Noelle's Evening with Daddy

Noelle absolutely loves her daddy and cranes her head towards his voice whenever she hears him talking to her.  He had some time this evening to devote just to her, and she thoroughly enjoyed their activities together.  The pictures say it all!!

~Daddy reading her a story~

~Looking at the pictures~

~Soaking up the snuggles~

~Catching a cat nap~

She currently weighs 3 lbs. 15 oz. and is in and out of doctor appointments right now for various observations and procedures.  They have postponed the biopsy for another month but now believe that it is probably unlikely that she has Hirschprungs disease.  It is definitely still a possibility, but it is encouraging that she is currently doing very well in that regard.  We also had encouraging news this week regarding her hypothyroidism and now understand that this may be a transient issue which she could outgrow.  If not, she will be treated with medication for the rest of her life, but we are thankful for the hope that this may pass and are grateful as well that it is a controllable issue, regardless of the final outcome.  Thank you for your continued prayers as we continue to wait and trust God for more answers regarding Noelle's health.  He has certainly brought us this far, and we know He will never fail us.  What a comfort in which to rest!!

Noelle's First Week Home

Our first week home with Noelle has been filled with joy and love as she settled into her new surroundings at home.  She has adapted quite well with a nearly seamless transition and overall is a very easy and good baby.  She sleeps nearly 12 hours at night and goes right back to sleep after her feedings every 3 hours.  During the day, she is content to look at her mobile, nap, listen to music, snuggle, and eat.  We are thoroughly enjoying our precious miracle; and while being at home is not free from all anxiety, God has graciously prepared us for these days, and we are truly grateful for each and every moment we have with her.  Yesterday as we thanked God for His Son, Jesus Christ, and His resurrection from the dead, we also gave thanks for 4 months of life outside the womb with Noelle.  She currently weighs 3 lbs. 12 oz. and is quickly approaching the 4 lb. mark!  She has a busy week this week with follow-up appointments, and we are hoping to get some more answers regarding the testing for her intestines.  As always, thank you so much for continuing to pray for us.  As many have reminded us, the journey is not over, but we have simply taken another path in that journey and still need prayer as much as ever.  The pictures that follow are just some of the moments we have captured during her first week in her very own surroundings.  Welcome home, Noelle!!!

~First Bottle at Home~

~First Nap at Home~

~Daddy decided to follow suit~

~First Bath at Home: She slept right through it!!~

~Snuggle Time with Daddy~

~Watching her light up ornament~

~More Sleeping...~

~Holding her own paci!~

~Napping~

~Meeting Grandma~

~Talking with Daddy~

~We took a visit back to the NICU and she weighed in at 3 lbs. 11.9 oz.  {Love Amanda's face in this one :)~

~Visiting with Meredith, one of her sweet nurses~

~Loves playing with Daddy~

~Posing in her outfit from Grandma Wagner~

~Snuggling with Grandma~

~Happy Girl~

NICU Day 117/Home Coming Day ~ (April 2nd)

What an amazing day this turned out to be, filled with grateful hearts and an incredible amount of love.  The day was incredibly bittersweet as we said "see you later" to our NICU family whom we have grown to love immensely.  No words could even begin to describe how thankful we are, not only for the care we received the past four months but also the love and friendships we now have through this journey.  I think the pictures along with the FOX 8 newscast describe that day better than I could ever communicate in words, so please enjoy these special memories captured on "film."

(The people included are not even half of the team that has taken care of her these many weeks.  We still need to go back and capture some pictures we missed with several people!! Thank you, Joy and Lori, for taking so many pictures!)

~Dianne, Noelle's nurse her last night in the NICU (Noelle loved snuggle time with her)~

~We love Dr. Tatum and are so very thankful to God for him and the role he played in Noelle's care~

~Lori, one of Noelle's awesome nurses~

~Dr. Helderman, another of Noelle's wonderful neonatologists~

~Christi & Christina: Noelle's fantastic delivery nurses~

~I asked Donna to dress Noelle in her home going outfit.  It was especially fitting since Donna was the one to dress her for the very first time!~

~All dressed and read to go and snuggling with Aunt Donna (who came in on her day off to see us leave)~

