Isabelodie | Category Archives: Isabelle

Construction

Here are some pics of the fabulous job Guy did in finishing off our fence and adding a gate. For some reason, the fence had never been finished on the North side of the house, and there was just lattice and an opening between the garage and house, so in the interests of privacy, and keeping our kids out of traffic, Guy built a panel of fencing and a door for us, and added some panels to the lattice for more privacy. It definitely adds to our peace of mind, knowing that Belle can’t take off into the road, and the additions look fantastic. Thanks so much!

A Visit from Guy and Shirley

As mentioned in the last post, as soon as Guy and Shirley heard that Elodie was on her way, they peeled rubber out of town and headed this way. They arrived Friday afternoon and we celebrated both their, and Elodie’s, arrival.
They also brought some serious garden and building know-how, as well as the generous donation of many garden and building tools. After some post-drive recovery time spent visiting and catching up, Guy and Shirley leapt into action. Shirley started cooking, weeding and Belle distracting (very important, that last one), while Guy started finishing off the fence around our yard, to be followed by the gate (pics in the next post). I was able to start the yardwork, put up shelving in our storage room and put together a new patio set. On Mother’s Day, we had a great brunch and finished off the day with Halibut steaks on the BBQ.
We had an amazing time with them, and we really can’t thank them enough for coming out to visit. We finished a ton of things around the house, gained a complete fence and custom gate, loads of tools for the house and yard, a fully-stocked freezer, lots of great wine and Belle, as always, absolutely adored having her grandparents around.

Welcome Elodie (and Madeline)!

So here are the details of how it all went down! We’d been alerted to the fact that my sister and her husband had headed off to the hospital at around one in the morning on May 10th, so while we were focused on an imminent baby in Winnipeg, it turned out that Elodie wasn’t going to be left behind. At around 8:30am, Michelle started to feel some pretty strong regular contractions. I thought she looked exactly like she did when we had Isabelle, so I suggested we head over to the hospital. Michelle hemmed and hawed, but we headed off to the hospital. They eased just a little as soon as we got in the car, so Michelle decided we should head back, so we did. Michelle grimaced through more contractions at home, and I suggested we just head in and get checked out, but Michelle decided she should hop on the elliptical, to really get things going. She hopped on the elliptical downstairs and I took Isabelle to the playground to wait. Half an hour later, we got the call, headed home from the playground and off we went to the hospital.

While Michelle breathed through her contractions, Belle watched Sesame Street or wandered through the hospital with me until 3:30pm, when our friend Shaz picked her up. She spent the night hanging out with Shaz and Matt and their dog Zoe at our place (thanks SO much, guys!).

Around 4:00pm, the doctor broke Michelle’s water and at 5:50pm, Michelle started pushing. Elodie Reine Armstrong arrived at 6:19pm, weighing 8lbs and 7oz! We found out a little while later that Madeline Lou Gregson had arrived two hours and eighteen minutes earlier! Cousins with the same birthday!

Elodie’s name is pronounced just like “Melody,” but without the “M.” We picked it just because we loved it (and it helped that it’s French). Her middle name is pronounced like “Raina,” and she’s named for one the most beautiful places we’ve ever been, as well as for Michelle’s Norwegian heritage (through her mother’s side). Here’s a picture of Reine, Norway:

Anyway, back to the hospital. We spent a surprisingly restful night (at least compared to our first night with Isabelle!) in our room, and in the morning I picked up Belle for a quick trip to the playground, and then to the hospital to meet her new sister. We arrived around 11:00am, to find that we were cleared to head home! We introduced the sisters, then gladly headed home to find food, coffee and wine that had been left for us, courtesy of Alisa and Bryan (thanks, guys!).

Michelle folks had been planning to drive out that day, but on Thursday, as soon as they heard that Elodie was imminently arriving, they packed up the van and peeled rubber out of Langley. They spent the night in Kamloops and thus we able to arrive mid-afternoon, and instead of late that night, and the extra support was much appreciated!

As births go, everything went extremely well! We’re so grateful for the support and congratulations from all our friends and family, so thank you so much, and we can’t wait for you all to meet little Elodie!