Two Months

I can hardly believe that my baby girl is already two months old! Has it really been two whole months since we took this picture? My belly was so big! Scotlon took this picture at 2:07a.m. when we were leaving to go to the hospital. I was definitely between contractions since I was smiling!


A lot has changed since her one month pictures...praise Jesus! I remember being so sad that her one month birthday was being celebrated at the hospital. The nurses were so sweet and decorated her sign after I left for the day.

My sweet girl today! She's hanging out with her daddy and loving every second of it!

Alaina, my love, there are no words to describe how happy you make me. You are getting so big now and I so enjoy watching all the new things that you're doing. You are such a happy baby and you smile all the time now. Last Friday you rolled over for the first time and your daddy and I were so excited! You are so strong and it's hard to believe that you are only two months old sometimes. You are the best thing that God has ever blessed us with and we can't imagine life without you! I love you baby girl,

Mommy

So grateful

Tonight I am overwhelmed with gratitude for my healthy daughter. Nothing happened, nothing changed, I am just loving my beautiful baby girl. It's been a rough couple of weeks since we came home. Alaina hasn't been sleeping well, Scotlon has been putting in a ridiculous number of hours at work, and I've been beyond frazzled. I've cried because being a mommy is so much harder than anyone tells you it is and then immediately felt guilty because our story could have had a very different ending. I've looked at my kid and said, "come ON, I just need 5 minutes of peace" and then hugged her so tight she probably couldn't breathe because I do love her so very much.

If I had to guess, I think every new mom probably feels that way to some extent but no one really talks about it. Why is it so hard to say that I need help? Why do I feel like I have to have it "together" all the time? We put so much pressure on ourselves and each other to not show any signs of weakness when it's not weakness but reality that we can't do it alone. Can you imagine what a difference it would make if we spent half as much time building each other up as we do picking each other a part?

I'm a little scattered tonight. I'm not sure exactly where I was headed when I started this post but it definitely wasn't where I ended up...

~Stephanie

Typing with one hand

I have been working on this post since we got home but can't quite seem to finish it. Right now I am typing with one hand because my sweet daughter screams when I put her down. It is so thoughtful of her to reassure me that her lungs really are healed now! Anyhow, here are some pictures from our first week home. Enjoy!

Love,

Stephanie

Home Sweet Home

As of 3:30 this afternoon we are officially done with our stay in the NICU! Praise Jesus! It's so surreal to have this day finally be here. We kept looking in the backseat on the way home in disbelief. We are absolutely thrilled of course and have spent the last few hours just beaming with happiness. The last 5 weeks have been incredibly difficult but rewarding as well. God is so good and has used this season to reveal Himself in so many new ways. We praise Him daily for healing our baby girl and bringing her home to us.

"Along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them."
~Isaiah 42:16

Love,
Stephanie

I can't think of a witty title so we'll just go with 'Update'

Today has been a good day, full of rest for me. I spent a lot longer at the hospital yesterday and I think it wore me out more than I realized! It was a wonderful day though and I wouldn't have traded it. Aunt Jana, Aunt Hailey, Uncle Michael & Hannah all came to meet Alaina! Hannah had to wait outside because she is still a little young to visit, but they'll be spending a lot of time together in the near future.

Alaina also had a visit from our pastor and she decided to show off her ever-improving lung power for him! I can't blame her though since they were inserting a new feeding tube up her nose. Of course...if she would stop pulling it out they wouldn't have to put a new one in as often. I tried to tell her that but she refuses to listen. I never would have expected a stubborn child since Scotlon and I are so easy going and sweet...ha! In reality, I'm shocked that she's not more of a pill given the genes that she got:)

Last night when Scotlon got there to visit, she had managed to work her oxygen tube out and it was resting up on the bridge of her nose. The good news is that her stats were okay and she was breathing totally on her own for a few minutes. It's too much work for her to keep that up right now though so the nurse put new tape on the tube and we're hoping that she'll leave it alone.

