Daniel and I are loving having Ed back with us (he had to be away in the UK for a very brief visit with work last week, but got back yesterday)... although, for Daniel, the excitement of having Daddy back was just too much and he consequently decided he'd rather scream than sleep last night - oh the joys of parenthood!

Anyway, the camera is now back in the country and so I thought I'd upload some cute photos we took while waiting for the pediatrician last Monday...

Isn't he GORGEOUS?!!!

We are LOVING being parents! And Daniel is doing really well... he weighed 8lb 8oz at the pediatricien appointment on Monday - so he gained 10oz in his first week! Pretty good going!

His eyes looked as though they had improved at the appointment on Tuesday, so hopefully that improvement will continue in the weeks ahead... it is looking more and more likely that he will not need the laser surgery to correct them! Wahoo!

And he is SLEEPING really well!

Ed is back in the UK for a 4 day trip with work, so we are both missing him lots - Daniel has consistently slept 10.30 - 3.30am and then 3.30 - 6.30am since he got home from hospital... but on the first night Ed was away, Daniel did not go to sleep until 1am! (grrrr!) Proof positive that he was missing his Daddy! I am glad to say that last night he seemed to have gotten used to his Daddy being away and was back to his old sleeping pattern!

Ed has taken the camera with all the recent photos on it with him back to England, so i'm afraid you'll have to wait for more photos of our little man... rest assured though, he is STILL completely GORGEOUS!!!

Ok, so we're into our 4th day of being full-time parents... and so far, we are LOVING it!!!

We have had projectile sick (it literally travelled 1.5 metres, soaking everything in it's path - pretty impressive!), fountain-esk pee and explosive poo in the bath (my wonderful husband did the clean up after that one - he's fantastic), and the sound of wind from either end is constantly with us... but it's WONDERFUL!!!

The Gilchrist's, having done getting pregnant, pregnancy and the first 3 months in about the most difficult way we could, seem at last to have hit a stage that seems easier than expected. He really is the most perfect baby. He sleeps for 4 - 5 hours between feedings - even through the night, and he really only cries when there is genuinely something wrong... He is a complete joy and he seems to be loving being home!

Hope you enjoy a few photos from his first few days living with his doting parents!

Homecoming - Part 3

Daniel has moved out of the hospital and his new address is at home with us! So much thanks to all of you who have prayed with us for this momentous event!

As you can see, he's still needing some oxygen and will do for probably 2-3 months. But he no longer has wires stuck to him, and we no longer have the comfort of those machines telling us all is well. It's parental instinct from now on!

We've had our first car journey as a family, which Daniel slept through. We've had our first family lunch, which Daniel slept through. We've had our first Skype call with his maternal grandparents and then it was his first feed at home. And next it will be his first nappy change at home. It's all new and totally wonderful. And I have a week off work to enjoy it all. Our plan this week is to look at him. We'll be happy with that - no chance of getting bored. He's amazing!

Why am I typing when I could be looking at him? I'm off - catch you later!

Homecoming - Part 2

Daniel is indahouse!!

Homecoming - Part 1

May 15th, 2010. Unless something unforeseen should prevent it, today is the day we get to bring our boy home!! We'll be going in shortly, and then we'll be driving away with our Belter in the back seat of the car! We can't wait - we'll update later with photos!

My son now weighs a whopping 7lbs, and he has multiple chins to prove it. Unfortunately I've been kept from seeing him for the last couple of days as I've had a cough. I'm off to Salt Lake City for work today and return late on Thursday, and Nicci is going to spend a full 48hrs at the hospital to be on-hand for feeding. Yesterday morning Charlie, the boy in the next crib along from Daniel, moved from scheduled feeding to 'ad-lib' feeding. On overhearing this news, Daniel promptly pulled out the gavage tube from his nose, and so the nurses decided to let Daniel have a go at ad-lib feeding too. THAT's my boy...!! Hopefully he does well. Oh, and today we get the results of his (routine) MRI scan that he had last night. There's nothing in his behaviour that suggests he has anything at all wrong with his brain, and hopefully these results will underline that. Daniel is very excited that his aunt has booked to come out to see him in just 3 1/2 weeks. Hooray!!

