NOVEMBER 2003
Well, after 12 years of misfortune and difficulties, our precious little bundle arrived. Not the delivery we planned (I had to have a c-section), but he arrived safe and well.
Right from the beginning, Callum has had a healthy appetite - the surgeon had to ask Daddy to put his finger into Callum's mouth while they stitched my tummy so that he could suckle as he was screaming for food as soon as he came out. Nothing much has changed in that department, he still enjoys his feeds! So much so that breastfeeding has been very tiring work, especially when he has marathon feeds where he keeps switching from left to right for 5-7 hours!
Sleep is a distant memory, but I suppose that comes with the territory. We manage to grab bits here and there. Grandma is our 'nap nanny', and watches him from time to time while we have a bit of sleep.
Shaun took his two weeks Paternity Leave from the day I came out of hospital (6th Nov). It's so much better now that Dad's get some time off. I don't know what I would have done without Shaun being around day & night. He has been fantastic. He's a great Dad. I've been quite restricted in what I can and cannot do, not just because I'm recovering from the Caesarean Section, but also because during the pregnancy I suffered from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome in both hands & wrists, and Symphasis Pubic Dysfunction (separation and instability of the two sides of the pelvis)... both of these problems will take several months to recover from. Shaun has therefore done more than his fair share of nappy changing and fetching and carrying, he never moans. I thought I loved Shaun as much as is humanly possible, but I watch him with Callum and just fall in love with the two of them over and over again.
Because Callum was born by Caesarean Section, he had a lot of mucus on his tummy which caused a lot of discomfort for him in the early weeks, and it brought on a lot of colic. We found the best way to calm him down was to just let him get settled on his Daddy's chest/stomach... he'd sleep for several hours like that.
Callum has started 'coo-ing' and 'gurgling'. It's lovely to listen to and never fails to make us melt. It's so funny when he makes noises that sound similar to words that we use, especially when he gets the timing just right... for example, when he first started making the noises, his Grandma was changing him and giving him a wash. I walked into the room, when he saw me he made a noise that sounded just like he was crying "help"!!! He was less than three weeks old at that point. It was so funny.
One thing that must be mentioned is all the cards and pressies we have received. We have been bowled over by the generosity of our families, friends and work colleagues. We received far too many gifts to mention, and it would be unfair to just single out a few individuals to thank on here... Instead, we will just say a big 'Thank You' to all, we really do appreciate all the good wishes and gifts that we have received. We have been left quite literally speechless by the amount we have received.
See ya,
Amanda
