Checking up on 6-day-old Moses

Joe did a wonderful job summing up Moses' birth, and I'll probably go back at some point and compose a less pithy version from my point of view. But first, I just wanted to give an update on how Moses is doing now that he is here at home.

Today was Moses' first check-up. Instead of taking Moses to the regular pediatrician, we have decided to seek the care of a natural-minded family doctor... one who doesen't think that prescription drugs are the solution to every ailment and who won't scold us for co-sleeping or breastfeeding our baby for longer than one year (yes, this happened to me at our old pediatrician's office). Dr. Irwin even came to our house for Moses' first check-up. Of course his services are not covered by our health insurance, but since he doesn't work with insurance companies, he is able to keep his rates affordable- about half of what a mainstream doctor would bill an insurance company.

Anyway, Dr. Irwin's assessment was that Moses is doing very well! At 6 days old, Moses is already 10 and a half pounds! The nurses in the NICU had been concerned that Moses wasn't drinking enough breastmilk and tried to convince me to supplement with formula, which I politely refused, and thankfully so since he obviously did not need it.

Moses is such a good baby. He sleeps an astounding amount (3 hours at a time, which was unheard of when the twins were his age) and only cries if I don't feed him quickly enough after he wakes, or if we take too long to wipe his butt after an explosive poo. This morning Dr. Irwin marvelled that he didn't even fuss when we laid him on the scale to weigh him- apparently most babies are not too fond of that treatment. Today I gave him his first sponge bath and he didn't even make a peep while I rinsed his hair in the kitchen sink. When we had to go to the hospital today to have the staples removed from my scar, Moses slept the entire time in the car, during the considerable wait at the hospital, and during the car ride home. Joe and I reflected back on what a similar outing would have been like when the twins were 6 days old. It would be have been utter chaos and we would have been frazzled and exhuasted after a simple 2.5-hour excursion. The difference between newborn Moses and newborn Caleb and Joshua is like night and day. Even if we had two Moseses, it would still only be half the work that Joshua and Caleb were when they were newborns. All I can say is that this must be the benefit of having a nice big full-term baby who made his entrance into the world not according to an OB's schedule, but rather according to God's perfect timing. We are so thankful for baby Moses!