Wednesday, July 30, 2008


This is what I found when I got home from our Sunday School Girls' Night Out last night...

I think I'd have 12 of that man's babies!

Luke update: This kid is going to be a chunky monkey before we know it! He gained 12 ounces in 4 days...as of Monday, he was up to 6-7! I told Jennie he just wants to be as big as his cousin when he meets her on Labor Day!

Sunday, July 27, 2008

I need some motherly wisdom...


All 3 of my boys are napping, so I've spent my free time lost in blog world! It's been so nice to have a few minutes to do something without a purpose!

We are hanging in there! Luke weighed 5-12 on Wednesday, so he's gaining about an ounce a day. We go back tomorrow for another weight check, and then hopefully we can cut out the bottle completely. Pumping and then giving Luke a bottle takes too much time! Especially when it's just me at home with both of them. But we'll do what we have to do!

I need some advice from all you toddler moms out there...we are having major issues with Ford and obedience. And this started WAY before Luke arrived! Ford has a quite a temper when things don't go his way, and he can be outright defiant at times. I know he's only 21 (almost) months, so I'm having a hard time on knowing where to draw the line between him just acting his age or needing serious discipline. We do spank (personal decision - don't really want to start a discussion up about that:) but it doesn't really seem to phase him. I've tried time out, but I think he's still a little too young to understand. The reason this is such a concern to me is I feel like your temper is such a heart thing, and we need to get this under control NOW. My family has a history of bad tempers, and I do NOT want Ford following in these footsteps. This is something Joseph and I have prayed constantly about since Ford first started showing signs of this. Any words of wisdom? Any Christian-based book recommendations? I'm not expecting him to act like a perfect angel all the time, but I also do not want to have a defiant son. Please help a mama out!

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Settling In


We're going on Day 5 having little Luke at home and all is going better than expected! He is the sweetest baby EVER! All the munchkin does is sleep, eat and poop! I have yet to hear him cry - I know it's coming, but I'm really enjoying how easy he is right now. Ford is definitely warming up to him, but I wouldn't call them best friends or anything! But he's showing a lot more interest in him - today I was getting Ford's backpack ready for school and Ford got Luke's bottle off the coffee table and put it next to him in the bouncy seat. My eyes welled up (probably had a little to do with hormones) because it gave me a glimpse of what the future could be like! It really is my prayer that they will love each other fiercely and be the best of friends!

Daddy and his boys
I think one of my top 5 favorite things about having a baby is all the wonderful food people bring you! My sweet friend Holly arranged meals for us for a few weeks, and while these meals are doing nothing to help my waistline, they sure are delicious! Ford LOVED the chocolate-covered peanut butter rice crispie treat he had tonight - thanks Galimores! And thank you to everyone else who has fed the Martin family...it is much appreciated!
Thank you so much for all the prayers, calls, cards, comments and encouragement you have all given us through the past 3 weeks. It all seems like such a blur! Luke goes back to the doctor tomorrow for a weight check and to have blood drawn - I'm thinking I'll hear him use those lungs when they prick his little heel! Good night!

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Home Sweet Home

What a wonderful day it has been! To have our whole little family together at last was perfect. Ford, unfortunately, did not feel the same way! He was very unsure of Luke when he came home from school, and then acted totally disinterested in him after his nap this afternoon. I think he's taking the tactic of "If I ignore him, he'll go away." I guess he'll realize after a couple of days that this little guy is here to stay!

Here are a few pictures of the day - Luke has slept ALL day long, so he hasn't been the most cooperative model! I'm wondering what kind of night we're going to have!
He looked a little small in his car seat...
So we tucked 3 blankets around him! Look how big his feet are compared to the rest of him! They go with the long arms and legs!
Ford meets his brother for the first time...
And decides he'd prefer to be an only child!
Hmmm...maybe I'll just touch him with my toes. (Although it looks like he was trying to kick him, he was actually being quite gentle with his little feet.)

