I'm a full week late, but I'd like to officially announce the birth of our second daughter, Aerin Isabel! She was born 11/1/11 — yay for the binary birthday I wanted! — at 9:20am, weighing 6.11 lbs and measuring 19.5" long.

Labor was half the time of that with Claire, lasting about 6 hours, and delivery was unbelievably easy...she was out in just three pushes! My neighbor and my cousin, whose second babies were out in 3 pushes as well, were right when they told me that your body just *remembers* what to do if you've had a vaginal delivery before.

Recovery is easier than the first time around too. I had another 2nd degree tear right where I tore with Claire (which my doctor tells me is very common) but even that pain doesn't seem as bad as the first time around.

Aerin isn't that good of a sleeper — she was only sleeping 15-30 mins at a time and only JUST started in 1-2 hour stretches — but she's making up for it by being an excellent nurser and plain adorable to boot. Needless to say, I'm exhausted, but getting tons of help from my in-laws who come over every day to help with both Aerin and Claire.

I'll be working on a birth story post in the near future, and will certainly let you guys know when I'm finished!