fever

Last night Jackson had a fever of 102.3.

When we went to bed, Jon said to me, "If his fever's not down by tomorrow, you should take him to the vet."

Someone had a long day.

{image here}

1 lb lighter?

Quite a week here in Brooklyn.

Thursday was not feeling so well. Called Jon to come home early. By 9 pm was on the phone with the midwife, at her recommendation we headed to the hospital.

Went to Labor and Delivery. Was put in Triage and for the next ten hours, suffered the most excruciating stomach pain I could have ever imagined. Was not allowed any medication for fear of masking symptoms and endangering baby. Couldn't have x-ray because of baby. Had to wait til 4 am for a high level sonogram, which was inconclusive. All the while I was lying on a medical exam table, on a sheet of paper, since all beds were full.

At 10 am we were finally taken down to get an MRI. Thankfully my midwife Janet arrived and was able to prescribe some painkillers so I could try and stay still for the MRI. They diagnosed appendicitis immediately and I was put in line for the OR.

By 5:00 pm I was back in Labor and Delivery but started having contractions as a result of the surgery. The thought of pre-term labor at 25 weeks is terrifying. Baby is a little over one pound and just not ready to be born yet. Thankfully the medication to stop contractions worked. I was released from the hospital on Sunday afternoon.

Jon was with me every minute of this ordeal. His patience, concern and caring reminded me anew how lucky I am to have such a wonderful husband. He held my hand through the worst of it, rubbed my shoulders, and told me how strong I was. I could not have survived without him.

Now I'm home resting and Mimi is here, driving down Thursday morning at 5 am to relieve John Jurgensen who'd come the night before to stay with Jackson. It's times like these when people come to help that make you appreciate the importance of family and friends on whom you can rely.

Mimi has been cooking, caring and cleaning since she got here. Jackson is thrilled that his Mimi is here. When they showed up at LICH on Saturday morning I was so happy to see them both it brought me to tears.

Thank you for all the well wishes, prayers, flowers, magazines, ice cream (mmm, mint chocolate chip!) and candy (Amanda, did you know Jennifer Anniston's haircut cost $50,000?). Your support and love makes this whole surreal experience bearable.

Now I am just taking it easy - - & making sure this little July baby stays in til July.

little guy

New doctor today. More shots. Poor buddy.

The good news is you are no longer in the 10th percentile for weight. You have grown your way up into the 24th percentile! Good job.

I will no longer consider you a little runt.

Not that I ever really did.

Some other runts in literature:

• Wilbur the pig from Charlotte's Web is a runt.

• Fiver from Watership Down is a runt.

• Clifford the Big Red Dog is a runt when he is born, but he eventually grows to be 25 feet tall.

• Jock was the runt of a litter of Staffordshire Bull Terriers who was saved from drowning by Sir Percy Fitzpatrick, who later wrote about his life with the dog in Jock of the Bushveld.

• Cadpig, a female Dalmatian puppy in Dodie Smith's children's novel The Hundred and One Dalmatians, is the runt of her litter. Thought at first to be stillborn, she is revived by Mr. Dearly.

• Babe, the titular piglet hero of Dick King-Smith's book (and the popular film based on the novel), is a runt. In fact, he was chosen for the competition at which Farmer Hoggett won him essentially because he was a runt - his runt status therefore saving his life and shaping his destiny.

{indentation from Wikipedia, image from Life}