man, my hand smells good!It has been an incredible 5 days and in some ways it has been a time of such anticipation and expectations. our little nicolas has entered into our lives with his typical theme of “beyond timetables.” here is a brief summary of events of these last few days…
as you know, our baby was due to be born on october 6th with the doctors hoping to induce labor so that the threat of infection from the preterm premature rupture of the membrane (PPROM) would not be a factor to our baby. so far, so good…we were getting ready and even preparing for a small prayer and baby shower today…but noooo…nicolas wants to make sure he doesn’t miss the action. on monday morning, september 29th, jamie woke up in the morning with some surprise (you can ask her the details). The doctors suspected she was going into labor although jamie didn’t feel the contractions…she called me as I was heading off to the Living Faith Community Church staff meeting and although I thought the situation at the hospital was not that urgent but wanted to be there with her for support. But when I arrived at the hospital, Jamie was beginning to feel something. something big…
So, they checked and she was dilating…we then went to labor and delivery ward and it was then, she started to feel the contractions. ladies and gentlemen, i know you have heard stories and seen movies about the pain. jamie is one of the strongest women i have ever seen (She was a Park Ranger at Yosemite!!!) and she was struggling…so for 10 hours she was in labor and at one point she succumbed to the pain and had some pain management (whew, finally, after she had her pain management, she was doing much much better). we listened to worship songs, I read from the Psalms to her. at one point Jamie’s temperature was going up and our baby’s heartrate was also going up (which a sign of infection, so the hospital staff was keeping close watch). But her labor progressed and before we knew it…it was coming.
I coached her with our wonderful doctor, nurse and my mom to count to 10 as she pushed. 1, 2, 3, 4, ….. 10, breathe and…PUSH 1, 2, 3, 4,…at one point i had to take a break from the room because i thought I was going to pass out…but I was able to stay put. by 7:15 pm, our little boy’s head was showing and woosh, he entered our room. they took him immediate in the neo natal intensive care unit (NICU) since he was a preemie but we were able to get a good glimpse of him and mommy was able to give him a little kiss before he was rushed out. all i remember was seeing my mom cry as he came into the world and me not being able to stop staring at his nipples. HE HAD NIPPLES! Nippy Jr. (inside joke, if you really want to know, ask our friend Joanna)
Nicolas’ first night, he had difficulty breathing so they put him on a breathing apparatus. when we walked into the NICU, we were so moved and our hearts was filled with awe, affection and simple affinity. we gave thanks to God. Jamie shared with me that even though the pain was unbelievable, whenever she sees Nicolas, she doesn’t make the association between the two. Her heart is just filled with love.
the second day: we went to see him and he was breathing without tubes! what a strong beautiful boy. he had some eye discharge which was normal for newborns. He was not taking to feeding. he spit it back up, so more IV for him.
third day: he struggled but was able to suckle for breast feeding. he had some complications with sodium in him so they added some to his IV and he still had some blood issues but the doctors were ministering antibiotics. his eye discharge was getting a bit worse and the doctors administered antibiotics for his eyes.
fourth day: he opened his eyes! it was absolutely adorable. jamie said he smiled at her. i burped him for the first time when he fed and it was so funny! blurp! he is feeding better. woot woot. so that is the current update and I know, you want pictures so here they are…
he was a little cold, we swaddled him and he was MUCH better
jamie in the NICU with Nicolas
our little one on the third day...he likes his incubator
"look at my eyes, MY EYES! not my nipple! I caught you looking!"
Thank you all for being part of this, we are amazed by your generosity (our registry is almost finished! but there is still some time for you if you want! We are registered at amazon here. special thanks to Living Faith Community Church for your prayers and support (especially the food! we had some ladies cook up some amazing food and broths that are PERFECT!).
Nicolas will be in the NICU for another week or two to treat some jaundice and a bacteria in his blood due to some complications and also for his right eye (which is being treated for infection). He is doing well.
Jamie is recovering from the labor and delivery, for the time being we are meeting with family and would love to see you all but we need this time to rest and to organize our trips to the hospital. Please be patient with us. But if you would like to help we would love for you to come and help prepare our Chinatown apartment with some cleaning, moving and setting up a crib. If you have time shoot me an email to tell me the dates and times you are available. Also, we would love FOOD! It saves us from going out to eat and having to cook. So, if you like to help with your fantastic cooking, we would love this.
We are learning so much about community, trusting in God, taking each day as a moment of grace and provision. We hope to see you all in person one day! Nicolas says “thank you for praying for me, I know I have been full of surprises but I am doing so much better!” We love you. We love you and once again thank you for showing us God’s love through this.
Grace Cheung said,
October 4, 2008 at 11:15 am
CONGRATS peter and jamie! nicolas is beautiful! praise God for the safe delivery and praying for continued healing. i’ll email about helping out with the apartment!
Sherry Shao said,
October 4, 2008 at 3:23 pm
Thank you for sharing this beautiful journey! Love you guys! Can’t wait to meet Nicolas!
