Say hello to Alexandra Jules Hodne aka Sasha. She was born on November 7th at 1:44AM weighing 7.2 lbs (the same exact as Nate) and 20inches long.
Labor & Delivery
The morning of Wednesday, November 6th, I was getting Nate ready for school and all of a sudden, I felt like I spilled a bottle of water in between my legs. I thought that “my water broke” things only happen in the movies or TV shows. But here I was, looking at Keith telling him “ummmm… my water just broke..”
I was due that Friday, November 8th and I was convinced she wasn’t going to come until the following week. In fact, I was on Instagram stories the night before telling you guys “yea… I’m pretty sure I’m going to be late.” Ha! When I visited my OB earlier that week, I was only 1cm dilated. Feeling relatively “normal,” and I was also 10 days late with Nate.
Well, I was definitely wrong…
However, even after my water broke, I felt pretty normal. I didn’t feel overly crampy and considering the hospital was about 10 minutes away, I wasn’t too nervous. I was told that the second birth can potentially happen a lot quicker than the first, but I had this odd sense of calm over me.
My plans for that day (because again, I was positive I was not going into labor for a few days), was to finish shooting the nursery/toddler room, a project I was working on with Amazon Home. I had a deadline and even though I knew they’d understand, it’s something I really wanted to wrap up before bringing a new baby home. Keith took Nate to school, I text messaged my mom that I was pretty sure the baby was coming and after, I proceeded with photographing the nursery. Once I was done, I took a quick shower, washed my hair, shaved, used Goop Exfoliating Instant Facial (in the shower), applied a heavy application of Augustinus Bader Rich Cream and threw my laptop into my hospital bag.
Some might call me crazy, but 1.5 hours later, we were on our way to the hospital.
Once we got there, we were informed that I was the 10th person to arrive in labor and there would be a bit of a wait. We waited in the waiting room for over 2.5 hours. I turned to Keith and said “well, it’s a good thing we didn’t rush in”. While we waited, I edited photos and answered a few work emails. Who knew that labor would make me so productive?!
Eventually, they confirmed (after checking me) that I was in fact, in labor and we were escorted to a private room. Being that I was still only 2cm dilated, my doctor suggested getting pitocin to help the process along. I also got an epidural once the cramps started becoming unbearable. After a few hours of labor and about 12 minutes of pushing, she was born at 1:44AM. Considering my first labor was over 30 hours, this one was significantly easier. As soon as I saw her, I could not believe that after 40 weeks of carrying her, she was finally here. It’s true what they say, you don’t think you could love another child as much as your first. But just like that, you do. It’s such an incredible thing.
Meaning of Her Name:
Alexandra Jules Hodne
I always wanted a name that had some sort of connection to my Russian roots. After going through a list of possible contenders and not being able to make a decision for months, we finally decided that Alexandra was our favorite. As I’ve mentioned in the past on Instagram, in Russia and many Eastern European countries, one of the unisex short names for Alexandra and Alexander is Sasha. I’ve always loved unisex names on girls and as soon as we said it out loud, it was one of the first names we both agreed on. As much as I love the name Alexandra, I love Sasha even more. I also love how “Nate & Sasha” rolls off the tongue.
For her middle name, we went with Jules.
Jules was the first name of Keith’s grandfather to whom he was super close with. In addition, Nate’s middle name is Jacob, which was my grandfathers name, so it just felt right.
Thank you all for following along on this new chapter in our lives. I know I’ve been sharing a lot of baby and motherhood content over the last few months. But right now, that’s kind of what’s happening in my life. I also know that many of you are curious on how Nate has been handling the transition and what I packed in my hospital bag. I’ll be sharing those posts soon.
In the meantime, if you’re interested, here were some of my favorite pregnancy essentials.
Once things calm down and I feel good, I’m really looking forward to getting back into outfit posts and fashion related topics! If the motherhood content is not something you find interesting, bear with me! There’s other content that’s coming.
xoxo,
Helena
37 comments
Latoya
Don’t apologize for all the mommy posts!!! We love them! Congrats on the newest addition to your family.
November 14, 2019Barbara
All the best for you! So happy to see your family growing. Following you since years. And actually I’m a bit jealous that you went with a second one. I’m still not sure if we will have a second one once.
November 14, 2019Glori
Gorgeous ! Congrats!!!
November 14, 2019mm
Congratulations!!!
