Worth the Wait

Today has been a good day. Josiah has been off his oxygen since 8 last night and is breathing like a champ. Dave and I got to hold him at midnight then again at 6 this morning. Then, the doctor came in and said we could hold him whenever we want! FINALLY!! He is still in the ICU. We have been working on our next hurdle today-eating. Because he is so early, he is a very lazy/sleepy eater, but we are being patient with him and have confidence he will get it in no time. He is currently off his IV fluid and that means maybe he can get out of the ICU soon. He will then spend at least one night in the room with Dave and I before we can go home with him. I was discharged today but we are staying here to be with him. We decided we would all go home at once!

Getting some love from GG

and Daddy

and BB!!

A Josiah Update

Josiah's name tag on his NICU bed. The nurses are so sweet to us and to our sweet little Josiah. They make all the babies their own little name tag for their cribs to "welcome" you to their little family. They have all been a great support for our family.

Dave and I on one of our visits to see Josiah. He is on an oxygen hood in this picture. Because he is having to work a little bit harder than normal to breathe, we aren't allowed to hold him or stimulate him very much. We can touch him, just not rub or try to soothe him (which as his Mommy that is very hard not to do). He LOVES when his Daddy puts his hand on his chest and talks to him. It seems to always calm him.

This morning, about 4 am they got Josiah off his oxygen for a little bit. He was still doing good at 6 so the nurse said we could hold him. WOW!!! What a moment that was!! We had only gotten to hold him briefly after he was born.....But it was certainly worth the wait. He snuggled into me and made everything perfect. I got to hold him for 15-20 minutes then I shared my snuggle time with Daddy. Josiah was equally as happy with either of us holding him. Can't wait for many more snuggle times!!!! He was off the oxygen for about 4 hours then started working a little harder to breathe. So, for now, he is back on the oxygen. The doctor came by today and said that he still has some fluid on his lungs but overall he looks better. No signs of infection or anything, pretty much just early baby lungs. He just needs time to get over the hump-so time is what we will give him! The plan is to keep him on the oxygen for the next 12 hours then try to wean him off if he tolerates it. If not, we will wait until tomorrow and try to wean him. As far as eating, the poor little guy hasn't gotten to eat yet. He is getting IV fluid. If he is not off the oxygen by tomorrow, we will have to decide the best way for him to get nutrition.

And, in case you were wondering about this cute little thing--SHE IS GREAT!! Her and BB are getting along great. She has been such a good girl. It is hard for her to understand that the baby is here, but she can't see him :-( It makes her very sad, which in turn makes here Mommy very sad. But I am sure the day will be soon enough, when she asks if we can return him!!!!

So there you have an update. Thanks for all the facebook messages, comments left here, phone calls, prayers .They are all appreciated. Our days right now consist of taking care of Mommy and spending time in the ICU with Josiah. Time is flying by, but we are thankful to have the time with him!!

Keep the prayers coming, and we will do the same with the updates.

It's a ...

Today we welcomed our son, Josiah Galen Grimm, to our life! He is absolutely wonderful.

Last night Marla began to have a bad headache and just generally felt bad. Today (Feb 25) was our scheduled non-stress test so away we went to the hospital. We dropped Addie and BB off at the Mall which just happens to be right across the street the hospital. When we arrived at the hospital our nurse Jessie took note of Marla’s symptoms and called our doctor. He advised us to have a C-section so that Marla would not be in danger of a seizure or any other risk that accompany preeclampsia.

Marla began to get prepped for surgery and I went to pick up Addie and BB. I dropped Addie off with a friend and brought BB back to the hospital with me. Not long after we returned GG came and together we had prayer and asked God’s protection over Marla and the baby. (Remember: we did not find out the gender!) Then, off to surgery Marla and I went. When the doctor had the baby’s head out, he asked me to stand up and announce the gender of our baby as he pulled the baby out. I was so excited I couldn’t stand it. I shouted out, “It’s a boy!”

Josiah was born at 12:58 pm, weighed 6.6 and was 19” long. He is beautiful!

