family news – Page 49 – Out Of Their Minds Design

Our (Late) Christmas, Part II

The morning of the 28th was our late version of Christmas. The birth of Nina and Ian’s excitement of the morning made for a happy day indeed!

The bold general of a one-man unwrapping army surveys his battlefield, and envisions the wrapping paper carnage to follow. See this image larger.

Somewhere there’s a piggy bank in an unemployment line as a result of this robot. Welcome to Michigan! See this image larger.

Ian graduated from “mega” to “duplo” blocks… It seems like only yesterday he was facing backwards in his car seat. See this image larger.

Nina watches from the safety of her bouncy chair as packages are torn asunder. See this image larger.

Froggy towel approves of SuperWhy’s Super Duper Computer! See this image larger.

Daddy performs the “hip hip hooray” dance from SuperWhy. See this image larger.

Ian was mesmerized by the left-turn action of this light/aquarium. (Which he loved!) These fish turn left more than NASCAR drivers! See this image larger.

A stuffed animal puppy for Nina… “Lucky,” and boy is she! See this image larger.

His mouth is forming the “een” of Lightning McQueen. See this image larger.

His mouth is forming the “whyyyyyy” of SuperWhy. See this image larger.

I think everybody that saw these little trains fell in love with them. It wasn’t so much their scale as the number of features built into them given such a size. They chugged, whistled, hissed, and lit up! See this image larger.

The best Christmas gift ever, as held by Grandma Marcia. See this image larger.

The best Christmas gift ever, as held by Grampa Dave. See this image larger.

Mommy and the loves of her life. See this image larger.

Intermission (Soak Up the Sun)

Let’s take a moment and honor Nina’s battle with Jaundice, which our physician says we have won. A little battle, but one that’s over, and that’s important. How to beat it? A bili-blanket, a lot of love, and… well… see the video!

Click here to see the video. It is 5 MB in size, which isn’t too bad.

Our (Late) Christmas, Part I

I want to thank everybody for their kind comments on the blog, and also there’s a lot of people to thank for other forms of generosity during what has been a trying time.

Here’s how the rest of December looked, in pictures… the first a bonus picture that really belongs in an earlier entry.

This is it. This is the definitive picture of Ian meeting Nina. Melissa was in bed, my arms were full and so were Marcia’s… Grampa Dave pulled off this picture and so this is it! (Earlier pictures that I posted were either of their second meeting, or minutes after this one was taken. See this image larger.

December 27th was our Christmas Eve, as everything had been postponed due to a little surprise visitor! Here she’s prepped and ready to head home… her first trip in a car seat! See this image larger.

My sleeping beauties! See this image larger.

When Ian looks this bored watching “Tad’s Christmas” for the 40th time, you know we’ve all pretty much got it memorized! See this image larger.

Grampa Dave happily inspects the first female Chapman (that didn’t marry into the name) in 4 generations. (I think.) See this image larger.

I know that someday she’ll emerge as a beautiful butterfly! See this image larger.

Something scared the mittens right off of her! See this image larger.

At this point, we were all blissful and tired… more in Part II!

Nina – The full story…

Where to begin? Well, how about the beginning? The dates don’t make sense. Really if the due date that the fancy measuring devices came up with are to be believed, Nina was either conceived while Grandma Sue was in town (not bloody likely!) or while Melissa was still on birth control.

And then there was the half-time show. June 27th, in the middle of the night, Melissa sounded panicked in another room of her sister’s house and my gut dropped out from under me. I don’t need to get into detail here, but there was a convincing argument that we had lost our little baby girl, and I think the idea of this tore into Melissa and I both. I think I aged about 10 years in one night, and Melissa probably went through something similar, at least on the inside. The doctor we saw in the ER didn’t really even give our little girl a 50% chance — even when the ultrasound showed a fetus literally waving hello. I was so scared that she was waving good-bye, I didn’t even feel like I could tell anybody. I read up on what had happened and was heartened to hear that some people had gotten through this just fine. We prayed. Family and friends prayed.

But when we drove home shortly thereafter, a nurse gave us some bad news. The pregnancy hormone in Melissa system, which should have gone up had instead dropped to levels that caused the nurse to simply give up and say, “I’m sorry.” Again Melissa and I hung our heads and hearts low — we’re not the kind to be reactive to opinions, but medical professionals were telling us we weren’t going to make it, and it was hard not to believe them. We prayed. Family and friends prayed.

