It may just be time for Mel to get a haircut...what a ragamuffin in that first photo!  She continues to be enamored by her baby brother, giving him kisses, putting his paci back in his mouth, and tickling him.  This morning, I could not find her shoe ANYWHERE when it was time to leave for daycare.  Later, I found it in his bassinett.  She left him a little gift!  She rode in the car with him for the first time after daycare on Thursday, and did pretty well with it (she was more excited about "Joey's paci" than Joey himself, but whatever...)  She's a great big sister!

Five Days and Thriving

Joey weighs 7lbs, 1oz at his five-day appointment, and everything looks great!  Dr. Megremis had clearly done his homework, and was all up-to-date on our adventures in the NICU.  He thought everything looked great, that our reports of eating & sleeping sounded on track, and we were all pleased that he's doing so well!  It was a nice (but windy) day for a walk, so that was our mode of transportation to the doctor's office. 

He's still a champion sleeper; he's eating 2ounces, like clockwork, every three hours; otherwise, he sleeps.  Today (Friday) he's spent a little more time awake - and his last bottle was over 3 ounces!  He is a much better overnight sleeper than Mel - this is not meant to say he sleeps through the night by any means (!!) but on Wednesday night, he literally was only awake to eat - Thursday night he was a little squeaky overnight, but nothing crazy.  We made a trip downtown on Thursday to pick up some stuff from my work; he got to meet a few of my coworkers.  He, of course, slept right through it.

First Night

Joey did a great job overnight.  He ate about every 3-3.5 hours, and was a little fussy for a while, but loves his pacifier, and calmed down after a 3am dose of Tylenol (for his circumcision pain).  All in all, he was a much calmer baby on Night #1 than his big sister was!

Right before we were ready to go to bed, Joey was wide awake, so I gave him his first "tummy time."  He immediately picked up his head and moved it to the other side a couple of times, and he also picked it up and looked at me several times.  I was pretty impressed.  Also, earlier in the day while I was doing my first "at-home" blog posts, Jeff had positioned Joey on the floor, on his back, looking at me.  I swear the little guy wiggled around 180 degrees and was looking at the door by the time he was done. 

He's doing a great job eating, polishing off about 2 ounces for each feeding.  Our first pediatrician appointment is Friday at 12:30pm.

The Siblings Meet!

I was really excited to pick Mel up from daycare on Tuesday, after being away from her for four nights!  We made a trip to Marsh, since she had told Daddy that morning that she wanted to have cake with Mommy that night.  When we got home, she was very hesitant of Joey at first; and she retreated into her play room to play with her own babies.  When Joey started crying, though, she was first on the scene to figure out how to help him.  Throughout the evening, she continued to warm up to him, and she even gave him a kiss goodnight. 

On Wednesday morning, the first words out of her mouth were "I want to play with Joey."  She ran across the room to wish him good morning, and crawled all over Daddy while he fed him. She gave him a kiss goodbye before heading to daycare.  The photos above are from Tuesday's first meeting; as you can see, she progressively warms up to him.  She struggles with all of the things she points out when we identify them as Joey's - ie, the bottles, the extra-tiny diapers, etc.  But we are assuring her that she's a big-girl now, and she has big-girl toys.  For now, there is peace.

Going HOME!!!

Joey was cleared for takeoff this morning with a great blood culture reading, completing his 48-hour tests, and his circumcision at about 10am.  We fed him, and then he was basically set to go.  I, on the other hand, was a different story.  The OB who had to clear ME got tied up in an unscheduled c-section, but we finally left about 1:30pm.  In the maentime, we got to snuggle with the little guy, learn more about how to care for a newborn (the things we forget...!) and feed him again.  We got home to an empty house and are settling in, getting ready for the tornado this evening as brother & sister meet for the first time!

We realize how very blessed we are to have a healthy baby home with us.  Since all of his readings came back well, we have been repeatedly assured that we never have to worry about this collapsed lung thing again!   As for me, I'm also very happy to be out of that hospital room!  Thank you for all of your prayers!!

