Homecoming

Good morning, afternoon or evening folks.

The following is a little update and anecdote.

Mother and daughter are now out of the hospital, relishing the comforts of our little home.

As an aside; though the primary mode of an hospital is not the aesthetic, they would do well to make the rooms feel a little more cozy and appealing. It's true that hospitals ,with their outdated and medical scented decor, are no match for the personality and warmth of your own home.

Dana Marie and Rebekah Marie are now home from the hospital, just two days after a cesarean. 

"Already?!" you ask. "Yes, isn't that great," I reply. 

Dr. Chan said that she was recovering fabulously, and since the nurses weren't necessarily doing all that much, he gave us the green light to leave. So, at approximately 5:13 p.m., we bid the hospital as fond a farewell as you can give a hospital, and took our daughter for her maiden voyage in the Venture (fitting name for a minivan in this regard).

So, it hasn't even been two full days since the monumental event and our little family of three seems to be getting along just swell already. Undoubtedly, we will be taking the baby for a visit to the doctor's in the very near future and to the hospital, to have a heart to heart with the lactation consultant, shortly after. 

Other than the seam in Dana's abdomen, it has been quite the seamless series of events, for which we remain very thankful. (I'm also thankful that she passed the hearing exam with flying colors because now I know she will be successfully indocrinated into the wonderful world of music). 

Anyway, the photos above are a collection of photographs taken on Easter Sunday.

What a great birthday: Easter weekend and the first day of spring!

TO LIFE

Alas, this blog entry must be short, for it is past 1:00 in the a.m.

Both mother and daughter are doing very well (as far as I know right now).

Status on both will be coming periodically; so don't fret.

Info:

Rebekah Marie Sikkema was born on March 21 2008 A.D.

She tipped the scales at 7 pounds 7 ounces, while stretching to just a quarter inch shy of 21"

We are both very happy and incredibly thankful for this new gift of life.

...

What else to say? For those of you who have undergone this experience before I hope you can take joy in the beautiful magnitude of the gift given, and for those who haven't had the privilege as of yet, trust me when I say it is a gift like no other. A truly and singularly awesome event, in the traditional sense of the word (giving real inflection to the 'awe' in 'awesome').

Much more to come ladies and gentlemen, but for now this will be all. 

Another busy day tomorrow.

Rebekah trying to suck her thumb already perhaps? 
What a doll...
Our little daughter's little feet.
A little sad at the moment due to a whole new world experience.
The most beautiful little girl in the world.

Tension building and scheduling

As we impatiently wait for the baby to come the tension builds at home. 

I look across the table at my wife during another delicious meal and wonder if you really could cut tension with a knife...

Ok, it would have to be an incredibly sharp knife and the person doing the cutting would have to be a master swordsman. But, it could be done.

Really though, we are doing fine and surprisingly not freaking out too much at all.

Dana had a doctor's check-up today for which we had high hopes. In the realm of mankind and medicine though, we must learn to keep hope out of the picture.

What I'm trying to say is that the doctor's appointment today didn't come back with the results we were hoping for. "That child is literally about to burst out of you at any second!" the doctor screamed. 

Nothing like that.

"Everything is fine and on schedule," says he. "And what, pray tell, does that exactly mean," says I.

Who's schedule are we talking about here?

I would like to know this schedule of yours for you seem to know, or claim to know, precisely when this child will be born. Is this some kind of medical industry standard, to keep a first-time couple in the dark here?

I know the answer to this but seriously, let's be a little more encouraging in our practice sir.

Anyway, Lord willing, the baby will come some time in the next two weeks.

All is well and going swimmingly. 

Stay tuned folks.

The Eleventh Hour

In the child's book of the same title a rather large party is surprised by a rather large group of mischievous mice. As all the guests enter the dining hall they encounter the horrible truth: all the food is gone and the party seems to be ruined by those little villains. 

You may ask, "What does this have to do with having a baby?" 

Well, not much really. The story however illustrates a universal experience in regards to the anticipation and surprises of pregnancy and birth.

There is a great deal of work and time leading up to the hour and when it comes, Wham! You don't know what will happen.