The surgeon saw Brooklyn and thankfully he said everything looks fine with her. Praying all her blood levels look good too and that she will still have the reconnection surgery July 8th.

Pls pls pls pray for Brooklyn this morning- the surgeon is going to look at both her central line and her incision this morning bc something that looks like it might be an infection is there- pls pray its nothing and that they can move forward with her reconnection surgery Friday, July 8th- thank you!!! Lird, we continue to lift Brooklyn up to you and continue to thank you for her miraculous full and complete healing!

Pics & Videos...

Christian imitating Grace

Grace was holding her arm straight up in the air while sleeping- must get that from me. (:

Bates looking at the "Snoozlin" fish tank that lights up different colors- he loved it! There is a video of it below.

Good morning, everyone. Bates and Gracie had good nights last night. Brooklyn threw up her last 5 cc's of milk, but they are hoping this was a one time thing. Please pray that she can easily digest the milk she will be getting and grow and be able to increase her feeds. Thank you!

Brooklyn had a good night. The central line is staying in well and the bleeding from where it was inserted stopped- thank you, Lord. Her numbers/levels are looking good today, so praying those continue to do well and that they get better each day. I'm so glad she can finally start taking milk today! She will be starting with 1 cc every hour through continuous feeds, and then take 5cc's by bottle twice a day. We are praying she takes these feeds well, so they can increase them and she can get fully healthy soon!

Bates is doing well- hopefully his output will be less than his milk input today, so they can increase his feeds. He's doing well with them though, and is at 30cc's right now every 3 hours- And, believe me, he doesn't let a minute past that go by- he will let you know he's good and ready to eat.  (:

Grace has been doing really well. She has had a little acid reflex, but we are giving her some medicine so hopefully that will help. She let her mommy get more sleep last night (:  after many other nights of staying awake- she is quite the night owl! We are working on switching that though. It's great having her here and we can't wait for all three of them to be together at home soon! 

I think I forgot to mention that Christian had a great First Father's Day- what an exciting day for him- I am so thankful for what an involved and loving daddy he is! 

My mother-in-law has been such an amazing blessing here helping out! She had to leave last night, but Leigh, Christian's sister, was able to come for a week and just arrived last night, so we are so excited she's here!

Bates in a swing

Bates (:

Brooklyn sucking her thumb for the first time!

Awe! Beautiful Brooklyn

Brooklyn

Mimi holding Gracie before she goes to the airport- we miss you already!  

Leigh with Grace

Sweet Gracie

This picture was so funny I had to add it- her legs are all folded up, and it makes her look like a little penguin!

What precious little feet!

Surgery went well and they got the central line in- Praise God. Now praying she can get the ventilator out soon, that the central line stays in well with no allergic reactions, that she has no infections and that she can begin her feeds soon! Thx for your prayers!

Brooklyn will be getting her central line at 4pm today. Praying this will go well, and that it will bring her a step closer to totally healing and coming home with us!

Brooklyn is getting a central line later today that the surgeon will do. She will go under anesthesia to get it put in. Hopefully, this line wont cause an irritation like the other- it's a different material. Thx for your prayers.  

They have tried putting 3 picc lines in Brooklyn the last week and none have lasted- frustrating. Her picc line from a while back lasted 6 weeks. It is a pretty big deal for her to have to keep getting it changed. For some reason she is having a reaction to it, and the area where her picc line is located is red. If the redness does not go away, the surgeon will have to insert a central line into her chest. PLEASE pray that the redness just goes away and that she can keep her picc line in. Brooklyn is doing well with her feeds so we are thankful for that, and I just pray that a picc line change is not another hurdle she has to go through, but that the picc line (what gives her nutrients and lipids) is able to stay in where it is. Thank you for your continued prayers for sweet Brooklyn!

I am SO thankful everything is flowing through Brooklyn's GI track well! Thank you, Lord! They are starting her on milk again today- praying it goes well!

Woohoo- so far, things are moving through Brooklyn's GI track, and it looks like there is no obstruction. Thank you, Jesus! They will be checking xrays tomorrow also to make sure that things are still moving through. And, then, they might begin feeds again in a few days!

We will find out what time tomorrow Brooklyn's GI test is in the morning. Thanks so much for your prayers!

Get ready for picture mania!

A pic. from Grace's first night

Awwwwe

Look at those precious eyes!

