Chapter 25

I awoke energized; thinking of everything that I needed to do to ensure my wife and baby were going to be safe and comfortable. The thought of getting a regular house passed across my thoughts. But I thought Sue and I lived here because of our friends. If we need a permanent structure, we'll build it right here. It's our joint, it's our land to do with as we please.

This was a significant thought. It was the first time I was happy to have a wife with the money she had. If we needed something, it probably wasn't out of our reach. I wondered whether these thoughts would make me approach life any differently.

After sliding out of bed and starting coffee, I was joined in the shower by sweet Mickey. She is so cuddly in the morning when she first wakes up. If she didn't have to go to work, I would take her back to bed and gently make love to her until she cried uncle.

We both dressed joining Glenda on the patio. We were a little late getting out there. Mickey had some cereal and toast before taking off for roll call.

Mercy had been smart enough to get a bunch of the newborn pictures of Stevie. Walgreen's photo department helped with a few more. Everyone who was there received a picture of homely little Steve Jr. I told myself that I would apologize to the kid that it was not I that named him. That Jr. thing is tough to be hung with.

While I had been at Walgreen's I did pick up four boxes of cigars that I handed out liberally. I saved a few for Gene and his men, but generally everyone I knew locally had a cigar to celebrate the birth of my child.

I was back at the hospital by nine. Sue and the baby were doing what they would often be doing. Sue was nursing Stevie. Would it become me Steve, him Stevie, or him being Jr? What a mess!

Sue had a serene look on her face as she gazed down at our son. She looked at me and smiled warmly, and looked back down as his little mouth worked to bring the life giving juices to him. He worked very hard for a few more minutes and fell asleep. This was hard work for him.

Sue was about to begin burping him, but stopped, held out a napkin for my shoulder, then held up our Stevie to me to burp. I put him on my shoulder and gently patted his back for a minute or so until he gave a quite loud ungentlemanly burp. He would fit right in with his dad's biker buddies.

Sue said that I should probably put him down in his bassinet now that he had burped. I laid him on his tummy with his head to one side and his two little hands in fists up by his head. He was sleeping peacefully, tired from working for his breakfast.

"He eats about every two hours," Sue told me. "The nurse said he would begin eating more at a time and begin sleeping longer intervals. We will try to keep him awake and stimulate him soon so that he will sleep longer at night after his last feeding. He's not eating enough yet to drain me. Hand me that pump over there so I can express what he didn't eat. I need to drain these things so I keep making more milk. It won't be long until he will want more than I can make.

As Sue used the breast pump she said, "When we get home, I hope you can help drain these things. I think it would be a lot sweeter that you suck them dry, rather than me using this cold pump."

Weird, the thought of sucking the milk from Sue's breasts had my interest way up. Up enough that Sue noticed. "So you would like to help me that way?"

I was caught, "Is that bad? The thought of it does get my motor running."

"It makes me hot too. But it will be about six weeks before you can satisfy this itch that's suddenly appeared."

I smiled lovingly at my wife, "I'm sure what the Doc's talking about is me poking around in you. I think we can make you a little more comfortable when we get home."

"I sure hope so," Sue said and looked at our son. "So far, this is everything that I thought it was going to be and everything that I could have wanted."

We kissed and I sat down with the bassinet between Sue and me. Sue continued, "I did better than I thought I would in controlling my weight. I know I was looking like a meatball with legs, but I should be able to get back in shape within three to six months. You'll have to help me by making me go to the gym nearly every day, though."

Sue looked down at her sleeping baby and said, "As soon as I'm back in shape, maybe even before then, we're going to work on a brother or sister for him. I want our kids to be close in age. You should have given me quads or quints. That way I would only have had to do this once."

I asked Sue, "What do you think about getting someone experienced to help you care for him? I know you want to continue with your business, so you will probably need some help.

"I'll do most everything for him for the first month or so. You need to be with him as much as possible through this bonding time as well."

The Doc came in and gave Sue a very thorough check. He said she could go home, and should as soon as the pediatrician released Stevie. About an hour later little Steve woke up. He wiggled around in his bassinet and made smacking noises with his mouth.

I was about to pick him up when a nurse or aide came in and said, "He's right on time. I'm sure he needs to be changed so let me do that real quick." She turned to me and said, "You should probably pay attention to learn how to do this so you can help out at home."

