What an exciting end to 2009! Ava Sophia Johnson was born on December 19th at 8:45 pm. Weighing in at 7lbs 2oz and a lengthy 20.5 inches, Ava was born a very healthy little girl. Ava means "spirit" and couldn't be more perfect a name since little Ava was born on the anniversary of Lisa's Grandpa Bonnes' death. Thank you Grandpa for watching over us and ensuring the safe and healthy arrival of little Ava. We love you!
Scheduled to be induced on the 21st, we visited the hospital the morning of the 19th for a routine pre-induction test. During this appointment Ava's heart rate began to decelerate for short periods of time. The decision was then made to induce Lisa that day to get the baby out safely. Lisa labored for about 3 hrs before the epidural was administered. Shortly after receiving the epidural, Ava's heart rate dropped again and Lisa was rushed into the OR for an emergency c-section. Moments later, Ava was born and her heart rate returned to, and stayed at, a healthy level.
The feeling of joy, love and elation when we first saw Ava can not be described. All we can say is that it was the best moment and feeling we have ever experienced. Everything else around us seemed so minuscule in comparison. That night, we stayed up starring at our beauty and we continue to fall more and more in love everyday.
As timing would have it, Lisa's Mom was visiting Chicago that weekend so she was able to meet her first grandchild. What a blessing it was to have her here to share in this experience. Not to mention, what a help she was baking cookies, preparing meals for the freezer, dog sitting, etc. Thanks Grandma Sue!!!
Scheduled to be induced on the 21st, we visited the hospital the morning of the 19th for a routine pre-induction test. During this appointment Ava's heart rate began to decelerate for short periods of time. The decision was then made to induce Lisa that day to get the baby out safely. Lisa labored for about 3 hrs before the epidural was administered. Shortly after receiving the epidural, Ava's heart rate dropped again and Lisa was rushed into the OR for an emergency c-section. Moments later, Ava was born and her heart rate returned to, and stayed at, a healthy level.
The feeling of joy, love and elation when we first saw Ava can not be described. All we can say is that it was the best moment and feeling we have ever experienced. Everything else around us seemed so minuscule in comparison. That night, we stayed up starring at our beauty and we continue to fall more and more in love everyday.
As timing would have it, Lisa's Mom was visiting Chicago that weekend so she was able to meet her first grandchild. What a blessing it was to have her here to share in this experience. Not to mention, what a help she was baking cookies, preparing meals for the freezer, dog sitting, etc. Thanks Grandma Sue!!!
We were home from the hospital in time to celebrate our first Christmas in our own house, together as a family. It will forever be a memorable Christmas and probably our favorite for years to come. Santa was good to all of us, especially little Ava who was showered with gifts from many family and friends (thank you everyone).
Grandma Lynn, Kevin's Mom, arrived for her visit the day after Christmas. She will be in town until New Year's Eve. She was so happy to meet her first grandchild as well and has been a huge help giving Lisa tips on nursing (as well as helping with cleaning, meals, and baby).
The next few weeks will be filled with visits from our Ithaca friends, Lisa's Dad & sister, and potentially some other family members/friends. We look forward to showing Ava off to everyone.
Until the next blog update, Happy New Year to everyone. Something tells us that 2010 will be unlike any year of the past.
Love,
Lisa, Kevin, Ava (and Schatzi too, of course)
P.S. We know there are a lot of pictures. FYI, you can double click on the slideshows to pull up the entire album for faster & easier viewing.
