Silent Sunday

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So...Week 1.....of our baby’s life!

It’s been a strange old week. 

FROM THIS                                                                                                       TO THIS!

I think you have an image in your head when you become a dad for the first time, what life is going to be like once the baby is born.

All along I have based my countdown on the due date knowing it was possible that date wasn’t an exact prediction, so when thinking of a post-birth life, again we assume everything will work out, the little one will arrive and you and the wife go home and start your life as a family, unfortunately in our case at least, that wasn’t going to happen!

Now before I continue, let me clarify, that even though we had our little bump in the road, I still feel were very lucky that after this week, BB (Baby Benjamin) is healthy and home.

                                                                                                                               

So BB joined us Last Sunday (17^th July) and everything checked out. Although he was 5 weeks early he was a good weight at 5lb 14oz and the paediatrician was very happy with him. We were placed onto the TCU (Transitional Care Unit) around midnight. I left for the night at the request of the nurses, leaving the wife and baby to get some rest.

Around 1am, Christine began the arduous job of breastfeeding and she and the nurse noticed his breathing was a little ‘growly’. They decided then to take him to the SPBU (Special Care Baby Unit). As new parent being told your baby is going into the SCBU is pretty scary. To see him in that little incubator broke my heart and if I was a religious man I would have prayed for his recovery.

The doctors told us that although he was on an incubator, he needed no help breathing and was simply being monitored more than he could be in the TCU as well as being treated for jaundice and given antibiotics to prevent any infection.

After 36 hours in the SCBU, they moved him back upstairs to the TCU, where he could be with his mummy.

After doing blood tests they decided his Bilrubin levels were unacceptable again, so they restarted treatment for that. By Friday, he was off all treatments and feeding well.

When the nurse came to do her rounds on Saturday night, she clarified his Jaundice had subsided, Christine was healthy, she was unsure, from that point, what the plan was.....This was the first indication that after nearly a week, we could finally take our boy home.

The next day, they came to do a hearing test (Something we noticed they only do when going home.) When the doctor came, he agreed with the nurse. No real reason to for them both to be there!

If you’re still interested in my birth story, let me know and I will try and get it published some point this week.

Thank you again to all my followers and especially those that have offered advice and support.

Quick Update - The first 48.

So nearly 48 hours into his life, Benjamin is doing well.

After being born at 20:27 in the evening he was taking to Transitional care to sleep next to his mummy. During the night when Christine tried to feed him, they noticed he was struggling to breath when put into certain positions. The admitted him to Special Care Baby Unit simply for more observations. As you can imagine, being born 5 weeks early means your lungs haven’t had chance to fully develop.

Since going into SCBU, he hasn’t needed any assistance breathing but due to a little jaundice he’s needed to have a light over his incubator. Not even 48 hours and already more tanned than Christine!!

Today, he has been taken out of his incubator and just needs the light and the doctors all seem very happy with his progress.

Hopefully, if he feeds well today, they will allow u to take him back up to Transitional care to be with his mummy.

So...Week 35

So normally at this time of the week, I usually publish a blog post droning on about how far gone the pregnancy has gone and how we are playing a waiting game ect ect and that my child is the size of some exotic fruit only found in the southern west region of Zimbabwe.

Well my dear reader (As I assume I may only have one...and that’s you!) The waiting game is over!!

As I tried to gain my nightly dose of the ugly medicine of some well earned beauty sleep, my wife woke me to tell me she may have wee’d herself.

This turned out to be a LIE!!!

It’s was a lie because, what had actually happened that for reasons only known to Mother Nature, it was 04:30 in the morning when Christine’s water broke.

What followed was a day filled with a relaxed car journey, more swaying than a pirate ship, a white middle aged midwife and her black cousin (I didn’t ask), but it ended with the delivery of our beautiful son.

Weighing in at a steady 5lb 14oz at exactly 35 weeks early he arrived at 20:27 on the 17/7/11.

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages, please welcome into this crazy work of ours; Benjamin George Ackroyd.

Now they say any bad news should be delivered in a ‘Bad news sandwich’, where you surround the bad news with good news so it doesn’t sound so bad....well

GOOD News: I will no longer bore you with my weekly updates on the progress of pregnancy.

