The Best Christmas Present Ever

As many of you know, Hayden was born on Christmas Eve at 11:45am. He weighed in at 8lbs 14.8oz and was 20.5 inches long. Tiffany did an amazing job through labor and delivery. We went to the hospital at around 3am, though we weren't sure that it was real labor. After talking to our doula, Ariela, we decided to head over, and it was a go thing we did. Tiffany had progressed pretty far, so much that I wasn't sure her parents would be able to make it to the hospital in time for the delivery. They did, as it turned out, because things slowed a bit after we got there. Tiffany wanted to deliver completely natural, without painkillers, epidurals, or any interventions. She was able to, thanks to her amazing strength, the support of the staff at St. Agnes, her OBGYN, the doula, her family, and a merciful God.
I had worried before hand that I would either be sick or pass out during the delivery, because, frankly, the videos I had seen of deliveries were a bit much for me. It must be different when it's your own wife and child, because it really was a beautiful thing. I felt lucky to be there to support her and the delivery was truly a miracle. The emotions I felt couldn't be duplicated by any other experience, and I know that many prayers were answered that day.
Hayden has been such a joy and he's so adorable (ok, I know, every parent thinks so about their own child). He's been such a good baby - he hardly fusses and he's been sleeping really well. I know this won't go on forever, he's bound to get sick or decided to change his sleep schedule at some point, but until then, I can't complain. Tiffany's folks have been here off and on and they've been such a big help. That's really eased the transition, especially since her mom's been taking the late evening feeding the last couple of nights so we can get a longer chunk of sleep.
Before I post the pictures, I have to give a shout out to the Birth Companion program at Johns Hopkins, the staff at St. Agnes, and Tiffany's doctors at The Women's Group. If you are expecting or know someone who is, I recommend checking out the Birth Companion program at JH. They have a grant to provide birth companions (doulas) at no cost to the mother. They're nursing students who sign up to assist during labor and delivery - ours was fantastic. I wasn't sure what to expect, since I knew they would be students, but I figured since it was free, why not. The student we were assigned was FANTASTIC. She came in the middle of the night, she was professional and very personable, and she worked nonstop to provide Tiffany with comfort and encouragement. She helped be an advocate when our first nurse seemed uncomfortable with a natural birth, and she explained things to us throughout. She was all we could have hoped for and then some. The staff at St. Agnes was also very good - with a couple of minor exceptions, everyone was super helpful, friendly, and professional. Overall, it was a great experience. I also recommend them.
Now that I got that out of the way, here are some pictures. You can judge for yourself if he's as adorable as I say he is ;-)