Bringing Home Benson

The first night at the hospital was hard. The nurses in and out, the baby learning to nurse, the sounds and machines I was tethered to. I had an IV, some horrible "leg massaging" straps, and a little box like device that had a tube connected to my incision. It had a vibrating buzzer that randomly went off on my side. Not to mention my room was right by the nurses station and we could hear every phone call, alarm, and conversation outside the door. I was praying for just one hour of uninterrupted sleep. I didn't get it until the following night. Steve stayed at the hospital with me so we were tag teaming little Benson. He did have his days and nights mixed up the first few nights but honestly he was not the problem. My patience was running low with the chatty nurses coming in and out. (No I don't want to have a conversation with you about the other patients at 1am, and yes you are waking up my husband by turning on all of the lights.) But we survived and Steve left in the morning to go home and get some sleep.

By the next night I was exhausted. I had gone a full 37+ hours with not sleeping more than a half an hour at a time. Steve went home that night and I kept Benson in my bed. He slept most of the day and was eating great but then he got fussy. By 12:30am I was almost in tears and a nurse came in and said they needed to take him for some routine assessments. I listened to him cry the whole way down the hall. But I finally slept for 45 minutes straight. They brought him back and he slept in his bassinet for 45 minutes. It felt like heaven! I also got another hour and a half stretch in before morning so I was feeling better. Steve came in the afternoon and we got to go home. I was so happy to leave the hospital!

The kids were excited to meet Benson the first day but poor Ehlana was sick so she couldn't come to the hospital. Jaxson and Jakob were sweet but rather uninterested. They are boys after all.

The night we came home Jakob pointed to my stomach and routinely said, "Baby Benson is in Mommy's tummy!" I said, "No baby Benson came out of Mommy's tummy." He paused and stared at my stomach for a minute and then his face lit up. "Oh!" he said, "Baby Benson came out!" It was like he finally understood what we had been talking about all these months. It was priceless.

When we arrived home Ehlana couldn't wait to meet her new little brother. She loves him and asks to hold him and help with him regularly. She loves to smell him and says he smells so good! Yes, my dear, every woman loves the smell of a new baby.

We love having baby Benson here. He is generally mild and sweet. He has a couple hours a day (or night) when he is fussy but he is very easy going most of the time. He eats really well and loves to cuddle his Mama.

"Playing toys" with Ehlana

 The first night home wasn't too bad, Steve and I tried to tag team and I was able to get some rest. Last night (our 3rd night home) Benson finally slept during the night. He woke up every 2-4 hours but he went back to sleep after each feeding and slept the entire night in his own bed. (As opposed to being held and rocked.) I was so thrilled! By morning I actually missed being with him and held him most of the day.

My recovery is slow. I had a feeling it would be harder this time around. I feel like my entire insides have been shaken up. I didn't like the medication I had last time, it was too strong and made me really groggy. I asked for a milder prescription this time and so I am feeling more pain. In a way it's good because it reminds me to take it easy and not push myself. But I also feel a little discouraged about how long it takes to recover. At least I have this adorable little souvenir that has made everything worth it. I love him so much.