Josh's First Days
Born: June 10, 2001 6:16 AM
Weight: 6 lbs, 2 oz.
Length: 18.5"
At: Ft. Sanders Regional Medical Center
Doctor: Dr. Molly Peeler
(who was also a guest at our wedding in 1997)
Parents: Philip and Kim Butler
Grandparents: Robert and Elna Butler
Kingsport, TN (this is their sixth !!)
Grandparents: Harold and Karen Truitt
Sevierville, TN (this is their first !!)
Email:
(everyone has an email address - right !!)
Parent's Email:
Phil -
Kim -
We are proud to announce the birth of our son, Joshua Lee Butler. He wasn't expected till the end of July, but we learned on Thursday that he was a bit further along than that and could come at any time. We just didn't realize how soon "any time" could really be. We picked up a few things at Kim's work on Friday and also got some diapers. We didn't have any since we thought we'd have plenty more time to get some. On Saturday, we went to a baby shower in Seymour (where Kim grew up) and then had a cookout later at Kim's parents. Little did we know that a few hours later our lives would change !!
We were "alerted" to Josh's debut at 2:43 AM Sunday morning. After a little frantic commotion, we headed to the hospital a little after 3 AM. We got to the hospital around 3:15 AM. Thank goodness that traffic was very light !! Kim made me go down the wrong way of a one-way street. I noticed when we got on the elevator that her top was on inside-out !! The nurses at Ft. Sanders were great and made us feel at ease. Dr. Molly Peeler was the doctor that delivered the little fella and this was special since she and her husband George were also at our wedding in '97. Thanks Molly !!
I went out occasionally to notify Kim's parents and sister of the status. The first few times, the nurses thought I was fritzing out and asked if I was OK. I guess they thought I was about to pass out. It started happening fast and Josh made it into this world at 6:16 AM. Words can't describe how we felt at this point. I called my parents a little while later. Dad knew what the call was for as soon as he heard it ring. The new grandparents (Kim's parents) and Aunt Wendy and Uncle Scott got to help welcome Josh. My parents came down from Kingsport and got to see him also. Also, Harold and I came back to the house so I could take a quick shower and pick up a few things.
Kim is doing great and is relieved that it's all over. She's been great all day long - after she got the epidural around 3:45 or so. I won't bore anyone with the details with what it was like before that !! I think that there's something wrong - she's been liking the hospital food !!!
Josh is doing OK, but he's not been accepting food. They have taken him to Children's Hospital (across the street from Ft. Sanders) to give him an IV and to monitor him closely. His breathing, heart rate, color are all good and we are proud of him !! Late Sunday evening we have learned that he's starting to get the "sucking thing" down and the nurses say he was "going to town with the pacifier". I had no question in my mind of this - after all, he is a Butler. If you look at the pictures, he is "all hooked up" because of the monitoring and the feeding. We are hopeful that this is a short-term situation. All of the doctors and nurses at Ft. Sanders and Children's Hospitals have been great !! They have made this experience a more pleasant one.
Dad (me !!) is doing OK - even though I took some Nyquil 10 minutes before all of this started happening since I couldn't sleep and had a sinus headache. I am worn out !!
Phil
NOTE: We will be updating this page from time to time, so feel free to bookmark this page and visit again !!
This cartoon was in the Sunday paper on the day that Josh was born. How appropriate !!
Update - Wednesday Morning (6/13)
Here's a status update. It's Wednesday morning now (I think) and Josh is 3 days old. Kim got to come home yesterday after we visited Josh. We rested for the afternoon and went back over Tue. evening. We were real encouraged yesterday morning - Kim got to feed him a little. He took it well and didn't spit it back up like he did on Sunday. About 2-3 hrs. later, we called over and he was keeping it down. However, when they tried to feed him later he spit it back up and he also couldn't take any formula through his "nose tube", so he's back on the IV totally. We don't know what they will do today, but keep your fingers crossed. I hope that they allow us to feed him a little more, but don't try to do it too much. Once a day for now would make us happy.
He had dropped to 5 lbs, 13 oz. which is not surprising on Monday, but as of Tuesday, he was up to 5 lb, 13.5 oz. Also, when Kim and I went over last night, he was sleeping on his tummy and every once in a while, he would raise his little rump up and scoot out of his "snuggly". He moved maybe a total of 5-6 inches. I think we are going to have an early crawler !!
He's being treated for jaundice, so he's under the lights and has little sunglasses on (check out the latest pictures). Of course, this is fairly normal, especially for early babies.
Update - Wednesday Evening (6/13)
We stayed most of the day with Josh and he's had 3 bottles (10cc each) and he's keeping it all down. I fed him this morning and he was more interested in watching me than doing the bottle thing, but finally got it. I also got to change my first poopy diaper. I thought that I heard something and the nurse told me to stick my finger down there and find out. Well, I did and it came up positive !! I won't bore you with the details. Kim's parents came and stayed with Josh for a few hours early this afternoon and got to feed him and hold him. Kim fed him later in the afternoon and then we put him down for a nap.
