Fashionably Late

The big day finally arrived on Saturday December 11. At 4:25am, Reese Harper Bowes came into the world at the healthy weight of 7lbs 1oz and the height of 20 inches. She was five days past her due date, but we are happy to report that she joined the world of her own free will. As was the case three years ago, we get to report on our joy from the comforts of Central Baptist Hospital.



Sarah went to work all week, but left after lunch on Friday when her contractions started to become regular. We spent the afternoon at home making the final preparations and getting Callie ready to spend the night at the Chrisman's house next door. After a good dinner with Sharon and Chris, we made a last visit to the frozen yogurt place at the Fayette Mall and then entered the doors of the hospital around 8:30pm.


By 2:30am, Sarah was pushing and just under two hours later, Reese gave us a first taste of her lung capacity. Fortunately, she wants to be just like her big sister Callie. Unfortunately, that means she spent the first four hours of her life in the NICU under observation to monitor her breathing. But she was brought to our room with a clean bill of health and we got to have some quality cuddle time.


We have often said how fortunate we are to have neighbors like Sharon and Chris. And once again, we find ourselves so appreciative of their friendship and support. Because as all of the above took place, they were taking care of Callie. Of course, it wasn't as if Callie was all that upset to have a sleepover at their house. They are so good with her and from all reports she is listening to them and behaving. They brought Callie in to meet Reese on Saturday afternoon. At first Callie was not sure what to make of the whole scene. She was happy to see her parents, but remained unsure about the little baby.




That changed pretty quickly, and soon she wanted to hold her little sister. Over the next couple of hours Callie bounced between curiosity about Reese and telling us about her day. The picture above was definitely taken during one of the few quiet moments when Callie was staring at her sister and not trying to tickle her.


It's safe to say that Callie won't truly understand what it means to have Reese in our lives until we are all at home. For the time being, this just means that she gets to stay with Sharon and Chris while Mommy and Daddy are in the hospital with a baby named Reese Harper. Hopefully the quiet moment pictured here will be the nature of their relationship moving forward.



As you can imagine, the first day was pretty exhausting. Between 7pm Friday and 7pm Saturday we went to the hospital, Sarah delivered Reese, Callie visited, and we all tried to get used to being a family of four. Out of everyone, Sarah and Reese deserved rest the most, so it is fitting that we end with a picture of the two sleeping and cuddling. Once again, the experience has demonstrated how absolutely amazing this whole process is and how incredibly strong Sarah is. Words will never truly capture all of that.