Welcome Leila: Daughter of the Night

And then there were two.

Just over a year from the birth of our first child, we welcomed our second.

Meet Leila:

She arrived on a warm November night, shortly after two a.m. She was a 9-10 Apgar if you’re scoring at home. (Both our kids crushed the Apgar.) All credit goes to my lovely wife.

This was a much different experience from our first child. Adam was born at a big hospital in the city, while we had Leila at a smaller facility in a rural area. Covid restrictions kept everything pretty low-key, and she was born in the middle of the night.

Fun fact: the name Leila actually means “Night” or “Dark” and is often given to girls born at night. She did spend some time under the light for jaundice, but she took all that in stride.

So far she’s a really chill baby. Very relaxed, sleeps a lot, cries when she’s thirsty but rarely gets worked up. Maybe it’s her temperament, or maybe we are just more laid back as parents having gone through it once already.

I think it’s a bit of both. We have the confidence of experience that we didn’t have early on with Adam. Stuff that might have freaked us out before, now we just shrug it off like whatever.

Of course Adam still takes up most of my time. He’s one year old now and gets into everything all day. He climbs, he crawls, he babbles and dances. The kid is a force of nature. We’re lucky to have him.

I think Leila will bring balance to our family. The sober yin to Adam’s raging yang.

We really do feel like a family now – not that we didn’t before – and Adam has been great with Leila so far. He touches her very gently and says, “Yaya”. I hope they have a great childhood together and remain close for life.

Another big thank you goes to my in-laws, the proud grandparents. We basically live with them now, and they’ve been a huge help with everything we could ask for.

They adore Adam and vice-versa, and it’s been an interesting experience living out here in the village with two babies in tow. We’ll be here for the next six months or so until we’re ready to move back to the States. I’ll be sure to share more experiences of kampung living, including a big wedding coming up next year.

I would like to give one more shout-out to the doctors and nurses who helped us through both pregnancies. Malaysia has a great maternity network within their public health system, and it really shined during our time out here in the village.

We make regular visits to the local clinic where a staff of nurses greet us by name. They’re friendly and caring and take great care of everyone. They even stop by the house to check on us after the birth.

Malaysia really seems to value families and raising children. It’s more than just lip service here, it’s a cultural priority that permeates society.

Of all the things I’ve experienced living in Malaysia, having my children here will leave the most indelible mark. I’m glad I got to take this unique path to fatherhood, and the perspective I’ve gained will serve me throughout life.

Now the real work begins: raising two babies. I’m under no illusions about what we’re up against, and the next few years will be full of diapers, tantrums, and semi-sleepless nights.

But it will all pay off in the end.

I now have a family to lead and learn from. A purpose to live and work for. A legacy to build and pass on.

Welcome to the world, baby girl.

I’m proud to be your dad.

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