Jaundice

Over the past week Jude has been through quite a bit with his jaundice - I feel as thought I keep mentioning it, but haven't really given a run down of what exactly it means to us.

When we were discharged on Thursday last week he was given a biliblanket:

Basically this machine is plugged into the wall and the hose that attaches to the glowing part (as seen above) goes on Jude's back. The light works to get rid of the biliruben.

Jude was on the blanket Thursday night through Sunday. Each of those days we had a visiting nurse come out to our house to test Jude's biliruben levels by doing a heal prick. For the heal prick, they'd put a small slit in the heal of his foot and use the blood to fill a small tube to test. The nurse would then deliver the blood to the lab for testing and we'd get a call back later that night with the results.

We were told on Sunday his levels were low enough to come off the blanket, but that he need one last heal prick to make sure his numbers are still going down. When we went in on Monday to the lab for his heal prick, we received a phone call that night telling us that his numbers were slightly elevated and he needed to go back on the blanket. bummer.

Not that it was my fault, but I felt like kicking myself. I had thought originally when they called Sunday that maybe I should just keep him on his biliblanket until we get the results back from Monday's prick. It wouldn't hurt him and could only help. However, being excited to be able to move away from the wall I took him off per the doctor's orders. I kept thinking if I had stuck with my gut instinct it would have been over for sure on Monday morning.

Either way, he went back on Monday night and we went back in on Tuesday morning to the lab for another heal prick. It ended up working in our favor though because Jude was exactly 7 days old and was able to get his follow up newborn evaluation (this typically needs to be done within 7-28 days after birth). The evaluation needed to be done at the same lab at the heal prick and they needed to collect blood, so we got it all done at once.

Monday night I got a call around 5:30 from the doctor's office. I was on the phone at the time with our insurance company, so thought I'd just call them right back. Seconds after getting off the phone I called the office back and they were closed. They had left a message, but all it said was they were calling with the bili-levels. So I needed to call back the next morning.

Fast forward to about 9:30 last night. We were keeping him on the blanket but were curious to know what the results were. For some reason I picked up my phone and I had two missed calls even though I hadn't heard it ring. One was from the doctor's office at like 7:30pm. The message again was very vague "we're calling with Jude's bili-levels, they are fine, please call the office in the morning". Now I thought, define "fine". Does fine mean he can come off? Stay on but he hadn't gotten worse? The numbers had gone up, but still were not in dangerous territory?

Either way we kept him on through the night and called them first thing this morning.

Fine means: he's done with the bili-blanket, he's done with the heal pricks and the rental company can come pick up their machine. This is much more awesome news than Sunday because that means it's officially over, none of this "we'll still need to test him, but he should be ok" bull crap.

In addition to it being GREAT news in terms of Jude's health and our sanity as new parents, it's also great news because we got a call from the rental company yesterday telling us that insurance typically only covers the machine for so many days and we had reached that limit (they could submit an extension request but apparently they're typically refused). They were letting us know that any time we needed the machine past yesterday, would be coming out of our pocket. Obviously we'd do anything to keep him healthy no matter what the cost, but it was still unsettling not knowing when it would be over.

However, I called them first thing this morning that the lady I spoke to said "so you were done with the machine last night, right?" I said "well, yeah - the doctor called last night". Then she basically told me she'd put it down as being completed last night so that we wouldn't have to cover any of it! All in all some great news this morning!

Jude's test results (I'm not exactly sure what the numbers 'mean' but I know they're on a scale and depending on how many days old he is the tolerance level for the numbers goes up - so a baby who's a few days old can tolerate higher numbers than one JUST born - if that makes sense. Also, we were told if his numbers were too high he'd have to be hospitalized - but once they went below 12 he was off the machine):

Wednesday May 6th: 4.9

Thursday May 7th: 8.9

Friday May 8th: 13.1

Saturday May 9th: 13.8

Sunday May 10th: 12.5

Monday May 11th: 13.1

I didn't get yesterday's number, but it was below the 12 mark.

This is all wrapping up at JUST the right time, because tomorrow we go to see the pediatric urologist for his hypospadias. Apparently this will only be a consultation and he won't be treated for it until about 6 months - but it'll be nice to not have to focus on TWO issues at once.

Now for some pictures...

Adorable from birth:

The nurse insisted that Ryan take a picture of the scale showing his weight (they were so sweet):

Such a PROUD daddy!

