First Huggs

This week Emily got off the vent.  Which means she doesn't need the tub down her throat.  She is now on a machine called BiPAP, which is a step above CPAP.  This machine is able to give her positive pressure to help keep Emily's lungs open and also gives her small breaths to help her to remember to breath.  Since getting on the machine she is already being able to go do on the breaths and by the end of the week she is now moved over to just the CPAP.  I also liked when we put the pacifier in her mouth that first she held on to it really well and that it was bigger then her mouth is.  If you look close the bottom of it is why passed her chin.


You like my helmet, I am ready for the game

When they took the vent out, one of the nurses was nice to get a pic of Emily without any thing on her face.  She got a little close so her face looks bigger than it really is, yet we like her thought.

 

With Emily off the vent she has been able to come out of her bed and mommy got her first real hugs on Monday.  The nurse told me the next day that the doctors wrote orders to do "Kangaroo" care twice a week.  I waited again to hold her on Friday so Blair could be there when we got to take her out.  We were surprised to hear the next day the doctor said we could start holding her once a day now.  It is nice to finally start feeling like mommy instead of a visitor to Emily.

 

Some First

Since Emily was born she has had many family visitors.  With each visitor that comes she loves to hold their finger.  As we have started to hold her hand we have come to notice how much strength Emily had gained in her tiny hand and fingers.

Emily holding grandma's hand

Emily holding daddies hand

The other big happening this week is one night Blair and I went up to see Emily.  When we go their the nurse suggested that we help her weigh Emily and change her bed blankets.  I was so on board and just a little bit latter she and the respiratory therapist (RT) came to help with the process. 

We first needed to weigh her.  At this time, her bed is able to do this, so the nurses talked me through how to pick her up and put her back.  We ended up needing to do this three times before getting a acceptable weight.  Next we helped change Emily blankets.  This involved needing to pick her up and getting the blankets under her.  During this time we were surprised when the RT directed me to move Emily closer to me and then give her kisses.  The moment was so special as this I have never felt the love for Emily as much as I did at this moment.  We were able to hold our Emily and it was nice to hear how will she did through the process.  The nurses said that they normally had to give her more oxygen when they bugged her this much, yet when we were with her she was very calm needing nothing more then what she already had. 

 

Some other random fun pictures...

Our first valentine from Emily

Sometimes Emily likes to get free from her swaddle

 



The nurses make sure her mouth stays moist and Emily loves to suck on these lemon flavored cotton swabs we call them her lollipops.

Emily's First Week

In the last week Emily have made great progress.  She got a name after I got to see her a few times.  We names her Emily Victoria Belnap.  Her first day was hard the nurses told use that she was fighting against the ventilator so her oxygen levels kept on dropping.  This stabilized when they put her on a drip of fentanyl, a medication to relax her and help her to sleep.  With this she made great progress and was able to be taken off of the medication 4-5 days later.  The nurses now love how nice she sleeps and really only walks up around her 3 hour service times they have to do. 

Emily has had a great week until they tried to take her off the vent on Tuesday.  She was on the lowest setting with the vent. so doctor made the choice to take her off.  She did great at first and then 2 hours into it she pooped out and stopped breathing.  I was their and it was very scary to see her blue and lifeless.  They put her back on the vent and is resting nicely again.  Emily was able to sleep for the first time on her tummy and she loves it.  When she is on her tummy she goes to sleep fast and doesn't move until the nurse have to bug her every three hours. 

Another set back we heard this week is that Emily has a little bleeding on the brain.  It is normal for preemies to have bleeding yet it is still hard to hear.  They are just watching it for know by doing daily head measurements and weekly ultrasounds.  The nurses told me that we can help by letting her sleep the without being bugged in between the times they are not doing her care.  This was hard for me to set there and just let her sleep.  It helps when the nurses let me help as much care as I can do.



Pictures of the week...


Can any one say Tanning

Emily was sticking out her tongue



Emily loves her right side and is snuggled up to sleep



This week I have also made great progress.  I was in the hospital for 2.5 days and that was enough for me.  I just have to remember that even though my head feels good I am still needing time to heal.  I go and see everyday and the nurses are starting to let me help in some of Emily's care.  I know I will do her care for the rest of my life but it is nice to feel I can be a part of it know. 


