Well, in case you haven't noticed, all of the posts up to this point have been written by Jason. Needless to say, I seem to have lost all sense of time and any "free time" that I have, I am in such a haze that I don't think I would be able to complete an entire sentence. I have been reading the blog updates that Jason writes and will admit that so far, he has been pretty accurate. Quick summary of the first 3 1/2 days at home: dogs - could care less; feeding - going really well, he is a Corn after all and we plan our every move from one meal to the next; sleep - getting better with each passing day.
Of course, it hasn't been all roses but I didn't expect it to. The one thing that still surprises me is how I can literally just sit and stare at him for hours and hours. I still don't think the reality has hit that he is mine and that after all the months of "feeling" him inside of me has led to this. Even when he is screaming and giving me his full out, top of his lungs (which are getting stronger every day) cry, I still feel nothing but love for him. Last night was when this moment came clear for me. I had sent Jason to take a much deserved nap in the late afternoon/early evening and Chase was napping himself. He woke from his nap, ready to eat so we fed. It wasn't long after when he was convinced he needed to eat again. I knew better since it was simply that his stomach was a little grumbly and he just needed time to "process". Normally, when he gets fussy like that, Jason will take him and try to comfort him while I leave the room. He associates me with food (shocking!) and thinks when I hold him, food will follow. Well, dad was not available last night so he was stuck with me (or as he would probably tell you if he could), I teased him while he cried and pitched a fit. Ultimately, he cried himself to the point of exhaustion and fell asleep and stayed that way for the next 2 1/2 hours! Geez, funny that mom knows best (at least in this particular case). While it was hard to have him cry, even at the peak of his fit, I still loved him and I wasn't frustrated or upset by him, just by the fact that I had to let him suffer in order to help him. That was when I had one of my first "mom moments". That notion that even though it was hard for me to do, I had to sit by and let him "hurt". I was kinda hoping to hold off on that kind of moment for a few years, not a few days.
Last night Chase and I ventured out for our first walk around the neighborhood together. Dad was napping and mom needed a change of scenery so we got the car seat and stroller out and took a little stroll. I am still trying to build up my own energy level so we didn't go far, but it was nice to get out of the house for a little bit. We are going to run some more errands today while waiting for my brother, Matt, his wife and my nephew to arrive for a visit.
Chase slept like a champ last night, at least in my opinion. After taking a 3 1/2 hour nap early in the evening, he woke for a feeding. After feeding, I took a shower and went to bed while Jason took the night shift (remember he had just taken a 4 hour nap himself and was more rested at that point than I was). I took my shower and went to bed and actually got to sleep for 2 1/2 hours before Chase needed to be fed. He fed and fell back to sleep for another 3 hours before he needed to be fed again! He woke up a little more than 1 hour later for another feeding and slept for 2 hours. He has been down for a nap right now for over 1 1/2 hours. While I feel great this morning with those decent blocks of sleep, Jason is still a bit groggy. While I thought I would be the one who would suffer from the lack of sleep, I seem to be doing a bit better than daddy is at this point. May it continue in this way for all of us!
Well, who knows when I will be able to update again but that is a glimpse of parenting from my perspective. I hope that you are enjoying reading our blog. It is fun to go back and see how things have changed from the start and will be a cool thing for Chase to have as he gets older. For now, I want him to stay a little baby who is sweet and innocent and smiles at me (no, it isn't always gas!) when he hears me talk to him. Thanks to everyone who has sent, emails, gifts, cards and thoughts of well wishes. It means a lot to both Jason and I to have so many people in our lives who care about us.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Thursday, July 17, 2008
7/17 - I've been peed on!!!
OK, it's official. He finally got me! It took him until he was 5 1/2 days old, but this afternoon while changing his diaper, he peed all over me! Ah, the good times!
7/17 - Day 6
So, the past 24 hours has been much better for all of us. We're trying to get into a pattern.
Chase has been sleeping a little better and still feeding well. He still has bouts of cluster feeding, where he feeds for shorter periods of time and more frequently. When he's doing that, he feeds about every hour to an hour and a half, from start of one feeding to start of the next feeding. That doesn't leave much time in between for Mom to get any rest. Most of the time though, he's going 2-3 hours in between feedings, which is great.
