Thursday, November 7, 2013

A Little Glimpse of "Normal"


 After two months of holding and bouncing you we decided that it was time to try and put you down so that we could actually see something more than the top or back of your head. You did not embrace the idea as much as we would have liked. After trying every natural, holistic and Whole Foods approved approach to try and alleviate your stomach issues we succumbed to the traditional western method of treating discomfort.......medicine! Your Mother had already cut out any and all food groups and beverages that might have been contributing to your condition. She was on a diet that basically consisted of baked chicken, brown rice and water. She even gave up coffee because she thought it would help and believe me if there was ever a time in which she NEEDED coffee it was then. Only after constant pleading from me to consider medication and the eventual realization that none of the dietary sacrifices seemed to help did your mother settle for what she thought was the "easy" way out. So we swallowed our pride, disregarded the anti-establishment online parenting community and filled your very first prescription. I don't want to exaggerate but this was not any ordinary medicine but rather life changing happy baby juice sent from the heavens above. It completely renewed my faith in the entire pharmaceutical industry. You were like a different child or perhaps the baby you were meant to be now that you had a little relief and comfort. You started to sleep which meant we started to sleep which meant life as we once knew it was again in our reach. You smiled and made noises that actually sounded like a human baby. The puking was still borderline comical in its sheer volume but now that we were actually getting four hours of sleep in row it didn't really seem to matter as much. We actually got the chance to put you down, stare into your beautiful blue eyes and remember how amazing a new baby can be. We finally got to meet the "real Quinn"and realize how lucky we were to have you in our lives.

Wednesday, September 11, 2013


Squeaks

        A lot of people told us that having two young kids was exponentially harder than having one.  As much as I thought our situation would be different…..I was wrong. The first few (73/4) weeks were pretty tough. Quinn you were not much of a sleeper, did NOT like to be swaddled and threw up more than anyone or anything we had ever seen, but you were adorable…….which helps. Apparently we were not the SUPER PARENTS we thought we were when we had a team of highly specialized nurses taking care of our last newborn (Harper). In fact everything we thought we knew about parenting went out the window and we were right back to square one. We searched the ENTIRE web and tried reading baby books for ideas but we were both so tired that we could hardly make it through two pages before falling asleep facedown into the endless tips and general suggestions. We took turns trying to bounce, rock, shoosh and sway you only handing you off when one of us lost feeling in our feet or arms. We sang to you, talked to you, pleaded and begged you but you were not having it. You cried and cried then puked and then you starting squeaking……yes SQUEAKING. Technically you were hiccupping but ask anyone that heard you……you were squeaking. You sounded like you had swallowed a dog toy. You squeaked in the bath, you squeaked when you ate and you squked(squeak puked), on a regular basis. It was actually pretty hilarious and helped us laugh through the sheer exhaustion and power through the rough patches. On a good night you’d even squeak yourself to sleep and we’d lovingly stare at you trying to forget that we had to “wake up” in 45 minutes.
Even with all the sleepless nights and never ending outfit changes we already love you very much. It feels like you have always been here and these moments of calm allow us to truly enjoy you and see that there would be light at the end of the tunnel. Plus you got a really cool nickname.......We love you Squeaks!!! 

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

Welcome Quinn Everly!

On June 20, 2013 our family was blessed with the arrival of our new baby girl.....Quinn Everly.
She weighed in at 6 pounds 2 ounces and measured 19 1/2 inches in length.

The controlled calm of the pre-determined c-section was very different that the chaos that proceeded Harpers birth.The reality that we were having a child that day didn't really sink in until the nurse came into our room and said "Ok, time to meet to your little girl."

Quinn came out screaming, giving us a sneak peak into the weeks to come. Dr. Lollar said "That one's got some healty lungs!" He had NO idea. We had been at the Hospital for less than two hours and we were already holding the newest addtion to our family.

We took a little bit of time for just the three of us to enjoy the moment and then opened the doors to let in the rest of the world. Seeing everyones reactions was pretty amazing but nothing topped the look on Harpers face when she first saw her new baby sister.

The rest of the weekend was pretty crazy with an ever-revolving door of friends, family and hospital staff. To top everything off Harper had her first dance recital that weekend and came back to the hospital to show Quinn her full routine complete with bumble bee costume and tap shoes. Even the nurses that had been working all night were cracking up as she tapped down the hall of the maternity ward.

Not only did we have the most beautiful baby in San Ramon Regional that day (Nurse confirmed) but they let us go a day early! Our little girl was doing great and Mom and Dad were ready to go home. As we left the hospital a woman was being rushed to John Muir in an ambulance for an emergency c-section and we were instantley reminded of everything we had been through. We felt truly lucky to be on the other side of things this time and as we loaded up Quinn and started heading home we were very excited to start our new life with BOTH of our amazing little girls.