Laboring with him was a "nice" hybrid between Lincoln and Lewis, moving quickly once we got going but entering the world much more gently than Lincoln. Third babies are kinder toward mama bodies. Intriguingly, my water never broke, and Lem came still fully enclosed in the intact bag of waters. Andy got to see that, and I wish I had. But mostly I was just flooded with relief to be finished.
Lemuel: Hebrew, "belonging to, devoted to God".
Lloyd: Welsh, "grey". Much more significantly, daddy's, grandfather's, and great-grandfather's middle name.
In this week, he has regained his birth weight (and probably more), learned to nurse better and better, and is already discovering his fingers/thumb. Andy has noticed that his cry is already stronger (and a little less cute, haha)--BUT, he's so far a content little baby, and only cries during bare-bottomed midnight changes and when I haven't fed him fast enough. Understandable.
Babies are gross. I mean, don't get me wrong; they're incredibly sweet, wondrous little beings to hold close. But also gross. Case in point: Wednesday morning I realized that his circumcision wound was all healed up. Because suddenly, he was peeing the instant he was uncovered for a diaper change. Getting ready to go up to Lowville for some blood work took more than a full hour and included four diapers in a row (2 peed on, 2 pooped in. Mid-change.), three fresh outfits, a couple of spit-ups (because we also needed to nurse twice). And then of course there was getting Lewis dressed and ready. Everybody Ready at the same time is indeed a feat. That night...well, the next morning's diaper/outfit tally was EIGHT diapers and a pile of two-and-a-half sets of clothes, swaddle blankets, and burp cloths. Andy did not feel very rested in the morning. Usually I take care of the midnight stuff, but I really needed him to run for more clothes and diapers a few times! Oh, and just in general, it's really comical how often a newborn poops. Literally a fresh diaper to begin with, then nurse, then the squirt poops while the meal is still in progress. Amazingly efficient little systems. We're getting better already though, and for a mama, it's a source of pride to figure out a diaper system that averts disasters.
Babies are sweet. Lem's little noises are just sweet, beautiful little sounds. Grunts, snorts, squeaks, snuffles, erratic breathing, milk splutters, sometimes his little voice, his wonderfully peaceful breathing while napping on mama's chest. The first three nights of his life, he wouldn't sleep peacefully at all unless he was snuggled against me. (Those were very hard nights for me, and I'm REALLY thankful that he's learning already to sleep better near mama without being on me.) When he's awake, he watches intently: mama's face; daddy and brothers; he's intrigued by the play of light reflected off the metal garbage can, or through the window, or on the tv screen across the room. He "talks" to us with his facial expressions. Well, mostly his little bird mouth, to tell us he's hungry. But he gets his message across. When I'm holding him upright and he's fallen asleep, he wraps his right arm around my left arm <3 When I'm holding him upright and he's awake, he'd rather look at my face, and so he cranes his neck way back so his wobbly little head can follow my face.
He's about to wake up, hungry as usual. My third baby to love and to cherish, and I am so, so thankful for him!
