“A Thousand Years” (cover by Ashley Wagner, celebrating the birth of baby Esmé!)

Celebrating the birth of our daughter, Esmé, and special moments from my pregnancy with this song! Thank you so much to our friends and family for your love and support!
“A Thousand Years” by Christina Perri, with accompaniment by PianoNest:
• Christina Perri - A Th...
This song came back to my awareness when Kayla, our amazing photographer for our maternity and newborn photos (Little Lashes Photography!), played it while showing us the preview of my maternity photos. So much of the message resonated with me then, and I recorded the audio a few days after (video just a few days before Esmé was born). It became even more special when my phone somehow began playing it on repeat when I was in pain and an epidural was being administered. It was so soothing and comforting, and we played it again when I was actually about to give birth. [side note, I'd highly recommend an epidural! I was able to just enjoy delivery!]
Some of the lyrics I most felt before Esmé was born were about fear. I was uncertain about being a mother, afraid that I would miscarry or that something would go wrong, and also worried that I wouldn't love a baby or being a mom. I am so incredibly grateful that that was not the case! It truly was miraculous when our nurse put Esmé on my chest - just a feeling of so much love, and a kind like I've never felt before. I guess other parents can understand this. I certainly couldn't imagine before becoming one.
Mostly due to location, so many of the people we love and care about were not physically present during my pregnancy, and I'm not sure when they'll get to meet Esmé. I hope this video helps you feel more connected, and I hope it's not weird or too much to share some of these very personal moments publicly this way.
The opening photos with our parents are from October 7, when I had a positive pregnancy test. I took it at 2:30 am and told Chris a few minutes after. I had a suspicion, but I was still pretty stunned and not sure what the news meant for us! We couldn't keep it to ourselves and told our parents later that day (I hid the pregnancy test in a Christmas stocking for my mom, an egg carton for my dad, and a bowl of Halloween candy for Chris' parents [after washing it ;)]).
Ultrasounds are from Nov 9, Dec 5, Jan 22, Apr 8, and May 15. All of our care was through UCSD, and Esmé was born at the Hillcrest hospital. It would be impossible to say enough positive things about the care we received throughout, and especially when I was admitted for delivery. We interacted with so many different medical professionals and other staff, and in addition to being so competent and thorough, they were extremely caring and encouraging - truly cheering us on and making Esmé's birth so warm and special.
Esmé is turning 12 weeks old at the time I'm sharing this! She had her first laughs a few days ago - just amazing to experience... It's still hard to fathom what the future holds (and some aspects of it are still very scary! Parents, how do you handle some of the big decisions or things like sending your babies to school?! Glad I don't have to deal with that today!), but I'm so grateful for this time and for all of the love I feel for our little family.