Baby Bryan

Last week, we welcomed a new addition into the family.

Here he is - Literally Brand New!  He was 8 lb 4 oz and 20.5 " long.

Welcoming him into the world was a really peaceful, special experience. 

He brought such a sweet spirit with him into the delivery room.

We were overjoyed to welcome him into our family. 

For an hour after his birth, he sat with us, just as wide awake as can be. 

We admired him from his big lips and cute little nose - it's Momma's nose to a "T"!

- all the way down to his tiny black feet - fresh off the press.

Proud Pappa 

So excited to have another little boy!! 

We spent the first night at the hospital as just the 3 of us, so we could get to know this new little boy of ours. 

And try to figure out what his name was. :) 

big yawn! 

I loved cuddling him all night long. 

Isn't he just the sweetest little boy!!? 

I think so.  Sometime during one of his nighttime feedings, I ran through our list of names and tried each one of them out to see which fit this little boy best.  I feel like the name kind of chose him.  It was Bryan - it just was.  He didn't belong to any of the other names we'd considered.  We'd been thinking of using a name like James or Jay for his middle name, but in that same early morning hour, my Mom's maiden name came to me as his middle name: Ray.

Bryan means "Strength" and Ray is just such a meaningful name to me.  The Ray family is a huge part of who I am.  The name Ray carries with it an amazing heritage, which we hope to pass on to our children.  And having a piece of my Mom in his name means a lot to me.  Jason was sort of named for both of our Dads - John and Jay are their names and Jason - son of "J" - seemed to work for both of them.  Plus, we liked that it means "healer".  Then, we took Jason's middle name from Brent's brother: Tyler.  So, our first son's name came mostly from Brent's family, and this 2nd son has a name from my family. 

We didn't think he looked anything like Jason at first, but as I spent more time with him, he began to look more and more like his older brother.  He's definitely got his own look, but there are a lot of similarities there as well. 

Brent says he's his Momma's child.  He thinks he looks just like me for some reason. 

I'm perfectly fine with that.  He's adorable!! 

sweet cheeks 

That is one happy Daddy! 

And who wouldn't be with this bundle of joy? 

Perfectly peaceful hospital days. 

We are in love with our little Bryan.