Baby Has So Much To Do

The Many Names of Cora Amelie

We've got people asking us where did we find the name 'Cora Amelie' and if it has any special meaning. If you search it up, of course there's some meaning behind the names separately, but that's not why we chose the name (Cora actually came from Greek, simply meaning 'girl'). The name was more of a compromise between me and Chris, whose style in pretty much everything is completely different, it also applies to baby names.

Chris likes classical and traditional names like Miriam, Sophie or Madeleine, while I love object names (being the hippy that I am) like Basil and Coral, or Shakespearian like Ophelia and Perdita.

I don't like biblical names (or any religiously rooted names, for that matter), trendy names (Madison or Bayley is just not my style), or classic names that have become too popular lately (Emma came to mind). Chris treaded carefully around names of people he knows and wanted to avoid names of his ex-girlfriends... all of them. Which eliminated almost 25% of our girl name pool (why he couldn't date girls with names like Bertha, Doris or Helga instead is beyond me... but then again, maybe he did).  At least he also doesn't like trendy names, so we're on common ground on that.

In the end, after long and exhaustive elimination process, we settled on Cora. Cora seemed like a perfect balance between classic and modern, it sounds vintage. It's never too popular, but well known enough not to stand out as weird. It's difficult to mispronounce whatever native tongue you speak, which is an important point since we've got extended families spread across the globe. I personally love it because it's feminine but not overly girly. The name somehow made me think of a lively little red-haired girl living in the 20's or 30's, and I love that mental image.

For middle name it was a battle between Madeleine and Amelie. They are both lovely French names that go well with between Cora and Lochner, and they don't require too much tongue (nor spell) twisting. Amelie was decided upon because Madeleine was umm, too Catholic... Besides, Madeleine is getting too popular these days.

For a boy, we initially agreed on Julian, but later realised that our child would have to attend Dutch school one day. Knowing that the Dutch pronounce 'J' as 'Y', we didn't want him growing up constantly having to correct people who call him Yulian.

We didn't dwell long on boy names because then it was found out I was having a girl. Just in case the ultrasound got it wrong, I prepared a boy's name too: Damien. I figured since Chris was definitely not the devil, the child should do just fine...

Now that Cora is born and officially named, it's a wonder how rarely we actually call her by that name. Chris calls her Schnecke ('snail' in German) or Püppi. I love calling her Peanut or Coriander.

On the days when she's super clingy and demands to be held the whole day, she is, of course, Little Klingon.

PS: No pictures for today and the next couple of days. The camera is again broken beyond repair. This time it was me. I dropped it onto the floor. That means we have to shop for a new camera since the cost of repair would actually be more expensive than the price of a new one (don't you just love that marketing logic?).

The first day with mom and dad

Today was a bit like our private “we get to know each other” day. There have been many new things I never tried before in my live and now those two blue eyes look at me full of anticipation in so many situations. Cora can of course not really speak but she can for sure talk to me either by the way she looks or even by the sound of her cries. It will take some time to decode this non verbal baby language but it is an adventure I’ve been waiting for…

I took some pictures of my girl today at her most cheerful hour, fresh diaper, some milk and a nice relieving burp later she looked like you see in the following new gallery.

Introducing Cora Amélie

It has been an incredibly exciting last 24 hours for my wife and for me. After some worrying test results from yesterday’s medical check–up were confirmed we had to return to the hospital immediately and were not given any answer as to why on the phone. Our hospital bag was of course already packed for the big day and I grabbed it as we had no idea what the doctor would have to tell us. I won't go into any medical details here but after discussing our options last night Cherrie was hospitalized the same night and I returned home on my own. Needless to say, I returned to the hospital this morning to be with Cherrie.

Today afternoon we decided that we will have to give up our wish to have a natural delivery given the medical conditions discovered the night before. Our baby had to be delivered fast and the only option left was a cesarean section.

Our beautiful and perfectly healthy daughter Cora Amélie was born at 15.53 (3.53pm) on March 29, 2006. She weights 3275 gram (7.220 lbs).

She has beautiful blue eyes and I believe she got the good looks from her mom. Strangely the hospital staff told me that they do not measure length of babies anymore as this requires stretching of the newborn baby which is now forbidden by law in the Netherlands. I have created a new photo gallery for everybody who would like to have a look by himself. You find the pictures here.

The Quiet Before The Storm

39 Weeks + 3 days today.

It is time of anticipations, we spend most of our days in fluctuating moods, one extreme is the we're-so-ready-we-can't-wait-for-this-baby-to-come-out, and the other end is the chilled and reflective so-this-is-the-last-of-our-days-as-childless-couple.

On some days we like to cuddle up on the sofa, and one of us would ask the other: "Will we miss quiet moments like this once baby is here?"

Or we would get up late on the weekend, having our weekend brunch and ask: "Do you think we'd still have next weekend by ourselves?"

Or we'd go out to eat and wonder: "Is this our last dinner date as a childless couple?"

These are special moments to us as a couple. It is an enormous change to our lives from the spontaneous and sometime decadent couple that we are into the little family life we're heading. It is scary, it is exciting, it is sobering, it is maddening. It's everything going on at the same time. I do appreciate the fact that we're allowed to share these moments just between ourselves. We chose not to share baby's (imminent) arrival just yet, not even with closest family members, because we believe these are experiences we need to go through together and learn as a family in all its privacy, intimacy and genuine emotions. Our small family is sprouting a new life whose arrival we'd like to treat with respect and gentleness. We'd like to welcome baby into our life feeling secure being among familiar voices, not overwhelmed with too much attention and celebration.

Until then, we're enjoying these last quiet days before the storm.

Friends and families, please forgive us for our self-imposed isolation. We assure you, it's only temporary.