After I gave birth to Emily (on Friday)- my doctor let me know that she wanted me to stay in the hospital until Sunday morning. Initially- I thought that was just too long of a stay but I decided to just test the waters and see how we did. I felt really good after giving birth. I was physically exhausted but I felt really really good. I was able to get out of bed pretty easily and just felt emotionally intact. Of course it helped to have my beautiful little girl beside me in bed! On Friday night, the nurses suggested that I send Emily to the nursery for a few hours so that I could get some sleep and so they could observe her and make sure her blood sugar levels were staying within normal bounds. I told them I was okay with this as long as they brought her back to me once she seemed hungry. Sure enough- two hours after they took her over to the nursery, they returned her to me because my little baby was hungry! I nursed her and we fell back to sleep together in my hospital bed. Obviously- I was really tired. I would get about thirty minutes of sleep and then someone would come in to check my vitals, then someone would come to give Emily a newborn screen, then the pediatrician came, then the OB came to check me, and so it went! While I was extremely appreciative of the wonderful care I got at Good Samaritan Hospital- I was growing increasingly tired and sleep deprived! I had to laugh early one morning when a nurse came in and woke me up to give me some Motrin. She said to me, "You know- you should sleep when your baby sleeps." Um, yeah. That was what I was doing before I got woken up!
On Day two, my Mom (who had stayed the night at my house with my kids) brought the kids to the hospital to see their Mommy, Daddy, and new baby sister! It was so wonderful to see my kids and watch them stare at Emily and try and figure her out! I particularly loved having Matthew crawl into bed with me and snuggle. I needed to see my baby boy and love on him! All three kids got the chance to hold Emily and they just instantly fell in love with her. We showed them the safest way to hold her and let them have some time with her and they enjoyed it so very much!
Michael loved holding Emily and just had this angelic smile on his face the whole time. I think he requested to hold her the most while I was in the hospital. He just could not get enough of her! I know that Michael is really sensitive and knew he would love her- but I really couldn't have predicted just how sweet he would have been with her. It really makes me feel good to know I have raised a loving and sweet big boy!
Claire was again in all her glory. She wore a girly outfit to the hospital and just couldn't wait to get her hands on Emily. Her smile was more sheepish than Michael's. She was holding her sister! It was as if she was looking at Emily and thinking to herself,
I knew you were a girl all along. No one else believed me that I knew- but I knew!!! I got such a kick out of her.
Matthew, who had a really bad cold and was feeling miserable, did his very best to get ready to hold his new sister. He was again a little hesitant but you can tell by the look on his face in this picture that he feels really special. He did a great job holding her. We debated about whether or not to have him hold her since he was feeling sick- but opted to let him have this moment with his new baby. You only live once!
All in all, the hospital stay was a good one- however, I was more than ready to leave when the time came! On the last day, my Mom again brought all of the kids to the hospital as we prepared to take Emily home with us! We had two cars there so Damien loaded up all of the flowers and miscellaneous stuff into one car. When we got the discharge paperwork- we were outta there! I got the customary first-class wheelchair ride out to the car and I thought back to my pregnancy and remembered the countless wheelchair rides I took while pregnant. This would be my last hurrah on wheels. I was so looking forward returning my wheelchair and walking again!
Putting yet another child into my car was nothing short of comical. When I turned around from the passenger seat and saw my four, YES FOUR, kids all strapped in- I had to laugh. I grabbed Damien's hand and knew we had made it. We were returning to our home, to our new life, intact as a family of six. When we got home, it was a bit overwhelming. Everything looked so different as I walked down our hallways and into our rooms with a new baby in my arms. You know, when you leave your house for the hospital to give birth, you do not come back the same person. You've gone through a major life change and along with that change comes a new life. Were there moments during the first few days that were overwhelming? Yes. Did I ask myself a few (okay a million) times,
Can I do this? Yes. I had my moments. I like to call them New Mommy Moments. It doesn't matter if you are having your first or your fourth child. Once you bring a new life into the world- you need to find your new rhythm. At night time when Emily is awake and when my eyes are burning because all I want to do is sleep- I try and remember how quickly this precious stage passes. I don't want to miss one of her sweet little yawns. I just love when she purses her lips into a little O shape like she is whistling. I love how slowly she blinks when she is looking at me or around the room. I love the feeling of her curled up on my chest. I love stroking her soft chubby cheeks and talking sweetly to her as she searches to find my face. I love this. I love her. I am so glad she is here. Welcome Home Sweet Emily. Now our family is truly complete.
