Meet Ember

I'll admit it: I completely missed Ember's birth. Slept right through it. I had talked to Dana a couple of hours before I hit the sack where she told me that her appointment went well, and they were planning to have a baby within ten days. She mentioned nothing of contractions or impending delivery so I went to bed. Woke up the next morning. Took a shower. Got ready for the day and grabbed my phone. At that point I saw '2 text messages from Dana' and my heart skipped a beat.

First one at 12:09am: Havin' a baby...now go back to bed. :)

Second one at 5:46am: Ember Lee Neu 3:28am 7lbs 15oz

I texted back at 7:48am: Holy crap! I completely missed it!!

And promptly dialed her cell phone.

I will give Dana the opportunity to fill in from 12:09am-3:28am if she chooses, but suffice it to say it was relatively boring, with the grand finale of Ember Lee.

Flash forward to Kim meets Ember meets Kim's camera.

The blanket in these first two belonged to Dana when she was growing up. So SO cool!

This little piggie went to market...

This blanket came from Smith's Drug in Lemmon. They have the best baby blankets - just ask Max who was gifted one by Dana almost two years ago. The tutu was also a gift and if I remember correctly the giver was afraid it was terribly impractical and left the tags on in case Dana wanted to return it. Um, no. Besides, it is now forever enshrined as The Outfit Ember Wore When She Met Kim.

Sap Alert: You guys, Dana and I grew up together. We played house. Wrote each other letters smothered in puffy stickers. Chased boys at recess. Learned French. Sang duets. Burned many meals in her mom's kitchen. She taught me how to drive a 4-wheeler. But this? Watching my best friend hold her newborn baby girl? This takes the cake.

Here's my observation about motherhood. When baby #1 comes, the new mom is working so hard to make sure everything happens according to plan. For some, it is kind of like fumbling for a light switch in the dark. For others (like me) it is more like fumbling for a light bulb in the back of the closet wearing a clown costume. What I'm trying to say with that baby #2 is often times (not always) much easier. And while Dana breezed through the birth and adjustment after Easton came, watching her with Ember was pretty amazing.  She's amazing. And this picture below? My all time favorite picture of Dana. This moment has been there all along, for 28 years of her life, waiting to happen.

So here's to Ember.

May your beauty stand in the shadow of your compassion, generosity and kindness.

Welcome to the world baby girl.