Kate: at the hospital

I can, without hesitation, say our stay at DHMC was a million times better than our stay at Stanford five years ago. This is probably due to a number of factors all mixing together. But no matter the reason, I'll take it!

For starters, I think Ryan would agree that sleeping on a pull-out bed in a private room is much better than sleeping on a chair in a shared room. He would also say that he was just fine skipping the whole getting-a-catheter-bag-spilled-all-over-him as he tried to sleep this time 'round. 

For me, hours 1-23 were a little rocky because I was hooked up to so many monitors. I had a blood pressure cuff going off at predetermined intervals {which scared me to death a few times as it woke me from sleep}. I had a cuff on each leg to keep my blood circulation flowing. I had a catheter, an IV liquid drip and magnesium. Oh, the magnesium. Worst medication ever. If I remember right, it was because of my preeclampsia, but it was the living worst. It made me feel like I got hit by a semi truck. I couldn't keep my eyes open but I wasn't tired. I felt like I was in a constant haze with my eyes spinning in my head. I think my visitors that first night thought I was a little crazy!

The second two days of the stay were much better. I was unhooked from everything, released from the bonds of magnesium and was allowed to get up and move around a bit {um, shower!}. 

We had visitors throughout, which was a lot of fun. I loved chatting with friends and introducing Kate to each of them. 

For Kate, she was obviously the woman of the hour. She thoroughly enjoyed her first bath. 

She had visitors from med students, residents, doctors, midwives, lactation consultants and more {this trio visited us every day to check on Kate and they were my favorites}. 

We filled out paperwork for birth certificates. She got her heels poked and blood drawn. She passed her hearing test {and other tests} with flying colors. 

I heard the words, "perfect" and "normal" more times than I can count. And each time I did, I wanted to cry tears of joy. Here's to hoping we continue to hear those words for years and years to come. Two thumbs up for nurses Kim, Kate, Kathy, Kathleen, Molly, Tristan and Liz and everyone else who made our stay in room #14 in the Birthing Pavillion such a great experience.

But more than anything, I loved cuddling, swaddling, snuggling and adoring my sweet and tiny Kate {and her head of hair!}. Those first few, quiet days just the two of us will not soon be forgotten.