November 2007: By Rebecca
Well, Stella-girl. We’re just so happy to have her. She loves her brother so much. Nico can be a little too energetic with her and sometimes gets a time-out for being too rough. He lies inside his room and calls under his door, “Hey, Stella. Come here, Stella. I’m in time-out. Come play with me under my door! Yoo-hoo, Stella!” And of course, she makes a bee-line to his room which kind of defeats the purpose of the time-out! She always wants to play with him. Whenever she cries or is fussy, Nico can set her right by either getting her a toy, singing to her, or making fart noises. Whatever works!Stella is walking really well now. She loves to wander around outside and can entertain herself very well. She has perfected the knee hug. It works for her because it’s all she can reach. She likes to throw things off of her highchair tray and say. “Uh-oh!” She likes to clap and then throw her arms over her head and give you a big smile. She’s a total ham around the camera and when you tell her to say “Cheese,” she gives you a big, goofy smile and says “Eeeee!” She has a little play table that makes noises and plays songs. She’ll walk over and make it play a song and then come back to do a little dance in front of you. She’s got a little knee bend, bobbing thing with her booty sticking out that is hilarious! When the music ends, she goes straight back over to play another tune.
She just had her first birthday and she really enjoyed her little party. She almost enjoyed it as much as Nico! He picked out a lovely My Little Pony cupcake cake for her. Aside from the sugar high, the best part of that was the way the icing felt when she squished it between her fingers and washed her hands with icing! Her favorite toy right now is a pink piggy bank with pretend coins that Nico chose for her. Nico told her that when she has her next birthday and turns two, then she can run really fast and try to catch him. He’ll probably be bummed out when she can open her own presents! She’ll probably still let him help because she’s such a sweetheart.
Love Rebecca
The Very Beginning: By Damian
:: Stella Celeste ::
Born 9:58 am November 13 2006.
Saint Davids Hospital, Austin Texas.
8 Lb 4 OzMs Stella Celeste was born at Saint David's Hospital in Austin Texas on a Monday morning, by scheduled caesarean section to her new and extremely proud parents.
Into the car and once again accompanied by the 'soothing tones' of the Simpson's wrist watch "Are we there yet? - NO!" we head out into the cool morning air, I must say that Rebecca having a scheduled C-section does wonders for ones preparation, all bags were packed, proper sleep was had and minds were set, today was defiantly going to be the day we were going to have a baby. Rebecca is in a very good mood (understandably of course), Nico is out with Aunty Lynn for a few hours and I am busy trying to keep calm.... All IS going according to plan but yet I still feel lost, my wife and baby are in somebodys else’s hands for the next few hours and I am somewhat out of the picture, hmmm best tag along and see what happens huh?
We are in the Labor and Delivery ward again I see some familiar faces, the nursing staff is the same as for when Nico was born some 2 and a half years ago, my how that experience has certainly stuck in my mind it is comforting and my fear has changed into excitement, it is really going to happen! Great! Rebecca is hooked up to the Baby heart rate monitor and the beat is a steady 160. Doctors and nurses come and go asking this and that, time is creeping. The surgery (or should I say birth?) is scheduled for 9:30am an hour away, we sit and talk Rebecca is yawning I am pacing from excitement.Rebecca is carted off and I am left with a jump suit to climb into, instructions to stay put for anywhere between 10 to 45 minutes are given and we are here with an empty bed and heaps of anticipation......... Mr Hendriks? nodding.... follow me it is time.... Off I go into the O.R. The scene is familiar, my wife lay'd out, bright lights, beeping sucking stinking and about a dozen people doing who knows what. The cold aluminum chair is by her head, "Hi baby, you OK? She responds yes but her eyes show fear, I am talking about.... I don't know, just talking. I am trying to listen with both ears, one to make sure Rebecca is distracted from all the weird sounds emanating from behind the curtain that is strung up across her chest and the other is listening to all the weird sounds emanating from behind the curtain that is strung up across her chest! It is very strange to be talking to your wife while her belly is wide open, I stand up and look over the top of the sheet to see the progress.
Things are certainly progressing, under the bright light I can see that Dr Mankovsky has his hands buried in a very large belly draped in blue surgical sheeting, then those hands reappear holding a baby’s head, I check the time 9:56, " Rebecca, she has lots of hair! Lots of dark hair!" There is a disconnect from Rebecca's side to the happenings on the other side of the curtain, she is laying on the 'calm' side with only myself, the anesthesiologist and all his beeping medical machinery, this is in contrast to the 10 people checking out the body side with all the excitement and goings on, Rebecca seems to exist just as a head at the moment, a somewhat nervous one at that!Stella is now informing everyone present that she is OK with a very enthusiastic wail, Mankovsky puts down the bulb syringe that he was using to clear her air way, it is obvious that there is no obstruction. "Rebecca you are going to feel some pressure and tugging now" I give her a quick glance, it is awesome to watch, I exclaim "here she comes" and Stella is basically just hauled on out of there and lifted up for all to see, 9:58am She is pink, 2 armed, 2 legged and healthy. The cord is cut and she is handed off to her own crew of Doctors & Nurses. Rebecca can see her now and is just positively beaming......... the relief that her baby is OK is written in her smile which somehow gets even broader when she is handed Stella for the first time a few moments later. Welcome, we love her already...........
We now have a daughter and name her
STELLA CELESTE
