Category: Parent Talk
Well, the topic title says it all really. It's been one very happy month for our family since Robbie entered our lives, barely alive himself and weighing just 4 Lbs 11 Oz. I was thinking back to that rather strange phone call just 3 days ago, exactly 4 weeks since he was born. Mum and I both hgrabbed the phone almost at the same time and a totally confused but euphoric Richard told us Lou had had a little boy and how much he weighed. We didn't know he was in SCBU till later on when we went round my Grandparents for our usual Friday night drinkies and Gran put mum in the full picture when they were getting our drinks. he was in an incubater but Lou was expressing her breastmilk for him and it was certainly not going to waste as far as he was concerned, but both mother and baby had a really hard time of it during the C section and Robbie was almost dead when he was born at 3.35 AM because his heart had stopped and of course, he wasn't breathing yet, so he really put mum and dad to the test and took quite a while to be resussitated. We saw him the very next day, just 36 hours old, in the low dependency area in SCBU in a hospital crib just next to the nurse's desk, totally oblivious to us trying to get him to grasp my little finger in his teeny tiny hand when we were taking photos of mum and I stood over him in the crib. My feet didn't want to walk out of SCBU when we had to leave Robbie and go back to the postnatal ward and Lou's room. There were quite a few babies on the unit and some weren't ever going home. I just prayed that wouldn't be Robbie at any time during his stay in hospital. He was putting up a truly couraigeous fight while the baby in front or the baby behind him, might not be so lucky, might never know its brothers and sisters or its, very supportive and loving family, might never go home, so all in all, the visit to The Royal Surrey that day was probably one of the hardest visits I had to make in my whole life. I went straight up to my room and put an Aled Jones CD on to help me hold back the pointless, silly, stupid, childish tears that I knew wouldn't do any good, and it worked. The following Tuesday, it was off up to RNC for my asessmentat RNC, where I learned that evening, that Robbie had developed Jaundice. I knew he might, being so tiny, but so close to coming home? Anyway, we met Lou and Richard bringing the baby home from the hospital the next afternoon when we were almost home from RNC. They were going the other way in Richard's builders van, lollol. I had my first huggle when Robbie was 8 days old and mum took Gran round Lou's to drop some more ready meals, nappies and things off. Aw'w'w, he was just so tiny and sweet, wrapped in a fleece blanket with a burp cloth and he was jumping and rolling his head from side to side as he just zonked in my lap. Then mum took him so I could have my quickly cooling cup of tea.
Robbie had his first Easter party when he was just ten days old round Lou's house with all six children, mum, my Grandparents, Lou and Richard, Richard's parents, Richard's brother and myself. That was really the first time I saw Robbie in not such a content and happy mood. He fed and cried on and off for most of the four hours we were all there having lunch, having drinks, chatting, the kids on the trampoline and Grandma Juliet trying to quieten a very cross little Robbie down. When we left, he was roaring his head off. Over the next three weeks though, he's really changed. He now weighs 6 lbs 11 ounces, he's not so eager to go to sleep in his crib at at night, screams because he doesn't like being changed and he's opening his eyes and becoming much more aware of his surroundings, so all's well that ends well.
Jen.
He's certainly been through a lot, medically. I'm glad to hear he's doing well, and to his parents, he'll sleep through the night eventually. *smiles*
Yeah. He's just so, so good though. Just wakes up once during the night now.
he really sounds cute....i am glad he's doing okay, and there is nothing like a first huggle from a newborn
Yeah, I know. Just 8 days old. I've huggled his six-hour-old sister before now.
i remember when my sister was born, she huggled me like there was no tomorrow. lol.....what's the sister's name
Well he's actually got four half-sisters and two half-brothers. There's Joe age 14, Kezia (Kezzie) age 12 and Tegen age 9 who're Lou's three children and Olivia, 17, Grace, 14 and Henry also 9 who're Richard's three children. Kezzie was the one I was holding when she was just 6 hours old.
Robbie turned 6 weeks old yesterday. God, he's twice his birth weight now and we think he's going to be a footballer, A, because he has an excellent pair of lungs, lollol and B, because he's ever so mobile already. He's holding up his head, rolling his head from side to side and because of the force with which he kicks and waves his arms.
He's also staying awake for a good hour or so between his 3-and-a-half hourly feeds, he listens intently if you wind up a musical pulldown toy and he doesn't like my mum or uncle Richard's girlfriend very much, lollol. He yells practically the whole time when either of them huggles him. I think they don't talk to him very much when they're holding him or they're looking at him. Babies will show an interest, more or less from day one, if you just talk to them about well, anything really. Things you read in the papers or see on the TV, give them any gossip from your mates on MSN, tell them about what you've been up to at School, College, work or wherever during the week, what you think they'll be when they grow up. For example, I was talking to Robbie today about football, lollol, that David Beckham, who of course, is one of the most famous and well-known footballers of all time. He's certainly very comfortable and happy when either me, his sisters, Joe, or his mum and dad're babysitting.
I'm off back to College on Monday to basically, prepare myself for 41 years employment, hopefully, but I'll be ringing home almost every day so I can still update on here and in my LJ.
Jen.
i'll show him who the great man is when he's older, have no fear of that one.
Holding his head up at six weeks? That seems a bit early, but go Robby anyway. From the books I've read it can be up to four months before an infant can hold their head up. That's why the toys like jumpers that require head control are usually aged for four to five months and up. Anyway, good luck to the future football star.