The First Night

The first night in the hospital wasn't a good one.  We were given a newborn baby in a bassinet, some wipes, diapers and no instruction whatsoever. When it quickly became obvious that our darling Gwyneth was struggling with breast feeding we were told that the lactation consultant went home for the day. So I sat helplessly for hours with a screaming baby in my arms trying to nurse her and comfort her all through the night. 

To make matters worse Sir Sunderland had to take care of the diaper changing due to my inability to move. There's no greater feeling of complete helplessness than lying in a hospital bed shouting across the room at your sleeping husband to wake up and come check on the baby because you're unable to. All three of us survived the hellish night and met with a lactation consultant the first thing in the morning. This is not to say that the feeding problem was solved but it helped calm both of us and Gwyneth was finally able to eat.

The next few days were filled with us getting to know Gwyneth, family filling our hospital room to meet her and of course us, trying to figure things out. It really amazes me how little instruction we were given originally, which was in part due to the nurse we were given and the fact the hospital staff happened to be stretched thin due to an onslaught of babies being born.  Regardless, it wasn't until our last night in the hospital when we were graced with a nurse who patiently explained things, helped with our nursing issues and offered to take  the baby to the nursery so we could sleep soundly. She was heaven sent and gave us the confidence we needed to feel that we were capable of taking our baby home. 

After four days in the hospital we left with our baby girl bundled up snuggled in her car seat to start a new stage in our  life as a family of three.