among the brinks

and now its time to travel!  diana and i packed ourselves, our dog, and the ridiculous amount of baby stuff, and ledger into the car and headed to grand rapids.  friday afternoon we rode up so that his other grandparents could spend a little quality time with their new grandson!  when we finally arrived, (which i'm sure was torture for mom to wait for) they were just thrilled to see him!  mom just couldnt seem to get ever just how cute and small he is!  thats ok though, i've seen him every waking hour for the past week and it still amazes me!  mom quickly got to examining him ('oh, look at those little fingers!', 'look at his little biddy nose!', etc.) while diana and i settled in for the short visit.  shortly after we arrived, it was time for ledger to meet his cousins!  tim and jill got there and we were able to introduce ledger to their kids.  all three of them took turns holding him and looking at him.  they were so curious!  i hope you like him kids, cause he's going to love playing with his cousins some day!
(more pics)

professional help

wow how time flies!  before we even knew it our first week with ledger came to a close.  and along with that, unfortunately, so did our time with diana's mom.  she had planned to stay a week and that week is over, so she needs to head over to grandma's house and help out there.  she was such a help for us these past few days, its going to be weird not having her around!  she is a nurse and spend many years working at teaching on the birth and baby floor in her hospital, so it has been amazing having a true professional living with us for this first hectic and confusing week!  whenever we have had a question she has been able to give us a ton of information and first hand advice.
thanks again for all the help, mom!

swingin'

it took us a little while before we tried out the swing.  it wasnt because we didnt trust it, its just that we never wanted to put him down!  finally though, we figured we would give it a try.  the first time we set him in there he just about got lost- he's so tiny!  he wasnt quite sure what to make of it right away, but there were soft blankets in there, so he got pretty comfy pretty quickly.  we've been putting him in there a little bit each day to get him accustomed to it and less reliant on his mom and dad holding him all the time.  after all, when i go back to work he's going to have to spend more time in it.  as the days go on he is getting more and more comfortable in it and now doesnt put up a fuss at all.

family comes a knockin'

later in the week diana's whole family stops by for a visit!  her mom was still with us full time, but her dad, sister, aunt, and david all came by to visit as well!  we had a fun time showing off our little boy!  its kind of nice to have absolutely no pressure when guests come over:  i dont have to worry about entertaining them, i just have to let them hold the baby!
(more pics)

ledger's day out

after the doctor's office, diana and i decided to trek out into the real world with ledger for the first time!  we were both starving, so we went to mcdonalds with him for a quick bite to eat.  after that we knew we needed to pick up a few things so we stopped at meijer and got a couple more onesies for him- there was no way we were going to last on what we had!  we both assumed he was going to be a big baby so we didnt stock up on newborn stuff at all!  so, unless we want to be going to the laundry mat every two days, we needed to get more newborn clothes.  the whole afternoon we were out ledger was as quiet as a mouse!  amazing!  i dont think this is typical, so we arent planning on getting used to it just yet...

rub-a-dub

diana has bathed ledger before, but this was my first time!  oh, what a thrill!  i was super excited to give him a bath, but he wasnt quite so eager- that little stinker just hates it soo much!  my mom got us a cool little foldable bathing thing for him and it works so perfect.  we stick him on there and wash him with a little cloth and soapy water.  he doesnt really seem to know what's going on, but he sure does hate that warm water so much!  but then the best part: wrapping him up in a towel and holding him as he dries off.  you know, i could really get used to this baby thing...

doctor visit

while we were still in the hospital we got a visit from our pediatrician.  we had never actually gone to see the pediatrician before, so this was something new for us.  she was very nice and quite excited for us.  she gave us a few pointers for making the transition back to the house, and then was off!  we made an appointment to see her again the first week back home, and now we were off to her office.  its quite nice because she is only about 2 miles from the house- handy!  we got there and checked in and sat in the 'not sick' waiting room.  the place was really cool, the walls were filled with fun dr. seuss paintings!  after a short 10 minute wait, we were called in.  first things first- ledger was taken over to the scale and he was weighed and measured.  he's a little bigger than when we left the hospital, so thats good!  the doctor showed up soon after and we got a chance to really talk to her.  i tell ya, we got pretty lucky, our doctor is amazing!  i dont think i've ever seen a doctor as passionate about her patients as she is!  she did a little bit of poking and prodding and told us that everything looks good, our boy is in good shape.  we made arrangements to see her again in two weeks.  i'm sure by then we will have a ton more questions for her...