On Sunday, I got to help with my first diaper change.  It was hard having to changer her in the isolette and her being so tiny you don't know how to get her bum up to get the new diaper under her.  Yet I am sure I practice it want be so hard. 

On Monday, we went in the evening, as Blair went back to work and does not get to see her during the day anymore.  We arrived just as the nurse was doing her care.  I again got to help with my first "bath".  Taking cloths with water and wiping her down.  

When Problumes Start...

 We had just went to the doctors two weeks before and he talked to us about kick counts and what to be doing next.  He found no problems then and all looked good.  Then this last Tuesday, Fed 2, I woke up having this feeling that something might be wrong as the feelings of the baby were a little less then what I was us to,  I but the feeling aside as Blair pick up on some movement.  I figured I was dehydrated so I figured I would focus on my water in tack that day.  The next day, I still was not feeling the baby, yet Blair still picked up small movements so we thought the baby was just flipped into a position with her back against my abdomen.  I again spent that day getting hydrated and convincing myself that everything was fine.  That night I had to walk back to my Head Start classroom after I was done working at the daycare.  When I got their I laid down.  My this still didn't help so by the time Blair got me I was very worried, yet I also new I had work to do and I was torn between getting my job done or going in for then to say everything was fine.  Good for Blair my worries got him going and he my the best dision we could have made.  We turned around and went in.  We got to the ER they picked up a hart beat but sent us over to the hospital for a stress test.  We got in the room and on the monitor and about 10-15 minutes later the nurse came in and talked to use about what was going on.  She didn't like that we took two days to come in but gave us help if we get conserved again. 

Then it all happened.  She let us know that she wanted to monitor the baby a little long so see if she could get the baby active.  She gave me apple juice and went to call our doctor.  The next thing we knew the nurse came back in needed to give me an IV and said the doctor ordered and ultrasound.  Just after she was done explaining this the doctor came in very concerd telling Blair and I that things don't look good and he was needing to get the baby out.  The doctor explained it to us that the baby had a very monotone heart rate with the occasional dips.  Where they should be seeing the babies heart rate go up and done as she moved around. 

After the doctor said emergency C-section everything went fast.  They took me into the OR had me prepped and ready before the anesthesiologist got their.  When he got their he put me out and the next thing I knew I was walking up in a room.

Our daughter was born ten minutes after midnight on February 5.  She weighed 2.5 pounds and was 14 inches long.

Blair's brother, Scott, came to support him and soon after I came out my sister Melissa came.  As Blair called her, because he could not get a hold of my parents.  Blair then took his brother and then my sister to see our baby girl that didn't have a name yet.  They brought me back pictures which I was grateful for, yet made me want to see her even more.

Emily Waving HI to the World

The Start

As I start this Blog I want everyone to know that writing is not very strong.  I would like to keep everyone to be informed about our family, but please disregard grammar or spelling mistakes you may see.

So I always thought that blogs were for those with children, as who would want to know the going of my life for I do the same thing everyday.  Now is the time for the blog to start. 

Blair and I have been married for almost three years now.  We met in Rexburg, Idaho from a mutual friend and were impressed to be sealed in the temple.  We were married on February 12, 2012.  With families support we moved 8 months later to Utah.  We both got jobs in the area and over the next two years worked on discovering what we wanted to do.  Blair has started working in the car industry first starting with sales and most recently moved to the service department being a dry tec.  Basically he does everything instead of oil changes and other liquid things on the car.  I have continued to work in the Head Start Preschool program and have loved the children and families I have been blessed to work with. 

We have always wanted to start our family and were excited that find we were expecting and then devastated when we lost them two time.  Then with the help of a friend told use about needing to get on some hormone help the next time we were expecting.  This happed this last August.  We went to the doctors right away and got on hormones and it worked we made it past the first 12 weeks and were really excited.  Everything started to seem to be working out.  And this is were it all started....