My New Niece

I have a new, little (and I mean little.. weighing in at only 5 lbs 4 oz) niece. She is perfect, and the most beautiful preemie I have ever seen. My sister-in-law Laura and her husband Tim came to Utah last week for the funeral of Mike’s grandma. They were scheduled to fly home to Boston on Saturday after the funeral, but late Friday night Laura’s water broke. That quickly took care of their trip home, and to our delight Laura give birth to her first baby girl here in Utah, where we were able to actually see her before she turned two! Although born 5 weeks early, she is doing remarkably well and is very adept at snuggling in her pink blankie and looking adorable.

The picture above was taken through the glass at the NICU. I had to sneak in under an assumed name (thanks Cami) in order to hold her, but this little deception (okay, big deception) was worth it. I could have sat there and snuggled her all day. 

Being there in the NICU with Laura, holding my new niece, I couldn’t help but think back about six years ago when my twins were born prematurely as well and spent some time in the NICU . Due to the stress of having premature twins and some serious postpartum issues, bringing our babies home was difficult to say the least. My sweet sister-in-law Laura (along with my mother) practically moved into our house to help out. Laura got up almost every single night to help feed the babies, not to mention all the bathrooms she cleaned, stories she made up for Mary Kate, diapers she changed, errands she ran, or sympathy crying she did for me, all the while trying to stay on top of her master’s studies at BYU. When I think about those difficult weeks long ago, one person I will always be grateful for is Laura. I will love her forever for her for what she did.

Laura and Jeffrey, 2004

Over the years Laura has been so good to me, to Michael, and especially to my children. She didn’t marry and have children until relatively later in life, so she spent all her mothering energy on her nieces and nephews. My children have always been blessed to be the recipients of all that energy and love.

 

Laura and Mary Kate, 2007

Laura and Jonathan, 2006

A Sunday afternoon, 2006

Now Laura has a baby of her own. Guaranteed, she will be an awesome mother. She’s had tons of practice! She’s also waited a long time to have a baby of her own so she won’t take it for granted. My new niece is one lucky girl.

Laura, we wish we could give you back a little bit of what you’ve given us over the years. If you need anything that we can possibly give you from miles away, don’t hesitate to ask. We can’t wait to watch you be a mommy.

P.S. Nobody ask me what the baby’s name is! Laura has been known to take her time when making decisions. She’s taking her time with this one. I’ll let you know when baby has a name.