Reminder to self:

From 9-18-09:"While I spent a good party of yesterday pity-partying it up, asking God why I couldn’t have a normal, ordinary pregnancy … it was impressed on me that God’s glory is greater seen in the extraordinary. So, thank you Jesus for making this journey anything but ordinary!"

2 days old.

Psalm 34
1 I will praise the Lord at all times.
I will constantly speak his praises.
2 I will boast only in the Lord;
let all who are helpless take heart.
3 Come, let us tell of the Lord’s greatness;
let us exalt his name together.
4 I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me.
He freed me from all my fears.
5 Those who look to him for help will be radiant with joy;
no shadow of shame will darken their faces.
6 In my desperation I prayed, and the Lord listened;
he saved me from all my troubles.
7 For the angel of the Lord is a guard;
he surrounds and defends all who fear him.
8 Taste and see that the Lord is good.
Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!
9 Fear the Lord, you his godly people,
for those who fear him will have all they need.
10 Even strong young lions sometimes go hungry,
but those who trust in the Lord will lack no good thing.

I am a week old! {& a NICU update}

I’d love to show you a photo of how cute I am, but they won’t let mommy and daddy take pics! Sometime in the last 24 hours {mommy can’t really remember when}, Daddy gave me a bath and I weighed in at 5lbs 13oz!

My dr. has decided that I will for sure be here on a 7 day treatment of antibiotics. Today began day 3. God willing my other tests are good, I think I might be able to break out of this joint! Dr. also said that my bili levels went back up {which mommy and daddy figured, since I was showing a bit of a yellow tan, again}. This morning they weren’t high enough for him to want to put me back on the lights, so we’re praying they go back down!! If they get to 13, I am back to the tanning booth! :(

I had my renal ultrasound today and my right kidney showed mild hydronephrosis. The nurse told mommy and daddy that this is not a cause for concern, and that it doesn’t really play a role in this game. Mommy mentioned she heard that it basically clears itself without treatment and the nurse said that was correct. She said everything else looked normal! Praise Jesus! As always, mommy and daddy are eager to talk to my dr. about this in further detail. Tonight mommy said she wishes Dr. T was still taking care of us – not that my new nurses and dr.’s are bad {actually, they are the top of the line!}, but nothing compares to Dr. T’s care!

I have another test in the next few days … a dye test which checks for blockage. That one doesn’t sound too fun to me!

Me and mommy talked daddy into leaving the hospital today to watch my biggest bro play football. I was bummed because this was supposed to be my first football game! My nana brought Josiah to the hospital and he and daddy headed to the game. I am glad my daddy got some boy time in – I hear Jay is having a hard time! My nana came with mommy to feed me and we got to snuggle! Anyway, Drew rocked the game, and was a huge star! Daddy told me all about it when he got back!

Mommy says she wants smooth sailing from here on out, with no more surprises. I can’t promise anything, but I guess I can try!

I haven't brushed my teeth in 72 hours {& other NICU ramblings}

The low down:

Over the last couple of days Ella’s bili has dropped from 24 to under 10. Yay! She’s now off the lights and no longer has to wear her super cool sunglasses! She’s more alert and looks good.However, her urine sample came back positive for bacteria. Her CBC was normal, so they were thinking the sample might have been cross-contaminated. They ran a second test to verify, and unfortunately, it came back positive as well – her urine had E.Coli in it. She’s been on antibiotics via IV for the last 24 hours, and will likely remain that way for the next 7-10 days. :( Which means NICU for another week, at the minimum.

Ella will have a renal ultrasound done {along with some other tests} to check for abnormalities. I am very curious to talk to her dr. tomorrow about this and the possibility of it having anything to do with the excess fluid. Please pray these tests come back all perfect and that there’s nothing more going on than a UTI {which likely caused the Jaundice}.

We are still able to use the family room, which is seriously smaller than my mother’s closet, but it has a bed and a door, so we are super grateful. There are only 2 of these rooms {a lot of more critical NICU babies have rooms where parents can actually room in with them, not an option for Ella}, and I am constantly hearing families asking for them … which makes me even more thankful to have a place to snooze. {Here’s where I explain why it pays off to occasionally be the crazy, hormonal mom: when we were admitted, and I was uh, bawling, a sweet lact. consultant took me under her wing, and today explained that she got us into the small room herself, and choose this room b/c we’re less likely to get kicked out of it. She’s also hooking us up with cafeteria vouchers and has been such a help in assisting with breastfeeding – I am really grateful Ella and I have had so much time to work with her! Anyway …} If another family has a critical baby and needs the room we will be asked to move out of it {and will, obviously!} but for now we LOVE that we have our tiny space of privacy. And for someone not fond of public bathrooms I have to say that I am getting pretty acclimated to living out of one.

We go to Ella every 3 hours to take her stats, change her diaper {pee and poo is weighed!}, and feed her. She’s in a NICU room w/ about 12 other babies. We sign in, scrub in, open doors with secret buttons using elbows and knees and basically get to feel we’re on Greys. We spend an average of about an hour with her and then have 2 hours to eat or sleep or try to spend some time with Jay {whose abandonment issues are not really being helped right now – sorry buddy!}. We drag ourselves around, drugged up on Visine and smile at all of the other NICU parents who look pretty much like we do {NICU parents get special badges, so we know who is who}. We're attached to pagers that are used to "call" us back anytime Ella or a nurse needs us.