For those who don't have kids, the best way that I can explain the sleep challenge is that there are two facets to it...the quantity and the quality of sleep.
On the quantity side, it's like I've explained a few times. Between the feedings, he doesn't always sleep the entire time. He almost always needs a diaper change and usually he fusses a little too. So, he may sleep for as much as an hour or two in between feedings. If he does that, then it's a matter of how fast you can go to sleep. That's where the art of the power nap comes into play. Obviously, when you're done changing diapers and listening to him fuss, you're pretty much wide awake. So you're not going to sleep immediately. The faster that you can get to sleep, the more sleep you can obviously get.
On the quality side, it's like when you've got an early morning flight and you set your alarm for 4:30 am and all night long, you don't really sleep because your body is worried that you might oversleep, so you keep rolling over and eyeballing the clock. With a newborn, especially until you start getting used to each of his unique sounds, you wake up with each sound that he makes. It is definitely helping that he's taken to sleeping in his crib in the nursery, so we've already moved his bassinet out of the bedroom. When he was in there, we never went to sleep (you can just hear too many little grunts coming out of him to be able to sleep). Now that he's taking his naps in the nursery, we can actually get a little sleep. I typically get up and go change his diaper and get him "ready" to feed while Melissa gets ready on her end to feed him. Then I'll either bring him back to the bedroom and she'll feed him in bed, or, more often than not, she'll take him to the bonus room and feed him in there so that I can go back to sleep.
Sometimes, he goes right to sleep after feeding and sometimes he needs a little coaxing. Last night, I took him in my arms for a while after one of his feedings because he was being fussy. I got him calmed down and we both fell asleep on the couch for a good two hours. Melissa LOVED the long nap that she was able to get during that period.
We're starting to get the hang of it and develop some patterns. And we're definitely figuring out which cries mean what...is he hungry, or does he have gas or does he have a dirty diaper...it's not always obvious, but usually we can figure it out.
I do have to say, and I know I'm biased, but this kid is so freakin' cute!! Here are some more pictures from the past 48 hours.
Mom and Chase after a good feeding.
Grandpa holding Chase...I'm not sure what's up with the hoodie thing.
Mom and Chase taking a nap.
Seriously, is that not the cutest baby ever!
All wrapped up in his swaddling blanket and napping in the crib.
Rokky makes for a very comfortable pillow for Chase...note that he still could care less about the baby.
Chase has been sleeping a little better and still feeding well. He still has bouts of cluster feeding, where he feeds for shorter periods of time and more frequently. When he's doing that, he feeds about every hour to an hour and a half, from start of one feeding to start of the next feeding. That doesn't leave much time in between for Mom to get any rest. Most of the time though, he's going 2-3 hours in between feedings, which is great.
For those who don't have kids, the best way that I can explain the sleep challenge is that there are two facets to it...the quantity and the quality of sleep.
On the quantity side, it's like I've explained a few times. Between the feedings, he doesn't always sleep the entire time. He almost always needs a diaper change and usually he fusses a little too. So, he may sleep for as much as an hour or two in between feedings. If he does that, then it's a matter of how fast you can go to sleep. That's where the art of the power nap comes into play. Obviously, when you're done changing diapers and listening to him fuss, you're pretty much wide awake. So you're not going to sleep immediately. The faster that you can get to sleep, the more sleep you can obviously get.
On the quality side, it's like when you've got an early morning flight and you set your alarm for 4:30 am and all night long, you don't really sleep because your body is worried that you might oversleep, so you keep rolling over and eyeballing the clock. With a newborn, especially until you start getting used to each of his unique sounds, you wake up with each sound that he makes. It is definitely helping that he's taken to sleeping in his crib in the nursery, so we've already moved his bassinet out of the bedroom. When he was in there, we never went to sleep (you can just hear too many little grunts coming out of him to be able to sleep). Now that he's taking his naps in the nursery, we can actually get a little sleep. I typically get up and go change his diaper and get him "ready" to feed while Melissa gets ready on her end to feed him. Then I'll either bring him back to the bedroom and she'll feed him in bed, or, more often than not, she'll take him to the bonus room and feed him in there so that I can go back to sleep.
