Out of ICU!!!

E moved out of ICU today--finally! Now we can focus on transitioning her back to feeding normally. She is still on a small amount of oxygen, but hopefully she will be able to regulate that better on her own as her lungs continue to improve. I look at where she was 2 1/2 weeks ago compared to now and am amazed at how she has healed. I am also amazed at how much love and support we have felt from family, friends, neighbors, and ward members. Our family feels very blessed!

Back in Mom's Arms

E went off the ventilator on Saturday. The cardiologist removed a line that went straight into her heart on Sunday and then we finally got to hold our baby after 9 days! When the nurse put her into my arms, E opened her eyes and stared at me for a long time as if to say, "It's about time!" After that reprimand, she settled down and went back to sleep (looking very comfortable I must say). She has gotten more fluid in her lungs since coming off the ventilator, so we're hoping for some improvement soon so she can get out of ICU. It's frustrating for me to go so slowly, but maybe I'll learn patience after all.

No More Chest Tubes!

I know it doesn't look like it, but E is missing 3 tubes that were draining fluid from her chest. The nurse removed them this morning. The doctors and nurses are still working on getting baby's lungs free of fluid so they can take her off the ventilator. Hopefully that will happen in 2 days. It seems slow, but she really is making progress. They have to keep her pretty sedated because she has quite the temper. Hmm...she fits right in! So much for my desire for a calm, sweet baby. It's better this way--she will have enough spitfire in her to get through this ordeal. Take a look at the hairdo. Today's nurse obviously likes the spikey look!

Baby E Update

Here's a quick update on the progress of our favorite newcomer to the world. She is doing well today and continues to be quite stable. This morning the surgeon closed the chest and today has been a day of re-dialing in all of the myriad of medicaions to keep her heart rate, blood pressure, respiratory rate, etc. all in check. Fortunately, this has not been a hectic affair. She now has an "NJ" tube going from her nose to her intestines and they will very slowly start using this for feeding starting tomorrow. So for now, she continues to do well. We'll just keep praying for the best!

Baby E Progress

Here's our little baby before the surgery. We were able to bless her at home the night before she went into the hospital. E's surgery went as well as could be expected. She is in ICU and will be there for at least another week. She has tubes and wires coming out of all of her little body parts. She still has her chest open because of swelling, but they will close that up tomorrow. Overall, she is holding her own. She still looks cute--one of the nurses came by and did her hair. Dad wanted the mohawk look. The nurse agreed, only if she could put a bow in also. She stuck it on with Elmer's glue. That's a new one! On a different note, I got to attend Sacrament meeting at the hospital today. Good news--it only lasted 30 minutes and I got to wear pants! I don't think we'll make that attire a habit, but it was nice for today!

How Does Our Garden Grow?

Our garden grew well for the first time ever! We have very prolific summer squash, small tomato trees, more pumpkins than we would want to remove guts from, cucumbers, green peppers, hot peppers, a random carrot or two, and even a couple of teensie weensie watermelons! Water and Miracle grow are a good combination! Of course, we can't figure out what to do with our bounty. Frankly, I think our friends are tired of my pleas to rid my home of extra veggies and I'm the only one who actually likes to eat what we've grown. So, our family night tonight involved squash baseball (imagine squash bats and green tomato balls), and a garden fashion show. I don't think this was what church leaders had in mind when they counseled families to plant a garden and use it!

Baby "Slug"

A new baby girl will finally be joining our family! We have waited for four years for this little person. So even though this will be a Christmas baby (something I said I'd never do), we are thrilled! Our family tends to come up with interesting names for the baby in utero. This one happens to go by the glamourous yet endearing term of "Slug." I happened to mention once to the kids that in the first ultrasound (8 1/2 wks.), the baby looked like a slug. The name stuck. Poor child! We will try to come up with something better after she is born!