Monday, December 1, 2008
Home at last!
First and most importantly, NOELLE IS HOME! So much has happened in the last week that has led up to us bringing her home. She made such great progress and so quickly. Noelle started eating so well and one of the requirements to bring her home was that she needed to take all 8 of her feedings orally. Well she started doing this amazingly. Sunday, Nov. 23, the nurse that was attending Noelle told us that she doesn't expect us in the NICU (newborn intensive care unit) for longer than a week. This came so unexpectedly. We knew she was doing well but didn't realize how well. As the week went on she kept taking more and more feedings all on her own. And Noelle's pediatrician told us to expect her to come home on Saturday or Sunday (Nov. 29 or 30). We were so excited! But this meant that we needed to get A LOT done in a short amount of time. So as me and Michael started running around like chickens with our head cut off to get prepared for the arrival of our daughter, Noelle continued to grow and progress at an amazing rate. She was doing so good but she struggles a little with her oxygen still, mostly while she is eating. She still needs to get the whole "suck, swallow, breathe" action mastered. Babies born full term, for the most part, know how to do this but premature babies need to learn it all on their own. So this meant that we would be going home with a monitor (to monitor her heart rate and breathing) and oxygen. So Friday some people came in to train us on the monitor and oxygen. After this we got to do what is called "rooming in." That's where we spend 12 hours in a room with Noelle and her new monitors and take care of her all on our own. Well we obviously did a good job because we got to take her home on Sat. Nov 29 at around 10:30am! She left the hospital at 4lbs 9 oz and is still growing :)! We are so happy that she is home and feel so blessed that she is doing so well and is so strong. We just wanted to let everyone know the happy news and want to thank everyone for your thoughts and prayers.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
"Count your blessings, not your worries"
"Count your blessings, not your worries." That is the theme of the last couple of weeks for me and Michael. Well mostly me. Michael found this saying on the back of a Dove wrapper and it just seemed perfect for what was going on. I have been so focused on all of the things that there are to worry about when it came to Noelle that I didn't stop to think about all of the blessings. There have been so many:
1. She is a healthy baby and came out healthy.
2. Her lungs are strong.
3. She is awake and alert when we are there.
4. Her eye test was great.
5. Her brain x-ray was great.
6. She is responsive and has a good/beautiful cry.
7. She is ours!
I could go on and on. I have so much to be grateful for and I really can't focus on the things that there are to worry about.
As of Tuesday night Noelle weighed 3 lbs 12 oz. Yay! Our little girl is growing :). I know that doesn't sound like a lot but it is compared to the 2 lbs 15 oz she was when she was born. She has been moved to a different room. They call the room she is in now the "feeder and grower" room because nothing is wrong other than they need to learn how to eat and need to grow more. Right now she is in a little enclosed bed called an isolette. This is to help her to maintain her own body temperature so that she can grow more. I was able to help the nurse give her a bath the other night. I loved doing this. Noelle loved being in that warm water and almost seemed liked she had a smile on her face the whole time. She is moving tons and we get to dress her in her tiny, cute preemie clothes. Michael loves being with her and holding her. He is so confident at picking her up and changing her diaper, I am amazed. He's definitely more confident than I am. He loves being her dad and she already has him wrapped around her little finger. He has had a cold the last couple of days and hasn't been able to see her. This has made him so sad. Soon he'll get to go back and hopefully I don't get sick. Michael has been my anchor and my everything through this. I am amazed at the faith and strength that he has. He has been my shoulder to cry on and has comforted me more than he will ever know. I love him so much. I am so grateful to my Heavenly Father to have him and to have a beautiful daughter.
1. She is a healthy baby and came out healthy.
2. Her lungs are strong.
3. She is awake and alert when we are there.
4. Her eye test was great.
5. Her brain x-ray was great.
6. She is responsive and has a good/beautiful cry.
7. She is ours!
I could go on and on. I have so much to be grateful for and I really can't focus on the things that there are to worry about.
