Who Knew Facebook Could Be So Great?

I've been posting updates about Skylar on Facebook pretty much daily & I cannot believe the immense support and encouragement I've been receiving from it.

Who Knew an internet site could be so great?

I've been getting like 50 comments on some posts which is crazy.  It's so nice to know that so many people care and are praying for us.  It truly means so much to me.

Human Cow

Since Skylar has been in the hospital, I have been pumping to keep my milk supply up since I intend on breast feeding.  I have a crazy milk supply & the nurses can't believe how much I'm producing.  It's kind of funny & I recognize what a blessing it is.

I have a TON stored in a friend's deep freezer.

I wouldn't really wake up in the middle of the night to pump like I should have because I was too tired & it's not like there was a baby to feed so in the mornings I would have a ton.  Each of the bottles in this picture is 2 oz so this was 14 oz which is the most I ever pumped.  Yowza!

Kangaroo Care

Skylar is the sweetest thing.  I love snuggling with her.

The Comfort of Little Things

In the NICU, a nurse named Mandi made us this little name sign that is taped to Skylar's big bed.  It's so cute.  They make one for all the babies and I think it's really special to personalize Skylar's temporary home. Everything is so hospitalish so this was really nice.

And then a group of volunteers called Threads of Love make little blankets,hats, & booties for babies in the NICU.  I came to the hospital one day to find this adorable pink crocheted blanket & matching booties on Skylar.  I love this little blanket.  Again, it was truly comforting and I appreciate so much the kindness of other people who give their time and talent to help lift the burden of someone they don't even know.  I was touched & intend to send a thank you letter to them.

These were little things but they meant so much to me & they really did make a huge difference in our experience at the hospital.

What Am I Supposed To Learn From This?

Humility
Compassion
Strength
Appreciation
Gratitude
Unity (with Tyson)
Testimony of fasting, prayer, scriptures
*That I am loved by many*
(Dr also mentioned that Skylar is teaching us patience)
Allowing others to help me

This morning at the end of my prayer and my begging & pleading that "He let me have her" and that "He please heal her" I envisioned Jesus standing at her bedside in the NICU with His hands touching her abdomen on her incision doing just that...healing her.

Tyson gave me a blessing last night and in it, it said she would be healed.

I need to have greater faith. Many scriptures that I read this morning said my prayers would be granted according to my faith.

It's also very comforting that a lot of FB comments say, "She will get through this." That's what I need to hear right now.

I've also noticed that as I allow others to help me, it makes me want to pay it forward & help other people more.

Sleeping Beauty

3:05pm posted on FB: Skylar looks better everyday. She looks pinker, cheeks look fuller. 2 days ago she was already 6 lbs & that's just from IV fluids! They're most likely going to start feeding her tomorrow (yay!) Her incision has already healed (no bandage required). Things are moving in the right direction, thank goodness! I can't believe its almost been 2 wks since she was born. I still can't tell who she looks like.

Stupid Sore Throat

8:49pm on FB:
Skylar is doing well. They will probably start feeding her teaspoon amts of breast milk soon. I'm sad tho because I haven't seen her today & as much as it kills me I'm not going tonight either because I have a sore throat. Don't want to do anything to compromise her recovery. But man this sucks! Today will be the first day that I haven't seen her at least twice a day. Boo!

Skylar Snores

3:55pm on FB:
I love holding Skylar! She's doing really well. Xray this morning looked good. They haven't even had to give her pain meds today because she's just been sleeping peacefully. She's snoring away in my arms. :o)

Surgery Day

9:15am
It's overcast today...a pretty good comparison to how my heart feels. I didn't know how I was going to feel today because yesterday I couldn't really feel anything.

Today I purposely left before Blakeley woke up because I knew I'd cry if I said bye to her. It kills me to leave her since I'm so used to being with her all the time. I feel like I've barely seen her the last week and I feel sad and guilty in a way about that. I'm having Blakeley withdrawals.

We're on our way to the hospital to hold Skylar and spend some time with her before surgery starts.