The proud daddy with his new son

This picture is for Jennie - notice what he has on! Luke wet through his outfit and the blanket after we got home (I think the diaper was too big) so Joseph took him upstairs to change him. This was the outfit he picked! It always makes me smile to see what he puts Ford in - whenever he would dress him when he was little, he'd always put him in the same thing - one of Parker's old t-shirts and a pair of little bitty sweatpants! He said he wanted him to be comfortable. Well, Jennie, being an amazing aunt, sent Luke 4 newborn outfits once we realized we didn't have anything that would fit him. There was a buy 2, get 1 free sale, so this "Handsome" number was the "get one free". Cute, but definitely the third choice. Not for Joseph! I guess he wanted everyone to know just how "Handsome" his son is!

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Wednesday is the day!

He's coming home tomorrow! He gained 3 ounces, so he's back to his birth weight! I can't believe that we'll all be together tomorrow! I can't wait to see Ford's reaction...I'm thinking it's not going to be very favorable:) He's a mama's boy, so I'm pretty sure he's not going to like to have to share me! I guess he'll get over it soon enough! Stay tuned for lots of pictures tomorrow!

Monday, July 14, 2008

Keep Your Fingers Crossed!

We're hoping Luke is coming home tomorrow or Wednesday! We walked into the nursery today and he was out of the incubator in a regular bassinet!!! He has to keep his temp up, continue to eat well, and not lose any weight through the night. He was up to 5 pounds this morning, so pray every ounce stays on! I can't believe we may be reaching the end of this winding road...but I think we have a pretty fun, crazy road ahead of us! My mom got out all of her baby stuff last night while Ford was over there, and she said he sat in the infant swing, ate blueberries, and watched Mickey Mouse Clubhouse for an hour! I would have kept all that stuff out if I thought it would keep him still for more than 2 minutes!


The other big news is we have another new member of the family! My fabulous sister-in-law had a beautiful little girl on Friday! Her name is Emma Claire, and I think she looks just like her big sister, Maryn. Jennie had a LONG day of labor, but she is a champ! I can't wait to hold that little girl! I told Jennie that looking at all the pictures of her friends with Emma made me so mad because it's supposed to be me! I was actually going to go to Charlotte last Tuesday if Jennie had gone into labor by then, but thank the Lord she didn't! Luke would have been born in North Carolina! I can just imagine Mark trying to explain to the nurses why he was there with 2 very pregnant women! Maryn and Ford are exactly a week apart and Luke and Emma are a week and a day apart. Jennie tells me I'm on my own for the next one!

Sunday, July 13, 2008

The Big Brother


I figured since Luke has been the main topic of interest lately, Ford needed a little blog action! We were both a little stir crazy this afternoon, me from being at the hospital for most of the morning and Ford from being stuck inside due to the rain. So we decided to take a little stroll around the neighborhood, and somehow he ended up stripped down to his diaper and crocs so he could play in the mud puddles! He loved every second of it and did NOT want to come inside! He is such a different child now that he's gotten tubes - it's hard to believe that was only two weeks ago. Ford got tubes on Monday, I went into labor on Wednesday, and Luke was born Thursday morning! What a blessing those tubes have been. God's timing is perfect!

Ford thinks the camera is called "cheese" - he shouts it whenever he sees me break it out!
We had to get Daddy to help hose him down...Joseph forced me to take some really crude shots using the water hose as a prop - you can use your imagination from there - but I will not be posting those photos on this blog!

Checking In

Luke has been moved from the NICU into the "special" nursery! He's gaining weight everyday - he was up to 4-15 today, so one more ounce and we'll be back to 5! He's nursed a few times and takes a bottle very well, so hopefully that weight will keep piling on! He's got a lot of skin to grow into! My best guess, if everything keeps going like it is, is he'll be home maybe the middle to the end of this week. I CAN'T WAIT! He's such a sweet baby; I haven't heard him cry yet! He doesn't even complain when we change his diaper! I know that will all change, but I think the nurses are all loving him! Thanks for your continued prayers!

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

The Latest

Hello, dear friends! Luke is doing well; we had a bit of a setback yesterday, but he seems better today. He had a few episodes of apnea, so they put him back on the oxygen and are giving him some rounds of medicine that will take care of it. He was back off of the oxygen this morning, so he's definitely improving. Joseph got to give him a bottle, and that little monkey sucked it down in less than a minute! He's HUNGRY!! All steps in the right direction!