Right before the delivery (this one got out of order)

My hook up - I told Ryan it looks like the nintendo pack arm thing.

Our sleepy baby boy

The proudest Uncle in the World!

My precious little man

The new family

Daddy Ryan



The WHOLE family

The drive home was rainy. We used a pacifier for Jude for the first time when we were leaving the hospital he was screaming getting into the car seat and one of the nurses handed it to us as we were heading out for "just in case". I wasn't sure if we should go for it, but since I couldn't settle him we went for it. He slept the whole way home (well, the 10 minute drive)

We had bought him a super man onesie and Ryan was so excited to put him in it for his going home outfit. Unfortunately 0-3 month outfits just don't work for our little guy right now. He was swimming in it.


His "angry man" face
I love the little munchkin

The toy box that Uncle Bryan made for him. He and Ryan did the wood work putting it together and Bryan (and katy) painted/decorated it.

Buddy seems to be very interested in his new little brother. The pack n' play is right next to our fire place mantle. When he makes noise, Buddy likes to step up on the fireplace and peak in to check on him. Occasionally giving him kisses on the top of his head. Sometimes he'll just go over and peak in whether he's making noise or not.

My boys all tuckered out.

For Those of You Interested in My Boobs

I began breast feeding Jude shortly after he was born. I had heard that a lot of time it's very difficult and it's not uncommon for mothers to give up feeding because it's jut too much for them. I had heard from most of my family that they were "unable to produce milk" and nearly starved their children, so that added pressure scared me (come to find out it may not have been entirely true). However, I had said that I would at least attempt breast feeding to see if I could make it work for me/us.

Leading up to Jude's delivery I tried to prepare in any way I could. Everything from classes and books to nursing tops, breast pumps and nipple cream. I felt confident that I was prepared to do this.

Sitting in the delivery room with Jude laying on my chest I knew that feeding him as soon as possible was the best thing for the two of us. However, no matter how much preparing I had done, I just sat there dumbfounded and unsure of what to do. The nurse was running in every direction and I just needed a little reassurance that what I was doing was right. I stopped her at one point and she had no problem taking a few moments to help the two of us. He latched on fairly quickly (his mouth was wide open from screaming about being in this strange new place) and we did a little brief feeding. I instantly calmed down and thought that it wasn't going to be bad at all!

Later on, back in our recovery room we tried as regularly as we needed to and for the most part he seemed to be getting it. Having people come in and out for visits made it difficult to nurse him because at the time I just wasn't comfortable telling everyone to leave, but I wasn't about to whip my boobies out in front of everyone either. It didn't take long for me to lay out the "Jude needs to eat" warning to clear the room for a little while (we both needed to concentrate). I never met with a lactation consultant and the nurses answered any questions I had, but for the most part it was Ryan and Jude and I working together to make it happen. One nurse in particular tried to convince me that "there's no such thing as nipple confusion" so if I was worried about how much he was peeing I should just give him a bottle because he'd eventually catch on. Then she proceeded to cover my boob in formula to get him to latch on. I was not a happy camper (see: first hospital post about nurse I didn't think too highly of). After that, asking her in particular for help just wasn't going to happen.

Shortly after she left, he seemed to get the whole process and began pooing and peeing regularly (or at least on par with the day 1, 2, 3, 4 etc expectations). Needless to say this made for a happy mommy and I was able to completely relax about the whole thing and feed him on demand. This isn't to say it was simple, but not stressing out about the process and knowing he was healthy was enough to make me keep going.

By the time we were coming home, I feel that we had a pretty good system. We started tracking his wet/dirty diapers on our own and were making sure he was well hydrated (wet mouth and color-less pees). I never felt that engorged and very uncomfortable feeling everyone talks about, but my milk has arrived (confirmed by the jaundice nurses) and he's eating like a champ.

There was one time (for like 4 hours) where he would scream when I tried to put him on for a feeding (we're talking high pitched losing your voice type of screams). We had received some mixed advice about how often/long he should eat and after talking it through it seemed he just wasn't hungry and force feeding just wasn't something he was up for.

Once we relaxed a little and let him eat when he wanted (typically it's every 2 hours for about 15 minutes on one side - maybe a second helping on the other - sometimes a little more than 2 hours apart - even approaching 4 hours here and there) it got much better and we're becoming regular old pros. He seems super content and the nurses have said that he's putting on weight which is always good!

