Brooks' Baby Blessing

Brooks was blessed and given a name on June 18th, 2013. Since my dad was only going to be in town for a couple of days, none of which were on a Sunday, we got special permission to have his blessing at home during the week. It was a special opportunity for Brooks to have both of his Grandfather's there to participate in his blessing. Dan gave him a beautiful blessing, one I will always remember. It was nice to have it at home and it was a great experience. 

Baby Boy slept through his whole blessing and photo shoot 

4 Generations! Great Grandma Wheeler, Grandma Carol, Daddy, and Brooks!

with Aunt Caroline and Gramma

Bringing Home Baby

We got to bring Brooks home on Saturday, June 25th. Even with all of the help we have here at Dan's parent's house, it was nerve wracking to leave the hospital. They should seriously create some sort of manual for new parents. 

Although nerve wracking, we were thrilled to bring our baby home. My mom was still in town and it was great having her here. We really just settled in and spent time with our baby. As a matter of fact, that's what we are still doing. We have a couple more weeks here in AZ before the big move to NYC so we are really loving our time together as a family. 

Brooks Daniel Gould

Our boy is here!

Brooks Daniel Gould was born on Thursday, May 23rd at 5:45 pm. He was definitely a little guy at 5 lbs 13 oz and 19 inches long. To say we love him is an understatement. The moment he was born was absolutely incredible. Dan and I fell in love instantly and are absolutely over the moon with him. We hold those first few moments we spent together as a family of three very special in our hearts.

Brooks was born exactly one week before his due date. At my 38 week doctor appointment I had extremely high blood pressure. After some blood testing we found out I was in the very beginning stages of pre-eclampsia. I spent the next week taking it easy and monitoring my blood pressure several times a day. I also went in for fetal monitoring and Brooks was looking great. At my 39 week appointment my blood pressure was still high, so the doctor threw a curve ball my way and said he wanted to induce me Wednesday night! He said my bp would not get any better and we were better safe than sorry. This was on a Monday so I was in shock. I immediately called Dan and then my mom. My mom instantly booked a flight the next day so she could be here for the main event. 

We checked in to the hospital Wednesday night. We started some meds that night but the following morning I had barely made any progress. At around 8:30 am the doctor came and broke my water. We then started Pitocin and ten minutes later labor hit me like a ton of bricks. 

Around 4:45 pm they checked my progress and I was only at about 7 cm. We were ready to settle in for a few more hours of labor. About 20 minutes later I started really feeling the urge to push. Luckily the doctor came in at that moment and checked me and I was at 10 cm and he could already see the baby's head! We quickly got prepared for pushing. After about only 20 minutes of pushing, Brooks was born! 

Brooks has been an absolute joy in our lives. He is small but extremely strong. He can lift his head and look at you from any angle. He has big bright eyes that will melt your heart every time. He definitely knows his mom and dad and feels most comfortable in our arms. He eats like a champ and gained a whole pound between his first and second doctor appointments. He is getting more and more alert and we are thrilled when he is awake and wants to play. I can't believe my little boy is already 2 weeks old. It's time to freeze time so he will stop growing!