November 14, 2019Elisa
I am not a mother and I LOVE this content! So happy for you, Sasha is beautiful and I loved your instagram post of Nate and her! You look amazing and I hope you feel as good as you look. All the blessings to all of you!
November 14, 2019Janine
Aww how precious, congrats Helena!
November 14, 2019xx Janine
https://walkinmysneaks.blogspot.com
KIMBERLY BROWNE
Congrats to you both! I was convinced the name would be “Anastasia” 🙂 She’s beautiful!
November 14, 2019Emilia Dobrydney
Congratulations—she is beautiful 😍 Your posts are relatable and current and most of all feel fresh and honest! Keep doing what you’re doing as you do it well! All the love ❤️
November 14, 2019Kerrie
Congratulations Helena! I’m so pleased to see your beautiful new baby and so glad she arrived safely. Take it easy Helena and don’t overdo it! Enjoy these early moments with Nate and Sasha, before you know it she will be crawling about and you’ll wonder where the time has gone. Second babies grow up so quickly! I’m a long term follower of your blog and genuinely so pleased to see how your life is unfolding. Don’t ever change your content Helena, I’ve said it before but I love how your blog is evolving to accommodate your family life. Congratulations & well done Helena x x x
November 15, 2019Angela
Congrats!!!😍😍😍 I love the names! And I love all the mommy posts please keep them coming! Wishing you a speedy recovery ❤
November 14, 2019AnabeLa
Congratulations! Love the name! Don’t apologize. My baby is 14 but I still enjoy your content!!
November 14, 2019Wendy
Congratulations to you all! She is beautiful and the name is so special. I am a mom of grown up women and have been out of the baby routine for a long time so to be honest I thought her name was Ollie 😂!!
November 14, 2019Emme
Congratulations to you & Keith! She is perfect & really resembles Nate so much- enjoy every moment & post all the mommy/baby content-it’s informative and as always, honest- all the best
November 14, 2019Alicia MOORE
Bright blessings to all of you! She is beautiful!
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November 15, 2019Mishka
I’m 24 and nowhere near being mom but I enjoy these posts as much as the other content. You don’t need to apologise.
November 15, 2019Mireia
Congrats!!! Too lovely!
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Jessie
Like the mommy posts but really miss your fashion/skincare posts because you are the Queen!
November 15, 2019saya buzz
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April 27, 2020Kate Lately
She is perfection, Congratulations mama! Sasha is such a beautiful little doll and I can’t wait to see more of her!
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Jeannine maher
Congratulations on the birth of Sasha!
November 16, 2019She is beautiful & Nate looks like a doting big brother!
ANNI
Congrats to you all!
November 16, 2019I love the mom+baby content keep it coming! Not even close to being a mom myself though.
Stephanie
I’m so happy for you and your family! She looks like perfection😍. I am 29 and my bf is 31, though babies aren’t in the near future for us, we enjoy your content so much. It’s raw and genuine to what family life is. We’re also in BK so it’s nice to be able to relate so much. I appreciate all of the family updates, please keep them coming!
November 16, 2019Nicole Sioui
Congratulations on your sweet baby girl! Although, it’s been a while since my children have fled the nest; your content still is relevant! Yes, I enjoy your posts for the outfits, skin care etc. but knowing more about the person behind the blog creates a connection. A while back, I took a chance and messaged you about a red Sephora lipstick you were liking and that I wanted to try; I was in the in the store looking for it. I thought it unlikely that I would get a response and was about to leave the store – but I did!! I immediately thought, WOW, Helena is devoted to her followers!! Thanks again for getting back to me!
November 16, 2019telma
lovely:)
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November 17, 2019Brittany Lee Sampson
What a sweet name and what so glad she is healthy and everyone seems to be doing so well with the cute new addition!
You enjoy this time and these days and do not rush back! We (your readers) will be here when you get back!
Love seeing the mini updates on Instagram Storeis!! 🙂
Xoxo
November 18, 2019Brittany
Mia
She’s beautiful
November 19, 2019Nancy
Congratulations on this beautiful little girl!
November 20, 2019Ifti Ahmed
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November 20, 2019Kat
Congratulations! What a beautiful name. You can tell she already had your and Nate’s eyes 😊
November 20, 2019Barbara
Oh, Congratulations to you all! Thank you for sharing! Such Wonderful, Happy News! Beautiful name and Beautiful pics! Welcome, Sasha!
November 21, 2019Jenna Luc
Congratulations!
November 21, 2019Anshul Sharma
Congratulations to you and your family! 🙂
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October 28, 2020