Jason and I made our way to the hospital early Monday morning after we got the kids off to school and Benny situated at our neighbor's house. We ended up waiting a while after going up to the surgical unit at the Sigonella Hospital. The whole clinic is pretty small. It's on base and all of the military doctors stationed here practice at this hospital. The dental clinic is there, too.
We were taken to our room and waited a while as Dr. Brankin finished up with an appointment.
We snagged one last belly shot. It was weird to think I would more than likely (WAY MORE THAN LIKELY) never be pregnant again.
Soon after this picture, I got my IV put in and the doctor came in to discuss what would go down. The nurses started prepping me and then I took the very short walk to the neighboring operating room. When I walked into the chilly room, I had to chuckle a little bit. There were over 15 people in there! Dr. Brankin explained that this small hospital doesn't see very many c-sections, so everyone likes to come in and help, observe, and learn. "Do you mind?" It didn't bother me, so the anesthesiologist started with the epidural. I wished that Jason could be there for that part, but after two tries, she got it in and the numbness set in. I always start to get a little shaky and nervous when I know the moment has come for the actual c-section. Jason was waiting for a while and got worried that they had started without him. I kept asking if Jason could come in now and finally they went and got him. I felt instantly better and more at ease when he was with me.
In a matter of just a few minutes, our baby was born! Everyone kept saying how big he was. One nurse that was by my head said, "I don't think I've seen a new baby that big before!"
Just moments after his birth
I'm always so anxious until they bring my baby around so I can meet them. They kept saying how big he was, so I kept waiting to hear how much he weighed. When they finally told me 8 lbs. 4 oz, I immediately thought, "That's not so big." Graham was 8 lbs. 11 oz.
I couldn't decide who he looked like, but it was kind of like stepping back in time to when Benny was born. He looked a lot like him. He had a lot of dark hair in the back. Although, "a lot" is relative because our kids are all pretty bald at first.
He already had cute chubby cheeks and rolls on his arms and legs.
The nurses at the hospital were really nice, but very young and inexperienced. It seemed they were constantly coming in an waking up our sweet little man to do another round of vitals or a test of some sort. We finally told them they would have to come back when it was more convenient for us. We just wanted some peace so we could rest and get to know our new guy.
Our stay at the hospital was consumed in trying to come up with a name. It was so hard for us! We finally narrowed it down to Oscar, Sullivan, and McCord. I called Beth at least a dozen times to talk it out with her. Jason and I would call him something for a while and then we'd start to be unsure. We had done a family vote the week before. Graham wanted McCord, Lucy wanted Sullivan, and Benny wanted Oscar. I didn't vote (if I could cast a vote, that would mean I know which one I liked best, right?). We went home without a name picked out. Finally, three days later, we settled on Sullivan. Graham was mad, but got over it. We had already decided on Lorenzo for the middle name. It's a shout out to Italy, but also to the prophet, Lorenzo Snow. He served a few missions here in Italy.
My four favorite people.
I just love this picture of all my little family talking and little Benny looking at even littler Sullivan.
On our way home.
This hospital stay was the first one where I was super anxious to get out of there and get to my own house. I think a lot of that had to do with the age of my kiddos at home waiting for us. They are all pretty independent at this point (except for the occasional, "MOM! Will you come wipe my bum?") I wanted us all to be together and not depend on others to watch my other kiddos.
We were all excited to have little Sullivan in our family. We're still trying to figure him out, but we are so glad he's here. Sometimes I stop and think, "Holy crap, I have four kids!" Around these parts, four is a lot. There are only a couple families that we have met while we've been here that have more than two or three. I have to admit I feel a little out of place at times, but I wouldn't have it any other way. We knew this little guy was meant to be part of our crazy life.
1 comment:
Hooray! I've been waiting for pics! What a cute family! Glad everything went smooth.
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