(There’s a lot more to the story, but to save the blog page from being too long, I’ve “split” the page… just click here for more –> ) Read more

December in a Flash, Part II of II

December 20th. A quick trip to Meijer yields happy results with Santa and Mrs. Claus. See this image larger.

Also December 20th, Ian and I rock out to Guitar Hero: Van Halen. He likes it more than I thought he would. See this image larger.

December 24th. It feels somehow like years ago, but this was the night we woke up at 3, and arrived at the hospital by 5:30 before Nina was born. At the time, however… dance, sugarplums, dance. See this image larger.

“Jinglebells!” See this image larger.

Whoa kiddo! Over-jingling! See this image larger.

*So seriously, I was a good-boy, right?* See this image larger.

Christmas kitty sings, Ian dances. See this image larger.

December in a Flash, Part I of II

I want to thank you all for your prayers and thoughts regarding Nina… The short of the story at this point is that her chromosome test came back “normal” and we can focus on praying for her heart, which is a major issue to contend with still — we’re not out of the woods yet, but some of the scariest trees are already behind us. More about this in the entries to follow, I promise. For now I’ve got a lot of catching up to do, so we need to turn the clock back to the beginning of December! (I know, you’re not happy with that, sorry!)

NOTE: This entry will be moved shortly to its appropriate place chronologically.

December 4th, and Ian wakes up to a rude surprise! See this image larger.

“Wha?” See this image larger.

Snow! And like six inches of it, all at once! See this image larger.

Am I the only person that thinks there are miniature Marge Simpsons outside the window? See this image larger.

December 6th. Those breakdancing lessons are really paying off. See this image larger.

December 7th. That hat doesn’t fit anymore, silly! See this image larger.

December 17th. Ian’s daycare’s Christmas program… someday I’ll have video. I’m afraid you may not find it all that interesting, as Ian decided on the way to the concert that “I’m not gunna sing.” See this image larger.

December 18th. *Daddy, this present is flat. It can’t be any good.* See this image larger.

With the wily grace of an elephant, Ian attempts to pilfer somebody else’s cookie. Not yet, kiddo. See this image larger.

Story time! See this image larger.

During the book exchange, Ian managed to pick a Curious George book, which was great because he has been on a George kick lately. (He loves the books, not the TV show, believe it or not.) See this image larger.

*Nuthin’ up my sleeve…* See this image larger.

“CANDY!” See this image larger.

*More?* See this image larger.

Finally, Ian gets his cookie! See this image larger.

On Hold

So much stuff is happening with Nina and her heart right now that I honestly don’t have the focus or emotional fortitude to keep up the blog. There will be at least a temporary pause. There’s nothing worse than getting bad news and then having to write about it. Suffice to say we’re doing our best to cope.

Nina Noel, Part III: Homecoming

Finally the morning of the 27th dawned, and it was time for Nina to come home. See this image larger.

I remember this part with Ian as well… the clock strikes the time at which you should be allowed to go home, and you have to wait for somebody to check you out and tell you things. See this image larger.

With Ian I think I packed up my camera and un-packed it a few times. With Nina I kept it out until the last minute. See this image larger.

Diaper looks a little big on her doesn’t it? See this image larger.

And finally to the car seat… See this image larger.

…and home. This is not the first time Ian saw his little sister, nor the first time he touched her — but it did look like the first time he understood a little bit about what was truly going on here. Love this picture. See this image larger.

The traditional kitty/baby photo.. thanks Grandma Marcia for catching this one! See this image larger.

The bouncy chair returns! See this image larger.

Welcome home, little girl. See this image larger.

Nina Noel, Part II: When Ian met Nina

If you’re just arriving, please scroll way down and start at the first part of this story, we have plenty of photos. In fact, you might want to consider getting yourself a beverage and a package of chips while the pictures load.

We moved from the delivery room over to the recovery room, exhausted; especially Melissa, who was a complete champ. Another delivery with no drugs! See this image larger.

Not too long after Melissa’s water broke (3am) we called Grampa Dave and Grandma Marcia (5am) and asked them to come to Rockford a little sooner than they had planned, for Christmas. I’ll tell it all in the long version of the story, but wow, do we owe them a great many thanks! This picture is still later on delivery day, the 25th… See this image larger.

We’re all smiles that our little girl is safe and sound. Ian’s initial reaction was one of excitement, curiosity, and maybe a little fear. Marcia was happy as a clam, and you should have seen her keep up with Ian! See this image larger.