Within the next few days I plan to bust out my breast pump and try pumping a little here and there to get a little freezer stash going for random feedings for dad and just in case we aren't able to pull out a boob. It should be exciting.

The First Few Days at Home...

Coming home from the hospital, Ryan and I were excited to adjust into some sort of routine. We were ready to be out of the hospital room and eager for Buddy to meet Jude and "show him" (as if he understood) all the preparing we'd done around the house for him.

Walking in the door for the first time we needed to get Buddy used to the idea that there was a new baby. So we started by taking Buddy outside on his leash. Ryan then took a blanket outside with him to have Buddy sniff (he had no real interest in the blanket). Meanwhile I took Jude inside. When Ryan led Buddy into the house he kept him on his leash and had Buddy sniff Jude while we were holding him.

At first Buddy was very interested in the little addition. When Jude cried he would always perk his head up and even make little crying noises himself to either let us know he was crying or to try and get the same attention (who knows). It didn't take very long though for him to lose interest. Especially when we were waking up in my middle of the night to take care of him (Buddy likes his beauty sleep). However, we have the pack n' play set up near the fireplace and Buddy regularly hops up on the little step in front and pokes his head into the bassinet-type area to see what's going on. Usually he'll only take a quick peak, but if Jude's moving around he'll lick the top of his head. It's adorable.

Other than Buddy the adjustment home has been going smoothly. Perhaps it's just the jaundice keeping Jude asleep most of the day that's making a 'normal' life possible, but as of right now I'm wondering what exactly people have been warning me about for months. I've had no problem cooking meals, cleaning the house and keeping up on the laundry.

Nights have been fine for the most part. Jude typically wakes up every 2-3 hours for a feeding, but other than that stays pretty content under his glow light. When we do seem to miss more sleep than usual (when Jude thinks it's day time, but it's in fact night) we make up for it the following morning, taking a nap after his early morning feeding. So far I feel like I'm functioning very well. Right now Ryan and I have agreement that I wake up with Jude no matter what when it's time for a feeding (Ryan usually tries to wake up, but is fairly unsuccessful). In the event that he wakes up in between feeding he's all Ryan. I'm convinced I have the short end of the stick - but I guess that comes with the boobies.

Tomorrow Ryan goes back to work. It'll be a double whammy with Lowes at night, so I think that will be the true test of how well this all is REALLY going for me/us.

Hospital Adventures

Our stay at the Christiana Hospital was exceptional. Ryan (who has been nothing short of an amazing father from the second Jude was born - helping me in any way he can, and just glowing from excitement) just kept commenting that if you were to have a child, CCHS is THE place to do it.

All of the recovery rooms are single patient rooms. Fathers have their own bed for rooming in and your child stays with you the entire time (no nursery - except for infant ICU). The nurses for the most part were all AMAZING and extremely attentive as well (there was one in particular who I wasn't too fond of, but even she wasn't terrible).

The First Night:

After being ushered to our room somewhere around 9 or 9:30pm it was a pretty big adjustment. We had come from the delivery room where everything was pretty much taken care of and routine to our room where it was up to us to care for Jude and call the nurses when necessary.

We needed to rest after a long day, but of course we were still wide awake from all the excitement. Even though it was past visiting hours Barbie and Meghan got to come up to visit for a little bit and it was nice to be able to sit down and talk and just mellow out a little. After they left we of course tried to get some sleep but every little noise or sound Jude made had us wide awake - even though for the most part he was sound asleep.

In addition to his little noises, around 1:00 in the morning it was time for Jude's 6 hour check up. At 1:00am we were being shown how to care for Jude - from taking care of his little cord to giving him a bath. He and I both had our vitals checked and I had some blood work done. Not too long after it was time for my Rogham shot (ugh! again!). We got a little sleep but before we knew it the sun was on it's way up and the nurses were bustling again.

Full Day #1:

Early the next morning it was time to get things rolling with all the procedures for Jude. He needed his first pediatric check up and his circumcision. In addition I had my morning visit from my doctor making sure I was getting by OK. The pediatrician ended up coming while I was in the shower, so Ryan got to take care of that. He was told that Jude was good to go but that they were going to test him for jaundice because of my/his blood type mix.

When Jude was taken away for his circumcision I felt terrible for the poor little man. Come to find out when he was brought back, the poor little guy wasn't even done. He has a hypospadias which basically is an irregular urethra opening which needs extra attention in the next few months. As a result they started the incision, saw the problem and had to stitch him back up. I felt terrible. But he seems fine and the stitches should heal without a problem. Unfortunately we'll have to take him to a pediatric urologist later on to get it treated further.

