I'm a MOMMA! Yes, I have to keep saying that to myself in order to believe it. Most everyone reading this probably already knows what happened but I still find it fun and exciting to write about the glorious entrance of our sweet (sassy) little Emmeline.
Emmeline Ann Perry made her entrance into this world on February 24, 2012 at 10:06 am. If you have been keeping up with the blog you will notice that the date is only 4 days after I was discharged from the hospital for monitoring on Tuesday the 21st. All my labs were clear and my blood pressure was fine when I was on bed rest at that point. 3 days later I began to feel uncomfortable after dinner and thought I just had eaten too much (trust me it happens more often than not). After a sleepless and extremely uncomfortable Thursday night I began packing a small overnight bag because I knew that I probably needed to go to the hospital because I was in such pain. At this point I hadn't been through any labor classes or even had my shower. I was exactly 32 weeks. After the longest car ride of my life we made it to labor and delivery triage at Vanderbilt around 7:00 or 8:00am. After getting labs they loaded me up on a what they call Magnesium and wheeled me ot the labor and delivery without telling me what was going on. I thought, "Great, here we go again. They are gonna keep me here 24 hours, then tell me to go home on strict bed rest." Boy was I wrong! All of a sudden a swarm of doctors and nurses were hooking me up and one very calmly doctor told me that my liver was failing and I had severe pre-eclampsia that has led to HELLP syndrome (look it up) and that they would be delivering Emmeline. I burst into tears thinking it was way too early. Thinking it would be sometime later on in the day I asked how long before I was to deliver and thet said 20-30 minutes!!!!!!! Next thing I knew I was getting my epidural in the operating room and I was in total shock. The next few hours after that are kind of a blur just becasue I was soooo scared and still in shock that I had just delivered my baby. Drew went with her to the Children's hospital NICU while I was wheeled to recovery. Because I was on the magnesium for 48 hours, I was unable to see Emmeline until they took me off. The drug was to prevent me from having seizures. Drew took many photos of her and would show them to me. I felt pretty left out :( All I wanted was to see my baby girl.
Here is a photo right after delivery of me and Emmeline. This is a very special photo to me being the first time I got to hold my daughter.
So now the focus is solely on Emmeline. Emme was 2 lb and 10 oz when she was born. She was also 15 in long! That is long for a 2lb baby! She was born with VACTERAL syndrome which basically means there are many organ systems that have not developed properly. Each letter stands for one thing or another. She has duodenum atresia, esophageal atresia, a VSD (hole in her heart), hemivertebrae in her lower spinal column, and she is also has some missing or malformations of her arms. Pretty scary to hear huh? When you think about them all together then yes, its extremely scary but we look at it this way. She will be having surgery in the next few weeks to repair her atresias, the hole in her heart has a high possibility of closing on its own, her hemivertebrae may never give her issues, and her arm malformations will be addressed and altered when she is older and will most likely have most function in both. On top of this we are also happy to say that she has not been diagnosed with any chromosomal disorders! She is a MIRACLE. Quite a spunky miracle too.
So here we are at 5 weeks. Emmeline now weighs 3lb 11oz. She is as big as the surgeons told us they want her to be to have her first surgery but we haven't heard when they will be performing it.. Since she is unable to eat and is receiving her nutrition through IV fluids she grows much slower than most babies do but nonetheless she is growing. Ill try to keep the blog updated as the weeks go on. There are so many little milestones that I want to share but I will just post as they happen from now on. Her big milestone today was that she is in a big girl crib!:) Next up...surgery!
For those of you praying for us please pray for Emmeline's continued growth and weight gain The faster she gains weight the faster she will be able to start feeding on real food. Drew and I are very very nervous and anxious about her upcoming surgery but we know that with continued prayers and God's direction and comfort that everything will be wonderful. Emme is a fighter first and foremost and she has the personality to go with it. ( I type that as I just tried to put a pacifier back in her mouth and she made this terrible face and pursed her lips letting me know that she did NOT want it anymore!) Now that is classic Emme. She is also the sweetest little girl who likes to be held and snuggle into mine and Drew's chest with a little smile on her face. I hope his blog allows you to get to know our daughter a little bit since we can't share her with anyone for a few more months. She will be so happy to know that she already has so many that love her. She is the best gift we could ever ask for and in my opinion the second best gift anyone can be given by God second only to His son Jesus Christ.
My sweet husband left me this simple yet powerful verse this morning in Emme's room and it really sums up everything...
" His joy is our joy"
John 15:11
We're still praying for your spunky little girl to keep growing! Love the pic of Drew reading to her.
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