Settled in the South

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Happy Father's Day!

We had a lovely day here... even got to talk to daddy :) Here are some pix...

Cora and Bonny waking up Sofu with breakfast in bed and a present

bubbles!!!

big girl swing

even Emi enjoyed

3 generation shot at playground

"for he's a jolly good fellow"

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Hi there -- First of all, thank you so much for all the emails and concern. We truly feel blessed for such supportive friends and family. I apologize for not replying to emails right away as it seems as soon as I read a message, I'm otherwise needed elsewhere (I have a feeling this is what motherhood of 2 and acting as a "single" parent will mean...)

We are doing better this week. Dad is home and pretty much recovered, he sees his surgeon again on Monday.

Emi is growing and thriving. She's over 9 lbs now and loves to eat! Her systems are working well and her jaundice is pretty much resolved. Her broken clavicle has already calloused and is into the healing process. She's sleeping through the night in my room and I hope that stays :)

We miss Daddy dearly and look forward to his random communications. He's doing okay and working really hard. His work is important, which is rewarding and hopefully will make the time pass quickly until he can return home to us.

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Happy BIRTHday, Emi and WELCOME HOME dad!

We had a party yesterday complete with cake and some bubbly! Cora of course LOVED blowing out Emi's candle :) Wish you were here to celebrate with us...

Kampai

reading her "big sister" book

modeling her Irish claddagh baptismal bracelet

mom showing off her 2 new Vera bags

A little tour of where Greg is stationed

Greg sent me this link that briefly shows life at Camp Eggers, the base where he is currently living. I'm not sure how accurate it is to his life (especially the "fun" part), but it is nice to get a little idea of where he's eating and sleeping.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=vKj5CBtuexQ

Hope this loads easily -- it's my first time posting like this!

Friday, June 10, 2011

An Official Introduction...

It's taken a while, but we decided upon a name for this new addition! We love it and hope you do, too!

Emilia Vera Madea

what a week...!

It's been a whirlwind week and we're admittedly exhausted. But we know God gives us only what we can handle. I'm SO thankful to have the extra support right now, ESPECIALLY mom and my doula Wendy.

I'm not one to go on and on and on and on, as I hate to be bored and would hate to bore others, so this is a quick summary of what's happened and what's resolved thus far!

Lil'r M's due date was Sunday the 5th. Since my pregnancy complication of polyhydramnios and history of a big baby, we were eager to get this kiddo delivered! Induction of labor was planned for Monday the 6th.
Late afternoon on Sunday, my dad started having some sharp pains in his back, accompanied by nausea and vomiting. He was our planned childcare for Cora when I went to the hospital to have baby. Hmmm, not such a good idea. Remember, we recently moved here to CT and I don't know anyone else to just call and ask to step in.
Monday morning I had to be at hospital at 7 am for labor induction. Mom drove me, but I asked her to go home and watch Cora and dad, rather than be with me as support. This is where my labor doula Wendy was my angel. She was with me the whole day and called mom with updates and talked to Greg when he could call in and I couldn't talk... She was stellar! And pure volunteer through "Operation Special Delivery" -- doulas who volunteer to women who's hubs are deployed during birth of kids.
Mom did manage to come back to the hospital for LITERALLY the birth of Lil'r M, as mom walked in 5 minutes before she was born.
I had hoped for a midwife delivery, naturally, but she had to leave and I was being managed by a doctor (who was very nice, but I had never met her before that day). The doctor stepped out and promised to be back shortly, but this baby wanted out and that's what she did, under her own direction and she was delivered by an RN who was in the room with me!
Baby was big and bumped around a bit on the way out, which left a bruise on her head. This lead to hyperbilirubinemia (AKA jaundice AKA yellowing of skin), as her liver is not yet mature to process those red blood cells. She's been watched closely and her levels are improving, which will mean she doesn't need any additional therapy other than very frequent feeds to make sure her systems are working efficiently.
I was discharged to come home from the hospital on Wednesday. A couple of hours after getting home, dad's pain returned and seemed worse. I insisted mom take him to the ER and assured her that we were fine on our own at home. Sure enough, he had a kidney stone, which necessitated hospitalization and surgery on Thursday. Surgery was a success and he seems to be on the mend. We're expecting him home later today or tomorrow morning!
Today, we went to her pediatrician visit and learned that baby girl's bilirubin levels are still elevated, but trending down, which is good news. However, on physical exam, we learned that she has a broken left clavicle (collarbone)! It wasn't picked up by the NP at the hospital and her doc doesn't think it's severe, but another thing to watch. Doc wasn't surprised given the size of baby and said it's quite common and not painful for baby.

BREATHE! Somehow we're keeping it all together. Sorry for the novel summary. Please keep us all in your prayers. My mom is a rockstar :) Cora is pretty darn patient and going with the flow well. I feel like I'm still in a daze, to be honest!