Cash Cooper Henderson

Cash Cooper Henderson

July 30, 2015

7:53 am

6 lbs, 8 oz, 20"

Well, folks, he is here! Cash Cooper Henderson joined our family on Thursday, July 30, 2015 at 7:53am. He tipped the scales at a whopping 6 pounds 8 ounces and was 20 inches long...same height as Graham but a little over a pound lighter. I knew as soon as I saw his little body that he was a peanut.

Our day started off at 4:30 in the morning when my alarm rang...although I barely got any sleep the night before. Since Graham wasn't born via cesarian, I had no idea what to expect this time around and as the day approached, I become increasingly nervous about the surgery and, more so, the recovery. Don't get me wrong, I was more than willing to go through the extra recovery if it meant that my baby wouldn't be harmed entering the world...but that didn't help my anxiety. We arrived at the hospital at 5:30am, got checked in and were shown to our room. I got changed and the nurse started prepping for surgery. Before I knew it, I was walking back to the operating room with the nurse. Nate was allowed to come back after I had received my spinal block. The surgery was surreal - it was what I had been mentally preparing myself for for nine months. There wasn't any pain but I could feel movement and pressure. It actually felt a lot like the baby kicking...it was so strange. Before I knew it, I heard our second son's cry and saw a quick glimpse of his precious face as the doctor held him over the curtain.

After that, the baby was placed under the warming lights as he was cleaned up and suctioned. Nate was able to watch and I could thankfully see some of what was going on...and I could definitely tell that he was small. It's funny - the first comment I heard from the nurse was the exact same thing that was said by Graham's nurse when he was born..."such long eyelashes!" Nate brought him over so I could get a better look at our baby...he was crying but then stopped when I started talking to him. Talk about an amazing feeling! After the doctors had finished putting me back together and cleaning up the baby, Cash was placed in the bed with me and we were wheeled back to our room to recover. The first couple days were definitely the worst. Once my spinal block wore off, the nurses continued to put pain medication into my IV which was great until it quickly wore off. Thankfully, when a new dose was administered, it took effect within a minute - hallelujah. I was told that getting up early was important for a speedy recovery and I was determined to do whatever it took to start feeling better as soon as possible. I got up the evening after surgery and walked from the hospital bed to the chair in our room. I also sat at the foot of the bed later that night. The next day I continued to get up a couple times and was able to take a shower. Each motion was extremely slow but they were continuing to get easier.

While I was trying to move again, Cash started showing us what a great baby he is. He started nursing right away without issues and has just been a very easygoing baby. We had him room in with us for the majority of the time. We only sent him to the nursery after the second nighty feeding so we could get a little extra rest.

Living in Kansas City so close to most of our family and friends, we were blessed with several visitors during our hospital stay. Both of our parents came to the hospital shortly after Cash was born to meet the newest family member. Once I was feeling a little better, my sisters brought Graham out to meet his brother. The look on Graham's face as he saw Cash is a moment that I will never forget. He was, and continues to be, so proud of his brother. He refers to Cash as "his baby" and always wants to hold and be right by him. I pray that they are always this fond of each other.

Overall, I would say that Cash's birth was very textbook - there were no surprises or scary moments like when Graham was born. For that, I am so thankful! We were able to bring our newest baby boy home on Sunday afternoon after staying three nights in the hospital. Cash has been such a great baby and I'm still in awe that we have been blessed with two perfect and beautiful little boys. Life is good!