Picture Pages

Ok... so for those of you who are not literary motivated (or those who like books with pictures better), I'm finally going to post pictures. But first, an update.

Liz is doing well, and is most likely going to go home tomorrow. It's been a long week and it's been taking a toll on her, so it will be nice for her to sleep at home for a bit and not be on bed rest.

Emma is doing well, however the honeymoon period appears to be over. Emma had a little hiccup this morning as her blood pressure dropped a bit. The doctors believe this was because Emma was working hard to breathe on her own, so the doctors increased the ventilator pressure and frequency so Emma doesn't have to work hard to breathe. The doctors believe if Emma doesn't have to work as hard, her blood pressure will return to normal (which it has).

In addition, Emma's sodium levels have been a bit off, but the doctors and nurses have been working on that. This is normal though... a good comparison would be if you tried to control a diabetic's blood sugar level by only watching what they eat and taking blood tests from time to time, but receiving no feedback from the patient.

Overall, the staff at Meriter has been doing a great job... and on to the pictures...


Here is Liz a couple weeks ago (although on her side...)


This is Liz in the hospital the first time (about two weeks ago)...



This is Mike, Derek and Justin reliving the glory days (nothing to do with Emma, but you gotta love the hat...)


And this is Emma... the color is a bit off because of a special light they have to have on her for the first week to prevent jaundis. She also has to wear sunglasses to protect her baby blue eyes... She also has lots of tubes to monitor her progress, give her medicine and to give her food and water. Oh yeah, and to help her breathe...






More pictures to come... I'm going to try and get some pictures w/out the funky light. In addition, I'll get some pictures with her eyes open (and maybe holding her mom's finger).

My goal...

My goal for the next 24 hours is to get pictures of Emma posted on this blog (if i can figure out how)... Other than that, Emma and Liz are doing well. Emma opened her eyes for me today... bright blue eyes. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera, but I will have it next time.

24 Weeks

Well, today would have been 24 weeks if Emma hadn't been born on Monday night...

Liz and Emma are doing well. Liz is able to walk around on her own for the most part, and is recovering nicely. I believe that she will be discharged on Friday.

Emma is also doing well. We are in what is often referred to as the "honeymoon period." Meaning, that sometimes a premature baby will do well at first, then will have some difficulties. So, we are keeping our fingers crossed.

Emma has a respirator and is fed intraveneously. Overall her vitals are all good, and she is going well. Liz and I are able to touch her while she is in her incubator and we often talk with her. We have been told that in a couple weeks we should be able to hold her for brief periods.

As far as size, Emma is doing well. As I mentioned in an earlier post, she is 12.25 inches long and weights 1 pounds 5.5 ounces. She looks like her mom and is very active.

Oh... and possibily the biggest news is that Emma opened her eyes today for the first time. She didn't open them much, but I believe that she has blue eyes. While we have been told that she can't see much right now (and what she can see is blurry), it was a nice improvement to have today.

We appreciate everyone's calls, emails and thoughts. Keep them coming....

News...

Well, I have entered into an area of life I have no experience... I am now a father to a beautiful baby girl. Liz delivered via c-section last night to Emma Ann(e) Sullivan... 12.5 inches long, weighing in at 1 pound 5.5 ounces. So, she's small, but I can tell she's a fighter. I'll keep this posted frequently to keep everyone up to date.

chad

Make Someone's Holiday

Everyone has different views about the current actions in Iraq and Afghanistan. While everyone may believe politically different things, what we need to remember is that the men and women who are over there are just like you and I... and that getting a card from someone wishing them good luck or happy holidays can mean a lot. So, please consider sending someone a holiday greeting...

If you go to this web site, www.letssaythanks.com , you can pick out a thank you card and Xerox will print it and it will be sent to a soldier that is currently serving in Iraq. You can't pick out who gets it, but it will go to some member of the armed services.

testing...

hello

22 Weeks

Well, we have hit 22 weeks. A milestone in many respects, but a couple significant things have happened. Foremost, the doctors allowed Liz to go home for a couple weeks . So, she is now resting comfortably at home. It has been nice so far, with Liz being able to sleep in her own bed, not having nurses coming in all the time, home cooked food, etc. Luckily, we will have family with us for almost the entire two weeks, so I will be able to concentrate on my studies and complete the semester successfully. And, we get people staying with us that are happy to cook, clean and shop for us!

Second, we are now only two weeks from the baby being viable, and only 14 weeks from our hopeful delivery date. We appreciate everyone's thoughts and prayers. Please feel free to contact Liz via email, letter or phone... it brings a smile to her face to know that people and thinking of her and baby.

Finally, as for now, Liz and baby are doing well.

Current News...

Well, I guess a couple new things from the Sullivans...

1) Just kidding

2) Liz has had some problems with her pregnancy. She is currently 21 weeks pregnant, and has been put on STRICT bedrest until the baby is born. She is currently in the hospital (and has been for almost a week), and it appears that we will be in the hospital until the baby is born. There is a chance the baby could be born any day now or in 13 weeks. The longer we can hold out the better...

If you are curious, we are at Meriter Hospital in Madison, WI. I will continue to blog on this cite regarding any updates, how we are doing, etc.