Wednesday, July 27th

Mason has a pediatric appointment today. He is doing great, just one thing....He has lost weight since last week. He was 6 pounds and 8 ounces last Monday. Today he weighed 6 pounds even. We go back next week to see if this is an issue, or if it is a scale issue. We will say it was their scales! He is getting bigger and he eats like a boy should, so I am really not concerned with it. Well we have our first trip this Saturday. We are going to Palatka to see my Grandmother. It is her birthday party. Mason will get to meet his Great-Grandmother and Great aunts and uncles and cousins. I'm excited! Ill keep you posted!

Monday, July 25th

Today Mason had his second eye appointment. Dr. Blumenfeld said that both eyes are "no worse, and no better". So I am going to take that good news. He was exhausted after this appointment. Mason would not look far enough to one side so they had to hold his eye open with a tool that opens his eyes lids from the inside. Please continue to pray for him. I know that I have the faith to believe that God has given this child sight, and that he will be able to see.

Monday, July 18th

Today Mason had his first pediatrician check up. He is now 6 pounds and 8 ounces. I can not believe that he is getting so big! But he looks so little. He is doing great! He has another eye appointment next Wednesday. I hope that everything is good news! He has a minor surgery on the 3rd of August, (you know the one all little boys have) Please pray for Mason, he still has a long way to go. He still is waiting for his appointment for a developmental doctor. They just make sure that he is on track to where he should be. Thank you for the prayers!

Tuesday, July 12th

Today Mason had a doctor's appointment in Orlando for his eyes. He had an exam done at the hospital 2 weeks ago that said he had immature retinas. Today we went as a check up and they told us that he has stage one retinopathy of prematurity. This is a disease that can cause lazy eye, offset eyes, crossed eyes, near or far sighted eyes, or even blindness. He goes back again in 2 weeks to check to see if it is getting any worse or if it is starting to heal. Worst case scenario, it can be corrected by surgery if successful. So please pray that this goes away with no problems.

Monday, July 11th

Today my Mr. Mason came home. My dad went with me to pick him up. I was really nervous about bringing him home, not too sure why. Whether it was the fact that I now have FOUR children to tend to, or if it was the fact that this little thing totally depends on me for every waking need and totally depends on me. We got there about 3:00, and were out of there by 4:00. Dad said that you can buy a house, a new car, and property in a foreign country and sign less paperwork than we had to sign to get Mason out of there. lol We came back to my house and mom, Nathan and Emily were there and Becky and Corbett came over for dinner and to see Mason. Madisyne on the other hand was really funny. As soon as I walked in with the baby I put him down and Madi just put her hand on his cheek and said, "this my baby brodder?" I told her yes. Since she is very protective, but not jealous at all. That night I was able to finally get Mason to bed. He has a bassinet by my bed and I walked around the corner and heard him crying a little bit. Well, I walked back around the corner and Madi was holding Mason and when she saw me she "Threw" him back in the bassinet. Yes I said threw. I of course spanked her and told her she can never ever pick Mason up. I believe she got the point.

This is Mason in the car seat in the hospital

Aunt Emily holding Mason with Madi

Friday, July 8th

Today as I was at work I got a phone call from the Pod 4 NICU. It was our Dr. Lipman. He told me that Mason was doing great! He is off the feeding tube and he can come home on Monday or Tuesday! It is such an answer to prayer! I miss my little man so much when I am away. He is truly a miracle. Thank you so much for all the prayers. I hope that his homecoming smooth! Madi can not wait to meet this "Mason" that we all talk about!. Ill keep you posted. BTW I am having surgery on Thursday so please keep me in prayer as well. It is the end of the baby-making-business for me!

Tuesday, July 5th

i don't even know what to write tonight. I know this has nothing to do with Mason but I am disgusted with the "casey anthony trial" I can not believe that this girl has just gotten away with killing her own child. I just have to say that there is a Higher Power, I just can not believe it. All I can see is Caylee's little face and wonder why there are such monsters in life and how they can even call themselves parents.

Monday, July 4th

Today Jason and I went to see Mason. He finished a complete bottle for me for the first time. He is doing well, he weighs 5 pounds 6 ounces now. I was looking on the stats of my blog today and I was amazed to see that I have viewers from not only the US but also Alaska, Indonesia, Germany, Bahamas and even Poland. I am truly blessed to have people that care so much. I hope that I can keep you updated on Mason. He truly is a miracle. I hope you all have a happy fourth! thank you for the prayers

"Nothing on my face!" (feeding tube was being changed....mommy stole a picture!)