Joey's first birthday party

Joey wasn't able to attend his first birthday party (held Monday night), but Melanie was!  She was more interested in climbing all over Mommy, but that was okay too.  And she was the only one who received gifts at this birthday party... but her baby brother doesn't mind, I'm sure!

Joey meets his Grandparents

Joey had visitors in NICU even before people could hold him, but once he was off the oxygen, his grandparents were more than thrilled to get their hands on him!

Monday Night

I'm not downloading photos while I'm here, therefore, I don't have picture updates; but here is an update on how our day has gone.  We have gotten to feed Joey for each of his meals today.  He has had some puking issues, but nothing that you wouldn't expect from a newborn.  We talked to the NICU doc, and she has decided to not order another chest x-ray.  She feels confident with how things have progressed over the last three, and is confident that we're done with the collapsed lung issue.  I knew that he needed the antibiotics for 48 hours while we monitor the blood culture; well, when the blood culture comes back tuesday morning, as long as there is no infection growth, he's DONE with the NICU!  It doesn't have to be precisely 48 hours, they just need the two daily readings.  So, prayers for a clear blood culture, and we're out of here on the same timeline as we would be if he hadn't been in the NICU!  We know how lucky we are, especially as  Joey is surrounded by babies who have been in longer and continue their stay as he leaves. 

He has been a champion eater, pooper, and puker, and Melanie continues her love affair with the IDEA of Joey.  I am very excited to see how she acts when he gets home.  We had our birthday cake tonight for Joey's birthday, and she wore her "I'm a big sister" shirt to the celebration. 

Grandma & Grandpa Worzala got to hold Joey today, and we had Andrea Osman and Erika Brown both visit.  Melanie is now home with Daddy, Grandma & Grandpa.  While I've gotten to see her every day, I miss her terribly, and am looking forward to being home and showing her I didn't abandon her to this building with Joey in it :)

Joey's Monday Update

Sunday night I was able to feed Joey his last bottle before bed - and change a nasty, nasty diaper.  With Melanie's birth, I was able to avoid all meconium diapers.  I was not so lucky this time, and it was also my first little-boy diaper.  He ate well, and I left him around 10:45pm.  I slept awesome; my first night of sleep since Thursday!  Jeff stayed home with Melanie (and his parents), and I got over 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep (gotta love formula feeding, which other people can do for you!!)

Monday morning, Jeff and I went in and were able to feed him and change another diaper; not quite as nasty as last night's.  During both feedings, he's been alert, it's fun to see his eyes!

While we were down this morning, we got an update on how Joey's doing, of course, and also understand more about the tests and results we're waiting for.  So, here we go...

First, the collapsed lung.  The third chest x-ray, which was performed this morning, continues to show shrinkage in the pocket of air continues to decrease.  The doctor seemed pretty convinced that it will be nonexistent soon.  He's not on oxygen anymore, and should just heal itself.

As for the possible infection....the tests they did yesterday were a CBC, which measures the risk of infection.  That is the one that came back slightly elevated, so they did a blood culture, which they watch for 48 hours.  If the culture grows, they know there is an infection.  In the meantime, they give the baby antibiotics as a precautionary measure.  In the last 24 hours, nothing has grown in this culture - and usually, if there is an infection, there are already signs of growth.  There is no sign of growth with Joey's culture.  There is still a chance it could grow, but we're hopeful he's in the clear.  We'll know more tomorow.

I just got the best perk of delivering at St. Vincent - my 15-minute massage!  So everyone is doing well, and we're enjoying the time with our new son!  Melanie woke up this morning with her first words of greeting for Jeff being "It's Joey's Daddy!!"  We're really excited for her to really meet him, not just through a window!  The hospital provides a birthday cake for all new babies; so we're having our celebration tonight with Melanie, complete with Elmo hats :) 

More on the name!

The photo above is of our neighbor Paula lighting a candle for us and for Joey's safe delivery at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem just one hour after he was born!  Amazing!

