June 14, 2012...

...was the day he stole our hearts.♥

We got to the hospital at 10am for a surgery scheduled at noon.

As soon as I got checked-in, the prep started and we were on our way to meeting our baby boy!

Taylor was really excited all morning, until she saw me in a gown, in a hospital bed, with an IV in my arm and a monitor on my tummy.  Then, she got a bit worried...as you can see.

The surgery went pretty well for the most part...but there were a few things that went a little differently than last time.

{After they had taken Benjamin, I started getting sharp pains in my chest, so the anesthesiologist gave me a "boost" in my spinal block, which made my blood pressure drop dramatically {95/50}, which then made me really nauseous.  So, as I'm lying on the table, arms straight out, abdomen wide open, numb from the waist down, and obviously unable to move, I'm throwing up into a sterile plastic bag that somehow I kept missing. Ugh.}

Seeing that sweet boy and hearing him cry for the first time, though...man.  I'd endure pretty much anything for that.

Benjamin and Dr. Sorensen, my OB. I just love this lady!  She's delivered both of my babies and

she's been through some rough times with me...all the while cheering us on, helping us make some tough decisions, and hoping and praying right along with us.

She was just about as excited as we were to see this little guy! :)

Taylor's first glimpse of her new baby brother.♥

She was a bit nervous at first, seeing me wheeled in on a great big bed, looking like I'd just been run over by a truck.  But, she warmed right up and was loving on both of us in no time.

Groggy, sick, still numb...and happy.♥

Getting her first up-close look.

I can honestly feel the love when I look at this picture.  It just makes my heart happy.

♥

Proud Papa :)

We were all pretty smitten. :)

Now that is one proud Daddy right there!  Go Pack Go!

There's really nothing quite like the sweetness of a sleeping newborn baby, is there?♥

Self portraits at 2am.  It's what you do when you're stuck in the hospital for 3 days.

The first of many cartoons together. :)

Love those sweet little footprints!

After about 36 hours, our sweet little man turned into a pumpkin.

He was Coombs+ {which means he and I have different blood types and that doesn't always work well in their tiny little bodies} so his jaundice levels went up pretty quickly.

His bilirubin was 12.9 after 36 hours and he'd lost 9% of his body weight in just that first day of life.

We thought we were going home on Saturday, but instead he was ordered under the lights in the Special Care Nursery for at least 24 hours.

It was so hard seeing him in that little bed all by himself.  Not being able to hold him or snuggle him was torture.  Thankfully he didn't mind being in there and was such a little trooper!  He was on a pretty strict schedule of eating every 3 hours, while not being out from under the lights for more than 30 minutes during each feeding.  So I'd nurse him and give him what I could {my milk wasn't in yet} then supplement with formula to fill him up.

He did so awesome! He ate, peed and pooped like a champ and in less than 24 hours his bili was down to 6 and he was a beautiful, perfect pink!

I had prepared myself to be staying another night in the hospital after they'd weighed him and he'd lost a little more weight {he was down to 5lbs 13.5ozs, which means he'd lost more than 10% of his birth weight} but, because he turned around so quickly and was eating and pottying so well, they put in our discharge orders and we were free to go!

{I'm sure the fact that the SCN doc and nurses knew and loved my sister from residency and knew we'd be seeing her that night and the next day didn't hurt, either!}

My babies!  All packed up and more than ready to go home!

♥It turned out to be a very Happy Father's Day for this daddy!♥

Taylor's been very helpful since we've been home!  She loves to hold him and help with getting diapers, wipes and binkies.  She loves to kiss him and talk to him, and ogles over him like the rest of us!

First sponge bath at home!

This face seriously melts me...♥

Our first few nights at home were kinda rough.  Benjamin sleeps all day and then decides he doesn't want to go back to sleep after his first nighttime feeding.  Fun!  Our first night at home I think we got a total of 3 hours of sleep.  The second night, maybe 4 or 5.  Last night was encouraging, though!  He slept from 11p-330a, and then again from 4a-715a...not bad!  It's amazing how different you feel after getting 7 hours of sleep, as opposed to 3.  And, I'm not a daytime sleeper so I just can't nap like everyone tells me to.  Hopefully we see more 7+ hour nights from now on.  He's definitely worth it, but this mama likes her sleep! :)

I'm already feeling pretty darn good.  Still taking it easy, but only relying on Ibuprofen once or twice a day for my incision.  I'm sure in the next few days I'll be feeling back to my old self.  And thank God, my taste for coffee came back!  That's definitely something I'm enjoying right now.

My two favorite guys on the first of many afternoons together on the couch, I'm sure! :)

We are so thrilled to finally have our sweet baby in our arms!

He has quickly stolen our hearts and filled them up with so much love that I didn't even know it was possible.

To quote a card that my aunt Krissy sent me...

"Miracles have a way of being worth the wait."

A-to the-men.♥

*A very special thank you to our family and friends who have called, texted, visited us at home and at the hospital, made dinner, sent flowers and blessed us in so many ways!

We love you all and appreciate you oh-so much!

xo