So much life has happened since the last time that I shared about my personal life on the blog. The biggest, and most important life change — our sweet girl was born. Our daughter, Sybil Louise was born on March 13th in Spokane, Washington. Our Sybbie Lou has been the biggest blessing and we cannot imagine life without her. Parenthood has simultaneously felt like the easiest and hardest thing that we have ever done. Our little gal is so resilient and has already done more than most adults in her 4 short months of life!

I had an incredible birth experience and I could talk about it all day long. Birth was my favorite part of the entire process, believe it or not! It was also what I was most nervous about…fun how that happens. I go back and forth about sharing it on the internet…maybe one day! My labor start to finish was 7 hours. It was the craziest, most shocking, and thrilling experience of my life. After pushing for only 30 minutes our girl quite literally flew into the world. Based on Sybil’s birth, fast deliveries may be a thing for us; both exciting and terrifying. I couldn’t have done any of it without the incredible team that I carefully selected in the weeks leading up to birth. Duke, my midwife, and my doula Megan were everything and more. So so thankful. I delivered at Multicare Deaconess in Spokane and have nothing but good things to say. Everyone that I encountered was so kind. Having a baby is a humbling thing and every single professional made me feel comfy and cared for.

After having a baby and walking through those first few foggy weeks, here is my advice:

• Prepare mentally and physically. I talked about this in my pregnancy post a few months ago. Going into birth with a plan and a team was something that I prioritized and it definitely paid off.
• HIRE A LACTATION CONSULTANT!!! I want to scream this from the rooftops. Do not rely on the “human instinct” to breastfeed or your hospital to show you how. I was handed my baby after birth and told to “latch” her. There was so other guidance given. This blew my mind. Had I not educated myself beforehand, I would have been overwhelmed, frustrated, in pain, and probably on the verge of giving up. That is a heartbreaking reality for so many and it needs to change. The hospital lactation consultant visited me 24 hours after birth. 24 HOURS. At this point I had already nursed my baby the entire night and most of the following day. This kind of care for women is absolutely unacceptable, but unfortunately it is the norm. With all of that being said, breastfeeding has been one of the most important things I have ever done and quite possibly my favorite thing to experience with my baby.
• Have low expectations — having a baby is magical but it is also hard. It’s messy, painful, exhausting, and leaves you feeling like life will never be the same. Being gentle with myself and having low expectations kept me from getting disappointed.
• Get out of the house…contrary to what most people will tell you! Even if it is just a walk outside in the sunshine, getting out of my home was crucial for me. We were never gone for long and rest was always the priority, but just a little sense of normalcy was so nice.
• Don’t overthink things. Follow what feels good and what your baby responds to. Should we swaddle? Use a sleep sack? What if she doesn’t want to sleep on her back? Is it bad if she sleeps in the bed? Is it bad that she nurses constantly? Does she need to be wearing socks? These are just a snippet of the thoughts that floated around in my head. The list goes on forever. Lemme tell you, everyone will have an opinion. What someone thinks is wrong, another person thinks is right. The best solution to this — follow your gut. Doing what feels good for my baby and I regardless of what others think has been something that I prioritize every day, and it has definitely paid off.

Sybil’s gingham gown is last season from Mebie Baby. I will link a similar one here.

Most of Sybil’s bows are from Acre – a favorite shop of ours.

Almost all of our bonnets are Briar Baby.

Sybil’s sweater was made by a friend. Her instagram is linked here. It is so special and now that she has outgrown it I plan to frame it in her room for the years to come!

My going home outfit is from Amazon and is linked here. Size up – I am wearing a large.

I made an Amazon storefront containing everything that we have heavily used since having a baby! You can see that here.

These photos by Clara Jay Photo (edited by me) will be forever cherished. Remember when I said have low expectations? This definitely applies to newborn photos. Despite how overwhelming it feels — take the photos! I have now been on both sides of the camera and trust me, it is all going to be okay. Your photographer knows what they are doing (hopefully, haha!) and even if it feels like a shit show, it is still worth it. Sybil screamed the majority of our session. Was is stressful? Yes. Am I glad I did it? Yes.

Seeing Duke be a dad is my favorite. Watching him with his girl is such a gift to witness. I knew that he would step into the role of fatherhood with grace, and he certainly makes it look effortless, even though I know that every day he tries harder than the last to be a present dad.

My dress is the Anthropologie Somerset Dress – they have so many colors/patterns – linked here!

At five weeks old, Sybil, myself, and our two dogs flew cross country from Washington state to DC while Duke drove our car and belongings. The months, weeks, and days leading up to this move were nothing short of chaotic. Packing up our home and traveling with a newborn is not something that I wish on anyone. Looking back on it a few months later, it all feels like a blur. I barely remember it now – we can probably blame postpartum fog for that! We did it though, and if you are in a similar boat, you can too! Keeping our family together during this weird season of Duke’s career was worth all of the extra headache. We were blessed to have our girl Nicole Cooper Photography take these photos of us on our family farm in Virginia.

My dress is from Free People linked here.

So where are we now? That’s a good question – and one that I often struggle to answer. We are currently in South Carolina until the holidays. We are technically still based in Spokane, Washington and we still have our home there! We are currently renting it out on airbnb while we are away. It is ironic because are are also living in a furnished airbnb in South Carolina. Life is crazy right now…but also relaxing (not sure if that makes sense, haha). It is not lost on us how lucky we are to have our little family together in the midst of job changes, trainings, and other obstacles that always find a way to disrupt plans. Military families, you know what I am talking about! Once our time here is up, we will be able to take some time to be with family in Virginia — another blessing! Although there is so much to be thankful for, it is hard to not feel misplaced when you don’t really have your own home. We are living out of totes and suitcases, with no idea when we will be settled in a house again.

For now we are embracing the chaos and soaking up this time in the south! Sybbie Lou LOVES the water, especially the beach! Seeing her little personality bloom this summer is the best! We try to go on at least one adventure every weekend.

Our girl is officially 4 months old now. She talks to us all day long. She loves her pups, being outside, milk, and her family. She is so calm, easygoing, and tags along with whatever we do. She is my little bestie and I cannot wait to watch her continue to find her place in the world!

If you made it to the end of this jumbled brain dump, thank you! Thank you for reading and following along from a far. I feel like we have people in every corner of the world who can relate and are cheering us on and we are so grateful. For now, you can find us on the east coast, our favorite place to be, soaking up this time with family. We will see what 2025 brings! Hopefully it will be a little less chaotic…but I doubt it!

xo

Lauran