A Msg from the Mommy

Hey all - it's me, the mommy of this magnificent little creature named Solomon. I'm finally getting to sit down and read emails and see the blog posts and the facebook posts and the ofoto photo albums (thanks Aunt Chel Chel for keeping everyone and everything updated - and thank god for Papa John's cell phone and all those candid shots!!). Thank you everyone who has sent messages, called, visited, etc. - we feel sooo loved and are sooo grateful that our little guy is so loved and wanted by so many.

Right now Sol, John and Sammie are all sacked out. I have a few moments to myself before the 3 pm feeding and I am blissfully at peace with how wonderful and magical these past five days have been.

First things first, Sol had his first Doc appt and all is perfect. He gained up to his birth-weight and some - he's a whopping 6 lb 8 oz!! The jaundice is clearing and we're now back to a once a 3 hour feeding schedule (the once every two hours just about killed us!!). No signs of the meconium doing any damage (another worry we've had since the labor) and the doc says what we all already know -- that he is in fact, perfect :) .

Sol's Birth Story:

After an afternoon/evening of feeling bad and not sure if I was in early labor or just "feeling bad & having normal braxton hicks" I woke up and went to the bathroom at 3am and my water broke (THANK GOD at home, in the bathroom - not at work or an event!). We knew something was wrong right away and it turns out the little bugger pooped inside my womb and so now the meconium was mixed w/the aminotic fluid - a potentially dangerous situation.

The major contractions came as soon as the water broke and just like everyone says, it truly is an all-consuming pain. Especially when they are like 2-3 min apart!! We moved forward w/drugs ( so that I didnt kill anyone) and an epidural ( soooo not fun to get, but soooo happy to have gotten it!). The labor progressed pretty fast - and by 9 am I was at 9 cm and the doc was ready to have me push pretty soon. We were trying to wait cause mom and Dad were driving up from S. Fla and we really wanted them to be here. After a record breaking 6 hour drive from S. Fla, they pulled in at 10:30, the doc had me start pushing at 11.

Here comes the fun part...once we started "pushing" my contractions slowed down and so every "push" was a massive undertaking. It felt like trying to push a tractor trailer with my legs (of course that took my arms, my back, my neck - even grinding my teeth). After an hour and a half of pushing the doc was concerned about Sol's dropping heartbeat and that he'd been in the meconium so long and decided that using the suction thingy to help pull him out was the way to go - even though John and I had decided we didnt want to use any of those contraptions - it took us all of .0005 seconds to say "YES LETS DO IT!" - We wanted this kid out -- I WANTED this kid out. The very next contraction I pushed until my eyeballs popped and POOF he came out!!

Because of the meconium the NICU was there and they had to whisk him away and suction him out so there was no cutting of the cord by daddy or anything. In fact, it was a few minutes until he even cried - the LONGEST minutes of our life! But when he did - it was THE sweetest sound we'd ever heard. He was here and he was fine and we were and now are a family :)

The first few days were really rough - it felt like I was on a run-away horse that was then hit by a truck - every part of my body hurt and its still slow and painful and I am swollen beyond recongition ( where are my ankles?!) but alas, looking at Sol's little nose ( the Merzer nose), his daddy's dimple and his long, skinny frog legs & feet ( who did he get those from?!?) makes it alllll worth it.

We can't wait to see what tomorrow and all the tomorrows after brings with this little guy - all I can say is these past four mornings waking up with him in the world has made our life a complete joy. Oh, and us, we are doing great - John is THE BEST DADDY ever - he is a pro at poopy diapers and a swaddling king - he is very supportive as we are having breast feeding issues (of course - who doesnt!) and even though we are tired ( beyond tired) and sometimes stressed ( sometimes??!!) we still find a few moments here and there snuggle and tell each other we love each other - somehow amidst all the gross physical stuff of childbirth and the chaos of caring for a newborn you find yourself even more in love with your spouse than you thought possible. Somehow, the way they look having slept in their clothes for two days, not shaven, with a burp rag hanging out of their back pocket and spitup on their shirtsleeves is completely and utterly...well...sexy. Yes, I guess thats the true testament of being an adult - a spouse -a parent.

I could go on forever, but alas, Sol has spit up and its almost the 3pm feeding - many more pictures and anecdotes to come...but again, to all of you who have supported us and shared in this wonderful, amazing adventure - we love you and we are thankful for you...and for Solly.