On May 15, 2014, we headed in early to Christiana Hospital in Newark, Delaware for the birth of our second son! The staff were great, made Phuong feel as relaxed as possible and performed the c-section quickly and efficiently. I wised up from the c-section of Michael and didn't watch the extraction from Phuong's belly. I didn't watch Aliens to remind myself of how the process went. I didn't have to, it was embedded in my memories. So I focused all my energies on comforting Phuong, who was a little scared of course!
At 9:23am, you can imagine our surprise when we heard the medical staff, all 19 of them it seemed like, laughing and saying "red hair! He has red hair!" We were like what, that's a half Asian baby! But there he was with strawberry blond reddish hair like the color of Brian's beard.
He's been great so far. He started rooting around when they laid him next to Phuong, and he quickly made a tight latch. A far cry from Michael who's instincts were far less evident.
In many ways, this baby was so much easier. Phuong didn't have the stress of what felt like 139 hours of labor before going into surgery. So we were much fresher afterwards to take care of him. The experience of having Michael was actually helpful as we knew what to expect, although I don't necessarily remember everything. And Simon is much better behaved little baby; he kind of looks around curiously and is probably the calmest baby in the nation. Plus he knows how to nurse of his own accord which makes life easier for everyone.
He slept a lot yesterday and today he nursed a lot, every hour, before he got gas and poop and cried for an hour.
One great difference in seven years, besides all the medical rules changing (and doctors wonder why they can't be trusted!), is smart phones. We communicated to family and friends through WhatsApp and Touch with pictures and videos. That was great for keeping everyone concerned up to date.
I picked up Vannah and Michael from home and brought them up to the hospital. They had a great time looking at the baby and they both got to hold him. Michael mostly watched Sponge Bob on the TV but did hold the baby a bit too. He's going to be a great big brother!
I still can't believe that red hair. How did those dominant Asian genes get overpowered?
Friday, May 16, 2014
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