Friday, August 21, 2009

Enough with the madness for a while

At last report from Payton's mom, Levi is apparently feeling better but still awaiting test results. Please keep on praying! And Tiffany is still on bedrest and Salem's sitting tight. 21 weeks now! Keep on praying she holds that baby in a few more months!

I haven't updated much on my heathens lately, so I guess I should. It's 7AM and they're both asleep, Shep's left for work, and I'm lying in bed unable to go back to sleep after Thing #2's 5:30 feeding, so I guess now is as good a time as any :)

And since we've already mentioned Thing #2, we'll start with him...

Mr. Ty is growing like a weed! I've completely given up on him going to Boobtown at this point, so I still pump and he still takes his bottle. He's 3 weeks old now, and I'm going back to work at 6 weeks, so there's really no use in boobie-training him now just to switch back in less than a month anyways. Or at least that's how I'm rationalizing it to make myself feel better!

At any rate, he does great with a bottle and he's (currently) taking around 3-4 oz every 2.5-4 hours. I say currently because 2 days ago, and likely again tomorrow, it was more like 1 oz every 1 hour... We've had some tummy issues and thrush, but hopefully those will resolve and we can get on, and stay on, a normal schedule.

Our poor baby... On days when his tummy bothers him, he can burp and fart louder than any 40-year-old trucker I know. I had no idea that much noise could come out of both ends of a baby! (I also had no idea how much "stuff" could come out of both ends. He's a pooper, and he's a spitter. With great kidneys. You can't hold the child without taking away a souvenir somewhere on your shirt!)

And then there's the thrush. Poor kiddo!

Other than that, he's a happy, healthy little boy. We'd had to visit the ped his 1st week home for a jaundice check, but we avoided the bili lamps. By that weekend he was finally a pink boy... (Whoo hoo, our first pink baby!) By our 2 week check-up he was up to 7lbs 13oz, and I haven't weighed him at home yet, but I can tell he's putting on weight pretty steadily.

The PT has commented when she's out seeing Dax that Ty is already super strong for a newborn... He's lifting up off his chest some using his elbows and forearms and has decent head control for a bobblehead. How lucky we are to have two big strong boys!

On to Thing #1... Dax is doing fantastic :) He's still pulling up on everything and is now attempting to let go when he's feeling brave. We've seen him stand hands-free about 2-3 seconds before his butt hits the floor, and he's so proud of himself! Still no unassisted steps, of course, but he cruises everywhere and crab crawls all over the place with his little booty stuck high in the air. We finally put up the kiddie prison gates, so he is safely secured in the living room the majority of the day, which is not such a bad thing when you see that our living room looks like Toys R Us threw up in there. (Although the funnest toys remain the dog's chew toys. Go figure.)

As for brotherly love, last weekend Dax pulled up twice on my leg while I was holding Ty, and when Ty cried Dax laughed and patted him on the face like a puppy dog. Other than that, very little progress. The jealously kicks in the worst if Dax's nurse picks up Ty... Dax bites her and cries and grabs her arms to attempt to keep her from patting the baby. With me he's not so bad, but who am I kidding? Dax likes the nurse better than me!

As for me, I had a terrible bladder infection that kicked in pretty soon after we came home from the hospital. Got on some drugs and it finally cleared up, but for a few days there I felt pretty crappy. It didn't take very long for my soreness from my delivery and stitches to subside, and I finally last week felt that maybe all my "innards" would stay "innards," even if I sneezed. Now if I could just get my "out-ards," especially this big ole belly, to get back where it's supposed to be.

Shep and I are adjusting slowly to life with a healthy newborn. I'd say it's like learning to swim by someone throwing you off a bridge... We've had to gasp for air a few times, and it's been a struggle! We're grateful he's a healthy baby, but the sleepless nights and screaming have been hard. My mom told me once that every parent thinks about abusing their children... The difference is that some parents follow through with it, and others don't. And as I lie trying to sleep on the stairs (Yes, the stairs... Made sense at 2AM) the other night as I let Ty cry it out... again... I whispered obscenities under my breath, and thoughts popped in my mind that I hope Ty never knows about. Admittedly, he was much cuter and sweeter after I got some sleep.

And I'm betting whoever bought him on Ebay would have sent him back anyways, and it would have ruined my perfect feedback score! And throwing him out the window would have been pretty messy... (But maybe we should move the nursery to the 1st floor in case of colic, just to be on the safe side...)

Anyways, screaming baby... Hope you're all doing well, and thanks for all the continued prayers and support for us and our friends...

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Another request...

I swear, sometimes real life would make terrible fiction. If I'd read it in a book I would find it difficult to swallow, but I guess the "real life is stranger than fiction" cliche is true... Real life is stranger, and more cruel.

They buried Baby Payton yesterday after a beautiful service honoring her short life. Baby Levi, who is almost a year old and is suffering from cancer, was there with his mother. His mother and Payton's mother have become very close over this past year. While at the service, Baby Levi became ill and had to be life flighted to Vandy and remains critical at this time.

I do not know Levi or his mother or any of the details of his illness, but I ask that you all keep him and his family in your prayers at this time, too.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

In lieu of flowers...

