Baby Huffington

Today, Henrik stepped outside of his bubble, the isolette, for the first time since he entered this bubble.  He did a wonderful job with his skin to skin contact or "kangaroo care" with Anna.  Throughout life we are stepping out of bubbles and creating new ones.  Today, I stepped out my bubble with Grandma Ingrid as we ventured into the MO City Walmart to get her a crochet hook.  The MO City Walmart is sort of like an ethnically diverse version of the Athens Walmart minus the funk of the Athens Walmart.  That place smelled AWFUL even for a Walmart in Appalachia.  Neither the Logan nor Gallipolis Walmarts smelled that bad.  This is why your read this blog for commentary on Appalachian Walmart odor!  By the way, it only took 50 years (not a joke), but the Nelsonville bypass opened last month!  Now, it's possible to get from Athens to the Columbus airport in an hour, oh the possibilities...
Anyway, we construct bubbles, find new bubbles, and occasionally step out of our own bubbles.  Henrik did remarkably well.  He didn't significantly desaturate on his O2 levels until his hour with Anna was almost up.  He was content to get back in the isolette when it was over, and cover his eyes with his arm and go back to sleep.  It is too early to make generalizations, but that's never stopped me before, so here goes...  Henrik seems like more of chilled out dude than Anders.  Anders walks around with big flashing buttons on his chest, like Darth Vader, that Henrik will do doubt find and exploit.  Henrik just wants to be left alone to sleep.  It's kind of an Adam Isherwood to Paul Isherwood scenario, as I understand it. 
Henrik's doing all the correct things, just eating and sleeping, and occasionally wiggling for good measure.  Anna said Henrik was a bit wiggly with her and had busy hands, but generally was calm.  He also had a case of the hiccups to overcome, symbolism, so...  I would go back four years for a comparison of Anders' first kangaroo care session, but I want to sleep tonight, so I'll leave that up to you if you are ambitious. 
I think one of the reasons that Anna was so emotional during birth this time and that I've had so many strange and varied emotions is that we know with excruciating detail what the months ahead in the hospital look like.  Even though Henrik will have different challenges and different points of success, we have a good idea of the basic plot.  I don't remember if I said it here or just in a private message, but these months in the NICU are like reliving Middle School.  While there are some fun events like Kangaroo Care or 8th grade basketball, for the most part it's awkwardness, uncertainty, and the painful longing for something better over the horizon. 
Anders decided that he wanted to call Henrik "Baby Huffington."  He has also been building a crib and a room for him out of  Legos.  Anna and I started talking today about what our schedule will be once the cavalry leaves next week.  We have a good plan up to Jan. 6, then will reevaluate.  It's sunny again, which makes everything seem better, but it's cool enough that Anna remains happy with the weather.  Anna thinks it's funny that I seem to know everyone in the NICU.  I tell her that my advantage was not being on mind-altering drugs during my stay in the hospital. 
I guess that's about it.  Anna had a great day.  It's my turn tomorrow.  They only want one parent per day on skin to skin contact, but they want the session to last for an hour because in both instances they don't want a lot of back and forth.  I'll have to do my neck exercises tonight to mitigate my neck bubble that will show up on pictures tomorrow.  It was bad enough last time when I was in my 20s and jogging consistently, so some of those pictures will be pretty bad.  I hope that people will be able to see Henrik through my thicket of chest hair.  If he's like Anders, he'll learn to twist it and pull the chest hair for entertainment.  Well, I've almost polished off this second Caucasian, so it's time to go.  I hope you got it all on sale today.