It was Mother's day, or 'Mom/Mommy's' day' in the USA yesterday... I have nothing against the American 'Mom/Mommy' - it's kinda cute, but it's just not me... I am a 'Mum/Mummy' at heart(although I don't mind the occasional cute item of clothing for my son with a 'Mommy' message on the front!) - and so Daniel had to work pretty hard to try and ensure his Mummy got a card with the correct (!) spelling on it!

He did BRILLIANTLY (with a little help from his Dad!)...

I arrived at the hospital before church - and there was my boy, in his swing, dressed in a little outfit saying 'I love my Mummy' - and there was a card 'To my Mummy' lying on his chest... SO cute!

At first I thought the nurses had excelled themselves - but then I noticed the look of glee in my husband's eyes and knew that he had plotted it all himself! He'd surreptitiously dropped it all off with the nurses the day before with instructions about what to do... it was a LOVELY surprise!

It was the first Mother's day service I had been to since the boys were born. In my heart I was praising and thanking God that I am now a Mummy after all those painful years of waiting when Mother's day services were a real source of pain. I will never forget those years and my heart goes out to all my precious childless sisters who still continue to struggle with infertility or unwanted singleness... I love you, ladies. You're on a painful road, but the Lord is with you... throughout the bible He seems to have a special purpose for infertile women!

The latest on the little man you're all most interested to hear about is that he is a greedy guts! Honestly! He is considered to have had a 'full feed' if he takes 58ml... this morning he took 92ml and then had to be given a dummy (or 'pacifier'), because he was still desperate to suck!

It was very funny actually, because he was clearly uncomfortably full - and the expression on his face was exactly the face we all feel like making after Christmas-dinner-over-indulgence, only we're too polite to let it show!

After writhing around for about 10 minutes, he did THE most enormous, explosive poo (they heard it from the other side of the nursery!) and then looked very pleased with himself as he continued to try and suck on anything that came within sucking distance! And then, about an hour later, he took a FURTHER 24ml! (this was a momentous event since he's never yet had the energy to stay awake for 2 consecutive feeds).

I have left him to try and get him to go to sleep! We'll see whether he's still keen to suck when Ed and I go back to the hospital for the 6.30pm feed!

He was looking super-cute this morning in an outfit my friend Heather got for him... doesn't he just make you melt inside?!

Ok, so it's possible I was a bit hormonal when I had my hair cut... the hairdresser HAD styled it to look like a mushroom cloud explosion, but this morning I washed and styled it myself, and I have to admit - it's really not that bad, in fact, I kinda like it!

Thankfully I have a man who loves me enough to laugh at my craziness... a lesser man may well have been pushed over the edge by my recent diva-esque behaviour over the hair disasterama!

Thanks for the concern people! It looks as though it's going to be ok! Pheweeeeeeeeeeee!!!

Yesterday was a day of joy mixed with sadness...

Daniel is doing GREAT - he had another eye exam and it looks as though the retinopathy has improved, so that both eyes are now only stage 1 again - which is fantastic news! He was pretty wiped out for most of the day after having his eyes done, but then he woke up for his 6.30pm feed - and took a whopping 74ml from the breast (to put that in context, the maximum feed he is supposed to take for his size is 58ml!)... One thing that Gilchrists do well is EAT!!!

Having not had my hair cut since October (!), I decided to treat myself to an afternoon at the salon... I was enjoying having long hair again and really only wanted it trimmed, with a bit of style added... what I got was a MONSTROSITY... honestly, it is THE worst hair cut I have ever had. I am ashamed to say that tears have been flowing and I have behaved quite childishly over something which, in the long run is really not important... obviously the Lord has work to do when it comes to my vanity! Hey Ho, looks like I'll be wearing my hair in a ponytail for the next few months! The really galling thing was that it was probably the most expensive hair cut I've ever had too... grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!

Ok, so let me tell you about my BABY SHOWER!!! To all you Brits out there - we NEED to make sure this tradition makes it across the pond! Oh my! It was WONDERFUL!!!

