Tyler's Birthday

Sunday night (February 18) we took the pups and Andrew to spend the night at Peepaw and Mom Mom's. It was really strange coming home to an empty house and knowing that I was leaving Andrew for several days made me very sad since I have only been away from him a handful of nights in 2.5 years. However, I knew that he was going to have loads of fun with Peepaw and Mom Mom and ultimately I realized that I was really bringing Andrew a big gift - a brother!

So, Monday morning the alarm went off at 3:00 a.m. and I woke up completely refreshed as if I had slept for 8 hours instead of the 3 or 4 hours that I actually got that night. After a nice shower (knowing that I wouldn't be getting a good shower for at least 3 days), I woke up Douglas and finished packing the remainder of the toiletries. We pulled out of the driveway at 4:02 a.m. For once, we were on schedule!

People who joke that there is always traffic in Houston have never driven on the Houston freeways at 4:00 a.m. It was a complete ghost town - there was no traffic to speak of, heck, there were hardly any cars on the road at all! We arrived at the hospital at just past 4:30 a.m. and we headed up to L&D. Christina, the nurse that prepped me for the c-section, was ready for us and we went straight back to a prep room. I use the word "room" very loosely here since it was really just a prep area behind a curtain. Now, this was a surprise since the last time we did this when Andrew was born we were actually in a true L&D room. The second surprise came when we found out that since we were not in an actual L&D room our families would not be able to come back to see us before the c-section as we were in the operating area. That was a bummer, but I knew that I would see everyone soon enough.

We had about 30 minutes of quiet waiting time (after the nurse asked us 100s of questions, monitored the baby, etc) until it was time to walk back to the operating room. They won't start the epidural until the doctor is in the building. So, at just after 6:00 a.m. I walked back to the operating room and Douglas went to the waiting area (since he cannot be in the room when they put in the epidural). The operating room was much brighter than I remembered and quite cold, but after a couple of minutes they confirmed Dr. Mac was in the building and they put in the epidural, which warmed me right up. Shortly thereafter I saw Dr. Mac and I knew it was just a matter of time before the surgery. I recall reminding the nurse not to forget to get Douglas from the waiting area ... and then just like that he was sitting by my side and the incision had been made.

The blue "curtain" that separates the patient from the actual surgery was apparently very low this go round, and although I (thankfully) could not see anything, Douglas had a perfect view of the entire surgery. He tells me that it was amazing to watch and it was not until much later when he was thinking about what he saw that it made him a bit queasy.

At 6:38 a.m. Tyler Matthew was born. He weighed 8 pounds 13.4 ounces and was 20.5 inches long. He was covered in vernix and his cry sounded more like a croak because of the fluid in his lungs. This made me a bit nervous (that and Dr. Mac casually asking the nurses a short time later whether neo - as in neonatal intensive care - needed to be called), but the nurses assured Dr. Mac that all was fine. Tyler's Apgar scores were 8 and 9, so clearly there was nothing to worry about.

After the nurses cleaned the vernix off Tyler, took his vitals, weighed him, took his foot prints, and attached the sensor to his umbilical cord to prevent a switcheroo or someone walking off with our sweet boy, I was finally able to hold him. I am attaching that first photo as well as the first photo of the three of us. I can't call it a family portrait because Andrew is not in it since he was not allowed in the operating room.

I was able to hold him for a couple of minutes before the nurse took Tyler (followed closely by Daddy) to the transition nursery for his first bath, eye drops, etc. On the way to the nursery, they went by the waiting room where our parents were waiting with Andrew. I am posting some wonderful pictures of Andrew meeting his baby brother for the first time before he was taken into the nursery.

While everyone was meeting Tyler, Dr. Mac was sewing me up and then it was off to recovery for an hour or so until I could feel my legs again. They put this warm sheet on me to bring up my body temperature since the operating room was so cold - it was so cozy! Before I knew it, I was wiggling my legs and I was given the ok to head up to my postpartum room. The nurses made sure we went to pay our bill first though! Right before heading upstairs to my room, the pediatrician stopped by to let us know that Tyler was perfect :) .

Once upstairs they wheeled me past the nursery to get another look at Tyler and then it was off to room 424. Andrew was very excited to see me, but he was even more excited to open his present from his mommy and daddy for becoming a big brother - a baseball and baseball glove. As you can see from the photo he loved his gift!

So after the reunion with Andrew and our parents we made phone calls to family and friends to share our good news while we waited for the nurses to bring Tyler to us from the nursery. In the mean time, Andrew went to school for the rest of the day.

When they finally brought Tyler to us (about 4 hours after his birth) ... it was such a joy to hold him and just look at him. It was so incredible to look at his tiny hands and feet and to study his features to see who he resembles. Tyler has my nose, Doug's hands and feet ... and if you ask most of our friends he looks a lot like Andrew (which means he will likely look a lot like me!). He even has a little stork bite on the lid of his left eye just like Andrew did. Plus, there is nothing sweeter than the smell of a baby or softer than a newborn baby's skin.

The rest of the day was spent cuddling with Tyler and spending time with family. Andrew came back to the hospital in the evening to visit with mommy, daddy and "baby Tyler" (as Andrew calls him). Tyler gave his big brother a Buzz Lightning action figure ... that was a big hit as well.

As you can see, Andrew loves his little brother!

What a day! I cannot remember another day where I got so little sleep yet I was so alert and happy (for the record - Andrew was born at 9:14 a.m. and I slept in the recovery room, so I was not as sleep deprived when he was born). Clearly, the adrenaline was working hard!

Happy Birthday, Tyler Matthew!