Hope, Ava and I have welcomed Zander Kai into our family today (Feb 10).  A healthy baby boy, Z weighed in at 8 pounds 14 ounces and measured 20.5 inches long.  Not bad for being three weeks early!

I haven't made a big deal about it in the blog here over the last nine months.  We found out quite early in the pregnancy and this day felt it came after an especially long wait.  This was a harder pregnancy for Hope and there were always more questions than answers it seemed.

But the day finally arrived.  Hope's obstetrician waited for the 37th week, and after what seemed to be an entirely uneventful Ceserian, little baby Z was born to us.  Immediately, he began loudly sucking his fist in the operating room.  In typical fashion for us, our child was born with a full head of hair.

I can't say enough of Hope's toughness through this whole time.  Despite having reservations that this Ceserian might be as touchy as when Ava was born, she powered through every step of the process bravely.  She can now finally rest.

Pictures will be available in later posts.