www.micahandlindsey.com

….the boys will play!  Micah filled in as Mr. Mom like a champ while I was at the hospital.  He took Scout on walks to explore, they visited parks and threw a zillion rocks, cooked together, Micah taught Scout the “Barnyard Dance” from a book of the same name where they skitter with the mice and bow to their partners, Micah wrestled with Scout and was the victim of Scout’s lethal “atomic leg drop” dozens of times, Micah made sure Scout had his favorite meal of “rice soup” (miso with rice in it) almost daily, etc.  I was so glad to know that Scout was not missing out even though I was MIA.  But my favorites were when they would stop by the hospital and peek in the window because Scout wasn’t allowed in……and when I caught Scout “chilaxing” next to his obviously exhausted dad with PJ’s on that gave me tears in my eyes.  I love that little boy…..and the dad who takes such good care of him.

Navy’s biliruben has stabliized over the last 48 hours, and the doctor’s feel like she is healthy enough to come home!  They gave her one last test — an ultrasound to check her heart — and the results were perfect.  Micah showed up after work, and he didn’t forget her take home outfit.  We got her all gussied up in her dress, bow, new booties, and her bracelet I made her.  She looked like a little (slightly yellow) doll.  Upon arrival, there was a mini paparazzi waiting in excitement.  Micah also had one of my favorite things on the countertop.  It was ten pink “Big Spin” lottery tickets.  (I have a dream of going on the Big Spin and winning my fortune.) Scout was beside himself he was so excited, and we celebrated that night with some tasty stew my mom made.  I am SO glad we are home, and can’t wait to start “normal” life again.

Her Ultrasound

One of the many great nurses — Gene.

Part if the family going to meet up with the rest of the family at H-O-M-E!!!

Navy was sad to spend her 1 week birthday in the NICU….especially because her numbers haven’t gone down in two days.  But everything changed when Micah, Scout and Skilly showed up to celebrate.  Skylar made a “not so beautiful” but very tasty cake…..completely on her own.  Scout brought a monkey balloon for the festivities, and we had a party.  I am glad they made it fun for us!

Navy is still going strong.  They took her off her triple light therapy two days ago because her biliruben number had decreased into the 11 range.   The next test showed she had rebounded just a bit to the high 11’s, but it was somewhat expected.  After two lights, her numbers improved, and she went down to one light, with another slight rebound.  But according to the doctors, it was within the range of acceptability.  Finally, yesterday morning her biliruben count was below 10, and they took the lights off of her completely.  When I walked in yesterday morning, my heart leaped, and I had an extra pep in my step all day long because she was in a regular crib and sleeping without her little sunglasses on.  I was so excited and happy for her to be wrapped up in warm blankets and out of the desert.

Since the regular bed, her numbers went from a 9 to a 10, and this morning they were up to 11.  It is a rebound, but 11 is still considered a fairly decent number, so we will take it!  She received a blessing on Sunday from Bishop Lindahl and his son Dallin, and I know it has helped with her progress.  I am so pleased to know that I can call on people when I am in need of help.

I should be talking with the doctor today to get a read on when we might get to bring her home.  This is her 1 week birthday, and it is pretty different than Scout’s celebration.  With him, I made him a cake and we all went around and said what we already loved about him.  On hers, I am going to feed her and hold her as much as I am allowed.  They are different, but I don’t know which I prefer.  Of course I would prefer to have Navy home and completely healthy.  But on the other hand, I love my quiet days here where I just get to love my little girl.  I don’t miss much, and every little gas smile, coo, squeal, eyes opening, dream jump makes me happy.  I just watch her for hours, and love every minute of it.

Things are looking really good, and I am so glad that when I take her home that this is all over.  I see so many parents come into the NICU who don’t know what is in store for the future of their children.  I am so glad that this is something that is temporary, and something that these skilled doctors and nurses are taking care of.  I also love Dr. Carruth who comes by and always tells me that everything looks good, and not to worry.

She is a trooper, and she must be the sweetest baby on the planet.  She is good … beyond good.  She is happy, and a good eater, and even takes the constant pricking of her heel like a saint.  I can’t wait to have her home and Micah can’t wait to have her home, but Scout might be the most excited to have his baby sissy home.  In fact, he woke up in the middle of the night last night crying for baby sissy.

Getting her heel pricked.

Our alone time….my favorite part!

Navy is my little trooper!  It is only day four of her life, and she has already been through the ringer.  But you would never know it by her little attitude.  She is happy, sweet and has every single nurse wrapped around her little finger!

