Now A Parent!

Today is April 5th, 2006, and for 24 hours now, I have been a new parent to two incredibly beautiful children. Leo Quesnel Saracino and Eva Quesnel Saracino came into the world at 9:00 a.m. and 9:47 a.m. respectively after a relatively quick but arduous delivery. Mom is doing fine, and did wonderfully through the course of it, almost too good if you ask me, because I no doubt would have been screaming upon simply the drive to the hospital if I had to deliver them.

We were admitted on Sunday, with besides some initial indicators of labor, no real evidence that we were going to deliver that day or anything. What I mean by that s that it wasn't like Olivia was having contractions 2 minutes apart and was keeling over in pain. It was evident that it was beginning, but even the nurses were surprised that we were actually admitted. They obviously saw something, because, well, April 4th, 2006 is now a permanent day in my calendar. We were hopeful on Monday night that we might be discharged, but at 4:00 a.m., Olivia's water broke. It took me a bit to understand the situation, as we were both running to some degree with sleep deprivation. Once aware that the life oven was overheating, I was up and at 'em.

Scene 2: 5:32 a.m: She's full on having contractions at this point. She was very focused and calm, and I was a bit in awe of how well she was dealing with the pain. We were taken out of our room, and wheeled into the prep room, where for about a hour and a half, she was attended to, and quickly came to full dilatation. Insane. At this point, I observed a shift occuring, in my apprecation for what was going to happen today. Being serious, there is something that happens in these stages for parents, and it occurs many different ways. Since our experience was so quick, I was making concerted efforts to attempt to keep up with the situation as best as I could, and for the men and women who have their experience chart hours or days, they go through it more slowly. I'd say when she agreed to have the epidural, and the nurse said "She's going to deliver any minute", I realized that it was one of the most important periods of my life.

Scene 3: 7:46 a.m: We had just been prepped for entrance into the O.R. I was putting my scrubs on, and began making jokes about needing 5 cc's of mustard and ketchup, and wearing my mask, and pretending to be a doctor. This is my way of dealing with fast paced situations, and admittedly, it isn't suitable for everything. Olivia was in good spirits, but she didn't want me to make her laugh, understandably, because it hurt, so I curbed my doctor routine, and observed yet another stage of the game in my perception of what was going on. I was wearing scrubs, and was going into the O.R., where it's a classic setting out of Grey's Anatomy or St. Elsewhere. Big lights on the ceiling, and medical instrumentation everywhere. I'll remember focusing on the brand name of the computers that they use in there, and mentally preparing myself for whatever. I wanted to be in there, and had heard about many instances of men passing out from the adrenaline and blood and excietement. I was determined not to let that happen. I wanted to be aware of everything, and I partciularly wanted to us to be one of the first, if not the first people they laid eyes on.

Scene 4: 9:00 a.m: Leo, our son, was born. I'm not kidding around when I say this, but as soon as I saw him, it was like a chapter in my life was beginning, and all that I had been before as an individual was not over, but different. Not to sound sappy, but I was no longer just someone's son anymore, and this was something that my Dad admitted he felt too when I was born. It's difficult to explain other than your realize that there is someone, in my case, people, who are dependent on you, and are a piece of you. It's really incredible. All my friends who have had children have explained this in different ways, and I can say that it's one of the most intriguing and tangible feelings that I have ever had. I'm still reeling from this moment.

Scene 5: 9:47 a.m: Eva, our daughter finally comes out after some fussiness about turning around. She was delivered breech, but had a very strong heart rate throughout, which was the main reason why they decided not to do a C-section. Olivia was happy about this, as I know most Mom's would probably be. No doubt about it, C sections are serious surgery, and recovery takes longer. It's not fun, and your body is already taking enough of a train wreck hit that it's a relief when you don't have to go through it. She was 4 pounds and 5 ounces roughly to his 4 pounds 8 ounces, and she has fair hair and different features. The kids are different, and I can already notice a bit of a personality difference with them. I'm holding our daughter in the photo.

Mom is great, and all of the grandparents are excited. The kids are going to spend some time in the ICU as a precaution, which is completely normal as they are a little premature even for twins, but they're beautiful. The ICU is locked down like Alcatraz, and the frequency that you need to wash your hands is high, especially when touching each child, but it's required. The nurses at the Civic are so great. They've been really accomodating and really helpful. It makes you realize that bedside manner is absolutely essential, really.

All in all, everything is good. I'll be posting more pictures as they get prepped for photo ops.