Friday, March 21, 2008

Home Sweet Home

Here's the last couple of days in pictures:
Bela's last full day in the hospital

This was the last big test she had done..testing her brain wave activity which all looked compleltey normal. Yeah! It's amazing what modern medicine can do..

Bela's visitors, her aunts and cousins.

Benson giving kisses. He's loves Bela. His favorite thing to do for her is give her her binkey..not too surprising.

This is Bela's all about me board. Everyday she'd get new goals she was working on, these are her current goals..:)

This was taken yesterday right before we got discarged.

Getting ready to go! She loved the carseat and was wide awake when we left, saying goodbye to all her nurse and dr friends and checking out the world.. She is so tiny in the carseat..

Benson was helping us push our stuff out.. he was so excited to be leaving and taking mommy and Bela home.

Outside the hospital.


Home, sweet home. Dosn't she look so happy to be home?


Driving away from the hospital yesterday was probably one of the best moments of my life so far, but was also very scary for me. I was soo excited to be coming home with my baby and getting her to a more comfortable place where we can work on getting her healthier and stronger. Getting the last of her IV's out and monitors off, and getting her into her little outfit was the greatest feeling. It was all I could do to not start taking everything off her the minute they said we'd start the discharge process. She has bruises all over her little body from different IV's and needles and I was sooo ready to get them all off her. It was sooo good to finally cuddle her with nothing attached. She seemed so warm and content to be wearing clothes and not just be naked. There are so many things I have wanted to do for her since she was born that I wasn't able to do for her until now, and it has been a wondeful night and day for me. One of the sweetest of my life. It's hard to put her down. And she is loving life too...she's so much more content and loves to be held. She has been nursing better than ever cuz we get to curl up in a warm bed together, instead of a loud, cold hospital room. She has been through soo much, and it has been so nice to give her a little break from it all.
All we had to come home with was a pulseox monitor. We have it on all night long and periodically throughout the day to make sure her oxygen saturations and her pulse are staying where they should be. As soon as we begin to notice her numbers trending down, that will be the sign that she is ready for her next surgery. We were also given lots of training on the signs to look for in her if there is a problem. We were told countless times yesterday (as if we didn't already know) how fragile our little girls condition is. Her heart is no where near being fixed, it is simply being kept functional until her next surgery. THere are a lot of little problems that could arise with it over the next few months and monitoring her is crucial for her survival. Also keeping her healthy is crucial for her survival. For that reason we are going to be very protective of her and cautious of who we let see and hold her. We would love for people to come see her, but just ask that you delay coming if you have any symptoms at all. Thanks for understanding..
We are sooo grateful to everyone who is praying for Bela because it is still working miracles for her. She has been lingering aroun 6 lbs 6 ox for awhile and needs to start gaining now. Her heart works so hard that she is burning calories so much faster than a normal newborn, so it's going to be more difficult to get her growing, but that is our goal. Drs. were amazed that she is solely breastfeeding. SHe didn't even have to come home with a NG tube which is pretty amazing for her condition. That's what prayer, divine help, and A LOT of determination can do I guess. I'm so grateful for her strength, she is so strong for such a little thing, and we are being incredibly blessed.
We are sooo excited to be home. Last night sleeping in my own bed was soo great(despite waking up every hour or so). Benson was soo excited to wake up and see her home today. He was all giggles today. It's a great day..

21 comments:

Jennifer said...

WELCOME HOME!!!

Bart and Kellie said...

I can't tell you how your last post has just warmed my heart. I have been avidly checking on you everyday, and updating Bart, and we are amazed at how well little Bella is doing! She is such an inspiration, and a testament to faith & prayers. I am beyond thrilled that you got to bring her home. There is nothing better than just getting to be mama is there?

Dana said...

We are so happy that you are home and that Bela is doing so well. I am so excited for you that she is nursing so well!! She is an amazing little girl and is so beautiful!

Sally Jensen Interiors said...

I am so glad that you are home. I don't know why, but I just cried through this whole post. She's so sweet.

Matt and Jennae Porter said...

What an emotional day for you guys. Such a blessing that you already have her home. She really is an amazing little girl, and clearly has a lot to accomplish here on Earth! We couldn't be happier for you.

Erin said...

How completely exciting was it to read this post!!! It was truly heart warming and we could not be more excited for you guys. Now you can be together as a family, and I am sure Bela is loving that. You have come such a long way and no doubt you will make it the rest of the way too. The Lord is truly on your side! Welcome home!

Dallas and Krista said...

These pictures just make it so real! Especially the one of her in the car seat... I can't even believe it. She is so lovely.

La said...

Belinha,
Seja bem vindo. Eh ali que voce pertence.

Voce mereceu todas as oracoes, e milhares mais.

Te amamos,
D, L, E & C

Ali said...

My favorite is the whole family outside the hospital. I can't believe she is just nursing, that is so wonderful...I'm sure you had to fight for that, way to go Mommy!! Its so fun to see her "unplugged", she is so pretty!

S and K said...

I'm SO excited that you are home with your precious little girl, who is just so pretty! Loving the pics with her eyes open!!! Hope she continues to nurse well, she's such a champ, she is such an amazing little girl! I want to come and see you guys and bring dinner or anything i can do to help!

Anonymous said...

What a sweet homecoming! She is just precious! I'm so happy that Bela is home with her family. Thanks for the update.

The Ridgway Family said...

I am so excited for you guys that little Bela is home. We continue to pray for your family and are so happy that she is doing so well. How truly amazing these little girls are and what strength they have. We have been given little angels!

Anonymous said...

I just love how great everything has been working out! It is so fabulous that you were able to bring Bela home after such a "relatively" short amount of time. We are still praying for your family. Let us know if we can help out at all. She is absolutely precious!

cait said...

i am so glad she's home!!!! and all of the articles are amazing, she is so darling.

Sheri Lee said...

I am so glad for you. We have been praying and thinking about you a lot lately, and what a great miracle for all of us to witness. I have some cute pics of Benson at the Easter Eggs Hunt yesterday.

dave+candace said...

We just found your blog and we loved hearing about Bela. What an amazing miracle and blessing in your lives. We will follow her progress and pray for her success. She has a cute bean head just like her daddy.

cayleen said...

girt,
i am in greece. i'm sorry. i had to extend my trip another couple weeks... i'll call you as soon as i land. my mom has been keeping me updated and i can't get over bela. it's disgusting how cute she is. i can not wait to get to you. your birthday is on it's way, you excited???? i love bela.

Natasha said...

Avery, I saw the article on Bela online so I googled and found your blog. We will pray for more miracles for your Baby Bela. Natasha Woodward

Carl & Mickie Yeates said...

Congratulations, you're home. We are so excited for you and wish you the best. We have loved that you are so diligent about writing your blog so we can be connected a little bit. Bella is a doll and she has the best parents in the world. Heaven is smiling down on you. You are in our prays everyday. Scott and Todd are rooting for you too. We send our love.

Hunny said...

I am so glad that you were able to take her home. I have been reading your blog for a little over 2 weeks and find family amazing.

The Andersens said...

that must be so wonderful to be home. i'm glad that home is out there somewhere on the horizon for us too. thanks for your comments and support. i've never found anyone else who had the hybrid procedure done. so...i might have questions to ask you down the road. but please don't ever feel obligated to respond, you should definitely be devoting every moment to your adorable little baby. i know that's what i would be doing if i ever got my grace home with me. :)
good luck with your sweet little one. i hope all continues to go well for her.