Update...

Dear family and friends

This update is overdue, but things have obviously been a little busy around here. I want to thank you all for the love and encouragement and prayers. J and I wanted to share the basics of what has happened and will happen directly with each of you. We want to make sure that you know the facts and know that we love each of you.

I was over 20 weeks along on Thursday, September 16^th when we went in for a routine anatomy ultrasound. They were unable to find a heartbeat. They think that Job had been gone just about a week then. I had no bleeding, cramping, or any indication that anything was wrong, and the pregnancy had progressed normally up to that point.

Once a pregnancy nears 20 weeks, they no longer consider it a miscarriage, but a stillbirth. As a result, their suggestion (and our choice) was to schedule an induction of labor and deliver the baby naturally. We went in on Friday afternoon and began induction around 3 pm. Labor was fairly easy and quick, which was a blessing. At 3:35am on Saturday, September 18^th, Job Whitcomb McCown was stillborn.

He weighed 3 oz and was 7.5 inches long. He was very tiny, but an absolutely perfect baby. We got to hold him, get footprints and handprints, take some pictures, and spend some time with him. We have decided not to share the pictures at this point in time as they might be hard for some people, but if you would really like to see, please let us know.

At this time, we still are not sure what a happened. There were no visible issues with Job, the cord, or the placenta, so more tests are being run. We hope to find out the results of those in the next couple of weeks. There is a good chance we will have some idea what happened, but it’s also very possible we will never know.

Job’s namesake is from Job 1: 20-21-

Then Job arose, tore his robe, and shaved his head; and he fell to the ground and worshiped. ²¹ And he said:

“ Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
And naked shall I return there.
The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away;
Blessed be the name of the LORD.”

Our sweet Job has been cremated, and is with us right now, but we are still deciding how exactly we would like to handle things. We have not scheduled a memorial service yet, but for now, we are planning that there will be one in Texas, sometime later this year. I’m not sure exactly when, but we will be sure to let you all know.

We are obviously struggling and mourning the loss of our child, but trusting in God’s big plan for our lives. We know that Job is happy, pure, and so loved up in God’s arms right now, and we anxiously anticipate the day when we can meet him. He will always be with us and we will always grieve not getting to know him. He will still always be our Duckie.

We feel so very blessed so have our sweet healthy Jarvis and to have his smiles, giggles, and love in our lives. We are especially thrilled and blessed to have gotten good tests results back and to have Jarvis cleared of any immediate danger from conditions associated with Triphalangeal Thumbs.

We love you all very much and please know you are welcome to call and talk to us anytime. If we don’t feel like talking at the moment or are unable to, we will be sure to tell you and will call you back later, so please do not hesitate.

Once again, we love you all very much,

J, C, and J