The nurses are mostly awesome. And I really have a super amount of compassion for families who are required to live at the NICU for months on end. I can’t imagine!

We’re off to grab something quick to eat {happen to actually like cafeteria food – so many things to choose from!!} before our 9pm date w/ an adorable little girl!

Thank you so much for praying for us! It is so very appreciated! We fully know our girl is in the hands of an AMAZING God!

{These were taken on the day she was born. I want to share her birth story, but haven't had the chance yet, coming soon!}

First family photo - Sat. afternoon!

Monday, November 09, 2009

Ella's in the NICU

... for high billi levels. She'll probably be here at least 4 days. For now, we got into a family room so we can sleep at the hospital and breastfeed with mommy & daddy touch time every 3 hours. Please pray for her billi levels to drop and for complete healing/ health.

Thanks!

Sunday, November 08, 2009

Dear Jesus,

My mommy and daddy keep telling me about the people who have been praying for me from all over, and about all of the people who took care of them while I was a cookin’. Apparently, I am a highly anticipated little thing! Thank you Jesus for each person who has come to you on my behalf. I am so excited to be here and to get to know the amazing family & friends I have been born into! Mommy and daddy tell me they couldn’t have made it without all of these people … I am a bit honored at all the attention I am getting {okay, I love it!}.

Thank you Jesus! For blessing my family and creating me! And for all of the people who took part in the journey!

Friday, November 06, 2009

on the day YOU were born ::

the sunlight danced in your hair

the stars twinkled in your eyes

the moon beams kissed your cheeks

and the Angels sang your sweet name.

E l l a B r o o k l y n
November 5th, 2009 :: 8:33pm

6lbs2oz :: 20 inches

Thanks be to the Giver of all for the gift of this amazing little life.

Wednesday, November 04, 2009

Top of the 9th

Dr. T has been referring to our pregnancy as baseball lately, and tonight we find ourselves at the end of the final inning.

Diaper man came, diapers folded, ready for use. Check.

Bottles sterilized. Check.

Bags packed. Check.

Camera’s charged. Check.

Super cute car seat installed. Check.

Clothes washed. Check.

House cleaned. Check.

Frozen dinners prepared. Check.

Babysitters lined up. Check.

Alarm clock set. Check. {sleep? We’ll see.}

Still have the head cold/ allergies. Check.

Nervous stomach, ready to puke. Check.

Knowing my husband I am sure you’ll get many updates throughout the day! We have nothing better to do ;)

Ah!

Ephesians 3:20
20Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.

Yankee's won! Wa-hoo! Couldn't ask for more! :)

Monday, November 02, 2009

The 5th sounds like a good day for a birthday!

Dr. T greeted us today {before we were even in our room!}, to tell us that he thinks Ella needs to come this week. He’s concerned about the cerclage and contractions and the risk of cervical damage. Typically a cerclage is removed around 36 or 37 weeks, but we’re not doing that {not worth risking anyone’s life w/ the Polyhydramnios}. He wanted her early anyway, to avoid a c-section.

I have been contracting like crazy. Last night we were up until 1 cleaning {middle of the night spurt?} and then I contracted every 6-8 minutes until about 4, when I decided to stop timing and just go to sleep. I figured if they got worse I’d wake up … but they didn’t. They haven’t been consistent at all today.

We go in at 7am on Thursday for cerclage removal and then an induction. I’ll be 38 weeks {can you believe it???}. So, that’s like … in 3 days.

Three.

{our allergies have been CRAZY since windy days and I PRAY I am 100% well by Thur!}

Jay has been extra needy, he’s even been sleeping in our room the last 3 nights. He’s like a dog that knows you're about to leave them home alone while you go on vacation. He knows. Last night we were watching the Yankees whoop some booty, and out of no where Jay pops up with “We don’t need to worry about baby Ella … Jesus is taking care of her.”

There you have it.

Someone push pause so I can bottle this stuff up.

We have a 14 year old who WANTS to talk to us and WANTS to play board games with us. He helps and is caring and compassionate.

We have a 4 year old who wants to marry me. He is adamant that it is his mommy who will become his wife when he’s all “growed up”. Our life is full of moments like these, which just make me laugh:

I have a baby girl who moves around in my belly. The Giver of Life has chosen to share this with me. We will meet her soon!

I am madly in love with my best friend. A man I meant at a Halloween party 13 years ago. He is amazing!

We wake up and eat breakfast as a family. Sometimes they eat and let me sleep until far past the time a grown woman should! My husband goes off to work, where he spends days impacting lives for Jesus. I get to stay home and take care of my home and family.

It’s on these hilltops that I wish I could put it all into a bottle. So, someday, while in a valley, I can pull it out and open the lid and breathe it all in, taste it, remember every detail.

It’s 2:30am, I am awake timing contractions. ;)

Sunday, November 01, 2009

Halloween-e!

Our very special Miss Miriam took Jay out for the day, and then we spent the night @ our church. Jay was a race car driver ... and enjoyed his day very much!

Tonight my hubs went shopping at came home with this. Pumpkin Spice creamer is one of God's greatest gifts! I will now be drinking a little tea w/ my creamer - ha! {By the way, the flowers were super thoughtful too! ;) }

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