Welcome, Danny!

We were so happy to welcome our son Danny into the world last Tuesday morning via c-section at around 5 am.  He gave us some anxiety with his late arrival, with the doctors urging a scheduled c-section and estimating his weight very high.  With Jane, they had overestimated her weight by about two pounds, so I was skeptical, but with Danny it turns out that they were right and then some.  He weighed 10 lbs 11 oz at birth and is already weighing about two ounces more than that (it is rare for babies to exceed their birth weight after only six days in the world). His size could be a reason that he did not descend when I was in labor (for about 24 hours). Otherwise, labor was progressing fine and I know now what it is like to go into labor naturally (ouch--all moms are heroic).

Here are some pictures of our beautiful Danny in his first hours and days: 

Danny just after he was born

Sweetie

Daddy was tired, too

Jane and Danny looking at the camera, hours after he was born

Ready to go home

 Danny has been amazingly sweet, peaceful, and sleepy this week.  That also could be related to his size--he is already sleeping pretty well at night (and most of the day) and the doctor said it is ok if he goes a little longer than most newborns between feedings at night because he is the size of a one- or two-month old.  I was worried I would forget how to care for a newborn, but it is fairly simple to remember and also greatly helped by the presence of my mom!  Basically, he sleeps, wakes up to eat (during the day, I try to wake him up to eat, usually unsuccessfully), and needs his diaper changed a lot.  When he is awake, he just thoughtfully tries to focus his eyes or looks at the light.  On the rare occasion he cries, it is usually because of hunger or discomfort from a diaper or clothing change, or he just wants to be walked around a bit.  It is good that it is rare because his crying scares Jane and makes her cry.

First trip to the doctor

We are so amazed that this little sweet vulnerable person is ours, and we are amazed by how cute his big blue eyes and round cheeks are.