In our last post we left our hero, Jack the brand new Verhaaren, in the birthing room being weighed and otherwise measured. It was only fair that since Mom had spent the most time with him up until now that Dad go with him to explore the nursery downstairs. This involved a lot of firsts for Jack. His first elevator ride, his first bath, and his first shot. He didn't really notice the elevator, he didn't love the shot but took it stoically, the bath he hated. "Please, just give me shots," he seemed to scream. The nurses tried to oblige him by drawing blood from his arms and heels, and indeed he was much more calm than he had been during the bath.
While all of these exciting things were happening the nurses noticed that Jack tended to moan when he breathed. Their guess was that his lungs weren't working at full capacity yet and so they decided to keep him in the nursery for a while so that they could keep an eye on him.
A few hours later he was still moaning so they called down a doctor from the NICU. He suggested an x-ray be taken of Jack's chest. At this same time the nurses were trying to get a hold of the pediatrician who had been assigned to check over Jack the next day. This pediatrician happened not to be in that day, so they got a hold of his partner who agreed to come in and check things out. In the mean time the x-ray was taken and looked at, and the diagnosis by some was that it might be pneumonia.
It should be said at this time Mom and Dad were becoming more and more anxious. They also found out the the pediatrician thought they needed another x-ray, the first being difficult to read. They finally made some decisions when the new x-ray was taken and the pediatrician got to the hospital. They said Jack's lungs had some residual fluid in them that was preventing them from working at full capacity. This meant he needed a trip to the NICU where they could blow air into his lungs. Luckily, after a few hours they pronounced him healthy enough to breath on his own and so about twelve hours after his birth Jack got to leave the nurseries and NICUs in favor of Mom and Dad's room. Now he has the time to learn how to eat, which he has been looking forward to since conception.
Post Script: Both sides of the family seem to like the name Jack. Also, both sides have asked if Escher is a family name from the other side. Well, Escher is now a family name on both sides although it wasn't two days ago. All family names must have a beginning.
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