10 Days Old

So it's been a few days since we have posted a real update. Caroline is still performing like a champ, she had a little set back over the weekend, but she is right back on track today. On Friday she actually got to lose her billi light and was wearing "real clothes" when we arrived in the NICU. We couldn't believe how much different she looked. She also reached her birth weight by putting on a few ounces.

She also had a great time entertaining dad on Friday evening, while she was wide awake.

Then on Saturday her numbers went back up and she was back under the lights while her weight dropped just a smidge. The great news is that her platelets have more than doubled and she is out of the woods for a transfusion. She is getting full feedings as of yesterday and taking in almost 8 ounces a day - this is a big achievement and her is expected to start packing on the ounces:)

I snapped a couple photos while her lights were off today, so we could enjoy her beautiful peepers that are typically covered up. I will try to post more regularly this week - thank you for all of the ongoing prayers and thoughts.

Sisters...

Some photos of Georgia's most recent visit with Caroline. Caroline treated Georgia to a new tea set and it was a big hit. Georgia in return treated Caroline to her first Elmo story. So much fun to watch them spend time together already! Enjoy the photos...

Hi Dad!

Dad got his first chance to hold Caroline during a feeding tonight. They both looked really in love, from taking her temperature and changing her diaper to just holding her close for a few minutes, while she escaped the bright lights, dad was her hero.She repaid him by opening her eyes and batting her lashes before contently settling in for a short restful daydream.

Caroline continues to do well and gained an ounce since yesterday - bringing her to 2 pounds, 15 1/2 ounces - nearly 3 pounds. Her feedings continue to increase and she is handling them all very well. Her platelets also increased today and her bilirubin stayed consistent. She had a head scan on Monday and we got the results yesterday - she has one, level one bleed on the left side of her brain - but it is expected to self correct in the next month. And all infection testing that may have led to her small size came back negative today - so again, we continue to rule things out and are left with unknown answers. 

We are grateful for her continued growth and resilience and will leave the answers to someone else. As her nurse said today - we may never know why she is small and by the time we meet our maker and learn the answer, it will no longer matter and so for today we rule things out based on available technology and settle for unknown answers as she rocks everyone's world. Unexplained progress is real goodness.

Georgia is looking forward to another visit with baby sister tomorrow - she is very much looking forward to Caroline (her baby) coming home. She is also excited about putting together a small picture book of her sister.

Thank you to everyone for the ongoing prayers of support, phone calls, meals, emails, and text messages. I know we haven't been able to return every inquiry and for those we haven't connected with - please know we are grateful for your interest and we hope to connect with you soon. Dad and grandma continue to be amazing in coordinating Georgia's schedule. From visits to the park to special treats, Georgia may be considering moving in with Grandma full-time:) Thanks mom - we are so grateful to have you in town.

Visitor Celebration

Caroline continues to do well - meeting some milestones and struggling with others - basic updates:

• She is now receiving breast milk through her NG Tube (small feeding tube placed in her nose)
• PICC line is in place for administering fluids, drugs, etc.
• Bilirubin light is still in place, however her levels are declining, so she is losing 1 additional light on Monday morning. Hopefully, she'll be able to lose all of them in the next couple of days.
• Because she has to be under the lights as much as possible, she is only able to be held twice a day for 30 minutes, so all are looking forward to seeing her sweet eyes again (although the sunshades are fashionable, we'll be thrilled to see her sweet face again soon).
• She is still breathing on her own, but the number of times she forgets to breath are increasing - this is to be expected and for the most part she is able to correct these events on her own (which is good news).

She's had lots of visitors, including a special introduction to Grandpa this afternoon. She was also serenaded by her sister late this morning to, "Doe, a deer, a female deer, Ray, a drop of golden sun..."

Here are a few new photos to enjoy.

Sing Along...

SWEET CAROLINE…

Sisters...Reaching Out

Where it began, I can't begin to knowing
But then I know it's growing strong
Was in the spring
Then spring became the summer
Who'd have believed you'd come along

Hands, touching hands
Reaching out, touching me, touching you

Sweet Caroline
Good times never seemed so good
I'd be inclined
To believe they never would
Oh no, no

Look at the night and it don't seem so lonely
We filled it up with only two
And when I hurt
Hurting runs off my shoulder
How can I hurt when I'm holding you

One, touching one
Reaching out, touching me, touching you

Tummy Time

The nurses keep insisting that Caroline has no idea she is small, she already holds her binky in all by herself and as you can see, it looks enormous. But then again look at the length of those arms:)

My binky, which I can already hold in by myself

Caroline Quinn

We finally decided on Caroline Quinn today for sweet baby girl Cisar's name. Caroline, based on English history means tiny and strong - very appropriate we felt. It is also the female version of Charles - both Patrick's grandfather's name and my mom's father's name. And Quinn, means 'queen' and given the drama and prominence Caroline has already demanded - appropriate.

She is weighing in today at 2 pounds, 13 ounces and is breathing completely on her own.She is strong and determined. She also hit the lights today, had her first visitors and met her big sister for the first time. It was a BIG day!

Thank you for the beautiful gifts, flowers, snacks, kind thoughts and prayers - the list goes on and on. Many more photos to follow.

(Our post is 'purple' today in honor of Big Sister, Georgia - it's her favorite!)

She's Here...

Baby girl Cisar arrived Thursday, September 20, weighing 3 pounds, 1 ounce and 15.5 inches long. Her hair is a little lighter than Georgia's and she's breathing almost all on her own.
She's got a little journey in front of her but we are grateful for how healthy she is.

Name to come soon. Thank you for the prayers, meals, thoughts, cards, etc. We are so blessed. We're at Saint Luke's on the plaza and will be for a while.

We'll try to post more photos and updates as we learn more. Welcome to the world sweet girl! We love you!

