Archive - Apr 2009

Abe's put on 21 oz since leaving the hospital less than two weeks ago. That was the big news from our pediatrician on Friday. Healthy and happy, he is.

Happy until we took him for his second newborn screening, that is. They had to warm his little foot up before pricking it. Not a fun time for him or us.

Abe's had a lot of visitors, starting with the Hankinsons. Jeralyn and Bill were here for Abe's birth and helped out more than we know before and after coming home.

A few days later, my mom, Deb, arrived to take over taking care of Sarah and I. Without her, the cats might not have eaten very regularly for a few days.

We also owe a big 'thanks' to everyone who brought food in the last couple of weeks. It was a huge help not to have to worry about making dinner while figuring out how to change diapers and breastfeed.

Mom was here for Easter, and we got out for a walk at the wetlands to celebrate.

We also dyed some eggs for the occasion.

Chris and Rachel, our friends from childbirth class, also stopped by with Jaden.

Today being Earth Day and all, Abe felt compelled to show his support for two-wheeled transit.

The cats have been adapting, if a bit slowly. Luto's given little Abe a few licks on the head, and Quatro made this breakthough a few days ago.

All of this just serves to make Abe sleepy, which is fine, because it's what he's good at.

That and being crazy.

Finally, here are some shots I took of Sarah and Abe while we were waiting for the pediatrician on Friday.

We're home. They let Sarah and Abe come home Sunday night, and I wanted to thank the staff at Flagstaff Medical Center. Every one we came across there was more than willing to do what it took to make sure Sarah was taken care of. Special thanks to Dr. Lindstrom, for making sure that, at the end of the day, both Sarah and Abe were happy and healthy.

That said, the last few days have been kind of like "The Zipper," that carnival ride that spins your little car on one axis while the long arm it's attached to is also spinning. It's scary, really fast moving, and doesn't give you much time to recover before it starts spinning again, but you forget that the whole time you're safely belted to a bench inside a big steel cage. As professional as the hospital staff were, our little cage got spun a few times, and it hasn't slowed much since we got home.

Yesterday we took Abe out to visit Dr. Seeman at Mountain View, for his first exam since leaving the hospital. He lost a bit more weight than we would have liked while in the hospital and we were a bit anxious to see whether he'd gained any weight. Three ounces, it turns out, which means he's ours to keep! What the picture doesn't show is the rock star performance he gave before the doctor arrived. We had to take his diaper off to be weighed, and as soon as it was off, he let loose with both guns, all over the exam table. Unphased, we wiped him off, moved him to a clean part of the table, and got ready to put a clean diaper on, when he opened fire again.

His favorite thing to do right now is to lightly soil a diaper, then, as soon as we have a clean one on, really let go. That's why we're filling the clothes line at least once per day.

The weather's been great since Abe's birthday blizzard, so we've been getting out for a few walks around the neighborhood. That's Abe's pimp ride, a Chariot CX1, courtesy of the Bike Trailer Shop. And that's Abe doing his best 'Blue Steel'. Mothers, keep an eye on your daughters. This means you, Olive.

Here's a slightly longer video of some highlights from delivery to homecoming.

Jeff here. First, let me apologize for not getting this message out earlier. Considering there was nothing but insistent picture requests in my email, I'll get straight to the point.

Sarah went into labor at about 9:00 on Thursday night, just after dinner with Bill and Jeralyn, who are visiting in anticipation. By about 9:00 Friday morning, after hours of pretty intense contractions, it was determined that baby wasn't tolerating labor well. His (yep, it's a boy!) heartrate was decelerating with each contraction, and given the stage of labor Sarah was in, Dr Lindstrom recommended an emergency c-section.

To make a long story short, at 9:56AM MST, weighing it at 8lbs 2oz, measuring 20", Abraham Sawyer Hankens joined us in the operating room.

We're headed home in just a few, so we'll have some more pictures soon, to keep you all from sending any more threatening emails.