FAMILY OF 4!
Happy New Year, everyone! I know it’s already February so we are over a month into the New Year, but life has been a bit of a blur for the past month in our house since Spencer and I welcomed our baby girl to the world on Jan. 3!
As my due date approached, I was feeling more and more ready. Not only did I feel ready to meet my baby, but ready to not be pregnant anymore! My son, Levi arrived exactly on his due date so for some reason, I had this expectation that baby #2 would also arrive exactly on time…(me having unrealistic expectations? Go figure.)
As my due date came and went, I was getting more exhausted, more uncomfortable, and you guessed it, more SWOLLEN by the day! My fingers looked like sausages and my ankles were HUGE. Not fun. (Not only for me, but also for Spencer who got to hear me complain about it 24/7).
So no New Year’s day baby, unfortunately. However, Jan. 2 at around 8 PM, things finally started happening! I started getting contractions that weren’t too difficult to handle and they would come and go sporadically. I wasn’t 100% sure that I was in labour yet, so I didn’t want to get too excited. My hospital bag was packed and ready to go by the door. (To be honest, it had been there since before Christmas as I was optimistic we would need it before the end of the year…wishful thinking!).
By 11:30 PM, I was breathing through contractions while lying in bed (next to my sleeping, SNORING husband). By 1:00 AM, I woke him up and told him it was time to get “in the zone”. I wasn’t ready to go to the hospital yet, and I don’t really like anyone touching me or offering words of encouragement through the contractions but I did feel like Spencer should at least WAKE UP.
After getting out of bed, he decided to have a shower…get dressed…(rather slowly, might I add), make himself a coffee…all at 2:00 AM while I was downstairs pacing back and forth while watching “Better Call Saul” as the contractions got more intense and closer together. By 3:30 AM, we called my sister, Ingrid to come over to our house to stay with Levi and we headed to the hospital. When we arrived, the nurse said, “weren’t you guys just here?”, and initially I thought they were referring to my sister who had given birth at the same hospital a few months prior. However, it was actually our labour nurse from our LAST delivery in July, 2021. So that was kind of fun!
This labour was much quicker than my labour with Levi. After getting my epidural (thank you, modern medicine), it wasn’t long until the doctor came in and told me “it was time”! After 6 minutes of pushing, our little girl, Eden Debra Cheyne arrived at 8:36 AM!
As soon as they placed her on my chest, I looked at her and was amazed at how much she looked like Levi. I could tell they were siblings from day 1!
THE STORY BEHIND THE NAME
Eden was a name Spencer and I had picked out shortly after we got married for our future daughter if we were ever blessed to have one. We always loved the name, and we still do after 4 years of contemplating other options! The name “Eden” is inspired by the Garden of Eden; a bright, beautiful, lush paradise created by God for Adam and Eve. Her middle name, Debra, is after my mother who passed away in 2018. I can’t wait to tell Eden about the amazing woman she was named after. It is special knowing that in a small way, my mother’s legacy lives on through this new baby.
These newborn photos were taken by my dear friend, Natalie, who is not only a super talented photographer, but a friend who has been with Spencer and I through some of life’s greatest milestones! She was our wedding photographer back in 2018, so it is very special to have her be the one to capture Eden’s moments as a newborn!
The first month of having 2 under 2 has been chaotic, but beautiful! Spencer has been on a self-imposed “paternity leave” for a month which has been wonderful. I am happy to have him as my husband and teammate as we learn how to navigate this new chapter of life. Despite the challenges, the thoughts in my head each day are almost always thoughts of thankfulness and disbelief that my life is as amazing as it is. I am so blessed to be a mother.
Don’t worry though – despite the busyness of life with a newborn and an 18 month old, we are still working on music in our house! I recorded some fun stuff this month (that I can’t quite talk about yet), but rest assured there is new music coming down the road. In 2023, I will be collaborating with some new artists, singing background vocals for various artists’ projects, and have some live shows that are already in the books! It’s going to be a busy year on several fronts, but that’s the way I like it!
For now, I am soaking up all the newborn snuggles I can and enjoying the beginning of this new adventure. We are so grateful to all who have reached out to offer words of encouragement and support during this new phase of life! We are so grateful!