As of Tuesday night Noelle weighed 3 lbs 12 oz. Yay! Our little girl is growing :). I know that doesn't sound like a lot but it is compared to the 2 lbs 15 oz she was when she was born. She has been moved to a different room. They call the room she is in now the "feeder and grower" room because nothing is wrong other than they need to learn how to eat and need to grow more. Right now she is in a little enclosed bed called an isolette. This is to help her to maintain her own body temperature so that she can grow more. I was able to help the nurse give her a bath the other night. I loved doing this. Noelle loved being in that warm water and almost seemed liked she had a smile on her face the whole time. She is moving tons and we get to dress her in her tiny, cute preemie clothes. Michael loves being with her and holding her. He is so confident at picking her up and changing her diaper, I am amazed. He's definitely more confident than I am. He loves being her dad and she already has him wrapped around her little finger. He has had a cold the last couple of days and hasn't been able to see her. This has made him so sad. Soon he'll get to go back and hopefully I don't get sick. Michael has been my anchor and my everything through this. I am amazed at the faith and strength that he has. He has been my shoulder to cry on and has comforted me more than he will ever know. I love him so much. I am so grateful to my Heavenly Father to have him and to have a beautiful daughter.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Our surprising and quick arrival of Noelle!
This week has been the craziest week for me and Michael. So much has happened in such a short amount of time so bare with me as I try to summarize everything into a few paragraphs.
Monday (Oct. 27) I went in for a doctors appointment thinking that everything would be normal. The previous week I had done two seperate 24 hour urine tests. One of the tests had come back and my doctor said that my protein level was really high. I don't remember the exact numbers but it was higher than normal. So because of this and that my blood pressure was still up he told me to pack an overnight bag for the hospital. Thank goodness Michael was there because this came as such a shock. But I stayed suprisingly calm. We got a bag packed quickly and we left for the hospital. We checked in and they put us into a room, where I of course got the chance to put on one of those lovely robes and layed on the bed until the doctor arrived. My mom got there, which was a great comfort. Before my doctor came they wanted to give me an ultra sound and have some kind of specialist look it over to see if there was anything else going on. As far as the baby was concerned everything was pretty healthy. Her heart was beating at a healthy pace and everything was developing well. She was a little small for how far along I was (32 weeks). The specialist came in and noticed the blood flow from the umbilical cord. She said that it wasn't quite pumping enough blood and nutrients and this had something to do with my placenta. (I know this isn't that clear, but it all happened so fast.) My second urine test came back with an even higher amount of protein in it. So she said that I had chronic hypertension and preeclampsia (toxemia) and that because of the high blood pressure I could have a seizure or a stroke and this would be very dangerous on the baby. She strongly suggested that we have the baby delivered as soon as possible. As you can imagine I'm getting a little emotional at this point, but still doing okay. My doctor got there and said the same thing. Because the risk was so high of having a stroke or a seizure he wanted to do a c-section because this was the fastest way to get her out. So within an hour I was drugged up as much as possible and on my way to the operating table with Michael by my side. Before this Michael, along with my doctor, had given me a blessing. I don't remember what was said, but I do remember feeling peace.
Within about 30 minutes Noelle was pulled out. She was born at 6:38pm, weighed 2lbs 15 oz and was 16 inches long. I was awake the whole time but couldn't feel a thing. As soon as they pulled her out Michael started taking pictures with my cell phone (this was the only camera we had at the time). She also had a pretty healthy cry which doesn't happen a lot with preemies. I was moved from the operating room into my normal room where I just had to wait and recover a little. Everything happened so fast that I don't think I really got a chance to take it all in. I'm glad it happened fast because it wasn't until later that my emotions caught up to me. The next day (Tues Oct 28) They moved me to another room and that is where I stayed until Friday evening. Noelle is doing really good! She is little but other than that does not have any additional problems. Her lungs are really strong and is only on a little oxygen. The nurses say that she is a fighter because she tries to pull the tubes out of her body every chance she gets. She is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen! They tell us that they try and make their actual due date the goal of when they get to go home. Sometimes they can go home before and sometimes it's after. We're just trying to be patient and trusting that everything will be okay. So much has happened that I would not have expected. I definitely don't like to see her hooked up to all those machines, it breaks my heart. But I know that she will be okay and that it's all in the Lord's time. Me and Michael are over there every chance that we get. We get to change her diaper, take her temperature and hold her twice a day. Those moments are so precious to us. I wish I had a room right next to her. There's the update. I will give more updates throughout the coming weeks of her progress. We have lots of pictures already and when we get a chance will put them on here and facebook. We've had so much support from friends and family and the Lord has blessed us so much. Pray for our little Noelle!