Not long after he arrived, Josiah began to show signs of distressed breathing along with a low blood sugar and was taken almost immediately to the NICU. Currently, he is receiving excellent care from the NICU staff and his condition is improving. Marla is doing great! We are hoping that Josiah will be out of the NICU and will be able to join us in our room soon.

We will keep you updated. In the meantime, please continue to pray for Josiah.

The Eagle Has Landed

BB came today and we are SO excited. Addie met her at the door and said "I can't believe it!" We have been waiting on BB for what seems like a long time. So, now Addie thinks her and BB are going to the baby hospital to pick the baby up and bring it home. I (Marla) really have nothing to do with the process!! Hopefully, Addison won't be disappointed in the baby Mommy and Daddy bring home. Addie has alot planned for her and BB. I hope BB can stay caught up!!

I am doing good. Still going for non stress test on Tuesdays and Fridays and see my ob every Tuesday. All is well for now, bedrest is working wonders!! We are getting very excited for our little bundle of joy-mostly to see if it's a he bundle or a she bundle!!! Whats your guess??

Valentine's Day Fun!

Daddy and Addie before they head to Kindermusik on Valentine's Day. We had a good day. Addie LOVES Kindermusik. She goes on Monday nights with Dave. It is their time. If I ever try to go, she informs me that "my daddy" takes me there!! Glad they have something that the two of them enjoy doing. I am sure with the arrival of our little one, that will become very important.

I did get permission to attend my baby shower on Saturday. It was so nice and we had a lot of fun. We got lots of diapers, wipes and gift cards! We are very blessed. Addie sported her BIG SISTER t shirt that Emmy got her.

She loved these heart tights. She enjoyed Valentines. I mean, what girl wouldn't like a holiday that is all about love and candy!!

This is a pic from one of our "snow days" We have had LOTS this winter!! Addie is very into pretend right now. This is Sophie the baby doll she got for Christmas and we don't go very many places without her. This particular day, they were getting ready to go to her 3 favorite stores: Wal-Mart, Target, and Price Choppers. This certainly is a very fun age!

BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND!!!

Hello Strangers...Where have you been?? We are back by popular demand. It has been quite a while, so hold on this is quite the post with LOTS of pics and updates. We are doing well here in Missouri. Since my last post, Corine has bought a house here in town and moved from Minnesota. We are so very glad to have her here. Addie is LOVING having a grandparent close enough to visit, as are Mommy and Daddy. Also, as most of you know I am sure, we are expecting baby #2. My due date is March 22. So we are getting very excited about that. We don't know if it is a boy or girl-so we are excited for our little surprise. We have had a lot of snow this year. Above is a picture of us playing in the snow! As much as I don't mind snow, I am kinda over it and am ready for spring.
This is me and Addie after church on Sunday. She is such a sweet little girl. I am 34 weeks pregnant. Last week, my blood pressure got really high and my doctor took me off work and i am on "partial" bedrest right now, which basically means rest more than do. Pretty much, take care of Addie and that is it. As you remember, I had pre eclampsia with Addie (which is high blood pressure combined with protein in your urine) I am in the beginning stages of that now. I have a little protein in my urine now. We are hoping with no work and lots of rest, I can make it to 37 weeks. We want this little bun in the oven as long as he/she is willing to stay

One of the big changes at our house is moving Addie to her "big girl room" She has done great and I am confident will be an excellent little helper when the new baby arrives (probably more than I need or want at times)

In October, Dave and I spent a wonderful week in NYC celebrating our 5 year anniversary. My mom flew in from Nashville to keep Addie. Fun was had by all.

Santa brought Addie a kitchen for Christmas. We are REALLY into pretend these days. She LOVED it and still plays with it everyday.

The end of January was Dave's birthday. As you can tell in the picture, we have quite the Daddy's girl on our hands. You will hear no complaints from Daddy about that :-)

This is a sweet picture of our little pumpkin. She is growing so fast. I can only imagine once I bring the new baby home how big she will look.

Well, I think that this is enough info to cloud your brains for a while. As you can see we are a busy little family of 3, almost 4!! Guess I will have to change our blog name, huh? My goal is to update this once a week........hopefully I can do that. I love that this is my own little "virtual" scrapbook!

We hope you guys are all doing well and we will update you soon!