We were discharged from the hospital this morning and we were able to bring Karis home for the very first time! The morning actually went very smooth which was kind of unexpected because I just assumed it would be hard to figure out all the paperwork, pay for our time in the hospital, and then get released. But again, the Lord was so gracious and things went really well.
Obviously with a newborn our sleep is interrupted, but in the first few days you get a bit of a break and that’s what Karis did for us last night. By “break” I mean that she gave us a stretch of three hours. It’s amazing how good three hours of sleep feels when you’re sleep has been irregular for a few days. But I digress. Bethany got up early to feed Karis and the nurses were in our room a few times before 7:00am. All of this worked out really well because by 9:30 we were walking out of the hospital! We really thought it was going to take a good portion of the morning but we were packed, paid, and pulling out of the parking lot at least a few hours earlier than I had imagined.
Karis did incredible on the drive home and pretty much slept the entire way. We ended up stopping off for a little food and coffee and still she slept through it. The weather kind of felt like “beach weather” to us in the States, and it was cool and partly cloudy. When we got home the kids came running out to the car, and I heard Avery say, “I want to see baby Karis!”
I ended up setting Kari down in her carseat so Avery could look at her, but both Titus and Avery wanted to “help” me carry her inside. At one point I had Titus holding one side of the carseat while Avery was holding the front and we made our way into the house. If I had a third arm, I would’ve taken a photo of Papa and Nana wielding their iPhones to capture it all in photos and video. Such excitement for the home arrival of this baby girl.
Our landlord is often away at another home she has in Prague, but she came back this evening as we were walking outside to play in the yard with the kids. I tried to tell her in broke Czech that Bethany was home and so was the baby. Bethany brought Karis out to the driveway to meet “Babicka” (Czech for grandmother) and we all had a good time watching her reaction to the baby. Babicka gave our kids a little chocolate treat and we actually had Bethany’s parents bring her a gift from the States–a box of chocolates from Washington. The kids also made her a card and we wrote on it in Czech and she seemed to really enjoy it. The whole exchange was fun and hard because of the language barrier. We were glad to introduce her to Karis and Babicka was congratulating everyone which was also a ton of fun. Below is a photo of her with her chocolates and Bethany with the baby.
It’s so good to be home. Bethany’s parents did an amazing job just kind of detailing our house and getting things cleaned for us. They said Titus and Avery did great while we were away which was a blessing to hear. It’ll definitely be a time of transition for all of us as we relearn life now with a newborn. Already I can feel the constant reminders coming of “be careful with the baby,” or “that’s a little too rough, you need to be gentle with her.” I think for sure it’ll be good for Titus to learn just how gentle he needs to be around a little baby and he’s got a healthy respect right now for how fragile she is.
We’re tired but not overwhelmed. Bethany continues to recover, but is definitely still experiencing pain. We’ll be heading to the pharmacy tomorrow morning to get some meds for her which should help. Karis has spent her day at home sleeping and eating which is to be expected, and which is great for willing grandparents who want to just hold her. Even I got the opportunity to just hold her while she slept for over an hour. All that to say we’re glad she’s home and we’re so full of joy for this new little life.
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