In addition, the jaundice test came back that he had slightly elevated levels of bilirubin which meant extra monitoring for jaundice. We were off to a great start!

All in all though he's a healthy adorable, amazing baby boy!

He and I spend the rest of the day sitting around the hospital room, taking visitors and Ryan ran a couple of errands and went home to shower and tend to Buddy.

Later when it came time to sleep, Jude had been sleeping all day so we were afraid he'd be up the whole night. We weren't too far off base. For the most part he was asleep, but wouldn't stay asleep in his bassinet very well. Which means that I was up most of the night holding him close to my chest to keep him content.

Day #2 - Getting Ready to Go Home:

First this Thursday morning I was very ready to get out of the hospital. I woke up bright and early and got showered and dressed to leave. Unfortunately we found out that his bilirubin levels came back higher than they should be and he would need to be sent home with a biliblanket. This meant we had to wait around a few hours for the delivery man to bring it through. We hung out around the room trying to keep ourselves occupied. Ryan carried all of our gifts and belongings outside and we were just waiting for the blanket. Once it came on home we went!

My Cinco de Mayo

Perhaps I should start this LONG blog somewhere around the end of May 4th. Laying in bed that night I of course had a million thoughts running through my head. I kept telling myself that I HAD to get some sleep, but it was much easier said than done.

The Night Before:

As I mentioned earlier, I was scared of delivery. Thinking about everything that was ahead of us the next day I started to get nervous. I had no idea what to expect in terms of delivery and no matter how excited I was to finally see him, I was scared. Really scared. I will be completely honest and tell you that I sat in bed and cried (not just cried, but big old baby tears); telling Ryan "I can't do this! I don't want to do this anymore!". I was not afraid of having a child, but of delivering a child. Being the logical person he is, Ryan reminded me that he has to come out SOME how at this point. Needless to say I was awake on and off all night and into the morning.

The Waiting Game:

We were expecting a call somewhere between 4am and 8am. We both slept until about 6am with the phone by our side. At that time we woke up and showered trying to make the morning as "routine" as we could. By 8 o'clock we had gotten a couple of calls from the family and friends asking for updates and we told them what we knew: nothing. At 8 o'clock, Ryan asked me if we thought we should call the doctor's office. I thought they had told me to wait to call their office until 9 o'clock and I was right, even at 8:20 the office was still closed so the waiting continued. Around 8:30 though we got a phone call from my doctor's office apologizing that they hadn't called yet but there were no open beds for patients being induced. I guess they need to keep so many available for mothers going into labor naturally and those with emergencies. Talk about disappointing!

I instantly thought they'd try to reschedule for the next day, but was surprised to find out that my doctor (Dr. Larkin) was working some insanely long shift (she told Ryan exactly how many hours and I was amazed) and would be there through the night and into tomorrow morning and so they would bring me in as soon as they had a bed available. They estimated that it'd be early afternoon sometime and that I should try to be as available as possible when they call. They also let me know that other than 2 women who were being induced for medical reasons, I was their first 'normal' induction on the list (sorry to any women out there who thought they'd get their Cinco de Mayo baby and were put on hold!) which was exciting that I wasn't just waiting to get through some long list of women for my chance.

Being that sitting around the house all morning seemed to be an impossible feat considering what was ahead of us we decided we'd try to run a few errands and get some breakfast at Bob Evan's. Since we were expecting to be delivering a child though, we didn't have any pressing things to do. I probably 'shouldn't' have been eating, but we didn't know when I was going in, which also meant we didn't know when I'd be able to eat again. As we finished paying and got in the car my phone rang and it was CCHS (the hospital) letting us know that there was a bed available and they'd like me there as soon as possible! EeK!

I remember the way they brought it up was like "do you think you can make it here in 15 minutes?" Almost like they expected us to be out of town or something. OF COURSE WE CAN MAKE IT THERE IN 15 MINUTES!

We ran home, grabbed the last of our stuff that wasn't already in the car and were on our way. My heart was beating about a million miles a minute and we were both beaming from ear to ear that it was finally here. We of course called our families as we were approaching the hospital and gave them all a heads up that I was going in and should have the baby by the end of the day or early the next morning! I really wanted the actual birth to be all about Ryan and I, so we didn't call our families until we got to the hospital, so we could check in without an entourage.