She is currently on her third day in the NICU. (NeoNatal Intensive Care Unit) On her second night, she was appearing to be more yellow than normal which was jaundice….a fairly common thing seen in babies.  But when they tested her, they realized it was not the “common” type of jaundice, but rather a blood incompatibility with my blood she received in utero.  I am AB+, and she is as well, but somewhere I built up antibodies in my blood. So since she isn’t in my tummy any longer and on her own, her body is rejecting my blood.  The jaundice is a byproduct of her body fighting off my blood and attacking/breaking apart the red blood cells.  When they tested her, her bilirubin count was a 17.  Under 10 is normal, in the 20’s is dangerous, and 30 is brain damage.  So the idea is to get her numbers down as quickly as possible.

The plan of attack was to have her under and on top of three different blue lights AKA Triple Photo Therapy.  So she is laying with only a diaper and a really expensive pair of designer sunglasses in an incubator that is really warm and bright.  We like to call it the “desert”.

Like I said, she went in at a 17.  Her first testing was done later that afternoon, and she was down to a 14.6.  Everyone was shocked by her quick reaction to the lights.  Apparently that was a huge jump in a very short amount of time. Later that evening they tested her, and she was down to a 13.9.  We were obviously thrilled, and things were very hopeful for a quick and good recovery.

The next morning, she rebounded just a touch to a 14.1, but the doctors and nurses considered that to be within the margin of error to consider her ”stable”.  Later that evening her tests were good news, as her biliruben was at 12.9.  I was thrilled, and couldn’t wait to hear what the tests from this morning were….on her fourth day of life.  The results said she is currently at a 12.1, and the doctors are pleased enough that they are minimizing her lights down from three to one.

I have been by her side most of the time.  I pump so she can get the best nourishment possible.  The first day, I wasn’t allowed to hold her because they didn’t want her away from the lights for any time at all.  But on day three I held her every time I fed her, and today — day four — I held her at her 6 am feeding for about 30 minutes, and over an hour at her 9 am feeding.  I love that she knows exactly who I am, and cuddles into my arm like it is the best place on Earth.

I have slept at home the past two nights, and returned to the hospital early.  And there she is…..in the desert with her little sunglasses on.  She is good…SO good.  She doesn’t cry or complain.  Her heel looks like she stepped on a cactus with little lacerations all over them due to her blood draws.

I am so happy to see improvements every day.  I am so happy to know she is a little toughy.  I am so glad to know that she has angels surrounding her to help her heal.  She is constantly looking off in the distance, and I know she can see them.  I am grateful that there are doctors who are well educated and knowledgeable to handle situations as these.  I am thrilled by nice nurses who are caring and compassionate.  Our experience here has been good.  I especially am happy to know that I have a good husband who is taking care of our boy.  My biggest concern besides Navy’s health is that Scout doesn’t get dumped…..and he hasn’t.  I also want to say that I love Dr. Thein and Dr. Carruth.  Dr. Thein heard about Navy, and immediately came in.  He was so kind, and even offered to find his wife’s pump, so Navy could get my milk.  Talk about nice!  And Dr. Carruth is here every morning like clockwork.  I like his lack of mincing words, and getting straight to the point.  His verdict…..everything looks good.  We haven’t had any surprises, and no hiccups….and that is good.

Life is good.  I have two of the cutest kids ever, and can’t wait until we are all under the same roof!

The sign in her room that the nurses made her.

Notice how yellow it is under where her sunglasses are….but how cute is she!

My view, my book and my pump.

The big moment took place at 5:31 pm on January 20th.  It all started the night before when I was supposed to check in at midnight.  Obviously I was a little late, but when I arrived at 1:00 am, the nurses weren’t bothered….especially because we brought In-N-Out Burger for all of them.  Micah remembered that when we came in for Scout, we mentioned that we had a stop off at In-N-Out, and the nurse said, “Oh man, why didn’t you bring any for us.”  So when Micah stopped this time — due to tradition — we picked up 5 extras.  They were thrilled.  And I will admit that I think I got a little extra VIP treatment because of them.

At midnight, they started with some sort of pill that thins my cervix.  Then at 5:00 pm they started the Petocin.  Dr. Thein -the best doctor in the world- had already called in and put me first on the list for my epidural.  So I got it at about 11 am.  Up until then, I felt contractions, but nothing big at all.  Then I was obviously very comfy after the epidural….especially as Tristen, Micah and my mom all rubbed my feet the entire time I was in labor.  It took the edge off the tingly feeling — thank goodness!

It took me until about 4:00 to dilate to a 5.  According to the nurse, once I hit that mark, I would progress really fast.  She was right, because by 4:30 I was having SO much pressure, I knew if I sneezed this baby was coming.  The nurse checked me, and told another nurse to call Dr. Thein immediately.  Then a few minutes later, she came back and told me that Dr. Thein was 7 minutes away, but if they had to, they would pull another OB into my room to proceed with the delivery.  My nurse Amy was calm as can be up until this point, but when she started really chewing on her mint gum, I knew it was sketchy.  I guess I should also mention that every time I had a contraction, the baby’s heart rate would drop pretty drastically, and they were very concerned that there was a cord wrapped around her neck.

