Your First Week

Baby Girl,

On Sunday we finally got to go home....You left the hospital at 18.5 inches and 5 lbs. 10 oz.

Here we are - leaving the hospital together, and in the car, finally going home!

 Here you and Daddy are getting out of the car.  And finally, in the house meeting Zoey and Bentley!

It is so nice to finally have you home and start our lives with you - now a family of 3.  Needless to say, it took a while for all the visitors to leave us alone and let us be a family of 3.  Your daddy stayed home from work for two days before going back.  I think there were a few tears shed the morning he had to go back (even though he would tell you he was fine).  When Daddy went back to work your MiMi came to stay with us. Funny side note - the day your daddy went back to work he found out that there had been a lot of students with the flu.  Because of the large amount of absences they were considering closing the school for the rest of the week.  When your daddy came home, MiMi asked him if he wanted to hold you.  He immediately replied no, because he wanted to take a shower before touching you.  This resulted in your daddy stripping down to his underwear in the front door that was wide open for everyone driving by to see!! We really appreciated all the help everyone was willing to offer.  They helped clean the house, put up the Christmas decorations, did laundry, and of course, held you!!  I don't think we ever put you down the first week, except when we had to sleep.

Your first week home was interesting.  Daddy and Mommy had to take you to the doctor the Monday after we got home because when we left the hospital your jaundice levels were 11.9.  The hospital told us to make sure we made a doctors appointment to get it checked again.  Here you are at your first doctors appointment....

Unfortunately, your jaundice levels had gone back up.  Since the levels were rising the doctors office called us and told us home health would be out to put you in a special bed with a light to help get rid of your jaundice.  They told us we wouldn't be able to hold you except during feedings.  Mommy cried for a long time after this phone call.  Luckily, when home health came out they had a light that went under your clothes and we were able to hold you any time we wanted.  The light was difficult to maneuver around and made you look very uncomfortable.  You stayed on this light for 4 days.  Tuesday your levels got up to 17.9 but were coming down after that!  All week long we called you our little glow worm.  Here are some pictures of you as a "glow worm."

 The first pictures you can see the long tube that came out of your outfit.  We couldn't button your outfits at the bottom because of this tube.  The second pictures shoes you laying on your tummy where you can really see the light from underneath your clothing.

Even laying on your back, you could see you glowing!

 We were so glad to see you come off this light!  It made holding you and changing you a lot easier.

Our first week home was a success!! You are a great baby - your daddy and I got very lucky!  You only cry when you are hungry.  You are a great sleeper at this point.  Daddy and I couldn't love you more!!

Here are a few more "first week pictures..."

 You are such a cuddle bug!  You love to lay on our chests and sleep!  You and Mommy cuddle every day!  Sometimes we cuddle in the bed in the mornings before we ever get up and sometimes we lay on the couch in the afternoons and cuddle together!

This is our first day home.  In fact, we hadn't been home thirty minutes.  I was very tired and just wanted to hold you!  You were so small you are wearing preemie clothes at this point!