Meet Samuel Henry Vaughan

We kept Samuel's middle name a secret until he was born. He was named after Jason's dad, Steven Henry (aka:Pappa), who is an only child and was named after his dad, Henry Newton. Samuel is his first grandson, so we found it fitting that little Samuel would be Mr. Samuel Henry.
Jason's parents were our first visitors in the hospital. When Jason's dad walked in there was a card placed in Samuel's bed that said Pappa.

When he opened it, this is what he found:

Front

Back

Needless to say, Pappa was very surprised and very touched. Jason's dad cried, which made Jason cry, which made Jason's mom cry, which made Samuel and I know that we had chosen the right name. :-)

Then Nana and Grandpa, who were in charge of Madison all week (BLESS them!) came to visit and our family of four was complete!

Nana and Mamma:

Jason's sister Stefani and Joe came with thier new baby in tow. Samuel's cousin Capri is two months old.

Stefani made with wreath for Samuel's door -- Yes, she is THAT crafty!

Samuel spent 7 days at the hospital before we were able to take him home. Needless to say, when the time came to put him in in the car seat and leave the hospital, we were all very excited.

I am pretty sure that I did not do anything else but cuddle and hold Samuel for the next 24 hours. It was so good to just hold him, for as long as I wanted, in our own home.

It's so nice to just all be home all together. Everyone is adjusting pretty well. Madison is having her moments of being two and a half and not being the only center of attention now. However, she is also very helpful, which is true to her nature. He wants to hold him and feed him. She's obsessed with him NEEDING his pacifier at all moments, when of course he could care less. She wants to "pat, pat" him and we use the phrase, "soft and gentle" enough now that I am pretty sure those will be Samuel's first words!
Our life is good and we are so thankful for the friends and family that have kept us in their thoughts and prayers. We all home and healthy and couldn't be happier!

Welcome to the World Samuel Vaughan!

SAMUEL
[sam-yoo-uhl]
Heard of God; Asked of God

May 29, 2013

21 1/2 inches long

8 lbs 10 oz

Born at 6:21 a.m.

Psalm 139: 13 -18

For you created my inmost being;

you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

your works are wonderful,

I know that full well.

My frame was not hidden from you

when I was made in the secret place,

when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.

Your eyes saw my unformed body;

all the days ordained for me were written in your book

before one of them came to be.

How precious to me are your thoughts, God!

How vast is the sum of them!

Were I to count them,

they would outnumber the grains of sand—

when I awake, I am still with you.

Samuel is here!

Samuel is already so loved. So many people we know have carried him in their thoughts and prayers as he now spending his 5th night in the NICU. We had Samuel with us for 12 hours before they took him to NICU. We met him, snuggled with him, napped with him, and loved on him before they noticed him struggling for air. At 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday night they admitted him for respiratory issues and immature lungs. We have told this story now, what seems like 100 times, over and over and in little pieces here and there as we are updated and as we try to understand the words that are being told to us. However, we are now more educated and have a bigger picture of what the problem is. After his first chest x-ray the doctor told us that he had "immature lungs." We took that as either small or underdeveloped. However, that means that he didn't have enough surfactant, which is a lubricant that your body automatically produces to help the lungs not stick as they open an close comfortably with each breath. With this, Samuel had some fluid on his lungs that they had to test for infection though blood cultures. So, here comes the oxygen tube to breathe, the feeding tube to eat, a hand IV, and 2 other lines sutured in through his belly button to give antibotics and to take labs from. He automatically looked like a really sick baby.

Good news is that he's a big baby and has responded just wonderfully to everything. It was decided that he swallowed amniotic fluid at delivery and we now know that amniotic fluid cancels out surfactant, sometimes up to 75%.

So, progress... went to NICU on Wednesday. On Friday morning the feeding tube went away and he drank from the bottle like a champ. By Friday afternoon they turned down the oxygen and just gave him the same room air that you and I breathe.  Saturday morning the breathing tube went away and the blood cultures came  back negative for infection. Saturday afternoon they took out the two lines from his belly and stopped the IV. All fluids were on his own from a bottle. After the lines were removed they let us hold him and feed him, which was just fantastic! They sent me home on Saturday late afternoon and we are now going back and forth to hold him and feed him every 3 hours. Everyone was very confident that we'd get to bring him home on Monday and then on Saturday evening, the blood culture that was negative at 48 hours tested positive for growth at 72 hours. Doctors are still convinced that anything that grows after the 48 hour mark is a contaminate from an outside source and not anything to worry about. However, they now test to see what the contaminate is to be safe and then have to run an all new blood culture and watch it for 48 hours. That is what we are now waiting for. However, doctors again are convinced that it will be negative and we can "room in" tomorrow (Monday) and take him home on Tuesday.

Never in a million years did I ever dream that as we picked out Samuel's clothes to come home in that we'd actually be leaving the hospital without him. Jason and I have both cried over this situation seperately and together, but we fully know that Samuel is in great hands. The doctor has been fantastic. He has sat with us several times and answered all our questions in people terms. Samuel always has his own one on one nurse, who always has a cute little story to tell about him. We are always in the loop and always impressed by what they can tell us. He is in good hands and we  feel at peace with that. We are ready to have him home, but agree with the doctors that we are not going to do that unitl we know 100% that we are bringing home a 100% healthy and normal baby. They say that when he is relseased we will never have to worry about that. There are no long term effects on his lungs or his breatihng and he will be just like every other healthy new born that goes home. We like the sound of that.

On Sunday night, at 5 days old, this is our new update:

He has gained 4 oz and grew .5 inches already.

He is now 22 inches long and weighs 8 pounds 14 oz.

He is sweet as can be - and is full of cute little baby rolls already!

So thank you to everyone who has checked in and loved on us these past 5 days. Thank you for you prayers. We know we serve a mighty God!

" The spirit of the Lord made me, the breath of the almighty gives me life."

Job 33:4