Duncan, OK | C-SECTION | Baby W

This is the Birth Story of a Sweet Boy.

We had all been in this room just two years prior for brother’s grand entrance. This time we had a little more time to prepare. Robbie and Micah, and Micah’s sister, Julie, had arrived and were settled almost two hours before I arrived. We are all very excited, and then when the day shift nurse came in, she let us know Robbie and the Sweet Boy were actually second in line for the cesareans procedures that day. I went back home, and Robbie tried not to think about how much she wanted a Diet Dr. Pepper.

When I made my way back, this stormy summer season sent the deepest shade of blue clouds right over the hospital. I got from my car to their room right before the sideways rain hit. In the room, the bright lights were in complete contrast to the darkness outside. Robbie said what I was thinking, “I wonder what would happen if the electricity went out?” (The nurse later assured us that the hospital had ample generators in the event of a blackout.)

The sudden storm helped pass the time until it was Robbie’s turn. Like clockwork the team came in and wheeled her away, and Micah and I put on our OR best and waited. It was almost time for another Russell baby to enter the world!

Knowing that the Sweet Boy could need a little extra help after he was born, the nurse team stood ready and waiting. Dr. Cornejo maneuvered him out - and almost immediately we heard his little cry. The nurses got to work, Robbie breathed a little sign of relief, and Micah walked over to get a closer look. Once the nurses felt like he was doing well, they called me over to get those first moment pictures.

Because of how the OR is set up, while the baby is on the warmer, the Mom can’t see the baby. Micah had stepped back to text everyone that the Sweet Boy was here and healthy, so I sat down next to Robbie, held her hand, and gave her a play-by-play.

“Oh! He is wiggling so much! … Okay, they are giving him a little oxygen, and I can see his chest going up and down. …They just put his tiny hat on!… Yup, he keeps stretching out his little arms and hands.” And so on and so forth.

Then it was time to measure and weigh. I love that they do this in the OR where Mom can watch! This is when Robbie got her first good look at him and said, “Oh!! What a Sweet Boy! He’s such a Sweet Boy!” And y’all, she was absolutely right. As soon as they got him back to the warmer and wrapped up, they brought him over to Robbie, and Dr. Cornejo stepped towards her to tell her congratulations.

While you scroll through this next set of pictures notice these little details about the Sweet Boy: his rainbow chin crease, his blonde body hair, and his flattened ear from being smooshed in Robbie’s belly. (You’ll see later on that ear curled up by the time the Sweet Boy got to the regular room.)

The procedure wrapped up and Micah followed the Sweet Boy out of the OR and into the room where Julie was waiting. She got a good look, then Micah picked him up. Man, how tiny those little babies look in Dad’s arms. It gets me every time.

Dr. Hurst came in right behind us to do her pediatric check, then gave him back to Robbie for more Mom cuddles. “Oh what a sweet boy!” She said again, followed by a,“You’re so hairy all over! Like a little peach!” She also got that refreshing first drink of her Diet Dr. Pepper. All she needed now was Big Brother to come.

It wasn’t too much longer when we heard a little voice yell, “Mom!” from outside of the room. “That’s Rex!” Robbie said. She’d recognize that voice anywhere. I moved a chair closer to the side of the bed so he could get close to his mom and his new brother. “Look Rex, it’s baby Waylon!” Robbie said as he walked in and climbed up into the chair. “Baby?” He said back. Although the buttons on the bed were a bit more interesting then that new baby. To be fair, there were quite a few buttons on the bed to choose from. At that point, Micah came up beside him and directed his attention back to the Sweet Boy in mom’s arms, and that’s when it felt like Rex really saw his little brother for the first time, and the cutest little grin spread across his face. After a few minutes though, he needed to make quick phone call on the nurses big thermometer.

By the time I left, the sun was shining through the left over clouds.

I recently sent Robbie a message and asked her how she was feeling and how everyone at home was adjusting, and her response was, “We’re all doing well over her. It’s like he just showed up and fit in seamlessly!”

Now that’s a pretty sweet ending.