Update - Saturday Evening (6/16)
Josh is still at Children's Hospital. His bilirubin (Jaundice) levels have finally started dropping. They started out at 13.3, dropped to 13.1 and then went to 13.6. We found out that the lights that they had him under weren't strong enough, so they changed the lights and this morning, his levels were at 12.4 (they want to get them under 10). They're increasing his food intake by 2 cc's per feeding. He's doing ok with them, although he's starting to slow down a little bit. We both think that he may need more than the 3 hours between feedings that they're giving him. We're still not sure when he'll be able to go home. It looks like he'll probably stay in the hospital this week. He's not having any messy diapers without the aid of a suppository. Hopefully, that will change soon! The nurse said she heard some "rumblings" in his bowel area this morning, so maybe things will turn around for him. We're getting ready to go back to the hospital this evening to sit with him. We're both getting a little tired and are anxious to bring Josh home. He finally got the feeding tube out of his nose, but they had to move the IV back to his head. He kept pulling at it too much when it was in his arm. They are decreasing the IV amount and as soon as he's eating 40 cc's, they'll take the tube out of the IV and cap it off (he'll still have the needle in, but no tubes).
Update - Monday Evening (6/18)
Josh has gotten to celebrate his Daddy's first Father's Day and his Mama's birthday (6/18). He's in a crib now and out from under the lights. He's still not eating well, so they put the nose tube back in for feeding. He's taking a bottle every other feeding, but he has gotten a little help. The IV is has been out since Sunday, so that's good. He's "tossed" regular formula, but it looks like he's going to be able to handle the soy-based formula. He's still got to get the sucking thing down.
Be sure to check out the pictures on 6/16 - these were taken by the nurses in the middle of the night. He had scooted out of his "snuggly" and had turned 90 degrees to the position that you can see. The funny thing is that his Daddy sleeps with his right arm up also !!
Update - Wednesday Morning (6/20)
We just got word that Josh took a bottle this morning in 15 minutes and did well with it !! Yesterday afternoon, he didn't want it at all and had to finish it via the tube. Last night, after we left, he had a good B-M on his own without help (the rectal-rocket suppository as the nurses call it). He spit up some also, but we were told that sometimes during a BM it comes out both ends after a feeding.
Hopefully, his feeding is going to turn around - everyone should keep their fingers crossed !!
Update - Thursday Evening (6/21)
Josh was eating great today - took all of his bottles in less than 20 minutes without complaint. Kim stayed with him most of the day, feeding him 3 times and even reading books to him. It really could be just a day or two before he comes home. Kim took a monitor class since Josh is going to be on a monitor when we bring him home, so he may be wired for a month or so. I think they do that for all early babies.
Update - Saturday Evening (6/23)
He's home!! We brought Josh home this afternoon. What a wonderful day! Kim's Mom and Dad came over and spent the afternoon with us. He's still eating good - even after the new transition of being home. Everyone at Children's Hospital has been great - it was almost a little sad leaving them today. We'll post some more pictures soon now that we have him home. We really appreciate everyone's prayers while Josh was in the hospital.
Update - Tuesday Morning (6/26)
We're settling into life as we will now know it. Josh is doing great! He's eating like a horse. We've had to increase his amount of food by a little. We thought that by increasing his intake, he could go longer between feedings - WRONG! He just wants more food. It's good to see that he finally has an appetite, though! We may actually get up to 2 oz. for each feeding before we know it. Josh has his first doctor's appointment in the morning. I know he's going to love that since he has to have a couple of his immunization shots (he doesn't even like to have his diaper changed). It's amazing how much he changes from day to day. He's so much more alert now and likes to be awake (especially last night at midnight).
We FINALLY have his nursery finished. We'll take more pictures this week of that and put them up on the site. We have added a few more pictures today.
Update - Thursday Morning (7/5)
I can't believe how much Josh is changing! We had to take him to the doctor's this morning just for a weigh in. He is now up to 6lbs 13oz. He peed all over Phil while he was on the scale. Josh was none too happy about being totally unclothed. He was really upset and when he gets that way, watch out! :-) He's growing like a weed. He's eating 2 1/2 oz. at every feeding. It probably won't be long before we can start weaning him off of those early morning feedings. They really haven't been that bad - yet. I take the 1:30 feeding and Phil takes the 4:30 feeding.
Even though we're not taking him out much around big crowds, we are accepting visitors!! If you want to see Josh, feel free to give us a call and come on over!
Update - Wednesday (7/11)
Josh had his 1 month check up this morning. He is now 7lbs 3 oz and 20" long. He is still only in the 10th percentile of babies his age (in other words, 90% of babies his age weigh more and are longer than he is). He's starting to stay awake for longer periods of time. We are feeding him almost 3 oz at each feeding, but he's still VERY hungry every 3 hours.
Yesterday was his 1 month birthday. It's hard to believe he's been here for a month (and he wasn't even due to be born yet!).
Josh smiled yesterday. He was laying on my chest and Phil was "messing" with him - trying to tickle him a little bit. He must have liked something Phil did because he gave a brief smile. I don't think it will be long before he's smiling all the time - you can see it in his eyes.
Everywhere we go, people are commenting on how much Josh looks like his daddy. I guess I'll just have to accept that! :-) He really does look like Phil - he's all Butler !!