Wow. What a Monday I had this week! It’s not every day you get to welcome a new addition to the family! And had it not been for sweet little Blakely’s arrival, I would have had a pretty bad Monday considering. Why? Oh, just because I had to go to court to fight a bogus speeding ticket I received after avoiding a near head on collision. I was found guilty despite no evidence (small town for ya) and paid out $205 on the spot. Thankfully, 1 hour later I was meeting my newest niece and that entire ordeal was a distant memory.
But Blakely didn’t arrive as smoothly has planned.
We’ve known for quite some time that if my little sister Alison didn’t go into labor on her own, she’d be induced late Sunday night (on Cinco de Mayo!). Personally, I’m not a fan of inducing labor. I’m no where near trying to conceive, but I have read many medical reports and have several friends and internet pals who’ve written about their personal experiences with induced labor and birth that ended in regrets, prolonged labor, and cesareans. I had hoped it would go better for Alison, but after 18 hours of no real progress and the baby’s dropping blood pressure, her doctors opted for a c-section. Of course this had our already anxious family on pins and needles in the waiting room.
Blakely’s BFF, Harper. She’s the beautiful daughter of my little sister’s best friend, Tiffany.
Then suddenly we heard Dewayne’s (Alison’s husband) voice from around the corner. He called for Grace, his daughter and Alison’s step-daughter, because he had a special surprise he needed her to unveil. Alison opted not to find out the sex of the baby during pregnancy, something I plan to do as well when I have children one day. It’s been so fun making our guesses and seeing what kind of gifts they’d receive when one isn’t able to default to the standard pink or blue options. We have 6 nieces and only 1 nephew in the family, so the overwhelming majority had their fingers crossed for a baby boy.
Finally, Dewayne and Grace emerged from the maternity ward doors with huge smiles on their faces. Grace sported a “Big Sister” t-shirt in hot pink lettering and we all stood in silence because Dewayne had joked earlier about possibly tricking us…
Then he tossed something to my mother…
And the softball confirmed the big announcement!
Now I have to be honest here. There seemed to be a slight disappointment in the air that the baby was a girl. I think too many of us let ourselves believe beyond a doubt we’d get a little boy. But as soon as those window blinds opened for the first glance at baby Blakely, all that disappointment vanished in a heartbeat!
We made sure Dewayne got to make the first Facebook announcement before we began blowing up our own feeds!
My sisters and I were all finger suckers. I sucked my two middle fingers, my older sister Cecilia sucked on her index and middle fingers, and Alison sucked on her thumb. Blakely doesn’t seem to have a preference yet. She’s been witnessed to suck on one finger alone all the way to sticking her entire fist into her mouth!
The nurses gave us word that because of the c-section Alison would be moved to another room to recover. We grabbed all her things and camped out in the new room hoping to see her before we all had to get back to our respective homes (which is 3.5 hours away for me!).
After waiting for what seemed like eternity, Phillip and I made the decision to leave. I knew I’d be back in just a couple weeks for a wedding in the area and figured I’d get all my Blakely loving in then. But just as we walked out of the room, we spotted baby and mama!
This next shot is my favorite of the entire day. ❤
Blakely Rose Clements
May 6, 2013. 6:57pm. 6lb 7.1oz. 20 in.
And I have to end with the runner up name (on a baseball!) had Blakely been a boy…
Blakely Name Meaning
English, Scottish, and northern Irish: habitational name from any of various places in northern England and the Scottish Borders called Blakeley, named with Old English blæc ‘black’, ‘dark’ + leah ‘woodland clearing’. The Scottish surname may also have absorbed some cases of Blakelaw, from a place in the Borders named with Old English blæc ‘black’ + hlaw ‘hill’.
“How does the Meadow flower its bloom unfold? Because the lovely little flower is free down to its root, and in that freedom bold.”
~William Wordsworth
PS. I totally turned my Jeep into the Bluth Company stair car, too.
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