Today is Father's Day and we were able tocelebrate all of the Father's in our family- including our newest Dad- Louie. Fathers play a special and important role in the lives of their children, shaping, guiding, and supporting them in many different ways. Both Lou and I have been blessed to have outstanding male figures throughout our lives and I know Brendan is going to be one lucky boy to have such a wonderful father, grandfathers,
and great grandfather.
This afternoon the most important people in Brendan's life gathered at our home to celebrate Dads and new life. Gram, Pop, Grand Aunt Patrice, Great Grandpa, Great Grandma, Grandpa, Grandma, Great Aunt Paula, Great Uncle Joe and of course his Mom and Dad all got together for a few hours. We passed him around and everyone got a turn to hold him. Brendan slept through all of the noise- approximately 6 hours without a peep- and woke up soon after everyone left.
We think he either likes the noise or has days and nights backwards. I think is most likely the ladder because he has feeding frenzy during the night.
Since we have been home my parents have been over each day to feed us and help out around the house. It is a comfort to know help
is not far. Lou and I have made an awesome team and we love being parents. Reese has adjusted too- he is no longer allowed to sleep with us on the bed and slept in the Arizona room with kitty last night. He is curious and smells Brendan and is awake next to me as I nurse Brendan at midnight right now.
If you are a Mom you probably already know this but you have to become an expert at doing things one handed. I have learned to eat, drink, type, text, do laundry, pick things up, and clean up cat puke one handed. The only thing I won't even try is to use the bathroom with him.
Sounds too dangerous- plus it takes me like 5 minutes to pee and clean up properly with the stitches down there.
Brendan is an awesome eater and nursing is going very well for us. We started just after the birth and I swear the skin to skin contact plus putting him to the breast immediately helped him to pick it up fast. He is thriving. When we left the hospital Saturday he had lost 5% of his body weight or about 5 ounces. This is normal for newborns and
you only have to worry if they lose 10% or more before starting to gain again. He will be weighed again Tuesday at his first doctor's appointment. My milk came in Sunday so he should be eating substantially more. We started cloth diapering and so far so good. The next adventure ahead is figuring out how to use the breast pump.
One last thing- thank you so kindly for all of the warm wishes we have received. Lou and I have a strong support system in place and it means a lot to both of us. Thanks for being so good to us! We are truly grateful for everyone's acts of kindness.
Our life since Brendan has been born has been joyful and amazing. We are loving being parents. I think one of the main reasons why we have been able to adjust so well is because of the large show of support we have been shown by family, friends, and neighbors. Everyone is more than willing to lend a helping hand. My friend Sue has set us up with a website called FoodTidings.com. It allows 
our friends to sign up to bring us dinner and visit for a short while. We have had a few meals so far and are very appreciative for people feeding us! 