The next thing I see is my nurse entering with a needle full of something.  She told me she was going to give me a shot in the arm of ??? to stop the contractions.  She wasn’t sure it would work, but it was worth a try…..and….the verdict……it worked like a charm.  In fact, worked too well.

When Dr. Thein arrived, they started having me push.  Three pushing sessions later and without the contractions to push the baby down, they decided to start the Petocin again to get them going once more.  Then 20 minutes later was showtime.

I pushed once, and Dr. Thein had a heart to heart with me afterwards.  (I have to admit that he was proud of my pushing skills last time, and I was trying just as hard this time, so I didn’t know what the problem was?!)  He told me that he was going to do everything possible to get this baby out, but with the heart rate dips, and me not being able to get that baby’s head down really low, a C-Section might be inevitable.  He was trying to give me a clear picture of just how hard I needed to try.  Well, the next push…..I PUSHED…..and there she was!  As I crunched myself in a sit up position, I watched the cutest little girly version of Scout pop her little head up.  My little sunny side up baby was the cutest thing I have ever seen.  And the amazing thing was besides a bump on her head, she was perfect.  She was almost spotless clean (no white stuff), her face wasn’t at all smashed, her features were delicate and perfect.  They put her on me right away, and I was in heaven.  Micah and my mom were balling over my shoulder, and Trilby, Tristen, Megan, Skilly and Calin were all crowded around oohing and ahhing.  (Thanks to my nurse Amy who allowed 2 extra people in the room beyond what the policy allows!) Talk about a perfect moment.

Afterwards, Dr. Thein said that my “strip” (the print out of my contractions and the baby’s heart rate) was really bad and scary.  He wasn’t aware that she was sunny side up until she was coming out, and that is what caused the craziness.  He then told me for the second time in my life what a good pusher I am.  (I am glad to know that from now on when I am asked what talents I have been given, I can always say that pushing is one of them!)

She weighed in at 6lbs 13 ounces. (Almost a full pound lighter than Scout!)  She was 19.5 inches, and has all of her fingers and toes.  She is a little version of Scout, and she is as sweet as they make them.  She is a great eater already — first time she got to try, she was hooked.  She only has a tiny little squeal when she wants my attention.  She was welcomed by a room full of family who already adore and love her.

Introducing……….Navy Skye Denison! (Aren’t you gald I didn’t say Spider!)

She has the longest feet and hands….and was 19 1/2 inches long.

Dad’s footprint shot.  The nurses always fall in love with Micah after he requests this one!

Our family picture

Scout is smitten.  He is constantly smooching her and is the best helper in anything I need.

Trey, one of the many visitors….but definitely the most worried about germs. (Notice his rubber gloves!)

Another visitor…..but this one isn’t as worried about germs…obviously!  She is also proud to claim she got the first kiss!

The man of the hour….Dr. Patrick Thein almost groveled to get me in tonight for induction tomorrow.  He says that I knew too many tricks to persuade him, such as tell him how uncomfortable I have been, threaten him with taking Castor Oil, got his receptionist on my side, brought in treats to my appointment, etc.  It might be a little shameless, but guess who is heading to the hospital tonight for a new baby girl tomorrow!  I can’t wait, and can only pray that this delivery is as easy as the first.  I am also a little excited that our girl will have a memorable date of birth, because it’s the very same day as a very monumental innauguration.  Trilby can’t wait to save the newspaper for our girl’s scrapbook.

I am not really the “nesting” type, but after our appointment today, I thought I better get things in order.  Time to put away and hang up all of the clothes I have collected over the last 9+ months.  Time to have Micah pack my hospital bag.  (He questioned why it was his job, and I reminded him that he did it last time….and now it was a tradition!)  Time to pick out her “going home” outfit….nice job mom!  And last of all, time to play with my best buddy Scout on his last “solo” day.  (I feel like such a cheat, as I am about to change his life as he kows it.)

I am very excited, and thought my neighbor Karen was so nice to drop off a gift for the “new family of four”.  Wish me luck!