Joseph Pierce Worzala...JPW, just like his Daddy (Jeffery Phillip). My dad's name is Joe Coapstick Doan; his dad's name was Joe Taylor Doan.  Jeff's dad's name is Ronald Joseph Worzala; named from Ron's own father, Joseph Edward Worzala. From there, Jeff's brother is named Randall Joseph, and our nephew is Charles Joseph.  Jeff's maternal grandfather's name was Conrad Joseph.  So, can you see where our baby's first name came from?  :)

My beloved Grandma's parents' names were Pierce & Grace Coapstick.  Pierce started the insurance company that my dad owned and ran for 30+ years, and my Uncle John's (Dad's brother's) name is John Pierce.  My parents carried the tradition by naming my sister Julia Grace.  I did my part to honor my grandma in naming my children after her parents - Melanie Grace and Joseph Pierce.  I only wish she would have had the opportunity to meet these kiddos.  She would have been so proud.

Welcome Joseph Pierce Worzala!

We are thrilled to welcome Joseph Pierce Worzala to the world!  Joey joined us at 4:23am on April 25, 2010, weighing 6lbs, 15oz, and measuring 20.5inches.   He's got a ton of dark hair, and big feet!

On Friday night after the wedding, with Melanie staying with Gigi & Poppy, Jeff & I headed to the hospital around 3am.  My contractions were averaging about 3 minutes apart, and were painful.  After being monitored at the hospital - with no dilation - for a few hours, we arrived back home around 8am with the instructions that I needed to be in "more" pain for the contractions to be productive.  My parents brought Mel home around noon, and we were able to play with her & Molly for most of the day, before I called the doc back around 5pm and reported I was REALLY not comfortable, and didn't think I could make it through the night.

We arrived back at the hospital about 6pm, and found that I was STILL not dilated.  Dr. Mernitz put me on Percocet, broke my water, and we sat back to find out what would happen.  Throughout the night, my body finally started complying, and I started dilating.  My checks went from 0 to 2 to 4 to 7 - and then very quickly to 10!  I had the epidural at some point (it's all blurry now)....and then got an adjustment to it after I reached 10.  Somewhere around 5-7cm, the baby's heartrate was a little slower than we wanted, so they added some fluid and put me on oxygen to give him some added support.  Once I reached 10cm, the doctor held on for about an hour, since I had pushed so long with Mel (2.5 hours!) and he didn't want the baby to go through any undue stress. .

We started pushing just before 4am, and "baby Joey" entered our world at 4:23am!  His APGAR was 9/8, and within about a half an hour, the nurse decided that his breathing was more labored than she wanted to see, so she had a NICU doctor come down to take a look at him.  We got to hold him and feed him, and then they took him to the nursery and I transferred rooms.  Melanie arrived around 11am with Gigi & Poppy, who had stayed the night at the house Saturday night.  Mel had been VERY excited when her daddy showed her photos of Baby Joey Saturday morning at breakfast, and she was excited - and scared - to meet him through the nursery glass. 

Based on Joey's breathing, they did some blood work and a chest X-ray, and the x-ray determined he has a collapsed lung.  This sounds scarier than it is, according to the NICU doctor.  What it means is that with his first cry/breath, he took in too much oxygen, and got too much air in his little body (of course, I'm modifying the story, and details could get lost in the translation).  The cure for this is to put him on oxygen for about 4 hours and monitor him closely.  The doctor said this is VERY common, and that once he's "fixed," he will not have any lingering effects of this collapsed lung.  No increased chances of illness, or anything else.  He was very positive about everything.  He said that Joey would be back in the "regular" nursery by Monday morning.

Then came the results of the blood work mentioned above.  The chances of infection that were detected were "just over" the line where they would be concerned, so they also decided to start Joey on antibiotics.  These are 48-hour antibiotics, and will keep him in the NICU for that amount of time.  Again, the doc was very upbeat about this turn of events, and assures us that this will all be a footnote in the baby book after we're done! 

At last check, Joey's oxygen mask had been removed, his follow-up chest x-ray showed just a touch of the air left, which should clear up by tomorrow, and he's still on the antibiotics.  Since he's no longer on oxygen, we are allowed to hold him.  He's allowed visitors (over the age of 14), as long as they're accompanied by Jeff or me.  Each of the grandparents have visited him, and everyone agrees he's pretty perfect!  He's eaten three times - and increased his formula intake from 1/2oz to 2/3oz to a full ounce.  Not so shabby!!

