He's Home

Well I guess that the title basically tells what this is all about. Jace finally made it home yesterday at about 5:00 pm. The Dr. said that he could come home if his bili-count 14 or below; his results were 13.9. He is doing very well; slept well last night, he is sleeping a lot during the day, which I guess is to be expected. He was awake for about 2 full hours today. Myles has taken to Jace like a fish to water. He is always looking, kissing, trying to help, etc. He just loves his little brother. Yesterday Myles came into Jenny while she was holding Jace, he went up, put a little blanket on Jace, kissed him then ran away. He is so excited to have a little brother. All in all Jace is doing well, just a little jaundice.

Booby Man

So tonight we went and checked in on Jace. He is doing very well. He has been moved into pediatrics so Jenny can stay with him at night. We talked to the doctor and he wants Jace to stick around so they can take care of his Jondus (spelling?). I tried to talk them into sending him back to Othello, but they kept coming up with every reason not to send him back. So we will have to wait the next day or two and see what they say. We are very hopeful by Tuesday (at the latest) he will be home. I had to laugh because the nursed kept telling us that he couldn't latch on to a nipple. As soon as Jenny busted out the boob, he latched on like a pro, no problems and fed for a good hour. We took him off the boob and gave him a bottle, he wanted nothing to do with it; moving his head, spitting it out. Hilarious to me. He is a definite booby boy just like his brother and dad.

dark wavy hair

Today Scott, Hazel, Myles and I (the girls were in school) went down to Tricities to see Jace. He is doing a little better. Off Oxygen and eating better. We finally got to hold and snuggle him. He is the sweetest little thing! I didn't realize how much hair he had! After I had him he was wisked away. I never really got to see him without a hat. Today when I saw him he looked completely different without a hat on. He has Scott hair. It's dark and wavy and he kind of has a receding hair line already. I LOVE it!! So today the highlight of my day was dark wavy hair. Tomorrow he has xrays to look at his lungs and make sure there are no signs of pnemonia. They are also watching him because he has a heart murmur and is jaundice. Pray for our little guy.

toes

Yesterday I went down to Tricities to be with Jace. When I got to the hospital I was so worn out but at the same so excited to be with my little guy and maybe hold him and look at him and all his little perfect parts.(you got to make sure that they are all there). One of my favorites is his little toes. They are so small and sweet. They gave me so much happiness just looking at them. I was not able to hold him or touch him because they are trying to keep him as stable as possible, so as such yesterday the hilight of my day was toes. We will see what tomorrow brings...

Another Update...

Jace was not improving (he wasn't getting worse, just not getting better) here in Othello, so they have shipped him down to Kadlec Medical Center in Richland. He will be in their neonatal sector until he is able to go home. They nurses that came to get him said it could be a day or more, it all depends on how he improves. So Jenny is doing as well as can be expected. She has pain, mostly from where her epidural was (should have been; we found out later that it fell out before the delivery). She got home today, washed, changed, and went down to Kadlec to be with Jace while I am here tending to the other 4 kids. Jenny will be staying at her Uncles house so we wont have to commute everyday. We are optimistic, but only time will tell. Keep Jace in your prayers.

Extra Extra....

Where to begin...well let's start with Jace Andrew Ritchie is finally here. He weighed 7lb 15 oz and was 21 inches long. Jenny went in last night at 6:00, was awake all night with pain, a very on the ball but gay nurse named Clint (he brought his A-game and made Jenny very happy.) Today she spent all day fighting with the epidural (which didn't giver her enough narcotics to satisfy the "hunger" she had.) We found out shortly after that Jace had inhaled some of the fluid and now it is in his lungs; so they are watching to make sure he doesn't develop pneumonia. If it doesn't go according to plan, they will ship him off to Tri-Cities instead of Spokane. Here is a picture of the little cutie. At first I was unsure if he looked like us, but I can see it now.

Lamb Chops

Okay, so last night Hazel went to a friend's house to spend the night. For dinner tonight she had lamb chops. When Hazel got home and shared that information with us, the girls asked what lamb chops were, we told them baby sheep. Megan, with her eyes all glossy and as much seriousness as she could muster, says, "Mom, can we kill a lamb and eat it?" Oh my gosh I laughed for about 5 minutes straight.

Jenny update-
Nothing new to share, still in pain, still elevated amniotic fluids, going in Monday to harvest this child.

