Introducing...

We would like to introduce our daughter, Weslyn Elizabeth Graves. She was born on Friday, Sept. 2, 2011 at 3:15am. 8 lbs 15 ounces, 21.5 inches. She's perfect in every way. Our family couldn't be more excited to have her.

My labor began Thursday evening. I was having contractions on and off during the days before, which prepared me for the big event on Friday morning. Around 9:30pm the contractions were close and intense enough to start timing. Lawton was an incredible coach throughout the entire process; I truly couldn't have done it without him. We walked the hall of our house for a couple hours while Kobe watched us with a close eye:) By midnight it was time to go to the hospital. The 20 minute drive to St. Luke's Hospital wasn't as bad as I had imagined. I was able to breathe through each contraction and stay calm...for the most part. When we got to the hospital the contractions were more intense and so was the pain. I remember feeling like I couldn't do it. I couldn't handle the pain. Lawton encouraged me and kept telling me, "You are doing it and you're doing a great job." My labor progressed quickly going from 6 cm dilated to 9 cm in about an hour. The nurses and midwife were encouraging as well and stuck with me the whole time. By 2am we were in the home stretch. I was exhausted, falling asleep between the pushing and contractions. It went by quickly though and at 3:15am our Weslyn was born. A head full of hair just like her parents. She is now 1 week old and we are continuing to adjust to life with a baby. Kobe has kept a close eye on her and is already comfortable around her...even through the crying and funny smells. Everyday it gets easier and hard to imagine life without her. We can't wait for more friends and family to meet our new addition to the Graves Yard.