Day nine in the life of Austin Werner, and he had quite an adventure this morning. His mother was changing his diaper, and of course, while the diaper was off, he seized the opportunity to wreak havoc. He waited until the diaper was removed...and then peed...a lot. All over my seat on the couch, as a matter of fact. I've heard this can happen, but I have never witnessed it. Fortunately, I was not occupying my seat on the couch at the time of the alleviation. Needless to say, Brittany was shocked.
Also earlier today, I took a look at Austin's skull, which was slightly elongated from birth. When he was born, his skull resembled the crystal skulls from the newest Indiana Jones movie; however, now, it has gone almost all of the way down and it looks quite normal.
Big news: I changed a diaper for the first time yesterday. I was not planning on changing a diaper yesterday, but my wife extorted my love of sweet orange rolls. It actually was not as bad as I thought it was going to be. I hazmat-suited up and changed the diaper without incident. The orange rolls were worth it.
Once again, more adventures to follow,
Lance W
2.11.2010
2.08.2010
Stardate 100208.5
First Appointments, Hiccups, and Sleep Deprivation
Today, Austin turned six days old, and it was time for his preliminary checkup. His doctor said that everything looks good so far. He is almost back to his birth weight and all his vitals look and sound good. She wants to have one more ultrasound on his kidneys, but everything should be fine.
Since the day we brought him home, my son has been getting the hiccups two or three times a day. I don't know if that's normal in newborns, since this is my first, but I feel sorry for the little guy. I know how annoying incessant hiccups are, and he has them a lot. I posted a video of him with the hiccups, but it's such a routine thing now, I could catch him at it anytime. Hopefully he will grow out of this...I wouldn't want him to end up hiccuping for life...
Austin is now sleeping three and half to four hours at a time, so while my wife is not completely rested in the morning, at least she is not suffering extreme sleep deprivation. I myself am feeling no ill effects whatsoever. I have the distinct ability to sleep through the worst of the crying, and because I have a wonderful wife, she dutifully gets up and takes care of the child. I do stay up late for the midnight feeding to help where I can, but overall, she is the tough one who takes care of Austin through the night.
I'm sure there will be more stories and more to report once Austin starts doing more than sleeping, eating, and pooing...
Until then,
Lance W
Today, Austin turned six days old, and it was time for his preliminary checkup. His doctor said that everything looks good so far. He is almost back to his birth weight and all his vitals look and sound good. She wants to have one more ultrasound on his kidneys, but everything should be fine.
Since the day we brought him home, my son has been getting the hiccups two or three times a day. I don't know if that's normal in newborns, since this is my first, but I feel sorry for the little guy. I know how annoying incessant hiccups are, and he has them a lot. I posted a video of him with the hiccups, but it's such a routine thing now, I could catch him at it anytime. Hopefully he will grow out of this...I wouldn't want him to end up hiccuping for life...
Austin is now sleeping three and half to four hours at a time, so while my wife is not completely rested in the morning, at least she is not suffering extreme sleep deprivation. I myself am feeling no ill effects whatsoever. I have the distinct ability to sleep through the worst of the crying, and because I have a wonderful wife, she dutifully gets up and takes care of the child. I do stay up late for the midnight feeding to help where I can, but overall, she is the tough one who takes care of Austin through the night.
I'm sure there will be more stories and more to report once Austin starts doing more than sleeping, eating, and pooing...
Until then,
Lance W
2.04.2010
Stardate 100204.4
We are still in the hospital, though they are telling us that this is our last day. Austin is doing really well, and Brittany is recovering slowly but surely. Last night was a pretty peaceful night...at least for me. I feel kind of bad, because I slept through the whole night and didn't wake up at all during the commotion going on in the room.
Yesterday afternoon, the doctor recommended that Austin be put on a Bili blanket and under a Bili Light to correct his slight case of jaundice. The Bili blanket glowed a mysterious green, like it was infused with Kryptonite...which is why my child could not escape the Bili Light. Needless to say, he did not enjoy being under that light, and as parents we didn't like the fact that the machine was torturing our child, but we knew it was for the best and it would fix the issue at hand. He has pretty good motor control already. About 10 minutes into his imprisonment, he had figured out how to grip the top rim of his blindfold and pull it down off of his eyes...which, or course, is not a good thing. So, one of us had to stand or lie nearby and hold that hand to prevent him from blinding himself.