BAD News: I will no doubt bore you with stories of how my little boy has just farted in a G Minor.

GOOD News: That won’t be right now, because I’m beat.

Later on in the week, I will update you all on the gory details with my very own birth story, but if you have any questions in the meantime use the contact me page or find me on twitter @_firsttimedaddy

Last night I truly went to bed a father_2_be and now I am defiantly a _firsttimedaddy.

Thanks for all your support up to this point.

Lewis

So...Week 34

One thing you always look forward when you are a kid is Christmas and the big 6 week holidays that came in July and lasted all the way to September when you started a new year. Back then those 6 week holidays always seemed to pass too quickly! Well, now Christine and I hope that the next 6 weeks pass just as quickly as they did then.

We only have 42 days!! (Probably 41 by the time I post this) and it’s just getting closer!

One piece of advice we keep getting is to enjoy your freedom now, enjoy your sleep, enjoy your time as a couple and we have certainly done that. Christine has been away on holidays enjoying the sun and sands with friends and I have spent 4 days in a rainy field....as they say, each to their own!

So even though, I have just arrived home, sunburnt, tired and until my shower extremely tired, I couldn’t let a Monday go by without filling my little corner of the internet with my usual drivel so....

For our second week in-a-row we are the size of a Honeydew melon.

Baby can recognize and react to simple songs...time to start practicing your lullabies! In fact, baby will recognize frequently sung tunes after birth and probably find them soothing. Less cute news: She now urinates about one pint per day. Get the diapers ready!

*Information and image courtesy of TheBump.com

On a previous post found here, I welcomed our friends little baby Eva into the world. Christine went to see mummy Claire today and both mother and baby are doing great. Claire has taken to motherhood really well and Eva is as cute as can be.

I understand that each person’s experiences with birth and looking after a newborn are different but it is greatly reassuring to hear somebody you know has found her new job so enjoyable and satisfying and reassuring. Christine was able to ask all the questions she had and knew that Claire would be honest. So hopefully in 6 weeks time, Claire will be coming to see our new addition and asking many of the same questions, not for advice though, simply to compare notes!

I will put the kettle on!

So...Week 33

Another week, another blog.
We are now 7 weeks away from our due date! 7 WEEKS!
The rooms ready, the hospital bag is packed, my hair is already grey, so bring on the baby!
C'mon….
No…..
We gotta wait??
Damn!

 

I suppose we just have to play the waiting game, and a long boring game it is.
What's not boring (It keeps us entertained at least), is checking the little fruit ticker progress at the top of this page!

We are now DRUM ROLL PLEASE…..a Honey dew (That’s a melon for those that don’t know)

*Things are heating up inside as well: Baby may grow up to a full inch this week alone, and his brain is developing like crazy. Pretty soon, he'll be able to coordinate breathing with sucking and swallowing. Also, his bones are hardening, and he's started to keep his eyes open when he's awake. 

*Information and image courtesy of TheBump.com 

This baby is one hell of a mover. He/she is regularly giving Christine a kick in the ribs and is constantly moving. We are taking that as a positive.

We also think we had our first contraction!! It may have been Braxton Hicks, but still, its exciting. If you think Braxton Hicks sounds like a blues player, your right, but that’s not what I mean. Braxton Hicks is common in pregnancy and is also known as false labour or practice contractions. These are fairly painless but I think it gives the mother a little glimpse of what is to come. More information in Braxton Hicks can be found here on the always reliable Wikipedia.  

In America at least they have a tradition of 'Baby Showers'. All I can gather about this seemingly age old tradition is that it is essentially a party where the mother to be invites all her friends round simply for them to buy her and/or baby a load of presents, sounds like a sweet deal to me. I recently saw an article (Which I now can't find) regarding a daddy style baby shower involving a BBQ with friends or a few drinks out on the town. So coincidentally I am leaving wife and bump this coming weekend as I am off to a music festival with some friends. Although I am sure I will enjoy every moment, I know I will be watching my phone closely. I know it is still a long way from due date and it is common for the first baby to be late, but magical things happen when I go to music festivals…Mostly bad!

Is that baby ready yet?
Did I mention we are playing a waiting game?