I know there's been nothing since before Kyle was born. Mea culpa. Here's the announcement email I sent out (on 3/12), and I'll add some more detail soon.

Please welcome Kyle Andrew Buhtz into this world, born 5:06am Friday 3/12/10. Weight 8lbs 15oz, length 21.5". (I figured he was 9-9.5 lbs, and am thankful that he was on the smaller side. I knew by my 6th month that he was either heavier or longer than Eric, who was 8lbs and 20", and he's bigger on both counts.)

After dropping Eric off at our friends' house for the weekend, we went to the hospital Thursday evening for prostiglandin gel to prep me for induction (pitocin) on Friday morning. The gel quickly kicked off stronger and more regular contractions than I'd been having, but after 2 hours I wasn't any further dilated. We walked for 45 mins and that kicked off dilation. This combined with the strength of the contractions led them to admit me, which was good because by the time they got a room set up for me (apx 11p) I was deep into labor. I requested a pain med around 1am and the Dr gave me Nubaine which was supposed to last 2 hours -- unfortunately it lasted 30 mins. At this point I requested an epidural which worked great.

After 9.5 hrs of labor (counting from the application of the gel) including only 25 mins of pushing, Kyle emerged into the world only to refuse to breathe. The cord was (loosely) wrapped around his neck so had to be cut, and when his heartrate dropped to 60 (1/2 what it should be), there was a flurry of activity from the staff (not surprisingly -- we like it when babies breathe and their hearts beat). Oxygen and other attention was applied and by the time his 2nd Apgar was taken (5 mins later), he was up to 9 (out of 10), crying, good heartbeat, etc. I was able to hold him for a couple minutes and then he went to stay in the NICU for a couple hours of monitoring. Interestingly, this was the reverse of Eric's Apgar results -- he had a lower 2nd score than first because he had trouble taking deep breaths (so he visited the NICU as well).

Greg and I took the opportunity to nap since we'd been up nearly 24 hours by then, and Greg hadn't slept well the night before. We're still exhausted, but that's going to be our base condition for a few weeks at least. Kyle nursed as soon as the NICU brought him back to our room, and latched on like a pro. Greg brought Eric for a visit (Eric took one look at Kyle and started playing with the matchbox cars we bought him) and is now spending some Dad-and-son time with him before returning him to our friends' place.

Probably more detail than some of you want, but I only have energy for one email. ;-) Also, I apologize to those to whom I promised a "we're in labor" email -- by the time we knew we were staying at the hospital (ie, in real labor), I was too far into it to even consider sending out an email, and facebook never crossed my mind.

We'll be discharged on Sunday, my mother arrives from CA on Monday evening, and then our first Ped appt is Tuesday. Greg will go back to work mid-week next week.