Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Sweet Prince William

Okay, sorry for the radio silence. Things have been a bit hectic, as you might imagine.

First things first! A picture of Little Man for your viewing pleasure.

His name is William Patrick, named after my late-grandfather and my husband's late-father. We are calling him Will. My husband ordered customized M&Ms with his name on them to hand out at the hospital and when people come to visit, as our way of revealing the secret name.

We were discharged from the hospital on Saturday and have been home with various family and friends visiting throughout the week. It's been wonderful to have all of the help, as recovering from a c-section is no joke. But I think both M and I are looking forward to being alone as a family soon and really getting to know Will.

I have so many things to post about and really could make this a long entry. However, my services will soon be needed by a very hungry Little Man. I will try to get more things up in the next few days, but the only gray in this silver-lined cloud is that Will has some pretty bad jaundice and we have been taking him to the pediatrician's daily for blood draws. It's amazing, weight checks, and possibly starting tomorrow, we will have 24-hour phototherapy here at home. It doesn't sound like much, I am not even sure where the day goes, but go it certainly does!

Some things of note, which I will try to expand upon later:

My husband is the most amazing father. He was a changed man the moment they placed that baby in his loving arms. It is actually one thing that I am grateful for regarding the c-section, it has required him to do a lot of things that I would have otherwise done. He was scared about diapers, poops, swaddling, burping, etc., and is now far better at those things than I am!

There is the other side of the coin, however. Very much surprising myself, I have been having a lot of conflicted feelings about the c-section. I know, that sounds really whiny, but having some time to reflect, it all ties back into infertility. I wanted some part of this to be "natural," to prove that my body could do it. I'll get into the details of the section later, but I feel as if I didn't do enough to get him out on my own, and I will always regret that. C'est la vie, I know, but. . .

And finally, because this is my blog and I'll share too much if I want to: constipation after a c-section is awful. Truly, truly awful.
This is really an awful picture of me, but it was taken the day after, and I make no apologies because who really cares what I look like anyway?!








37 comments:

Becky said...

He's absolutely gorgeous!!! You are so blessed to have him!

Congratulations:)

And by the way you don't look bad in the pictures... You look HAPPY!!!!

Mrs. Piggy said...

Ugh, your posts make me cry! Its like me reliving my experience! I too am a little annoyed that it all ended up with a c-section, and I was completely out for mine, so I really missed out :( That little man of yours, oh how cute is HE!
You must be so in love. My husband was doing everything with the babies too, it was weird when I came home and changed a diaper because he had done it all so far. I felt so un-mommy like!

Cant wait for more details. Its so weird that you dont post everyday, but I certainly check!

Annalien said...

Aah, how absolutely gorgeous is that! Such a nice big boy. May he bring you much joy and happiness.

Ange said...

You both look wonderful. Am so thrilled for you and am all teary. How fabulous and what a journey to get him. Take care of yourself and each other.

Polka Dot said...

He's so precious! And I love the name.

I'm so beyond excited for you two!

AwkwardMoments said...

Oh Katie - He is gorgeous! Just perfect. Beautiful name and all. You take care of yourself and Lil Will. I am just so excited and happy for you

Ms. J said...

Mazel Tov!

And you and sweet Will both look beautiful!

Flippin' happy for all three of you!

(Guess it's time to take your countdown ticker off your page?!)

Kathy said...

Congratulations again Katie! Will is adorable! So glad you posted, I figured you were busy... but am so excited to hear how you are doing and see such a cute picture of your "Little Man" who we now know his name! :)

I am sorry about the jaundice, but it sounds like you are handling it well and doing all you can for him.

I totally get your feelings about your c-section. I certainly had them after delivering Sean, I wanted a vaginal birth so much and felt like I had been cheated by ending up with a c-section. I wish I could find her exact words, but soon after I gave birth to Sean a woman I met on Fertility Friend gave me some great advice. She reminded me that I still carried Sean for 41 weeks, that I didn't do anything wrong to make the c-section happen (I use to think that "if only I had...") and that it is okay to mourn the loss of a more "natural" labor.

Anyway, I think you are human to be dissapointed, but it doesn't make you any less of a mother. You still went through labor and gave birth to your amazing son. I also know that recovering from a c-section is challenging. Hang in there. (((HUGS)))

I am also so glad to hear that your husband is so happy and being such a great daddy! I had a similar experience with Bob having to do more for Sean and me than we initially expected with the c-section, but I agree it helped them to bond sooner.

Okay, very long post... just sooooooo happy for you Katie!!!

Love,
Kathy

Anonymous said...

Katie! He is GORGEOUS! Welcome Will :) and you looked fab in that picture!!!

Kristen said...

CONGRATULATIONS! I've been reading and following your blog for some time now, finding your link from Mzfitzita. I've not posted until now - but am coming out of the cyberspace closet to tell you that jaundice is scary - but okay. Both of my babies had pretty severe cases of jaundice - but were both able to be treated at home with phototherapy. The little pad is kind of a nuisance, but if you have to go down that road, trust me when I tell you that your sweet Will will not know it's there - and it will work it's magic in a few days.
Best of luck to you and your sweet baby boy!

Mrs. Shoes said...

He is so very lovely! And I love his name. If we have a boy, that name might be popping up around our house too.

Jen said...

Oh Katie! What a sweetie little Will is. I absolutely adore the name. I can't wait to hear more about him. But until then rest up!

Anonymous said...

