Bringing Daryn Home

Ever since we found out about Daryn's condition back in February, we had been told by multiple doctors to expect a several month hospital stay. Two days after Daryn was born, we were told that we were lucky, and it was a possibility she would be able to come home within the month. Last Monday morning, when Daryn was just 1.5 weeks old, I was running some errands before heading to the hospital and the nurse practitioner told me to expect her home that weekend. I was so shocked. And thrilled. And panicked, because I was nowhere close to being prepared, due to her being so early. That week was the busiest of my life I think, but thanks to my incredible mother-in-law, we got everything done, including cleaning and decorating the nursery, and buy all the preemie clothes I could find at 3 different stores (which totaled about 7 outfits). Friday rolled around, and Daryn still wasn't doing quite as well as they wanted in the weight gain area, so they told us it would be another couple days, depending on her weight gain. I held my breath when they weighed her Saturday day night, but she gained 20 grams, and it was official! She was coming home Sunday afternoon. I still couldn't/cant believe it. Essentially, the reason she was able to come home so early was because she didn't experience any of the set-backs that they expected her to. Among other things, she healed quickly from surgery, her body was able to process food sooner than expected, she learned to both nurse and eat from a bottle quickly, and she was just very healthy all-around. It was such a miracle, and, I have no doubt, a direct result from the many, many people praying for her and our family. On Sunday we went to church, dropped Reagan off at home for a nap, and headed straight to the hospital to get our angel. I dressed her in the very tiniest outfit I could find, and it was still too big.

 Very happy parents.

Honestly I still can't believe how tiny she is. We got lucky because the car seat we bought for Reagan has a minimum weight of 4 lbs, and very tiny setting adjustments. Most only go down to 5. Daryn weighed about 4 lbs 4 oz on Sunday. I remember taking Reagan home in the non-lowest adjustments, which fit her, and thinking, "When would you ever use those smallest settings?". Well, now I know.

 So snug.

Reagan was so excited when we got home with Baby Daryn. This about sums it up.

 Meeting Grandma.

One happy momma.

The past few days have been interesting. Taking care of a newborn is hard! I kind of forgot. She sleeps a lot, but between nursing and a bottle and pumping, feeding her takes forever. I have gotten pretty good at taking care of her colostomy bag and changing her diaper over her still-exposed bladder. Some interesting challenges, that's for sure. Our life is going to be a lot different for the next few months, since Daryn can't go out in public places or interact with others very much. Still, we are so glad she is here and home and part of our family. She is just incredible.