Hi Family!
After spending the first 49 hours of my life in the hospital, we made it home! The truth is, I was so cute that the nurses kept making up excuses as to why they needed to keep me in the hospital. They were awesome and so were the doctors. Here's a little recap of what happened:
Last Friday, the 4th, Mommy and Daddy went to the Rays game. They wanted to get in one last game before I came to visit. Of course, I was a good luck charm for the Rays and they won easily. Mom and Dad headed home and were set to get some sleep as they were planning to spend the weekend finishing up my room, purchasing a few last minute items and making sure they were all set for my arrival. I had different plans though. I mean, I needed to be out and home before the Masters started.
So Mom and Dad headed off to the hospital and got there a little after 1 AM. They ran some tests and the the tests said I wasn't coming...thankfully the nurses knew the test was wrong. Around 3 AM, Aunt Gina came to keep Mom and Dad company. It was a long wait as I wasn't quite ready to grace the world with my presence...I wanted to sleep in. I also made Mom and Dad miss the Amos Lee concert that night. Sorry, Mom and Dad.
Around 11:30 AM, Mom started pushing and was entirely exhausted by 1:15 PM. But as you know, my Mom is a trooper and rather than getting frustrated and tired she said, "Let's do this" and pushed a couple more times and there I was! Mom and Dad were crying as apparently they didn't get the message that it was my job to do that. Gina was snapping pictures like crazy and the doctors and nurses were running around getting ready to weigh and measure me. Dad cut the cord and then they took me over to the scale. I weighed in at a muscular 5 pounds 6 ounces and measured 18.5 inches in length.
I'd like to say a special thank you to the nurses, especially Kristin who made sure my parents were comfortable and then came to check on me the next night, and Dr. Marcelli who did a great job coaching mom through it all and making sure I was happy and healthy.
After a couple of hours, we were off to the Mom and Baby center. Let me tell you, being young is hard work! They kept pricking my heels every two hours because my blood sugar was low. What did they expect? I was skinny and I was trying to learn how to eat. After about 36 hours of heel pricks, they finally decided to stop. Then, they didn't like the glow in my skin and decided I needed to do some special tanning to get rid of the Jaundice. It was tough to be away from Mom and Dad, but I'm healthy now!
While we there, I made friends with some great ladies. Cynda was my favorite, but Cindy was awesome too. Sharon was very helpful to my mom. Dad just kept running back and forth getting mom more ice water, ginger ale and snacks. Dr. Weiss was also very nice to me and Dr. Connor made sure my 'turtleneck' was well taken care of.
I had lots of visitors, too. Grandparents and Great-grandparents from both sides of the family, along with my aunts and uncles, great aunts and great uncles, and Dad's fraternity brother Ben. My future wife, Taylor, sent me flowers. She's awesome. Grandma Kathryn surprised mom by flying down to visit and has been helping us get acclimated at home. I like sleeping in her arms after feeding time.
I had my first pediatrician visit yesterday. The Doctor told Mommy and Daddy they should keep me...duh. I think I'll keep them, too. The Doctor said that besides being cuter than the law allows, I'm perfect.
Mom and Dad keep complaining about the lack of sleep they are getting. I don't understand it though, because I am sleeping about 18-20 hours per day. Dad has been assembling things, cooking and watching the Masters. Mom and Grandma have been doing a lot of organizing. They are also doing their best to keep up with my diaper count. I like to play this game where right after they change me, I go to the bathroom again...they haven't seemed to have figured it out yet. They'll learn.
On the last day in the hospital, I had my first modeling session. No time like the present to start working on my portfolio. I told Dad he needs to start providing more updates and posting more pictures because my fan club needs more access! Look for more frequent updates, pictures and videos going forward.
Love you all and talk to you soon.
Owen Nicholas
