Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Night and Day

We’re lucky parents, we know. Jackson is healthy, beautiful, and through his meconium stage. We really thought we hit the jackpot with his attitude though – he was almost always happy or sleeping at the hospital. He only cooed – we never heard him cry. Even when he came out, he cried out for a few seconds, then started making cute little noises. (I think he was just happy to be able to stretch out for the first time in months.) We were so blessed, and there was the thought, “This might be easier than I thought.”
Then we got home. That first night, he was fussy and whiny and crying and kicking, and his stomach seemed to be part of the protest. We were trying everything, grabbing new outfits, new blankets, new diapers, and around 3:30 in the morning, Rob even grabbed a book about healthy sleep patterns to see if there were some kind of emergency instructions for what to do if the baby just will not sleep. A laundry basket became the “HazMat” box. Any fear of feces disappeared from Rob forever. Jackson’s crying is still reverberating around Rob’s head two days later. Finally at 4 am, Rob fell asleep. Noelle did not and Jackson did not. They didn’t fall asleep until about five minutes before Rob’s alarm went off. Oops.

In the morning, house guests Shannon and her mother, Phyllis, helped us out by watching him so we could catch up on a little sleep. (Of course this is in addition to all the other wonderful and helpful things they did for us while they were here.) We woke up three hours later to be told Jackson had been asleep since we gave him to them. According to the doctor, his sudden change was either due to the change in environment or the discomfort from his circumcision. Things are going much better now, but that first night – every fear about not being ready to be a parent and every frustration you’ve felt when you can’t stop someone from crying arose and scared the hell out of me. Since then, I’ve felt better – we figured out the importance of burping and found Jackson likes to sleep in his swing rather than his bassinet. But mostly it’s that realization that every kid is different, and we just have to find the different ways to make Jackson stay healthy, beautiful, and happy. Last night Jackson fed every three hours without a fuss and immediately fell asleep afterwards. Now here’s just a heaping helping of pictures of the boy, because that’s why you’re really here.

6 comments:

dougnlarry said...

Sorry y'all had a rough night. I'm glad last night was better. Swings can be life savers!

You're doing fine. Sleep when he sleeps. :)

Kristen Tiemeyer said...

Kings slept in her swing almost exclusively for a long period of her infancy. They are a LIEFSAVER!

The Kemps said...

I cannot believe how much I am learning! Thank you so much for the window into parenthood.

Rory-n-Jeremy said...

Congratulations Noelle!...you two are doing great! I loved reading your stories and so glad he is home and you can start getting into a routine! I bet it feels great to be in your own home.

penny said...

He is such a cutie!!!! He is really adorable!!!! I think for the first few weeks they like to be almost cocooned as they sleep. Swing, papsan, car seat... whatever works. It is like they are freaked out by being in a big space like a bassinet. oh yeah - the sleep book.... it is a wealth of information... especially the chapters about what to expect during the different months. It really helps you establish naps and a sleeping rhythm... I love it! I still use it now. Sorry - this is a long comment! :)

Noelle MacGregor said...

The swing is great! Thanks Shannon for thinking to get it out before you left!