Love this picture....looks like he is playing peek-a-boo

Clay meeting his little brother

Sunday, July 3rd

Ok sorry it has been a while since I wrote. I have been kinds in a slump....I'm so anxious for Mason to come home. I have been told 2 weeks, to any day, to 2 more weeks again. I am getting to where I am just not expecting anything, then I won't be disapointed. Well, enough of my "whoes" Mason is doing great. He is now 5 pounds and 5 ounces. He is doing awesome! He had an eye exam last week that said he has an immature retina, but that only means that the blood vessels in the retina are not fully developed. They will do another eye exam in about a week. He has to be more consistent with his bottle feeds before they will allow him to  come home. Now he is at 45 ml every three hours, he will drink 27 ml, or even 10 or 11ml, and then he will out of the blue drink the whole bottle. So my little man just needs to eat more consistently. I stayed the night with him last night in the NICU and I believe I got about 2 hours of sleep. Apparently Mason likes to sleep all day and be up all night. So that HAS to change before he comes home! LOL I don't really care if he is nocturnal for the rest of his life I just want him home! Well I will update you guys as soon as there is a change! Thank you for all the prayers and please keep them coming!

Friday, June 24th

Here are some new pictures of Mason. He is now 4 pounds and 11 ounces. He is still bottle feeding twice a day and drinking about half of the bottle on his own and the other half goes through the feeding tube. He is still having his bradicardias. This is completely normal for a preemie. Dr. Lipman said maybe another two weeks and he can come home. I hope!

Sunday, June 19th

Mason is 4 pounds 3 ounces. His face is filling out so much, he almost looks like a different baby! He will be 34 weeks this Tuesday, so I am hoping that he will overcome the heart bradys that he has been having.  He has had a lot fewer than before, so that is an answer to prayer. He also is doing better on his bottle feeding. The other night he drank 22cc from the bottle! Well please keep the prayers coming!

Wednesday, June 15th

Went to see Mason last night. I took his aunt Sonja with me. She hadn't got to see him yet. Well we walk in, and I walk into the wrong room. I didn't know until I got all the way to the crib and saw the baby, and I was like, "Uh....this isn't my baby...." then I started laughing, because I realized what I did. The nurse was like, "you didn't look like that baby's mom" ANYWAY! I found baby Mason, and he was out of the incubator, in an open crib! He was holding his own temperature, and doing awesome! He weighs 3 pounds 12 ounces. So the goal now is feeding! He has to do three things before he can go home. 1. weigh 4 pounds, (we are almost there, probably by the end of the week) 2. He has to maintain his own body temperature, (which he is) and 3. he has to be completely bottle fed, ( we are working on that one) I am amazed at how well he is doing! Keep up the prayers and support, and thank you!

Sunday, June 12th

Mason is 3 pounds 9 ounces today. I fed him his "one" bottle feed that he gets and he ate 12 cc out of 32. It doesn't sound like much but he is making improvements every day. He is such a strong little boy. All the nurses always comment on how handsome he is! :) I am so proud of my little man. I am so blessed!

Wednesday, June 8th

Mason is so freakin cute.....I can not wait to get him home. I spent most of the day with him today and plan on doing the same tomorrow. I can not help but see how blessed I am to have been given such a healthy baby boy. He is doing awesome. Thank you for the prayers, and please keep them coming!

Monday, June 6th

Today Mason met his biggest sister, Mya. She wouldn't leave the poor baby alone. It was really cute. Mason took his first bottle today. Right now he eats 29 ML and he ate 9 ML from the bottle, with no problem, might I add! No drops in heart rate, or oxygen. I am so proud of my little man! He ate what he could then he fell asleep. Dr. Lipman said that he can try a bottle everyday, until he gets the hang of it. I appreciate all the prayers. He is doing awesome!

BTW....I am going back to work, June 14th...... I am excited to go back and maybe have an adult conversation or two.....lol

Sunday, June 5th

Sorry it has been a while since I posted. I have been with Mason everyday since he was born, and yet I feel like it is not enough. I know that I have to stretch myself between home and hospital, it just is getting to be a lot. I hope he comes home soon.....I was able to nurse Mason yesterday, and today. He did better today, but he still hasn't figured it out yet. They are going to start bottle feeding him tomorrow one feeding a day. I hope he does well. I think he will because he loves his pacifier. His weight is 3 pounds 2.5 ounces. So he is gaining everyday. Our goal to get him home is 4 pounds. Thank you everyone for your prayers and please continue to pray for Mason.

Wednesday, June 1st

I am with baby Mason today. He is doing great. He had a minor "freak-mommy-out" incident. He spit up all over himself in the incubator, out the nose, out the mouth, EVERYWHERE....then he started choking, whatever....I know it is normal but still.... Anyway, the other baby girl that I asked you to pray for is doing good. Of course all my info is "second-hang-ease-dropping" but I can't help it, she is right next to us! Anyway, the best news of the day is Dr. Lipman said that he sees Mason being able to come home is at least 4 weeks. They are going to try to bottle feed him this coming Tuesday. Pray that he does well, and no reflux!

