Todd 
Omegix
all & sundry 
Penny Arcade 
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I never got around to writing about Micah's birth. I never really intended to go into details here (because I know there are things you just can't unread), but I definitely meant to write the story of it down, just so I'd be able to remember it. And then I never did, because Micah's birth was horrible. A lot of things went wrong, and while I was thrilled with the end result of a living baby, the experience and the aftermath for me personally were Not Good. For a very long time. So although I started to write out Micah's birth story, I never finished it because I didn't want to type out every awful detail. I remember enough, thank you, enough that I spent the last month of this pregnancy scared out of my mind and bracing myself for the inevitable.
My birth experience with Micah was not unlike giving birth to an angry velociraptor. Aerin's was totally, completely different, in the best ways possible. The next day, I actually felt good. Like, so good I wasn't sure it was legal to feel like that after childbirth. Granted, I had the help of my dear friends ibuprofen and percocet, but still. Now, a week out, my back and hips are still pretty sore, but that could be because I walked a good half-mile night before last.
Thursday was a bit of a cluster after Micah came down with viral croup Wednesday night. Fortunately, Todd wasn't able to stay at the hospital because they had to put me in a tiny postpartum room without the extra bed, so Micah was at least at home (instead of at my sister's) with his grandmother, the doctor, just down the hall. Thursday morning, my mom stayed with my sister's kids while she took Micah to the pediatrician, and Todd's mother drove Todd to get his very own epidural. With daycare out of the picture, my parents took over watching Micah for the rest of the day. The hospital was also chock full of new babies and women in labor, so things in L&D were moving pretty slowly. But in the end, we finally made it home around 3:30 PM.
Speaking of Micah, he's been fantastic with the baby. He softly strokes her hair and puts his head down on hers. He calls her "Baby Aerin" and wants to see her "tiny hands," feet, and ears. In the hospital, he wanted to share his Cheerios with her. This morning, he brought over his precious Lubby and tucked it in next to her. He seems to have no problem with her at all; his initial ire was reserved mostly for me and Todd. We've dealt with that by trying to spend as much time as possible playing and talking with him. His return to daycare yesterday also helped restore some normalcy. All in all, he's doing much better with the whole situation than I expected.
So, here we are. It's been a week since Aerin was born, and I honestly couldn’t be happier. With Micah, I was exhausted from weeks of worry and lack of sleep, weak from blood loss, and mentally just shot. With Aerin, I've been reasonably well-rested, I feel strong, I don't really hurt, and I'm actually enjoying these first few days. The two experiences are worlds apart, and this is nothing at all like I expected. It is so, so much better.
| Link "When I was at home, my mommy was gone and I was all alone down there in the street, and I couldn't find the lion, but there was a moose in the trees and he bit me, right there on my foot. Then he ate all these books. But I had my blanket and it makes me better. Can I have a band-aid for my foot?" | Link
Our daughter's birthday is going to be June 21. | Link
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My 2:15 doctor appointment turned into a 5:45 appointment after my poor doctor had to do one emergency C-section at Huntsville, then deliver another baby at Crestwood on his way back to the office. I almost left, since I have another appointment scheduled for next Monday, but decided after three hours of waiting, what was another 30 minutes? And I'm glad I stayed, because it turns out I'm 80 percent effaced and 3 centimeters dilated. Doc said this kid could be born tomorrow or three weeks from now, but on average, he'd expect four to five days. That's funny, considering a while back I started joking about putting me down for June 16th in the office pool. | Link Maybe it's because I'm having a girl. Maybe it's because this time around I'm not on bedrest and have nothing better to fuss over. Maybe it's because I don't expect to be doing this again. Whatever the reason, I've actually put some time and thought into this one's bedroom. It's nothing fancy, but I think it'll do.
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So! June is here, and by the end of the month, we will be a family of four. This baby is currently taking up the same percentage of mental space as she is abdominal space, which is to say it's pretty much all I can think about these days - the nursery, how Micah's going to react, what else we need to do to get ready, did I wash all the newborn clothes, what about the blankets, oh shit this baby has to come out somehow, OMGWHEREISTHEBOPPYPILLOW.
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