New Arrival: Iron Otto Hills!

Hello, everyone! It's been too long since we've posted,
but we've been a little busy in the Hills household. As
you all know, we've been expecting Hills boy #2 with a
c-section scheduled for September 1. Well, he had a
different schedule in mind!

Tam's mom arrived on August 28--in plenty of time for
the birth. Tam's twin sis Tracy booked a flight to arrive
on August 30, which should have been plenty early as
well. But that morning, Tam started having contractions
and was told to come on in. We waited until Tracy arrived
before making our way to the hospital. Here are a couple
shots we took just before leaving the house.


We then went into triage at the hospital, and were told
we'd be staying and having our baby that afternoon. Here
we all are, suited up appropriately for the OR. That's
Tam's mom on the far right.


Shortly after entering the OR, Iron Otto Hills burst
into the world with a strong cry. Weighing in at
7lb, 14 oz and measuring 20 1/4" long, Iron was
quickly examined in the OR by a team of doctors to
determine whether he had any congenital medical issues.
With Benton's health history and some concerns doctors
had with Iron while he was in utero, we were very
hopeful but scared. Lo and behold, Iron was deemed
a healthy baby boy ready to tackle the world!




Here Iron is getting his first bath in the hospital.
As you can see, he wasn't too happy and was trying
to find a happy place during the dousing.


Then he was placed on Mama's chest for some
skin snuggle time.


More snuggle time...


Then Iron's other grandma (Dennis' mom) got to hold
the little bundle of joy.


Iron's already a chick magnet...look at how
enamored Reese is with him!


Even Uncle Dave Hills sported some smiles
while holding Iron!


Grandma Wedra (Tam's mom) loves cuddling
her seventh grandson.


But what we love witnessing most of all is big
brother Benton's reaction to his new "toy." Here's
Iron trying to see if he can get milk out of Benton's
nose!


And here are the two boys the night Iron came
home from the hospital.


Although we were worried Benton might not
like to hear Iron's cries, Benton actually seems
amused by them!


We worked extra hard this week to make sure
Benton knows he's loved more than he can
comprehend. Here Grandma Wedra and Benton
are playing mouth tug-of-war with Cookie Monster.


And here's Benton having a rip roarin' laughable
moment with Aunt Deeky.


Meanwhile, baby Iron is enjoying a life of eating
and sleeping. Mom feels like it's mostly eating, but
the camera seems to capture just the sleeping...
like these precious shots.


Thank you all for your love, prayers and support while
we anxiously awaited Iron's arrival. We can't wait for
each of you to meet him, and to fall in love with him as
much as we have. Until then, or at least until we post
something new, here's one last photo for you...