Still growing...

Ella is still 2 pounds 6 ounces but gained 10 grams so she is 1080 grams. Her glucose levels continue to fluctuate but they are managing it well. Overall she is doing good but just needs to grow, grow, grow!!!

Here is a picture of Ella chillin' in her bed with the giant pacifier that she uses to get used to the size of the bottle's nipple. Also, you will see that her hand is gone on the right arm but is healing very well and looks good. Sometimes I see it and think about the future and what it will hold for her...will it be difficult when she goes to school, or will she be as confident as I hope in my heart. All of the nurses that pass through our corner of the NICU always comment about how much personality Ella has despite her small size and this gives me comfort. I know God has given her talents and gifts that will sustain her through the difficulties that will arise from missing her hand and my daily prayer for her is that she continues to shine her light and touch others just like she does now from the NICU(via the internet :)

2 pounds 6 ounces

Ella is now 2 pounds 6 ounces (1070 grams). Her feeds are up to 20ml and she is doing well on them but her glucose levels are still up and down. The tests to find out why her levels are up and down came back normal and they are now thinking that it is due to her prematurity. After she grows, this should be normal because her body will be able to keep up with the glucose levels on it's own. Her oxygen levels are doing well and every day she seems to be more grown up in many ways. Today she decided that she needed to be held because she was fussy and it was the only way to comfort her. (this is a big girl thing to do and I didn't mind doing it at all)

Here is a picture of me holding Ella while she is wrapped in a blanket sporting her dad's favorite college team.

Pray for her lungs to keep growing, her glucose levels to straighten out, for her to gain weight and grow!

Good news

They have started Ella's feeds again (slowly) and she is having only a slight residual(food left in the belly). After checking her lab work for possible infections and looking at x-rays and everything that she has gone through in the past 24 hours they decided to begin the feeds again and watch her results. This was a great blessing for me because I could not stand the thoughts of watching the little girl hungry again. Now, she needs to gain weight because for the past 2 nights she has lost and since they stopped the feeds for a few hours it will take some time before they are able to increase the calories which will help with the weight gain.

Pray for Ella's bowels and digestion along with her glucose levels and lungs.

Big Belly

They have stopped Ella's feeds again because her belly is swollen and there is too much air in her bowels. Once again she is having a preemie day and we are having a tough thanksgiving because the little girl doesn't get to eat any food. They are doing a complete round of tests to find out exactly what might be wrong because her color is a little off as well. They have started her on two antibiotics and in faith I am believing that any infection is stopped before it starts.

On another note, Ella's right hand came off yesterday and the skin underneath looks very good. She didn't seem to mind that it is gone as the picture can attest (it was taken right after it happened) but I did have some moments of mourning. Seeing her right arm without a hand attached to it was very shocking to me at first but now that I am used to it I can see that she will be just fine.

Pray for her to get back on the feeds and for infection to STAY AWAY!

1060 grams

Ella is now 2 pound 5 ounces which is also 1060 grams. She is doing well however her blood sugar dropped below the number and they took the blood today for the tests. They ordered fewer tests so they did not need to give her blood to replace it and she did well when they were taking it so all is well. Right now she needs to grow and the systems in her body need to fall into place.

Pray for her ability to get her nurishment from a bottle (it will mean she gets to go home sooner), her liver function, glucose levels, lung function, and growth.

2 pounds 4 ounces

Ella is now 2 pounds 4 ounces(1020 grams)!! Our little girl is growing by leaps and bounds and eveyone here is sooo excited. So far, her blood sugar has been higher than before and they still have not had to take the blood for the tests. Continue to pray that her glucose levels remain stable and they never have to take the blood (it means an additional IV line and giving her a blood transfusion because of the large amount needed). Lungs are doing well, but they still need to grow just like the rest of her. The tube in her throat has not been bothering her lately(thank you, Jesus) so pray that is stays this way until they can remove it. We are still working with her taking a bottle, but lately she has not been as excited as she was in the beginning, so pray that she gets stronger and is able to get her nurishment from the bottle or breast instead of the feeding tube. (this could delay her going home if she isn't able to do it).

Still growing...and growing...

Ella is now 2 pounds 1 ounce today!! She is still doing well on her blood sugar and the level hasn't gone below the number where they have to take blood for the tests. They were able to lower the pressure on her oxygen and she is still doing well on it. We are looking forward to the time when she can get off the nasal canula. We practice with Ella drinking from a bottle or breastfeeding everyday and today we found out that we might have to feed her with an tube down her throat after she goes home if she is not able to drink enough from a bottle. My prayer is that she continues to improve with her sucking so we don't have to use the feeding tube.

Pray that she continues to grow, lungs improve, gets a good report from the eye doctor(Monday), improves her bottle feeding, and sugar levels stay stable.

Two Pounds!!

Ella is now two pounds!! Our smiling girl is doing great with her feeds and her bowels are working well. Her blood sugars have been good so they have been lowering the glucose in her IV fluids and if the level reaches below a certain number they will be doing the tests to find out why. (I'm believing that she has leveled and won't need the tests) Right now she needs to continue gaining weight.

