As for me, this all feels very surreal. Coral looks perfect. Better than I could have ever dreamed of. To think that I am now relied upon by TWO human beings now just doesn't feel real. Sometimes I feel like I'm in over my head and other times I'm confident and ready to take this challenge on with much gusto. Expect to see more news here during the next few days, which means more pictures as well!
UPDATE 6:00 AM PST: Well, already a lot has happened in the first three hours of Coral's life. She already took a few shots at breast feeding and got her first bath. One thing I've noticed between Overlake and the hospital we had Juliana at in San Angelo is how much they involve the dad here. I feel like I was an interning nurse during this whole delivery, which is fine by me as I love to help when I can considering that Bethany seems to do all of the work. Helping out including assisting with the bath, which I stood by for when Juliana was born. We've moved from the birthing suite to the recovery room now. I have to say that I've been quite impressed with the nurses here. Each time there is a shift change, I keep worrying that we're going to get some grumpy old lady. However, each nurse has been a pleasant surprise with different personalities. Our first nurse was super nice and bent over backwards for anything. She also seemed to have the most in common with us. I thought she looked a bit like Carrie Brownstein from Portlandia. Our second nurse was a sweet older woman who was very understanding and gentle. Our third and final nurse wasn't as friendly, but my gosh, I thought she was certainly the most intelligent of the bunch. Really knew her stuff and stayed in the room practically the whole time. She was a complete pro and I'm glad we had her during the delivery.
Speaking of, the delivery itself went great aside from that first lousy epidural I mentioned in the previous post. Bethany pushed one time with the midwives and out slipped Coral. Wasn't a torturous event at all. Still, mommy is obviously very tired and is catching up on some well-deserved sleep. Joyce, Keith, and Tawnya all went home to sleep as well. I must be running off of adrenaline because I just can't get myself to sleep. Especially when I have this new cute little girl to cuddle up with on my sofa couch bed. The nurse brought a pacifier for Coral, which she took to immediately. I already love just staring at her while she rests. She doesn't look much like Juliana did when she first came out, but there are certain elements that look the same. She's definitely her own person.
Let's see... what else is there to say? The rooms have been clean, but feel a little older. Not incredibly outdated, but just not as new as the birthing center we were at for Julie. There's a lot less hand holding here and more of a 'do it yourself' attitude, within reason, but it might just feel like they're treating us that way because it's our second child. One of the big moments to look forward to later today will be Juliana meeting Coral for the first time. My mom and dad took Juliana for the evening so that we wouldn't have to worry about her, especially with getting bored or worrying about Bethany during the delivery. We're really excited for that.
Alright, I'm sure you have been waiting for more pictures, so here are some:
UPDATE 12:45 PM PST: Not too much to report now. Coral was so nice and let us get a few hours of sleep. Actually, it was the nurses and doctors that kept coming in to check on us who kept waking us up. We've had one successful attempt at breast feeding since my last update. A few dirty diapers that I've had the pleasure of changing as well. Bethany is recovering well and says that there's basically no pain. She got to have a shower just recently and feels completely better. Coral was wide awake checking things out after the feeding. No crying or whining or anything. Super calm and super sweet. My parents and Juliana are on their way to meet Coral for the first time. I will provide an update with pics after that. If you're reading this, thanks for sticking with us!
UPDATE 6:00 PM PST: Coral has been alive for over 15 hours now and she is nothing short of amazing. No crying fits at all. Can't say the same for the folks who are next door to us. Their baby has been quite vocal about its problem. But our baby is quite the little angel.
Well, the big moment happened. The moment where Juliana met the little sister that she is going to have for the rest of her life. It was adorable. I met her with my parents out in the lobby and she was already excited to see her. I filmed the rest:
I won't hate you if you didn't watch that entire almost 4-minute long video. As you might have been able to see, Julie ran right up to Bethany and Coral, but once there, she was timid. All smiles, but perhaps a bit nervous that the moment was actually here. She gave constant light touches and kept saying how cute she is. She loves her little sister and enjoys holding her a lot. Many others came to visit including two of my aunts and my younger cousin Rae Anne. It's been a social day for Coral who is eating, sleeping, and pooping. The simple life. We still expect to leave the hospital tomorrow since Bethany and baby are doing so well. We'll be sleeping here tonight one more time.
Here are more pictures for you to enjoy, but there are many more than I am leaving out for this week's Foto Friday, if I get a chance to get around to it:
UPDATE 5/3/12, 12:00 PM PST: Well, we are home now. Bethany and Coral were released around 10 AM and the drive down to home went fine. I remember going 10 under the speed limit the first time I drove Julie home. I went speed limit for Coral. I guess you just get used to it. Our cat Luna got to meet Coral for the first time when we arrived. There was lots of sniffing, but overall, pretty disinterested. Most of the family are coming over this afternoon to help out and see Coral a bit. We are very blessed to have everyone close by and appreciate all the help we get. This is going to be the last update for this post. I'm going to hold off on new pictures too for Foto Friday tomorrow, so you can look forward to that. If you've made it this far, thanks for reading.
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