And then there were four

Gabriel Lars Olson, 1 day old


That's right- the Olson family is expanding! Gabriel Lars joined us in the wee early hours of Tuesday, April 22nd (1:42am) to become the newest Olson on the block! His arrival was a bit of a surprise, since he wasn't due to join us for about 5 more weeks, but we are very happy and excited that he's here.

He weighed in at a healthy 6lbs2.8oz, 19 1/4" long (for this I am thankful that he did not wait another 5 weeks to come out!). However, since the lungs are the last major organ to develop in a fetus, Gabe did need some extra help breathing. I got to hold him for just a minute before he was taken off to the NICU where they put him on oxygen and helped to relieve some of the extra fluid in his lungs.

Since then, he's been improving steadily! He came off his oxygen and all tubes on Tuesday night. His goal now is to eat more on his own so that he can come off his IV and come home to his family. We're hoping that with the vast progress he's made so far, that this won't much time to achieve.

From what I can tell, though, Gabe is already trying to catch up with his big sister. He had a very quick birth (first written contraction to birth=2 hours, total time in delivery room=27 minutes, total number of pushes=4 or 5). Just like his big sister, he decided for mommy that she was not going to get an epidural. He also decided he wanted to be born in April, and to be born on a Tuesday, and to give his mommy the rest of the school year off, all just like his big sis!

And, in return, we already love him just as much as his big sis!


First family photo!