Thursday, March 31, 2005

Things to keep in mind next time around

I know lots of people at law school who have young children. I know several women who have had babies during school. All of them seemed to balance school and work and family with no problem. I thought I would be the same way, but today I realized that all of these other women I know have parents and in-laws in town with them. When they need to run an errand in the afternoon or, heaven forbid, go out with their husbands, they simply call mom or mom-in-law, and--poof!--instant baby sitter.

We don't have that, and it's starting to take its toll. Poor Jay hasn't slept more than six total hours out of the last 48. The only times he's been able to doze off have been during the last two Braves games, so that makes him even grumpier. As for me, I'm getting to sleep more than Jay, but I'm definitely ready for a vacation. . .or at least a Nanny.

Tuesday, March 29, 2005

One month check-up

Just got back from Jamie's one month check up.
Here's the skinny:

Weight:9lbs. 6oz.
That's the 50%, so everything's good as far as that's concerned. (He was 7lbs 3oz at birth, and that was 50% as well. So, although he lost more than he should have after he was born, he's all caught up.)
Height: I can't remember, and I'm too lazy to look it up, but it's the 60%, and he was in the 50% when he was born.
Head Circumference: 20%. Our baby has a tiny head. We've got to get that brain growing.

Developmentally, Jamie's at two and a half months, so clearly he's the best baby ever. We're just hoping that he'll jump ahead developmentally to six months so that he'll start sleeping through the night.

Sunday, March 27, 2005


All four James Hilton Watsons. . .they're thinking of forming a boy band: the Hil-tones.
Jay

Friday, March 25, 2005


Jamie in the "Bassinet of Doom"
Jay

New Photos

Here are some pictures from last week when Jay's family came to visit. You'll notice how brave our son is, as he seems totally unphased at laying in the antique bassinet that nearly devoured his uncle Jon. We'll have some more pictures coming soon, as Jamie is getting visited by several great grands this weekend.

Granddaddy Jim with an alert Jamie
Jay

Jamie getting a bottle from his momma
Jay

Jamie happy to be with his Grandmother Linda
Jay

Jamie and his Uncle Jon
Jay

Jay, Jon, Jim and Jamie
Jay

Thursday, March 24, 2005

Daddy Dialog

Hi, this is Jay chiming in on the blog. I know the bottom of this post says Candi, that's just because I'm too lazy/tired/busy to figure out how to post with my own name.

I just wanted to give a short update on our family this morning.

Jamie: Jamie's doing great today. He's falling into more of a pattern; eating about every 3 hours with long wakeful periods in the morning and afternoon. Unfortunately, he's still prone to eating more frequently at night, so sleep has been limited for the rest of us. His reflux seems to be under control. The cereal given in his breast-milk bottles and sitting up after meals are helping. There's less spitting up and crying after eating. Thrush, too, is on the run. The drops we're giving him have really worked, though I'm sure he'll be glad when we're finished with them. He's a happy baby. He loves being held and sitting in the front carrier, and he really loves eating.

Candi: Candi is at work this morning. She's recovered remarkably fast and is really active and energetic considering the lack of sleep and how recent Jamie's birth really is. Motherhood suits her very well, and I can tell that Jamie perks up when she holds him.

Jay: I'm feeling pretty good today because Jamie slept pretty well last night. It meant that Candi and I were able to get more sleep than in previous nights. This is freeing me up to do Jamie's laundry and clean the apartment today, and I'm actually enjoying it a lot. As I type this, I've got Jamie in the front carrier and he's sleeping soundly -- I think I enjoy it even more than he does.

Indie: Indie feels like the forgotten member of our family. She's taking this extremely well. We can tell that she'd like to get more attention, but right now we just can't give it to her. She's been extremely good about respecting Jamie's personal space. If he fusses she'll even come to the side of his bed and peek in, just checking on him. She hasn't shown any jealousy, just mild curiosity, and that's a good thing.

And that's Jamie's cue to wake up and eat lunch, so I've got to run. Before I go, though, I'll encourage you leave comments whenever you stop by. The beauty of the blog is that it's a great communication tool, and it works both ways (at least it does now). We'd love to hear from everybody.

Jay

Wednesday, March 23, 2005

Comments

I know that some people have had problems commenting on posts, but now I think we've fixed the problem. So if you've had difficulty commenting in the past give it a second try. We'd love to hear from you if you're checking in to the blog.

