Things Sam Does

I belong to an online community of parents with kids with Sam's defect and a similar defect affecting the left side of the heart. I speak occasionally to a woman in the group who lost her daughter to an unexpected lung infection post surgery. She journal-ed a 'baby book' for her daughter from the day she was born until the day she died. She said she reads that journal often and is sad to see that many times she wrote more about technical medical data and health updates about her daughter instead of the important things like who her daughter was as a person. I noticed quickly that I have done the same thing too often. So here is a list of fabulous things Sam does that make us smile:

1. Sam can burp and fart louder than anyone I know. The first time I heard him burp was in the NICU about half an ounce into his first bottle. I sat him up to burp him and I didn't even sit him up the whole way before he burped so loud it echoed in the room. Chris love to point out how Sam can fart louder than him, which makes him feel like less of a man. Sam will fart when he coughs, sneezes, hiccups...nothing makes us laugh harder. Unless he does this when it's peacefully quiet in church...

2. Sam has recently learned to smile. And these aren't gas bubble smiles. He really loves it when you make noises with your tongue and lips right in front of his face. I noticed he even seems to imitate the same motion with his own tongue. He has even ALMOST laughed. Chris is the only one who has accomplished this with Sam so far though.

3. Most of the time, Sam wakes up from naps or from night time sleep by grunting and crying. There is one exception to this. I have noticed that the first time he wakes up after the sun rises, he will wake up peacefully and just hang out, talking to himself quietly, until we wake up, too. There is nothing cuter than opening my eyes and seeing him laying there wide awake and cooing softly, because as soon as he sees me coming for him he smiles.

4. Sam's poopy diapers are TREMENDOUS. I am constantly amazed by the poo such a little man can produce. And he HATES his diaper changes. Really, he just hates being naked.

5. The only time he LIKES being naked is when he is in his bath tub. I never expected a baby to enjoy bath time. He cries until he gets into the water, and he cries when he gets out. But while he is in it he loves it. Chris holds him from going under, while I bath him. He is really content in that water, though, and I love that.

6. Sam's sneezes are HILARIOUS. He usually sneezes 3 or 4 times in a row, with the last sneeze being more of a failed sneeze. You know when you go to sneeze but it doesn't really happen? Well the same thing happens to him, except the failed sneeze comes out as the funniest little yelp. We LOVE when he sneezes.

7. Besides his smile, our favorite face that Sam makes is when he is asleep and stretches. He tilts his head back, and with his eyes closed he raises his eyebrows making a million wrinkles on his forehead, and then puckers his lips. It's such an old man face, and I love it.

8. When Sam gets fed his bottle, he usually spends the whole time looking at you eye to eye. At first, he used to look at me like he was pretty sure I had no idea what I was doing. And most of the time I was pretty sure he's right. But recently (probably as his eye site has gotten better), he takes to grinning at you while he eats. And today, he reached his hand up and touched my chin while he ate. Ah...be still, my heart!!

9. Sam much prefers to lay on Chris's chest than mine. Can't say I blame him...I'm a little more lumpy. But Chris can hold him on his chest and in two minutes Sam is sound asleep. This came in handy during Sam's colicky days.

I promise to include more of who Sam is, and who he is becoming in my updates. I don't want him or me to look back to only remember the medical side of his baby-hood.

~Kathy