A Family of 5

As expected, big brothers Mudgie and Aaron were very excited about the arrival of Thomas.  They couldn't wait to meet him, but unfortunately, nothing is without complications.  You see, Mudgie started running a fever the day I went into labor, and by the next day he'd developed a terrible cough and lost his voice. While we were so excited to introduce him to the new baby, we also couldn't bring him to hospital, so he had to rest up at home while Aaron made a quick trip to see us.

Aaron was so good and gentle with Thomas, just as we knew he would be after watching him with his daycare friends Riley and Noa.  He gave Thomas some hugs and kisses, but it was a quick visit.  Luckily, since everyone was doing so well, Thomas and I were able to go home the next day.  Both the boys got to dote on their new brother (though Mudgie from a bit of a distance), and we got to really start our lives as a family of 5.

As for how things have been going after the initial "newness" of Thomas has started to fade, I'm happy to report that the big brothers are as in love with him as ever.  Mudgie takes every opportunity to hold, touch, and interact with Thomas that he can get.  Admittedly, this is not a lot, since Thomas pretty much just eats and sleeps at this point, but in those few wakeful minutes, Mudgie is heaven.  He's almost a little too much for Thomas, getting right up in his face and handling him a little too vigorously, but the intent is all good.  Aaron, while being a bit more fussy and needy than usual, has also made a wonderful transition to big brother status.  He is so good with Thomas, though is not interested in holding him, and does not like it when Thomas cries.  Luckily for us, Thomas is thus far a very laid back baby, so crying has not been an issue.

As for Thomas, he is pretty much as "chill" as a baby can be.  He sleeps great (in someone's arms), and he's already figured out his days and nights, giving me 4 consecutive hours of sleep during his first stretch.  This is something Aaron took a few weeks to do, and Mudgie took almost a full year to do!  He's eating like a champ, and as of his check-up on Tuesday (at 8 days old), he was 8lbs, 3oz...almost back to his birth weight!  I seem to understand his cues much more than other boys, which could be because he's more obvious, or because the big ones trained me well.  Either way, it's been a really nice start, and I can only hope things continue on as well.