Tuesday, May 31

I spent the day with little Mason today. He is up in weight to 3 pounds 1 ounce. He is on full feeding through his feeding tube. He had an ultrasound of his little head today that showed he had no sign of a brain bleed. YAY! He is doing awesome. He still is receiving caffeine for his heart de-sats but other than that he if wonderful. He has a roommate in the NICU that is not doing too well. She is a little newborn that needs alot of prayer. The mom is VERY young and I do not know much about her. I have seen her twice, and both times she just came in and dropped off milk and then left....without even looking at her baby. Well the baby is having surgery tomorrow, and the mom is no where to be found. She has not given any consent for the baby to have the surgery, which means it can not be done. From the sound of it, the baby is really sick and needs these surgeries asap. I hope that you will pray for her, and the mom. My heart goes out to them. Not to be a complete downer, but I also saw a mom today, VERY pregnant, smoking a cigarette. I am not judging any of these mothers, but I can not help but get mad. My child is in there fighting for his little life, and these mothers seem to not be worried at all about theirs. It is just heartbreaking. Makes me very thankful for my little man, and makes me want to give my children all the love I can.

Saturday, May 28th

Today I write from the Ronald McDonald house. I got a room here for the weekend. I was able to hold Mason last night for about 2 hours. It was hard to put him back! I am so attached. He is doing great. His weight is holding at 2 pounds 15 ounces. He should be off his IV today. He is on full feedings, only breast milk, and he is digesting everything. He has proved the "Wimpy-White-Boy-Syndrome" wrong. The nurses in the NICU believe that white males are the slowest to improve, and get better, where African American females are the strongest. I don't know how to compare because obviously I have never had an African American girl, lol but I know I am just proud of the little man that God has blessed me with. I will try to keep you updated on Mason over the weekend, just please keep him in your prayers! Thanks you!

Wednesday, May 25th

Today Mason is doing great. He is down to 2 pounds 15 ounces, and is expected to lose more. They said they lose about 10% of their birth weight. Kinda funny, when they don't have much weight to start with. I held Mason this morning for about an hour and a half and he did great. He could not keep his open very long, but I did get to see those baby blues. :) I am so in love already. He has been having some bradicardias, which is when his heart rate goes down, because he forgets to breath. He comes out of it usually on his own, but sometimes you have to rub his back, or thump his heel, (he doesn't like the heel thump) but  Dr. Lipman said that it is completely normal with preemies. If he continues to have these they give him caffeine to help him out. He started feeding through his feeding tube yesterday. They started him on 2 cc, now he is at 5 cc, and he is digesting everything just fine. He also had his first POOP! Yay! His insides are doing their job! I plan to have more pictures on here soon.Thank you for the prayers and please keep them coming! He has a long road ahead of him!

Mason's Birthday! May 23, 2011

Well around 4 am, I woke up completely fine... went to the bathroom and then got back in bed. As soon as I laid down, I started having contractions.  I only has 2, that were 10 minutes apart, but OMG they were awful. So I called my nurse and told her that I had only had a couple, but they were really bad. She started me on Vistral, a muscle relaxer, and put me on the monitor to see contractions and monitor the baby's heart rate. She left the room and I had 2 more contractions, and I had the urge to push! So I called my nurse and told her that something wasn't right, so she called the doctor and the checked and I was 10 centimeters. Talk about fast! It was now about 4:30 am. They moved me to labor and delivery and all I could think was, "I guess and epidural is out of the question...." Inside labor and delivery I had maybe three more contractions and they were telling me to hold him in if  could. The NICU team wasn't there. Well Mason wasn't going to wait. He just decided to come on out and meet the world at 4:59 am. He weighed 3 pounds, 2 ounces, 15 inches long.  Talk about easy labor! Don't get me wrong, it was painful, but it was only an hour long from beginning to end and I didn't have to push.

Mason is doing awesome! His APGAR scores were 8 and then 8. He cried when we was born, which is a first for any of my kids, and he was pink and very tiny! He needed help with O2 for about the first hour, but now he is on room air, breathing on his own. I went to the NICU about 9:30 to see Mason. He was awake, looking around. I got to hold him for a while. He is doing awesome, I am so proud of him. Dr. Lipman is his neonatologist, which was Callie's doctor when she was born. He is an amazing doctor. He has such compassion for his patients, and their families. You don't feel like just a patient with him. He knows who you are, and who you are there to see. He told me that he remembers Callie, told me everything that was wrong with her, and told me that Mason was doing very well. I was surprised that he remembered small details about Callie that I didn't think he would remember. He told me that he remembers me telling him that I wanted to hold Callie if she was to pass. He told me today that he remembers how important it is for me to hold my baby, so that was the first thing he told the nurse, was to get Mason out and let me hold him. Of course, I cried, I have cried a few times today. It just brings back memories, but I am thankful for the new memories that I am getting with Mason.

