Connie

As I write, there is a tiny baby nursing herself into a milk coma on my chest. It's hard to believe that just about a week ago, I wrote the last post with no idea that our baby would be making her way into the world so soon!

Constance Grace Howen was born on April 24th at 9:03pm after refusing to wait for us to get to the hospital. As some of you know, she was born on our bathroom floor in a very unexpected home delivery.  Fortunately, Dan's mom, Jamie, had already arrived to watch Abe, so we had some help until the paramedics arrived.

Note: I have been asked for the full birth story by lots of people. Rather than write it here where some people don't want to know the "gory" details, I'd like to just email the story to those who would like to know. Email me at ahowen37@gmail.com.

We spent the weekend at Lodi Memorial, where we were treated like VIPs and stayed in the same room in which Dan and all of his siblings were born. 

We came home Sunday afternoon to a very excited older brother, who is still learning about being gentle! The transition has been fairly smooth. Abe is extremely hyper and fighting all kinds of sleep. My mom stayed with us for first few days, so Abe was in seventh heaven.

Both sets of grandparents and my brother and his fiancée met the baby at the hospital that night and have been wonderful about helping us with Abe.

Connie is doing great, though she is a teeny little girl compared to her brother. At 6 pounds 10 ounces and 18.5 inches, she's nearly 2 pounds smaller than Abe was (Considering how she entered the world, I'm extremely grateful she's smaller!). Seeing as she eats ALL the time, hopefully she'll get some chunk soon. We're watching her weight gain and bilirubin for some mild jaundice, but otherwise she's doing fantastically. For the first few weeks, we also need to keep an eye out for infection, as she's at higher risk. 

Mama is also doing well. A bit tired and sore, but feeling much better than I did after having Abe. I didn't lose much blood, fortunately, so my fatigue isn't terrible. My main focus is eating and drinking enough to nurse the munchkin. Hopefully, my energy will be good enough to keep up with Abe next week when Dan goes back to work.

Dan is a happy and exhausted dad. He's helping a lot with Abe and getting to know Connie. Unfortunately, he doesn't qualify for paternity leave since he is so new at his job. The district is at least letting him take an unpaid short LOA until Monday. Then, we have a month until summer break. We will all be ready for a little rest by then!

Thank you for all the prayers and support and encouragement. Please continue to pray for everyone's health and the safety of our little girl as she grows. Also, prayer for energy and endurance as Dan goes back to work and I watch the littles.

Join us in praising the LORD for His protection and constant grace in the birth of our little Connie!