New Pics

Growing up so fast, just seems like yesterday they were tiny babies!

Ella & AJ's first visit to the beach and they LOVED it! Of course, Mom and Dad loved it too.

I call this Ella's vacation hair. : )
We spent July 4th with the cousins in Oklahoma and Ella and AJ were so-so about the fireworks...hahaha

Miracle Miles

I am giving Ella's testimony in chapel tomorrow at my school and so I was looking back on the blog to get inspiration and I am reminded of how much road we have traveled. It is so easy for me to go through the days and not remember how small she was when she was born or how many times God held her in His hands. Ella is now 2 years old and comprehends so much and runs around the house like she owns it.

A miracle took place in our lives when Ella was born, and again took place in our lives when A.J. was able to be carried full term. Life is now full of wonder and laughter with A.J. crawling around everywhere and Ella letting everyone know how it is. Our preemie is now a healthy, vivacious toddler.

Walking Tall

Our big girl is now walking!! It's hard to believe that Ella will turn 2 in just a few months...wow...where has the time gone. The Jeson clan is doing great, Ella is walking and talks nonstop (even though no one understands her), and A.J. now outweighs big sister by 5 pounds. Nothing wrong with having a BIG Little brother. Summer is here and Ella enjoys swimming (after she gets used to the water)and would stay outside all day long if we would let her. Gotta go since the girl is taking out the trash for me (even if I don't need this kind of help). Love to all.

Big Sister? Little Brother?

Well, it has begun. People are now asking if Ella and AJ are twins (never mind the fact that she sits in a high chair feeding herself and he is sitting in a carrier with a passy in his mouth). I have no doubt that Ella will remind him and the world, that even though he is bigger - she is still the big sister. Our miracle girl is showing her personality more every day.

I get reminders all the time to update the blog, and our computer even reminds us since her blog is our homepage, but it is hard to carve out any time for showering(I know too much info) much less typing and loading pictures. Even now as I type this, Ella is under the desk emptying out the trash can for the fourth time. (she must have lost an important paper...hahaha)

Overall, the Jeson family is doing great and big things are just around the corner...Ella will be getting a prosthetic hand soon (yipee), and AJ is growing up fast. Thanks for all the kind words and for continueing to pray for our miracle girl. Love to you all.

Baby Brother

Our newest bundle of joy has arrived and big sister is very happy about it. Ella thinks that A.J. (Aaron Craig Jeson II) is the greatest thing ever and takes every opportunity to touch him and be close to him. Little brother was 6 pounds 7 ounces when he was born on November 12th and now weighs 7 pounds 10 ounces, soon he will be little big brother. : )

Life in the Jeson house is a little crazy now and sleep is something that I remember fondly but don't get much of but this season will pass. Here is our princess Ella preparing for cold weather and all the cousins together at thanksgiving. The picture shows how big our boy and girl are getting. : )

Pumpkin Patch

Yesterday we took our 13 pound bundle of energy to the pumpkin patch and got some great pictures which I had to share with you all. I have been reminded lately (I think it is the time of year which takes me back) of how far God has brought Ella and our family.

Aaron had to get a new cell phone, because Ella chewed on his old one and it died, and he sent me some pictures to save that he had taken the first two days Ella was in the NICU. She was so tiny and sick and now she is crawling all over the house getting into everything she can get her hands on...thank you God for bringing us this far.

I have also been thinking about my time in the hospital after she was born because I will be there again in a couple of weeks with little brother, and I have been thinking about how different the experience will be for everyone. Having two kids in the house is going to be lots of work, but having healthy children is priceless. My doctor has been bragging on me because I am following all of her recommendations and don't complain when I have to see her twice a week. I told her I would rather see her every day than spend 5 months in the NICU beside my child's bed.

Thank you Jesus for a healthy family.

12 Pounds 8 ounces

Well, I am finally posting Ella's birthday pictures as promised, sorry it has taken so long to post them. We had a birthday party for her and Aaron, who turned 30 the day after Ella turned 1 and everyone celebrated the bday peeps. Our big girl is now 12 pounds 8 ounces and continueing to thrive, she is now crawling (well sometimes scooting, but getting around very well) and sitting by herself. Needless to say she is now a hand full, quite a personality. (but we knew that before she turned one).

Next month Ella will be getting a little brother, and I am sure he will probably be her little-big brother. I have no doubt that she will remind him that she is boss (since day one she has been a fighter), even though he will be bigger than her. Because of what we learned in the NICU with Ella, I am taking it much easier with this preganancy and also have taken medicine to help control my blood pressure and such. Our little man, Aaron Craig Jeson II will be born in November and at times we will probably be asked if we have twins... because at Ella's size AJ (what we will call him) will undoubtedly outweigh her within a couple of weeks. Keep our family in your prayers we will soon suffer from sleep deprivation : )

Birthday Girl

Our girl Ella turns 1 year old this week...we can hardly believe it. She is doing amazingly well is very, very, active (loves jumping and dancing) and is now sitting up by herself. She is very close to crawling and gets frustrated that she can't get to her toys when she wants to.

