Fashionista

It's no secret. Emmalynn is a little diva and her nurses have LOVED playing dress up with her on a daily basis...and sometimes more than once a day! Of course I LOVE it too! One of her doctors, who is just like a grandpa to me, came in one morning and told her nurse to put some clothes on that naked baby! That's all this momma needed to hear before I brought in her wardrobe! Her preemie clothes are still a little big, but she'll grow into them!

3 lb 11 oz

3 lb 12 oz

3 lb 13 oz

3 lb 15 oz

4 lb 1 oz

Face to Face

The other day I spent over an hour holding my baby like a full term baby just staring at her in awe. I think she liked it too!

Tuckered Out!

My poor baby had a rough day. Her tape had to be redone 3 times today, she scratched her face, she had to get a bath, then the eye doctor saw her. As you can see she is zonked out and her eyes are all puffy. On a happy note, she's 3 lb 11 oz!

Thumb Sucker?

Thumb in the mouth...check!

Fuzzy morning hair...check!

Surgery scar healing...check!

Getting bigger by the day (3 lb 9 oz)...check!

We just can't get enough of your cuteness Miss Emmalynn! Love you baby girl!

First Outfit

Emmalynn got her picc line out yesterday and got the go ahead to wear clothes if they fit! My cousin sent me this outfit from England that is for 3 pound babies and it fit Emmalynn perfectly! I whipped up a bow (of course) to match and we got her all dolled up today. She loved it! I swear she knows when the attention is on her. All the nurses and doctors had to come see this impossibly small outfit. She smiled and high sated the whole time. She is such a diva!

3 lb 5 oz

Blessing

We decided to bless Emmalynn while she was still in the hospital. Finding a blessing dress for a 3 lb baby is impossible so I made hers. I used a preemie onesie and some already ruffled fabric. We had to cut it up the back to get it on over all her tubes and lines, plus we needed to tuck it in underneath her to make it smaller! She looked adorable and of course daddy did a great job!

The beautiful blanket was made by her Grandma Candland.

Smile

Two Months

When I got to the hospital, Emmalynn's nurses had made her a cute sign (inspired by her tutu of course)!

Naturally we had to take her two month photo in her tutu, which a week after this post was tight on her tummy!

At two months, Emmalynn is 3 lb 3 oz and 14 1/2 inches long! She found her fingers and even though she has 2 tubes in her mouth, she loves to suck on her fingers and enjoys her binky. She is good about waking up during her cares and looking at us and listening to our voices. She LOVES bath time and especially having her hair washed. Such a girl! Lots of things happened this month including getting staph, changing doctor groups, having heart surgery, hitting 2 lb and 3 lb, a few failed extubations, first holiday (4th of July), first clothes worn, daddy's first Father's Day, first haircut, and a baby shower in Utah.

Heart Surgery

Emmalynn before surgery...

...prepping for surgery...

...and resting after surgery.

The surgery went great! True to his word it only took about 20 minutes. In fact, it took longer to set up than the actual surgery. Dr. Derby said it was the biggest PDA he has ever done and he even had to do a bigger clamp which he's never used! It was bigger than her aorta which he was amazed by! We are so grateful for amazing doctors and nurses, modern technology, and of course the tender mercies from our loving Heavenly Father. We feel so blessed! 

Oh and she hit 3 lbs!

P.S. Here is Emmalynn's incision on July 18 (not even 2 weeks later)! The glue will eventually peel off. Looks like someone found their thumb!

4th of July

Happy 4th of July!

We decided to order a pizza and have it delivered to the hospital to eat while we watched fireworks from the top of the parking garage. We had the best view of more than a few areas doing them! We tried to take a picture of us in the car (like 50 times) and because it was so dark we kept closing our eyes, blinking, and making weird faces. So this is the best one! We laughed forever about it!

Tutu

Emmalynn received this tiny little tutu from one of our friends in Texas and it was so big it looked like a dress. The funny part was she was happy when we put it on her. She's such a diva! Of course the doctors and nurses came and watched us play dress up.

See that tape on her head? She got her first haircut because they had to put a picc line in her head (I cried). Emmalynn needed to finish her antibiotics for the staph infection and her little veins were all used up and she was done being poked and prodded. She also needs it for her surgery on Friday and for the days following.

Can you believe those cheeks?!

Utah Baby Shower

2 lb 7 oz

Holding My Baby

I got to hold Emmalynn for the first time like a full term baby (instead of kangaroo care on my chest) for about 3 minutes! They were switching out her bed and so they detached her from everything and the respiratory therapist just gave her puffs of air. She didn't even flinch! Her bath wore her out today. I have to say this picture makes her look big...and she is getting bigger! The doctor says she has some impressive cheeks. I just said it's a weight distribution problem, haha!