change and chill

so far this little guy doesn't seem to mind being changed.  he doesnt put up too much of a fuss when we have to change his diaper, other than it being a bit chilly in his room sometimes. he almost seems to be doing just the opposite:  when its time to go on the changing table, he takes it as an opportunity to stretch out and enjoy the view!  usually we have him swaddled up and bundled up, but when he gets the chance to stretch he certainly takes it.  live it up, kid, live it up!

burpy time

my favorite time with our little guy is when i get to burp him.  sounds strange, i know.  but when i get to burp him, he has just filled his little tummy and is on the verge of falling asleep.  i put him up on my shoulder, patting him on the back, and he curls up into a little baby ball and within minute is sound asleep!  i get to have that warm little guy right up by my face, with his cute breathing in and out.  its a time where he and i can bond, he being cute, and i enjoying that cute!
(more pics)

great grandma's joy

with diana's grandma not doing so well, health wise, we made a point of going to see her with ledger as soon as possible!  she had been diagnosed with cancer and was not willing to go through the destructive treatments, so she was just fighting the good fight without aid.  we were able to go and see her with ledger just a day or two after we got out of the hospital.  she was so excited to see him- he is her first great grandchild!
oh, to see her look at little ledger!  the joy in her eyes at our little baby, it felt like, for just a moment, she melted with love.  as she looked at him her features softened, her pain subsided for a short time, she was simply a proud great grandma.  though ledger will not remember when he met his great grandma, we will be sure to tell him just how proud she was of him and how her heart overflowed with love to just hold him a moment!  we will be sure to tell him how much great grandma loved each of us and how she held on long enough to kiss his precious face.
we wont forget you, grandma, and we will make sure that ledger doesn't either!
(more pics)

home and sleepy

when we got home we werent exactly sure what to do, we had never had a newborn before!  well, it turns out you don't do much of anything!  he just wants to spend the whole time sleeping!  but oh, what a cute sleeper!  here are a bunch of pictures over his first few days of him sleeping and just generally hanging out being a baby: 1, 2, 3.

in bed

now that we are home with ledger, an important question arises: where does he sleep?  we had the crib all set for him, but we dont have a baby monitor yet, so we didnt feel comfortable leaving him on his own in his room (and we wanted to have him close to us anyway!), and we didnt bother with a bassinet, so what do we do?  well, we kind of made a makeshift bed for him using his changing pad for the first night.  we knew that wasnt exactly the safest option, so the next day diana and her sister went out and got him a little tiny bed to put between us.  its kind of like a cute little pack-n-play!  we figure he can sleep with us for the first few weeks, but this is definitely not going to be a permanent option.  david said that he has a monitor for us, so we will use that as soon as we can!

rockin!

soon after we got home i got to bring ledger into his room for the first time. he was quite impressed (or at least thats what i assumed considering that he was sound asleep and couldnt really talk even if he was awake...).  i was excited to test out the rocking chair that we had gotten from diana's family- it was time for ledger's first rock!  as one would expect, it went off flawlessly!  we are going to be getting used to thing, i'm sure!  i expect there to be many many hours spend in this chair as we raise our boy.  hopefully one day he will think back to this rocker as fondly as diana does to the rocker she had growing up!
(more pics)

poco, meet ledger!

now, time for the thing we have been the most nervous about: bringing our baby home to meet the dog.  we had heard all kinds of advice about how to do it, how to introduce the dog to the baby in a way that would make sure the dog saw the baby as a welcome addition to the family and not an intruder.  we had already asked diana's sister and mom to bring home a couple things for poco to smell that ledger had warn, a hat the first night and a blanket he had been swaddled in the second night.  so far so good.  in fact, when mom and sis woke up on that second morning, poco had found himself  comfy spot right on top of that blanket on the couch!  ok, so maybe this will go well.
we had heard that it might not be a good idea to bring the baby in while the dog is in the house, this makes the dog see the baby as an intruder, coming in on his turf.  instead they suggested that we should take the dog out of the house and then bring the baby in, when the dog returns, they will see the baby as something that is already a part of the accepted family.  kind of strange, but we trust cesar millan when it comes to dog stuff...
diana when in and got poco, put on his harness, and brought him out.  i got ledger out of the back seat and brought him in, followed by diana and poco.  at first the dog was unsure about this thing in the car seat that kept moving around, but after we took ledger out, then poco just wanted to get up and smell the little guy!  we did not let him, instead making sure that poco knew that there is a boundary: poco must stay away from ledger.  we hope to introduce the two of them slowly over time yet still keeping a distance between them.  sorry doggy, but there is a new favorite in town!
(more pics)

