It's Not a Competition

While we were in the hospital with Eli, Susie of course was stuck in bed because of her recovery. She would feed him and at some point while she was holding he would do what babies do, cry. She'd hand him to me, my instincts from soothing the triplets would kick in and I'd march and sway around the room until he fell asleep.

At one point, Susie had tried for some time to get Eli to stop crying when she finally gave up and handed him to me. After a few moments bouncing in my arms, he calmed down. I looked at Susie and I could see she was sad. I also knew why she was sad.

I said to her, "It's not a competition; it's a partnership." In less than five minutes, I got to soothe the two people in this world I love the most.




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Sadie, Meet Eli. Eli, Meet Sadie

I made the big introduction today between Eli and Sadie, and it went just as I expected: Eli couldn't have cared less if Sadie was a cat or a cucumber. Sadie sniffed Eli three times then walked off.

Sadie, though, is doing better. The cultures showed that it's a "routine" urinary tract infection, so she'll have a full two-week course of antibiotics and will be fine. She's still glum, but improving.

They Sleep

Susie is sleeping soundly, Eli is, at last, sleeping fitfully, and i'm here, waiting to wake him up for his next feeding. By the time he's fed, cleaned up, and soothed to sleep, you are basically ready to start the cycle right over again.

So this is the circle of life that all those animals were singing about.




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Correcting the Record

I keep saying that he was 8 lbs 4 oz, when in fact, as this picture proves, he was 8 lbs 7 oz.




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Eli Smith Mitton!!

He was born at 6:40 this morning, 8 lbs 4 oz. He's doing very well, and Susie was a rockstar: all natural!

More later.....



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Check this Out

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We're Off to the Hospital!

She's in a lot of pain, but she's doing great, and still moving forward.

Now it's Time!

She started having contractions at 3:30 AM, and they're still going. We're at home and will be for a while, I think.


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To the Hospital

We had to go in to the hospital tonight, and unfortunately, it wasn't an exciting trip for Susie. Instead...



For the past week or so, Sadie hadn't been herself. She was very quiet, kept to herself, and slept a lot. On two occasions, I had cereal and she couldn't have cared less. It is difficult to convey just how unusual that is. But we had been nesting for the past week--thowing out mountains of stuff, moving things around--and thought that she was upset by so many changes.

Then tonight, she peed blood on the floor. So off we went to the hospital. We need to get some tests back, but it's almost certainly a urinary tract infection, treatable with antibiotics, which we're now giving her. She'll be OK. The poor kitty is going to have some big adjustments to make very soon, so this just doesn't help.

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Almost

Time is almost out around here. In fact, last Friday we thought time really was out. We had reason to think that Susie's water was leaking, and while that turned out not to be the case, we were told in no uncertain terms that we had to go to the hospital. So we did.

The biggest thing we learned from that day was that we sure had a lot to do to get ready this baby. A lot of things happened over the weekend, but I think I can sum it all up that we took two trips to the dump, and each time the Camry was packed with things that I really do not know how we managed to accumulate them all. Purging.

So let's finish with a picture of Susie as we were about to head to the hospital. Still looking good and, as long as there is no heartburn, still looking happy.






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Santa Susie

As promised, I present Santa Susie!



That is not a bowl full of jelly.

Seriously though, Susie hosted a girls' night tonight, where she cooked for seven people. She stopped working and she's supposed to be slowing down, but....

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One Hundred Warm-Ups, and Now the Main Event

I've supposedly been preparing for eight and a half months. There were the ultrasounds, with their vague but recognizable images of noses, hands, and feet. There's the simple "lub-dub, lub-dub" running a 150 beats per minute, a steady cadence to match the pace of life when we are parents. We've gotten baby room furniture in all its stately woodenness, car seats, burp cloths, baby bottles, diapers, and two big bottles of hand sanitizer. Most peculiar of all, I can feel and watch my baby on Susie's belly, as it writhes around, seemingly in a wrestling match with someone. I don't know what's going on, but I don't like seeing a foot sticking out of my wife's stomach.

And yet...and yet, eight and a half months have passed and it still didn't feel real.

Then, I received a gift from Scott: Four books by Sandra Boynton. For those who don't know, she is the J.K. Rowling of the pre-verbal demographic. I've read her books to my nieces and nephews a hundred times. I will not forget, for example, reading "Doggies" to Alex, who I could always have laughing in stitches by the time we got to the end. Reading these books, yes, I am that good.

I looked at those books, and it was real. The baby was no longer shades of gray on a screen, rumblings in a stomach, or utilitarian devices we use to make our way in the world. I get to hold my baby on my lap, read to him, make him laugh, and answer, "I'll read it once more, but then it's time for bed."

I love my nieces and nephews, and I've loved every time I've read to them. But with the collection of Boynton books on my dresser, I can't help but think that each one of those readings to my nieces and newphews was a warm-up to the main event.


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A Tale of Two Rooms

With just over three weeks to the due date, it's time to start getting the baby's room ready. First step, totally empty out the spare bedroom of everyhing. Stick the Roomba on the room. And wait for the movers. They came today, so it's finally starting to look like a baby's bedroom.


Susie's getting comfortable in the new rocking chair. In the lower right, you can see the Roomba resting after a job well done. It's funny that the baby's room has the best furniture in the house. (For those who were part of the debate, the crib rail doesn't lower.)

Oh, one other thing. We cleared out everything in the room before the furniture came, so what did we do with all that stuff? I present our living room:


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