I have to hope that everything is going to be OK because any other option just does not compute. I brought her car seat with us and I'm going to set it in front of me while we wait during surgery to symbolize that we WILL be bringing our baby home in a couple weeks. Let me say that again...WE WILL BE BRINGING OUR BABY HOME IN A COUPLE WEEKS!

11:40am
Surgery was pushed back a couple hours because they had an emergency surgery come up. It was going to be at about 10:30am but now its going to be around 12:30pm. That was fine with me though because that means more time to hold Skylar and spend time with her. Holding her is therapeutic for me and I would imagine it is for her too. I'm feeling a lot better now after holding her than I felt earlier before we got here.

I read my friend, Tanya's FB post this morning that read: "We have no right to ask when a sorrow comes, 'Why did this happen to me?' unless we ask the same question for every joy that comes our way."

She continued: I have learned to be thankful for not only my blessings, but for the hard times too, because those hard times are truly blessings in disguise. I know God wouldn't put me through anything that isn't going to promote me or make me stronger. Good morning friends. <3

My response was this:

Instead of asking "Why?" I ask "What am I supposed to learn from this?" And I try to see the lesson in it because there always is one.

So what am I supposed to learn from this? Well it definitely puts things in perspective. On FB I read a post where someone was complaining and pissed off because their side mirror on their car was broken and hanging down when they went outside this morning. I wanted to reply, "well my little 5lb baby is going in for surgery this morning if that makes you feel better." Who cares about a side mirror?

As we were driving here this morning it occurred to me that we need to treat everyone on the road as if they are parents who are driving to the hospital on the day that their little baby is going in for surgery. How much better would we treat people if this was always on our mind? We don't know what people are going through.

I've noticed that the world spins on like normal even though it feels like time has stopped to me.

One of the hardest things about this whole experience is that Skylar has been getting IV fluids but the nurses say she is hungry. The other day I was holding her and she was sucking on her pacifier but she would cry at different times. It sounded like a painful cry to me. I mentioned it to the nurse and she said she was hungry. They then ordered something called "sweeties" which is glucose and water which produces a feel good hormone and they were giving it to her every hour.

But my baby is hungry and I cannot feed her. Any Mother would cry. Yesterday I prayed about that because that is just not right and after I prayed I read the scripture Alma 31:38:

"And the Lord provided for them that they should hunger not, neither should they thirst; yea, and he also gave them strength, that they should suffer no manner of afflictions, save it were swallowed up in the joy of Christ. Now this was according to the prayer of (Kendra) Alma; and this because (s)he prayed in faith."

From that scripture I knew HF was taking care of her and that he would not let her hunger.

Today the nurse was talking again about her being hungry. She even mentioned that her belly probably wasn't aching but that she was probably having hunger pangs. She also said she probably wouldn't really get to eat for like 3 days. I like this nurse and she is really nice but why on EARTH would you say that to parents? That is so NOT comforting.

If I had not read that scripture yesterday and already prayed about it, I would have broken down and bawled. Instead, her comment didn't really bother me because I already know Skylar is being watched over. But wow...I'm pumping all this milk and I cannot feed my baby. Not a good feeling. Skylar has been asleep most of the time when we see her and I'm glad because if she's asleep then I know she's not uncomfortable or hungry.

12:25pm
Sounds like the surgeon is on a different case and it will still be an hour or so before surgery for us.

The chaplain just came over and spoke to us-she was an older lady and I know a Chaplain is a religious term but don't know what it means. I didn't really feel like talking to anyone but she seemed nice and I didn't want to be rude. She just asked us a few questions about the surgery and said a prayer with us. I liked that in her prayer she said something about "blessing every cell in Skylar's body" and "blessing everyone who speaks her name in this hospital" (to be inspired to know what to do for her.)

I wore yellow today for sunshine. As much of a scary and nerve racking day this is, its the first day toward recovery!!! Sunshine...!

1:10pm
The team of Doctors and Nurses just took Skylar for surgery. Tyson changed her diaper right before and I saw her little butt for the first time! I can't believe I had not seen it before! She's so itty bitty! It dawned on me that her umbilical cord will fall off before she comes home.

