Thankful

Mm'mmm yum yum..well almost. This past week we introduced Faith to food. Her occupational therapist suggested this because often babies have a more a difficult time swallowing liquids then dealing with baby food. Of course Faith did not like this- she does not like anything in or near her mouth (she doesn't even want her pacifier anymore) but she will put her fingers in her mouth (hmm possibly teething?) So we let her play with her food!We are slowly introducing foods to her and letting her explore them- usually the second it gets close to her mouth she freaks out- but we are taking baby steps. The fact that there is a baby food jar in our room is a big step! Today's food to play with; green beans. Next year she'll be eating them in a casserole!

Although we are spending Thanksgiving day in the hospital we have a lot to be thankful for this year. A year ago at this time we were unsure if we would even have a baby. About a week before Thanksgiving we took another trip to the ER and were told that we had miscarried. The doctors gave us a choice; they could terminate the pregnancy there or we could wait it out and allow the miscarriage the happen naturally. Of course we didn't take either of these for an answer. And right then and there we decided that if we were going to have a girl her name would be Faith because we had faith that our baby was going to make it. Wow- and make it she did! She's beaten incredible odds- been to the grave and back and is now a smiling, bright beautiful child. We have A LOT to be thankful for. In addition to being thankful for our precious little girl we are thankful for all of you- our friends and family who have supported us every step of the way. We've said this before but cannot say it enough- thank you for sharing this journey with us- thank you for holding our umbrellas when it is raining, and pulling it back when there is sun and reminding us to see the rainbows. We wish you a bountiful Thanksgiving filled with family, friends, love and laughter. We hope in the near future we are celebrating this day with you while Faith stuffs her cheeks full of mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie!

Cheers!

Brian and Jen :)

Daddy's Girl :)

I sure love my Daddy!!!

Such a flirt! Only 9 months and she already knows how to batt her eyelashes!

Not much to report on tonight- we'd thought you'd enjoy some new smile pictures. :) Faith is hanging in there- she is still sick but pulling through. Today we had to up her vent settings a little bit but other than that she's doing ok. This past week we had the opportunity to take Faith outside a few times. This is special because normally they don't allow kids in isolation (due to Faith's MRSA) go out of their rooms but they are making some exceptions. Faith is not too fond of the outside world, it is very bright for her, but considering she has lived inside for 9 months it is to be expected. Nevertheless we've enjoyed feeling a little normal- even if it just means walking around the hospital!

Well thanks for checking in today!

Brian and Jen :)

Another kind of Birthday...

Today marks Faith 6 month "adjusted" Birthday. As you know we not only mark her monthly birthdays but the months from her due date. Today’s hit us a little differently. We found ourselves wondering what life would be like if Faith were born on May 15th. What would it like to just put a baby in a car seat and go to the grocery store? What would it be like to dress our baby without unhooking monitors and threading her clothes through tubes and wires? The other day Brian commented, "I don’t even know what it is like to pick up a baby that doesn’t have tubes and isn’t attached to the wall." Then I got sad thinking about what Faith’s life might be like... would she be starting to crawl? Would she be eating solid foods? Would she still startle the way she does when someone approaches her? Would she be able to see? Then it was if God gave us a big hug and reminded us....If Faith was born 6 months ago would we have the same appreciation for life that we do now? Would we value every breath, every smile the same as we do? Would we know the same wonderful people we have met along this way (nurses, doctors, other families who have gone through similar situations, families who haven’t but have still have reached out to us...) then I was reminded of all you.... Would you know of Faith? (Would that even have been her name....?) There would be no blog...she would just be another birth announcement on your refrigerator...but instead our little girl has touched many lives...people we don’t even know check this blog daily and tell us how she has touched their hearts. This means the world to us. This makes what we are going through seem worth it. Someday Faith will have an amazing story to tell..wait not only someday she is telling it now!!!!


Alright well enough with the sappy stuff...sorry these blogs have gotten a little deep lately! Here’s a quick update on Faith. Wouldn’t you know it she is sick again! They weren’t kidding when they told us living in the hospital can be germy! She has staph growing in her trach (in addition to the MRSA) and some other yet to be identified bacteria that is being treated with antibiotics. She also has a viral infection. The good news she is already on a ventilator (usually with preemies when they get sick that is the ultimate fear and Faith is already on one so it’s no biggie) and she is in the hospital. So as usually she’s just got to ride this bug out. She is holding steady at 14 pounds (she lost quite a but of weight with that GI bug) and still all smiles, despite feeling pretty crummy! She’s sure a trooper!
Alright well thanks for checking in!Brian and Jen :)

It's the little things........(part 2)

I (Jen) have often wondered something; When does one learn the meaning of affection? When it was just us and the dogs we would lavish affection on them. I would often ask Brian if he thought they knew that "kissies" mean love. He would always reply, "of course they do!" But I was still not totally convinced. One of the few ways to get Faith to smile...I mean to REALLY smile is get really close to her face then give her a kiss. I've always been unsure if she's smiling because of our voices, of is she knows the meaning of a kiss. I've often tried to get a similar response by doing other things that make typical babies smile....making gerbers on her belly, tickling her feet...no such response....this isn't surprising considering she has been poked on her feet well over a hundred times, so they are pretty calloused and tough. Then the other night another night we were giving another small moment. I was holding faith in my lap- we were playing as we always do..I'd make her smile by getting close to her face..then she did something she's never done before...I bent over and kissed her hands...she smiled.....I then went for the feet...another smile. I thought maybe it was a fluke so I repeatedly kissed her feet...smile...smile....smile.....
I guess Brian was right. I guess this is just another small miracle that we have to hold onto...Faith may not be able to do the things other babies her age do..she may not know as much as they know..but she knows that kissies mean love...and now so do we.
:)

Faith's First Halloween

In the NICU when tiny babies are too fragile to hold the way new parents would typically hold a newborn, "Kangaroo care" begins. As you may remember from the early pictures of Faith and us, by kangarooing her we would hold her skin to skin on our chest- her entire body fit in one hand! The benefits of this type of holding are very clear- babies who are kangarooed tend to do better then those who are not. Of course we held Faith this was every chance we got. So when it came time to pick her first Halloween costume it was a given: Faith was a kangaroo herself. :) Her feeding pump is also called a "kangaroo pump" so it was just all too perfect.

Faith wasn't too happy on Halloween (she was still getting over her stomach bug) in fact she hated her kangaroo costume (wouldn't you if you had all of those tubes and wires and had to be stuffed in that thing?) so we settled on letting her chill in her pumpkin outfit. :)

"Would you please take me out of this thing?"

Happy 9 Months Faith!

For some reason we can't seem to upload any pictures on blogger tonight- so Halloween pictures will have to wait! They are cute- but Faith was not up for festivities last Wednesday. Earlier this week she came down with a stomach bug- it looked a lot like the flu (and Brian and I came down with it too and it felt like the flu!!!). Unfortunately for Faith she can't throw up (because of her nissen which she had placed to stop her reflux) so instead of throwing up she dry heaves- which is really sad to watch and it comes out the other end. :( Coming from two people who just went through what she did- it really is a blessing to be able to throw up! She had some miserable days and nights but seems to be turning a corner. We are told this is what happens when children live in a hospital ward during cold and flu season- they get sick a lot!! We are praying that won't happen to Faith!!! Other than getting over the sickies Faith is doing alright- tomorrow she turns 9 months old! Woooowhooo! And it's on a Sunday too (the day she was born...) how fitting :) The months just keep rolling along.....
We'll post those pictures as soon as we figure out what's going on with blogger.
Thanks for stopping by!
Brian and Jen :)