After I gave birth to Emily (on Friday)- my doctor let me know that she wanted me to stay in the hospital until Sunday morning. Initially- I thought that was just too long of a stay but I decided to just test the waters and see how we did. I felt really good after giving birth. I was physically exhausted but I felt really really good. I was able to get out of bed pretty easily and just felt emotionally intact. Of course it helped to have my beautiful little girl beside me in bed! On Friday night, the nurses suggested that I send Emily to the nursery for a few hours so that I could get some sleep and so they could observe her and make sure her blood sugar levels were staying within normal bounds. I told them I was okay with this as long as they brought her back to me once she seemed hungry. Sure enough- two hours after they took her over to the nursery, they returned her to me because my little baby was hungry! I nursed her and we fell back to sleep together in my hospital bed. Obviously- I was really tired. I would get about thirty minutes of sleep and then someone would come in to check my vitals, then someone would come to give Emily a newborn screen, then the pediatrician came, then the OB came to check me, and so it went! While I was extremely appreciative of the wonderful care I got at Good Samaritan Hospital- I was growing increasingly tired and sleep deprived! I had to laugh early one morning when a nurse came in and woke me up to give me some Motrin. She said to me, "You know- you should sleep when your baby sleeps." Um, yeah. That was what I was doing before I got woken up!
On Day two, my Mom (who had stayed the night at my house with my kids) brought the kids to the hospital to see their Mommy, Daddy, and new baby sister! It was so wonderful to see my kids and watch them stare at Emily and try and figure her out! I particularly loved having Matthew crawl into bed with me and snuggle. I needed to see my baby boy and love on him! All three kids got the chance to hold Emily and they just instantly fell in love with her. We showed them the safest way to hold her and let them have some time with her and they enjoyed it so very much!
Michael loved holding Emily and just had this angelic smile on his face the whole time. I think he requested to hold her the most while I was in the hospital. He just could not get enough of her! I know that Michael is really sensitive and knew he would love her- but I really couldn't have predicted just how sweet he would have been with her. It really makes me feel good to know I have raised a loving and sweet big boy!
Claire was again in all her glory. She wore a girly outfit to the hospital and just couldn't wait to get her hands on Emily. Her smile was more sheepish than Michael's. She was holding her sister! It was as if she was looking at Emily and thinking to herself, I knew you were a girl all along. No one else believed me that I knew- but I knew!!! I got such a kick out of her.
Matthew, who had a really bad cold and was feeling miserable, did his very best to get ready to hold his new sister. He was again a little hesitant but you can tell by the look on his face in this picture that he feels really special. He did a great job holding her. We debated about whether or not to have him hold her since he was feeling sick- but opted to let him have this moment with his new baby. You only live once!
All in all, the hospital stay was a good one- however, I was more than ready to leave when the time came! On the last day, my Mom again brought all of the kids to the hospital as we prepared to take Emily home with us! We had two cars there so Damien loaded up all of the flowers and miscellaneous stuff into one car. When we got the discharge paperwork- we were outta there! I got the customary first-class wheelchair ride out to the car and I thought back to my pregnancy and remembered the countless wheelchair rides I took while pregnant. This would be my last hurrah on wheels. I was so looking forward returning my wheelchair and walking again!
Putting yet another child into my car was nothing short of comical. When I turned around from the passenger seat and saw my four, YES FOUR, kids all strapped in- I had to laugh. I grabbed Damien's hand and knew we had made it. We were returning to our home, to our new life, intact as a family of six. When we got home, it was a bit overwhelming. Everything looked so different as I walked down our hallways and into our rooms with a new baby in my arms. You know, when you leave your house for the hospital to give birth, you do not come back the same person. You've gone through a major life change and along with that change comes a new life. Were there moments during the first few days that were overwhelming? Yes. Did I ask myself a few (okay a million) times, Can I do this? Yes. I had my moments. I like to call them New Mommy Moments. It doesn't matter if you are having your first or your fourth child. Once you bring a new life into the world- you need to find your new rhythm. At night time when Emily is awake and when my eyes are burning because all I want to do is sleep- I try and remember how quickly this precious stage passes. I don't want to miss one of her sweet little yawns. I just love when she purses her lips into a little O shape like she is whistling. I love how slowly she blinks when she is looking at me or around the room. I love the feeling of her curled up on my chest. I love stroking her soft chubby cheeks and talking sweetly to her as she searches to find my face. I love this. I love her. I am so glad she is here. Welcome Home Sweet Emily. Now our family is truly complete.
1 comment:
How exciting to think that now you are complete. I guess your title now should be Four Kids That Keep Life Going.... =-)
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