Jack Valentine Holst - The newest addition to the family!

Who would have thought that bringing a child into this world would be such a life changing event? Ok, most people but actually experiencing it has been a roller coaster ride of emotions. It's been awesome.

I have a new respect for Sarah (and all women in general), she went through crazy amounts of pain and endured 20 hours of labor (which included 3 hours of pushing). We did everything from walking the halls to sitting on a bouncy ball to different breathing techniques to hot showers and you name it. I can't stress enough how amazing Sarah was. She showed more strength, drive and determination than I could ever even dream of.

I had this big long post written out about the tough time Jack had at first; He spent 2 days away from us in Special Care because he wasn't "transitioning" well and had some difficulty breathing. Apparently this is somewhat common, or at least the more people I talk to the more I realize this just happens. Anyway, I deleted it all because I really want to focus on the fact that he is here and he is 100% healthy!

He has Sarah's eyes (She's Korean-American) and Sarah's dads feet (big). He obviously got the dark hair from Sarah, and the finger toes came from Sarah too. Hopefully he doesn't get his height genes from the Holst side. He's a little stinker to the core, that he gets from his dad. He sleeps with his arms above his head. Even when I give him the "straight jacket" swaddle he works his arms out and puts them above his head.

Getting adjusted to sleeping in 3 hour increments has been difficult. I've been doing most of the shopping and errand running and it feels good to do more work around the house to help Sarah out.

Jack was named after my grandpa Jack Valentine who was born on February 12, 1929. His dad, Harry Valentine got the name because he was born on Valentines day.