A day by the pool

The pictures say it all.

1st birthday (one week that is)

Its hard to believe a week has passed. In some ways it feels like a lifetime - lack of sleep, reality not yet hit. In other ways, I can see already how time is going to fly. My little bird has some meat on his chicken legs and bony fingers now. His face is, ever so slightly, taking shape. We are forming routines and patterns. I love nothing more than to lay with him on my chest in the morning, his head snuggled under my chin, resting his cheek on his own folded hands. I already fear the day down the path when he is too big to do this, and I try to relish every moment of it. I want to always remember the tiny little noises - the sigh he makes after he sneezes, the muffled protest just before he cries... I keep encouraging Scott, who has worked all week, to also sit down and enjoy these fleeting moments with his newborn son. Sawyer and I spent a few hours Saturday by my parents' pool. Sawyer celebrated the first day of his second week by dipping his toes in the water, getting 100 photos taken and then splaying out in the shade of an umbrella. Justin headed off for an overnight at a friend's house Saturday night and Scott and I spent Sunday in our pajamas in bed, bonding with the babe and catching up on much needed rest.

the sponge bath

I have been dreading this day since I first read the chapter on sponge baths in "What to Expect the First Year." How could something as simple as a bath be SO complicated. We geared up the team. Justin was assigned photographer. Mom read the directions, so she was in charge of the actual sponging. I was on the adhesive removal committee. Powerful bandages from the hospital and doctor's office still clung to his tender skin and needed to be extracted carefully. We gathered 157 items the book said we needed: lotion, Q-tips, cotton balls, baby suds, waterproof pad, towel, washcloth, lotion, diaper, vaseline, gause, diaper rash cream, fresh outfit, small bowl, etc. In the end, it turned out to be as simple as wiping him off with a warm washcloth. Sawyer, who - typical boy - objects to having his clothes off or being changed in any fashion, screamed like he was being stabbed with a thousand knives. The adhesive proved a bit more of a challenge, but nothing three tablespoons of soap, a little warm water and a quick rip couldn't cure. The reward came at the end when we got to wrap him up in this cute frog towel and take lots and lots of pictures.

July 25 - the day of the doctor

Today we had to return Richmond for our new baby appointment, which meant a four-hour round trip in the car.... because not only can you NOT deliver a baby in the Northern Neck, apparently there are no pediatricians here either. Complicating matters is my still-present temperature, now up to 102. My doctor wants to see me in her office back here before 2:30.
After a great night of sleep (Sawyer only woke us up once between 10 pm and 6 am), my mom and I are off to the pediatricians. She drives my Suby. Sawyer sleeps the whole way! Of course, the challenge with a newborn and a 2-hour car ride is that as soon as you get there, the baby needs to eat. I knew what would happen. As soon as the doctor called us in, Sawyer would start screaming from starvation. And, that's pretty much how it went down. I explained our situation to both the nurse and the doctor, hoping they would realize that I wasn't really such a bad mom after all.
The nurse praised the shape of Sawyers head: "I've never seen such a perfectly-shaped head on a baby who was delivered vaginally." I beamed. I didn't realize until then that a "perfectly-shaped" head was something to be proud of.
The doctor was thrilled to see that Sawyer, who was down to 6 pounds 15 ounces when we left the hospital, was now back up to 7 pounds 4 ounces. He told me I could let him sleep as long as he wanted a night. No need to wake him up to feed him. Yippee.
Then they left us in the office and I gave Sawyer a quick snack. In the Panera parking lot, I gave him another quick snack. We drove two hours to my doctor who was going to "squeeze me in." Expecting a long wait, I sat in the back of the car to finally try to give Sawyer a decent meal. Three gulps later, they were calling me in. I tried again while waiting for the doctor to come into the examining room. She appeared almost immediately.
Turns out I had the onset of endometritis, an infection of the uterus. It can make you really sick really fast, she said. Not something to mess with. She put me on antibiotics.
Tried to feed Sawyer in the grocery store parking lot and at CVS while we were waiting for our prescription. Poor guy just couldn't catch a decent meal. But he remained calm. Didn't cry. What a trooper!
Mom worked it at the drive-thru window to speed things up. In a very un-Anne-like high voice she said, "We have a tiny little baby.... see? Here, let me pull up just a little so you can see. He's only four days old! Is there any way we can get that prescription in under an hour?"
Worked like a charm.
Finally home, Sawyer ate like a beast.
My beastly fever cleared up the next day.

wondermom

There is nothing like becoming a new mom to make you want your own mommy. Upon arriving home, I came down with a temperature. Still struggling to move between the bed, the bathroom and the couch, my mom arrived to help me overcome my raging hormone-induced compulsive tendencies. She plowed through six loads of laundry. Cooked. Cleaned. Basically everything my mother hates doing. She also held Sawyer so I could take a much-needed shower, entertained Justin and kept me company. I am so lucky she's here.