Well our little angel is here! She arrived on Saturday the 15th within 2 1/2 hours of arriving at the hospital by cesarean section. She was soo excited to come into this world that her little heart rate was a little too high for my doctor's liking so we moved pretty quickly and got her here.
She is so perfect as I know every new mom says, but truly - she's perfect. (the doctor's even said so!)
We had a great experience in the hospital with wonderful staff and of course all of our family and friends being there. My sister was in town on Friday to be with us and help as much as she could on Friday night/Saturday morning. The greatest part is that she was around to take some really neat pictures and call everyone while I was back in the operating room. Thank you, Jen!!
Both of our parents were on their way from Chattanooga - taking their time of course because we all thought I'd be in labor for 8-10 hours, not moving into a c-section within 2 hours! My parents arrived about 20 minutes after Gabriella arrived, of course super ecstatic to get to see her. Brent's parents came right after that (unfortunately they got stuck in a HORRIBLE accident and were in traffic for an additional hour - ugh) Saturday evening Brian, Tre and Brittany came in town and got to meet our little bundle so it made for a big family affair that was so special! We are so fortunate to have our families want to come be with Gabbie as we celebrated her arrival into this world.
Sunday was even busier as more friends and family piled into our room at the hospital to see our new addition. Austin and Anne dropped by with donuts and smiling faces, then shortly after Lori came in from my work and all of Brent's family from Alabama arrived. At one point we had 25 people in our room! Needless to say, it was a little crazy.
Brittany had a wedding to photograph on Saturday evening then to set up for Sweet Chocolate Swirls at the Chattanooga Market, so she was able to come in on Saturday right after lunch. She was SOOO excited to get to meet Gabbie and the irony is that we have similar stories of when Ada was born (I was out of town when Brittany went into labor but got to meet her on her second day in this world). Jimmy, being my brother from another mother, brought in 2 dozen donuts from Krispy Kreme - rounding us out to 4 dozen donuts that people had brought! It was quite comical...LOL
Most everyone left to head back home except my parents, Jen, Brian and the kids and the Moncriefs: they all stayed for a little longer - all of us wishing time would stand still and they could stay forever. Jen and Britt ended up staying VERY late on Sunday night, but we had a great time. Brittany put together a fabulous slide show of pics she had taken throughout the day. After wiping away tears and saying our goodbyes, Brent, Gabbie and I had the best night's sleep yet.
Monday brought a very restful day along with a few good friends for visitors. Sharon from my work dropped by as well as my friend Kristin from UTC. After work, Jess from UTC and our friends LeighAnne and Sinclair along with Mya had to say their hellos. Brent was about to stab his eyeballs out because he hadn't left the room, so he went to dinner with Sinclair, LeighAnne and Mya while I stayed behind and visited with Annie from work. Our evening came to a close and we had a few minutes to reflect on being new parents.
The first time it really hit me was at my 3am feeding on Saturday night when I was up and Brent was snoring away on the couch. I realized: ok this is it :) haha
Brent has been so great. I think everyone knew that Gabbie would have him wrapped around her little finger - everyone that is, except for him. He was hooked from the moment he got to hold her and she held his little pinkie during her first bath and wouldn't let go.
Who knew what 7 lbs could do to your heart??

Instead of posting all the pics individually, I've put them in an album to the right and I'll add more as we take more!