Dave Lee said,
October 4, 2008 at 3:24 pm
congratulations! Peter and Jamie!
William Liu said,
October 4, 2008 at 5:32 pm
congrat!!! Last time i saw you in 3 week ago and told me you are going to have baby. Now, Nicolas have born, i cant wait to meet him.
Angie Tang said,
October 4, 2008 at 6:43 pm
He’s so precious – Nicholas is already a little Peter sizing up his future extensive FB network! I know we are one of many families who have been praying for him.
God bless,
Angie
Joanna Robinson said,
October 4, 2008 at 6:47 pm
Hi there, just wanted to say that Nicholas is absolutely beautiful. I was wondering if I could ask to hear more of your story – I’m pregnant at the moment and have also suffered PPROM. If you don’t mind, please send me an email!
lydia said,
October 4, 2008 at 7:36 pm
so exciting! congrats. Can’t wait to meet him,
lydia
Abby said,
October 4, 2008 at 8:13 pm
Hurrah! Welcome, Nicolas!
Cathy said,
October 4, 2008 at 8:28 pm
C O N G R A T S !!!! He’s absolutely adorable! Glad to hear Mom and baby (and dad) are doing well. Can’t wait to meet the little one in person.
glors said,
October 4, 2008 at 9:07 pm
He is very very very cute!!
Sumin Kim said,
October 4, 2008 at 10:10 pm
Congratulations on your adorable precious son. Nicolas is one strong fighter. Praise God for watching over Jamie and the baby. We’ll be sending a frozen meal soon as well as continuing to pray for your family.
Liza said,
October 4, 2008 at 10:25 pm
first born son is holy to the Lord!!!
congratulations to you two!!
it’s awesome. another miracle
lizanclarence
caroljustinverity said,
October 4, 2008 at 10:48 pm
nicolas is adorable! and my word, JAMIE, YOU LOOK AMAZING!!!!! peter, you look…eh…well you know…hahahaha…anyway, let us know your allergies/dislikes etc and we’ll make you something! rest up and can’t wait to see you all! God speed.
May Lee said,
October 4, 2008 at 11:20 pm
Congratulations to you and Jamie!!! =)
David Park said,
October 5, 2008 at 12:11 am
WOWOWOWOWOWOW Congratulations!! and many blessings!!!!
this is so great!!! praise God!
Chu Family said,
October 5, 2008 at 12:24 am
Congratulations! He is adorable and we cannot wait to meet him!
carmen said,
October 5, 2008 at 12:29 am
look at his little eyesssss are so cuteee!!!!
I will keep praying for the three’s company
any allergies to food?
Fan said,
October 5, 2008 at 5:13 pm
Congratulations! He is so precious. I’m so happy for you guys =)
Irving said,
October 5, 2008 at 8:50 pm
=) congrats.
Maria and Victor said,
October 5, 2008 at 9:23 pm
Congrats to the happy family!
Joanna Yip said,
October 5, 2008 at 11:42 pm
Geez, you’re making the kid self conscious with all this talk about his nipples. =) YAY, Thumper is finally with us!!!!
Mary said,
October 6, 2008 at 11:57 am
Nippy Jr.!! so adorable. He’s SO cute! Congratulations to both of you. Glad to hear that he’s doing well. Thanks for the photos and update!
Eshean, Rob, Maya and Kaden said,
October 7, 2008 at 10:09 am
What an incredible journey you guys were taken on. God sure has a way of keeping us on our toes. Nicolas is truly a special miracle. Love you guys and look forward to meeting Thumper.
Sarah Park said,
October 7, 2008 at 12:50 pm
PRAISE GOD!! Nicolas is so beautiful! And Jamie! Oh my gosh she looks MORE beautiful!! (I didn’t know she was a Yosemite Park Ranger???). Peter thank you so much for sharing this amazing story with us! You, Jamie and little Nicolas are a great blessing to everyone around you! I’m glad to be a little part of this
.
Jean said,
October 7, 2008 at 3:55 pm
yay for photos! he’s so precious.
(and honestly, jamie looks too good for postpartum.)
are u still taking volunteers for apt prep? i’d love to help
Rachael and Brian said,
October 21, 2008 at 12:10 pm
Congratulations and Praise God!!! He is beautiful- and Jamie- We echo what everyone else is saying- you look amazing for just having a baby! (Peter- you look great too!!)
Susan Gnade said,
October 21, 2008 at 8:46 pm
What a precious little boy. What a journey you are on…an amazing journey. Nicolas is so blessed to have you guys as his parents. We miss you. Love susan
Jeremy Gnade said,
October 28, 2008 at 10:13 am
Congratulations! We finally know who little thumper is and he is beautiful. How awesome it is to be new parents. May God be with you as you nurture and raise this true gift from God. I am so happy for both of you and we miss you in Syracuse. Johnny’s buffalo chicken pizza!