Our precious little Tyler taking a siesta after making his grand entrance.

Baby Brother got an official name this week when he entered the world! Tyler James Bartle arrived at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, February 13, 2004. At 7 pounds, 12.4 ounces and 20 inches, Tyler’s birth statistics were remarkably similar to his brother’s, and at first glance, he looked quite like Zachary, too. Our beautiful new son has his own spirit and personality that we have already grown to love. It seems he has always been part of our family.

Since Heidi’s 37-week OB visit, we have waited anxiously for Tyler’s arrival, expecting him to come “at any minute” for almost two weeks. A few physical signs indicated that labor was coming, but since only a few minor, sporadic contractions happened, it seemed that more waiting was in store. This Tuesday, however, Dr. Flemmer offered to induce Heidi’s labor at the official 38-week mark (February 13). She presented this option because she and Heidi both anticipated a speedy labor that would perhaps be best carried out in a controlled environment. As it turned out, this was a wonderful choice.

We arrived at Tuality Community Hospital around 8:30 a.m. Friday morning. (This was two hours later than expected, and we took a long, brisk walk during the delay to pass the time.) Upon arrival, Heidi was not in labor but dilated to 6 cm. A nurse started intravenous pitocin at 9:50, and Heidi had her first contraction within minutes. About 90 minutes later, having experienced some discomfort but little pain, Heidi got an epidural block. Dr. Flemmer ruptured the amniotic sac at 12:20, which sped up the action considerably. Heidi then pushed for a total of five minutes, bringing Tyler into the world at precisely 1:00 p.m. The doctors, nurses, and of course, the new parents, were all amazed and grateful for such a peaceful, calm, and short birth experience. It was such a wonderful way to welcome little Tyler into our lives!

The first hour after Tyler’s birth was so special. Garry, Heidi, and Tyler were all alone in the labor/delivery/recovery room, the lights dimmed and the door closed. Tyler was in that wondrous “quiet alert” state, and we reveled in our first moments with him. As the day progressed, we enjoyed sharing our happy news with family and friends, going through the motions of newborn and new mother checkups, and greeting well-wishers who stopped by. Tyler was so great during our hospital stay. He took to nursing right away, passed his hearing test, and was a good sport for all the other poking and prodding he endured.

Now that Heidi’s pregnancy is over, a new adventure has just begun! Bringing Tyler home is the first step in that journey, and we can’t wait to get started.

I don't think anyone could ask for a more adorable pair of boys.

In the days leading up to Tyler’s birth, Zachary seemed to sense that his time as an only child would soon end. Zach pulled his usual number of daily shenanigans, but added to his normal activity were just simple pleas for attention. He would say things like, “No type words to Granny,” meaning “Don’t use the computer,” or “No say words to [anyone]. Say words to ME!” We tried to comply with his sudden, urgent need for one-on-one time. In fact, we had many sweet moments this week because we worked hard to make Zachary feel like he was Number One. While Garry was out on splits with the missionaries Wednesday night, Heidi took Zach out for a bedtime Frosty dessert at Wendy’s. Zach rarely has a shot at that much ice cream in one sitting, and since he was also allowed to feed it to himself (making a glorious mess in the process), he thought the outing was super exciting. As they slurped ice cream together, Zach kept exclaiming, “This is fun, Mom!”

Zach stayed at our house Friday morning when we went to the hospital. Mark and Betsy stepped in as surrogate parents for the weekend, easing Zachary’s separation from us during a time of major transition. We were thrilled with Zach’s reaction to Tyler when he came to visit at the hospital. Zachary was quite friendly and cuddly to the baby, though he was initially more excited about the hospital room. Upon returning the next day, however, Zach wanted to hold Tyler, inspect his tiny body, and talk to him about coming home. He seemed genuinely excited about his brother, which we took to be a good sign.

Seeing our boys together for the first time made for some tender memories. Zachary suddenly seemed so grown up, and it was hard to remember the time when he was the tiny infant in our arms. The two-plus years of his life have just flown by!