Sweet Moment

Like Father, Like Daughter

Queen Bee

Grace loves to stretch!

Brooklyn lookin' so beautiful! Grace and Brooklyn seem to resemble one another more each day.

Grace in her crib

Nap time

Grace's first teaching moment

Brooklyn happy with her pacifier

Holding Brooklyn today

Bates fast asleep!

Cozy, cozy and cute as can be!

Brooklyn sleeping so sweetly

Tummy time for Grace

Thankfully the picc line went in on the first try- thank you Jesus! Now praying for her upper GI test tomorrow to go well!

They moved Brooklyn's upper GI test to tomorrow bc the picc line that was in her arm was making the area around it red and hard. They are putting the picc line in right now. It can take a while to get it in right, but praying it goes in very quickly and easily. She is so precious and it was great getting to hold her today! Thank you for praying!

Hi, everyone. Brooklyn will be having an upper GI test tomorrow to see if she is having any blockage in her intestinal tract- pls be praying that there is no blockage and that whatever is going on would be easily fixed, and that she would be completely healthy soon- Thank you! A day at a time.

Gracie is doing well home and it's wonderful having her here! We have enjoyed bath time and "laying around" with her. (:

Bates is trucking along as well, and his feeds are going well.  He is SO adorable. feeding him has been so much fun bc he loves every gulp he takes!

I am very thankful to have Mrs. Driskill here to help out- she's been an amazing blessing!!! Leigh, Christian's sister, will be here next week, and then my mom! So grateful for them spending their time here and helping, and so are Bates, Brooklyn and Gracie! (:

Thank you to everyone who continues praying for our babies, inquires about them, and cares about them and our family- it means so much!

Hi, everyone. Gracie is doing well at home and it's wonderful to be able to walk down the hall and snuggle with her and see her.

Brooklyn has had a tough last few days- she threw up her milk a few times, her CRP (a reflection of inflammation) elevated, and her platelets dropped. We are thankful that her CRP came down a little tonight. Two out of three of her cultures came back negative, so they are waiting on one more. They are thinking that it's either an infection, a blockage/obstruction in part of her intestine, both or neither. They will be checking her blood level over the next few days and doing some tests to figure out what it is. Tonight they said her crp came down a bit. Thank you for continuing to pray for sweet Brooklyn and that she will be much better over the next few days!

Bates had a good day. His incision site looked a bit better today. He is now taking 20 cc's every 3 hours!

Grace's Homecoming!!!

Yep- it's true, Grace is home!!! Awe, such a relief and blessing to have her home! It was so exciting to see all the nurses gathered around her, clapping and applauding as we walked out. It was so emotional walking by Bates, and then bringing Gracie up to Brooklyn- seeing her look at Brooklyn took my breath away- the first time they have been that close since we had them April 1st.

Mrs. Lynn is an amazing person who made three beautiful day gowns for our babies- the first letter of their names monogrammed on their gowns. Gracie wore it coming home from the hospital and to the house for the first time- thank you, Mrs. Lynn! Pictures are below.

It was pretty hysterical that right before we were going to leave we decided to change her diaper bc she gave us plenty of obvious signs she had a dirty diaper. So, we went to change her dirty diaper, and she sure left her signature by "projectile pooping" in her crib. We were cracking up. And, then, of course, she went again, so we had to change her diaper again- gotta love it. (:

Bates is now up to 15 cc's of milk per 3 hours bottle feeding! He was greta today!

Brooklyn's CRP went up today (went from 0.6 to 3.4) which is not good and can be a sign of inflammation or infection. Her x-ray was not vey good yesterday, but looked a little better today. She spit up most of the milk she was given today. I am praying, praying, praying that her CRP goes down in the next day, for her liver level continues to come down (came down some today- thank you, Lord)) and that her jaundice level comes down. She was so precious today. Thank you for joining us in prayer and belief in Bates and Brooklyn healing completely and quickly!!! They are so precious and we can't wait to see them tomorrow!

Right now, Gracie is curled up on her daddy's tummy and is in Heaven. It is surreal and so moving to have her home. I have some pictures and a video below!

                                           
                                                  One of our favorite nurses, Bethany!

Another wonderful nurse, Margarita

Some of the great nurses who have taken care of Gracie: Bethany, Donna, Robert, and Margarita

In the car, on the way home

Finally Home!!!

Precious moments

Brooklyn

Mimi with Brooklyn