We ask for your prayers for Joe as he continues to heal and make his way out of NICU.  We have faith that he will be safely at home being tormented by his big sister in no time.  In the meantime, we are trying to get our own rest, and enjoy the help that all of the grandparents are providing!  My parents just got off of their 48-hour Melanie watch, and now Jeff's parents are at our house (with Jeff) for the evening.  They plan to stay through the week, which will be nice as we juggle keeping Melanie on schedule and keeping Joey healthy!

Congratulations Val & John!

We were lucky enough to help Val & John celebrate their new life together this evening.  Val is part of my small group that I've been attending for the past nearly three years, and it has been fun to watch her and John's relationship grow in that time.  Jeff and I enjoyed a night out while Mel stayed with Gigi and Poppy.  From all reports so far, the trip was successful; she ate well, went down to bed well, and hadn't made a peep as of 10:30pm.  Hopefully we don't hear differently in the morning!  Jeff plans to play in a golf outing with the wedding tomorrow (Saturday) if the weather holds out.

Only one more doctor appointment left??

Thursday's doctor appointment introduced me to the last in the rotation of the OBs in my practice - Dr. Paas.  I mentioned at the very beginning of the appointment that this little guy just doesn't seem as active as his big sister was while she was baking.  So they strapped me to a fetal monitor and I listened to the heartbeat for about 10 minutes, and pressed a button every time I felt him move.  I remember doing this a few times with Melanie.  It was funny to hear him hiccup through the monitor.  His heartrate averaged in the low 150s, and would spike to 170 every once in a while; the doc said this was a really good thing; and said that everything looked "perfect."  She did indicate I should have another fetal monitor test next week.

She would not check me, since I have been checked the last two weeks and am still not dilated.  Her reasoning was that if I were slightly dilated, I could stay that way for a long time, and if I am not, I could go the full 10cm all in one night - that checking yesterday would not get us anywhere.  So, despite my pleading, I did not get checked. 

She asked if I was intrested in being induced, and I said my main interest is in delivering no later than May 3.  Since Dr. Mernitz is delivering babies on 5/3, she said next week's appointment should be with him - and he can gauge how ready I am, and go ahead and schedule the induction.  Dr. Mernitz didn't have the availability for an appointment next week, so I see Dr. Dupler on Wednesday.  That, my friends, should be my LAST OB appointment! 

As previously mentioned, I have been having Braxton-Hicks contractions for weeks.  However, last night, I believe I was having the real-deal; but they never got closer than 10 minutes apart.  Jeff, of course, was freaking out; packing his bag, wanting to call my parents, etc.  I knew that they would pass; and I fell asleep with no issues and today the activity is non-existent.

Happy Birthday Grace!

Tonight we helped Grace celebrate her second birthday; all of Mel's neighborhood friends were there; Grace, Aya, Ellie, Mia, Arianna.  After several parties of being very interested in birthday hats but not wanting to actually touch one, she was really enjoying wearing her Elmo hat.  She had a great time, and wasn't even tortured by the dog in the neighboring yard, until the girls decided to run through that yard toward a swingset, and the dog of course ran with them.  That was the beginning of the end for Miss Mel, who spent the rest of the time trembling in my arms.  It was at the end of the party anyway, so I think she still had a great time with her friends!

15 days and counting

At Friday's doctor appointment, we confirmed the baby, while definitely "in position" has not made any progress in actually arriving.  I wasn't dilated, and was -I think -70% effaced.  It could all happen in one day, though, so I'll try not to get too discouraged :)    I've gained 30 pounds overall.