I keep calling her "Sweet Pea" so apparently that is my nickname for her. Blakeley is my little Sunshine and Skylar is my little Sweet Pea.

We are sitting in a waiting room. The TV is on quietly but there's also quite a few people in here talking so you can't hear the TV. A little girl was just laughing. I swear babies and little kids laughing is the best sound on this planet.

2:27pm
When the surgery is over the surgeon is going to come talk to us. I am facing the doors where he will come in and I keep staring out the windows anxiously as people walk by anticipating his arrival. I know the anesthesia was going to take a little bit but its been an hour and twenty mins since we left her bedside so it could be done anytime.

I keep trying to visualize Skylar in her car seat with the little infant insert and us being released from the hospital and going home. That will be one of the best days of my life. I can't wait to walk out those doors.

I'm biting my nails which I don't normally do and Tyson said something about it. I replied, "I'm allowed to."

2:35pm
Our NICU nurse just came in and said she got a call. Everything is going well but its just taking a little longer than expected. They're about halfway finished. They're inserting a feeding tube so that Skylar can get better nutrition and it just took a while to get the right size tube. So far so good.
 
3:40pm (Posted the following on FB)
Surgeon just came & told us that the surgery went well. She had a complete blockage and he said the type of blockage that she had is pretty rare & that he had only seen 3 in 32 yrs. Don't know how long recovery period will be- probably at least a couple weeks so she will be in NICU for awhile. I can't wait to see her in a few mins and I really can't wait to take her home!!!


8:39pm (Posted on FB:)
Back to the hospital to see my sweet pea. Can't hold her till tomorrow but can't go to bed without seeing her again! I'm glad the hospital is pretty close since we come at least twice a day.

The Emotional Roller Coaster Continues...

At 12:13pm, I posted this on FB: "Just met with Dr. Baldwin, the surgeon. Surgery around 10:30am tomorrow. She will probably be in NICU for 2 weeks after to recuperate and for monitoring. Dr was nice & confident it will be a success. He had kind eyes.

8:49pm: "I'm off to see my little sweet pea. It's a nightly routine after Blakeley goes to bed. I'm glad we can go to the NICU any time we want."

Journal entry for the day:

I said a prayer this morning and it included asking that Skylar would not be hungry and that she would be comfortable. After my prayer I opened my scriptures and this was maybe the 7th verse that I read:


Alma 31:38 and the Lord provided for them that they should hunger not, neither should they thirst; yea, and he also gave them strength, that they should suFfer no manner of afflictions, save it were swallowed up in the joy of Christ. Now this was according to the prayer of (Kendra) Alma; and this because (s)he prayed in faith.  Amazing.

Alma 32

Alma 32:6


I have been humbled by this experience. I was so complacent for so long. The Lord caused me to be humble.

Alma 32:12

To learn wisdom...brought to a lowliness of heart and made to be humble

Alma 32:13

COMPELLED TO BE HUMBLE...seeketh repentance

Alma 32:23

*Angels are administering to Skylar

Alma 32:26-43

HAVE FAITH.
Yesterday while holding Skylar the thought came to me that this is a taste of the pain Heavenly Father must have felt regarding the sacrifice of Jesus.

Alma 33:5-11. HF hears my prayers

Alma 33:23

Joscelyn's post- Jack Johnson song...

My reply to her:

And not just family togetherness...with everything going on reading this made me think of unity in terms of a lot of people...like our ward family. Strength in numbers. I know a lot of people are praying and fasting for us and I can feel that. Such a comfort...we're all in this journey of life together!

Surgery is Scheduled

I didn't go to church today.

This morning I got a call from the surgeon, Dr. Baldwin.  He said he had reviewed Skylar's case & he concluded that she had a mechanical blockage & needed surgery to fix the problem.  SURGERY?!  It was hard for me to imagine surgery on a baby that tiny.  And on MY baby?!  The thought of surgery on my tiny baby kills me but he said the success rate is very high.

He wants to meet with us on Monday to go over details.

Later in the day...