Thrush Little Baby

Yesterday Jay mentioned that he had noticed a white paste on Jamie's tongue. Somehow I knew it was thrush. It was a bizarre example of instinct combined with random bits of trivial knowledge. Somewhere along the way I had stored in my head the idea of this thing called "thrush," and I knew what the symptoms were.

So, back we trekked to the doctor for another $20 co-pay. This kid is seriously getting to be expensive, and he still owes us for this month's rent!

The doctor informed us that it is indeed thrush. It's nothing dangerous. The only problem ever associated with thrush is that some babies won't eat if they have it. Not Jamie, of course--he's already up to 8lbs 6oz! He's still eating just 2 oz per feeding, but he's growing like a weed. Unfortunately, the treatment for thrush is a topical ointment. The directions from the pharmacist said to "swish, gargle, and swallow." Believe it or not, we couldn't convince Jamie to do that, so we're having to paint the inside of his mouth. We're also putting the medicine on his pacifier, which seems to work quite well.

We had another sleepless night last night. Jamie just couldn't get comfortable. He still doesn't really cry, and he's not inconsolable. He just wants to sleep on someone's chest, not in his bed. Of course, this also happens to be Indie's favorite method of sleeping, so it's not unusual to see Jay with a baby and a cat on his chest. At least Indie doesn't also come with the problem of leaking diapers.

Tuesday, March 22, 2005

Primary Caregiver

Jay is adapting well to being the primary caregiver. Right now he looks like death warmed over, so I assume that means he's experiencing all of the joys and woes of providing for a newborn.

When Jay went to the pediatrician with Jamie last week, he was the only adult male in the waiting room, and, of course, this aroused much curiosity with the women there. Leave it to Jay to attract women from the very fact that he's married with a newborn. The doctor was impressed with Jay's parenting skills as well, although Jay mentioned that there were a couple of things he felt unsure about. For example, when the doctor said to put cereal in Jamie's bottle, Jay's first thought was "Okay, I know you don't mean Cheerios." Having never been around a baby before, Jay simply didn't think about baby cereal. When I was teasing Jay about that, he said "I haven't gotten that far in my books." Now, of course, he's measuring baby cereal in his perpetual half-sleep state. . .

Friday, March 18, 2005

And that's why Jamie lip synchs

When Jamie's grandmother (called Grand Auntie) was visiting last week, she noticed that Jamie seemed to be having an unusual amount of reflux, even for a baby. After a pretty bad night two nights ago in which Jamie was wheezing and spitting up and generally in pain, we (or, rather, Jay, since he's the primary caregiver and I'm already back at work and class) went to the doctor. Jamie was diagnosed with GER (something something reflux--can't remember what it's called). We had already done our research, and we were doing all the right things. This consists of having smaller, more frequent feedings, burping after every ounce of fluid, and of holding the baby upright for thirty minutes after every feeding. Of course, this means that what little sleep we were getting is now gone because feedings now take at least an hour, and he eats every 2.5 hours. So, the max we could rest if we fell immediately asleep after putting him down would be an hour before it's time to feed again.


Anyway, we were doing all the right things, but they weren't quite good enough. Most babies with this are put on Zantac, but our new pediatrician (we switched because the first one we went to was terrible) doesn't want to medicate a baby unless he has to. We think that's a good philosophy, too. So, Jamie is now having cereal added to his bottles (the extra thickness adds weight to the milk so that it stays down easier--the problem is essentially one of gravity. . . since babies stay on their backs most of the time, they don't have gravity's aid in keeping food down.)

It seems to be working, even after just a day and night of implementing it. Another alternative would be to switch to a formula that comes with the rice added, but at $20/quart, we're not really keen on that idea, if it's at all avoidable.

Jamie is healthy, though. The doctor said his lungs sound perfect, and everything looks good. The doctor also expresed his amazement at how fast Jamie eats. Once again, not a surprise if one considers Jamie's genetic legacy.

As far as we're concerned, we're ready for the maid to come and clean, and we're ready for the personal shopper to go the the grocery store, because the only thing we're managing to accomplish is to grow a perfect baby and make a mess in our apartment. Oh, and if we're lucky, one of us will bathe today. . .