Just a little update

I had a Dr. appt today where they did an ultrasound to check on my amniotic fluid levels and make sure our little boy was doing well. Everything at the appt went fine. Heart rate...fine, Contractions....none. The Dr. told me that he would probably try to induce me around the 18th or 19th which was a little bit earlier that anticipated; unless he found out something new when he got the results of the ultrasound back. I have been struggling with keeping my amniotic fluid levels down due to complications with my diabetes, and have been on bed rest for the past week accompanied with a low sodium diet. I am extremely uncomfortable. It makes it hard to breathe, move, sleep, or do anything. Last week I was in the hospital after my ultrasound revealed that my amniotic levels were around 28 (regular is between 10 and 23.) I went down to a 20 and got to go home the next day. Around 5:00 today I got a phone call from the Dr., my levels are now up to 30! I am in so much pain all the time. I have NEVER been this uncomfortable with any of my other pregnancies. At 35 weeks and being diabetic my Dr. is very concerned about taking the baby too early because of lung development delays, so he said to come in on Thursday and he would set me up for an amnio next week in Spokane with my diabetic specialist. When we get those results back he said we will be better able to take action from there. It is kind of scary. We could sure use the prayers. Sorry I have no pics of the huge belly...My camera broke last month and we have been using the camera on our phones for the last couple of posts. What a crummy time for it to break!! Hopefully I will get a new one soon. Until then, pray, pray, pray, that little Jace will get here healthy and safe.

A Pirate, Princess, Ghost, Jedi, and a School Bus

So here is our official Halloween post. Working in Warden I have been labeled "eccentric," (yes I checked the spelling). So to prove everyone wrong; to prove that I was just as "normal" as everyone else in that damn building, I dressed up for Halloween. I chose a costume that everyone could relate to one way or another. It was a familiar sight that conjures memories of "Good Times!" I think it best to show you what I was, like they say a picture is worth a thousand words.

Yes I was a school bus. It was the cheapest costume I have ever worn. I took a wardrobe box from u-haul, and painted it yellow, added some windows, lights, a grill, a few holes for accessibility, pictures for ambiance, and a little mood music (yes my costume had music, and I am not sure I need to say what song I had playing, The wheels on the Bus.) To add to my day, when I got to school, still holding my bags and stuff, several people made comments like, "Hey didn't I just see you in the office," or "Weren't you just in the Library?" I had just walked in the door, so I wasn't sure what they were talking about. I politely said, "No! You're stupid! See the bags, the back door I just walked in? I just got here." I was polite. I drooped off all of my crap and rushed into the gym for my "duty." While patrolling "the yard," a legion of educators dressed in various unprofessional attire, came walking across the gym right towards me. I must admit I did pee my pants a little bit. It was a scary scene. The Monarch of the group stepped through the "Flying V" that formed while crossing the gym. There standing toe to toe with me was my clone! One of the 4th grade teachers decided to dress up as me for Halloween. She was complete with slacks, dress shirt, neck tie, and beard.

Now to the kids, The girls wanted to dress up and wear their costumes all day. I told them no because I didn't want them to ruin them during the day. Megan kept coming to my class at every break she could create and asking "Now, can I put on my costume?" I finally said sure and she ran off to become the little pilfering pirate she is. Her costume was complete with the ear ring, eye patch, sword, and bad breath.

Courtney decided to be ghost phantom thing. She created a little back story to help explain who she was. When she put on the costume she became Ghostmer Ghost. Apparently Ghostmer is a ghost that likes to fly through people. Sometimes when Ghostmer flies through people she penetrates the heart and drinks a little bit of their blood, killing them instantly. Courtney has a very explicit imagination. I was unfortunately unable to get a picture of this ghost. I will have to get the one the in-laws took and post it later.

Hazel, as usual was a princess. I was kinda hoping that would have worn off, or at least lost it's appeal by now. But no, she still runs around telling people her name is "Princess Hazel." She also acts the way she thinks a princess should act; basically that Jenny and My views are inferior and we are the tyrants she can't wait to replace. She decided to be Snow White and really enjoys still putting on the costume, which only helps solidify her royal heritage, at least in her world where we eat rainbows and fart butterflies.

Myles was with out a doubt the coolest. Last Christmas Lila gave Myles a gigantor of a towel with a hand towel sewn on for a hood. Well over this past year using this towel, I came to the conclusion that in this towel, Myles looked like a Jedi. So Jenny went out, bought a gigantor brown towel with matching hand towel and I began to sew with only about 45 minutes til go time. I got Myles hood sewn on, Jenny got his face painted, and we armed him with the Force and a Light Saber. He used the Light Saber more than the force, little punk! When all was said and done, he looked hilarious, Our little Yoda!

Side bar notation that kinda plays a role in the rest of the story, Jenny has been put on bed rest because she has irrigated Jace (our final name for our newest edition) a little too much and now her "Belly" has too much fluid. How does this tie in, well that left me to take the kids "Solo Mio." So we went to Moses to trick-or-treat with Jeremie and family. The kids had a great time. I kinda planned it perfectly. We showed up at about 7:00 and went for about an hour. I had all four kids and wasn't really excited about walking all over creation with Yoda, a blood sucking heart killing phantom ghost, a pilfering pirate, and a princess. The kids did their thing, I tagged along and carried Yoda (I swear I have seen him fly in the freaking movies, but not that night!) With in an hour and a half, people were out of candy, so we went by gma Bruce's, said hello/trick-or-treat, and headed home. In bed by 10:00, "sorting" candy with my diabetic wife by 10:15. Good Times!! That's just how we do things here.