William Vincent Gutke

     After a long, long wait, our baby boy is here! He arrived Monday the 31st, 2011, weighing 8 pounds, 8 ounces, 20 inches long. I was induced at about 5:30 am, and he was born at 5:09 pm. I had a very slow progression until the last hour I went from a 7 to a 10 and only pushed for about 15 minutes (thank goodness). It was very tiring... Near the end William's heart rate dropped in the 40's and the doctor was going to aid him out with a vacuum for the last bit, but the nurse didn't have it out, and I already had a 3rd degree tear, so he grabbed his scissors and performed an episiotomy. After that, Joe was able to aid his head and the rest of his body out. Joe was very happy and proud to be the one to deliver Liam. :)
     We are thrilled to have William's sweet spirit in our home. He is such a happy baby, very content. He has jaundice and we are waiting for his bilirubon (sp?) level to go down. He was in the intermediate high risk zone and is looking pretty yellow, so we're praying it's getting flushed out of his system.We're not taking any visitors for a while, the doctor says he needs to get stable and healthy and there are too many viruses out there right now, and they don't have immunizations for some of them, so we're going to be shut away in our house for a while. Recovery is tough for me...very painful. It's tough getting around and I've been sitting on a donut pillow to help. We've had to call the doctor for some pain prescriptions and some antibiotics because I got a UTI on top of everything. My swelling is finally going down, and I almost have no cankles!! :)
     Joe is a wonderful dad. He is so sweet with William, and he can calm him if he ever does get upset (which is rare). They are going to be best friends. :) We're glad Joe's surgery came at a good time so he can stay home and watch Liam grow, it will be tough to have him go back to work. Joe's mom has been here for about a week helping out and cooking some delicious meals and soaking up time with her new grandson.
     Life is wonderful, and we couldn't imagine not having William. He is our miracle. I love smothering him with kisses and feeling his soft skin, and smelling his sweet scent. He is the perfect baby!