It’s just past 10:15 p.m., and we’re going to get some rest before the next crew gets in to do their rounds (around 11 p.m. or so). Here are some noteworthy news:

A tough day for Braden, in that he received his Hep B shot, then his foot was pricked so they could do blood work. The latter was so sad to watch, as the doctor kept squeezing his foot to get more and more blood–she was so poor at filling these circles up with blood (hard to explain)–and he’s crying the whole time.

If you didn’t see it, our birth announcement was in the newspaper today. Other birthdays today include Morgan Fairchild and Norman Rockwell. http://www.famousbirthdays.com/

We are still appreciative of all our family visiting us, and all the great comments, e-mails, Facebook messages and calls we keep receiving. Your well wishes really keep the positive energy flowing!

We should be getting out of here on Friday. Braden has so many clothes, toys, etc. that are just waiting for him at home!

Talk to you tomorrow.

Journal Braden, timeline

Anybody remember that phone commercial in which the son calls the parents collect, saying his name is “Weaddababyeetsaboy” (= “We had a baby, it’s a boy”)? Brian really wants to call someone collect that way.

Speaking of Brian, he was checking Braden’s diaper and got peed on! The worst part is, Brian only has one other shirt to wear. See the pictures in the “Day 2” photo album.

You’ll also see in the album that we had new visitors today–Brian’s aunt Hope and Cora; Kristin’s aunt Cindy, aunt Mary and uncle Rob; and our brother-in-law Josh.

It’s 8 p.m. right now. We’ll check in again later.

Journal diapers, visitors

It’s 9 a.m., and here’s a quick recap since the last blog entry:

So far, the nurses have been the ones who have changed the diapers, because they also have helped with nursing and check the diaper each time.

But last night it was a little busy, and Braden was getting fussy, so Brian checked his diaper at 12:15 a.m., and it was poopy (much more so than the other times). So Brian cleaned Braden up, using about half the box of wipes since the poop was all over (including on the security tag on Braden’s left foot).

If you know Brian, you know he despises poop more than Ohio State and Michigan fans despise each other. But he did it without complaint, and Kristin absolutely marveled at him doing it.

Sorry, we didn’t take any pictures or video of the event.

Journal diapers

It’s 9:15 p.m. right now and we’re going to try to sleep. Braden is a great sleeper, so we’re going to take advantage until we have to feed him again (around midnight).

Speaking of which, he fed three of the six times we tried today (babies don’t eat much right away, apparently).

Before we forget to mention, we’d like to buy a Posturepedic [spelling?] bed when we get back. We’re both sleeping on a bed similar in concept in which you can raise or lower the top and bottom independently of each other. (Anyone watch “The Simpsons”? Bed goes up, bed goes down. Bed goes up, bed goes down.)

Be sure to check out the photo page if you haven’t yet. We’ve been uploading new photos to the birth page throughout the day. It’s funny, Braden has had his picture taken more times today than we did combined in our first few months!

Journal feeding, sleep

Thank you to everyone who has called, e-mailed, texted and/or Facebook-messaged us today! Your well wishes really, really mean a lot to us.

We’ve had a parade of people come in today–the overnight nurse, the day nurse, the resident OB, Kristin’s baby doctor, our pediatrician, the nurse’s assistant and Meriter’s volunteer welcome person. And of course, our parents came this morning and stayed a few hours. Finally, Kristin’s sister Marcie stopped for a while this afternoon. 

Before Marcie came, we asked our nurse (Carol–she’s outstanding) if we could have some privacy to sleep. So we got a DO NOT DISTURB sign and then napped for an hour–we really needed it.

We’ve been feeding Braden every two hours or so. He smacks his lips and sticks his tongue way out when he’s hungry (it’s so damn cute!). He’s been sleeping a lot, and he hardly cries.

It’s funny, Braden loves keeping his arms by his head (like he was in the womb).

As mentioned, we didn’t expect to be in the hospital this long. Brian already is out of clothes, so he may just wear a gown the rest of the week. Thank goodness we brought Brian’s laptop to stay connected to the world.

It’s about 4:45 p.m. and we’re just relaxing until the next feeding. Kristin is disconnected from her PCA [meds] so she can move around as needed (she’s still sore, though).

Did you see the pics of Braden?

Journal family, hospital

We are pleased to announce …

… Braden Jie Lee, born 12:03 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 3, at 8 lbs. 3 oz and 19.5 inches.

Kristin began pushing at 10:20 p.m. At 11:30 p.m., the doctor felt it was best to switch to a C-section. The procedure was perfect, and Kristin is recovering speedily.

We are now in a different and smaller room (C-section families are transferred out of the birthing suites).

We are both exhausted, as the nurse checked Kristin every hour, then the OB came, so we’ve had less than four hours of interrupted sleep.

We’ll be in the hospital until about Friday. We didn’t think we would be here that long, so we didn’t pack the connector for the digital camera to the laptop (nor enough clothes). Brian will upload camera phone pics later today.

Friends may visit us on Thursday. More info to come.

Thanks everyone for checking in throughout yesterday evening. We’ll keep this blog updated!

Journal Braden, hospital

Almost 9:30 now. The nurse flipped Kristin over to her other side about 30 min. ago. She’s almost fully dilated now and is trying to nap to conserve her strength.

The baby has about 2.5 hours left to be born on my Chinese birthday this year (it changes every year).

By the way, it’s worth mentioning that everyone is very nice–the nurse, the physician and the anesthesiologist.

The cleaning crew just came in by accident. They were paged to the wrong room! They were puzzled why this room was so clean, and Brian answered that we hadn’t given birth yet. They felt bad for the mistake.

Journal hospital

Kristin just received her epidural about 45 min. ago (it’s 8:15 p.m. right now). She’s resting and “very happy right now.”

We have the movie “Stripes” playing in the background. “Heroes” is on, but we’re taping it.

Journal epidural

Before Brian left work, Kristin suggested he pick up some dinner for himself, since we would be heading to the hospital around dinner time. So he bought some subs at Cousins on his way home.

Since we’re just killing time, we decided Brian should eat while he can. Kristin is not allowed to eat, so Brian went to the nearby waiting room so she wouldn’t smell his food and get hungry. The patient kitchen also is nearby; Brian is allowed to access it (keypad) to get things for himself and Kristin.

Kristin is sipping some apple juice right now. Brian chomped down his 7.5″ sub in 3 minutes and now doesn’t feel well.

Journal hospital

Kristin’s water broke today. We called our doctor, then headed to the triage station at Meriter. They confirmed that her water did break, and they admitted us.

So we’re just hanging out now, watching “Groundhog’s Day” on TV. Brian is sitting on his pullout sofa bed, and Kristin is sitting on a birthing ball right now.

The room is huge, about three times the size of Brian’s dorm room at Sellery. The outlets are unfortunately placed at inconvenient locations.

We’ll keep you posted as we can!

Journal hospital, water break