NINE YEARS!

Today is our ninth wedding anniversary!

I took the plunge, and we left the boys with Mamaw and went out to dinner. Nine years ago we made a promise to one another and to God "for better or for worse" and started a new life together. God has been faithful, providing amazing blessings in the good times and sustaining us through some really hard times. Restoration is really a miracle and our marriage is a testament to that. Now THAT is something truly worth celebrating.

Married July 31st, 1999.

Holding the best anniversary gift we could ever imagine.

Mommy's precious bundle.

Amazement.

17 days old...

Time is already flying by with the little guy... here are a few pics from the past couple of days.

I wonder if those big beautiful eyes will stay blue.

Big yawn.

Davis is finally starting to straighten out those little breech baby legs.

Sweet profile. Big Brother being very attentive, as usual.

The grammar poll is officially closed.

Question: How do you correctly punctuate his name when used in the possessive form?

The results:

"Davis's birthday" = 4 votes (11%)

"Davis' birthday" = 26 votes (76%)

"Either is correct" = 4 votes (11%)

Total number of votes: 34

It seems that Davis can look forward to a lifetime of people calling him David, people thinking his first name is actually his last name, and people punctuating his name incorrectly 22% of the time. You're welcome, son.

A lovely song indeed.

Rub-a-dub dub, FIRST time in the tub!

Little guy got all scrubbed and cleaned this morning, and it was a family effort. Daddy washed, Mommy took pictures, and Jack Everett did his best to get in the way. I mean, Jack Everett was a "Big Helper."

Getting ready for bathtime. "Ooh, I'm already getting cold!"

Here he is in his little bath seat from Aunt Sharon. Jack didn't understand why he couldn't just pour water on him. We let him wash his feet, but had to explain to keep his "new pee-pee" dry.

In his new blue towel from Miss Sarah, with his name monogrammed on it. Mohawk courtesy of Daddy.

Clean baby all lotioned up. There is nothing else like it. (Except, of course, a clean baby all lotioned up who is sleeping.)

Finally, all dressed in his "I love my BIG brother" outfit from Nana.

Jack Everett kissing Davis (13 days old.) I will never get tired of seeing pics of this pose from the boys.

Week two pics

I left my camera in the trunk of Jeff's car for the past three days, so I hadn't taken any pics of Davis since the night he came home. It's crazy, but it feels like he changes so much every day! We were thrilled that he weighed 6 pounds, 11 ounces this morning at the pediatrician's office - he is already back to his birth weight! He had his circumcision this morning as well as his second PKU (needle poke in the heel.) Needless to say, it was not a great morning for the little guy. He is resting peacefully in his bed right now and Jack Everett is at his weekly play date with Meemaw. It's nice to have some quiet time to myself for a couple of hours.

Davis in one of his cute preemie outfits from Grandmama.

He looks like he is trying to tell us something.

Laying on a beautiful handmade blanket from Sharon Pron. It's such a perfect backdrop, so I am sure it will be in the background of dozens of photos to come.

Sweet feet.

Jack finally decided I had taken one too many pictures of just brother.

Jack embraces his new role.

I have been so impressed by Jack Everett's reaction to having a baby in the house. He genuinely loves his Baby Brother and is incredibly gentle with him. He holds him several times a day, touching him softly and giving him kisses on the forehead. He holds him for about three minutes and then says, "Davis doesn't want to lay here anymore." By the end of each of his naps, Jack Everett wants me to wake Davis up and bring him into the living room.

Here he is carefully pushing Mommy into Recovery.

Jack's "job" is to help Davis hold his pacifier in his mouth if he gets upset during diaper changes. For some reason, Jack calls the pacifier a "sippy." I have no idea where he got this, and he knows that its correct name is "pacifier." He sometimes gets flustered when Davis spits it out, saying, "Mommy, he won't sip his sippy! Why isn't he sipping it?" I explain that he doesn't know how to keep it in so Big Brother has to gently keep one finger on it. Jack replies, "Momma, I am tired of sipping him. You can sip him now." There have been some minor setbacks. When I am nursing, Jack is extra clingy and wants to sit close to me or wants me to give him extra attention. He suddenly wants kisses and sometimes starts asking me to get him something, (juice, a toy, etc.) So, for now, I tell him... "Davis is about to eat. Is there anything you need before I am in this chair for twenty minutes?" which seems to make it better.

I just love this sweet photo Pops took of Jack Everett in the hospital waiting room.

