She's home!

In order for Audrey to come home she had to meet some goals. These four goals were: Don and I take a CPR class, pass her Echo, PA/Lat x-ray, and car seat trial. I was able to schedule a CPR class for Friday the 17th. Wednesday morning her nurse, Kim, calls me and says she was able to reschedule our class since Audrey would most likely be released on Thursday. So we took our  class Wednesday afternoon. By that evening she had her car seat trial and Echo.  The next morning early she had her x-ray and by 11 they said we could come get her.  We still waited around the hospital another 1 1/2, but eventually we were on our way home.
We are so glad to have our little bundle finally with us.The kids love having her home.  They're always wanting to touch her , hold her or look at her. Occasionally Kathy will get upset if she can't constantly be looking at her.
She's been home a week now and is doing great. Since she was constantly sleeping on an incline at the hospital we have found this is the way she sleeps best.
She had a follow-up appointment on Thursday and they said she looks really good. We'll be seeing them once more before we leave for Scotland. At that visit they will give us a copy of her medical history along with a DVD of her Echo. Then when we get to Scotland we can have a family doctor refer us to a cardiologist to continue her care. For the first year she'll need to be seen every few months and then just once a year after that.
Our paperwork is falling into place. Everything is taking place much quicker than anticipated. I know we were a little concerned with the time frame to get her birth certificate, sscard, passport and then apply for our visas. But God knew that and has supplied everything speedily.
To begin with I thought I'd have to apply for her certificate by mail and then it would take a few days to receive it. When I went to the courthouse to get it notarized they told me I could get it right there. Audrey's sscard came in a lot sooner than we expected. Then we just had to get her passport. At the courthouse they told us they didn't take infant photos there. We had to go to Sears. When we came back there was a different lady waiting on us and she explained that they can only expedite it in 2-3 weeks time. But if we went up to the cities we'd have it in 3-5 days. That was what we wanted. We waited til the next day to go. We got that taken care of very quickly and were told it would be in by Saturday or Monday at the latest. We received it Friday!! 
With all of her things now taken care of we sent the last of the paperwork to our sponsor. Soon we will get our sponsor number and next week we will be able to begin the visa process. Within a week or two we could have our visas!!  And in 4 weeks we leave for Scotland!!!!
Don also called the airline and added Audrey to our tickets. What's nice is that Kathy and I will be sitting behind the bulkhead. I'll have use of a bassinet for Audrey during the longer flight.
We've accomplished much this past week.  We're just counting down the days til we get home. :)

Finally!!

no breathing tube!!

Sunday morning at 7:45 AM we received a call from the hospital. They were going to remove the breathing tube!!  We were able to go up and visit shortly before 1 o'clock. Sure enough she was breathing tube-free!!  It had been 5 hours since the removal, so it was time to begin her feedings.  She was very hungry. They told me it was okay to go ahead and nurse her right away.  Audrey did so well!!! And mommy was certainly thrilled. :) I was half afraid she wouldn't take to it so quickly. We took the kids up last night. They hadn't seen her since Wednesday. We didn't really want to take them up while she still had the breathing tube in. Harry looked at Audrey a little bit and then began circling the room and asking about everything. You'd hear him say things like, 'What does this do?,' 'Look a computer!,' 'Why are you doing that?'  Kathy was content to look at Audrey. We didn't stay very long and when we left Kathy, again, was not very happy. She wanted to keep looking at her baby sister. It'd be nice if she always has such an affection for Audrey. :) They told me today she ate  pretty good through the night and she's been having good diapers. Today she nursed really well again.  All in all the weekend has been very nice. Tomorrow or the next day they hope to see the chest tubes and some of the other IVs come out. Then she'd only have one IV left that checks her blood pressure and allows them to draw blood without sticking her foot every time. Some of the goals before she goes home are: CPR class for Don and I, chest front and side x-ray, echo, and car seat trial. We may have our baby girl home by this weekend!

Update on Audrey

Well, we are hoping today is the day they remove the breathing tube. She is doing well, but there are a few things that have taken place that have prevented the removal of the breathing tube.  They aren't really setbacks because they are things that can be expected to happen sometimes because of surgery. The second day she was still a little puffy so it was delayed then. Today one of her lungs deflated a little so they are doing some therapy. This afternoon they will do another chest ultrasound and possibly move forward with the removal later this afternoon. These delays keep pushing off her ability to begin feedings again which also pushes off her return home. She's had the surgery so all we want now is for her to be able to come back home with us. But we don't want her coming home before she's ready. Other than these little happenings they say all looks positive. She's mainly sleeping, but with just enough sedation to allow her to still move around a little. Day by day she is losing the tubes and IVs. It's nice to go in to see her and find something else removed. Yesterday she turned a week old.

1 week old, the day after surgery

I'll be thinking of a different name for the blog soon. We're not on the road anymore and we are not living out of a minivan. Something that would be fitting for us living in Scotland. We'll see...

A new role...NICU mommy

Last Friday we welcomed our little girl, Audrey Elaine into this world. She passed her first due date and was still transverse, so we decided at that point she would probably not turn. We then scheduled a c-section for Friday, August 3rd. She was 7 lbs 1 oz and 20 inches long. She's a perfect little baby.
When she was just three days old a nurse noticed an abnormality in her heart rate. An ultrasound was ordered and thus it was found that she has coarctation (narrowing) of the aorta. I thank God we were still in the hospital when this was discovered. They immediately started her on medication to keep her extra duct open so she would still receive blood flow to the lower part of her body. Since we're from Rochester they were able to transfer her the same day to Mayo by helicopter. I was also able to be discharged the same time she left.
For the last few days she has been in the St. Mary NICU. I didn't really like the idea of returning home without her, but I know she is in capable hands. Other than the heart issue she is very healthy. She is able to nurse whenever I am there. She likes to sleep a lot like any newborn and hates having her diaper changed! She looks rather big compared to the other babies around her. Tomorrow morning she goes in for surgery.
....It's now Thursday morning. We left her about 2 hours ago. Now begins the wait.
She was asleep and looking very peaceful when we left her. By tonight or tomorrow morning she should be free of her breathing tube. I'm praying for a quick recovery. Hopefully by this time next week or a few days before that we will be able to bring her home.
Last night after the services we took the kids up for a quick visit. Due to the late hour Kathy was very tired and cried on the way back to the van. She didn't want to leave!  She really wants Audrey to come home and kept saying, "I want to look at her!"  It was such a sad picture! She's having a hard time understanding why she has to stay in the hospital.
We have canceled the rest of our west coast meetings. But God is still taking care of us. We just heard that another church has taken us on. God is still blessing.
The movers came on Tuesday and now most of our worldly possessions are on their way to Scotland.
Through all of this I also thank God for an understanding husband.  He has been such a great help with the kids and with other things. My recovery has gone well, but with all the moving about my feet haven't had much of a chance to return to their normal size. They are very swollen and this has limited my ability to do more to help much longer than I had anticipated. When I'm not at the hospital I'm sitting in the recliner at home with my feet up.  It's good to have his mom right by to help us out also. 
It's been a trying time, but through it all God has been good and will continue to be good! Don sent an e-mail to our supporting churches and other friends. We have a large network of people all over the USA praying for us and Audrey, especially today.  What a blessing to be part of the family of God!!!