At 0100 this morning, they took him off the machine (I was asleep at this time) and he ate and went back to sleep. I slept from midnight to almost six in the morning, so I was asleep for all of the action, but apparently, after he was taken off of the machine, he slept for a long time without waking up and crying for food. Brittany was able to get some good rest last night.
I didn't stay awake very long. I slept for another two hours before the nurse came in to take Austin away for circumcision. Unlike in Biblical times, the child does not have to wait until its eighth day of life before being circumcised. There is a reason God's instructions were so specific. On the eighth day, the body contains enough vitamin K to assist the blood in clotting. However, now that doctor's know this, they simply give the baby a shot of vitamin K12 and perform the operation, and the baby's blood clots just fine.
Now we are simply waiting to see what's next on the list of things to do before we are released. Mommy and baby are sleeping comfortably after breakfast while dad types away in the corner of the room.
Until next time,
Lance W
Yesterday afternoon, the doctor recommended that Austin be put on a Bili blanket and under a Bili Light to correct his slight case of jaundice. The Bili blanket glowed a mysterious green, like it was infused with Kryptonite...which is why my child could not escape the Bili Light. Needless to say, he did not enjoy being under that light, and as parents we didn't like the fact that the machine was torturing our child, but we knew it was for the best and it would fix the issue at hand. He has pretty good motor control already. About 10 minutes into his imprisonment, he had figured out how to grip the top rim of his blindfold and pull it down off of his eyes...which, or course, is not a good thing. So, one of us had to stand or lie nearby and hold that hand to prevent him from blinding himself.
At 0100 this morning, they took him off the machine (I was asleep at this time) and he ate and went back to sleep. I slept from midnight to almost six in the morning, so I was asleep for all of the action, but apparently, after he was taken off of the machine, he slept for a long time without waking up and crying for food. Brittany was able to get some good rest last night.
I didn't stay awake very long. I slept for another two hours before the nurse came in to take Austin away for circumcision. Unlike in Biblical times, the child does not have to wait until its eighth day of life before being circumcised. There is a reason God's instructions were so specific. On the eighth day, the body contains enough vitamin K to assist the blood in clotting. However, now that doctor's know this, they simply give the baby a shot of vitamin K12 and perform the operation, and the baby's blood clots just fine.
Now we are simply waiting to see what's next on the list of things to do before we are released. Mommy and baby are sleeping comfortably after breakfast while dad types away in the corner of the room.
Until next time,
Lance W
2.03.2010
Stardate 100203.5
Austin Lance Werner was born yesterday, Feb 2, 2010 (Groundhog Day), at 1303 ET. He weighed 7 lbs and 10 oz at birth and measured 20.5 in. Everything went very smoothly. The mother and the baby have recovered remarkably well since birth and are both resting at the moment. Austin has been eating very regularly and has been crying only minimally.
That is just the result. Here is a recounting of the events that led up to Austin's birth...
Brittany and I fell asleep on the night of Feb 1st around 1100. I was shaken awake shortly thereafter by my concerned wife. With no warning whatsoever, the light came on and nearly blinded me. Then she informs me that her water had broken. Now, I have heard multiple recountings from other fathers who say that they were panicking and scrambling around in a frenzy. Fortunately, I did not experience that. We had a bag pre-packed for just such an occasion, so it was just a matter of getting dressed, grabbing the bag, and heading out the door.
Shortly after I woke up I found that I had been alseep for barely an hour before her water broke. We left the house around 1230 and made it to the hospital fairly quickly since the roads were clear. We were settled into a room at just before 1 am and then we waited.