Two of my lovely friends from the 20's ministry (Caitlin and Mandy), hosted it for me... they did a fantastic job (although I guess I've never been to any others, so I wouldn't know (!) - but I can't imagine it being any better!)...

Caitlin's parents-in-law very kindly opened up their home to host the shower - and it was a wonderful venue. When I arrived I was greeted by the sight of a large table laden with presents, another table laden with delicious food (thanks to ALL those who provided it - DELICIOUS!) and drinks, there were 'baby boy' mints in a bowl and flowers and ribbon... it all looked gorgeous!
We mingled (a lovely chance to catch up with the special friends I have made out here - I have slipped off the social grid in recent months, what with bed rest and hospital visiting) and played some great games - list 'baby things' beginning with every letter of the alphabet (Nancy - I think, if 'kisses' was allowed for 'K' (honestly, Darcy!), then really, hiccoughs should have been allowed for 'H' - you were the rightful winner!) and a baby quiz (I was SO rubbish at that!) and then, the rest of the time was spent opening presents...

OH MY!!! Americans do generosity in a BIG way! (or maybe it's just that I have made friends with some of the loveliest Americans!)... I am still feeling slightly overwhelmed by the amount of gifts we received. Everyone was SO thoughtful and we have been given SO much lovely stuff for Daniel... I really can't believe it. THANK YOU SOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooo much!!!

This is the nursery as it looked when we had unloaded the car when I got home... there is literally NO room to walk - every available space is FILLED with presents! I can't WAIT to sort through it all and find homes for everything! SO exciting!

When I say that Daniel is THE most gorgeous baby ever to have been born, I have to acknowledge that he now has some close competition... I became an AUNTY last Tuesday to beautiful little Ffion. She is utterly wonderful and I can't believe i'm going to have to wait so long to give her a cuddle! Congratulations to my Brother and Tahrina!

Ok, so before I get on to the REAL blog post I want to do (telling you all about my BABY SHOWER!!), let me first share some recent photos of the most gorgeous baby to have ever been born!

I should never have gloated. What Daniel just did was Eyjafjallajokull-esque and it was mine to deal with.

I am writing from the IICN at Lucile Packard's Children's Hospital. I have commandeered one of the computers on wheels that they have here, and am hiding behind the screen used to protect my wife's modesty as she feeds our child because I'm sure these machines aren't here for patients' parents to update their blogs.

To my left, Daniel is tucking into his breakfast. On the menu today is breast milk, flavoured with last night's Afghan kebab, and perhaps this morning's scrambled eggs. Hmmmm. Nicci has Daniel like she were holding a rugby ball under her arm and sprinting for the try line, although the scene is a bit more sedate than a rugby match. Daniel is eyes-closed and concentrating. He's making some very cute breathing noises as he feeds, and he isn't choking: his 'numbers' all look good on the screen. He's making some not-so-cute noises from the other end, though I'm sure it's Nicci's turn to change his nappy...

Now Nicci is burping him. I've been calling him 'Belter' (like the nickname of the Daniel in the Bible), and apparently over here 'belting' has to do with burping, so the name is even more appropriate. His aunt would be very proud. It's wind from both ends right now. And now he's got the hiccoughs. He's amazing.

(The nurse-practitioner just came round behind the screen to listen to his chest. Busted. Although, I acted cool and behaved like this illicit use of hospital IT equipment was well within my rights and, as she didn't mention anything, I think we're in the clear.)

Breakfast was interrupted for an emergency nappy change. Wow. Thankfully, it was Nicci's turn. Because we need to monitor his intake of milk very closely, he is weighed before and after his feeds. The nappy change has necessitated a mid-feed weigh as well. I can tell you that his last stool represented 1% of his body weight.

He's now back on the breast and, 'oh no lookout' I think he's just cracked another one, and 'ah gee', it's my turn next.

The nurse practitioner was just back. I positioned myself in front of the computer, I'm sure she didn't notice. The news is:

• No bradys or desats overnight. Good.
• The amount he's taking with each feed is impressive and he's gaining weight. Good
• He's being weaned off two of his meds. Good.
• He's gorgeous. But we already knew that.

Marvellous. I'm off to spectate.