Three in three.

My baby boy is going to turn three years old in three days (same day his Daddy turns 24)! It does not even seem possible that he's as old as he is. He is growing too fast and sometimes I wish I could pause time to keep him little for a while longer.

He had a rough start at life. He was born two days past his due date; weighing in at eight pounds three ounces and measuring twenty-one inches long. But he swallowed some fluids while he was coming out and it gave him pneumonia. Plus he had low oxygen and an infection in his blood. So he was in the NICU for nine days on antibiotics and hooked up to a ton of machines.

That was a really rough time for me and my husband. Well, we weren't married at the time but we were living together. Anyway. It was so tough to see our baby boy laying there and hearing the machines going off every time we turned around. We were able to stay at the hospitality house a block away from the hospital but we HATED being away from him. The nurses would actually have to tell us to go back there and rest some because we were in the NICU with him so much and they could see how worn out we were.

Then one day, they told us that something came back abnormal with his heart. I'm not sure why they even tested it.. maybe one of the machines he was hooked up to kept a check on it? They did an echocardiogram and sent the results to the UK Hospital here in Kentucky to let their specialists check over them. That was very terrifying for us... we were so afraid that he'd have to have heart surgery on top of everything else.

He was the biggest baby in the NICU though! And we met a really nice Christian couple while we were in there. Sarah and Terry. Their baby girl, Amelia, was in there also and she was born the same day as our son. We hadnt spoke to them yet, but after we found out about the heart stuff we were holding each other and crying our eyes out by his side. Terry walked over and said "Your baby is going to be alright. The Holy Ghost is talking to me, and he's telling me he's going to be just fine." That really made us cry harder. We were so happy and knew that that he was going to be ok.

A doctor came in and talked to us pretty much the whole time he was in there. I forget his name now, but he was so nice to us while we were there and really helped us to understand all that was happening. He explained the results that the UK people gave him. Our boy wouldn't need heart surgery, but we did have to schedule him an appointment with a pediatric cardiologist after he was released for them to do an ultrasound on his chest to check out what was causing the stuff. They sent us a little card in the mail saying that it was something to do with a valve in his heart and a lot of babies are born with it, but it closes up by the time they're three years old. They told us to schedule another appointment sometime after his third birthday to have them check again to be on the safe side.

Well, after all of that.. he started getting really sick. He would projectile vomit EVERYWHERE! Seriously.. my husband was holding him one day after he had just finished his bottle, and he was trying to burp him. He projectile vomited and it flew across and hit the wall. Like, a few feet. He wouldnt stop so we took him to see his pediatrician. She told us that it sounded like he had Pyloric Stenosis, and that DID require surgery.

Not our baby! He's already gone through enough and he's not even two months old! Please do not let him have this! But, he did. I wanted to make it not be true... I didnt want my baby to have to have surgery to correct it. But, we both knew he had to have it or the outcome would be horrific. He got to where he would hardly pee. He lost almost a pound in one weekend. And it looked like an alien was living inside his little tummy. It would literally roll from side to side, looking like something was crawling around in there. We videotaped it and took the camcorder to show his pediatrician.

So, really late on March 6th we had to drive up to Huntington, West Virginia and have him admitted into Cabell Huntington Hospital. His surgery was the next morning and Dr. Beaver performed it. She was wonderful about explaining everything to us also and answering every single question we could think of. Before his surgery, they took him across the hall to put an i.v. in his head and that was so hard to hear him screaming and then seeing his tiny little body with it. And his crib... it was like a jail cell because it was a regular bed but the bars folded up to keep him from falling out. He wasnt allowed to eat so they put jelly on his paci and he became addicted. He was released on the 8th.

Today, you could never tell by looking at him that he was ever sick a day in his life. He's very hyper and always running around with extreme energy, playing 24/7. He was a very calm baby and has always been independent and brave. His favorite toys are his 'ta-tas' (guns) and his 'four wheeler bikes' (four wheelers and bikes). He loves playing basketball, drawing on his chalk board, fishing during the summertime and riding his real four wheeler with his Daddy (Daddy races). He helps out immensley with his baby sister and loves her as much as she loves him. He was the first to make her laugh out loud and is always wanting to help feed her the 'bobble'. I'm so proud of the little fella and love him beyond words. He's sweet, super smart and has really good manners to be so little. Now, do not get me wrong... he has his days of being two-but-almost-three! But, I love him regardless and he'll always be my baby. No matter if he's 3, 33 or 333 ♥

*picture removed*

This photo reminds me of him. Always on the move... leaving one toy behind in a blur while racing on to the next. It's like standing outside a window and looking through, watching him play and having so much fun while doing so - being in his own little world.

****

These are the special times
Times we'll remember
These are the precious times
The tender times, we'll hold in our hearts forever
These are the sweetest times
These times together
And through it all one thing will always be true
The special times are the times I share with you
-Christina Aguilera,
'These Are the Special Times'

**

So let them be little,
'Cause they're only that way for a while.
Give 'em hope, give them praise,
Give them love every day.
Let 'em cry, let 'em giggle,
Let 'em sleep in the middle,
Oh, but let them be little.
-Billy Dean,
'Let Them be Little'

**

A small son
can charm himself
into, and out of,
most things.

**

Watching you grow has been the delight of my life.
I look at you and wonder what dreams you will dream,
what mountains you will climb,
what joys you will have.
I know there will be tears and struggles as well,
but my prayer is that you will grow into the man you are meant to be.

**

Monday, January 19th, 2009
Happy 24th Birthday to my wonderful husband!
Happy 3rd birthday to my gorgeous baby boy!