They're putting in the central line (a different type of IV) now. It is supposed to give better nutrition and more direct nutrition. It goes from her arm to the vein right above her heart. Preparation for surgery on Tuesday.  (They actually couldn't get the PICC in when they tried it this first time but they got it in the following day).

Journal entry for the day:

I was driving to the hospital to see Skylar just now and I saw the temple in the distance up on the hill. (We live about 3 miles from the San Antonio temple). As soon as I saw it, the first word that came to mind was "hope." And I was reminded that the temple is a great symbol of hope. Then the word " faith" came to mind. I was at a stop light a little bit closer and could still see the temple in the distance. As I stared at the gold angel Moroni, the words "good tidings" came to mind. And I felt the spirit.


I then realized that we pass by the temple every time we drive to the hospital. When I had that realization, I felt the spirit very strong. How lucky are we that as we endure this trial, we get to pass right by such an amazing symbol of hope, faith, and good tidings?

I'm grateful for our faith and the knowledge that we have that comforts us and buoys us up in these difficult times.

I've never been on the receiving end like this and I can truly feel the love, strength, and support from prayers sent in our behalf. How grateful I am for those people and their support.

I know everything will be OK.

The Emotional Roller Coaster Begins

My Mom's flight landed at like 1am & Tyson picked her up from the airport.

Ty & Crystal came & picked up Blakeley & took her to Sea World for the day.  Tyson & I took my Mom to the hospital so she could meet Skylar.  Parents & Grandparents are the only visitors allowed in the NICU.

At 3:41pm, I posted this on FB: "Update on Skylar...she did well after most of her feedings but then spit up a lot of milk at one point (the equivalent of everything she had eaten). It was 3 hrs after she had eaten-not like right after so that kind of concerns me. Not sure yet if it's an issue. They are going to continue to monitor her. If she does it after this feeding she will get another x-ray."

At 6:13pm, I posted this on FB: "Skylar threw up all her food again (for the 2nd time today) so they are putting her back on IV and stopping the feedings. We seem to be back at square one. They can tell her stomach isn't functioning properly but they can't tell what's causing it. They're going to do more xrays in the morning. I'm back to being worried. This really sucks."

An Image of Comfort

This morning I prayed for Skylar to feel of Heavenly Father's love and comfort and then about 10 mins later the thought and image came to my mind of Jesus sitting next to her bed and then I saw an image of Him holding her and rocking her at the hospital.

Such a comforting image.  Exactly what I needed.

At 10:34am, I posted this on FB: "I'm going to see Skylar in the NICU. Hopefully they can give us some more concrete info today since we don't know much at this point. On a happy note, my Mom comes into town today! And it's her Birthday! Happy Birthday Mom! Can't wait to see you!

At 12:18pm, I posted this on FB: "Good news about Skylar! She's doing a lot better & they are going to take the tubes out of her throat today & try feeding her a little. If she doesn't spit up then they can keep the tubes out & continue to feed her slowly & then I can start nursing her again! If she continues to do well then she could go home in about a week. I feel so much better since it sounds optimistic. Let's hope she keeps her food down."

At 10:19pm, I posted this on FB: "More good news on Skylar! The IV & tubes are out and she was able to keep fluids down. They're going to start giving her small amounts of milk and if she's able to keep that down then I can start nursing her again tomorrow. If she doesn't have any more episodes then there's even a chance she'll be released in the next couple days! Thank you everyone for your prayers. I'm really hoping things continue to go well!"

Miracles at Work

I've never been on the receiving end like this where there was a big trial going on in my life where a lot of people were aware of my issue and had great concern for me. I posted on Facebook about Skylar being in the NICU and I asked for people to please pray for us. I have received so many kind messages of encouragement and support. It is so amazing to read those messages and feel of the love and comfort and to actually feel buoyed up. It's as if I can feel the outpouring of love and actually feel the prayers of our friends and family. Although this may be the hardest trial of my adult life, I can recognize the power and miracles at work.

