Friday 2.21.2014 at 8:34 AM, Norah Betty Schmidt was brought into this wonderful, wild world.  Weighing in at 6 lbs 8 oz and 18 inches long, we were quite surprised.  As many of you may know, Brandon and I decided to wait to see what we were having this time around.  Everyone always told me, “Oh you have to wait!  It’s such an amazing surprise!” and I always though, “Yeah, yeah, sure!  The surprise is the baby and how you are going to figure out how to care for it!”.  I was so wrong.  It is something I will remember until the day I die.  What some of you may not know, is that with my first daughter, Stella, I had to go through an emergency c-section under general anesthesia.  What that means is, I was not present for the birth.  Physically yes, but I was just sleeping on a table and my husband was sitting quietly in a room with his Mother praying we would survive.  Sorry to get all dramatic, but it’s the truth and when I woke up from Stella’s birth, it was a very hard and real pill to swallow.  All of those months, well actually years of waiting to have a baby and that moment when she takes her first breath, you weren’t there and you don’t know what it was like.

When I found out I was pregnant with Norah, I was honestly scared because of everything I had gone through with Stella.  But for any of you Mamas who have gone through a similar birth, please don’t be scared.  The next one will more than make up for it.  As I lay there waiting to hear the cry, waiting to hear the gender, waiting to see how happy my husband would be, I was nervous, excited, and… sick.  Literally, I threw up into a bucket because my blood pressure kept dropping.  I know, the glamorous life of a Mom, right?!  But when she let out that first squealy cry and they announced it was a girl, I just looked over at Brandon and burst into happy tears.  Brandon and I finally got our birth, and our moment and I will never forget that feeling.  Everything really was perfect.

Stella is doing great.  Barkley, not so much.  Stella loves her sister and will often point at her and smile and laugh.  Today she even called her Na Na.  I’m very proud of her.  We have had our moments though.  She’s having a very difficult time with the fact that I cannot lift her and that she has to share Brandon and I with someone else.  But like my Mom says, “That’s why God gave Mother’s two arms” :)  Barkley also loves Norah, but I think has come to the realization that he is now going on less walks than he did before (which weren’t many).  Brandon wants to get him a friend, but I thiiiiink we may hold off on adding anyone else to our home for a bit ;)