Thanks for all of your kind words. This is really a wonderful time for both of us.
Bags: Congratulations on the arrival of your niece (or nephew)? Your sister is lucky to have you around to help out. All of our relatives are hundreds of miles away, though of course we have friends who all seem to be having kids these days who will be here for support.
Bearman: Good question about what song was first heard. My wife actually had hoped to have music playing during the birth, but that didn't happen. I think she played the new Wilco album shortly after the birth, so that's the first thing baby heard. It may be wishful thinking, but I'm hoping that the Old 97's at Artscape will be babies first show. We already bought some hearing protection for her. Hopefully this will push her in the right direction musically!
We had planned an all natural drug and intervention free birth at a midwife run birth center. As labor progressed, we made the decision to just go ahead and have it at home. The bottom line was that the contractions had grown quite intense, and C didn't want any part of having them during a car ride. It turned out to be a wonderful decision, and she almost gave birth on our back deck, before moving into the bedroom.
And since some of y'all asked, here's some pics from her first hours on earth. Be nice, I know I'm an old man/dork! Thankfully, she looks just like her mommy.
www.gretchenpowers.com/ava