She has come so far, and the NICU is becoming a distant memory. Ella weighs a big 11 pounds 8 ounces now (sorry to all the hospital folks, don't know what that is in grams...hahahaha) and is a big heap of personality.

I will make sure to update the blog after Ella's Birthday and put up her one year old pictures.

10 Pounds 11 Ounces

Ella is now 10 pounds 11 ounces and growing by leaps and bounds every day. As the pictures show she is quite a personality now (of course, we always knew that even at one pound in an incubator) and keeps us on our toes. She can roll over now but is not quite sitting up by herself ....almost. She wants to stand up all the time and is very strong, which surprises everyone because of her size. Our big girl will actually turn 1 year old in September which seems unreal to us and our time in the NICU seems so long ago.

Everyday when I hold Ella in my arms I thank God for the miracle He gave us.

Big Girl

Our big girl is now 9 pounds 12 ounces (we go back for a check-up next week and hopefully she will be 10 pounds) and ready to get into everything. Her favorite thing now is grabbing glasses, pulling hair, and checking out jewelry. We went to visit her cousins in Oklahoma and they enjoyed entertaining her and taught her to grab Ben's glasses.

On Sunday, I sang a solo at our church and they showed pictures of Ella in the background. I don't think there were any dry eyes in the house especially after Aaron walked her onto the stage at the end of the song. Our miracle girl is a testimony to the power of prayer.

Success

Ella's surgery went off without a hitch! Praise the Lord! The anesthesialogist was amazed that she didn't have any major problems, in fact he asked me a number of times if she had any heart conditions or such. Our little miracle tends to scare new doctors because of her size and things she has gone through, but she always surprises them.

They did find a piece of the broviac IV still in her chest and it was surrounded by "goo" (I'm quoting the surgeon) which meant it was working on another infection. Once again, she surprised them with the fact that she had no fever or other symptoms of infection - She is a MIRACLE!! She is once again thriving at home and if I could figure out how to get her to take a nap in her bed during the day, life would be perfect. Thank you for all the prayers and kind words.

More pictures to come.

8 Pounds 12 ounces

Our Ella is now 8 pounds 12 ounces and continuing to thrive at home. We went to visit San Antonio 2 weeks ago, because Ella had a sore on her broviac site that needed to be lanced and the surgeon thought that there might be a cuff left and this is causing the infection and sores. We go back to see the surgeon this week and they will do surgery to see if something is still there.

Our girl is a wonder and is always laughing and looking at the world. Everyone is surprised at how aware she is since she is sooo small. She loves standing up and has started reaching for things - sunglasses beware : )

Pray for her surgery.

7 Pounds 12 ounces

Our big girl is now 7 pounds 12 ounces...Aaron lost the bet, : ) he was hoping for 10 pounds (we are close!). Ella has a lot of personality now and every day we see more smiles and hear her stories...she loves to talk, but if you know me then you understand the apple didn't fall far from the tree...hahaha. The pics are just an example of her personality...first piano lesson with gram, and falling asleep with her penquin under her arm.

We are looking forward to taking her out into the world and meeting all the people who have held her up in prayer the past 7 months. September 17th (Ella's birthday) seems so long ago, when you look at how far she has come in that time.

Our prayers and thoughts go out to the Capers family who lost their dear mom & wife, Gayla. She was a follower of our blog and left many uplifting, encouraging words during our time at the NICU. She was an amazing woman who will be missed. Love to all the family from Ella, Christy, and Aaron

Happy Easter

Here are some pics of our big girl on her first Easter. She is very aware of things around her now and loves to look at her toys. She didn't get to go to church on Easter, because she is still living in a bubble, but Mom and Dad watched the service via computer.

We go see one of her doctors this week so I should have an updated weight (we're placing bets on what it might be). Overall, she is doing great...eating well and growing like a weed...: ) in fact, she has graduated from preemie clothes into newborn and won't stay there long...yipee!!

Reading

Aaron has started reading to Ella and she loves it, but at this point it's all about the tone of voice and not the content, as you can see from the engineering magazine. (we're starting her early...hehehe)

Everything is great, our big girl is growing (don't have an updated weight because we haven't seen the doc since the last time - which is a good thing) and showing off her personality. Our goal for the last two weeks is to get her to take naps in her bed instead of someone's arms because unfortunately, the NICU creates some bad habits. When it got to the point in the hospital where we could hold her whenever we wanted we just held her all the time and now we are retraining. I am not complaining because she is healthy and home, so all the other stuff is just that stuff and will be taken care of in time.

Our time in the NICU is starting to become a memory instead of thoughts fresh in my mind and I have to make an effort to remember all the things that happen while we were there. I admit that I didn't think this day would come when the NICU days would fade.

Ella seems to be adjusting well to being at home, but I am looking forward to taking her out and about. We are still keeping her housebound just to be on the safe side because of flu and RSV season. Once school is over and it is warmer outside we plan on carting her around and showing her the world, but until then she is still our little girl in a house bubble. : )