Photos

In the typical style of new parents we constantly snap away at our adorable son. Of course most of the photos of me look like I'm under the influence of something but before you call child services, be rest assured, it's a combination of sleep deprivation and the new mommy symptom of not having time to apply make up, and style hair.

You can check out photos of Collin here (and we constantly update):

Collin birth - 3 months

Life isn't Fair

Still perfect--with daddy

1 in 1,000 babies are born with unilateral hearing loss (hearing loss in one ear) and lucky Collin is now a statistic (perhaps when he's 21 the odds will work in his favor in Vegas). We took Collin to a follow up with an audiologist yesterday because he didn't pass his left ear screening at the hospital (we assumed it was fluid build up). Two hours later, the Audiologist asked us "how we felt" upon hearing our son had severe hearing loss in his left ear--meaning he can't hear past 80 decibels, the sound of a vacuum cleaner. Both of us were a little dumbfounded by the question but Mike answered diplomatically, "Glad it's not worse, I guess." Obviously there are much worse things, heart problems, cancer, complete deafness, blindness, I could go on and on. Still, we want our child to be healthy of course, to not have pre-determined obstacles...Kids with unilateral hearing loss statistically do worse in school, have behavior problems, learning problems, speech problems but the good news is there are much better outcomes when they catch it early (thank God for Oregon's newborn screening requirements). We go back in a few weeks for further diagnostic testing, poor Collin gets things stuck in his ears and glued to his head to measure brain activity. Then will be referred to an ear, nose and throat doctor. They also want to keep monitoring to make sure his right ear doesn't get worse.

Most likely he'll be fitted with a hearing aid at 6 months and start speech therapy at a young age. Our little guy is still perfect but things will be a little more challenging for him or to give a typical grown-up response: "It will make him stronger."

I am the queen of multi-tasking!

I'm so proud of myself. As I type I am "wearing" my baby with the snazzy Moby wrap which supposedly makes Collin feel like he's snug in the womb. This huge piece of fabric was a bit intimidating but once I got the hang of it, he fell sound asleep (and immediately stopped crying). This means I can clean, write, read, work, whatever. Of course that all requires energy...

According to a nurse I spoke with, when people refer to your baby sleeping through the night, they really mean the baby slept a 5 or 6 hour stretch. So basically parents adjust to lack of sleep and it's a godsend when your kid snoozes from midnight until 5. It's funny because in college this was not a big deal at all. Staying up late working on a paper (or drinking) and then waking up for class in the morning was second nature. But a few years later, feeding a baby at 2 am while half asleep and then hearing the alarm clock of screams three hours later is exhausting. I do miss my nice 8 hours of solid slumber but when I look at his little face I know it's worth it.

Yesterday Mike and I left Collin alone for the first time! My parents offered to watch him while we caught a movie. He only screamed a few minutes for grandma and grandpa and was happily settled with food, then promptly fell asleep (he waited until we arrived to projectile poop all over Mike's clothes). To all the friends/family who have offered to watch our son and give us a much needed sanity break: WE WILL TAKE YOU UP ON THAT! I'm a firm believer that relationships need continual cultivation especially when kids enter the picture so date nights at least once a month are a necessity, as are mini overnight trips a couple times a year. It not only helps us take a deep breath and appreciate our son even more, but makes sure we remember why we fell in love in the first place and that we had a life PC.

Colln's First Bath (AKA Water torture)

Why are you doing this to me?!

Peace at last


Last night we were excited to give Collin his first real bath. We gathered our supplies: cotton balls, wash cloths, big fuzzy hooded alligator towel, Johnson & Johnson baby wash, and of course baby bath tub filled with warm water. Collin seemed somewhat content at first (he didn't initially scream as with all his sponge baths). However, as soon as we lathered up his hair, his lower lip trembled and the shrieks started. It's a bit intimidating to wash a baby with his slippery body, head flopping side to side. But he managed to survive and came out with softer hair and that perfect baby smell.

Collin is finally here!

From Collin!

Well I was convinced Collin wanted to stick around the womb forever. I certainly didn't expect him to show up on his April Fool's due date. However, on the morning of April 1st after dealing with contractions all night, Mike and I headed to the hospital. Three hours of pushing and one c-section later, Collin Michael entered the world. 7 lbs 14 oz and 21 inches long with a full head of hair at 259 pm.

We left the hospital on Friday, April 4th and Collin has met lots of new faces. So far his days consist of sleep, poop, and eat. He opens his eyes more and has quite an expressive face. He makes little grunts, squeaks and wines and is a pretty calm baby except for when hungry and then his tiny body turns tomato red and he sounds like a banshee. So far we've been pretty lucky with his sleeping pattern. He falls asleep at a reasonable hour and normally wakes just once in the night to feed and then again early in the morning.

So far I've discerned the following about Collin's likes and dislikes:

Likes:
Nipples (sadly, he has discovered that only mom's leads to a result)
Being held
Snuggling with mom and dad in bed
Swaddling
The swing
Mirrors
Sleeping
Peeing on mom and dad when we change him

Dislikes:
Being changed
Clothing
The act of swaddling
Sponge baths

As far as parenthood goes, I can already tell it's going to make me much more efficient at time management. As soon as Collin's droopy eyes close, I can rush to a shower, a snack, some cleaning, or if I'm exhausted a nap along with him. Just having some time to read, write or do something for me is also something that I appreciate much more. Still, I never imagined how much love I'd end up feeling for this tiny little person and I know that he'll teach me just as much as I'll teach him.

Intro

I know, I know, having children does not mean you're automatically grown-up. Many people choose never to have kids (and believe me, there's nothing wrong with that). And then of course there are all those who never should have become parents in the first place. Just ask Mike, or any cop. They're called job security.

But to me, all of a sudden the weight of tremendous responsibility is on our shoulders. And this isn't like watering a plant or taking care of a dog (even if your dog happens to be the neediest animal on the planet). This is shaping another human life! Seriously, talk about pressure, expectations, and a venture into the unknown. Being in our late 20's with a house, a marriage and careers, we fit the definition of adults. Yet part of me still felt like a kid, not ready to belong to the mysterious "grown-up" crowd.

There is a memory of complete exhaustion on my mom's face after I had some kind of dramatic meltdown as a little girl. She let out a small secret smile. "I can't wait until you have kids of your own."

Full circle. Here we are.

And I guess I finally feel like a grown-up.