Michael (he goes by his middle name) was born on a Tuesday. We came home from the hospital Tuesday evening. Everyone was so excited and I was tired. I soon went to bed with the baby. Edward and the big girls got the others ready for bed. Michael was very sleepy. I thought he should nurse before we settled down for the night, but he wasn't interested. I think it was that sugar water they gave him! :( I didn't sleep very well. It bothered me that he didn't want to eat, so I got up several times to try to get him to eat. Maybe I should have just relaxed???
That first week was kind of busy. Friday we took him for the Newborn metabolic screening test. His weight was down to 6 lb 1 oz. We were also busy getting ready for company. My brother James and his wife Anna Mae and some of their children were visiting from PA. They came Saturday with my brother Reuben and Vera and their children. I was excited about it. Since we live so far from all of our family it's special anytime they come to visit. They arrived around 9:00 and stayed for lunch. The girls did a good job getting everything ready and making lunch. Edward grilled chicken. They left after helping with the dishes. I was really worn out. I didn't think it would bother me so much. I guess since I was 40 now I didn't bounce back like I did when I was younger! Michael was still very sleepy and not nursing well.
Sunday Marian and Jonathan stayed with me and the baby while all the others went to church. It was a relaxing day and I rested well. Sunday afternoon everyone except the baby and I went to a graduation party. Later I wondered what would have happened if I had my heart attack then????
Tuesday, when he was a week old, we took him to the hospital for his circumcision. That went well. He now weighed 6 lb 3 1/2 oz. He was pretty jaundiced and still not eating very well. The doctor said to force feed him every two hours and lay him in the sun, then bring him back again the next day to check his biliruben levels. I was so tired and felt kind of feverish. That was normal for me. I usually felt worse when the baby was a week old than I did the day after it was born. Doctor called it milk fever. It was a hot, sunny day. We made a little nest for him on a chair inside the west window.
I was so thankful Edward put the window air conditioner in our bedroom. I could rest much better. Force feeding went well. Maybe he was waking up and getting hungrier. He nursed much better. Definitely an answer to prayer. When we took him back for blood work the next day his levels had come down.
Monday of that week the girls went to pick cherries. They picked 6 ice cream buckets full. They pitted them and made pie filling. Tuesday evening it was so hot. The children were all begging to go swimming, so Edward took them to Mormon Trail Park where there is a nice lake with a beach. Again I was alone with the baby. It didn't bother me at all. I was probably just glad for some peace and quiet! It gets pretty noisy with nine children around.
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