Specific prayers at this point would be that he puts on weight, that he's soon able to maintain his own body temperature, and that he will be able to nurse soon. His pediatrician said best case scenario would be us bringing him home at the beginning of next week, but a more realistic picture would be towards the end of next week. I've had a pretty emotional day - I think the hormones are finally catching up to me and the waterworks have begun! Luckily Joseph is like a rock - in the best possible way - so he's keeping me encouraged! Please continue to lift Luke up as well as the amazing doctors and nurses that are taking such great care of him. Thank you!

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

A Great Mistake

We got some unexpected good news today at the hospital...the scales in the delivery room were off by a pound, so Luke really weighed 5 pounds 3 ounces!!! Doesn't that sound so much better? He would have been one big baby if he had cooked for 5 1/2 more weeks! He's down to 4-13, but now that he's getting milk through the feeding tube, he'll hopefully gain it back fast!

He's also completely off the oxygen! It just gets better and better!

Monday, July 7, 2008

The Best Day Ever

Here are the pictures I promised...he's even cuter in person! He's doing great with the feeding tube and they're hoping he'll be completely off the oxygen sometime tomorrow. What a little miracle God has given us!! Good night!
Joseph is so proud of all of his hair - he thinks Luke has excellent "swoop" potential!

Great News!

We just got back from the hospital where we got to hold him for the first time!!! It was the best feeling ever - one I'll never take for granted again. He's doing so well. He's almost completely off the oxygen, and he's able to use a feeding tube to take my milk...which is in in abundance! Pumping every two hours around the clock sure does do the trick!! He's done a great job at sucking a paci, so hopefully when we get to the point where we're able to try to nurse, he'll be a champ at that! Thank you so much for the prayers, sweet messages, and the food! What amazing friends we have! Specific prayers would be that he continues to progress so well, and that he's able to nurse. I'm not sure what the next step is; they don't really like to give a time table for things up there! That's a little difficult for me since I thrive on a plan, but God sure is teaching us a lot through this! We'll take some pictures tonight and post them soon! I think he looks a lot like Joseph - especially his long arms and legs!

Saturday, July 5, 2008

Home for a second...

Hello dear friends! It's Sarah - I'm home for a few hours to spend some time with Ford, and then Joseph and I are heading back up to the hospital for the evening. We had a bit of a scare this morning; Luke's CO2 levels were too high, and they were talking about sending him to Montgomery, but we just got the latest test results back and they're no longer going up. Praise the Lord!!! I've been discharged, and because he is not able to breathe on his own, they were unable to keep a room for me. Apparently they can only do that if the baby can actually stay in the room as the patient. So we are taking this day by day - luckily we have lots of help for Ford thanks to my mom and sister! I just talked to our pediatrician and she said that none of what Luke is going through right now will have any long term effects, it's just an annoying hurdle to get through. Coming home without a baby is probably the hardest thing I've ever done, but Joseph and I know this is only temporary and we are extremely blessed that he's doing as well as he is. God is so good!


I thought I'd give you a glimpse at how little Luke is since it's hard to tell from the picture Joseph first posted. Here's one of Luke's diapers (size xxs-preemie) next to one of Ford's diapers (size 4). He's pretty tiny! But great things come in small packages, right? Thanks again for all your prayers; we feel very loved!

Friday, July 4, 2008

Update on Luke

Luke had a good first night! He is still in intensive care but is showing improvement. Every chest x-ray is better than the one before. They did have to raise his oxygen level, but the doctor did say that preemies get worse before they get better. He had a episode of apnea which is where he stopped breathing for a couple of seconds but it has only happened once. Our specific prayers are that he will stay strong enough to remain here and not have to go to Montgomery and that he will be strong enough to suck so that he can have his Mama's milk to fatten him up! He also has a touch of jaundice, so we are praying that those levels don't rise. Thanks again for all of your prayers, we are definitely feeling them!

Thursday, July 3, 2008

Luke Armistead Martin


To everyone's surprise Luke's arrival this morning was shocking! Sarah and I are still grasping the fact that he is already here. He was born at 9:30 am weighing in at 4lbs 3ozs at a height of 18.5 inches. As you all know he was not supposed to join us until mid August. Sarah and I arrived at the hospital around 2:30 am due to contractions assuming we would only be there for a couple of hours. That was obviously not the case! As you can see in the picture he is staying in intensive care to remain on the IV and oxygen. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers. Sarah and I appreciate everyone's cares and concerns. We will keep you updated as things progress.