Monday (Oct. 27) I went in for a doctors appointment thinking that everything would be normal. The previous week I had done two seperate 24 hour urine tests. One of the tests had come back and my doctor said that my protein level was really high. I don't remember the exact numbers but it was higher than normal. So because of this and that my blood pressure was still up he told me to pack an overnight bag for the hospital. Thank goodness Michael was there because this came as such a shock. But I stayed suprisingly calm. We got a bag packed quickly and we left for the hospital. We checked in and they put us into a room, where I of course got the chance to put on one of those lovely robes and layed on the bed until the doctor arrived. My mom got there, which was a great comfort. Before my doctor came they wanted to give me an ultra sound and have some kind of specialist look it over to see if there was anything else going on. As far as the baby was concerned everything was pretty healthy. Her heart was beating at a healthy pace and everything was developing well. She was a little small for how far along I was (32 weeks). The specialist came in and noticed the blood flow from the umbilical cord. She said that it wasn't quite pumping enough blood and nutrients and this had something to do with my placenta. (I know this isn't that clear, but it all happened so fast.) My second urine test came back with an even higher amount of protein in it. So she said that I had chronic hypertension and preeclampsia (toxemia) and that because of the high blood pressure I could have a seizure or a stroke and this would be very dangerous on the baby. She strongly suggested that we have the baby delivered as soon as possible. As you can imagine I'm getting a little emotional at this point, but still doing okay. My doctor got there and said the same thing. Because the risk was so high of having a stroke or a seizure he wanted to do a c-section because this was the fastest way to get her out. So within an hour I was drugged up as much as possible and on my way to the operating table with Michael by my side. Before this Michael, along with my doctor, had given me a blessing. I don't remember what was said, but I do remember feeling peace.
Within about 30 minutes Noelle was pulled out. She was born at 6:38pm, weighed 2lbs 15 oz and was 16 inches long. I was awake the whole time but couldn't feel a thing. As soon as they pulled her out Michael started taking pictures with my cell phone (this was the only camera we had at the time). She also had a pretty healthy cry which doesn't happen a lot with preemies. I was moved from the operating room into my normal room where I just had to wait and recover a little. Everything happened so fast that I don't think I really got a chance to take it all in. I'm glad it happened fast because it wasn't until later that my emotions caught up to me. The next day (Tues Oct 28) They moved me to another room and that is where I stayed until Friday evening. Noelle is doing really good! She is little but other than that does not have any additional problems. Her lungs are really strong and is only on a little oxygen. The nurses say that she is a fighter because she tries to pull the tubes out of her body every chance she gets. She is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen! They tell us that they try and make their actual due date the goal of when they get to go home. Sometimes they can go home before and sometimes it's after. We're just trying to be patient and trusting that everything will be okay. So much has happened that I would not have expected. I definitely don't like to see her hooked up to all those machines, it breaks my heart. But I know that she will be okay and that it's all in the Lord's time. Me and Michael are over there every chance that we get. We get to change her diaper, take her temperature and hold her twice a day. Those moments are so precious to us. I wish I had a room right next to her. There's the update. I will give more updates throughout the coming weeks of her progress. We have lots of pictures already and when we get a chance will put them on here and facebook. We've had so much support from friends and family and the Lord has blessed us so much. Pray for our little Noelle!
Thursday, October 23, 2008
2 more months to go!
Lots of updates today. Last week we had another ultra sound, just to see her progress and everything. It was the coolest thing. We even got a video! She is doing good but a little bit smaller than we were expecting. That's probably due to my high blood pressure. She's only about a week behind and the doctor isn't worried. We got to see an awesome shot of her hands on her cheeks and by her mouth. She likes to touch her face a lot. It was so cute and made us so excited!
This past weekend I felt really weird, sore, and extremely exhausted. It's almost like I could feel my blood pressure rise. On Monday when I went in for my doctors appointment my blood pressure was 152/110. Not good! So the doctor put me on bed rest :(. He is also having some other tests done on me. And he gave me some steroid shots for little Noelle's lungs so they can develop quicker, just in case she comes early. Today my blood pressure was way down (125/81) and he said it was most likely because I was off of my feet and not so stressed. Apparently I stress out a lot and that's just what my body does or how it reacts. Noelle is doing good and her heartbeat is healthy and is still moving a lot. Bed rest has been okay. Michael has been so wonderful and patient and I really don't know what I would do without him. Thank you Michael! I have a great visiting teacher who is always calling to check up on me and a great ward. My dad brought me lunch and brought us some groceries. Thank you! My mom came down yesterday and cleaned our house, did the dishes, bathroom, etc. It helped so much and I am so grateful for her. Her and my sister also brought me some books to read. If anyone has any suggestions on what books to read or other things to do, please let me know! Sometimes it gets so frustrating and discouraging not being able to do anything really for yourself. You have to rely completely on someone else. It sure has made me grateful for what I do have. I have felt a lot of mixed emotions the last couple of days and I am realizing what things really matter. My faith has gone to a completely different level and I'm learning to be humble, that's for sure. Noelle is healthy and I want to do anything I can to keep her that way. Me and Michael are to the point now that we just can't wait to hold her and look at her. It's getting so close :). Only 2 months, more or less! Thanks for everyones support and love!
