Sunday, April 20th

Elliott is one week old today.  Hard to believe that this time last week we were in the middle of induced labor, anxiously awaiting our daughter's arrival.  After admission to Roanoke Memorial Hospital at 7:00 am, Courtney was induced at 8:00 am and received an magical epidural. She began pushing at 4:45 pm and after three and a half hours effort, she underwent a Caesarean section.   Elliott Marion Wiegard arrived into the world at 8:35 pm on Sunday April 13, 2008.  She has stolen our hearts (and our normal sleep patterns) and we love her more and more everyday.   

We were a little (okay a lot) upset to find that Elliott had lost 15% of her birth weight at our first pediatrician appointment on Friday.  She was born a whopping 7 pounds and 9.4 ounces and 20.5 inches in length.  However, she had dropped a significant amount since leaving the hospital.  Apparently breast feeding isn't as easy as we thought and she wasn't getting enough nutrition.  Two hours with a lactation consultant later (Vickie is a genius and an angel) we are back on the nursing track and well into the "Elliott Marion Feeding Marathon of 2008."  Never fear, our little girl is back over 7 pounds and counting!  

As far as infants go, Elliott is  a looker.  We thought she looked a lot like her Mom when she was born, but she looks a little more like her Daddy everyday.  She is expressive, energetic yet well behaved.  The dogs have welcomed her into our home.  McKinley is a great guard dog, standing watch at the nursery door. Milla is also very protective her and Monti just wants to give her lots of kisses.  He sits on Courtney's lap while she nurses.