Graham Family Moments

Adjusting

Alyssa

Having a baby is hard, sure, but I feel once you get into a good rhythm, it gets much easier. But, Alhan is not the kind of child you can time, at all, and it made adjusting to said rhythm harder.

I was woken up at three in the morning by the sound of wailing coming from the baby monitor. Of course, I moved to get up but stopped when I felt Nathan's hand pushing me down.

“I'll get him, go back to sleep.” He whispered.

I placed my head on the pillow wordlessly but didn't go back to sleep. I don't think any mother would sleep off while their child was crying in another room.

Instead, I listened to the shuffling noises coming from Alhan's nursery. He was still screaming when Nathan picked him up and began talking to him.

“Hey, what's wrong?” Nathan asked the baby who obviously couldn't answer. “It is 3am you better have a good reason for waking us up.”

Usually, the sound of either his father or I calmed Alhan down unless he was having some other problem or at least that's what I noticed.

It's been barely a week since Alhan was born and I already know he is going to be a very loud child, if anything, the way he cries tells me all. I was discharged three days after the birth from the hospital and this is the second night we've had with him.

At the hospital, it was much easier to manage him, there were always nurses telling me how to do things and helping when I was stuck. Now, at home, it's just Nathan and I figuring this whole thing out on our own.

I thought Nathan would have an easier time with a baby seeing that he's already had one but no, he was just as cluelessness as I was, if not more.

“Do you need your diapers changed? Is that why you're crying so much?” The boy just screamed in response.

I didn't think a five day old baby could cry so loud, or is the baby monitor volume to high?

I turned it down and joined my husband and son in the next room. While designing the nursery, Nathan decided that we needed a door that connected our room and the new baby room and I didn't refuse.

However, I didn't realize that we'd have to break a hole in or wall or that for two weeks, we couldn't stay in our room to even take a nap so the chemicals and dust did not affect us. I can't complain though, it does make getting into the nursery much easier.

Nathan was cradling the weeping child, bouncing him slightly to ease his cries. The man was tired and I didn't blame him. Since Alhan was born, he's been a big help. He opted to work from home more and was often the first one to respond to Alhan's cries.

And the boy could CRY.

He'd also get Oliver ready for school, take him there and pick him up, bathe him, made sure he ate and slept on time while I was still recovering. My only job in the house was breastfeeding or baby, changing his diaper sometimes and putting him to sleep.

“Hey, I thought I told you to go back to bed.” Nathan scolded, noticing me watching him from the doorstep. “Don't worry, I got this.”

My lips stretched into a small smile as he went back to rocking or son. “Do you even know what you're doing?”

“Yes, I'm trying to put him to sleep but the boy won't stop crying.” He answered, gradually getting more annoyed.

I was the more patient one of the both of us and according to the doctor, better abled to handle a newborn baby. Nathan tries but he just gets frustrated after ten minutes and gives up if he can't find a solution in that time.