The therapists are working with her everyday on her sucking and today she drank 5cc from a bottle...she is a big girl now! Pray for her sugar levels to continue improving, her bowels to keep improving, and her lungs to get stronger.

Say cheese!

You guys are lucky today because I actually got a picture of Ella smiling so enjoy. (I did) So far her feeds are going well except today she discovered her gag reflex and started spitting up because of the tube in her throat so now it is even more important that her lungs get stronger so they can remove her oxygen in her nose and remove the tube in her throat. We use the bottle today and Ella did very well but it will still be some time before she can get all her nurishment from the bottle or breastfeeding. Her blood sugar levels are doing well but in case they go down again they will do the tests to find out why.

Pray for lungs to get stronger, bowels to continue to function well, and blood sugar levels to stay normal.

1 pound 15 ounces

Ella is now 1 pound 15 ounces and is doing good. Her blood sugar levels are still up and down and they will be running some tests to determine why if her levels go low again. This is one of the things that you deal with when your child is in the NICU the roller coaster ride of preemies. We tried breastfeeding with our little girl today and she did well, her sucking reflex seems to be working well. Her gestational age is actually 35 weeks but her size is still smaller than that. She now has a speech therapist, physical therapist, and occupational therapist that will be working with her each week on her development. Our little girl has lots of specialists : )

Here is a picture of me holding Ella before we tried breastfeeding. Pray for Ella's blood sugar levels, bowels, liver function, and lungs.

Full tummy

Ella gained 10 grams but is still 1 pound 14 ounces. Last night they were worried about her girth (measurement of her tummy) being too big and so they changed her feedings instead of halting them. Thank you Jesus!! She is now eating 14ml in 1 hour and they vent her tummy (help the air escape) for two hours. They have also started her on medicine that will help her bowels clear. Our prayer is that she will not have to stop the feedings again since that has delayed her release from the hospital for another week. Her sugar levels have been good and hopefully tomorrow they will be able to lower her glucose level in her IV fluid.

Continue to pray for Ella's digestion, lungs to get stronger, and also her liver function.

1 pound 14 ounces

The little girl is getting bigger everyday now that she is back on her feeds. All of her levels are starting to bounce back from the days of no food and she gained 40 grams and is now at 1 pound 14 ounces(840 grams). Today, the occupational therapist came to work with Ella on drinking from a bottle, look at her head for proper shape and arms and legs for joint movement. The therapist will continue working with our big girl because she still has a way to go but she was sucking on her new pacifier with gusto so that gives me hope.

Pray for Ella's liver function because the days when she was off of her feeds has sent it backwards a little, also pray for her continued feedings and her lungs to get stronger.

World still turns

Ella is up to 13ml of milk every three hours, and they will increase it by 1ml every twelve hours. So far, she is digesting all the milk and our big girl is 1 pound 12 ounces now (800 grams) and I'm sure will be up to 1000 grams in no time.

Today Ella and I had a visit from some pastor friends of ours from out of town and their prayer over her was a blessing and a balm to my tired soul. I know that I sound melodramatic, but here in the NICU we have made new friends but they only know the Christy that has a daughter in the hospital. The prayer for Ella today was my past touching her future and it made me believe even more that she is going to have an amazing story that will touch people in ways that I could not. God has given our super girl a ministry and she is only 1 pound 12 ounces.

Breathing easy

They have taken Ella off the ventilator today and will start feeding her again at noon. They have to start slowly with only 3cc of milk because her bowels were also asleep when they did the surgery but we are believing that this is just the beginning and she will be back up to regular feedings in no time. Our little fighter is resting well today after her upset yesterday and came through with flying colors. It does my heart good to see her resting comfortably and sucking on her pacifier with gusto : ) (here is a picture of the little foot)

The last week has brought many set backs to our super girl, but I see the tide turning back in our favor. Over the last two days we have had several clergy members visit our little corner and I don't think it is coincidence because God knows just when we need to know that He sees our needs before we even ask. Pray for Ella's digestion that she will be able to get more food soon because our little girl needs to be a big girl. Also, remember her eyes in prayer because we believe that the surgery was a success.

Eye surgery

Ella had laser eye surgery today to stop the growth of the veins in her eyes that if not stopped could detach her retinas. They had to put her back on the ventilator to do the surgery because of the sedation and it will be removed as soon as she wakes up. Right now our prayer is that the surgery corrected the problem and she will not need additional surgery which will mean a trip to Houston.

It was rough for me today because Ella was crying when they took her away for the surgery. Even knowing that she will not remember the pain of her first months of life it's still hard watching your child go through pain. Thank you to everyone that is praying for Ella and us because we need them.

Baby blues

Ella's food has been increased again today to 9ml and so far no residuals (our little girl is a hungry one). Her tummy is soft again but continue to pray for her digestion and bowels that they stay clear of infection.

Ella had her follow-up eye exam today and the eye doctor says that she will need laser surgery on both her eyes to stop the veins that have continued to grow when they shouldn't. The surgery will be on Tuesday evening or Wednesday so remember Ella in your prayers because we don't want any complications and we need the veins to stop or it will require further surgery.