I am just so pleased with how the first three days have gone with both boys at home. I am glad I have devoted these first few days at home to just the three of us, keeping to our schedule as closely as possible; I think the transition has gone much more smoothly as a result. It is sweet to see Jack Everett in this new role. His caring and gentle disposition have been such a joy to watch and have made me and Jeff really proud. It will be interesting to see how he does when visitors start coming over and giving Davis lots of attention. We shall soon see!

When did breastfeeding become a spectator sport?

Jack Everett, as we expected, is fascinated by the whole nursing process. Not to embarrass anyone reading this, but I wanted to record this before I forget it. Jeff and I decided we would just talk to him about breastfeeding very openly and plainly, answer all his questions, and make no big deal of it, since Jack would have to get used to it.

Additionally, I knew he would need some explanation as to why Mommy is walking gingerly and why I can't hold him or snuggle him for a couple of weeks. We showed him Mommy's incision and explained that the doctor had to open my tummy to take Davis out.

Here are some of my favorite quotes from the process:

Carefully pointing to my tummy: "Mommy, I am going to come sit with you and I promise not to hurt your crack."

"Daddy, those are called breasts. We don't call them boobs."

"Mommy, I am going to squeeze your breast so the milk will come out for baby. That's just called teamwork."

With arms out and a breast pad stuck to each palm: "Momma, look at my awesome Batman shields!"

I am hoping to really stick with it this time in hopes it will help prevent his development of food allergies. I am sure as we begin venturing out into public, there will be many more funny/embarrassing breastfeeding stories to share.

"I'm Batman!"

Hard to believe I will soon have TWO superheroes flying around my living room...

His "mean" Batman face.


Aunt Mel made this pillowcase cape and he absolutely loved it!

Look out, Sadie!

Grammar Test - please participate!

Please participate in the poll in the left margin of the blog...

Okay, you know how I am the self-appointed Chief of the Grammar Police. Okay, well, Mom is the Chief, but I am up there too. Anyway, here is a test for you... there has been some debate on how to punctuate sentences where Davis is used in the singular possessive form.

How do you correctly punctuate these sentences?

The poll will be open for one week!

48-hr follow-up with the pediatrician

Davis got to meet Dr. Purnell, our beloved pediatrician today. It was so cute to hear them call his name in the waiting room. It reminded me of the very first time they called "Jack Griffin" at his very first appointment.

Davis passed his 48-hour NICU follow-up with flying colors. He has gained a little weight and his jaundice looks like it is slowly improving. Dr. Purnell was encouraged by his exam and sees a bright future for our growing boy. We scheduled his circumcision for Friday morning, and will have his follow-up PKU done at the same time. The trip to the doctor totally wore me out and I feel sore from the outing.

Looks like it's naptime... again.

End of one journey. Start of a new one.

Well, we have reached the end of a very long week and are excited to announce that

Davis Jarrell Griffin is HOME!

We were released last night and can hardly describe how it feels to have our family home together. Named after Jeff's father, it was perfectly fitting that the little guy came home on July 19th, Jarrell's birthday. Before I fall into bed in a heap of sleepiness, I thought I would share some pics from a most memorable day.

I propped him up on the hospital bed in his little preemie shorts achieving this funny optical illusion that he is up dancing! He is doing the Happy Dance to be going home!

Big Brother quickly showed him his new room and bed. He pulled up a stool next to the crib, which is now a permanent fixture in the nursery. We love it.

Our two sons. There is so much to write, but I too, need to rest and recover. Thanks again for the prayers, concern, and best wishes. We have felt much support during this past week.

We have felt an overwhelming sense of thankfulness and blessing during all of this. Throughout what seemed like a challenging ordeal, we never lost sight of the fact that we were one of the luckiest sets of parents in the NICU halls. Our baby was one of the healthiest little ones in the Unit. We saw parents who had been there for months, parents of multiples, and micro-preemies who were fighting for their lives. The Unit was filled with exhausted emotional parents and we truly felt a bond. As we rolled him out, we passed the single Mom of a little girl in the crib next to Davis' in the Transitional Nursery. I felt for her as I have watched her in the middle of the night, trying to teach her daughter, Genesis, to swallow and nurse so she could take her baby home, too. I could tell as we passed her and wished her luck that she was genuinely proud and excited for us.

So, Davis had a tiny bit of a rocky start, but it could have been so much worse. I think about the scare at 31 weeks when we received the steroid shots for lung development. We thank God that he was not born then, or our story would have been so much different.

In the meantime, he is a such a champ and as soon as he gets a little bigger, will be ready to meet everyone and take on the world!

Davis crosses a final hurdle.

