The Brunelle Family welcomed a baby girl to their family back in November, and they’re sharing their story this week, including the beautiful story behind Lindsey’s name, a fun alternative to a gender reveal, and a few of the many things they can’t wait to do with her as she grows.
Tell us about your family!
Hello, we are The Brunelle Family - Kris, Kealy, and Lindsey! Kris and I were born at the Glens Falls Hospital Snuggery. I graduated from Glens Falls, and Kris graduated from Hudson Falls. We left the area after high school and came back years later. We met in Glens Falls, bought a house, and got married 3 years ago. We have two dogs, Columbo and Kona, and two cats, Mya and Velcro. The newest addition to our crew is Lindsey Whiting, born November 9th, 2019. We love to travel, see new places, and eat good food!
Sharing the News
How did you share your pregnancy news with your family and friends?
Finding out about our pregnancy and sharing was both a difficult and joyous occasion. Previously, we had a miscarriage, then tried to have a child for almost 2 years and tried a month of IUI. Finally, we decided to stop “trying” and signed up to be foster parents. A month and half later, my friend told me that I was “glowing”. So, in shock, in the middle of the same night, I took a pregnancy test. I woke up Kris from the bathroom with screams of joy.
Because of our previous experience, we told our friends and family in waves, then announced it on Facebook after our 20-week ultrasound. With our parents, we gave them special gifts; my parents got books on "How to babysit a Grandma" and "How to babysit a Grandpa" by Jean Reagan. Kris’s parents received mugs that said “Recently promoted to Grandpa” and "Recently promoted to Grandma".
Did you find out the gender prior to giving birth? Any inklings as to whether it was a boy or a girl?
I didn't want to know and Kris wanted to know, so we didn't find out. Luckily the ultrasound technician listened to me and had to keep Kris from peeking. On the 20-week ultrasound, Kris thought he could tell that it was a boy. I initially thought girl, but everyone thought I was having a boy because of how I was carrying. So I wasn’t so sure!
Instead of finding out the sex, we did some betting on our baby! We had a Jack & Jill style baby shower, but the guys and gals did their own thing, except for the baby pool. It was $10 to guess the height, weight, sex, and birthday. The winner got half of the pot. Not many people guessed girl! The winner of the pot didn't even guess girl, but she came the closest with the height, weight, and birthday.
Photos courtesy of Kealy Brunelle
All about Lindsey
Lindsey Whiting Brunelle was born at 8:13pm on November 9th 2019. She weighed 8 pounds, 12 ounces and was 21.5 inches long.
How did you decide on her name?
Both her middle and first name have great meaning and significance to us.
When we got married, Kris requested that I change my last name to Brunelle. I didn’t want to, however we agreed that I could have the ultimate decision making power in naming our firstborn. Therefore, I decided the middle name would be Whiting, for my maiden name, which is also my middle name now. Our daughter gets to have her mom and dad’s family as a part of her name.
The story of her first name still makes us cry. Lindsey’s namesake was my best friend and her godmother, Lindsey Skellie, a Glens Falls alum and long time resident. I picked a few names for a boy and girl beforehand, but we weren’t sure. We both needed to see the baby. Nine days before our daughter was born, my best friend Lindsey passed away from cancer. She joked several times before her death that we should name her Lindsey if the baby was a girl... I told her the name was too popular for me to choose it. As soon as we saw that the baby was a girl, we both cried, looked at each other, and knew her name was Lindsey. It took us some time to tell our family, friends, and even the nurses, her name.
What are a few things you love about her so far?
I love that she has her own personality, even at a few months old. I also love that she's wiggly and loves to make noises since birth. Kris loves that she has not been colicky. He also loves that she is inquisitive.
What are some of your favorite things to do together?
Lindsey is already an extrovert and traveler; she loves to be out of the house seeing new places and meeting new people. I love to take her for walks up the bike path or in the mall to do errands, even if it's the just the grocery store (before the pandemic, of course). She also loves music so we rock out to music as a family. Kris likes to watch Jack Harmon videos on YouTube and learn the alphabet. He loves to cuddle her before she goes to sleep every night.
Any similarities to the two of you?
She doesn’t wake up well like Kris. She loves to babble and talk like me. She is a very busy baby, always moving even when you're holding her, which is a lot like Kris when he was a baby. She looks a lot like me but has Kris' eyes, but Kris thinks she has my eyes. She loves to eat, which is like the both of us! She already has some of my facial expressions!
On Parenthood
We’d love to hear about your favorite part (and most challenging part) of parenthood thus far.
Our favorite part of parenthood is watching Lindsey learn and change: day to day, week to week, month to month. It's crazy how quick babies change and grow!
At first the biggest challenge for me was figuring out what Lindsey needed when she cried. Everyone tells you that "you'll figure it out", but until that point, it's so difficult! Kris's biggest challenge was adjusting to infant sleep patterns!
What are you most looking forward to with the addition of Lindsey to your family?
As we said, we love to travel. We can't wait to take her new places and on new adventures with us. We went to NYC earlier this year and she loved it: all the busyness and people, so many things for her to look at. Also, Kris can't wait to show her how to do new things, like to read or work on cars.
What has being a parent taught you?
With the challenges we had becoming parents, we are blessed and happy for every single moment we have with Lindsey, even the difficult ones. It has taught us the importance of sleep and how to live on a few hours of sleep. It has also taught us to make time for each other; we try to do date nights weekly even if it's just eating dinner at home without Lindsey. Also it taught us to give yourself some grace. You're not perfect and you're going to make mistakes, and that's okay.
What is the best advice you’ve received on parenthood?
Onesies are made to be pulled off past the waist, not over the head! That made the world of difference when we experienced our first "blow out".
Creating a routine or schedule is very important; do it as early as you can. Make it work for you and your family, not how it "should look".
Don't buy just one style of pacifier or bottle. Get samples of different types of bottles and pacifiers (you can get free ones from joining baby registries at stores like Target, Walmart) because some babies, like ours, are super fussy.
Do you have any advice to share for new parents?
If you can't figure out why your child is crying, put them down. Sometimes they need alone time.
People will try to give you so much advice. It's okay not to take it! Do what works for you and your family, but is also safe for the baby. On that note, find a doctor you like, trust, and aren't afraid to ask questions, even the "silly" ones.
Just for Fun
What are some of the products that got you through the first few months?
1. A Graco swing/bouncer combo - the swing was useful when she was gassy and I needed a break from rocking them to sleep; the bouncer is very useful now because she loves the vibrations.
2. A white noise machine helps so much in the beginning and created a bedtime routine.
3. If you are breast feeding or thinking of breastfeeding, get a good pump, like Medela or Spectra, right from the beginning, because you never know when you will need it.
4. Swaddles that transition into sleepsacks - the Halo sleepsack was great because we are still using it after she needed to be swaddled.
If you could have one night out (post-pandemic) with a trusted babysitter, what would you do?
We like to go out for drinks or just cook dinner at home just for the two of us.
Congratulations Brunelle Family and welcome Lindsey!
P.S. Check out more from our New Additions series here, and if you have one to share, email us at hello@glensfallsliving.com!
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The New Additions Series is made possible by Glens Falls Hospital.
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