Happy Birthday, Natasha Monkey

Everything went according to the plan. April 22, Friday morning Jason and I got up and made our way to the hospital saying goodbye to Adam for a few hours as he was left in the more-than-capable hands of his Grandma and Grandpa B. We ended up waiting an extra hour or two since someone came in for an unscheduled c-section before me. That didn’t stop them from putting all kinds of various tubes in me on time, though as I got to sit there without the benefit of pain medication. So we sat and patiently waited and watched Jeopardy.

Eventually they took me back to the OR without Jason to get the spinal in place. It was much more mellow than last time I got wheeled in. Last time (with Adam) everyone was already in the OR scrubbing up and in a big hurry. This time everyone seemed very leisurely about the whole thing. To my surprise, getting the spinal didn’t hurt a bit. Unlike the epidural, it took effect almost immediately. And this time I felt nothing. Eventually Jason came in and within minutes, little Natasha was lifted out of me. They didn’t tell me that they were about to pull her out so when they did, her cry caught us off guard. Here she is in her first moment outside the womb (complete with a picture of the two-vessel cord, which is supposed to have three vessels).



I was very surprised to learn that she was only 6 pounds 10 ounces. She certainly felt a lot bigger on the inside. But she was (and is) completely healthy. We do have an early follow-up appointment on Friday since she was 10% below her birth weight at discharge. I have a feeling she will have made up for that given how much and how well she has been eating. Speaking of which, she is a pro at latching on. We weren’t planning on breastfeeding, but she took to it right away and it’s working out marvelously well this time so we are going to stick with it. I do reap the immediate rewards from it to, as the prolactin makes me feel like I drank a glass of red wine. Good most of the time, not always what I need at our 4 am feeding.

So far she is incredibly easy. She barely cries. Her whimpers wake me up at night. Sometimes I wake her up at night to eat and often wake her at 3-hr intervals in the day to eat. She is becoming more alert now, which is nice. I get to see her blue eyes staring back at me. She loves to look at Adam. Whenever he is near, she watches him intently. And he loves her. He’ll come home from daycare looking for her, “Tasha?” he’ll call until I show him where she is. He wasn’t terribly fond of her the first day; he cried when she cried and wasn’t happy until they left the hospital. But the day we brought her home we could barely keep him from laying on top of her to hug and kiss her. We had to put a little step next to the pack and play so he can check on her when she’s sleeping in it. Desi, as always, is the consummate good dog and has left her alone now that he has memorized her smell and given her a few good licks on the head.

Here are my babies the day we brought Nat home:


Overall the birth experience was much better this time around. A c-section is much easier when it doesn’t follow a very long, difficult labor. The babies arrive much happier, and mom is much less exhausted. My recovery is going very well. Less than one week later I am already completely mobile. I wear out easily still, but I can see improvement each day. I don’t think it could have gone any better.

Grandma B goes home tomorrow, which is sad. Adam is going to have a hard time with that. She has been tremendously helpful taking such good care of my baby boy while I recuperate. She has also taken care of my house, leaving it in much better condition than I ever have, and she is always good for support and advice. We’ll miss her being around every day! My parents arrive late Friday (the 29th). They will help out tremendously too, and Mr. Adam and my mom get along fabulously as well. I hope their arrival helps him deal with Grandma and Grandpa B being gone (he’s still asking for Grandpa even though he went home almost a week ago).

I am such a lucky momma. Not only do I have the two best kids, but I have such wonderful support. Not to mention the best DH who is the best dad in the world.