Her feedings are going okay so far. She's not doing really fantastic but she's not doing really badly either. She gets a good rhythym going and tends to take about half the bottle before she needs a break. Once she sits up to burp, she gets tired and has no interest in working for the other half of the bottle. The physical therapist has reassured us that this is perfectly normal and that feedings are typically the last thing to master before kids leave. We are continuing to pray that she gets the hang of it. Once she gets it down a little better, they are going to let me try to nurse. I'm very hopeful that maybe by the weekend or first of next week, they'll let us try. Not that I don't love my pump, but feeding my kid has to be more rewarding than feeling like cattle...

Sometimes I get so tired and frustrated but then I look at that sweet face and it's totally worth it. Don't you just want to squeeze her???

I love that face too:)

Her new room in the Intermediate Care Unit. They didn't know her room was in ladybugs when they made the sign for her crib.

Aunt Jana, Aunt Hailey, Alaina & Me. We all look so much alike in this picture though none of us are actually related!

"Then they cried to the Lord

In their trouble and he saved them from their distress.

He sent forth his word and healed them; he rescued them from the grave.

Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love

and his wonderful deeds for men."

~Psalm 107:19-21

Love,

Stephanie

Picture Post

Here are some new pictures of my sweet girl! There's not much new to report right now as far as she's concerned. She is getting better slowly but surely and it's just going to take time for her lungs to heal after the trauma that they've been through. She's doing really well though and we're praying for the rest of her recovery to be speedy! We are both so ready to have our baby girl home with us. Thank you so much for your continued prayers and support. It means more to us than I can even begin to tell you.

I just love the back of her sweet head:)

Throwing a major tantrum!

Sleeping peacefully after finishing our tantrum.

Snuggled in daddy's arms and all is right with the world.

Love,

Stephanie

Quick update

It's been a crazy couple of days so I'm just now getting on to post. Alaina is doing well and hanging in there. She is definitely a rotten little stinker though...she pulled her intubation tube out on Friday night. They watched her closely and decided that she didn't need to have a new one put in. She is now getting oxygen through a nasal tube. She is stable and just trying to work on continuing to heal. And, for tonight that's all I've got since the storm is getting really nasty here and I need to turn off the computer. I promise new pictures and more info soon.

Love,
Stephanie

Holiday Weekend

This weekend was a little bit of a tough one for us. Alaina continues to be stable and is happy hanging out where she is. There have been no major leaps ahead in her progress and no major setbacks. We are thrilled of course with the fact that she is stable but frustrated as well at the lack of progress forward.

Saturday was her first holiday and it was really hard to not have her with us. She had a little outfit that we bought and she was supposed to be home with us wearing it. We were supposed to be enjoying the day with our new daughter, laughing and loving, not driving home from Eggleston's empty handed. We came in and just sat there together, trying to ignore all of the fireworks outside. Normally we love the fireworks but our hearts weren't in it this year. This was just not the way that it was supposed to be.

Please don't misunderstand, we are so happy that she's doing okay. We praise Jesus for all of the progress that she has made so far. We belive whole heartedly that He can heal our baby girl. We still have a long road ahead though and right now, we're both so exhausted and emotionally drained that we can't see straight.

We continue to ask for your prayers for Alaina to be healed. Will you also pray for strength and peace for Scotlon and I? We want to remain focused on the positive and not let anything steal our joy in the progress that Alaina has made. I've included the newest picture of our girl-her daddy brought in pink mittens instead of those yucky white hospital ones.


Matthew 11:28- "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."

Love,
Stephanie

Little Milestones

I promise one day that I'm going to get my post up before the very end of the day. Well, I promise to at least try to get it up before the end of the day.

Our visit with Alaina today was incredible. The paralytic that they had her on is continuing to work it's way out of her body and she's moving around a lot more. I put my finger under hers today and she flexed her fingers around it and held on. What a feeling to hold my daughters hand for the first time.