Monday, March 14, 2005

Saturday, March 12, 2005


Jamie holding his pacifier
Jay

Friday, March 11, 2005


Jamie with his grandmothers
Jay

Picture Link

Here's Jamie's hospital picture. If you click on the picture, it will show you a larger image. Notice the bib. Jay's thrilled that Jamie's home now, because the next televised Braves game is Monday. In case you're wondering, Jamie's favorite Brave is Tim Hudson.

Thursday, March 10, 2005

Home is where your baby is . . .

and now our baby is at our home! After an exhausting and exhilarating two-night stay rooming-in at UT Medical Center, we have brought baby Jamie home to live with us. Our experience at the hospital was great -- they focused on giving us back the in-room time that we lost with him in the ICN. Our confidence is now higher after several feedings and attempts at diaper changes. Only one innocent bystander (his Grand Auntie Nyoka) was soiled in the process . . . and boy does that kid have aim.

We'll try to pull ourselves away from our baby every now and then to post, and you can expect pictures of the hospital time and arrival home to follow in a day or so.

Tuesday, March 08, 2005

Rooming-in and Moving Out

We're packing up for our trip back to the hospital to room in with Jamie. It will be great to be with him for more than just brief visits. The hospital says that one or two-night stays are normal, so it's possible that Jamie will be at home with his family tomorrow.

We'd like to use the wonders of wireless technology to blog from the hospital, and if Jay can borrow a digital camera, we might even post some pictures. On the other hand we might just spend all of our time playing with our baby and forget about the blog entirely.

Monday, March 07, 2005

Monday Night News

Good news this evening. Although we don't have a firm date, Jamie will probably be home soon.

They have scheduled me to "room in" with Jamie for the next two nights. I will go back to the hospital and spend a couple of days and nights taking care of Jamie under the hospital's supervision. This will be followed shortly by Jamie's release.

Monday Morning News

Nothing new to report. I spent about an hour with Jamie this morning, doing typical baby things: changing, feeding, etc. He still doesn't cry, so I'm hoping that's an attitude he'll keep up when he comes home.

All his signs are good, so we're just in limbo waiting for discharge orders. We'll keep you updated.

Sunday, March 06, 2005

Happy One-Week Birthday

Jamie is a week old, as of 8:40 pm. What a week he's had. Here's hoping that next week this time he'll be home where he belongs. . .

Sunday Visit

Lots to talk about tonight.

When we went in to visit Jamie this morning, we were pleased to see that his nasal cannula had been removed. That means that he is completely on his own--no oxygen, no pressure, nothing. He does still have his monitors on, but all signs are excellent. The nurses continue to be amazed at how well he feeds.

The evening visit went well also. I got to change his diaper, and then I fed him. He was a super eater again.

We spent about an hour with him tonight, and then we looked at him through the nursery window. (The ICN didn't have windows, so we're happy to be able to peek in these days.) Generally, Jamie is active and alert but happy. He cries for just a few seconds and then will either settle down or (more often) drop immediately to sleep.

All that the doctors are really watching now is to see that he is feeding well, so since he's doing so well, we're really optimistic that Jamie will be home soon. They haven't, however, given us any indication of a date. That's their usual practice so that no one is given false hope, should a date have to be changed.

Candi holding Jamie

Sorry it took me so long to get this up, but I still take pictures the old fashioned way. I had to wait until I could get them developed. . . Jay

Sunday Morning Update

One of the great things about UT Medical Center is the high level of access they give parents. There are 19 hours available for visiting each day, and you can call at any time to check on your child. We called to check in at 4:30 this morning and learned that Jamie's feeding tube was gone, and he had already taken two bottles. The nurse was very impressed with how fast he was able to down them. I wanted to tell her she wouldn't be impressed if she knew Jamie's daddy very well.

We're settling into a pattern of sorts, which basically consists of trying to visit Jamie 2-3 times/day and trying to get other things done when we can. I have some school work that I have to do today, but other than that we're really grateful that neither of us has a job we have to deal with right now.

Saturday, March 05, 2005

Saturday Night Visit

Jay got to visit Jamie tonight in the Intermediate Care Nursery. There the babies are four to a room, and parents have free access to pick up, hold, and otherwise care for their children. It's both a liberating and scary feeling, because now it seems like Jamie is actually our responsibility.

He'll probably be taken off his feeding tube soon. They would leave it in if we were insistent upon him being breast fed only, but since he needs to learn to associate sucking with getting his belly full, we think it's best that he be given supplemental bottles.