Let's Get Things Going:

Walking into the hospital around 10:45-11:00ish (?) I was still nervous, but also much more excited that SOMETHING was finally happening! I expected the check in process to be mind numbing and long, but it only took a couple of minutes until we were being sent up to the LND floor! We got into our room and the nurse was there waiting for us to get started.

After stripping down, they hooked me up to about a million different machines (my IV, blood pressure, fetal monitor, contraction monitor) and my doctor came in a few moments later to check me out. As I mentioned previously I was already dilated (4cm) and effaced (75%) so she went right on in and broke my water to get things going; what a weird and awkward feeling that was - not at all painful though, just weird. I remember when I was pregnant being afraid it would break and it would be painful - it wasn't - at all. It was so strange how much my stomach shrunk down just from releasing the fluids. Almost instantly after breaking my water there were minor little contractions coming every few minutes, but nothing I couldn't handle. Up until this point, I hadn't experienced any contractions, so it was interesting and new to (again) finally be progressing.

I had told the nurse before that I didn't want the Epidural until I felt I needed it, so I just sat there and took what came. None of it was too terrible (at first I could only feel my stomach tightening - no actual pain). After a little while it got to the point where I needed to relieve the pain a little by clenching my fist or focusing on something else, and knew that before long the pain would really be coming. I had never really had any traumatizing/painful experience before, so I'm a bit of a wimp. Labor was so scary to me, because I wasn't sure how I'd be able to handle the pain. It was fun to watch how "intense" they were on the monitor to see just how well I was handling it!

We had checked in around 11:00 and were probably all hooked up and rolling by 12:00...

Things are Really Rolling Now:

A little while later the pain became much more intense - Ryan had to hold my hand through it and we anxiously watched the monitor waiting for them to be done. So, I decided now was the time to ask for some relief - knowing it'd take a little time before I could actually get something (I wish I had times for all of this, but everything was seriously happening so fast that I don't even know at what time this happened - let's assume I asked for the epidural around 3:00ish??). Before long (maybe 20 minutes later) the anesthesiologist came in and it was time for the dreaded needle everyone talks about.

I had to sit on the edge of the bed with Ryan in front of me and my back to the doctor. I didn't even look at the needle thinking that it was probably for the best to not really know what was coming - you hear so many horror stories. There was one initial prick which was basically just numbing and a second after that, which actually placed the catheter. It wasn't nearly as bad as I had expected! After placing the catheter they gave a 'test' medicine which would determine if the tube was placed in the right spot. Typically the responses they're looking for that would potentially mean it was wrong are light headed-ness, funny bone reactions in your legs, etc. Within seconds I was super light headed and felt like at any moment I could pass out. Before I knew it I could feel some warm feeling going down my back. Apparently they had hit a blood vessel and needed to re-place the catheter. At this point my back was already still numb from the first prick and the contractions were getting worse (we had to wait for a contraction to pass before they would try again), so the second needle for the new catheter was no problem at all. Almost instantly I felt relief except for a little bit of a "pang" (is that a word?) of pain on the lower right hand side of my abdomen.

I let the nurse know about the minor pain and she said that it's normal to feel a little bit of pressure. Compared to the contractions this was nothing. We trucked right on through and I believe at some point during the epidural period Ryan went down and gave everyone a heads up that I had the epidural and things were rolling. When he came back up, he had a couple of gifts from some of our family. The thing that stands out most is "raw clyde". It was a dancing/singing stuffed cactus from my brother. I remember assuming this was a gift from him for his nephew, but he said he knew how nervous I was and it was actually a gift for me: to make me smile.

Here He Comes!

Shortly after the epidural was given and we had a little time to kind of sit around and wait I started to feel the sharp pain on my lower right hand side a little stronger (we'll say it was close to 5:00 now). With each contraction I could feel it more and I knew that it wasn't a good sign. Once or twice they hit the little button that gives the epidural a boost, but I insisted that it wasn't doing anything. Ryan called my nurse in and she checked me and called the anesthesiologist back in. When she was leaving she mentioned that she'd like to do it now to make sure I get relief before I'm 10 cm - because after that, there was no time for adjusting. I'm not exactly sure what he (the epidural man) did (I know he changed a cord of some sort) but it worked fairly quickly and the pain was subsiding. Almost minutes after he left my nurse came in and asked how I was feeling. I told her it felt much better and that I should be fine now - what pain I had felt, was pretty much gone. I could still feel the pressure of the contractions though and was very in tune with my body and when contractions were coming and going.

