Will you please come home?

Dear Logan,

Well, this whole hospital/nicu thing has sure been fun, but really it's time to come home now.  Seriously.  This hospital bed I'm sleeping in is not as comfortable as the room price would suggest, and while I have a lovely view, I much prefer the one from our house.  You will too. 

I know we're a little crazy, you've certainly heard plenty of that from inside my tummy over the last 9 months, but we're not that bad.  Craziness can be fun.  So stop dragging your feet, stop procrastinating and convincing the doctors that "another day or so" will do the trick, and just come home.  Pretty please?

Love, Mom

**Update:  Logan has been "symptomatic" of infection, with rapid breathing (tachypnea) and elevated CRP levels (an indicator of inflamation or infection in the blood).  He has been eating well and doing well in every other area, but those symptoms have been slow and stubborn in going away.  To eliminate all chance of an infection sneaking up on us once we're home, the doctors want him to finish a full 7 days of antibiotics.  They are hoping his symptoms are due only to slightly underdeveloped lungs and will self-resolve over a few weeks of being home.

A Name for Mountain Boy

It took some serious deliberation,  a texted phone survey, and a conference call with the kiddos, but we finally have a name for our little chunky monkey. Drumroll please.......

 Logan Don Richardson

We had narrowed our list down to a "final four" that we had our friends and family weigh in on.  The finalists were:

Aaron
Blake
Ian
Logan

When we called to consult with Aliyah and Gavin, they were both very decided in their own way.  Aliyah said "Ian is best, Blake would be ok too."  Gavin listened to the list, asked Troy to repeat it, asked him to repeat it again, then again, and finally said, "Ummm.... Starwalker" and passed the phone back to Aliyah.  I think he meant Skywalker, but it was still an interesting option since Logan's closest cousin is named Luke. 

So, goodbye Mountain Boy, Hello Logan.  Welcome to the family.

It's a [Mountain] Boy!

Baby Richardson

Born June 8, 2012

3:37 pm

8 lbs, 8 oz. 19.25 inches long

Four months ago when we took the kids with us to our ultrasound appointment and found out we were having a boy, we asked them what his name should be. Without hesitation, Gavin answered "Mountain Boy." We asked why, and he said "So when we want to go camping, we can say 'let's go to the mountains, Mountain Boy!" Well, the nickname stuck for the last 4 months, and while his real name continues to elude us, our little Mountain Boy has finally joined the family!
Delivery Summary:
Friday morning at 5:15 am I was fighting the urge to get up out of bed and go to the bathroom when it suddenly felt like I was wetting the bed. I jumped up with an "Oh!" and ran to the bathroom. After I changed and came back to bed, Troy asked "Well, was it pee or did your water break?" I wasn't really sure and told him so, adding "But I never leak!" Only the mother of a 4 year old boy would quote Cars 2 in such a situation.
Well, my water had broken, and I used the 4 hour window before mandatory check-in to put the house in order and be ready to go. By the time we got to the hospital my contractions were steady and close together and we were ready! I'd been having false labor on and off for a couple of weeks, so the beginning part was pretty much more of the same. Once things got more intense, we buckled down, and Troy was amazing, rubbing my back and staying right by my side every second.
My contractions were very long and very hard, and the midwife was perplexed as to why the kid hadn't popped out already. Turns out his head was a little hung up on my cervix (which wouldn't dilate past an 8) and once she slipped the cervix over his head on the next contraction, things got underway quickly. Not a fun experience, but it had to be done.
At this point the midwife let Troy take over the delivery, and I put my focus to the test. Troy and I make a great team, and in 4 more pushes, Mountain Boy was out and screaming away.
We held him for a few minutes, but when his breathing didn't regulate, they whisked him away for tests and Troy stayed with him. Embarrassingly, it was right about then that my body went into shock. It was seriously bizarre to be shaking so uncontrollably and not be able to stop. The best part is, that about 30 minutes later when Troy came back to check on me, he snuggled up to me, and the shaking stopped. Turns out all I needed was him. Like I said, we make a great team.


Current Update:
Mountain Boy is fighting off a little infection, and his breathing is still rapid so he is a temporary resident of the NICU for a few days. Talk about bringing back memories. We hope to have him home by Monday, but may have to wait longer if the infection doesn't respond to the antibiotics. We've got our fingers crossed for our little Mountain Boy!