A little early

My sister and her husband have been expecting a bouncing baby boy to arrive somewhere around May 19th for quite some time now. I've been the crazy Auntie-to-be who has been maticulously planning his adorable baby shower for a couple of months now. His shower was planned for March 31st at a beautiful little park on Nikki's side of town. Nikki was also scheduled for a maternity photo shoot the day before on Friday. Well, Blake decided that he didn't want EITHER of those things to happen, because when Nikki went into her Dr. appointment that Thursday afternoon, she was immediatly sent to the hospital to be admited with Pre-Eclampsia.

I know. You're thinking, 'Seriously????'. Yes, seriously. We were all absolutely terrified for Nikki and baby Blake. I was so worried. I was thisclose to tears as Will was updating me over the phone as to what was going on. Her blood pressure was sky high, and so erratic, they were talking about taking the baby that night. Nikki was only 33 weeks pregnant. Not even to full term yet. Everyone was concerned about the baby's lungs if he came out, and also about the health of both of them if he stayed in. Pre Eclampsia is no joke. It can cause death in both baby and mama if not taken care of quickly. They gave her a steriod shot to help develop baby Blake's little lungs, because they didn't know how long they could push leaving him in her. Thankfully, he got to stay in all night.

Friday morning, my mom and I rushed down to the hospital first thing. Poor Nikki. When I was on the phone with her, she asked me to bring nail polish, because she didn't have her toes painted. lol! She was such a trooper through all of this. She was so calm, so sure that everything was going to be fine. That's the thing about Nikki, you don't realize how strong she is until push comes to shove and she NEEDS to be strong for something. She was amazing throughout this whole process. Most people would be absolutly devastated at this news. While she wasn't jumping for joy, she wasn't wallowing in self pitty either. She said 'ok' and then figured out what needed to be done to get through it. Her blood pressure was going crazy again after we were there for a while, so her Dr. kicked everyone out of the room, ordered that her lights be left out, and that she rest. They wanted Blake to stay in and let the steroid shots (she had been given a second one when she woke up that morning) do their magic before having to take the baby out via C-Section. There was no option of a vaginal birth at this point.

Nikki went in for a C-section the following morning, Saturday, and out came baby Blake. 3Lbs 7oz. 19 inches long.

So tiny. He ended up getting a PIC line, and a feeding tube put in him. He also had a breathing tube for a while, but it was only helping keep his lungs from colapsing. He was breathing room air, so that was already a good sign. He is a little fighter. He continues to improve, and Nikki just can't wait to take him home. The Dr.'s and nurses have all prepared them for his stay to probably be through his due date at least, but it would be wonderful if he could come home sooner. Now, he is off of almost everything. He is having problems with sucking (common in preemies) so eating all of his food is a bit of a challenge. He eats some, then gets tired (lazy! lol jk jk) and then they will finish his feeding through the feeding tube. Nikki is diligently pumping breast milk and I'm SO proud of her for keeping it up. Most mom's would have given up by now. She knows how important breast milk is, and especially since Blake is a preemie he is definitely going to benefit from it! He is up to 5lbs now, and growing!

Nikki and Will were able to close on their brand spanking new home last week, so they have been busy moving, and unpacking, and painting the baby room and getting everything all set up for him to come home. I know my little sister just cannot wait for him to be snuggling with her in their own bed at home. We love baby Blake! I am excited for my sister and brother in law to be parents for the first time. Such a blessing in their lives.