Now that they have moved up the section I have to figure out the logistics of an earlier section. Brian and I are not taking anyone to the hospital with us this time. Last time we had a gaggle of people waiting in the waiting room. I would definitely be bringing my parents but they will be taking care of the monkey twins for us.
Our experience last time sucked. This time we really want to do things different. With the ruptured cyst and my bleeding like mad Brian was completely traumatized and I barely remember anything. I can hardly remember even seeing the girls until the next day so everyone got to "meet" them before me.
This time we want a little time the three of us before people start descending upon us. It is hugely important to us that the girls, Genna and the boys get to be the first to meet Baby. We want a little time with all the kids. I didn't get to see Genna or the boys faces the first time they met the girls and I feel like I missed out. I want to remember that moment forever.
The next question is what do we do the day of. Grace has been a MESS over me being gone. She is so clingy it's painful to watch. She cries every single day (and I mean sobs) when I put her on the bus. SO the question is do we say our goodbyes the night before and leave them with my Mom? Do we get them up early that morning so we can say a last goodbye? I'm not really sure yet. Thankfully we have a couple of days left to figure it all out!
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I say get up early and say goodbye. Make sure that Gracie understands that you'll see her in a bit; as soon as baby is here and she can come visit, she'll be able to. I know Kate would have an easier time with that, than waking up without us there and being upset that we left without saying anything.
Tell people that you'll send a text when you're ready for vistors -- that way you and Bry can have some time with baby boy before people show up. Then let your Mom and & Dad know so they can bring the kids. After the kids and your parents get some time, let everyone else know. Even though technology is awesome not everyone and their brother needs to immediately know baby is here. We'll all survive if you wait a bit to enjoy some time together.
This is one of the benefits we have, and it was exacerbated when Ally was born. Not having family right here meant some bonding time at the hospital. Since Ally came just after midnight, it was mid-morning when Kate got to the hospital to meet her. I know this time will be different (especially since we're debating having Cris' parents here to help with the big girls while we're in the hospital) but I think we'll do the same -- just send a text to let them know when to bring the kids. It's easier to entertain small(er) children at home than in a hospital. ;)
We did the same for both our girls. My section was moved up (time wise) to 6am with Abby. We got to have a little time with her before all the family arrived. With Alaina we woke Abby up early to take her to my parents that morning before we drove to the hospital. They didnt come up to visit until hours after Alaina was here. I will never forget Abby walking into my hospital room and seeing Alaina for the first time! (We were lucky that everyone lived almost an hour from where I delivered!) Wishing you the best of luck on Monday!!!
~Amy
total personal choice, but for me I would want to do a quickish goodbye the night before to have time to get me "game face" on for the day ahead. Once you leave the girls will be great--they are with their "second parents" after all.
hate to make this more difficult but when we left the boys in January for 8 days I too had the what to do. We were leaving at 4:30 In the morning and didn't know if I should wake Ethan and say goodbye or not. My husband said no, let him sleep he knows we are leaving and it will be so hard to leave for everyone if he cries as we do leave so we did not wake. My mom said he woke fine, knew where we were and was fine. Now grace has been upset so you do have a decision but it will be hard on all if she has a very hard time that early in the am and if your bp is high why add that to you then. Let you mom handle any issues that morning if need be. Heidi in VA
Thanks for all the input you guys! Still not sure what we're going to do in terms of waking them or leaving them the night before but we definitely are hoping to have a little quiet time at the hospital to bond.
We are SO lucky that family lives nearby and we don't want to take that for granted. That being said we want to have a more positive experience this go-around!
How do you think she'll do the rest of the day if woken early? She'll be facing a day of routine changes on less sleep than usual. Do you think she will handle that well? or would it be easier for her to sleep until her normal time and wake with grandma there to do her normal routine just without you there?
I have a child who has serious issues with any change in his routine. What worked best for HIM (i emphasize that b/c every child is so different) was us keeping his routine as normal as possible. He needed to know that yes, life with the baby was going to be a little different but mostly things would be the same. He would still get up, go to school, come home, have lunch, nap time.... Most children need that reassurance that comes from routine. They need to know what to expect.Within reason we did our best to give that to him. I figured it was the least we could do since it is a big enough adjustment having a new little person in the house. It helped us all because he felt secure in what was happening and I know that helped keep melt downs to a minimum.
Definitely a wise choice your making with the new baby time. my husband and I loved the time we had alone with our new son before everyone else was around. It was a nice, calm experience letting his brother meet him first as well and he was so proud later when he got to introduce him to other visitors who came.
Anon - That is definitely the problem! Grace struggles BIG TIME with change so messing with her routine could cause days of stress. I think that is why we are leaning towards sending them Sunday. They are SO excited to be with my parents, the boys and Genna so I think it might help soften the blow of not waking up with us. Plus, Honey (my Mom) will let them have sugary cereal or (vegan) pop tarts for breakfast. :D
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