Nursing cuddles

Breastfeeding has been going very well. I've definitely had some challenges but the lactation consultants in the hospital were great and I had a follow up consultation to make sure we get everything right early on. I know I'm really lucky to have had a quick learning curve with breastfeeding. It has been such a special experience. I already feel that it has provided us with a strong bond and I know that will continue to grow. It has even been a bonding experience for us as a family since Jonathan has been so supportive during the challenging feedings. Since Christine's asleep most of the day it's also the times of day where we get to see her most active and learn more about her personality. She's just as strong as ever which can make it a challenge when she really wants to suck her thumb. I wouldn't want her any other way though. I am stoked to have such a fiesty baby and I can't wait to watch her learn to crawl, walk, and dance. Lastly, post breastfeeding cuddles make for a great time to take some pictures so enjoy!

Even daddy gets in on post feeding burping/cuddling sessions

- The three of us

Christine Lourdes Nassar

We welcomed our first daughter, Christine Lourdes Nassar, on July 29th at 10:15am. She weighed in at 6lb 8oz and was 19 3/4" long (or tall if you ask Jonathan). She's absolutely perfect and I have no idea where to start to tell you all about her. I guess I better start with her birth and go from there. Seeing as though she was due on the 24th, everyone was getting quite anxious for her arrival. I had two folks especially anxious that her arrival be timely. My good friend Ana was moving to Boston and was leaving on August 2nd and Jonathan's brother, Jordan, surprised us for a visit because he wanted to be here for the birth. Talk about pressure! Well lucky for them Christine was anxious to meet them too. On Sunday evening, while at dinner with Jordan ironically, I started having contractions but didn't have any pain. I decided to work from home on Monday and had a doctor's appointment that afternoon. My doctor said that contractions were a good sign, but it didn't mean anything until I went into real labor, meaning when contractions are regular and painful. Well I was a bit bummed but I was fine with being patient. I was keeping track of the time in between contractions and they seemed to always be about three minutes apart. About 7:30 that evening I started feeling what felt like menstrual cramps. I googled it (what did moms do before google??) and apparently that's what early labor feels like. Side note: why does no one tell you that? Haha, I though something was wrong but when I read that I just got excited that things might be starting. Still, I figured it would be awhile so Jonathan went and picked up dinner.  Turned out not to be the best idea for me to eat real food but I never expected things to progress as fast as they did. Well, my contractions continued to be every 3 minutes and were growing in strength so by two hours later we called the doctor on call and he said to go to the hospital. We were quite proud of ourselves for how calm we were in getting our things and getting to the hospital. Plus Christine was so polite and started labor after rush hour! After a smooth drive to the hospital, we checked in and were told that we'd have to wait for a room. Apparently it was a really busy night for them and we ended up waiting for a room for a hour. There was even another couple in the waiting room with us. I won't go into too much detail about labor, but I'll break up labor into two sections: pre and post epidural. The first half of labor was really tough. My contractions were always three minutes apart and became strong very quickly. My nurse, who I think was having a bad night because it was so busy, didn't explain much to me but I made it apparent that I wanted that epidural as soon as possible. Jonathan was a great support and massaged me to help me cope with each contraction. It seemed that there kept being more and more barriers I had to do before I got the epidural but finally at 5am they did the procedure. It took less time than anything up to that point. After that I completely conked out and slept for 3-4 hours. Labor was so exhausting and I knew I would fall asleep as soon as I got the epidural. When I woke up I had a new nurse and the rest of my labor was a great experience. Her name was Shelsea, I laughed that her name was almost the same as mine. Soon after the on call doctor came to check me and said I was 5-6cm. Shelsea said that it typically takes an hour to dilate each cm so I figured I'd get more rest and I told Jonathan to go to the cafe and get breakfast. Well while he was out my regular doctor came in to check me and said I was 10cm and ready to push. Jonathan was quite surprised to get that text from me and hurried back up. I pushed for an hour and Christine made her debut! Jonathan and I both choked back tears. The doctor first put her down on my stomach because her umbilical cord was short. Her first words about Christine were, 'She's fiesty!' After cutting the cord, they put her on my chest. I was just so shocked to finally meet her that it took me awhile to say anything. She was crying and crying and I finally thought, Chelsey say something! Once I started talking to her she immediately stopped crying and just stared at me. It was so beautiful for her to recognize my voice. She was absolutely beautiful and the doctor was right, she was fiesty! Her arms were so strong and she spent the first hour with her thumb in her mouth and her hand grabbing at her face. I was afraid she'd scratch herself but she's just fine. It was a beautiful bonding experience for all three of us. Overall I was in labor for 14 hours and pushed for 1. It went much faster than I expected. The first half (pre epidural) was miserable, but the second half was a pretty great experience. I'm so glad I had Jonathan by my side to help get me through it. My recovery went very well also. I consider myself very lucky.

Getting to know our baby has been the best. She's got so much personality already and we can't wait to get to know her more. She eats like a champ. After birth, babies typically lose 10% of their weight and they're expected to gain it back by 2 weeks. Well, by her one week appointment she had already surpassed her birth weight by 1oz! She sleeps great too. Sometimes I start to miss her because she's slept so much, but then she has a gassy few hours where she cries and cries and I'm happy for her to go back to sleep, haha. She can hold her head up impressively well and can kick and hold herself up with her legs. It's so impressive considering she's so small. I have a feeling she's going to bypass crawling and go straight to running. She's incredibly sweet. She makes the cutest faces and often looks like she's smiling. She loves being held and is sometimes difficult to put down, but it makes for really adorable snuggles after she eats. There have been lots laughs, tears (the happy kind), and kisses in our house. I hope Christine can already tell how loved she is. I love how Jonathan and I work together as parents. It surprises me how calm we are and how we naturally divide up what needs to be done. Of course, we do have tough nights and we are so lucky to have many family and friends who have come to our rescue. She's gone out on several trips and even went to her first mass. I took her up with me for communion and she got her first blessing. We got many 'awww' looks from everyone in the congregation too lol. Ok enough of me talking. I'll get onto the pictures now since that's what everyone is waiting for...

Love,

The three of us