he's coming with us

with everything packed, including our child, we headed out to the car.  as is hospital policy, diana got to take a little wheel chair ride!  i walked ahead and got the car and drove up to the door.  it was finally over, the pregnancy is done and now we have a baby!  that's pretty crazy!  on the way home diana and i talked about how we hear so many people talk about how when they left the hospital with their first child they felt a bit freaked out and nervous.  neither one of us really felt that.  sure, it was our first one, but i think we are both at a place in our lives where we knew this was the next great step together.  we weren't nervous, we were just excited and ready!  (well, as ready as new parents can be, i suppose...)

buckle up

after we got him all dressed, it was time to take him out of there!  i brought a load of stuff out to the car that we packed up and brought back with us his car seat.  maybe i should have spent some time examining this car seat before now, because with the prospect of putting little ledger in there, i was baffled by how to do all the buckles and clicks and snaps and what ever else there was!  after a couple minutes i finally figured it out and we put him in there.  when i took a step back i laughed- look at how small he is!  with him all tight and snug behind those belts, we were ready to take him home.
(more pics)

his first clothes

now that we were about to leave, it was time to get ledger ready for the first time!  he was finished with the hospital wraps they had used while we were there, now it was finally time for diana to start using all those cute baby outfits she has been accumulating over the past 9 months!
diana pulled out the clothes we had brought for our little man before he was born, not exactly knowing what to expect!  we had brought big clothes and a little set too, just in case.  turned out that we needed the little set, and boy was it cute!

my new family

we raced in friday morning, and now here it is sunday afternoon, and its already time for us to be on our way home!  i'm a bit torn, in one way if feels like we just got here, but in another way it feels like we've been here for weeks!  i was able to stay with diana for the entire time, never having to leave to go home or anywhere else, which has been a huge blessing!  many guests have come and celebrated with us, which we are so thankful for!  in this one weekend, our entire lives have been completely and utterly changed forever- and we couldn't be happier!
half jokingly i said to diana 'you know, i could almost just stay here forever.'  we were together with the new love of our lives, away from distractions, away from responsibilities, away from everything.  we were together as a family, together for the first time.  i know i will think about this time in the upcoming years and smile with contented joy.  we are blessed.  thank God, we are blessed.

our hospital stay

all the events and comings and goings over the past two days left diana quite exhausted, but he was gaining back her strength little by little.  after two nights it was time to finish up our stay at the hospital.
we arrived on friday morning around 6:00 am, and on sunday at 2:00pm, we were signed out, all the tests for ledger had been completed and we were ok to go. it was a nice time, spending saturday and sunday there, using it as a time to celebrate and recuperate.  but now we knew that our stay was coming to an end and that it was finally time to go home!
(more pics)

first pacifier

we had hoped to go as long as possible before we gave ledger a pacifier.  turns out that one night is as long as possible!  he was crying on and off during that first night. we would take him out of his crib and hold him, which worked for a while, but the only sure-fire way to get him to stay quiet was to put a pinkie in his mouth to suck on.  the next morning we caved in and asked the nurse for a pacifier!  as soon as ledger got it, he was so relieved and got busy sucking.  we were relieved as well and enjoyed a few minutes of peace!
on a side note, i found this to be kind of interesting:  what do you call a pacifier?  it turns out that my family and diana's family use different terms for this little sucky tool.  i, for some reason, grew up calling it a 'pipe' in my family, while her family grew up calling it a 'binky'.  strange.  i guess on further reflection, it is quite strange that we would call it a pipe, huh?  a pipe is something that people smoke, so what does it have to do with keeping a baby quiet?  i'm not entirely sure what 'binky' is either...