So, the last little hurdle has been crossed. Davis developed jaundice in the NICU, and had to wear a little "bili-blanket" for 36 hours. The jaundice, in addition to a yellow coloring to the skin, causes lethargy and lack of appetite, which is a challenge for a little one trying to muster the energy to eat and gain weight. We are intent on conserving his energy for nursing to ensure he gets enough to eat and stays hydrated. He has a follow-up visit tomorrow to make sure the bilirubin levels are under control and to weigh him.

Here he is wearing the glasses to protect him from the bili-ray light from his blanket.

While they look kinda cute at first, it's really sad because he can't see the world around him and they are held on by itchy Velcro stuck to his soft little temples. We were glad when he could finally take them off.

We were so surprised when they released him to stay with us in our room at midnight Friday.

We were so happy, but a little intimidated when he arrived in this little crib attached to his glowing blue blanket. They also explained to us how to care for an awful diaper rash on his tiny hiny. We realized that the previous few days were truly the calm before the storm.

Jack Everett with Davis, who got to take his glasses off for a photo op.

MAJOR progress yesterday!

A BIG day for a Big Boy!

Jeff and I decided to devote yesterday to giving Davis as much rest as possible. Even being moved and held wears him out and disrupts his respiration, so we left him to rest at peace for most of the day into the evening. This move certainly paid off. Yesterday, Davis made huge strides and Mommy and Daddy got some much-needed rest, too.

Daddy finally got to hold him for the first time last night.

Davis got his first bottle and took it like a little champ. Well, he has to master the suck, breathe, swallow technique, but he is making strides. It totally wears him out, so they had been finishing him off with the feeding tube. However, as of last night, he is drinking between 1 and 2 ounces and seems to be digesting them okay... So, no more feeding tube!

Davis has been completely taken off of all oxygen and is maintaining his body temperature on his own! Praise the Lord! Jeff and I enjoyed putting him in his very first t-shirt around midnight last night. It was precious. He has a few episodes of elevated respirations but is eventually able to regulate his breathing on his own.

Resting in Mommy's arms. Taken at about 12:30 this morning.

This sweet boy looks just like his Daddy.

I combed his soft hair for the first time. Davis, better just get used to it.

Thanks again for your prayers - so many were answered yesterday. Davis has made amazing progress and we hope to have him home with us early next week... maybe even this weekend.

We were just told that this morning they removed his IV tubes as he is no longer requiring IV fluid. We are on our way back to the NICU now and cannot wait to see him with even fewer wires and tubes!

Blonde-haired, blue-eyed boy!

It's Melissa here, stealing a quick moment to show off our newest treasure. We just love our blonde-haired, blue-eyed miracle. Thanks for your continued prayers for Baby Davis. Here is a brief update, some quick pics, and then we are headed back to the NICU.

I was discharged from St. Luke's yesterday afternoon and moved into a hotel-type hospital room for moms whose babies are still in the Intensive Care Nursery. The room is $50/night, and while I no longer receive nursing care, I am blessed to have a place to stay just a few doors away to visit Davis around the clock. I am able to walk around a little better today, but divide my time between resting, pumping milk, and holding a tiny boy's hand.

Jeff is hoping to be able to hold Davis for the first time sometime this evening.

Davis Jarrell Griffin, just before they took him to the NICU - before the tubes, etc. He was just a few hours old.

Our first visit to the NICU. His breathing was labored, so we were unable to hold him, but his blonde hair was all dry and fluffy.

We finally decided to let Jack see him. The nurse was kind enough to lift him up for a photo with Big Brother. Davis wasn't exactly thrilled, but Jack was fascinated by his new brother.

Big helper

Precious moments as a family. Jeff and I will never forget it.

Taken last night, around 3:00 am

A special milestone! Mommy gets to rock baby Davis at 6:00am this morning. I did not want to put him down.

As you can see, these hours are precious and few with our newest little Griffin. The time away from Mommy and Daddy is proving to be hard on Jack Everett so we are doing our best balancing it all.

Healthwise, we wait for Davis to reach a few specific markers - holding his own body temperature, receiving and digesting all feedings by mouth, maintaining a stable respiratory rate and oxygen level, gaining a certain amount of weight... and a few others.

We feel so blessed. He is one of the biggest and healthiest babies in the Unit, and his chest x-rays look more clear every day as the fluids are absorbed. We are encouraged as we have watched several of his little roommates go home with their Mommies. We are confident that his stay won't be long. We appreciate your love and prayers and can't wait to bring our little one home.

Thanks for understanding that we are not keeping in touch as much as we normally would. We have seen and appreciate your calls and messages, but we just don't want to miss a thing. Thanks for checking the blog for updates as they come.