My baby had a baby!
As some of you may know, I have two daughters. One is quite visible on the blog and podcast–Rebecca, my oldest. She’s co-authored both The Great Sex Rescue and She Deserves Better with me, and we talk frequently about her two little ones.
Katie’s around too behind the scenes, editing the podcast and generally providing support.
And this week, 10 days overdue and on her anniversary, she gave birth to my third grandchild, a little girl!
Keith and I drove up early to the town where they live so we could welcome little Diana and hang out!
And I got to meet her four hours after she was born.
I’ve been at their house all week, making meals and holding the baby so they can get some sleep.
It’s been wonderful seeing Katie and her husband so happy, and settling into parenting so seamlessly. It’s wonderful to see that little girl so loved.
Rebecca came up for a few days, too, because she is a baby whisperer.
Seriously, Rebecca is so good at getting babies to settle and knows how to help babies and parents figure out their natural rhythms and work with them so that the baby will sleep. She’s amazing!
They set up what Rebecca called “Viking Longhouse Living”, where Becca moved a single mattress onto the floor of their bedroom, with the baby sleeping in the bassinette by Katie and her husband, and showed David what to do.
Rebecca and David were very good friends in high school, so it’s really fun to now be brother and sister-in-law.
It all made me feel a lot of sympathy for people without family to help.
I have absolutely loved getting to hold and snuggle the baby, and I’ve tried to be useful. I know that Katie and David have gotten more sleep with me here than they would have otherwise. And they did need to recover after a very long labour.
I simply can’t imagine a single mom bringing a baby home all by herself. I can’t imagine those of you who don’t have supportive husbands, and who also have toddlers.
We aren’t meant to do these things by ourselves, and our bodies aren’t even supposed to let us stand up and walk much in the week after labour.
I’m so glad I could be there for my daughter (and granddaughter!). And I hope that part of what we do here at Bare Marriage will be to help build stronger families so that moms don’t feel alone, and so that moms have help. Because no woman should have to go through this alone.
I wanted to let you all know why I’ve been quieter than usual on social media and in the comments these last few weeks!
We’ve just been excited about the baby and trying to be present for our family. And thanks for all your well wishes on social media, too!
PS: If you want to meet Katie and David, here is my favourite video of Katie’s that she’s ever done.
Congratulations!
Congratulations on the new baby!
Also, that video is absolutely hilarious. Was it a companion to a blog post or just a one-off?
(I think she missed an opportunity to use both the gun AND the pickaxe on one of the covers!)
Found it!
https://baremarriage.com/2021/06/the-jesus-and-john-wayne-podcast-with-kristin-kobes-du-mez/
SO excited for you Sheila…and Katie and David, little Diana, and your entire family!!! You are right…it is SO meaningful (and, dare I say, essential?) to have family (or friends and community) to come alongside and help out families with brand new little ones. Katie and David are so fortunate to have you and Rebecca there to love and help them. Enjoy this precious time!
Very happy for the whole clan. Wishing good health and happiness on all!
Congratulations! Diana is a beautiful name!!! Blessings on you all.
Congratulations!!! So excited for everyone.
The video is HILARIOUS!!!
Congratulations on a new family member!
Congratulations to you all – what lovely news xxx
Rejoicing with you all. Congratulations.
Amazing job supporting each other. This is how it’s done. A+, 5 stars, MVP, Exceeds Expectations. Thanks for sharing with the class. Just amazing. Tears to my eyes honestly. But I’m postpartum too so maybe I’m just feeling especially emotional, ha.
Congratulations to you too, and I do hope you are settling into a good routine for your family!
Congratulations to all!
I know – I have and had so much support from my family and my his and’s family – I really don’t know how people do it without support! Not just newborns, but all the way through the parenting journey. Also, when I saw your photos I thought you might say your daughter had a home birth with midwives! Yay for professional midwives!
Congratulations!!! I’m so happy for you all – these beautiful memories will be a cherished part of Diana’s birth for everyone forever!! So much love!!! ☺️♥️
Congratulations on a wonderful new granddaughter/niece/daughter! From someone who had to go through it pretty much alone, I am so excited to see healthy, loving families such as yourselves model the beauty in this dynamic! Congratulations on the awesome family Miss Diana has been born into!
Congratulations to all! What a beautiful happy time!
Congratulations! I hope I have Grandkids someday, babies are so precious. Enjoy the snuggles.Your daughter and son in law are very lucky to have you and a sister that helped her out in those early weeks. Sleep deprivation is very dangerous and birth is so exhausting… I was glad I meal prepped some freezer meals.
Congratulations! If Becca is a baby whisperer, can she share some secrets?? Would love a post or multiple from her about that! I used to enjoy your parenting posts but that was before I had kids and now that I am a parent those old posts are hard to find… would love some things from Becca if she is good at that!