We visited Damon at the hospital two times today and both times he had improved from the last time we had seen him.  In the morning I was able to breastfeed him for the first time.  He is now officially off of his iv and looks more like a normal baby without all of the tubes on his body.  He is almost eating 2 ounces, which is what a baby should be eating.  They are expecting to move him to the other side of the NICU (the almost healthy/less risk side) by late tonight; this is the first step to him going home.  I also spoke with the doctor who surprised me and said he would probably be going home Wednesday afternoon instead of Thursday if he keeps responding like he has been.  We are hoping for the best and just want him home with us.

Our son was born Thursday April 9th 3-1/2 weeks before his due date.  My water broke early morning and we ended up doing an emergency c-section due to bleeding.  I spent three days in the hospital and came home April 12th, Easter morning.  The baby has been in the NICU due to an undeveloped lung, fluid in the lungs, and trouble breathing.  He is supposed to come home on Thursday.  We had an amazing visit with him about a half an hour ago.  I fed him from a bottle for the first time, he is also off of oxygen.  They are increasing the amount of breast milk and decreasing the iv for every feeding.  We just need his breathing to slow down and then he can come home.  As soon as we got out of the car tonight Branson said “I want to see baby Damon” - he is starting to realize who this baby is.  Branson got to officially “meet” his brother for the first time through the window at the NICU tonight.  He is not allowed in the NICU unit so it has been tough to explain that to him.  Please keep us in your prayers and we will keep you updated with his condition.

Damon Joshua MacPeek

April 9, 2009  3:47 pm

6 lbs 14 oz  19″ long

We had a dr appt on Thursday with our new doctor.  Because of a problem with our insurance, I was forced to switch doctors this late in the pregnancy.  We aren’t happy about it but cannot change it so that is that.  The appt took forever and they refused to let Branson into the appt which bothered me… hopefully we won’t have to go to many more appts.  Everything looked fine with the baby and the doctor was able to find the heartbeat immediately.  She did run extra tests because I am starting to experience mid to low back pain.  Hopefully everything will come back okay.  I am beginning to slow wayyyy down and get very tired by the early evening.  We went on our last mini vacation before baby to Big Bear this weekend and stayed at my grandparent’s cabin.  It was really nice to get away for a bit and relax.  I beat Josh in the card game Phase Ten!!!  I am packing the hospital bag today and we are “officially ready” for the baby to arrive.  I would prefer he wait a couple of weeks, but we’ll see what schedule he is on.  We actually had our first “false labor” early this morning.  It only lasted about an hour then went away.

We gave Branson the choice of sleeping in his pack n play or the big boy bed at the cabin and he chose the big bed.  He only got up once, right after I put him down and slept until 6:30 the next morning.  We bought him a mattress today so he is officially out of the crib.  He seems excited about it and we keep telling him that the baby will be in a crib not him.  I can’t believe he is so grown up already – when did that happen?!

We are officially on the home stretch of our pregnancy at 35 weeks along.  The nursery is almost done and I just washed and put away all of the tiny clothes.  You forget just how small they really are!  We just installed the infant carseat in the car.  That sure looks strange to see the carseats for two babies in MY backseat.  We also had the hospital tour and preregistration a couple of weeks ago.  The baby moves ALL THE TIME; I think he is gonna be a little more rowdy than Branson.  I’m still feeling pretty good but have some days that are better than others.  Being pregnant in the spring sure beats the summer!  It is still a struggle to get comfortable enough to sleep and to breathe without congestion.

Branson is 2-1/2 going on 5!  He will be moving into his big boy bed within the next week.  He is almost potty trained so this will make it easier for him to use the potty by himself.  He is still enjoying his gym class and had fun when Grandma went with him last week.  He is talking A LOT and saying the funniest things.  He likes to tell people about the baby in mama’s tummy.  He also likes to hold his stethoscope up to mama’s belly and listen for the brother.  He is really enjoying our fenced in backyard – it has been a blessing!

We just had our baby shower/celebration on Sunday and had beautiful weather.  The kids enjoyed the bouncer, bubbles, chalk, and decorating their hard hats.  Daddy bbq’d hot dogs and hamburgers for our party.  We had a lot of fun with our family and friends.  We’d like to thank Sandra and Roxanne for their help with hosting as well as Audra, Robin, Grandma, & Great Aunt Janice for bringing some yummy food.  …and thank you Daddy for your help, too.