I haven't been thinking, "Why me?" I've actually just been thinking a lot about others that I know who have been through similar experiences and how this experience is going to allow me to relate better to others who have gone through this and those who will go through it. It has made me have a renewed appreciation for Tyson and Blakeley. I love my little family so much.
Sharing the childbirth experience with Tyson is amazing and I remember feeling this way when we had Blakeley as well. It is such a great feeling to have him by my side, supporting me and being there every step of the way. Having him as a companion right there with me as we gaze at the new precious life that we created and admiring her little fingers, hands, and beautiful face-- there's nothing quite like it. It gives me such a renewed sense of appreciation for him. It strengthens our bond and makes me love him so much more. It truly symbolizes to me what marriage is all about.
I also had a blessing today by the Bishop and Tyson and I have felt a lot of strength from that as well. I'm grateful for Priesthood blessings.

Blakeley & Skylar Meet

As I mentioned in the previous post, Amy brought Blakeley to the hospital the day after Skylar was born so Blakeley could meet her new little sister! 

I think she's still too young to really understand that this baby is coming home with us & is going to stay but we'll see how it goes!

This would be the only time Blakeley saw Skylar until she was discharged from the hospital six weeks later!

Skylar's Big Debut

Skylar Bloom Haas

Tuesday, April 12, 2011   -   10:24pm    -    5lbs 8.4oz      -      19 1/4 inches

I will preface this by saying that part of this post is graphic! This is my labor & delivery story & is mostly for my own recollection. I wanted to write down all the details so I have it to read later.

At my Dr. appt this morning I was 5cm & 100% effaced!  How the heck was I still walking around?  My Dr said she thought the only reason I had not gone into labor yet was because Skylar’s head was not engaged in my pelvis. She recommended that I walk & do squats.  I went home & did squats throughout the day. Apparently that worked because at about 3:30pm I started having contractions that were between 2-5 mins apart. They didn’t hurt at all though so I didn’t take them too seriously.  At about 4:15pm I started wondering if I should go back to the Dr to have her check me again before they closed for the day.  I called & the nurse recommended I just head to labor & delivery since I was already 5cm that morning & since I was having contractions that close together for 45 mins already. I really did not want to go to labor & delivery unless I was absolutely sure that it was the real deal.

I called Tyson though & just gave him a heads up that I was having contractions & they were pretty close together.  He was working in Seguin which is his furthest store & it would take him at least an hour to get home in rush hour traffic. I told him I wasn’t sure if he should come home early yet. About 10-15 mins later I called him back & told him he might as well head home just to be on the safe side since the contractions were not stopping & they were still 2-5 mins apart. They still didn’t hurt though!

I still wasn’t so sure that it was the real deal but since the contractions were so close together I figured I might as well go to the hospital & walk around for awhile just to see if they would progress or stop. The hospital would be the best place to be, right?

I called Amy Beltran who is a friend from church since we had planned in advance that she would watch Blakeley while we were in the hospital. She came over & picked up Blakeley & I headed to the hospital. Tyson had left work & he was heading to the hospital & I just walked around for an hour or so until he got there. During that time, the contractions never stopped & they seemed to be like 1-3 mins apart & by the time he got there, I knew we were going to check in to labor & delivery. They still didn’t hurt but they were pretty strong & I felt a lot of pressure down there. I actually felt like her head was going to pop out! So we checked in & the nurse took us straight to a room…she didn’t even bother to monitor me in triage since I had already been 5cm that morning & I was having contractions that close together for a good 3-4 hours at that point. It was 6:40pm when we checked in.

The nurse’s name was Janis & she was really nice. She checked me & I was like 6-7cm! I was surprised because the contractions really didn’t hurt! You watch all the shows on TV & the women are doubling over in pain so it’s just hard to believe that I was dilated that much without any real pain.

With that said, I will preface the rest of this by saying that nothing about the delivery was easy.  It was pretty stressful.

Soon after I was admitted, I started shaking uncontrollably & I absolutely HATED that sensation. The nurse said that’s really common once you get to 7cm because that’s when your body is transitioning to the next stage of labor. I remember shaking when I was in labor with Blakeley but not until after I had my epidural & they had said that was from the medication.