Nikki has spent the last year living in the Nashville Ronald McDonald House, and is asking for any and all donations be given to the Nashville Ronald McDonald House in Payton's memory. If any of you feel drawn to do so, click on the following link to find out more. Thanks so much!

Full name: Payton Wilson
http://www.rmhcnashville.com/donation_form

Monday, August 17, 2009

Sad news

It is with great sadness that I am posting tonight. Princess Payton, who was supposed to go to her home in KY today after a year in the NICU, instead went to be with the Lord last night. All of us who have grown to know and love Payton and her family are devastated and I cannot even imagine what they are going through.


Payton's mother, Nikki, has been at her daughter's bedside every day for the last year, fighting, praying, and hoping for miracles. Both Nikki and Payton were very lucky to have each other and the two obviously gave each other the strength and courage they needed to make it through all the many ups and downs of the last year. Please pray for Nikki and her family as they grieve.


And please, hug your kids a little tighter tonight. It's so easy to forget how lucky we all are.


Saturday, August 15, 2009

Friend Update

Just thought I'd let you all know that Tiffany was released from the hospital and is now home on complete bedrest. Please keep on praying that baby Salem stays put!

Also, Princess Payton did not get to go home Friday, but the plan is now for her to go home, for the 1st time EVER, on Monday, her one year birthday! Please pray for the transition to go off without a hitch with no more delays, and for Payton to keep growing stronger and healthier.

Thanks again, all, for all the prayers and support. Love you!

Friday, August 14, 2009

Urgent prayer requests...

Hi all,

I know I haven't done many updates on our friends lately, but there are a couple in need of some extra prayers today if you don't mind taking a second or two to do so...

Remember our friend Tiffany? Her son Samuel was born and passed away not long after Daxton was born last year. She went through multiple surgeries and procedures and is now 20 weeks pregnant with another little boy. She has started to dilate and had a bloody show and was subsequently admitted to the hospital last night. Please pray for Baby Salem to stay put and for Mom and Dad to stay strong.

Also, remember Baby Payton? After many, many months of ups and downs in the NICU, she's finally going home today. Her 1st birthday is on Monday, and looks like she'll be celebrating it at home where she belongs! Many prayers of thanks, and prayers for Princess Payton to grow strong and healthy.

Thank you so much everyone!

Friday, August 7, 2009

It's my 1st 29th birthday

Everyone sing along...

Happy birthday to meee
Happy birthday tooo meee
For my birthday this yeeeear
Shep's getting a vaaaaa-sec-toh-meeeeeee


Aaaand, many mooooore :)

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

The newest addition...

My mom got on to me today for sitting around doing nothing all day instead of updating my blog, so I put in my earplugs and got my priorities straight and here I am. I have at least 18 more years to feed the babies… They’ll keep :P

As I said before, Ty is perfect and has the best lungs ever. Ever… and he really, really likes to use them!!! He was born Thursday morning and, other than a few breaks to eat or sleep, has screamed and screamed and screamed… Like to the extreme that his parents who have prayed for months for strong lungs began to pray for maybe a touch of laryngitis… Just make him a little hoarse, Lord… Just a little.

Of course, we don’t really mean it… Most of the time.

Actually, today has been a much better day. Ty has been super gassy and we know his tummy has been hurting, but this morning he had a massive booty blowout (or 3) and he’s been much happier ever since. Yay :)

The only issue we’ve had with our newest monkey is his current disinterest in boobs. I say disinterest… I think a more accurate description would be to compare putting his face near a nipple to placing a cat in the bathtub. (In case you’ve never given a cat a bath, it’s not easy or particularly fun…)

So we spent 2 days trying to get the kid to eat unsuccessfully from the tap, with his response being adamantly and fervently “NO,” with our only success at getting him to drink being from a plastic hospital spoon. He’d lick it off the spoon like he’d been eating for years… Thankfully we’re having a little more success now using the “bait and switch” method of letting him suck his paci and then switching him to Boobtown without him noticing. I still have to finish up with a Haberman bottle to make sure he’s full (thanks, Gloria!) That of course, means I’m pumping again, which I had hoped to avoid, but maybe before long Ty will be more cooperative. Wait, who am I kidding???

I was laughing today about the difference between actually feeding a baby and just pumping… The brain is a funny thing… Last time I pumped for months without any actual skin to skin with Dax, and, of course this time I’m putting Ty up there every time he fusses… So this time around I’m milking through every item of clothes I have any time any child so much as whimpers, and last time I only made milk in the presence of pumps and hydraulic construction equipment. Strange…

And lots of folks have asked how Dax is adjusting to having a little brother… And I’d have to say Dax likes Ty about as much as Ty likes boobs. Oh well, hopefully brotherly love comes later!

At any rate, it’s bedtime around here and I need to go… I did take a break to feed the children (and load the dishwasher and pump and take a shower and do Dax’s nightly routine and pump and talk on the phone and wash clothes and eat and take my medicine and pump) and it looks like I’ll have to add my birth story later… I will say that it was a fun delivery with a wonderful (and diverse) medical staff, and I can’t wait to tell you about it!!!

Good night :)

Saturday, August 1, 2009

We got our drive-thru baby :)


Details to come if I ever get the chance to have a hand free again, but we are HOME with a perfect, wireless baby boy. 7lbs 7oz, 18.5". Lungs of STEEL:)


Thanks so much for all the prayers!