When we arrived, Brittany was only 2 cm dialated, so it was going to be a little while. By 0500 hr, she was 3 cm and the contractions had started. 0800 rolled around and she was still 3 cm, but the contractions were getting bad, so she had the epideral administered. By the time that was done, we found out she had gone from 3 cm to 8 in just 30 minutes! I called my mother to let her know and she exclaimed, "Oh,my!" and ran out the door in order to rush to the hospital. Another hour passed, and she was at 9 cm. Then, at 10 she made it to 10 cm and the real work began.
In an effort to stay civil, I will gloss over all of the hard work Brittany went through over the next three hours. She worked extrememly hard and I am very proud of her. She endured the pain and at 1303, Austin Werner was born.
Right after the baby arrived, everyone in the room went crazy moving from the mother to the baby and back again. I was allowed to cut the umbilical cord. :) After the baby was clean and Brittany had been rearranged comfortably, we got to hold our baby for the first time.
In my experience, it is a rather strange feeling to hold your child for the first time. In a previous post, I mentioned that Brittany had a far greater emotional attatchment to the child than I did, because he was inside of her and therefore the connection was much more intimate. But holding Austin for the first time, I found it rather amazing that I was holding a child that belonged to me; a child I had a part in making; and a child that I would have as a son forever. It is hard to explain adaquetly, but as I said before, it was an amazing feeling.
We are still in the hospital, and shall be for another day. They told us this morning that we should be released some time tomorrow afternoon. Now we have to adjust our home life to accomidate this new addition. Austin's room is ready for him. The crib and changing table are ready to go, and his clothes and toys are all organized. It will still be an adjustment with the lack of sleep and such, but something we are more than willing to weather for our son.
Until next time,
Lorimer
That is just the result. Here is a recounting of the events that led up to Austin's birth...
Brittany and I fell asleep on the night of Feb 1st around 1100. I was shaken awake shortly thereafter by my concerned wife. With no warning whatsoever, the light came on and nearly blinded me. Then she informs me that her water had broken. Now, I have heard multiple recountings from other fathers who say that they were panicking and scrambling around in a frenzy. Fortunately, I did not experience that. We had a bag pre-packed for just such an occasion, so it was just a matter of getting dressed, grabbing the bag, and heading out the door.
Shortly after I woke up I found that I had been alseep for barely an hour before her water broke. We left the house around 1230 and made it to the hospital fairly quickly since the roads were clear. We were settled into a room at just before 1 am and then we waited.
When we arrived, Brittany was only 2 cm dialated, so it was going to be a little while. By 0500 hr, she was 3 cm and the contractions had started. 0800 rolled around and she was still 3 cm, but the contractions were getting bad, so she had the epideral administered. By the time that was done, we found out she had gone from 3 cm to 8 in just 30 minutes! I called my mother to let her know and she exclaimed, "Oh,my!" and ran out the door in order to rush to the hospital. Another hour passed, and she was at 9 cm. Then, at 10 she made it to 10 cm and the real work began.
In an effort to stay civil, I will gloss over all of the hard work Brittany went through over the next three hours. She worked extrememly hard and I am very proud of her. She endured the pain and at 1303, Austin Werner was born.
Right after the baby arrived, everyone in the room went crazy moving from the mother to the baby and back again. I was allowed to cut the umbilical cord. :) After the baby was clean and Brittany had been rearranged comfortably, we got to hold our baby for the first time.
In my experience, it is a rather strange feeling to hold your child for the first time. In a previous post, I mentioned that Brittany had a far greater emotional attatchment to the child than I did, because he was inside of her and therefore the connection was much more intimate. But holding Austin for the first time, I found it rather amazing that I was holding a child that belonged to me; a child I had a part in making; and a child that I would have as a son forever. It is hard to explain adaquetly, but as I said before, it was an amazing feeling.
We are still in the hospital, and shall be for another day. They told us this morning that we should be released some time tomorrow afternoon. Now we have to adjust our home life to accomidate this new addition. Austin's room is ready for him. The crib and changing table are ready to go, and his clothes and toys are all organized. It will still be an adjustment with the lack of sleep and such, but something we are more than willing to weather for our son.
Until next time,
Lorimer
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