Somebody loves her Mommy, already. See this image larger.

One of the outfits that Aunt Leslie sent to us happened to be a “baby’s first Christmas” one-piece… so we HAD to try it on her for this photo opportunity later on Christmas day. You can start to see her head changing shape a little here. You might even see a slight resemblance to Ian if you squint and pretend she’s bald. See this image larger.

I came home for dinner (Marcia saved me from hospital food!) on the 25th, so that Ian wouldn’t feel abandoned by his parents, and then turned around and went back to the hospital to sleep in the cot next to Melissa’s. On the 26th I came home for a little bit, and we drove as two cars over to the hospital again. Here Ian tries on Grampa Dave’s boots — turns out they’re a little large. See this image larger.

Finally our little family is more or less complete. Collect us all! See this image larger.

*So uh, she doesn’t like… make this noise all the time or anything, right?* (Thanks Gpa Dave for that caption.) See this image larger.

Grandma Marcia enjoys her new grand-daughter, who demands a high-five! See this image larger.

Quite possibly the bravest woman on Earth holds tight to a Christmas present that surprised us all. See this image larger.

Ian was very alert within about a week of coming home, or maybe a few days. This little girl seems to be tracking things right out of the gate. Here she gives Grampa Dave a peep. See this image larger.

This little girl is not going to suffer from a lack of love! See this image larger.

It is hard enough to keep a child entertained and happy at a hospital… Ian did pretty good under the circumstances! Here Ian finds Grampa Dave in a hallway. See this image larger.

Grandma Marcia has been a brilliant help with Ian — here she gives us another much-needed five minutes. See this image larger.

Ian has this look on his face – “Level with me here… I’m in trouble, right?” See this image larger.

It is shocking the number of changes her face has gone through in the handful of days that she’s been alive. Her facial features are rounding and softening. At the beginning of all of this, she didn’t look like Ian much at all, but I’m really starting to see a resemblance now. Here I’m studying those changes. See this image larger.

Ok, now THAT is a cute baby. Do I need to draw a halo above that head, or can you see it in your imagination too? See this image larger.

All of us spent some serious time making sure Ian understood what was going on with his new sister, and Ian was an incredible trooper. See this image larger.

Here Melissa explains that there is no love lost with our little man. See this image larger.

Home again, Ian and Grampa Dave play the “pillow squash” game. See this image larger.

Coming home in the evening yet again helped Ian not feel as abandoned by his parents, and gave Melissa time to bond with little Nina back at the hospital… I also got a chance to sleep, which could come in handy in the days to follow. See this image larger.

And obviously some quality time with Grampa Dave and Grandma Marcia is its own reward! See this image larger.

Welcome Nina Noel Chapman!

Someday I’ll have to tell you the whole story from the beginning.

For now, let’s just say it all has worked out, and mommy and daughter are safely back at home.

Nina was born on Christmas day, December 25th, 2009, at 10:54am. I’ll tell the rest of the “short” version of the story in pictures –

Just after her water broke, Melissa and I figured it would be a good idea to finally take at least one belly shot during her pregnancy. (So busy!) We drove as fast as we were able, with a sheet of ice covering much of the Rockford area. See this image larger.

Melissa and I pondered names on the way to the hospital, and just before. In thanks for giving us a Christmas baby, we considered the name “Noel” as a first or middle name, but were not necessarily sure. This is the number plate for our delivery room — the little “noel” tag helped seal the deal. See this image larger.

Again, the full story will be available soon, so I’ll just skip to the good stuff. Here she is, born at 10:54am. See this image larger.

Nina Noel Chapman (Nina = “Little girl” and Noel = “Born on Christmas day.”) weighed in at 6lbs and 14oz. For those of you who don’t remember, Ian weighed a bit more, as seen in this similar picture. See this image larger.

She’s 20.5″ in length — thank you to the nurse for suggesting this picture, I was sort of out of it. See this image larger.

Baby burrito. See this image larger.

This is a certificate that recognizes Nina’s accomplishment: Her feet do indeed turn black when dipped in ink. Also of note, she has a super-hero power that allows her to use said foot like a printing press. See this image larger.

Ian sort of whimpered into the world, but long before this ice-cold stethoscope was pressed lightly into her warm chest, Nina bellowed her arrival to anybody within 2 rooms away. See this image larger.