Monday, April 23, 2012

7 Days Old

Because we watch way too much Nick Jr over here, I can't get this song out of my head.

Every day, it's "Oh, look at me, I'm ___ days old!"

So, yes, what that means is that our newbie was born last week. Finally. At 41 weeks + 5 days gestation, Dez came into this world like gangbusters. He was just over 9lbs and 22 inches long. He's got the largest hands and feet. He's so alert and reminds me of a much older person. He's flipping adorable.

I would have to tell you the whole story for it to make sense, and I will, but suffice it to say for now that things went just a leetle away from the plan in order for him to be born.

And by a leetle, I mean "almost as much as they possibly could."

But I'm happy with the outcome.

And so very, very grateful.

It's a totally different experience, coming home with a kid that you're not staring at, waiting for any sign of heart failure because it sounds sooo horrible and you don't want to miss it by accident.

Yeah. I haven't been doing that.

I also haven't been crying non-stop, paralyzed with fear about when the other shoe was going to drop.

He's passed every screening, so all those trips back to the ENT and Audiology with a newborn haven't proven necessary.

We haven't had to brave two hours of sweat-drenched freak-out (mine) due to hearing screams like I've never heard before (hers) at the Endocrinologist's office, trying to squeeze out enough blood for a CBC. No waiting for a doctor to come find an artery. No decision to be made about whether or not to stick a needle in the baby's scalp.

No geneticist, no social worker, no staying up all night trying to figure out on my own what "EI" means and how to get connected to it.

There have been "Congratulations!" instead of "I'm sorry."

I haven't lost any friends so far that I can tell.

It's quite bizarre.

Sleep deprivation? Check.

Sibling adjustment issues? Check.

Mom guilt? Check.

Icky and painful childbirth recovery symptoms? Check.

All that delightfully boring, run-of-the-mill stuff? We're going through it.

But I can't help but think of all that I missed last time.

How scared I was then as compared to how happy I'm allowed to be now.

If you've been here, you know what I mean.

If you haven't, I appreciate that you're here and learning.

Next time, I'll share some pics or something. Today was more a day of reflection.

Again, I'm grateful. For all of it.

Without the cloudy days, you don't appreciate the sunny ones nearly as much.

13 comments:

Me said...

Congrat!! So happy he's here, and everyone is doing great.

Becca said...

:-) :-) :-)

So glad everything's so hum drum!! LOL You deserve it. How's Big Sis taking the new arrival?

Tiffany Dennis said...

That was so touching and beautifully written. Thank you

Tiffany

Me ;-) said...

Wonderful, wonderful news!! Congratulations!!

Maya said...

It's so true, every word of it. I remember when Ellie was born, thinking, OH!!! This is what people meant.
Congratulations to you and the whole family, Mama. I'm so very happy for you all! xoxo

Wendy said...

Thank you for sharing. Pam at NDSS recommended we check this out and I'm so glad she did. Baby Two is due next month and since our son was born withDS in 2010 I've often wondered about this roller coaster...

Alison Piepmeier said...

Congratulations! And let me be pushy to all random readers here and say that "Congratulations" should have been what people said the first time, too! You are so fortunate to have two beautiful, wonderful children, and I can't wait to see pictures of the new baby boy.

And of course I'm eager to hear the whole birth story whenever you're ready to blog about it.

krlr said...

*sniff*
Welcome little one.

Ayoca Freeman's Science Class said...

Awh! Congratulatioms!!! Can't wait to meet your little man! I know that he will have the best big sister!

jonashpdx said...

yay! Super congratulations! Glad there are other people out there about to experience the craziness that is having a 4+-year-old and a new baby.

Sending you wishes for much more sleep than my wife and I are currently getting six months into this grand adventure.

Not a Perfect Mom said...

babies rule! and mamas who give birth rule!
So glad everything is going peachy...can't wait for updates

Chad Eric Smith said...

:)

Tanene said...

FINALLY! I'll be looking for a family picture!