Today was another amazing day. We went to the hospital around 10:30 am and had such a nice visit with just T and J without all of the entourage of parents. It was just what we all needed and it was great seeing them. The visit seemed to confirm the good feeling we all had in Houston and they are just such amazing people. After the visit, we went back to the hotel and had a nice lunch with Jenny and my parents. Then we did a series of errands -- packing all of the suitcases into the car (we have so much!), going to Target to get infant formula, going to CVS, going to get Jenny new shoes, etc. That took us to the late afternoon. Then we went to the hospital around 4:30 pm. The placement was really nice -- we just had more time to visit with T and J and their families. It's hard to put in to words now so I'll try to do more later. But we just felt so close and loving with not only T and J but also T's mom and dad and J's mom. The loving family in addition to T and J was just such a special gift that we weren't expecting.
At around 6 pm, everyone but us and Simone left and we spent about 30 minutes doing paperwork with her. Also, a nurse came and gave is final tips - how to swaddle, how often to feed her, etc. The nurse gave us a bag full of baby stuff. Then the nurse made sure that our infant carrier worked properly. The nurse walked us down to the car with Simone and we loaded the baby and everyone else in. Then we headed to Houston to spend the week while we are waiting for Texas and DC to approve the necessary paperwork. It was an amazing feeling to be driving in that big boat of a car and having Ava with us as a part of our family! Rachel sat in the back with Ava and checked on her every few minutes! We were all a combination of emotionally exhausted and so happy. I hadn't given much thought to Houston but I began to think about it as we drove.
We are staying in a really nice hotel here called the Granduca (Italian theme!). I can see the pool out our window and it looks beautiful. I'm hoping my dad and Jenny will be able to swim. One really nice surprise when we got to the hotel: Greg and Jane had sent champagne and chocolate covered strawberries and David and Elana had sent a lot of snacks and food as well. We hadn't realized how hungary we were so we had a big snack as soon as we got Ava settled down. It was such a great way to end the day.
Last night was our first time on our own with Ava. We did ok but I know that I can improve on lots of aspects - how I swaddle her, how I feed her, even how I hold her. But it's good to know that we are able to do this! The other thing we figured out: we need more outfits for Ava. We went through three of them last night (I won't bother you with the details but now I know I need to cover her up when I change her!). Once we all wake up, we'll go see if there is a store nearby where we can buy more outfits. Also, we need ziplock baggies like it's nobody's business. It seems like we go through those quickly as well!
R and Jenny are asleep right now. Ava is asleep in the bassinet but she's starting to make noises so I'll finish up here and see if she wants a bottle. We are just so happy and feel blessed. A lot more later, including photos.
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