Trip to the Park

Here's Jude in his car seat, waiting to go to the park. He is all bundled up!
He is wearing the hat Melissa made him. It fits perfectly.

This was taken when we were walking around the lake at Tom Brown Park. He slept the whole time we were there even though it was really bumpy.
Here he is sleeping. He got himself in this position on his side. I thought it was too cute! He is growing up so fast.

He is still waking up about every 2 hours throughout the night. Jeremy has really been helping me though by giving him a bottle of pumped milk when I just can't get myself out of bed. ;) Jude is doing so well. It is amazing to watch him get bigger and put on a little more weight. He is absolutely adorable now with his chubby cheeks. We should have some Thanksgiving pictures up in about 1 week from now so stay tuned for those!

1 Month Old!!!

Today Jude is officially 1 month old. I can't believe how big he is getting. He is starting to get some fat on him so he has some chubby cheeks now. ;) He is absolutely adorable. He got his circumcision done yesterday. I stayed in the room with him and he was actually really good. He cried of course but it wasn't as bad as I was expecting it to be. Dr. Hall performed the circumcision.

Jude is eating about 3 ounces of food at every feeding which is alot more than he used to eat. Keeping up with his eating habits is a full time job! He still wakes up about every 2 to 3 hours through the night. He has been using his swing more during the day and he loves it.

I ended up doing really well on my test this past Friday so that was a relief. I really wasn't sure how it was going to work out. I feel a little more confident now that I can be a good mom and do well in school at the same time...it's just going to take some work. But, everything good in life takes work so I am ready and willing. Without the support and encouragement of our amazing friends and family this would not be possible. Know that we appreciate you all more than you could ever know and we continuously thank God for you.

Back by Popular Demand

Sorry for the hiatus...things have been a little busy around here. ;) Since this is a post-test weekend, I figured I had no excuse not to update the blog. Jude is doing awesome! He has been to the doctor three times since coming home from the hospital. The last time he received a great report. He has surpassed his birth weight (his last weight was 5 lb 14 oz) and his color is looking much better. He has been breastfeeding well and sleeping pretty good too. We celebrated his first Halloween, but of course I forgot to take pictures. He didn't have a costume though so that's ok. On Monday Jude will be four weeks old. I can't believe how the time has flown by. School has been going well (I guess we will know for sure once I get my test grade back from Friday). It has been awesome having Jeremy here with Jude while I am at school. It takes so much stress off of me. Jeremy has been absolutely amazing with Jude, I couldn't ask for a better husband. ;) He loves being a daddy!

I have my post-partum appointment this Wednesday and Jude is also getting circumsized then. I feel bad for the little guy. Jude's next doctor's appointment after that is not until December 11th when he will receive his first round of shots.

As of this weekend, Jude has finally been able to meet all of his grandparents! We can't wait for him to meet the rest of the family and spend more time with everyone. Thanks for all of your support and keep praying for us...especially around 3 am if you happen to be up then. ;)

Here are some pics since the last time I posted...some of them are from his very first car ride and his very first bath!!

Day 10: Home Sweet Home

This post covers Wednesday and Thursday, October 17th and 18th. It is so amazing having Jude home with us, he is just a perfect baby. There are so many times when I just want to hold him even though he is sleeping so peacefully. He has been getting up about every 2 hours to eat. He went to his first doctor's appointment (outside of the hospital) at Tallahassee Peds on Wednesday at 1:30 pm. We saw Dr. Long. He was 5 lb 2 oz which meant that he had gained about 1.5 oz since we left the hospital on Tuesday. That is more than expected so Dr. Long was extremely pleased with his progress. Breastfeeding has been going so well, Jude is a natural. ;) We have gone through so many diapers, blankets, and onesies, it is crazy. Jeremy put away his computer last night and took everything out of the desk. So, today we are breaking the desk down and putting up the crib! I am so excited to get everything set up. My goal is to have it all done by Sunday. I am so glad that Jeremy decided to work from home so that he can watch Jude. Otherwise, I don't know if I could go back to school and feel ok about it. Jude is doing absolutely amazing and we are so blessed to have such a good baby.

Day 9: The Homecoming!!

