McKay Family Visit

Pictured above are Ian (Jen's brother), Carlene, and their daughter, Jayla. It was especially fun to introduce Jayla to Isaac. She is almost one year old and wasn't quite sure what to make of her new cousin.

As seen between her father and her grampa (Jen's father Jim), Jayla turns on the charm for the camera:

First Trip Out

We finally ventured out with Isaac for the first time. Our destination was a cafe around the corner for their weekly breast feeding support drop-in. I'm sure it will be something for Jen to look forward to each week. Now Jen just has to find mother baby activities for the other 4 weekdays! Next up: Mom & Baby Salsa?

Present was a handful of mothers with their babies and tots. So now we know a few more parents in the area. I'm sure that Jen will have befriended every recent or new mother in the neighborhood in no time flat :-)

p.s. He was pretty cozy in that harness!

3 of 4 Generations

Jen's mother, Louise, and grandmother, Mary (aka Nonni), came by to spend some time with the little guy. For each, he is their second grandchild and great-grandchild, respectively.

Margin of Error

When the midwives previously came to weigh Isaac, I thought they meant 3714 g when they said 7-14. That would have been very close to Isaac's birth weight of 3715 g / 8 lbs 3 oz.

My mistake.

It really meant 7 lbs 14 oz so he actually he lost 5 oz in three days. That would make more sense. During yesterday's visit, he weighed 8 lbs 5 oz. So, care of regular feeding from Jen (Thanks Mom!), he's now started to pack it on.

Sneezes & Hiccups

Here's a funny little video of Isaac doing the baby thing.

Weights and Measures

Tonight the midwives came over to check up on us. Everything seems to be going fine. When weighed, Isaac seemed to have recovered to his birth weight. I'm not so sure that it was supposed to happen this quickly but he has been feeding really well. We'll see what future measurements say.

Midwives are great. It's been a real comfort to meet with ours over these past months. For the next 4-5 weeks we'll still be able to enjoy their support, but then it is on to the family doctor.

Lesson # 1

When baby is sleeping, you sleep, too.

Yesterday, Isaac's grandparents came over and we took advantage of Isaac's afternoon nap to visit with them. It was great to see Jen's mom, Louise, watching her second grandchild sleep.

Later, as Isaac lingered over his nocturnal feeding, we admitted to ourselves that the daytime schedule we were accustomed to just might have to change.

All is quiet now as Jen is putting lesson # 1 into practice.

Home Sweet Home

After a short car ride, we finally got home. Jen was getting pretty anxious to unwind and get into the shower. I gotta say it feels a lot better to have him home with us in our space.

One small confession: we had to pull over halfway home to make sure he was comfortable and still breathing. Typical first-time parent paranoia :-)

At the moment, mom and baby are sleeping. Or rather, Jen is staring at Isaac sleeping. It's tough to close your eyes and miss watching the most fascinating thing in the world.

Respect of the people forever

goes to Jenn Steidman for winning the baby pool with a guess of:

> Sept 6 - 12:01am - Jen S

Thanks to Nima for initiating the pool and donating the prize :-)

It was a close call as the minutes ticked closer to:

> Sept 7 - 4:00pm - Jason

Jason said he almost picked noon. The judges have ruled that "could have, should have, would have plus a wicked time zone difference (14 hours ahead in New Zealand)" will not affect the results (unlike last time).

Jen Steidman! You have earned my respect. Forever.

Isaac Albert Allan Smith

Wow.

After a long night of labor, with the help of some lovely midwives, nurses, and doctors, Jen delivered our long awaited baby at 1:11PM on Friday September 7, 2007.

Isaac Albert Allan Smith weighed in at 8 lbs and 3 oz.

Mom and baby are still at the hospital and are doing well. They should hopefully be home sometime Saturday afternoon.