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>>>
back now at 8:11 with one of our favorite families, the duggars. parents
jim bob
and
michelle
became the proud parents of their 19th child back in december. this morning we have an exclusive first look at their daughter,
josie
brooklyn. she was born 3 1/2 months premature, but we are happy to report both mom and baby are doing well.
jim bob
,
michelle
, and most of the
duggar
clan are with us this morning. nice to see you all.
>>
good morning.
>>
good morning.
michelle
, we have been waiting seven weeks to see baby
josie
. i know that she's still in the hospital in the nicu unit, so she's not with us this morning or with you, but you have some good news to report as to how she's doing. can you tell us about her?
>>
yes. little
josie
is
7 weeks
old today, and that's a lot to celebrate, and she's doing very good. she has already doubled in weight. so, she now weighs 2 pounds and 4 ounces.
>>
yeah, i understand she was born at, i guess it was 1 pound, 6 ounces, and she was on a ventilator until just recently, but things are definitely seem to be looking up. i want to take you back to that day that she was born,
december 10th
. you had been in some difficulty prior to that,
michelle
. you had been brought into the hospital a few days earlier suffering from a
gall stone
and then you developed preeclampsia,
high blood pressure
, and the doctors decided they had to take the baby within
30 minutes
. can you describe that day to me?
>>
oh, i think that day was one of the most scary moments of my life, realizing that little
josie
was going to be born early, and we didn't know -- i mean, i was just scared to death thinking here she's only, you know, she's 15 weeks away from her
due date
, will she survive? and it is amazing how they can sustain life at such a tiny, tiny age. and so, arkansas children's hospital has done a wonderful job, and umas. they just -- it's amazing what they can do with
little babies
.
>>
jim bob
, what are your memories of that day? because here you are with your wife and your
unborn child
, and i guess there must have been some fear that you could possibly lose both of them.
>>
yes. preeclampsia happens to about 5% to 8% of all pregnancies in all women, but we thought that maybe we would be able to keep the pregnancy going for many more months, maybe 3 1/2 months, so she could be full-term, but it was so scary when she had to deliver early, but that is the cure for preeclampsia is to deliver the baby. so, anyway, we -- i know when they came in and said they needed to deliver in
30 minutes
it was one of the scariest moments of our lives, but we really felt like that was what we needed to do, and we're so thankful that
michelle
's doing great and the baby's doing great, and we're just so blessed.
>>
you've moved most of the family to
little rock
to be closer to
josie
so they have a chance to see her, whether in pictures or physically. i know, jill, you're old enough to visit your
little sister
. how would you describe her?
>>
yes, ma'am. she is so precious. i think just seeing a baby that small, it's amazing. i just cry like every time i go there. just, she's so little, and her -- like her whole hand can barely wrap around my pinky. so, just seeing that
precious little
life and that it can be sustained at that age, and it's beautiful.
>>
i know you are used to newborns around your house, but is there something special about
josie
?
>>
there is. she's a little doll. i mean, she's so tiny. i was actually out of the country when she was born, so i had heard, oh, she's 1 pound, 6 ounces. i was like, wow, but i couldn't imagine the size. and trying to figure that out in my mind, and then whenever i finally got to see her, she is itty-bitty. she's my little itty-bitty. but she's so precious and beautiful.
>>
yeah. she looks beautiful to me as well.
jim bob
, is she out of the woods at this point? i know with preemies, it's pretty much a day-by-day experience up until the time when they reach the moment of their true
birth date
, which i think for her would have been
march 18th
or close to that.
>>
correct. normally, they keep them in the hospital until when they would have been born, and they take about three steps forward and two steps back. they say never trust a preemie. she'll do good for a few days and then her saturation level or heart level will go down for a few minutes, then it will go back up, and that's just typical for a preemie. but overall, she's done very well and she's gained a pound and probably within the next month she'll probably gain another pound or two, and we look forward to the day that we can bring her home to join the rest of the bunch.
>>
and we look forward to that as well.
jim bob
,
michelle
and the rest of the
duggar
gang, congratulations on baby
josie
. i get the "j" part, and the
middle name
is brooklyn. we love that here in new york. thank you guys very much.
>>
thank you, meredith.
>>
thank you.
>>
and by the way, "19 kids and
counting:
special
duggar
delivery" airs saturday,
january 31st
, on tlc.
>>>
coming up, what parents need
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