Category: JK Update

After a second restless night sleeping in the hospital and facing the morning parade of doctors, nurses, lactation consultants, and clerks, I got a chance for a quick visit with Julie in the NICU and made a run home to send out this update: Julie was weighed last night. She has lost 5 oz out of… Continue reading Day Three #13

I sent out a separate update to inform my college classes of my situation (I got Julie’s length wrong on the original email): Hello GTAs, I wanted to pass along the good news – my wife gave birth to a girl, Julie Kristina, yesterday March 7 at 12:04 pm. Julie is 6 lbs 1 oz… Continue reading It’s a Girl #12

These next few days begin to blur together as we adjust to the new realities of life: Little Julie strutted her stuff for the nurses today – both pee and poop. She fussed about being changed, too. She continues to get stronger and is breathing partially on her own. The machine isn’t doing everything for… Continue reading Day Two #11

I didn’t get a chance to post any other updates on Julie’s birthday. I had my hands full running back and forth between the hospital and our apartment (about 45 minutes each way at normal speeds), calling friends and family (my cell phone only worked in certain spots in the hospital), and visiting Julie and… Continue reading First Visits #10

Up to now, Sarah had no idea she had gone into labor. I could only suspect it, given the pattern of painful urges to push Sarah exhibited, but I’m not a doctor. The line from Gone with the Wind, “I don’t know nothin ‘bout birthin no babies” kept running through my head. We never got… Continue reading Born Alive #9

I didn’t get a chance to send out an email or Facebook entry for the events in this update. Instead, I made of series of phone calls to friends, family and medical providers. The weekend allowed Sarah and I some time to reflect and rest from the nearly non-stop medical appointments. We ended the week with the… Continue reading Phone Calls #8

This Facebook update is dated Saturday morning, but applies to Friday. The day started early and didn’t finish until well into Saturday morning… 8 hours of appointments today including driving. Sarah was in the MRI for an hour because the baby kept moving. Her new OB allowed us to come by at 6 pm for… Continue reading Long Day #7

Sarah got a little catnap while I typed in the last update. Between the extra rest and the big meal (especially the large strawberry shake) she really perked up for the impromptu appointment with the specialist. The change in her mood caught us both off guard. The specialist thought the cardiologist overreacted… CANCELLED – BABY… Continue reading Baby Warning – Cancelled #6

We started our day with an appointment with a cardiologist. Sarah had a bad night sleeping so she got a late start and didn’t get a good meal before the appointment. Navigating to each new doctor challenged my driving and scheduling skills. To summarize, we were running late and tired. We ran through the usual… Continue reading Baby Warning #5

It’s now two weeks since we learned of Julie’s condition. Each day feels like a victory in a race against time. Julie needs as many days to develop before birth as she can get. This stage of life involves important brain and lung development. The shots at the hospital last week should accelerate this process, but… Continue reading Stable is good #4