Sometimes, he goes right to sleep after feeding and sometimes he needs a little coaxing. Last night, I took him in my arms for a while after one of his feedings because he was being fussy. I got him calmed down and we both fell asleep on the couch for a good two hours. Melissa LOVED the long nap that she was able to get during that period.
We're starting to get the hang of it and develop some patterns. And we're definitely figuring out which cries mean what...is he hungry, or does he have gas or does he have a dirty diaper...it's not always obvious, but usually we can figure it out.
I do have to say, and I know I'm biased, but this kid is so freakin' cute!! Here are some more pictures from the past 48 hours.
Mom and Chase after a good feeding.
Grandpa holding Chase...I'm not sure what's up with the hoodie thing.
Mom and Chase taking a nap.
Seriously, is that not the cutest baby ever!
All wrapped up in his swaddling blanket and napping in the crib.
Rokky makes for a very comfortable pillow for Chase...note that he still could care less about the baby.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
7/16 - Day 5
Last night was a rough night. That makes two nights in a row. Chase likes to cry from 4 am - 6 am for no apparent reason at all. Of course, by 4 am, Melissa is exhausted from feeding him and being up with him, so I get up to deal with him from 4:00 - 6:00. I love the little guy, but I'm not very fond of his schedule right now! :)
Melissa's parents left this morning, so now we're officially on our own. Jenn Mountjoy, one of Melissa's friends from Savannah, was in town for business and stopped by last night for dinner.
That is Jenn holding Chase!
It was good to see Jenn and the timing worked out great.
We've been talking to Popi and Nana and Marc & Sabrina on Skype a lot. They all think that Chase does nothing but sleep. I keep telling them that when he's screaming and crying wanted to eat or with a poppy diaper, it's not that easy for me to dial them up on Skype and have a conversation. The only time that I can Skype them is when he's resting and being quiet, so that's about all they ever see. If they could have seen him late last night, they would understand that he's not the quiet little angel that they always see! He truly is a bundle of joy though, even with the rough times.
At this point we're trying to get into a routine and start back to regular life. Melissa went for a walk yesterday with her Mom and I went for a run around the neighborhood. We just needed to get out and get some fresh air. The back screened in porch has been nice too. I think today we might put him in the stroller and take a very brief walk around the neighborhood.
I've got some more pictures of him that I'll upload to the blog soon. Great one a few minutes ago of him right after he fed. He was in "milk heaven"!! Such a cute little guy when he's relaxed and calm.
More to come later...
Melissa's parents left this morning, so now we're officially on our own. Jenn Mountjoy, one of Melissa's friends from Savannah, was in town for business and stopped by last night for dinner.
That is Jenn holding Chase!It was good to see Jenn and the timing worked out great.
We've been talking to Popi and Nana and Marc & Sabrina on Skype a lot. They all think that Chase does nothing but sleep. I keep telling them that when he's screaming and crying wanted to eat or with a poppy diaper, it's not that easy for me to dial them up on Skype and have a conversation. The only time that I can Skype them is when he's resting and being quiet, so that's about all they ever see. If they could have seen him late last night, they would understand that he's not the quiet little angel that they always see! He truly is a bundle of joy though, even with the rough times.
At this point we're trying to get into a routine and start back to regular life. Melissa went for a walk yesterday with her Mom and I went for a run around the neighborhood. We just needed to get out and get some fresh air. The back screened in porch has been nice too. I think today we might put him in the stroller and take a very brief walk around the neighborhood.
I've got some more pictures of him that I'll upload to the blog soon. Great one a few minutes ago of him right after he fed. He was in "milk heaven"!! Such a cute little guy when he's relaxed and calm.
More to come later...
Monday, July 14, 2008
7/14 - Day 3
Another fantastic day with Chase in our lives!
Chase and Melissa are both continuing to do great. Chase has been eating and sleeping well.
All three of us slept much better last night...at least until late last night. Around 4 am, they came in to take Chase to do the hearing test. He was supposed to be gone about 15 minutes. Turns out that when they changed his diaper, his circumcision wound had started bleeding and they had to keep him back in the nursery for a while. He is fine, but it was a little scary for us.