He's completely precious! You're all in my prayers. My sister and I both had jaundice at birth, hers was way worse than mine. In the hospital she had "sunglasses" and had to be under the UV light in her incubator for hours a day. Then when we brought her home she had to be in a bassinet in front of the picture window under the full sun. Although that was 21 years ago so I'm quite confident technology has much improved since then. :) Keep the pictures coming! :)

Laura said...

Wow! He is adorable! And I love the picture of the two of you.

I am so happy for you and your husband!

Debby said...

He is so friggin precious! i love the hair.

I can relate to the constipation for sure - heinous! I didn't have a c-section but my OB refers to my level 4 episiotimy and tear as a "vaginal c-section" - so the painkillers I was on sure did block me up. Keep taking your softeners and you'll be fine in no time.

and don't beat yourself up about the c-section. The important thing is the end result - healthy baby - which you have and he is beautiful

Debby said...

He is so friggin precious! i love the hair.

I can relate to the constipation for sure - heinous! I didn't have a c-section but my OB refers to my level 4 episiotimy and tear as a "vaginal c-section" - so the painkillers I was on sure did block me up. Keep taking your softeners and you'll be fine in no time.

and don't beat yourself up about the c-section. The important thing is the end result - healthy baby - which you have and he is beautiful

Kathy said...

P.S. You look so beutiful in the picture and such the proud mommy!

Constipation post-c-section is a real pain in the a$@ (pun intended)! I had it very bad after Molly in April. If you aren't taking a laxative or fiber supplement (Metamucil) or stool softener, all of those can help. Worst case sceanario is an enema, but I was determined not to. Drink lots of water too. You probably know all of this, but just in case...

Also, if others who had c-sections can help me recall or you could call your OB and ask, there is some supplement that is helpful to take after a c-section to avoid infection when nursing. Sean and I ended up both getting thrush when he was about 4 weeks old, which was not fun. But by 8 weeks out nursing was going great (we struggled but it was soooo worth it) and we both were happy campers!

HereWeGoAJen said...

He's perfect! I love the name and the M&M reveal is perfect.

JuliaS said...

Oh Sweetie! He is simply beyond beautiful - and I am so happy for you that I am in tears!

Love his name too - my dad's name is William. We never used it - our last name rhymes with some awful four letter words and "Will Suck" or other such nonsense was not something we could in good conscience do to a child. :0

Congratulations and enjoy these days to their fullest.

Anonymous said...

He is just absolutely gorgeous and perfect! I'm so happy for you and your hubby. Congratulations!!!!

Anonymous said...

He is just absolutely gorgeous and perfect! I'm so happy for you and your hubby. Congratulations!!!!

Julie, Todd, Kate and Miles said...

Katie,

Your little boy is so darling! And you look great too! I'm so glad that you are home with your family, getting to know your new son.
Jaundice is a pain in the butt, but in the grand scheme of things, it's pretty manageable. I'm so glad he's healthy!

Congrats!
Julie

Joy said...

He is a doll!!!!! Oh very cute!

Remember your hormones are still plummeting and you will be weepy and upset about things. Even though you know in your head that getting upset about the c-section isn't a big deal, your heart and hormones are saying another thing! Give yourself time and definitely grieve that you didn't get to birth the way you wanted.

CONGRATS!!!!!!!!!

Allison said...

Ah, he's beautiful, as are you, the mother! :)

I will say two things: ICAAN (find the local group in your area---wonderful resource for processing those feelings about your C and babes are welcome!!) and Colace (amazing stuff for just making it easier to get it out after those babes, constipation after any birth is no joke).

happy baby moon!!

Amy B said...

He is absolutely gorgeous! Will is on our list for boys names, I love it. I totally understand what you mean about the section both of mine were and with my first I was depressed for weeks about it. It couldn't be helped though he was an emergency section 6 weeks early so my 2nd was a scheduled one b/c not enough time lapsed between. I think I may be able to talk my Dr. into letting me try this on the "natural" way. He said we will talk about it later. Congrats!

Becky said...

I forgot to mention, my sons name is Roman Shashank (Indian name picked out my MIL) Will. He never gets called Roman at home, he gets called Will. So I LOVE the name:)

Anonymous said...

Congratulations Katie!!! He is beautiful!!! I got chills the second that I saw him. You have one gorgeous family. Sending lots of ((HUGS)) to your Little Man.

AllieQB said...

Delurking to say you look absolutely gorgeous in the photo - totally in love. Your son is a handsome little fellow. Congratulations. :)

Anonymous said...

He is adorable!

Anonymous said...

Oh my goodness! He is TOO cute!!! I mean really, he is such a cute baby. Good Work Mom!

Yetty said...

CONGRATULATION!!

Kim said...

GORGEOUS! And you look great!

I know, the constipation sucks. But trust me, you'll be back to padoodling as usual in a week. So just give it some time. And take the stool softeners! Because when it comes... um... ya, take the stool softeners.

Congratulations, he is gorgeous and very lucky to have such an amazing family.

Heather said...

He's absolutely gorgeous! Congrats on a healthy baby boy!

Geohde said...

Katie- he is just divine. You must be so very happy....even with the recovery and the fatigue and all of it :)

Oh, and after my c-section, lactulose was my very best friend for about a week!

J

Amy said...

yayayayayay!! Can't wait to come up and see him! Congrats, you finally made it...after all the heartache and tears now you will have endless smiles! Welcome to the best life yet! xoxoxo

Anonymous said...

Gorgeous baby with a beautiful name! Now the fun really starts!

Yoka said...

He is adorable!!! Congratulations again! Lilli and Will are only 1 month apart. This is so cool!!!