Photogenic Weekend

We spent most of our time this weekend in the yard: cleaning, mulching, weeding, planting, and grilling. Thank goodness for smartphones, because we also managed to catch some great moments:) 

Princess

Evelyn is smitten with all things princess!

Smelling the "roses"

Putting back on her "dainty glass slipper"

Big hugs for Dog, who is currently a cat named Figar

Chatting with her buddy next door

Spinning!

One Month

Annalie is one month old today! She eats, sleeps, poops, and cries just like any other newborn... Here are some shots from her official photo shoot :)

Welcome baby!

We are a little behind in posting, but we were blessed with our second sweet daughter on Friday, April 18, 2014. 

Annalie Jane Nelson

born 4-18-14 at 9:30 am

7 lbs, 11 oz; 19" long

As many of you know, it was a roller coaster pregnancy. At our 13 week ultrasound, the doctor spotted an abnormality; tissue outside the abdomen that should have been inside. After numerous subsequent ultrasounds, blood tests, and an amniocentesis the doctors were still unable to come up with a solid diagnosis. They were able to rule out many things, and the amnio cleared any genetic abnormalities. At one point, the doctor told me, "I wish I could tell you what the hell that thing is!" Our saving grace was that (besides the abdominal defect) the baby appeared to be completely normal and healthy. 

Because we weren't sure what the defect was, all my doctors recommended a c-section. They didn't want to risk anything getting ruptured or creating an emergency situation right at delivery. So we were all set for April 18, exactly one week before my due date. We are very thankful that the baby cooperated and did not try to arrive any sooner! 

The scheduled c-section was about as different a birth experience than my fast, unmedicated birth with Evelyn. The worst part of the actual procedure was going into the operating room--all those tools and medical equipment were very intimidating. The c-section itself was strange, although painless. Lots of pulling and tugging, but nothing hurt. After just a few minutes and a big pushing and pulling sensation in my abdomen,  I heard a gurgling cry, followed by some very loud crying! Annalie had arrived :)

She was immediately taken to the side of the room to be examined by the neonatologist. Within a few minutes the neonatologist came back over and told me that she was pretty sure she knew what the defect was-- a small omphalocele with intestines protruding, covered by a membrane. Before they took her to the NICU for further evaluation and to be seen by the surgeon, they finally brought her over so I could see her and give her a kiss. 

Tom went with Annalie to the NICU while I got stitched up and was brought to the recovery room. I immediately asked the nurse when I could eat! I got ice chips :) Dr. Shah, the pediatric surgeon, came to update us on Annalie's condition. Her plan was to perform surgery on the upcoming Monday to put the intestines back in place. Then, once Annalie regained normal digestive function and could tolerate full feedings, she would be sent home! 

On our way from the recovery room to the postpartum unit, we got to visit the NICU. I finally got to hold my little girl! At that time her belly was wrapped and bandaged. After spending a little time with her, we headed to my room. I wasn't able to return to the NICU until I could get into the wheelchair, which was about 12 hours later. Annalie had been given some formula, and while I was holding her she spit all of it back up. When we came back to visit her on Saturday morning, she had a tube in her nose. Overnight she started spitting up bile, and the tube was there to suction it out of her belly. At that point she was cut off from any feedings and was put on IV nutrition.

Monday morning was surgery time! We all went down together to drop her off, and the nurse promised to keep us posted on how things were going. After about an hour we got an update that things were going well, and that she should be back in the NICU soon. The only minor complication found during surgery was that the hole where the intestines were coming out was very small, so the intestines were quite constricted (like a hose being squeezed by a rubber band was the analogy used). Because of this, it was likely to take a little longer for the intestines to regain full function. But other than that, the surgery was a success! We got to see Annalie shortly after, although she was still intubated and pretty drowsy from the medication.

In the days that followed, they continued to keep Annalie's stomach suctioned. At one point they had to switch to a mouth tube because the nose tube was too narrow to get everything out. Annalie was not a fan of the mouth tube, and it was clear she wanted to eat! But she had to stay on IV nutrition until she started pooping and the bile stopped backing up into her stomach. Finally, both these things started happening and she was given the all clear to start eating on Friday. 

The nurses started by giving her small amounts of breastmilk in bottles (I had been pumping regularly since Annalie's birth), at very controlled intervals. She tolerated that well, so since the nurses knew I planned to nurse we were able to begin on Saturday. The doctor let us nurse on demand, so I got plenty of exercise walking from my room to the NICU every 2-3 hours! Once they saw that Annalie was consistently tolerating feedings and beginning to gain back some weight we were given a discharge date of Tuesday, April 29. 

 Now we are home, and the real fun begins! We are so grateful to all of our friends and family for their kind thoughts and prayers throughout my pregnancy and Annalie's hospital stay. We feel very lucky that her defect turned out to be a relatively easy fix. Besides a bigger "outie" belly button, you would never even know Annalie had surgery!