Forward Progress

Lots of misc updates to share. Most everyone knows that Patrick and I headed to the hospital last Friday with bags packed, following 2 rounds of steroids only to receive great news! As of Friday, baby girl Cisar had successfully doubled her amount of fluid and squeaked out another great performance on the big screen:) So, we celebrated with a late brunch and Patrick headed into work for the afternoon.

We then went crazy and treated Georgia to the circus on Saturday morning. We had talked about going weeks ago, but decided to postpone not knowing where we might be. Needless to say, she had a great time and experienced cotton candy for the first time. Not sure she's a big fan, but she enjoyed taking it all in. 

We have decided that she has definitely turned over a new leaf within the past week - almost instantly changing her personality. She has spent many an evening with Grandma and has enjoyed every minute. She even had a wonderful experience on Saturday evening for a few hours with Miss Whitney (babysitter), asking to have her back, but only after nap, when she would be awake to play. This is a wonderful turn of events for our sweet Georgia and we can hardly believe what a big girl she is becoming. Each evening she assesses which animals are in her big girl bed and perhaps who should be waiting for baby sister in the crib, and then thoughtfully delivers them. If anyone is ready - it may be her.

On an unrelated note - many of you know how we tease that Patrick is our budget Nazi and we giggle about our individual envelopes of cash that he prepares on a monthly basis. It's one of the things we have come to love best about him - his conservative, cash foundation for everything! Perhaps, that's why our recent case of identity theft is so hard to comprehend. How is it possible for a man, who by all accounts, is so careful, to be a victim of such a personal crime? For the 3rd time since May we have been contacted by the fraud department at our credit card company and this most recent activity is again occurring in CA. So, now in the midst of physician appointments, Patrick is working to file formal police reports and move our case forward with the Federal Trade Commission. Advice to all of our friends and family - protect yourselves by setting additional passwords on all of your accounts that are ALWAYS required for access - in addition to your mother's maiden name and social security number:)

More appointments Wednesday and Thursday this week and prayers of gratitude for the additional time we have received. At this rate, she'll probably join us weighing more than 7 pounds and arriving in November. 

Thanks Em for the sweet manicure last week - the things I lose sleep over - nails:)

32 Weeks and Counting

So this post is a bit delayed this week - but we've been busy with lots of excitement. Perhaps most notably is that my MRI that I completed last week came back NORMAL:) I know so many of you want to see the final image just to confirm for yourselves - all kidding aside, happy to have great results.

Tuesday, I saw the perinatologist and learned that baby girl is just shy of 3 pounds, so her growth was what everyone wanted to see and she again performed like a champ during her NST and dopplers, so great news. At the same time she was growing over the past couple of weeks, my fluid has become critically low - now serving as the indicator for delivery. So, Tuesday I headed to labor and delivery for my first round of steroids and then home for 24/7 bed rest. 

So, I am working quickly to wrap up some important projects and communications at work from the comfort of our old white couch. Second round of steroids today - so she should be as prepared as possible for entering our big, wide, beautiful world. Headed to my OB tomorrow (Thursday) and back to the perinatologist for fluid and scans on Friday morning.

Perhaps most exciting - we learned this week that she has hair. Having been a bald baby, this is always exciting to me. She remains nameless, but as soon as we can pin her dad down on choices we should be in good shape. I smile each time one of you emails or calls and tells me what you've now named her - thank you. She is definitely a well prayed for little girl, living by many different names in your hearts, thoughts and prayers.

As we learn more this week, I will share updates. Perhaps next week at this time, we'll have some photos of her sweet hair to share with you. We now look forward, perhaps with anxious hearts and minds, to meeting this strong minded little lady who has already changed our lives and made us so much stronger! Our opportunity to love and grow in our faith and in our family has been an experience only a 3 pound little girl could inspire. Thank you for filling our lives with this gift - we can't wait to meet you!

Beyond Blessed

Now, maybe more than ever, I am reminded of how blessed my life is, day after day. Our friends are incredibly generous and thoughtful and I am amazed at the ongoing outpouring of support for us and baby girl. Many of you know how much I love and adore snail mail, stamps, fun stationary, real invitations, etc. And late last week, probably one of the best note writers I know sent me a sweet note and new prayer to add to our arsenal. 

Although I am sharing lots of updates through the blog, we know how lucky we are and that so many others are struggling with challenges so much greater. We are grateful for the love and support and I hope you enjoy this prayer as much as I have over the past few days. Thank you Emily - I hope you know how much we adore you!

"Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then, the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." Phillippians 4:6,7

Care Package

My sisters came to town for Labor Day weekend and we had a great time, despite the rainy weather and limited pool time. In addition, to seeing everyone and celebrating Liz's birthday, baby girl Cisar and momma Cisar were also spoiled. Liz treated us to a beautiful box of goodies to help keep Georgia and I entertained while I spend countless hours on my left side.

Not only was the box completely appropriate - but each item had a beautiful hand made tag identifying just how important it is - from fabulously fun straws (for drinking lots and lots of water) to a full craft project (complete with materials and instructions) to new PJ's and sandals, the bases were covered. Fun nail polish and bling rounded out the 'funness' of this gift. Thank you, thank you!!!

Georgia enjoyed some of her new books tonight for the first time, while dad got beat up on the sand volleyball court and grandma introduced new left handed scissors. Georgia is officially a lefty and all have been concerned over the lack of left handed scissors at her school, so now she officially has her own to hone her developing art skills...or, as she shared this evening - her ability to cut playdough:) 

Thanks Liz for the amazing gift - it was so much fun to sort through - I'm so proud of myself for actually opening a few of the items tonight - it was all so perfectly put together, I thought I might never be able to use any of it.

Believe - Expect the Best & the Best Will Come

Inside - goodies galore...