Introducing...

Tate Walker

January 16, 2012

9lbs, 2 oz

19.5 inches

We're so in love with our newest arrival. He is soft, snuggly and delicious! I can't get enough of smelling his sweet skin and watching his little chest rise and fall when he breathes. My favourite is how he falls asleep on my chest after nursing and makes these happy little grunting sounds. He's sleeping most of the day and seems to really liven up at night when we're ready for bed. Just like the first two!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I would say this c-section was about the same as my second one, with Hadley (which was ten times easier than my first, with Wyatt). Knowing what to expect is half the battle. Still, I was a little anxious and didn't sleep great the night before. We arrived at the hospital at 6am for my scheduled surgery at 7:45am. I was thrilled no to be going first and getting it over with, but another patient started having complications so my surgery was pushed back until nine. They prepped me for surgery and we waited to be called. 

It's always a bit intimidating being wheeled into the OR, the bright lights, the sterile equipment, the large number of people (8!) in their scrubs. Dayven was waiting in the hall while the anaesthesiologist administered my epidural and I was laid on the operating table. I threw up (I always do) then once I was settled, they brought Dayven in and he sat in a chair by my head. The doctor started cutting pretty quickly. She had a resident and a medical student scrubbed in as well so she was explaining the process to them and they were helping out. They were both really young guys, which would normally be embarrassing but all modesty is out the window when you're having a baby! There was a lot of tugging and pulling, just like the last two times and then my doctor requested a stool. Dayven and I just exchanged looks. She did this with Hadley because she couldn't get her out. We could see the doctor's head over the top of the sheet as she pushed on the top of my stomach. The anesthesiologist made some joke about an elephant on my chest (my doctor is tiny) but that's exactly what it felt like. I started to panic and felt like I couldn't breathe, but he assured me I was fine and it would be over soon. She pushed and manuevered while the resident pulled on his head with forceps. Finally they got him out. She said "Your kids have the BIGGEST heads! They really make me work for it!" She said if he had gone full term he would have been ten pounds! They peeked him over the sheet so I could see him, then the nurses whisked him away to take care of him. Once he was cleaned up, they set him on my chest briefly so I could admire him, then Dayven and the nurses left the room with him so the doctor could finish stitching me up. I was in the OR for a total of an hour, then back to recovery. 

The epidural wore off a couple of hours later and I was able to get up and walk around the room a bit to get things moving again. I was sore and tender, but had great pain meds so it was as good as it could be. My ribs felt bruised for the first two days, which I guess is what happens when you have an elephant on your chest! As unpleasant as a c-section is, I'm grateful for modern medicine and my three beautiful kids. If I had been pregnant 100 years ago, I may have been one of those women who died in child birth or had serious complications. In the end, all that matters is healthy baby and mom. 

The kids were so cute when my parents brought them to see Tate. Hadley came right into the room excited to see him. Wyatt was a little more apprehensive. I could tell he was confused and a little scared. He walked up to me in my hospital bed slowly and asked "Mommy? What are you doing here??" in a timid voice. I reassured him I was fine and just talked to him about what he did at school and he seemed to relax. Hadley immediately asked "Where's the baby!?" The nurse had just given Tate a poke to take some blood for the metabolic screen. He was wailing away and both kids quickly covered their ears, saying he was too loud. Ironic, isn't it? 

They both came over to take a peek at him but Wyatt was less interested than Hadley. It took him a while to warm to Hadley too. I know eventually they'll all be best friends, but there's only so much you can do with a baby so I didn't really expect him to be too excited. My favourite comment came from Hadley. She looked around the room with a confused look on her face and asked "Where's the other one? Where's Gage?" Gage is the other name we were deliberating between and the kids were divided. Wyatt kept saying he would name his baby Gage and Hadley would name hers Tate. Somehow they got it in their head that there were two babies coming home. My mom said Hadley asked about Gage again the next day too!

Hadley crawled up in my hospital bed and tried to lift my gown, asking if she can see the baby. Yes I realize it looks like there's still a baby in my tummy, but I assured her there was definitely only one and he came out. Leave it to a two year old to give it to you straight!

Tate was circumcised the next day. One of the other doctors in my doctor's practice does them all so we had to wait for him to arrive early in the morning. Since it's an elective procedure, it's not covered by Alberta Health Care. The hospital charges a fee ($200) and the doctor charges a fee ($200 - cash only!) which we found interesting. Dayven literally handed him a stack of twenties and he stuck it in his pocket. If we hadn't been a hospital, it would have had a little bit a of a "back alley" feel to it. He asked Dayven if he wanted to help but he said no. He came back a few minutes later and said "the nurses are all busy, you don't have a choice, I need your help" so Dayven went with him. He said it was literally over in less than 5 minutes and not nearly as bad as he had thought it would be. Tate barely cried. What a trooper!

We're home from the hospital now and settling back in. It's amazing how much better you feel just being back in your own home. We're having ridiculously cold weather - yesterday was the coldest day in four years at -52! Today they actually cancelled the buses, which rarely happens and Dayven had to drive Wyatt to school. My poor parents' systems are in shock! It's scheduled to warm up the day they leave. For now, we'll just hunker down and enjoy getting to know our new little guy!