So of course I told the nurse that I wanted an epidural as soon as possible. It was probably about an hour before I got it.  (In the meantime, the contractions still didn't hurt.)  As I was getting the epidural, I felt really scared & I regretted that we forgot to have Tyson give me a Priesthood blessing before we checked in. I silently cried a little as the anesthesiologist put the big needle in my back & Tyson was across the room…I should have had him come over by me & hold my hand. Meanwhile, the uncontrollable shaking continued…

The epidural kicked in pretty quickly & about 10-15 mins later, the Dr. came in & broke my water. Dr. Thompson was the Dr. on call so he’s the one who delivered me…not my normal OBGYN, Dr. Womack. I had found out like a week before this that I had a lot more amniotic fluid than the average person. As soon as the Dr broke my water, TONS of fluid gushed out. After that, I could feel fluid gush out every time I had a contraction. It was just Tyson & I in the room for awhile & I started thinking that the nurse needed to come change the pads on the bed since I could still feel fluid gushing. I pressed the call button & told the lady at the front desk that my nurse needed to come change the padding on the bed. She said she would send the nurse in. At least 10 mins went by & still no nurse. All of a sudden, I heard fluid start dripping from my bed onto the floor. It sounded like a waterfall & with every contraction, more fluid…bigger waterfall! I pushed the call button again & told the lady at the front desk that fluid was going all over the floor. She told me in an annoyed voice that she had already told my nurse & that she would be there soon. At least 15 more minutes go by & still no nurse. Finally she came in (she had been helping a Dr deliver a baby) & I told her about all the fluid on the floor & I mentioned that I had tried to warn them! She had never seen anything like it. Fluid was ALL over the floor! It was a really gross feeling to feel all the fluid gush out with every contraction too & at certain points, there was A LOT each time! I mean, A LOT! I actually got a kick out of it though because I figured the waterfall would make for a good story later on.

At no point during my labor did my epidural ever really make me comfortable or relaxed. The entire time I felt anxious & continued to shake uncontrollably. I hated the way I felt & I kept telling Tyson that. I must have told him at least 20 times...I probably sounded like a broken record.  I should have asked for more medicine in my epi but I didn’t. I could move my legs so I knew my epi wasn’t THAT strong although I couldn’t feel any pain. My epidural with Blakeley made me feel loopy, relaxed, & comfortable. I remember I couldn’t even move my legs so I figured that epi must have been a stronger dose.

I did feel like time passed quickly, however, & I remember thinking that same thing when I was in labor with Blakeley also. At some point during all of this, I had Tyson give me a blessing & he rubbed my head to try to make me feel more comfortable.

At about 10pm I was fully dilated & it was time to start pushing. All of a sudden a monitor started beeping and the nurse made me put on an oxygen mask. I didn’t really understand what was going on & I asked them why I needed to wear the mask. The nurses told me that the beeping on the monitor was occurring because the baby’s heart rate was decelerating. They had me lay on my side and the beeping stopped. I think it beeped a few different times though. The Dr came in & told me that I only had a limited amount of time to push before it would end up in a c-section because of the baby’s heart rate. After a couple pushes, he said he was going to have to use the vacuum to help the baby come out. This entire time I felt really stressed because I didn’t know how safe it was to use a vacuum or what it really meant. And the thought of a c-section was scary…especially when I was dilated so much for a few weeks & the baby was low…I didn’t even think a c-section would be a possibility. So the Dr used the vacuum and after some more pushing, Skylar was out. She was born at 10:24pm after about 20 mins of pushing.

As soon as she was out, they started cleaning her off on a nearby baby bed and immediately I could see that she was really skinny. Her legs were soooo thin! They weighed her & she only weighed 5 lbs 8 oz! I was shocked that she was so small since my stomach was really big & Blakeley had weighed 7lbs 4oz so she was almost 2lbs bigger. After they cleaned Skylar, they handed her to me & I held her for maybe a minute. They told us that they were not happy with her coloring because she was pale so they wanted to monitor her in the NICU.

It turns out that the umbilical cord had been wrapped around her body & they thought that may have been the cause of her heart rate decelerating. They thought that she could have been stunned from the delivery because of those issues and that could have been the cause of her pale coloring.

