Doctor's Visit #2 (Four Months and Three Days)

Well, not to be outdone, Kiefer rolled over the day after I wrote the last post. He said, "You guys get excited about the simplest stuff. You want a roll? There! There's a roll for you." He turned askance, "Now, maybe we can concentrate on the big stuff again." By "big stuff" I think he was referring to the fact that he is still our biggest--almost a pound heavier than Charlie, almost three pounds heavier than Scout, and taller than both also. In the charts, adjusted for his early birth, he is in the 50th percentile, while the other two are struggling to be counted at all. Yes, an accomplishment indeed. Sorry for taking my eye off the ball, Kiefer (--translation: Please don't beat me up when you are full grown.)

So, yea, this means we have been to the doctor again for measurements and for the next round of shots--OUCH! Great story here: We're still in the "golden age," so the babes are smiling a lot--both the boys smiling despite being deprived a nap for the doctor's appointment--Scout not quite so happy. Well, I had Charlie and Kiefer on the table and was talking to them, while Suzy pacified the princess. We knew what the three little people were in for, and we knew they weren't going to like it. Nevertheless, I told the boys it was good for them, like climbing mountains--Nietzsche's "What does not kill me..." running through my head. Of course, it was not the meaning I was trying to impart--just the truth of it--that is, my tone, I realized, could be both encouraging and honest. My mini-lecture was whittled down to a simple repetition of the word yes. Yes, I said, yes, from my mouth to your ear, from eye to eye, level and true, yes. Then, for the first time ever, the two of them started giggling together--laughing with each other more than at me. Man, it was great--our first moment of contagious laughter.

And then, the nurse came in. Suzy brought the sleepy Scout to the table, and placed her on the other side of Kiefer: the shots would simply go down the line, starting with Charlie on the right. The oral vaccine was first, strange but saccharine. Suzy blew in Charlie's face to trigger his swallow. And then, stab: holy hell burst into his left thigh, once, and twice, and then a third and final shot leapt into his right thigh. Ohhhhh! He sceamed. Suzy melted. I stood beyond. Then, right there, it happened. Only a few minutes after sharing their first laugh, there, at the tip of a syringe, Kiefer joined Charlie in their first sympathy cry. Ohhhh, Kiefer wailed also, and was, though untouched, chock-full of his brother's pain. Amazed, I stepped to Kiefer to comfort him, and then, just for good measure, Scout starting crying too. It was terrible, and it was wonderful--beautiful. I smiled. What did I ever know of empathy? What connection have I experienced such as these three have and will always have between them? Four months old and already revealing the world to me...Kiefer got his shot, and Scout hers, each welling up and red with more pain than the face can contain, blaring. Their cry lasted less than a minute though. Charlie, who had turned pale with either shock or exhaustion, still cried in my arms. But his pain passed too. We fed, got some lactation advice, went home, took tylenol and slept heavily for an hour or two. And then, it was right back to smiling, big bright smiles that opened the world again. I am convinced that our natural, most instinctual mental state is joyful--joyfully grateful--joyfully gratefully perfectly alive. Yes! Yes, indeed. Scout and Charlie had subsequent fevers, but slept through the night once down, and Kiefer woke early (5:00 AM), but was able to hold out until the first feeding. Presently (9:00 PM, the following night), they are back on schedule, sleeping soundly, about to be given their "dream feed," and each as healthy as can be.Happy new year to all of you, from the five of us. Congratulations, especially, to Chuck and Sheryl (engaged), Chris and Sara (engaged), Sarah and Mike (pregnant), K and Hiedi (pregnant), and, of course, to Jonny D and Jamie (also pregnant). Life advances yet, strong as ever. Bring on 2010.

Oh, and keep an eye open for new videos of the babies here. I have the means to produce them now. Hooray!