Around that time my doctor poked her head in and checked me again. We asked her for a update so Ryan could run down and let everyone know where we stood and she said "oh, she's 10 cm - we're ready to push". Needless to say, he didn't get a chance to let everyone know!

When she said "you're ready to push" I expected to have the bed transformed into a more typical OB GYN bed with the leg supports and butcher paper, but none of that happens. Ryan stood to the left of me, the nurse to the right and my doctor sat at the end of the bed. It was not at all what you'd expect after years of movie watching. The lights were dimmed (from earlier) and it was all very relaxing.

As my doctor sat down at the end of the bed she told me that it should be a quick delivery because he was RIGHT there (she asked if I'd like to see in a mirror and I graciously declined) and ready to go - this was all around 6:15 or so. When the next contraction hit they let me know to start pushing and I got some great words of encouragement telling me that everything was going great. I remember being told I was a pushing champion and most of the time they didn't even need to tell me to push. As I said, I felt very in tune with what was going on that without anyone telling me, I just felt like I knew when to push.

In between contractions it was like a bizarre experience. We all relaxed (well, I did - the nurse and doctor - and even Ryan -were so mellow the whole time) and held random conversation. One specific conversation was Ryan and my doctor talking about Batman (Ryan was wearing one of his many batman t-shirts and the doctor was saying her son was a huge fan). It was so strange, but reassuring and soothing (if that makes sense). I was afraid of tearing or need to be cut, so at one point I even asked how things were going in that area. My doctor said I was stretching perfecting and it didn't look like I'd need any stitches. If things hadn't been so relaxing, I would have been worried something would go wrong. It just gave me that feeling that everything was going just fine and any second I'd hear my little guy crying. Boy could I have been any more correct. After only about 30-35 minutes of pushing he was out and in my arms.

No matter how aware I was that I was pregnant and we were going to be having a child it was still such a strange and exciting moment to finally get to hold him in my arms. He was perfect and so adorable. I'm sure every parent thinks that their baby is the cutest thing ever, but I'm totally convinced he is the most precious.

After-Birth Stuff

I remember watching specifically when Ryan cut the cord, but I honestly have no idea what happened 'down there' after I had him in my arms. I did very little to deliver the placenta and the doctor/nurses did all my cleaning up and such. I was so wrapped up in taking in every second of those first few minutes with my precious baby boy that any thing else going on around me was not important.

I only vaguely remember getting my couple of stitches from his premature arm. I saw the needle and thread going and asked what was happening. My doctor informed me that he had his little hand up by his ear and that cause a small tear, but nothing serious.

After they took him away with Ryan shortly after for his weight and everything else, I got disconnected from all my monitors and then Ryan being the super proud dad he is/was made a bee-line for the waiting room with camera in hand to spread the word that Jude Michael was finally here! I on the other hand sat there hold my little baby boy. Ryan wasn't there and the nurses were tending to their post-delivery duties. I remember he was crying at one point and I felt so incapable of caring for him. What should I do? What does he need? Do these women think I'm already a terrible mother? I had taken class after class at the hospital, but felt more unprepared then ever for those first few moments.

Before he was born, I felt confident I could get him latched on and sucking all on my own, but sitting there in the delivery room, I asked for help. The nurse - a young and very friendly girl dropped what she was doing to come help. I can't remember the details of it, but I know he latched on and even though I didn't feel like a professional, things no longer seemed as intimidating.

As I said, Jude was crying those newborn tears at first, but not too long after, he was wide awake and alert, taking in everything going on around him. His deep blue eyes heavy from his big day were yearning to stay awake, not wanting to miss one second of this new world.

After getting everything settled in our delivery room, we were told it'd be a little while before we'd be escorted down to our room we'd be staying in, so Ryan started to usher people up to LND a few at a time to meet Jude. That of course happened so quickly and before we knew it we were in the recovery room and completely unaware of how to take care of such a small baby.

All I wanted to do after having Jude was hold him and look into his beautiful blue eyes. Having guests come up and hold him and coo at him was wonderful, but at the same time overwhelming. We had all had a long day, so it was a bit of a relief to hear that visiting hours were over and once we went to our room, Ryan and I could really have a chance to take it all in.

Stay tuned for "Hospital Adventures" and "The First Few Days at Home"...

*** this post was edited slightly 1/21/10.