After the delivery, the nurse said I was bleeding more than normal. (Could this be any more stressful?) The Dr had left to deliver another baby and the nurse went to go get him since I was bleeding a lot. When he came back, he said I had some clotting in my uterus & he proceeded to push on my stomach & go to town on my uterus & belly. When he left, I told the nurse, “It felt like he had his hold fist up me…” She replied, “Oh honey…that's because he did.” Thank goodness for epidurals since it didn’t hurt although I felt a lot of pressure & knew it would have hurt like crazy if I didn’t have pain medication. And ewww…his entire hand was up me & he was pushing on my uterus. Gross.  Turns out a small piece of the placenta was still in my uterus and that was causing the bleeding.

I remember wondering why Skylar was so small. I felt guilty because I assumed it had to have been from something I did or didn’t do. Did I not eat enough? I gained 33 lbs during the pregnancy which was 5 lbs more than what I had gained with Blakeley. I just felt so worried because she was so small.  She looked so whithered and the skin on her legs just looked saggy.  (Dr. Agrawal from the NICU later said that she looked like she had lost weight in utero).

Posting the following on a later date...

(This is regarding Wed, 4/13/2011)
Skylar was in the NICU until about 11am the next morning. I went there every 3 hrs and nursed her in the meantime. After they brought her back to us, we had her for about 8 hrs. During that time, I discovered that Skylar has two dimples!  Just like Blakeley and me.  And Tyson has one so we're just a family of dimples, I guess.  It's really fun when you first discover qualities like this on your newborn for the first time!  I was so excited!

Amy also brought Blakeley to visit & Blakeley met her little sister (although she had no idea who this baby was). We had visited a couple friends in the hospital in the previous week who had also had babies so Blakeley might have just thought this was some other baby she was visiting. Ty & Crystal also came to visit later that night.

At some point that night, nurses must have taken Skylar for tests or something & I guess Skylar was throwing up a lot. I didn’t really see it although I did see her doing a weird gasping thing a couple times & that was freaking me out. It was like she couldn’t breathe & the nurse would put her on her side & use the aspirator to suction out fluid that she was spitting up while patting her on the back. I remember thinking that if she did that at home, I was going to freak out. It was scary.

I had the nurses watch her in the nursery that night because I was worried that she would do that gasping thing during the night & I knew that we wouldn’t be able to stay awake & watch her. We had gotten barely any sleep the previous night (I got maybe an hour total). While she was in the nursery, she threw up a couple of times & it was enough that made them think there might be a problem. They did an xray & it showed her stomach was really big. It showed that nothing was passing from the stomach to small intestine & they thought there could be some kind of blockage. They took her back to the NICU for monitoring. They put a suction tube down her throat so that they could suction out the air & fluid that was in her stomach. That made her stomach shrink back down to normal size.


On Thursday, 4/14/2011, we got discharged from the hospital & we had to leave our sweet baby there.  It was horrible.  The whole situation was really unexpected.  And thanks to fun hormones, ever since the delivery, I would just cry at the drop of a hat...sometimes because I just felt stressed & other times I knew it was just the hormones because I don't think I would have normally cried.

At 9:11am, my FB post read: "Skylar is going back to the NICU. X ray results show she has some kind of obstruction in her intestines which is causing her to spit up all her food & they also said it's probably the reason she's so small & why I had so much amniotic fluid. They are putting a tube in her stomach right now & she might end up needing surgery. Looks like we will be going home without our baby today. Please pray for us."  (This post got 46 comments.)

As much as it sucked to leave Skylar there, I really wanted her to be healthy when we took her home so in a lot of ways, I was totally OK with everything. 

At 8:10pm, I posted this on FB: "I'm so happy to be home with Blakeley but so sad that Skylar is still in the NICU. They still haven't determined the exact problem. There is no blockage in her intestine- the problem has something to do with her stomach not functioning properly. Not sure how long she will be there. Thanks for everyone's well wishes and kind words-we need them and greatly appreciate them."



And so the emotional roller coaster begins...