He slept for a while when he came back to the room (apparently he was exhausted from the turmoil). He finally fed and actually fed a few more times through the morning. Finally, about noon, we were discharged to come home.
Chase looked so tiny in the car seat. It was raining like crazy when we got home. Introducing Chase to his new home was yet another moment that I will never forget. We brought him in and set the entire car seat, with Chase in it, on the kitchen counter. Melissa's parents had already put the dogs outside, so Melissa and I went out to say hi to them. It was good to see them and they were obviously excited to see us, especially Melissa. We brought them in one by one and they really weren't interested in Chase. They sniffed him a few times, but that's about it.
Since we've been home, he has fed several times and all is still well there. Melissa and I both slept a little in the afternoon. After eating some lunch and unpacking some bags, we really settled in. A few hot showers this evening made us feel like entirely new people. As I sit here writing this update, Chase is laying on my lap, sound asleep. Melissa is finally getting some really welcome rest in her own bed. God bless her, she's a fantastic mother and I'm lucky to be with her!
I've always heard people say that it's weird to love something so much, even though you're just getting to know them. I understand what that's like now. I can just look at him forever and love him so much!
Here are some pics from Days 2 & 3.
Nana is such a proud Grandma!
This was my going home outfit!
Mom & Chase getting wheeled out of the hospital.
Captain wasn't sure exactly what to think of little Chase.
But he did want to lay on the blanket that had Chase's scent on it.
Chase and Melissa are both continuing to do great. Chase has been eating and sleeping well.
All three of us slept much better last night...at least until late last night. Around 4 am, they came in to take Chase to do the hearing test. He was supposed to be gone about 15 minutes. Turns out that when they changed his diaper, his circumcision wound had started bleeding and they had to keep him back in the nursery for a while. He is fine, but it was a little scary for us.
He slept for a while when he came back to the room (apparently he was exhausted from the turmoil). He finally fed and actually fed a few more times through the morning. Finally, about noon, we were discharged to come home.
Chase looked so tiny in the car seat. It was raining like crazy when we got home. Introducing Chase to his new home was yet another moment that I will never forget. We brought him in and set the entire car seat, with Chase in it, on the kitchen counter. Melissa's parents had already put the dogs outside, so Melissa and I went out to say hi to them. It was good to see them and they were obviously excited to see us, especially Melissa. We brought them in one by one and they really weren't interested in Chase. They sniffed him a few times, but that's about it.
Since we've been home, he has fed several times and all is still well there. Melissa and I both slept a little in the afternoon. After eating some lunch and unpacking some bags, we really settled in. A few hot showers this evening made us feel like entirely new people. As I sit here writing this update, Chase is laying on my lap, sound asleep. Melissa is finally getting some really welcome rest in her own bed. God bless her, she's a fantastic mother and I'm lucky to be with her!
I've always heard people say that it's weird to love something so much, even though you're just getting to know them. I understand what that's like now. I can just look at him forever and love him so much!
Here are some pics from Days 2 & 3.
Nana is such a proud Grandma!
This was my going home outfit!
Mom & Chase getting wheeled out of the hospital.
Captain wasn't sure exactly what to think of little Chase.
But he did want to lay on the blanket that had Chase's scent on it.
Sunday, July 13, 2008
7/13 - Day 2
Wow, what a first 24 hours. It's such an amazing experience that I don't even know where to begin this post.
First of all, thanks to everyone for all of the emails and phone calls and visits. It's great to share this wonderful time in our lives with so many loving friends and family!
After Chase was born yesterday morning, they of course cleaned him up real good. Skype is a wonderful thing, as Marc & Sabrina (my brother and his wife) were able to visit with Chase almost immediately after he was born (literally about 15 minutes later) - they live in Hong Kong. They were actually the first family to see Chase, since they were "allowed in the room" before other visitors. Melissa's parents and my Mom were waiting downstairs and got to come up about 45 minutes after he was born.