This post is for Tuesday, October 16th. This is probably the happiest day of my life...today I get to take my baby boy home for the first time!! He slept in my room last night and everything went great. He was able to maintain his temperature (with about 7 blankets on because the room is so cold) and he had tons of wet and dirty diapers. He also ate extremely well. He went for an assessment early this morning at 1:00 am and also again at 10:30 am. He is actually there right now. They are also doing his hearing screening as well. Dr. Zak came in this morning at about 9:45 am and checked Jude out and as she was checking him, she said, "You might want to make an appointment with your pediatrician for tomorrow." So, I said, "Are we going home today?!" And she said, "Yes." Praise the Lord!!! I was so happy. Jeremy was still at home so I called him right away and told him to come get us. I hurried up and packed all of our stuff and we brought it down to the car before bringing Jude down. When we were ready, we went into the ICU for the last time and put our own clothes on our son and put him in his car seat. The nurse helped us bring Jude and all of our wonderful free NICU stuff down to the car. I was so excited! We took a picture in front of the car with the three of us and then we put Jude in and I rode next to him in the backseat while Jeremy drove. He is so tiny and he just looks swallowed up in his little car seat. He did awesome on the way home and he slept pretty much the whole way. He is such a good baby! When we got here, we unpacked his pack and play so that he would have somewhere to sleep (it has a bassinet on the top of it) and then I fed him. We put him down in the pack and play and he went right to sleep. He continued to sleep throughout the day except for when he was hungry. That night he would just wake us up when he was hungry, which was about every 2 hours instead of the 3 we were doing at the hospital. But, I definitely did not have to set an alarm to make sure I fed him on time...he woke me up. ;) Otherwise, he slept so peacefully throughout the night. Brent and Ginger, our neighbors came by to have dinner with us and see Jude. This has been the most amazing day and I can't believe we are finally all home! What a blessing. Jeremy and I are overwhelmed with joy at the fact that we have a baby boy. ;) As things get settled, we would love to have visitors to see baby Jude. We will keep you posted on the time frame of that. ;)

Day 8: One Step Closer

This post is just for Monday since so many great things happened. This morning when I went to give Jude his 7:30 a.m. feeding, I found out that he had gained 2 ounces in the past day. That is awesome! So, he is at an even 5 lbs. He fed well again and had another poopy diaper. Jeremy went in to see him at around 10 a.m. without me and while he was in there, Dr. Zak came by and gave him some news. She told him that Jude's bilirubin levels were down at 10 and therefore he could come off of phototherapy! She also ordered for his IV to stop. They are also turning his isolet temperature to see if he can maintain his own temperature. So, that is three major steps in the right direction!! We were so happy and I couldn't believe it when Jeremy told me so I actually went and asked Dr. Zak again myself. ;) I know that's horrible, I just wanted to hear her say it. So, at the next feeding, they turned his lights off and disconnected his IV. They left his hep block (is that right?) in his arm though in case they need to put his IV back in. They let me finally put a onesie on him and swaddle him with a few blankets to make sure he stayed warm. Later on today I get to give him my first bath!! And, to top it all off, the nurse went and asked the doctor if Jude could stay in here with me tonight and she said yes!!! Wow, so many great things all in one day. I can't begin to tell you how grateful I am for this moment. I am amazed at Jude's progress and at the faithfulness of God that He would bring our child to health and allow us to experience him as we were intended to do. I am so excited about him sleeping in here with me. I probably won't sleep but that's ok. ;) Thank you so much for your prayers, I know that God has answered them. Dr. Zak anticipates us going home Wednesday. Jude has to get his hearing screening and a car seat test where he has to sit in his car seat for 1 hour and they monitor his O2 saturation to make sure he is getting adequate oxygenation. Otherwise, they are really only keeping him here for observation to make sure everything goes as planned. Thanks again for all of your prayers and support and keep them coming!!

Day 7

This post covers from Sunday through Monday morning, October 14th-15th. Since Jude's bilirubin levels haven't come down enough for him to be taken off of the phototherapy, he is still in the isolette. But, they are coming down and that is the most important thing. He has been feeding really well. Before, we had to fight to keep him awake because he was so tired due to his increased bilirubin levels and the phototherapy. But, today he was alot more alert and started feeding as soon as we put him to the breast. He has been doing so good, feeding from around 15-30 minutes still each time. He still has the IV. He has been making alot more poopy diapers and less of the meconium. So, that is great.

I actually had a small urge to study today so I did some pharmacology. I have just been doing what I can when I can and not worrying about it too much. I was able to sleep for about 5 hours (spread out over feedings of course) Sunday night so I feel relatively rested. The main accomplishment today was Jude getting better and better with feedings. Jeremy and I are doing well. Jeremy was able to go home again last night and stay with Eli. He is being so cuddly with him so he must be lonely. ;) Poor little guy. Soon enough we will all be there though and he will get to meet the newest edition to the Wolter family!