While pregnant with Scout, I had indigestion every single day and night.  I don’t mean relatively light indigestion…..I am talking my eyes watered, my arms would tingle, my mouth would salivate and I would wake up out of a deep sleep with this indigestion.  When I was about 9 months pregnant, Micah came in one night and said, “Babe!  Something is REALLY wrong with me.  It is like a major amount of food is stuck in my throat and burning it.” After watching him hold his throat with both hands and lay on the bed in a soap operaish/dramatic way, I told him he had indigestion.  To which he was appalled at my cheapening his ailment by suggesting to him that it was what I suffered through daily.  He actually said to me, “BABE…..THERE IS NO WAY THIS IS WHAT YOU HAVE EVERY NIGHT!  THERE IS SOMETHING REALLY WRONG WITH ME, AND YOU JUST DON’T UNDERSTAND WHAT IT IS.  NOBODY COULD LIVE THROUGH THIS ON A REGULAR BASIS!”  So I replied with, “Babe…….you let me know when you are sleeping soundly and your mouth fills with acid that has been sitting in your throat and you have to run to the bathroom to vomit it up.  Then I will feel somewhat sorry for you.  Until then…. buck up buttercup!”

Fast forward to this morning.  Micah comes to the couch where I am sleeping (due to pregnancy…not a fight!).  I am completely in la la land and in the middle of a great dream when I hear in a much louder voice than should be allowed early in the morning…..”Babe!  Wake up…..what IS this?!!!”  He then proceeds to show me his arm, the back of his thigh, and his back.  I honestly couldn’t see a thing, so I asked him what he was showing me.  He said, “Don’t you see this rash?  It is all over me.”  And then like his life flashed before his eyes, (he might have even had a tear) he asked rhetorically, “What is this?!” (as he swirled around and plopped himself on the couch at my feet.) — Drama –

I told him that rashes just to take care of themself most of the time and to just ignore it.  He fought me in disgust on that one.  (I won’t even go into his recent ingrown toenail that he nursed for an hour every night for a month.  Had he listened to my advice of — just leave it alone and it will go away — just imagine the hours of his life he would have back.)  So this morning, as I told him to leave it alone, he was distraught.  After ten minutes of him trying to figure out where he got his rash (uh…duh…Panama?!), I told him to take his baby down to the pharmacy and have the pharmacist recommend something over the counter.  He looked at me like I was psychotic and said, “Scout….no way!  I have to be quarantined until this is all taken care of!”  So I rolled my eyes, and helped him load Scout Master in the car, and off he went.  Before he left I asked him for a piece of paper so I could write a note to the pharmacist.  He wanted to know what it was going to say, and I told him I was going to ask the pharmacist if it was the popular “Karma Rash”?!

I will update if there are any really serious problems, but until then….no flowers or “get well soon” cards please.  Feeding his drama is the LAST thing I need!

Scout was obsessed with his plug (AKA binky, pacifier, etc.).  To the point where he needed to have it all day long, and all I would hear was “Buggy…Buggy…Buggy!”.  I actually think it started when he got a hold of Ezra Zimmerman’s 12 month plug, and realized how great it was compared to the only ones he has which all boast the sizing of 0-3 months.  This happened for two reasons.  #1 - Too lazy and cheap to constantly buy new sizes when the old ones were working fine.  #2 - the only good colors come in the small sizes, and I refused him the right to walk around with some crazy, ugly, and bold color all day long.

I realized something was going to have to give since I could see his teeth starting to shift.   I tried the “taking away” technique on our venture to LAX last week, but three headaches later it failed miserably.  I also figure that when his little sister has one, he would revert.  So I came up with the idea of having a plug drawer.  It is in his room, and I told him about a thousand times over the course of a few days that he gets his pluggy when he is in bed or when he is in his carseat.  I had him repeat it a few times with me, and it seemed like he got it.

My theory has been tested over the last week, and it is working like a charm!  Not only does he only take his plug in bed and in the car, but he has had a total paradigm shift on naps and bedtime.  He wasn’t bad before, but now he runs to bed to get his pluggy out of the drawer.  Another interesting thing has happened also.  Up until this trial, he was pretty restless during his nighttime prayers.  He would fold his arms and close his eyes for a few seconds, but then he wanted down to get into everything.  Now, I give him his plug, cover him up, ask him to fold his arms and close his eyes — which he does the entire length of the prayer now.  (And these aren’t three second prayers.  We have a lot of ground to cover and they are fairly lengthy.)

The only other thing I have noticed is that his sleeping pattern is longer.  I don’t know if I can attribute this to my trial, no night terrors, or whatever else …..but I won’t complain!  Yesterday, after a full 12 hours of sleep the night before, he took a 4 hour nap in the afternoon.  How can a girl get so lucky!  Just to think….I am finally getting a bit of sleep…..all to have another newborn within the week to wreck it all!  That’s alright.  I have always bragged that I am like my dad, and don’t need much sleep to function.  He is a little more ridiculous than me — I think he survived on 5ish hours a night (and on every Thursday he pulled an all nighter at his law office) each night for many years.