Staph & New Doctors

This cute girl is such a fighter. She has developed a staph infection in her arm and knee (which pediatric infectious diseases thinks is pretty gnarly). They think they caught it in time (thanks to one of her primary care nurses noticing Emmalynn not quite acting like herself) and she's on a few antibiotics. She also has fluid in her lungs which is possibly pneumonia. Again she is on antibiotics and is getting 3 types of breathing treatments. The good news is she isn't acting sick and is still growing.

After a bad extubation experience 2 days in a row for Emmalynn along with getting staph, we felt an overwhelming need to get a second opinion about Emmalynn's cares from the other doctor group in the NICU. We were so very impressed and really didn't hesitate to switch over. Her new doctors are so awesome and her tentative plan of action is to get over the infection, grow a little bit more, have heart surgery (15 minute bedside surgery to close her PDA), grow some more and then be successfully extubated! It's all about timing for these little ones and she's the one in control so we will see.

Clothes?!

Last night Miss Emmalynn got a relaxing sponge bath. I even gave her a little scalp massage and back rub that she actually enjoyed! When we were done her nurse surprised me with the tiniest smock to dress her in! Her first time wearing clothes! Yes I realize she doesn't have a bow on to match but she was going to bed and her hair was still drying {see it all fuzzy}. I think I wore her out!

Wide Awake

I just LOVE it when Emmalynn is wide awake! This was after daddy held her for 2 1/2 hours. She just laid there and listened to my voice and even smiled a few times. Anytime we do her cares or I open her isolate and start talking to her she tries to turn to where my voice is. Sometimes she only peaks her eyes open since everything is still super bright and over stimulating. This particular day though was so adorable! She definitely know her momma!

Happy 1st Father's Day

For Father's Day Emmalynn let daddy cuddle with her for 2 1/2 hours!

2 lbs

She did it! She hit 2 lbs today! Go Emmalynn!

So Close....

Emmalynn had such a great day yesterday! She was very rested and LOVED having mommy do kangaroo care with her! Here she is waving hi last night after her cares and being weighed. She is so close to 2 lbs (like 10 grams)! Fingers crossed for tonight! Go Lil' Miss!

Photo Shoot

A perk to having one of your best friends as a photographer is having her come capture some of the tiniest and tender moments in your life! Thank you Sarah (Moments Defined Photography).

1 Month

I can't believe Emmalynn is 1 month old already! It seems as though time has stood still and flown by all at once. She really is doing so good and we feel very blessed. 

At 1 month old, Emmalynn is 1 lb 14 oz and 13 inches long! She smiles when mommy talks and sings to her and loves to hear daddy read books. She is getting so strong and even turned her head to the other side (which is a no no with her tubes) and pushed onto her back. She likes having her hands up by her face and being swaddled, but sometimes likes to stretch out completely. She tried milk on her lips for the first time and her eyes flew open in excitement and she smacked her lips. Her feedings are going great and she gets 18 ml of milk every 3 hours that they add a fortifier to so she gets extra calories. Her kidneys seem to have (finally) kicked into gear too! The doctors still call her 'the little one' and her nurses always say she could just fit in their pocket.

Her cute nurse decorated her room and we brought in cookies for the doctors and nurses to celebrate!

The next party on the agenda (hopefully this week) is her 2 lb party!

Pray For Pee!

Lil' Miss Emmalynn made it off the ventilator for 39ish hours! Yay! It was just enough time to tell the doctors she's still not ready, and they were able to find out that she was big enough for the next size tube so she won't have an air leak. She is much more comfortable and resting. 

Now we have a new challenge. She didn't pee for a few days and after a kidney specialist saw her, he told us she has acute kidney failure. The good news is, after a diuretic and blood transfusion, she peed! They also put her on a low dosage of dopamine for blood flow to the kidneys and she peed again! This morning however, she didn't pee. So now they are giving her a little cortizone to see if her lack of that hormone will help the kidneys function and another dose of a diuretic.

Who knew our worries and prayers would be about pee?! And yes...we've been praying for pee! I am so grateful for prayer and even more grateful for a worthy husband who, with the help of my uncle John, was able to give Emmalynn a priesthood blessing for the healing of the sick. I have a testimony of blessings and faith in their power. We will continue to pray for pee and that her kidneys will begin to function on their own.

Last night while Phillip read Emmalynn scriptures he read this verse that to us means a lot right now.

Mosiah 24:14

And I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage; and this will I do that ye may stand as witnesses for me hereafter, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their afflictions.