Delivery

Today, Annika and I woke up like it was Christmas morning. We anxiously got ready and went to the hospital for a 9:30 check-in. We got a room and started getting ready for the sonogram and probable C-section. Over the next two hours, Annika was prepared for surgery as we waited for the doctor to do the sonogram and find out if the surgery would be necessary. Annika's sister Mariah came to the hospital around this time and provided support and company as we got closer to the time. At about 11:30, the doctor arrived and did the sonogram and found out that Liam was still in the breech position, so the C-section would proceed as planned.


I got into scrubs and Annika was whisked to the operating room where she was given her anaesthesia. After about 15 minutes, I was let into the room to witness the delivery, comfort Annika, meet the baby and document it as much as possible on camera. The surgery went smoothly and Annika didn't feel much. She talked to me and the anesthesiologist for most of the operation. The nurse asked Annika to recite her name, birth date and why she was there - which she did. But I thought that was too easy, so I asked her the square root of 81, which she also got right away :)


At 12:34 (pretty cool time eh?) Liam was delivered by C-section and brought around for Annika to see. After a quick hello, he was shuttled to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) station in the operating room. This is standard procedure for a C-section. Soon, he was crying on the NICU table and I was able to video tape again. I then got to go visit Liam on the NICU table and let him grip my finger in his hand, talk to him, and get a better look. He currently has dark blue eyes and light brown hair. I also got to cut the remainder of the umbilical cord and put on his first diaper.


The nurse weighed him in at 8 pounds, 6.4 ounces and 20 inches. This makes Kitty the winner of the baby pool with a guess of 8 pounds, 6 ounces and 20 inches! Congrats Kitty!


Now, they brought Liam up to Annika for a real introduction. She gave him a kiss on the head and asked if he recognized her voice. He stopped crying when she spoke, so I guess he did! Soon after, I escorted Liam as he was rolled to the nursery for a bath and some quick tests. He is perfectly healthy so far :) Unlike many breech babies, he doesn't even grab his ankles, but just lies flat. As I walked out of the nursery, I saw my parents and Annika's dad as they were just arriving. They came with me to Annika's room where we all visited with her while Mariah took a turn looking at Liam in the nursery.

Liam had no trouble nursing and has been doing fine all around. Annika and I will be at the hospital this weekend as she continues to recover. She's doing about as well as can be expected for just having surgery so I'm hopeful about her recovery.

So far, everything has gone really well and, as long as Annika recovers well, there's nothing more we could ask for. He's a cute little guy and we love him already :)