Today was actually full of firsts! We happened to be there during the time that they were taking her vitals and we got to help. I took her temperature and got to change her diaper. Which, by the way, is not as easy as it sounds when you're working around a lot of tubes. She put up with my shaking hands though and we got the job done. Speaking of diapers, she has already outgrown her newborn diapers and has moved to size one! We finally got a measurement of her length and she's 22 inches long. I can not believe what a big girl we have!

Her stats all look about the same today. We just got our bedtime report and she's stable and tucked in for the evening. Her blood pressure has been going up and down and they would like for it to be a little steadier. She's still on the nitric oxide along with oxygen and they want for her to come off of that completely before they transfer her back to Gainesville. Overall, she's continuing to improve but needs a lot more time to heal.

What a praise for her to have come this far! Less than a week ago we were facing very grim possibilities. The power of prayer is an amazing thing and 6 days later, here we are! We are very aware of the fact that things could still take a turn for the worse, but are choosing to trust that God has us exactly where we are supposed to be in this moment. We will continue to praise Him for all of her milestone's and lean on Him for strength when things aren't going as well.

Please continue to pray for Alaina's healing and for strength for Scotlon and I. We were talking earlier about how people without faith in God get through things like this. I can't even begin to imagine how much harder this would be if we didn't have hope that it was going to get better. If we didn't know for a fact that He is with her tonight, watching over her as she sleeps. Our sweet Jesus has been holding us every step of the way and I am so grateful that He is.

Psalm 106:1~ "Praise the LORD. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever."

Love,
Stephanie

Jereiah 29:11

Hey guys...I am finally on here to post myself! It's been a whirlwind the last few days and I so appreciate Hailey posting on my behalf. She is the best friend a girl could ask for and I just love her. Last June she was posting for me after my ankle surgery so I think that we may just hibernate for the entire month next year!

I can honestly say that this has been the most exhasuting day of my life. If you told me a few months ago that I would have a child at Egleston's I would have looked at you like you were crazy. I had a perfect pregnancy and took for granted that we would have a normal delivery and be home with our girl in a couple days. On Friday night as we were headed to the hospital I made Scotlon take a picture of me going out the door (I actually made him take a few). I am grinning like an idiot and holding my belly because the next contraction had just started. I look back on those now and wish that I could go back and capture that light-hearted feeling for just a second. Tonight, I would settle for anything lighter than what I'm feeling now.

Alaina was transfered to the NICU at Egleston's tonight. Scotlon rode down there to meet the team and make sure that she got settled in okay. I just spoke to him and she is all tucked in with her new doctors and nurses. For the next 24 hours they plan on trying to just keep her stable and let her rest since she's been through a lot today. If all goes well tomorrow (or later today technically) they will discharge me from the hospital and I will be able to go down and see her. There are so many different variables that are playing a part in her health right now. For the next couple of days we are trying to get her well enough that she doesn't have to go on the ECMO machine. There's only a short window that they can introduce the ECMO though so they may have to just so she doesn't miss that window. It's so much information to take in and we're still trying to process everything.

Thank you all for your continued prayers and support. I am speechless at the number of people that are lifting up our sweet girl. Scotlon and I are overwhelmed and incredibly blessed by all of you. Please continue to pray for healing for Alaina and for strength & peace for us. We know that He has a plan and we will continue to follow Him faithfully.

Jeremiah 29:11~For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Sweet Jesus, I ask that you put your healing touch on our baby girl. You are the Ultimate Physician and there is no docotor on this earth who can heal her the way that you can. Touch her with your hands and let her feel nothing but love pouring over her. We are placing her life in your hands, Lord.

Love,
Stephanie

Wonderful Weekend

This weekend was absolutely wonderful...uneventful, but wonderful! We got together with some good friends to celebrate a birthday, slept late, enjoyed some time at the pool and just took it easy. Yesterday afternoon we wandered the outlets and bought some cute things for our girl. We're trying so hard not to buy everything we see, but Carters was having a sale. It's hard to say no when everything at the already discounted outlet is even cheaper!

