I became a papa again on Sunday.

At 1pm, Feb 15th 2009, my second child was born. My daughter, Emelia Isa Lorraine.

The two births were very different. Where Liam was 7lbs 14oz, Emelia was 8lbs 10oz. Liam's birth was long, shrouded in anxiety; the fear of the unknown, trauma marked by the eventual hospital transfer and c-section. It was Heidi's first time being admitted to a hospital, and the event left more scars than just the one on her belly.

Emelia came after only 6 hours of peaceful, natural labor, arriving in the birthing tub with me supporting Heidi (physically and psychologically) and the midwife receiving her.

The experience was incredibly healing for both of us. We were different people this time around, tempered by our experience with Liam's birth and punctuated by our time as parents.

And of course, we got a little angel out of the deal :)

For some reason, this picture reminds me of the Merrie Melodies short "I Love to Singa". I don't think it looks like her at all—it's amazing how poorly cameras capture certain moments. All the same, I did love that short :)

And here's what Liam was doing on the day of his sister's birth:

Being a ham, of course. He went down for a nap 20mins before Emelia was born. Needless to say, things had changed a bit by the time he woke up.