This past weekend I felt really weird, sore, and extremely exhausted. It's almost like I could feel my blood pressure rise. On Monday when I went in for my doctors appointment my blood pressure was 152/110. Not good! So the doctor put me on bed rest :(. He is also having some other tests done on me. And he gave me some steroid shots for little Noelle's lungs so they can develop quicker, just in case she comes early. Today my blood pressure was way down (125/81) and he said it was most likely because I was off of my feet and not so stressed. Apparently I stress out a lot and that's just what my body does or how it reacts. Noelle is doing good and her heartbeat is healthy and is still moving a lot. Bed rest has been okay. Michael has been so wonderful and patient and I really don't know what I would do without him. Thank you Michael! I have a great visiting teacher who is always calling to check up on me and a great ward. My dad brought me lunch and brought us some groceries. Thank you! My mom came down yesterday and cleaned our house, did the dishes, bathroom, etc. It helped so much and I am so grateful for her. Her and my sister also brought me some books to read. If anyone has any suggestions on what books to read or other things to do, please let me know! Sometimes it gets so frustrating and discouraging not being able to do anything really for yourself. You have to rely completely on someone else. It sure has made me grateful for what I do have. I have felt a lot of mixed emotions the last couple of days and I am realizing what things really matter. My faith has gone to a completely different level and I'm learning to be humble, that's for sure. Noelle is healthy and I want to do anything I can to keep her that way. Me and Michael are to the point now that we just can't wait to hold her and look at her. It's getting so close :). Only 2 months, more or less! Thanks for everyones support and love!
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Week 29!
I'm feeling tired but good. I'm 29 weeks along now (wooohooo!-only 11 more to go, or around there) and I'm really feeling huge. I don't know how any one else felt, but I feel like she's growing by the minute and getting much heavier. I went to my doctor's appointment and my blood pressure (bp) was ok. He's said that I was maintaining, which I really didn't want to hear, but at least it's not getting worse. I have to take one more bp pill a day and the doctor made me cut my hours at work. So now I am working part time and going home to take a nap. My hands and feet are swelling up a little too and being off my feet will really help with that. The good news from my doctor: she's moving a lot, she has a very healthy heart beat, and my weight is doing great! Like I said I'm trying to stay off my feet more so our little house is suffering a little. It takes a lot of control for me not to clean or do other things with the extra hours I have now. Michael is really good though and cleans for me, without even being asked :). The top 3 chores I've hated since I've been pregnant:
3. Making the bed
2. Doing the dishes
1. Cleaning the bathroom (particularly the bathtub)
I've really started to love the color pink. Ever since we knew that our baby was a girl everything pink looks so cute. The other colors are great but for some reason I just want to buy pink things. Maybe I'm just weird, did anyone else feel that way at one point? I think everything "baby girlish" looks cute to me. We're getting so excited to have her here with us and I honestly feel like I am getting to know her already. My sister Alyson sent me a text the other day about how she already feels that little Noelle is part of our family. Me and Michael totally feel that way too and I already want to protect her in any way that I can. My motherly worries are already starting (which isn't unusual if you know me, I always worry). 11 more weeks to go, that still sounds like a lot, but we are getting more excited with every passing week!
3. Making the bed
2. Doing the dishes
1. Cleaning the bathroom (particularly the bathtub)
I've really started to love the color pink. Ever since we knew that our baby was a girl everything pink looks so cute. The other colors are great but for some reason I just want to buy pink things. Maybe I'm just weird, did anyone else feel that way at one point? I think everything "baby girlish" looks cute to me. We're getting so excited to have her here with us and I honestly feel like I am getting to know her already. My sister Alyson sent me a text the other day about how she already feels that little Noelle is part of our family. Me and Michael totally feel that way too and I already want to protect her in any way that I can. My motherly worries are already starting (which isn't unusual if you know me, I always worry). 11 more weeks to go, that still sounds like a lot, but we are getting more excited with every passing week!
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