Mom Norton (Hailey's mama) came over last night to work on the nursery and we had a lot of fun painting together. She's doing a super cute border around the room that I can not wait to post pictures of. She is so talented and I love that Alaina is going to have a nursery that's unlike any other! Now if she would just get here so she could see it...

On that note, nothing new to report. We're down to only 12 days and I am SO ready for baby girl to get here. I'm doing everything that people tell you to scoot her along, walking, hanging out on my yoga ball, eating spicy foods, etc. Scotlon is really crossing his fingers that she's born on Fathers Day (6/21) which is next Sunday. Since there's supposed to be a full moon that day he may be on to something...I go back to the doctor on Wednesday afternoon so maybe I'll have something more to report then!

Hallelujah!

Scotlon will be starting his new job on Monday! He just got the offer this morning and we are so very thrilled. It has been a long 8-weeks but God has been so faithful every step of the way. Thank you all so much for your constant prayers and support. Words can not express how grateful I am to you.

"Now glory be to God! By his mighty power at work within us, he is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare or ask or hope." - Eph. 3:20

Ephesians 3:20

Let me begin by saying that we are all (including Huey) healthy. However, we found out this morning that my husband's company cut his position along with several others. While, I don't understand where this road is leading us, I know that God is good, He does have a plan, and He will provide. I read this scripture on another blog this morning before I found out about his job and I am clinging to it!

"God is able to do immeasurably more than all we could ask or imagine." ~Ephesians 3:20

Please pray for peace for Scotlon and I while we wait for Him to reveal what our future holds.

Love,

Stephanie

Water, Water, Everywhere

So...I'm a few days later than I meant to be on this post, but at least it's getting up! We have company coming this weekend and I have been a crazy person trying to get everything clean and organized. I know you're shocked and amazed that my house isn't already sparkling...ha!

We were all set to go out of town this past weekend and on Friday morning my wonderful hubby threw on some last minute laundry. I was just thinking that the washing machine was louder than normal when the water started POURING out from underneath the door. Did I open the door and see why? Nope. I froze on the spot and yelled for my husband.

I am such a girl.

He comes running in and found the hose on the back of the washer unattached from the wall and spraying water EVERYWHERE. He stops the washer and looks out at me (still standing in the same spot, ankle deep in water) and says, "Hey babe, can you maybe get me some towels?"

That wonderful calmness in the middle of a crisis is one of his best qualities. If you haven't picked up on it yet, I am not so great in a crisis. Actually, that's not true. I am really good when other people are having a crisis...I just can't handle my own!

None the less, we mopped everything up and now have a sparkling clean laundry room. Not quite the way I would have kicked off my Labor Day weekend, but when I think about how much worse it would have been if we had left the house after starting the washer, it makes me thankful that we caught it quickly.

Just one more way God is reminding me to count my blessings and not to sweat the small stuff!

I Am Not Wonder Woman

Good Morning! I want to ask you to pray for me this morning as I have come to a startling revelation.

I am not wonder woman.

I know that you all find this just as shocking as I did! That being said, I've been on my foot a lot more the last few days and it is killing me. Last night, I not only canceled plans with my Hailey (which I NEVER do), but I also used my crutches instead of putting weight on it. Since, I would rather crawl for the rest of my life than use the crutches, I took that as a sign that I needed to sit down and put it up.

I am at work today and going to stay chained to my desk with it propped up. If you wouldn't mind saying an extra prayer that it would stop throbbing, I would appreciate it more than you know.

And if you're thinking of telling me that I need to listen to my body and be patient, Allison beat you to it:) She just sent me this:

Be still & know that I am God. ~ Psalm 46:10

Thanks for being here.

Love,

Stephanie