early daddy words - 2005

hi pepe, it's your daddy (i hope you'll call me that)... this is the 1st opportunity i've taken to write to you since you were born + really the first time i've done any journaling in years. right now you're next to me on our new burgundy leather sofa in our little 2 room apt. on grove street in arlington. last night we celebrated grandma margaret's birthday here. she was excited to drive down and see you. we also ate fajitas and probably got you a little too worked up as you didn't want to sleep from9 'till almost 2. i thought today would be a great time to expose you to a more active daytime and your mama just bought us this mayan sling with nice fabric from guatemala so i followed the instructions the accompanying dvd had for setting the baby into it and you were pretty content while i read the sports news on the web and drank coffee and ate coffe cake that we did not have for grandma's birthday last nigh. the after you fed, i put you back in it and vacuumed and went to stop & shop to return cans and now you are sleeping and i'm etting used to being at home alone with you. mama's a little jelous cause she'll be working soon and might miss out on precious "firsts' (words, steps, whatever) or maybe she just doesn't like the idea of being away from you while you're so small and dependent and fragile (though we know you'll be tough and are already strong!) so i'm whiling away some time which i plan to do this year and the result should be a little background for you on your first year in the world and stuff about your parents..things that might interest you when you get older.
first off, i think we settled that you were conceived in romania (shortly after your mama and i visited italy and i turned 40) and perhaps coinciding with the red sox world series championship of 2004. we were in romania for about 10 months, sorting out mama's u.s. visa. i worked at an international school helping a boy names spencer who was in the 4th grade. i used to get up at 6 every morning and ride a bus from piata unirii (unirii means united0 to the school which was in the posh baneasa area of bucharest. i didn't really enjoy my year in romania. we were forced to leave the us because of the visa status and i felt intimidated by the congestion of people speaking a language i didn't understand. when we were finally able to return to the us, your mother was about 6 months pregnant (though she always calculated it in weeks...i think saying "i am 26 weeks pregnant" gave her the sense that she was making a more dramatic statement... i though it just confudes people). anyway, her pregnancy helped to speed the processing of papers which enabled us to return before your birth in boston. the senator's office in ohio had a caseworked named ellen kinker who helped us have your mother's papers expedited. there were concerns that your blood type might be rh postive and could contaminate mama's blood whicvh is rh negative. this put her pregnancy into the "high risk' category and made the visa center (in porthsmouth0 and the consular office (in bucharest0 and other dept. of homeland security offices 9ultimately in rome0 move faster to pass the waiver which allowed mama to become a "permanent resident" of the us (and have a boston baby named pepe who was born about one mile away from fenway park in the morning after the red sox defeated the texas rangers 8-7 in an extra innings game0. your mama's probably written all about your birth, so i'll just note a few details that stand out in the memory. the day you were born..well august 9th (the day before0 your mom and i went to the hospital in the morning and she was given ?????? which stimulate dilations and we were told to return to the hospital at 6 pm. we got ready for our stay in the hospital packing a huge red canvas bag with food, clothes, even CD's and a CD plakyer. at the hospital, dr. leila schuler broke your mother's water (puncured the uterus lining, i believe) and teh contractions began shortly after. we watched gilmore girls and teh aforementioned red sox game until the labor pains got to strong and your mom had an epidural. the initial procedure wasn't easing her pain any so a different doctor adjusted the needle position and mom was able to sleep. in the morning a new nurse came in and found mom was fully dilated. we just had to wait for the doctor and then she could start pushing to bring you out. the doctor came around 8 9i think)...i do know she called mom a "showoff" coz she pushed so hard and you arrived so quickly (8:25) tumbling out into dr. schuler's hands (it seemes -i am sure she had a firm grasp), then you were quickly handed to the nurse who cleaned the blood o of you and i was offered somescisors to cut the umbilical cord. i had to push down to get the scissors to cut and worried i might cut into your mom's tummy, but the cord was cut and the doctor joked that 'if you want scissors that cut they cost extra".

we ended us spending 4 more nights in the hospital as you were jaundiced. you had lots of visitors, coming with flowers and stifed animals and taking lots of pictures. and we got lots of advice about brestfeeding and other aspects of baby care which we knew little about in a first-hand kind of way. you stayed on your 'bily-bed' which had uv lights to kill the excess bilirubin and we could only hold you during your feedings. we thought you needed extra-holding once you came home to make up for this...and you did finally came home on a sunday, a rainy thundery day where they tried to have a red sox-white sox game but only got throguh a few innings before it was cancelled. i remember passing fenway park with the light on in the afternoon the first time we drove with you.

for the first few weeks you slept in the bed with your mom and me. we worried that we might turn over in our sleep and bang you with an elbow orcrush you under our backs but it seemed we were always aware of your presence and we liked having you close, especially as you misteriously slid up against us,seeking one of our warm bodies despite being asleep and unconscious. after a time we transitiones you to a basonette blaced inside a rocky cradle, though you spent more time sleeping in our car seat (where you are right now at almost 11 weeks,asleep at 12:20 in the afternoon0.

during the early weeks buni took you almost everyday. she bought us a stroller which worked with the carseat and took you out for walks on the minuteman bikepath (she called it "path-bike"0 and parked you by the tennis courts so she could sit and knit (for you!). of course little babies do not do much beside sleep and eat 9and cry!). your big trick was when you turned from your stomach on to your back at 12 days old. you lifted your legs (arching your back) and swung sideways and then, from your sideways base, "walked" the rest of the way over. at 11 weeks i haven't seen you do this trick, but you did it repetedly from about 2 weeks old to 6 wks old - very accrobatic!

during the night, i fed you sometimes and samg to you (i am also putting together a songbook with lyrics of these favorite songs0. it's been amazing to see your increased awareness and the first workings of your hands as you grow and progress so quickly. everyone comment about what a "good baby' you are (you are not generally fussy) and remarks on your blue eyes or cuteness or something. we hope we've given you a good start in life, i know it is a big worls out there but you are surrounded with people who love an care for you. i am one of them and i hope you'll be interested to read more about my life before you entered it! ( see upcoming post).