Ellis Anneke Vrielink

We are so happy to announce the birth of our daughter Ellis (only a week later)! I can hardly believe it has already been a week. My labor was very long (36 hours) and ended up being a c-section when Ellis's head got stuck under my pelvic bone after 3 hours of pushing, so I spent more time in the hospital than I had anticipated. In a funny way it was a huge blessing. The nurses were so caring and it allowed me more time to recover while being looked after. Plus, my room had an amazing view of the city and river and it made spending hours in a bed so much more tolerable. Lots of friends visited us in the hospital and Isabelle and Nick (in town from Seattle) helped us make the big trip home. It was so surreal to finally see Ellis outside and to test out the car seat...which worked great!

We are trying to do what the books call "nesting in" by spending these first two weeks pretty much only inside getting to know Ellis, figuring out breastfeeding and bonding as a family. We are learning more and more everyday. Erik has been absolutely amazing. I couldn't ask for a more supportive husband or a prouder papa.

A little back story to her name: Ellis Anneke. I always really liked Ellis and Erik always liked Anneke. Ellis reminds us of NY, of the millions who immigrated here (just like Erik) and went through Ellis Island. On our wedding day, the boat even went past the island. I also liked that her name is pronounced the same in Dutch and English. And just like my three names with the double n's and r's, her names also have double letters. So far, it seems to be a great fit.

And the other details...she was 8lb 1oz and was born 09/20/2009 (or in Europe 20/09/2009...which looks pretty neat) at 2:34pm.

We are starting a separate blog for Ellis and will keep everyone posted when it's up and running...

Thea and Mark's Wedding

Had a great time last Saturday at Thea and Mark's wedding in Brooklyn! The ceremony and reception took place in a beautiful historic Brooklyn building and the happy couple kept things fun with a Coney Island theme. When we first got the invitation, I was worried we might not make it to the wedding with it being so close to my due date. Thankfully, this was not the case. I even managed to dance to a few songs!

Only three days until my due date! I am starting to think she'll arrive late but will keep everyone posted.

38 weeks

Time is flying! Our sonogram went really well. She's in the right position for birth and is measuring in the 50th percentile (not too big, not too small). They guessed she'll be about an 8 lb. baby. We met with our doula this week and talked about preferences for labor and what we can expect from her during the process. She is really nice and I think she will bring us a lot of support when the time comes.

I am starting to feel huge! I was a little disappointed that I've gained more weight than I was hoping to, but I feel healthy and energetic and am not going to let it get me down. Erik has also been wonderful at comforting and encouraging me throughout these months.

My due date is September 18th, but I can't help but think that because Mike and I were born 10 and 11 days early, that it might be the same for our little girl. Tomorrow is Labor Day after all! I just really hope she doesn't wait until early October to make an appearance!

New Amsterdam Village

The weather this weekend has been gorgeous: sunny, warm, and not too humid. We ventured down to Battery Park yesterday to check out the New Amsterdam Village that's been set up to commemorate Henry Hudson's arrival 400 years ago. Erik was so excited to see echte stroopwafels and poffertjes. We bought some tulips and spoke a little with the Dutch sellers in the market. They are having events all week and a harbor day next weekend where they will have a replica of Hudson's ship The Half Moon. I still love knowing that the boat we were married on was named after Hudson's ship.

After the market, we took the ferry out to Staten Island to visit our friends Laura and Glyn who moved out there a few years ago. They have an adorable house and we really enjoyed a great chicken and veggie BBQ in their back yard. They also showed us around their borough a little. It was great to see the Verrazano Bridge from the other side.

With my due date just two weeks away, we are happy to keep distracted spending quality time with friends and enjoying all there is to do in the city.