, when I would feel her move, I would say, "Hi Sidney. Hi Reagan. Good morning baby." I was sick of having a nameless child. I knew the nurse would soon be coming to fill out information for the birth certificate. I also wanted to get going with her baby book. When the kids came and I asked them what we should call her, Hunter started calling her Reagan. I talked with RJ when they left to find out why Sidney was important to him. He said that it made him think of Sidney Australia and adventure. He didn't seem too passionate about naming her Sidney. I don't think she necessarily looked like either name but I figured whatever we named her would grow on her. Finally I said, "Are you okay with Reagan?" I really didn't want it to be a win-lose situation. He assured me that he was happy with it and Reagan Jerusha Reeve was finally named! A few people have already asked if it was pronounced Ree-gan or Rae-gan. I thought it would be clear having had a president with the last name Reagan pronounced and spelled the same way but apparently she will have to correct people for the rest of her life. Sorry baby.

My precious girls

The adorable "O" face that Hunter used to make.

I love her hair!

Bringing Reagan Home

The hospital gave us a coupon for RJ to enjoy a free dinner with me. We enjoyed a fun date night on Saturday. He joined me for dinner. After he went home and put the kids to bed, he came back with popcorn, layed on my bed by me and watched a movie.

Sunday after church, RJ came back for me.

My mom and dad bought this outfit for Reagan to wear home from the hospital when we found out that we were having a girl.

Here I am affraid to go home and face the real world.

I got this carseat at Goodwill for $40. It was brand new and still in the packaging.

Maybe the helmet should be on Reagan?

Reagan's First Bath

Reagan enjoyed getting her hair washed. As far as exposing the rest of her body to room temperature- not such a fan.