1, 2, 3, New Babies
The first days home from the hospital with my newborns are some of the most memorable days of my life. From getting to know my new baby, to making sure the house was still in order, it was quite a whirlwind. I have three kids and none of my experiences are the same.
Baby #1 ““ Before our first baby, my husband and I only knew how to take care of dogs. But we knew that taking care of a human was going to entail more than sticking a bowl of food on the floor and opening up the back door every few hours. We were LOST and overwhelmed! I was trying to learn to breastfeed, which was so hard at first. My son had jaundice and we were told by the pediatrician to put him in front of the window for a while every few hours to get sunlight. Of course, he didn’t tell us that the baby was supposed to be almost naked. So we had the baby in the window, but bundled up in a hat and long pants and sleeves. We know now that if the natural light doesn’t actually GET to the baby, it doesn’t take care of the jaundice. Rookies! Therefore our first days home from the hospital quickly turned into another stint back AT the hospital, this time to for our son to have light therapy.
Baby #2 ““ I brought my daughter home from the hospital on my 31st birthday. She was the best birthday present I’ve ever gotten. I remember my mom and my mother-in-law bringing over dinner and carrot cake to celebrate. This time my husband and I felt much more comfortable doing the “baby thing” and things ran much more smoothly. She nursed like a champ and it was so cute watching my son, who was now three, fawn all over his baby sister.