1 week reflection

We have been home from the hospital for 1 week now....and this whole experience has been more challenging and more rewarding than I ever thought it could be. Bringing home a new baby is exciting and completely scary... not to mention I had major surgery to have this beautiful boy. So recovery is one thing...I can't lift anything heavier than Graham nor can I drive or do stairs...so I am limited in what I can do. Learning how to care for Graham and manage your own pain has been the challenging part. But looking back at photos of Graham at the hospital and looking at photos we just took today, the difference in him is amazing. He looks completely different...bigger, cuter, and more awesome than Brett and I ever thought. And Brett and I are learning how to do this all together...which is amazing for our relationship. I can see why having a child brings two people closer together...we get excited when we realize his cries at 3 am are because he has unwrapped himself and is cold, instead of looking at each other and going, "Now what do we do?"
I am breastfeeding...and that alone is a scary experience. You never really know how much he is getting and it feels like it takes forever to feed. At his first doctor appointment this past week, Graham had gained weight (!) and is now over 8 lbs 3 ozs!!!! This makes me super excited because breastfed babies don't get back to their birth weight until 2 weeks after they're born, and our kiddo managed to regain his lost hospital weight and gain MORE weight within a week!!!! I am making enough milk for him which makes me feel like I am doing a great job!! So this is a super rewarding part of parenthood.
Graham also recognizes Brett and I, and takes huge comfort knowing we are holding him and looking at our faces, another reward. He is sleeping better...3 hours at a time during the night! We feel like this is awesome. He did have one night where he was up from 1-5, crying the entire time. We like to think he found his voice that night, and lets keep the fingers crossed he doesn't have another one of those nights.
Brett goes back to work this week, sad, but something we knew would happen. We will miss him terribly but we will be so glad when he comes home. And not to worry, I am here at home in good hands with my fabulous in-laws, Mary and Neal. They have been a huge help with laundry, making dinner, and being super supportive. I totally appreciate them being here and supporting Brett and I. As I type this, Graham is entertaining them completely with yawning and blowing bubbles all while wearing no pants. That kid is totally a keeper. Uncle Kyle came to visit for the weekend and was smitten, just like everyone else who meets our little man. More to come on the whole delivery experience and hospital stay...looking back on that makes me laugh and cry and I can't wait to share!

Last night at the hospital

We are packing up and preparing to head home on Sunday morning. Sarah
will have to get the final all-clear from the doctors, but she has
been doing an awesome job recovering so we don't see that being an
issue. The real question left hanging out there is whether I get
pulled over on the drive home for going too slow.
We are looking forward to getting him home and getting settled.

--
Sent from my mobile device

Resting

We are resting comfortably - this includes Graham, who is peacefully sleeping. No words can explain this...

Sarah and I took a moment to look through some of the pictures from the last few days. Enjoy.







Thanks again to all of you for your kind words and wishes. We appreciate the support we've had from family and friends over the last 9 months - and especially the last few days. Cheers!

He made it!!!

Graham Matthew was born on 3/24 at 11:40 pm. He's beautiful. He
weighed in at 7 lbs. 12 ozs. And measured 20 1/4 in. long. Mom and
baby are resting together. Sarah delivered by C-Section, and was
absolutely amazing every step of the way. Thanks to everyone for their
support and prayers. Pictures to follow, so keep you eyes peeled.

--
Sent from my mobile device

Another Update

Sarah got the epidural maybe an hour or two ago. She is much more
comfortable and actually able to relax a bit. We're still 4 cm, and
hoping the petocin goes to work. True to form, Sarah qouted Darth
Vader upon getting the oxygen mask. Again, she's amazing. We just
changed rooms and hopefully we're preparing for the home stretch.

--
Sent from my mobile device

Update

Around 8:30 this morning the doctor broke Sarah's water.
She had two doses of cytotek last night, about four hours apart.
She's two cm dilated and our nurse just told us she's having small
contractions two minutes apart.
She's obviously tired and less comfortable, but hanging in there and
being very brave.

--
Sent from my mobile device

Thunder Cats Are Go - Kind Of

After a short stay in triage, we are all checked in and settled in the
birthing room. Sarah has monitors and an IV hooked up and we just
started the first step of induction. Sarah has been so brave. She's a
champ. Up next, bed time (hopefully) for the mom-to-be. Stay tuned.

--
Sent from my mobile device