He's the largest baby born at Longview hospital, and may be the biggest ever born in Texas
By Angela Ward
LONGVIEW — The latest addition to Michael Brown and Janet Johnson'sfamily is too big for his britches — literally.
When the Longview woman went into Good Shepherd Medical Center for a scheduled Cesarean section on Friday morning, she knew she was going to give birth to a big baby.
She just had no idea how big.
When her son, JaMichael Brown, was born at 9:05 a.m., he weighed 16 pounds, 1 ounce — about 4 pounds more than doctors predicted.
The baby is the largest born at Good Shepherd Medical Center. Hospital officials believe he may be the largest baby ever born in Texas, but it will take several days of combing state records to make that announcement official.
"We're just amazed," Johnson said. "I can't believe he's that big. A lot of the baby clothes we bought for him will have to be returned. They're already too small for him to wear."
The baby also emerged with a full head of hair, and the newborn nursery didn't have diapers big enough to fit him, she said.
JaMichael's father said the nurses told him the baby is a size most infants don't attain until they are between 3 and 6 months old.
JaMichael is Johnson's fourth child. He joins older sisters who are 18, 16 and 10.
Johnson had gestational diabetes during her pregnancy, and JaMichael is spending his first few days of life in the neonatal intensive care unit in order to regulate his blood sugar. The baby otherwise seems to be basically healthy, she said.
Deb Miller, a registered nurse working in the maternal care unit, said JaMichael is by far the biggest baby she's seen in her seven years at Good Shepherd Medical Center.
"I'm happy," Johnson said. "We'll be here for a few more days, and then I'm looking forward to bringing JaMichael home and just loving on him."