Around 7:00 am we got moved to our postpartum room, which was down the hall from the delivery room. Throughout the day, many friends and family came by. It was great to see everyone and Chase was great. He's been feeding on a regular basis and eating well. Without getting into details, the breast-feeding thing is going really well so far. The diaper changing thing , on the other hand, is a real adventure. I've been changing all the diapers so far since it's a lot easier for me to be up and about. He's definitely had the newborn baby poops, which are difficult to clean. And of course, he's so little, that it's just a challenge (these diapers look more like kleenex to me). I'm sure I'll get used to it really fast at this rate. The last of our visitors left around 8:00 pm. From 8 pm to 4 am, it seemed like he fed the entire time. The nurse says it's called cluster feeding...he fed about every hour and a half, and he feeds for around an hour, so yes, that's about 30 minutes in between. That gave me enough time to change his diaper and hold him for just a bit and then he was hungry again. So, needless to say, we didn't get much sleep last night. After his 4 am feeding, I changed his diaper again and then he laid down with me for a while and we all three slept for a couple of hours. Chase and I slept better than Melissa, but even she got some winks. At some point around 6 am I think, I put him in bed with Melissa and we all slept for another little while. So, from 4 am to 8 am, we slept sporadically and got a little rest.
Today holds new challenges...Chase is getting circumcised this morning. He went in for the procedure about an hour ago, but then they brought him back because the doctor got paged for a delivery. So they're coming back to get him any minute. We're going to try to get some rest while he's out of the room, although he's sleeping great right now.
I'm sure we'll have some more visitors today, which is great, and then we go home tomorrow around noon.
Attached are a few more pictures. Also, we've created a snapfish account in Chase's name, so we'll be uploading more pictures there and emailing them out for sharing. So don't be surprised when you get an email from Chase!
Thanks again for all of your support!
The Liner Family
Chase with Great Grandpa
Chase with Grandma Liner
First of all, thanks to everyone for all of the emails and phone calls and visits. It's great to share this wonderful time in our lives with so many loving friends and family!
After Chase was born yesterday morning, they of course cleaned him up real good. Skype is a wonderful thing, as Marc & Sabrina (my brother and his wife) were able to visit with Chase almost immediately after he was born (literally about 15 minutes later) - they live in Hong Kong. They were actually the first family to see Chase, since they were "allowed in the room" before other visitors. Melissa's parents and my Mom were waiting downstairs and got to come up about 45 minutes after he was born.
Around 7:00 am we got moved to our postpartum room, which was down the hall from the delivery room. Throughout the day, many friends and family came by. It was great to see everyone and Chase was great. He's been feeding on a regular basis and eating well. Without getting into details, the breast-feeding thing is going really well so far. The diaper changing thing , on the other hand, is a real adventure. I've been changing all the diapers so far since it's a lot easier for me to be up and about. He's definitely had the newborn baby poops, which are difficult to clean. And of course, he's so little, that it's just a challenge (these diapers look more like kleenex to me). I'm sure I'll get used to it really fast at this rate. The last of our visitors left around 8:00 pm. From 8 pm to 4 am, it seemed like he fed the entire time. The nurse says it's called cluster feeding...he fed about every hour and a half, and he feeds for around an hour, so yes, that's about 30 minutes in between. That gave me enough time to change his diaper and hold him for just a bit and then he was hungry again. So, needless to say, we didn't get much sleep last night. After his 4 am feeding, I changed his diaper again and then he laid down with me for a while and we all three slept for a couple of hours. Chase and I slept better than Melissa, but even she got some winks. At some point around 6 am I think, I put him in bed with Melissa and we all slept for another little while. So, from 4 am to 8 am, we slept sporadically and got a little rest.
Today holds new challenges...Chase is getting circumcised this morning. He went in for the procedure about an hour ago, but then they brought him back because the doctor got paged for a delivery. So they're coming back to get him any minute. We're going to try to get some rest while he's out of the room, although he's sleeping great right now.
I'm sure we'll have some more visitors today, which is great, and then we go home tomorrow around noon.
Attached are a few more pictures. Also, we've created a snapfish account in Chase's name, so we'll be uploading more pictures there and emailing them out for sharing. So don't be surprised when you get an email from Chase!
Thanks again for all of your support!
The Liner Family
Chase with Great Grandpa
Chase with Grandma Liner
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