Sue said, "Can I do it? I've never changed a baby's diaper before. I want to make sure I do it right. I watched you the last three times you did it"

Standing a little unsteadily, Sue picked up the baby and put him on the changing table. She gently took his diaper off, wiped him with baby wipes, and patted him dry with a soft baby towel. Once he was clean, Sue slid a diaper under him, folded the front up, then used the self sealing tabs to hold the diaper in place. The finishing touch was wrapping him in a blanket. Sue left his arms out of the wrap, saying she wanted him to be able to move them while he ate.

The whole process didn't take but a minute or so, and the little one was quiet the whole time, just smacking his lips and making sucking motions. Just about the time he began making some "uh, uh" noises, Sue was putting him on the bed so she could place herself in position to nurse him. Sue wiped off both breasts, picked Stevie up, and laid him with his face near a large milk-drooling nipple. He eagerly sucked it into his mouth and began eating with his little arms and fists wiggling around.

As Sue's face began to soften into that super serene look, the nurse said, "You did a good job for your first diaper change. As he grows he might become more difficult to change, but you'll be a pro at it by then. You do have an eager eater though. The way he eats, he'll be sleeping through the night soon."

The nurse straightened up and said, "The pediatrician will be here in a few minutes. I'm sure you'll be going home, so you might consider what you want to wear when you leave. Mr. Sharp, have you taken care of business at the office here?"

When I nodded yes, she said, "Good, all you'll have to do is to take your family home then. I'll see you in a few minutes."

Sue looked up from being fascinated with the way Stevie was eating. "The truck is going to be difficult to step up into. We need a regular car sometimes."

"I rented a Ford Crown Victoria like Mickey has to see if that is the kind of car we would want. We'll just keep renting different ones until we find what we like. I figured you wouldn't want to be climbing up into the truck. I also have a new baby seat that is already belted into the back seat. The car is ready, the house is ready, and I'm ready."

Sue nursed for almost ten minutes, and when the little mouth quit sucking, she placed him on her shoulder and gently patted him until he gave a very un-baby like burp. It was great timing as the pediatrician came through the door with the nurse in time to hear the results of Sue feeding and burping the baby.

The doctor took the baby, unwrapped him, and took the diaper off to check the recently cut umbilical cord. He gently turned the baby many different ways, looking at him, touching him, and checking his features and response.

"You have a very healthy boy, Mr. and Mrs. Sharp. He's eating well and you're milk is obviously satisfying him. The tests of your expressed fluids are very impressive, very healthy. I want to see the baby in two weeks, unless you need me before then. Please make an appointment with my office. Continue to nurse him on demand and you might wish to make notes when you change him, as later today or tomorrow, he will probably take a pretty healthy dump. If you will keep a record for me as to day and time when you feed and change him, and if he has had a bowel movement, I'll be able to gauge his progress. If he does not have a bowel movement within, say three days, you should bring him in to see me."

He turned to me to shake my hand, "Congratulations, Mr. Sharp, enjoy your son. Mrs. Sharp, I can tell you will be a doting mother. Just relax with him. The more relaxed you are with him, the more relaxed he will be with you. Now go home, begin your new life."

Sue elected to put on a heavy robe over her gown to go home instead of putting on a dress. An aide came in with a wheelchair for Sue. Once Sue sat in the chair, the baby was placed in her arms. I gathered up all the odds and ends they were sending us home with and followed them down, riding an elevator.

I ran to get the car and pulled in front of the doors where Sue and Stevie were waiting for me. When Sue was at the car, I took Stevie and placed him in the infant car seat and strapped him in. Next I helped Sue into the back seat to sit next to the baby.

Driving home, I felt the weight of the additional responsibility of having a tiny baby to protect. Just watching Sue's face made me know how special this was for her.

Glenda, Nelda, Mercy, and Beth met us when we pulled up to the house near the front patio door. First, I helped Sue get out of the car and slowly walk into the patio. She wanted to sit outside for a few minutes. I took the baby from the car seat, and brought him in. Sue didn't get to take him. Beth was immediately in possession of the baby, holding him, looking at him lovingly, and saying sweet things to him.

Glenda finally got her turn to hold the baby. She held little Stevie lovingly and kissed him on his forehead before handing the baby to Nelda. Nelda held the baby for a few minutes, talked to him, and carried him to Sue. Mercy, who had been getting Sue a cup of coffee and one of the small pieces of pastry from this morning, was sitting with Sue watching her with the baby.

Sue held the baby toward Mercy and said, "Hold him a little, let him feel your love too." Mercy sat there with moist eyes rocking the baby on her chest.

Sue said, "I guess we should let him lay in bed a little while so he rests. This is probably a lot of stimulation for him too."