A Few Firsts

Over the last few days, Landon has had a few firsts in his life.

Here is Landon after his first excursion into the great outdoors. We went for a walk around the subdivision. It felt great to get out in the fresh air and work the muscles a bit. As for the little man, you can see he got a lot out of it. Zzzzzzzz......

Eight days after bringing Landon home it was time to introduce him to the family dog, Turner. Turner is slightly bigger than his brother for now, but the way Landon is eating it will not be long until Turner is once again the small guy in the house. Thank you to the Zives for watching Turner. It made it much easier on us that first week. As for how Turner gets along with Landon, he is pretty indifferent. Every now and then, Turner will walk over a lick Landon on the head.

Landon had a few sponge baths, but the umbilical cord fell off which meant we got to drop him in some water for his first real bath. Here he is reaching out to me as if to say, "Why are you doing this to me?"

"Put me back in the warm water you freaks!" I am sure it went something like that in his head. Since this first bath he has had better experiences. In fact, tonight was his third bath and he loved it.

The Boy Can Sleep

The pictures say enough. Landon knows how to pass out.

Landon Comes Home

After spending one night in the hospital, Landon and Hannah were ready to come home. The nurse seemed to suggest we should stay another night, not for health reasons but to have additional help. How hard could it be?

The first night home turned out to be brutal. Landon struggled to get used to his new surroundings and it took a toll on us. However, it changed quickly and he started to sleep great the next day.

The best part was Hannah changing her first poopy diaper. You would think she was trying to touch up a priceless Van Gogh painting. I told her, "You can't hurt the butt. Just go for it!"

Below are a few pictures of the first 24 hours.

The swing proved very beneficial.

My pit stop time for changing Landon's diaper and clothes would make NASCAR jealous.

Landon with his rockin' Mom.

Landon Noah Arrives!

Landon Noah Serrano was born at 8:08am at St. Mary's Hospital in Reno. He weighed 7 lbs 8 ozs and was 21.5 inches long. It was a natural birth and everything went very well. At least it did for me, but I am not sure that is how Hannah would have explained it in the moment.

We arrived at the hospital around 8:00pm the night before as a follow-up to tests Hannah was doing. While at the hospital, Hannah was strapped into all the monitors. The tests came back all clear, but while she was contracting in the hospital the doctor noticed the baby reacting poorly. Hannah was admitted, and with only slight help, labor kicked into gear. We were up all night, but it went so fast. Any adjective to describe the moment we first saw him would be an understatement. Your entire heart pours out to that little body. Hannah was amazing through it all, and I was so proud of her.

2nd Anniversary

Hannah and I decided to celebrate our 2nd wedding anniversary early by going to "The Best of Broadway Show" at Lake Tahoe on August 28th. It was at the Shakespeare stage at Sand Harbor. Hannah packed a picnic lunch, and we got there early to enjoy the setting and eat. Then, we settled into a very interesting show. There were some good individual performances, but anything they did as a group was completely out of sync. In the end it was a great night. Most importantly, it was a reminder that Hannah and I continue to love each other a little more everyday.

(Hannah and I enjoying the night. Note Hannah fully prego with her sweet wrist brace for her pregnancy induced carpal tunnel.)

Back to School

During the last few months of the pregnancy, Hannah and I had to go back to school. As natural as childbirth is you cannot let it come naturally. Instead, a rigorous curriculum is laid out to prepare you for the miraculous event to come. This consisted of Childbirth Education Class, Newborn Care Class, and Breastfeeding Class. I am not sure how many units those classes equal, but it sounded like it was going to be a tough trimester.

Childbirth Education Class

We attended this four week course at Carson Tahoe Hospital. The class met every Thursday in the evening for two hours. When we first got there, we settled in and began examining the other classmates. After a thorough examination, we felt comfortable that we were clearly the best looking couple. Next we introduced ourselves. When it came to me, I said, "Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die." (If you do not know that movie quote then you have been living under a rock) Actually, I said, "Hello. My name is Nick Serrano and I will do my best not to laugh immaturely when you say vagina." That got several laughs except from my wife who promptly apologized for my behavior. The teacher had been teaching the subject for too long. She spoke in a tangled web of tangents and stories with no end that left me wondering if she should take over the title role from Tobey Maguire in Spiderman 4. She was very sweet though and extremely patient with all of our questions. We learned several things and found it beneficial. However, I found no benefit in the unedited video of childbirth. The birth itself was crazy enough, but I left questioning why God had made it necessary to finish off the process by birthing a nice cut of rare steak. I was scarred for life.

Hannah learning how to lay down and fall asleep. Complex stuff...

Newborn Care Class

This was a one time course at St. Mary's Hospital. We were taught to become masters of the subtleties of parenthood. The knowledge that would make us superior caregivers. The teacher meticulously explained for three hours these lost seeds of knowledge: feed your child, change the diaper, and keep the baby clean. Mystifying. I was ready.

My baby is African American. Wait a second...

When I graduated from the class, one of the babies gave me knuckles. I really appreciated the love.

Breastfeeding Class

Finally, a class with some potential! OK, I will keep this PG. Truth be told it was the most informative class. Who knew the chi-chis were so complex? There was also a great show and tell section. Now, now, get your mind out of the gutter. The teacher showed off different products and techniques that would be useful. She was extremely informative and organized. Breastfeeding was the most foreign of the topics that we learned about during all of our courses, but we left feeling much more prepared. We were at one with the mammaries.

(Sorry, no pictures for this class. How anti-climatic!)

Final Belly Pic - 38 weeks

This was the final picture taken at 38 weeks. We went to two week intervals in the final month to be safe, which was good because Landon came early. Scroll down to see Hannah's tummy grow from Month 1 to 38 weeks.