Adjusting to Newborns
I want to thank everyone once again for your good wishes and thoughts. We are re-adjusting to life with a newborn, but there was a little wrench thrown in. The baby’s bilirubin levels were a bit elevated (the pediatrician was worried about jaundice), and since everyone was off for the holidays, they sent an in-home nurse to have a look at him. The bilirubin still wasn’t going down, and so we had to put the baby in a photo blanket. The poor kid appeared radioactive, with this greenish light shining on his skin 24-7. Thankfully they don’t think it’s that bad now, but it sure was a pain because the blanket was plugged in, and it made diaper changes, naps, and nursing more challenging by having to juggle electronic equipment.
There were a few rough days when my husband and I got around 2-3 hours of sleep the whole night, and those were in fifteen and ten minute intervals. The only way to get him to sleep consecutive hours was to let him sleep on top of my chest while he was wearing the photo blanket. But the past two nights were great. I found this handy-dandy little sleeping outfit that is basically a velcro-swaddling device. You wrap your kid like a mummy, and they loooove it. My little man only woke up once last night at 1 a.m. for a feeding and he slept the rest of the time. Gotta love it.
We decorated the house for Christmas over the weekend, and so I thought I’d share a few photos of our Santa baby and his siblings. Now if I can only get over my post-pregnancy hormones that make me want to bawl myself senseless every time I hear about a new baby boy being born. 
Have you started your holiday decorating yet? Or better yet, holiday baking? I’m in the mood to make some Christmas cookies already. Mmm….
Michelle posted in Writing @ 11:34 am | Viewed 2679 times
Allison Littlehales Says:
Glad to hear Jame’s jaundice is getting better though.
Holly(Taryn Raye) Says:
Glad to hear the little guy is getting better and you’ve found a way to get a good night’s sleep!
I’ve been done with my decorating since last week. I started by putting up the tree on the 17th and was finished with all indoor and outdoor by the 19th or 20th…can’t remember exactly…it’s all kind of a blur..haha!
If you’d like to see pics of my decorations, feel free to hop over to my myspace photos and see them.
http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewPicture&friendID=62433615&albumId=1436465
Now you’ve got me thinking about Christmas cookies…mmmmm….
Kim A. Says:
Oh, wow, you’ve had a rough time of it. Glad things are improving, Michelle. He’s a gorgeous boy and I love the grins on your other two children’s faces.
I don’t bake (okay, or cook), but gee, I’ll be happy to eat whatever is on the go. LOL.
-Kim
Suzanne Says:
ohmygod, they are SO adorable!!!!
Melissa Mc Says:
Hang in there. It’ll get better!
No decorating yet. The kids took down all my Thanksgiving decorations though. I have a book due this week. Once it’s off, I’ll get the house looking like Christmas!
Melissa Marsh Says:
LOVE those pics! I remember when my daughter was born - I couldn’t get her to go to sleep the first night we were home. I rocked and rocked, sang and sang, and nearly fell over from exhaustion. My husband picked her up, laid on the couch and put her on his chest, and they both fell asleep right away. I was just a tiny bit jealous that it was so easy for him!
Haven’t put up the decorations yet, but want to soon!
beth Says:
You and your hubs sure make some cute kiddos!
Glad James is doing better — will you be calling him James or Jim or Jimmy or Jamsie (kind of kidding on the last one)? Looks like the older two are enjoying their new brother immensely. Yay!
Our decorations are basically up…and now you’ve got me thinking about cookies. Mmm. May have to bake this weekend!
Angie S. Says:
Hi Michelle, congrats on the new addition! Reading about James’ jaundice adventures brought back a lot of memories of Reagan’s similar ordeal. She had to be put in this little light “suitcase” when she came home from the hospital. It looked like a miniature tanning bed. We had the photo blanket too.
Take care. Happy Holidays.
Angie and Brian Smith