Jay's going to post a picture of Jamie tomorrow, now that we have a couple where he's not on the ventilator. He's still got the nasal cannula, and it's striking at first in a photograph. We've seen it so much in person that we hardly notice it, but to look at it in a picture reinforces the idea that he's in a hospital and that in another time he might not have been okay. So, we're very grateful that he's a 21st century baby.

Saturday Evening Visit

Nothing new to report this visit, although I forgot to mention in the last post that they also have removed his IV.

When I walked up to him in the nursery, he opened both his eyes and looked at me. We're getting to see his eyes more frequently now. . . the first three days of his life I wasn't sure he actually had them!

I fed him and he took to it pretty well, although he gets tired easily because he's not used to having to suck to get full. (Normally the feeding tube just fills up his belly on command.) He ended up falling asleep before he could get a full feeding, but all the nurses have been quite pleased at how easily he has taken to real feedings.

Jay will head back for a visit tonight, when Jamie will be in the Intermediate Care Nursery.

Saturday Morning Visit and News

Let me start by explaining a little bit about beds in the ICN.
The smallest babies are put in isolette units. (I might have mispelled that.) You've probably seen them. They're small plastic boxes that completely enclose the baby except for little circles in the sides where doctors and nurses can slide their hands. Babies too large for the isolettes go into slightly larger isolettes. Jamie has never been in an isolette unit. He's been in a warming tray, which pretty much looks like it sounds: an open plastic tray with warming lights mounted on top.

Today we walked in to visit Jamie and his warming tray was gone--replaced by a standard nursery crib. He wasn't even under the billirubin lights (although it's always possible he'll need to go back under for a while). Jamie has received his transfer orders! He'll be moving to the Intermediate Care Nursery later this evening. Of course, we're very excited. Jamie is now wearing clothes, too, which (until this morning) I hadn't realized that he was missing.

We'll go back to see him this evening--just before they transfer him.

Jamie's Famous!!

Hey, Jamie's less than a week old and he's already getting mentions!

News Update -- Friday Night

Nothing new to report about Jamie's status -- he's still doing well and getting stronger. But tonight's visit was great. Not because of any good news, but because Jay got to hold him for half an hour. We can't wait to bring him home to live with us!

Friday, March 04, 2005

News Update -- Friday Evening

We had a very good visit with Jamie this evening. I fed him, and he seemed to really enjoy it. His feeding is being slowly increased, and tonight it was about 41ccs, or about one and a third ounces (I think).

His skin has responded quickly to the bili lights. His skin looks much paler now, so he actually looks like he's related to us.

Jay has gotten in the habit of going to visit Jamie in the evenings while I try to grab a couple hours of sleep. He'll do that again tonight, so we'll have another update later, probably.

News Update -- Friday Afternoon

Jamie looked great when we went to visit him this afternoon. He's breathing easily (with only a little help from his nasal cannula) and is down to just one IV. His big change is that he's now under the bilirubin lights -- looks like he's already taking after his daddy, who liked the lights so much he stayed under 'em for a few days.

We're hoping to add a few pictures of Jamie to the site soon. His yellowness looks like a nice tan right now. That, along with his fine, blond hair, has led one of his nurses to call him Surfer Boy. Another of the nurses at the ICN has nicknamed him Mango. With his little bili-shades on he does look somewhat tropical.

We're going back in to visit with Mr. Mango this evening, and we'll try to post afterwards.

You Say it's your Birthday

Jamie was born Sunday February, 27 at 8:40pm in Knoxville, TN at the UT Medical Center. He weighed in at 7 pounds 3 ounces, and was 19 inches long. We were very exited to see a head full of strawberry-blond hair, though it's looking blonder by the day. Preliminary reports are that he's got his momma's mouth and his daddy's nose -- all the other parts are up for grabs.

Just after Jamie was born nurses noticed a little grunt in his breathing. He was sent to the Intensive Care Nursery where he's been very well cared for by a dedicated staff of nurses and doctors. The diagnosis is that his lungs were still a little wet from the amniotic fluid and needed some time to mature. We're happy to report that they're getting stronger by the day.

Welcome to JNN

Welcome to our one-stop shop for news about James Hilton Watson IV, or as his Momma and Daddy call him, Jamie. We've started this blog to spread any news about Jamie to all of our many interested family and friends. There are not enough hours in the day to update everyone by phone, so stop by here to find out the latest.