Our Glowing Pumpkin

If you ignore the extended imaginary labor episode, our stay in the hospital was actually quite nice. It was wonderful to have someone else bring me food, keep me fully stocked on pain killers, and change the poopy diaper if I didn't want to. Worked out nicely for me. The one major downside, though, was trying to come home yesterday. Not surprisingly, no one was nearly as concerned about getting us done and out as Chris and I were, so things took HOURS longer than we wanted it to. Sigh. But it did work eventually.

I was very excited for the chance to actually get Ben dressed in real clothes. Yay! So cute. It makes him look like a real person. And thank you, Rebecca, for the adorable hat.


I think he missed the memo, though, that going home really is a good thing. He didn't seem to be nearly as excited about it as we were.


Unfortunately, his bilirubin has been quite high and just kept climbing, so we went home with a bili-bed. Cute too, but not the same as plaid shorts and a polo shirt.


The nurses at different times said that he looked like a pumpkin and that he was "just glowing" because his skin was so yellow. Ha.

When they talk about using the lights and explain that you can take him off to eat and change and cuddle for a minute, but then you have to put him back, they don't explain what to do when all he does is scream as soon as you lay him down. So sad! We finally resorted to putting the bed on the couch right next to me so I could do some imaginary cuddling to comfort him without really picking him up. It worked, but I would much rather just hold my baby.


We had to get a little more clever during the night, too. In the end, we put the light on our bed next to me so I could comfort him, then Chris slept on the couch. Certainly not ideal. It gets better, though. We took him in to get the bilirubin levels tested. They have gone down significantly, so chances are, he'll be off the light by tomorrow. Yay!