Getting Along on Our Own

After all the fun of Daddy's R&R, and all the help of Nan's visit, we girls have been on our own for a week now. We were -- predictably -- none too anxious to be left on own, but despite our fears, we're managing just fine. Some friends from church have been bringing us meals, which has been more of a help than I can begin to say. And otherwise, we're mostly at home (sometimes at the commissary, sometimes at the park, sometimes at church), trying to settle into a routine.

Madeline had her two week appointment last week. She'd gotten a miserable cold from her sister (her Daddy caught it, too!), which made her uncomfortable and sniffly, but didn't keep her from gaining weight. She was back to her birth weight right on time! Hopefully the cold will be gone in short order.

Madeline has already discovered that she prefers to be held rather than laid down to sleep and, despite our tropical climate, prefers to be covered with a blanket, protected from the breeze. She's not too crazy about the car seat -- at least not until we start driving, when she'll generally fall asleep. And she has an uncanny knack for demanding to eat right as I'm in the middle of putting her sister to bed!

The days close to home haven't been entirely wasted on Kathleen. We've played a lot in the backyard, and blown a lot of bubbles, read a lot of books, and walked to the park a lot, too. Having a little sister has not dampened Kathleen's flair for the dramatic. This is the face she makes a lot lately, whether she's surprised by something good or something not-so-good:

Fortunately Madeline's daytime sleeping schedule has allowed me to spend some good one-on-one time with Kathleen, which seems to help keep our girls from being at odds with one another. Of course, Kathleen won't hesitate to tell me to put the baby down in the bouncer if she wants me to do something for her! Her language skills have just exploded and she provides us with a seemingly endless stream of chatter lately. On the way home from church today she told me that she wanted grapes and a hot dog for lunch. So, even if I'm guessing about what her sister needs, there's no guessing with Kathleen!

I haven't been as good about taking photos of the girls since Madeline arrived, but it's going to be something I work on this week. Hopefully there will be more to post soon!

R&R in Review

Not surprisingly, we had a fantastic time with Daddy during R&R. Our time together was truly blessed. Kathleen took to Daddy as though he had never left and the two of them played and played. Thanks to Nan O'Connor's babysitting, Mama and Daddy even snuck out to their favorite Italian restaurant in Kailua before Madeline arrived. And, of course, Madeline arrived (in her own time, but nonetheless) healthy and happy. Really, everything worked out perfectly.

One of the greatest blessings of R&R was that when Jim's chain of command heard that I would be induced, they encouraged Jim to stay a few extra days to make sure we got settled at home before he left. We didn't expect anything like that (we were still hardly willing to hope that he'd make it home for the birth), but it was a huge help. Jim should have left on Thursday, the day after Madeline was born and the day we came home from the hospital. Thankfully, he didn't leave until Monday, which came in really handy when Kathleen surprised us with a 103 degree fever Friday afternoon. . . (What a welcome home!) Daddy took Kathleen to the acute care clinic, while Madeline and Mama stayed home. They returned four hours later with some cold medicine, some tylenol, and some antibiotics for a "very slight" ear infection. Phew! I can't even begin to imagine if we'd tried to endure the four hour wait -- Mama, Nan O'Connor, Kathleen, and Madeline. Ugh!

But aside from that mini-catastrophe, our time together was just about perfect. We even managed to fit in a number of "firsts" that Daddy would've missed. For example, we got Kathleen's first haircut. Amazing how still a toddler can be when she gets to sit in a special "airplane" and watch Barney on her own tv!

Kathleen also watched her first full-length movie. (Well, not all in one sitting, but still!) We had our very first pizza and movie night picnic on the living room floor. Daddy rented Cars for Kathleen to see, predicting that she'd love it. Mama was skeptical, but Daddy was right. Kathleen is crazy about that movie!

She loves to say "cars" and "fast" and "vroom-vroom." In fact, when we do not respond quickly enough (or in the affirmative) to her requests to see Cars, she switches from asking for Cars to asking for the clicker. Once she's located the remote she points it at the television and pushes buttons, as if to say, "Look, grown-ups, if you're not going to take care of me, then I'm going to take care of myself!" I'm afraid that shortly our daughter will be all about Nascar!

Kathleen seems to be adjusting okay to her Daddy's departure. She asks about him every morning when I pick her up, and sometimes after her nap, too. We talk about how he's at work far away, and how much he loves her, and that he'll be back in a little while. Just after that, Kathleen usually spots Madeline and calls out, "Baby! Baby!" I think she's excited to see the baby -- perhaps she thinks Madeline's going to disappear to go off to work some night, too. Kathleen also seems to be adjusting okay to Madeline's arrival. She's been cranky and tantrum-y, but we'd expected that. And I think (or I like to tell myself) that things are getting better each day. Kathleen remains exuberant in her love for Madeline, which is great for Kathleen and only slightly dangerous for Madeline. ("No, Kathleen! Please do not climb ON the baby! She is too little!") We've been really, really grateful for Nan O'Connor's help this week. We'll just have to see how we do when she leaves on Monday. Wish us luck!

Finally Meeting Madeline

At one week and one day overdue, the doctors agreed to induce us, so that Jim could meet the baby before he had to go back to Iraq. We had thought we'd go into Tripler Army Medical Center for the induction on Monday night, but on Monday night all the beds in labor and delivery were full, so we got bumped back... By late Tuesday morning, though, there was room for us. We got Kathleen all settled with Nan O'Connor and headed out "to get Kathleen's little sister."

The induction went remarkably well, and Madeline Elizabeth Golby was born at 1:26 am on Wednesday, September 5th. She was 19 inches long (although we think she may have been longer) and weighed in at 8 pounds, 13 ounces -- surprisingly larger than her sister! After Madeline was weighed, we kept thanking my doctor for not waiting any longer to induce us!

We fell in love with Madeline at once. (How could we not?)

And we are exceedingly grateful that Kathleen had the same reaction. When she visited the next day, she ran into the hospital room and immediately climbed up on the bed to give Mama and "Kathleen's baby" a big hug.

Kathleen's love for the baby has not yet waned, even as the baby has stolen a lot of limelight. Kathleen loves to check up on Madeline, to kiss her, and to give her toys. And she worries when the baby cries.

Madeline has surprised us with her dark hair and her fiery little personality. She was none too happy about the indignities of being born, or of being examined by her physician. The little girl has BIG lungs! But as we get used to one another, we're finding her to be sweet and generally happy. (Though loud, still!)