Went back to see Mason at 1:30. Gave him his first bath....He LOVED getting his hair washed....I told him he was the tiniest thing I ever shampooed. He just relaxed, and fell asleep. He is so adorable. Thank you so much for all the prayers, he truly is a BIG FIGHTER!

Sunday, May 22nd

OK here are some pictures baby Mason. Everything looks great!

Sunday, May 22nd

Today I got to spend the day with Madi and Jason. Kristen and Erika came and saw me and brought me "sugar-free" dove chocolate....(your awesome). The doctor came in tonight and said that Mason is doing great. They are doing NST (non stress test) every four hours. (this is simply putting the baby on the monitor to see how he is doing) I get my finger pricked four times a day..that stinks...but I hope that is a temporary thing. I have a sono scheduled for either tonight or tomorrow. This is just to measure the amniotic fluid and the baby's over all well being. So basically, they said I should just keep doing what I am doing and I can go to 34 weeks. Which is 4 weeks from Tuesday. JUNE 21st is the goal line! I hope I make it, it is just less time that Mason will have to be in here by himself. It would be awesome to go that long and then he is allowed to come home. That would be a true answer to prayer. Well I guess that's it for tonight...I hope all is well in the world that seems to still be turning, although it seems to be on hold for me in here.....lol

Friday, May 20th

I find it really hard to write tonight. I feel like I need some sort of inspiration in my life right now. I feel like everything that I have done up until now doesn't even matter. I feel like I am lost, and I don't know where I am supposed to turn. But then I know where I should turn, I should just turn around and see that HE is still standing there waiting for me to turn around. I have had so much time to myself lately to put things into perspective. It is funny how you can pray and ask for a sign on what is right from wrong in your life, and be scared of the answer, because you already know what it is. It is hard to just turn your life and future completely over to God, to put your whole life in His will. I struggle with this, but I wonder if I had done this a long time ago would I be where I am now? Did He do this to get my attention? I'm starting to believe so...Its just hard to get to the other side of the fence.....

Thursday, May 19th

So today started out uneventful. I had a bad blood sugar test so they are not only keeping me on a low carb diet, they are giving my insulin. (thank you mom) I think she passed it down lol...It is difficult to keep track of what I eat. I have never had to do that before. They said there is a 50/50 chance that I may keep the diabetes after Mason is born.

Around four o'clock today I started having contractions. They got to be every ten minutes apart. The Nurse gave me vistrol which is a muscle relaxer. Well they slowed down, but wow....I am not looking forward to labor. But I am glad that they were able to stop it. They said when I got here I wasn't dilated at all, but they checked me yesterday and I was 3 centimeters. So I don't believe that it is going to be too much longer. I really miss my kids, and this is starting to get harder everyday. Today makes a week that I have been admitted, and it seems like its been forever. I guess I just need to see the big picture, that this is for Mason and not me.

Wednesday, May 18th

I got to see Madi today! I cried when she got here and cried when she left. She was so good. She just laid in the bed next to me, eating goldfish. Jason had to go to work so it was no where near long enough. He told me when he dropped her off at the daycare that she cried and screamed like never before. Of course this breaks my heart. I think maybe he shouldn't tell me those things. I feel bad enough that I can't be there for her.

They did my glucose test today, and I failed it. Which means I have gestational diabetes. So counting carbs is something I know nothing about! So this should be interesting.

Sunday, May 15th

 Sunday morning, I woke up to the nurse telling me that Mason was having heart decelerations with contractions. This was just something that they would have to watch. But in case of infection, or fetal distress, they would preform an emergency Cesarean. This is actually ok to me because they can tie my tubs while they are in there. My sister and her husband am up to see m today. It was nice to have a visitor.  I miss my kids more than I can ever imagine. But I know that this is something that I have to do.

Friday, May 13th

Friday night I was at home with Madisyne, my 2 year old. I was feeling ok, nothing out of the ordinary. I laid down on the couch with Madi to watch a movie. I must have fell asleep, because woke up having contractions and I had reason to believe that my water had broke. Well I called a friend of mine and she came and got Madi and I went to the Regency to see what was going on.
I went to triage and the nurse Kim was one I had had before so she knew that something was up. She checked to see if my water had broke and of course, story of my life, it had. So the journey begins....

They admitted me right away and started me on magnesium. Those of you that have never had the privelage of being on mag, count your blessings. It makes you feel like you have just ran a marathon and then just laid back in bed. Its awful. The reason for the mag was to stop contractions, which it worked.
They kept me on the mag for 24 hours.