~Noelle's message for the Forsyth NICU (courtesy of Auntie Em ;-)~

~Removing Noelle's things...something I just could not bring myself to do~

~Forever bonded together (I have talked with her at least once a day since Monday!!)~

~Taking it all in~

~Amanda holds a special place in our hearts~

~Joy, one of Noelle's amazing respiratory therapists~

~Candace, another of Noelle's sweet nurses~

~I love all the memories we have with Amy, Noelle's respiratory therapist (her mother made this precious blanket for Noelle)~

~One final kiss before entering the carseat~

~Tiny feet~

~Comfy, Cozy~

~Almost ready to go!!~ 
 

~One final "see you later..."~

~Happy family~

~Home, Sweet Home~

~I think I like it here!!~

FOX 8 Home Coming Update

~Home, Sweet Home~

We will post an update of today at some point when we have some time after settling into home; but in the meantime, Fox 8 news is running a home coming update in the news tonight at 10:00.  You can watch the feed live here or it will be posted online after the story airs.  Today was an overwhelming day, a testament of God's incredible goodness in our lives.  Thank you for your continued prayers for our family.  We look forward to continuing to share with you how God works in and through this precious miracle He has granted to us.

***FOX 8 NEWS STORY may now be viewed here***

NICU Days 115 & 116 (March 31st & April 1st)

~Sanding the hutch for Noelle's clothes & baby items~

The last two days have been a bustle of activity as we prepared for Noelle's home coming scheduled for tomorrow.  Thankfully, we had obtained her crib early in the pregnancy but had taken it to a friend's {the Shaws} home to paint it and then ended up storing it there after our first ultrasound revealed initial bad news.  We moved to a new place only a few weeks before that sad day and once we had the first news report, we decided not to put together a room to which we would have to close the door for an amount of time if things went as the doctors said they would.  Things began to change only a few short weeks before Noelle was born; and then once she was here, we practically moved into the NICU and have lived there the past nearly 4 months.

~Alex helping Uncle Tom~

Needless to say, we never did get things painted or her room put together, so we spent Saturday performing prep work on the furniture pieces.  We are moving some things around in our home, painting them, and re-purposing them to work for our needs.  I look forward to the day when we can reveal the final results, but we were excited at how much we were able to accomplish yesterday.

~Sanded and ready for the next step~

After finishing the sanding, we met the oxygen care people at the hospital for our training on Noelle's oxygen support and apnea monitor.  We're hoping she will be free of these things after gaining a couple of more pounds, but we are thankful to have these items for our transition home.  Then came the fun part for which we have waited many days.

~Noelle getting set up on oxygen in the parenting room~

We had the privilege of spending the night in one of the parenting rooms with our little girl.  Ironically, we were assigned the same room in which we had stayed during the week in January when she had become extremely sick with pulmonary hypertension.  Thankfully, we will have more pleasant memories of that room as of last night since Noelle did very well through our trial run; and we are looking forward to our first night at home with her.

~Settling in for the night in the parenting room~

If all goes well, we will be home with her by late tomorrow afternoon and are filled with anticipation and excitement for this new path in our journey.  Simultaneously, we are saddened at the thought of saying "see you later" to our NICU family who has embraced us and taken such wonderful care of us these past many weeks.  We are so grateful to God for not only bringing us through this trial but for the way He has brought us through this trial and for the lifelong relationships we have established along the way.  We will miss everyone tremendously!!

~Amanda: Noelle's Admit Nurse & Discharge Nurse~

~Amanda admitting Noelle on December 8, 2011~

The plan tomorrow is for Amanda to be Noelle's nurse and walk us through the discharge process after morning rounds and the discharge orders are written.  This was special news to us as she was Noelle's admit nurse on the day she was born and has taken wonderful care of her at different points through the past nearly 4 months. What a bittersweet day it will be!!  Thank you so much for your continued prayers.  We know this new path will not be without its own bumps and hurdles, but God has promised to never leave or forsake us, and He will finish the work He has begun in us.  We look forward to continuing to share His goodness and declaring His glory!!

~We will certainly continue to update this blog.  I will probably cut back to once or twice a week {depending on what is happening} but will certainly continue to update everyone on Noelle's progress.  Thank you for praying!!~
~FOX 8 News is running a home coming story tomorrow evening at 10:00p.m.  We will post the link and pertinent information tomorrow evening before it airs~