For those of you who have yet to hear, Matthew Joined us on Saturday October 18th, 2008 at 5:56 AM. He was 7lbs and 15oz, 21" long.
I went into the doctor around 1:45 PM Friday and she sent me directly to OB. We weren't prepared for that response and had all of the kids with us, and no cell phone, so it was an interesting dilema! We called Marilyn Barber, since she was the only person whose phone number we could remember! She called Marilyn Weller for us, and a short time later they arrived to help with the kids. Marilyn ended up staying with me throughout labor and delivery and the kids went home with Becky Dalrymple. We had a great time chatting and walking, and walking and walking! She stayed up all night with me, while Andrew slept!! He was so glad she agreed to stay! I really enjoyed the company, no offense but Andrew isn't much of a talker! Talking helped distract me, so the time went by pretty fast and the pain seemed less.
By 3:30 I was getting pretty tired, so we opted to get some pain meds and speed things along. As always, things went very fast after the pitocin was added. Just two hours later we had what we thought was a very very dark baby boy! Then they informed us he was just purple...he got stuck on the way out. I have to admit I was a little disappointed! I think he will still be darker than the other two boys, but we will just have to wait and see. Seems Arianna drained the pigment stores :-)
So far he is a great baby! Since birth he has had a pretty consistant 3 hour eating scheduale during the day and 2 hours at night. We are working on reversing that...
He eats great and has already gained back more than his birth weight, so things are going well. Right after birth he had a little trouble controlling his body temp and his sugar was low, but those issues resolved pretty quickly and he is doing great now.
He seems very alert for a newborn and lifts his head to look around. He even seems to be trying to coo and smile when you talk to him or kiss him. (I'm not kidding or crazy!) I don't remember the others doing that this early. He hates pacifiers! And loves to eat! He rarely cries, and if he does there is a good reason.
As far as how he looks, we think he looks a lot like Arianna did when she was little, although he also looks a lot like Isaac did too in other ways (and Isaac is a blonde!) He is built very stocky in the upper body, his chest is like a square, as wide as it is deep! We were all a little surprised at his size for being born at 37 weeks. His tone is pretty red, and his hair is very dark. We'll just have to wait and see now...will he be a tiny blonde like Isaac or will he grow quickly and be darker like Arianna, or maybe he will tread his own path??? I'm excited to see.
The kids are very proud of him. Isaac is having a little difficulty giving up baby status, but I think he will come along. The baby has become a sort of curiosity for him, so we have to be careful, today I found him climbing in the car seat on top of the baby!
Overall I would have to say that this has been a wonderful experience. Probably the easiest and most enjoyable of all four! I thought it would be rather chaotic, but with the support and generosity from our church family here, things are going very smoothly. It seems everyday we recieve a new blessing that gives an extra boost of energy! Amazing how God can work through good deeds to lift even the most tired of spirits :-)