Mel is back to loving on her baby brother.  She frequently hugs & kisses my belly, blows kisses, says "hi" and "bye-bye" to him (before and after lifting my shirt to visit with him).  She told each of her Grandmas what his name is going to be.  The kid can apparently not be trusted with a secret.... :)

Melanie's antics

Mel's coughing developed over the course of a couple of days, and we actually got a call from daycare on Friday.  I picked her up around 2pm, since I was working from home that day because of my doctor's appointment.  Her cough was pretty persistent, and then her eye(s) got really goopy.  She was a sad sack with a runny nose and runny eyes all weekend.  Saturday night/Sunday morning she woke up around 5am with her eyes basically sealed shut; Jeff was cleaning her eyes out while she screamed; luckily she got back to sleep after that.  We did start her on eyedrops mid-day on Saturday, and today (Sunday) she's been much better. 

She's still been eating like a champ - she was wolfing down STEAK for dinner last night! Lucky girl, she got to have dinner with all four of her grandparents!  Her general leakiness didn't stop her from having fun with her guests, and she's still talking about all of the festivities with Grandma & Papa staying the weekend!



Sunday, I enjoyed a pedicure and then Jeff, Mel and I walked to Stone Creek for dinner.  The weekend was gorgeous!

Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure

For the fourth straight year, our family walked to support a cure for breast cancer - another great day!  Melanie & Molly have both done the walk every year of their lives; Molly even did it while Julie was pregnant!  (I was never pregnant with Mel during the event...)

Anyway, we enjoyed a gorgeous day; this year's crowd was Grandma W, Gigi, Julie, Molly, Mel & me.  We were celebrating 5.5 years of Gigi being cancer-free, and walking in hopes that the girls never have to worry about cancer! 

We just did the one-mile family walk, since no one was too confident I could make the 5k!  You can tell Melanie was really into the spirit of things.  I think she was worn out from waiting for Gigi, Julie, and Molly for so long that morning :)

Coughing but happy

According to daycare, Mel is not coughing while there; however, she's been coughing a lot at home, particularly overnight.  This leads to a sleepy Melanie; last night, before we were even planning bedtime, she climbed the stairs announcing it was night-night time.  This followed several announcements of how tired she was, starting with when I picked her up at daycare.  Despite her coughing & sleepiness, though, she is still in a very cheerful mood, being a total cheeseball during breakfast.  She has been on a kick lately of picking out her own clothes to wear to school.  I had her half-dressed this morning before she decided THIS is what she wanted to wear.

Mel's babies

Melanie is very busy when it comes to taking care of her babies.  She has a routine that she can do over and over, involving checking ALL of their diapers (although none of them actually wear diapers), reporting on whether they're dirty, dry, or wet.... sometimes needing a wipe to clean them up - then putting them all down for naps, covering them up with whatever she can find, then putting them all along the wall in "time up" - and then repeating the process all over again.  She plays really well independently this way; she also enjoys an audience.  When they're all down for their nap, if there is a chair availalble, she'll rock in it & watch her charges sleep.  Or, when they're all taken care of, she will collect her purse & some other belongings, and go bye-bye.  Usually when she leaves, she's going to see "MollyJulieMatt."  She likes to give kisses before this journey begins.

Grilling with Daddy

This just made me laugh, so I had to share.  I've told on here before about Melanie's grill she got for her birthday, and that she enjoys grilling with Daddy.  She can grill a hamburger, hotdog, has condiments, etc.  She was grilling with Daddy on Saturday night, and decided (or so I thought) that she really wanted a hotdog bun.  It's one of her major food groups.  So I got her one, but instead of eating it, she decided to "grill" it.  Thought the pictures were cute of her with Daddy, and then I had to capture the real food on the play grill.

In other Melanie/eating news, she amazes us with the things she tries.  Some days she won't eat a piece of bread; and then some days, like today, she'll down 3 sausage links for breakfast, 5 chicken nuggets (and grapes) for lunch, and eat all of Daddy's pork tenderloin for dinner.... She'll never be a vegetarian!

Summertime!

We had a great summer weekend, starting with the zoo, followed up by a visit or two from Gigi & Poppy on Saturday and lots of playing outdoors.  Sunday we did several errands first thing, and then spent most of the day outdoors, including playing with Mel's friend Grace.  We also got to walk to Marsh Friday, Saturday, and Sunday; and I got to enjoy hearing our senior pastor's first visit back to the pulpit in almost a year.  All in all, it was a great weekend!