Looking Around

Monday night--or I should say Tuesday morning, about 3:30a--Charlie awoke for his middle-of-the-night feeding. Some nights he goes straight through to 6:00 or so, but for a three-week-old awaking in the middle of the night is to be expected.

Normally Sylvia feeds him, wraps him back up, puts him back in his crib, and off to sleep we all go. Early Tuesday, though, Charlie was unsettled after he ate. He was fidgety, and kept squawking when Sylvia tried to put him down. He wasn't exactly crying, and didn't seem to be in pain from gas or anything else. Not knowing what else to do, Sylvia decided to bring him to our bed, partly so she could try to go back to sleep and partly because sometimes lying next to his mommy will calm him down.

This time it didn't work. He kept squirming and squawking, so that by 4:30 we all three were wide awake. I finally heard Sylvia's voice: "Close your eyes. I'm going to try something." I closed my eyes and heard her lamp switch on. The effect was instant: Charlie stopped his fussing and silently looked around the room. He just wanted to look around! We laughed at his wide-eyed expression: he reminded me of a scuba diver who has just dived into the clear waters surrounding a coral reef, eyes wide, head turning slowly from side to side taking everything in.

Lucky for Charlie he's cute, so these little escapades in the middle of the night are quickly forgiven. He looked around for awhile; I managed to doze with the light on; Sylvia finally turned it off after Charlie went back to sleep about 5:00a, his world explored for now. Who knew that all he needed was a little light therapy!

Three Weeks Old!

Charlie turns three weeks old tomorrow, and tonight he made his first real outing to church supper at Wieuca Rd. He slept through it, but Molly and Sophie made sure that everyone far and wide knew he was there, and they dragged most of those they told over to the stroller to see the sleeping boy. Their pride is cute, though the competition to see who will get to push the stroller is going to get old fast.

Charlie is starting to grow into his skin, though he is still a pretty little guy--probably 7.5 lbs or so now. He is often wide-eyed and is starting to check out the world around him. He likes to be walked around, and he seems fascinated by the outside.

Enjoy!

Imperturbable

Right from the start, Charlie has shown an aptitude for things that matter if you happen to be a baby: sucking (for good eating), diaper-filling (for processing the food that is sucked in), and squawking or screaming, as required, to get the necessary attention if hungry/cold/lonely, or if pacifier or blanket needs proper adjusting. So far, so normal.

But there is one area where we are convinced that Charlie excels, that perhaps is normal for a fourth baby but in our experience is abnormal for anyone earlier in the birth order: Charlie is imperturbable. The kid can sleep through anything. Just yesterday, he was sleeping peacefully in his bouncy seat, which was resting on the floor next to our kitchen table. I watched him for only 10 minutes and in that short time witnessed Tripp shout Molly's name to get her attention in the next room; Sophie slam shut the cabinet drawer where her markers are kept (which happened to be 12 inches from Charlie's sleeping head); Sophie bump into Charlie's seat as she retrieved said marker, sending him bouncing up and down; and Coco our dog sniff Charlie's feet in her continuing quest to figure out what is this new "toy" we've brought into the house.

In all of that, Charlie never awoke and barely moved a muscle. He continued to sleep for another thirty minutes until feeding time. This skill of his is what is keeping us sane, and what should serve him well and give him a fighting chance to survive in this wacky household into which we've brought him.

At the very least, he'll have a well-developed escape mechanism for later life.

The Watched One

If a person were to get constant attention, what would happen? If one could never escape the gaze of others, if one never had a moment alone, if one were constantly being monitored and checked and refreshed and offered assistance, what would be the result?

My hypothesis is that the result would be one of two paths: spoiled rotten, or driven insane. Whichever it is, we may have a chance to test the hypothesis. Consider how Charlie spends his days:



The little man is under constant supervision, which means he will never want for a blanket or pacifier. Hopefully, he won't go crazy. The closest that he gets to a little alone time seems to be during diaper changes; nothing sends the "help" scattering like a good dirty diaper. Perhaps he'll learn to be the most regular kid that ever lived.....

Home At Last!

As comforting and relaxing as it is to have her vital signs checked every four hours, her meals delivered to her bedside in varying degrees of warmness, and her sense of time suspended by the constant glare of strong flourescent lighting (which has the added attraction of making skin look pale and clammy at all times), Sylvia still shares the universal desire to get out of the hospital as soon as she can. But of course it is not so simple as checking out of a hotel; one doesn't check out, one is dismissed, and it takes a sign-off from a variety of people to be properly dismissed, people who don't like to come to work early on a Saturday to do their jobs. So, hopeful though we were to leave this morning, it was about 1:45p before we got out of the hospital.


Since we live just 1.4 miles from the hospital, Charlie got to see his home for the first time before 2:00. As you can see, he didn't see much; he'll have to check it out later.

Welcome to the World!

Charles Edward Corts was born at 12:37p today at Northside Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia. It is risky for the father to try to describe the birthing process--as soon as I describe it as "easy" I'm at risk for a "Yeah, for you" rebuke--so I'll stick to the facts: Sylvia was induced beginning at 6:30a, so the whole process took about six hours. He tipped the scales at 6 lbs 13 oz and stretched the tape measure to just a quarter inch shy of 20 inches. The doctor on duty, Dr. Hathaway, was in the middle of a C-section elsewhere in the hospital, so Dr. Dawson dashed up to the hospital from his office in time to catch Charlie as he came out.


His siblings got to meet him after school, when he was about four hours old. They are all enamoured with him, and he is sure to quickly develop a thick skin in order to protect himself from the hugs, tugs, pinches, and pulls it will be his destiny to endure.

All is well in the hospital--Sylvia can send him off to the nursery to ensure a good night's sleep for herself. What will happen at home?