Little bites

They started Ella's food again last night and increased it today at 9:00am and then again at 6:00pm. So far she has only had residuals (food left in her tummy) once and that was probably because she was laying on her back and they don't digest well that way. We are praying that she continues to tolerate her feedings and her bowels do not swell again. This has set her release date back even further but hopefully she is back to moving forward.

I have to admit that when they stopped her feedings on Friday I was ready to raise my fist in the air and yell at God because this little girl has been through more in her short life than I have in my long one. Watching her cry and toss around because she was hungry and all the while I couldn't do anything about it broke my heart. However, this morning I had a revelation. I went to a church here in San Antonio and they had communion at the end of the service and it made me cry. Is what I'm feeling about Ella even close to the feelings that God felt as he allowed His son to die? Don't misunderstand how I am feeling, I am not at all glad that she is going through this set back but I now see more clearly that if God was willing to go through the pain of giving up His son for us then wouldn't He also be watching out for Ella. She is a child of God just like all of us and He knows her every tear.

Pray for Ella's digestion and that the bowels will not be swollen anymore. Also, pray for her lungs to mature.

Where's the beef?

They had to stop Ella's feedings today because her bowels are swollen again. There is an infection of the bowels that they are worried about so they are doing x-rays and watching her closely. In the meantime however, our little cookie monster is very hungry and grouchy because they haven't been feeding her. Last night when they weighed her she was up to 1 pound 13 ounces but since the feedings have stopped that will more than likely go back down a little bit. If all goes well during the night and her x-rays look better they will start feeding her again tomorrow.

Pray for her digestion and especially her bowels to clear. Also, continue to pray for her lungs because they are still very immature.

Big girl

I stand by Ella's bed everyday and notice everything about her...the way she starts getting fussy about an hour into her feedings (full tummy), how she smiles when I call her my baby girl(it might be gas but I don't care), that she doesn't like getting her diaper changed, and today I learned that when she is crying during kangaroo care that she likes to be rocked. Micro preemies don't like to be touched and stimulation like singing, touching, and rocking upsets them because they are not ready to be touched.

Today, I got to rock Ella when she was fussing and she enjoyed it, that makes her a big girl. Now I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. They also increased her feedings today and hopefully she will have gained weight. She is still at 1 pound 11 ounces but we are looking for more weight gain soon. Her lungs still need to mature so pray for them to grow so she can get off the oxygen. Otherwise another good day here for our BIG GIRL Ella.

More calories

Ella is now 1 pound 11 ounces! Our little girl is gaining weight slowly but surely. Her lungs are still immature and need to grow but overall she is doing well. Everyday that she holds on to her extra grams is another day closer to going home. Continue to pray for her lungs, digestion, and also for the broviac IV to stay infection free.

This picture is of Ella wearing Aaron's wedding ring as a bracelet and I know it shows how small she is but when I see it I realize how big she is because when she was first born his ring swallowed her arm. She has doubled her weight since she was born and I am sooo excited.

1 pound 10 ounces

Ella went up by 50 grams yesterday and now weighs 1 pound 10 ounces...750 grams. Since she went up by so many grams she will probably come down today but as long as she doesn't come down by much we'll be happy.

Dr. DeYoung talked to us today about Ella's eyes and he is much more optimistic about her need for surgery. He feels that because of her gestational age she is not as high of a risk as the eye doctor thinks. She may still need laser surgery but I believe that with prayer her eyes will be whole.

Ella's lungs still need maturing and she needs to grow, but otherwise we are doing great here in San Antonio.

Eye Doctor

Ella had her first eye exam today and she probably reacted like all kids with their first exam, she cried, turned her head away from the light, and then after it was over she fell asleep. The doctor let us know that because of her low birth weight, Ella is at high risk for ROP (retinopothy of prematurity - veins in the eyes that grow too fast and sometimes retinal detachment) which causes eye problems and sometimes blindness. Today, he was only able to tell that her eyes are premature but he will do another exam next Monday. At this point he is almost sure that she will need laser surgery on her eyes and possibly more intense surgery in Houston. I know that Ella was small when she was born but I know with even more confidence that my God is able to do immeasurably more than even I can ask or imagine. Pray for Ella's eyes that the veins will stop growing at the right place and that she is protected from the problems that could come from her being so small.

Ella is still having issues with her blood sugar but I think we have finally found the right balance because they have been normal today. Pray for her sugar levels that they will continue to be in balance and that they will be able to take her off the glucose in her IV fluids.

Today Dr. DeYoung and I discussed Ella's lungs and it looks like they are still young and immature. Since Ella was so small her lungs are underdeveloped and because of this she will probably be on the oxygen for another month and in the hospital into 2009. Pray for her lungs to mature and for no problems in later years because of her low birth weight.

Ella's eyes and lungs need some miraculous intervention.

1 pound 9 ounces

Our girl Ella is 1 pound 9 ounces today or 720 grams for the metric people out there...We have passed 700 grams. yipee!

She is doing well on her feedings but her blood sugar still has to be monitored because it continues to fluxuate. Her lungs are still doing well but we need them to get stronger. Overall a good day.