Sophie Geraci went into the birth of her third child bracing herself for the familiar weight of expectation, literally. A 26-year-old mom of two, Sophie had already experienced the joy and strain of welcoming large babies into the world. Her first two children, Leonardo, 3, and Rosalie, 23 months, had both tipped the scales at over 8½ pounds, defying the family history of smaller newborns. Doctors had monitored her pregnancy closely, each growth scan nudging her closer to the idea that baby number three, Anastazja, would be another “giant baby.”
“At every growth scan, I was told she was measuring ahead,” Sophie recalls, her voice tinged with disbelief. “They kept preparing me for another big baby, based on my history and her measurements.”
Her husband, Maksimilian, 27, shared in that anticipation, quietly steeling himself for another round of long labors and heavy lifting. Sophie, however, carried a private anxiety. She worried about her body, about what another large birth might demand of her, and ultimately made the difficult decision to schedule a C-section.
But nothing, no scans, no predictions, no careful planning, could have prepared them for the moment Anastazja entered the world.
“I remember lying on the table, and my jaw literally dropped,” Sophie says, laughing softly now, the memory still vivid. “The doctor even held her up like Simba in The Lion King, and I could tell right away. She was tiny.”
At 5 pounds, 7 ounces, Anastazja was a stark contrast to the big, robust babies they had expected. “The first thing I said to Maks was, ‘Holy s—. She’s so small and has so much hair!’” Sophie shares. The surprise mingled with relief, wonder, and an almost overwhelming tenderness. In the days that followed, they navigated the delicate world of preemie clothing and tiny diapers, a humbling lesson in how life can defy even the most confident predictions.
The first few weeks were a careful balancing act. Sophie, still recovering from a C-section, tended to Anastazja with meticulous love. “I had to deliver early due to some complications, so her growth estimate had been around 8 pounds. Hearing her actual weight felt unbelievable,” she reflects. Every tiny milestone, the first successful feeding, the quiet coos, the slow gain of weight, was a triumph both fragile and profound.
Now, at four months old, Anastazja is thriving. “She’s a little behind because of her adjusted age, but she’s growing beautifully,” Sophie says, a gentle pride threading through her words. “She’s happy, healthy, and the sweetest and clingiest of all three of my babies.”
Looking back, Sophie sees the gift hidden in the surprise. The expectations, the anxieties, the carefully laid plans, all gave way to something far more precious: a reminder that life doesn’t always follow a script, and that sometimes, the smallest arrivals leave the largest impact.
“We’re doing really well,” Sophie says. “Recovery’s been a bit harder this time, but she’s thriving and watching her grow, I can’t imagine life any other way.”
