3 aha moments...

In the hospital you go through two phases when having a child. Step one is the whole labor and delivery portion. Next is the move into the newborn area spending a couple of days and nights being taught how not to screw things up too badly by a group of nurses at your beckon call.

Looking back I think I would pay extra to have this service for an extended period of time. After two days in a hospital I was desperate to get out but it's still a tad bit intimidating to leave. Problem is, how else are you going to learn if you don't dive in head first...right? I must admit though, the ability to send Anna off to the nursery when she was crying so we could sleep was quite a deal.

Three moments from the hospital stick with me and while none are really huge stories on their own they were thoughts that ran through my head and account for a few of my first aha moments of parenthood.

First things first, admissions...up to room 317 and the door shuts behind me. This is it, no turning back and for the first time I think I'm really nervous. I hate hospitals, not a big fan of blood or others in pain. Whether I like it or not though I'm here for the duration and being it's only 730am it could be awhile.

Obviously all goes well, Anna joins us in the world and Carrie holds her. Now it's my turn to hold our new little girl. Now here's the thing, being a first time father and one without much experience with newborns I was already lacking in the confidence department. Looking to boost said confidence I take Anna from the nurse and find myself smiling ear to ear. Here's where I plummet back to earth. Not sure what I did or if it was just the look on my face but the nurse says to me, "You haven't been around a lot of newborns have you." What? are you kidding me...I was just boosting my self esteem lady and now you've brought back all those nerves from before. Aha moment number one...I have no clue what I'm doing.

Up next they move us to the other room and my wife, my daughter and I settle in for our first night as a family. Well, sort of...Carrie needs some sleep, I need some sleep and everyone recommends we get sleep. Anna, sorry I love ya but it's off to the nursery tonight. Well about three AM in true Kemp fashion I wake myself up with the sudden realization that I'm going to have to pay for a wedding someday....ouch. Carrie laughs at my concern, my blood pressure rises a bit I'm sure and it's back to those few precious hours of sleep remaining. A-Ha moment number two...I have a daughter and all the stress that goes with that.

Next morning bright and early is Anna's first bath. She comes in, Carrie feeds her and we are then escorted to the nursery so we can watch the fun happen. My first hint of what was in store followed. Upon walking into the nursery Anna begins to cry and all the nurses laugh and say "Anna's back." This is hint number one that you have a fussy baby. We complete the bath, Anna is dried off, situated and still won't stop crying. No big deal, this is normal...until I look around and the other 6 newborns in the room are all fast asleep calmly living out there new found lives. Hmmm? My baby doesn't seem to do that much, again in denial I think this is nothing to worry. Wrong, this was hint number two that we had a fussy baby. Aha moment number 3...I don't think she's going to make this easy on me.

So there you have it...my three aha moments from our time in the hospital and while I'm sure I'll make it through, I'm still dealing with the shock of having a brand new baby girl in the family. Good news is she sure does bring plenty of smiles to my face and that is a very good thing.