Questions, questions, questions

Thirty-eight weeks down, eight days to go! Can you believe it? The future holds so many questions right now…how will the delivery go, when will Nugget be ready for surgery, will she be at risk of infection, will any other complications arise, how long will she be in the hospital, what does the next year hold???

But with so much uncertainty, there are exciting questions too. The one we keep getting recently is “What is her name?” After much thought and deliberation, we decided Cletus-the-Fetus Nugget Meabon might not do. Jared and I have gone back and forth, back and forth, back and forth on names. We had our boy name picked out for quite some time but a girl name was always up in the air. We’ve had about six options since we found out Nugget was a she, as well as the occasional name that’s slipped in every once in awhile. But we’ve finally come to a strong conclusion on this debate. First off, we needed a name that was strong - a name for a fighter. We suspect this little girl will be a firecracker and will probably give her mom and dad a hard time later in life. But for now, we need her to give life the biggest right punch she can and fight her way through these first few years. We wanted a name that was a little unique, something that will be different from the other little girls in her class, but not something so out there that people will have a hard time pronouncing it. Lastly, if you know Jared and me, it needs to be something that can be turned into about a million nicknames. Our friends laugh at us because its rare occasion that we call each other “Jared” and “Brooke”. Most often, it’s something like Lover, T, Knucks, Beats or any other random name that probably makes sense to no one else but the two of us. So we needed a name that could have multiple variations. We went through our list of the final top three and pictured the girl of each name at ages 5, 13 and late 20’s to early 30’s. We talked all about her personality, what she’ll be like, what kind of job she might have, what people say about her….when we put it this way, it was a no-brainer. And man, we think our little girl is one cool chick! What, you ask, is this proposed name??? Well, we’ll let you know in eight short days.

Another exciting question is what will she look like? Will she have her mom’s straight, blonde hair or her daddy’s pretty brown curls? Will she be freckled like mom or olive skinned like dad? Will she be tall or short? Will she be like her mom and be so fat as a baby that she’s can’t walk? Will she have the swiftness and endurance of a runner like her mom or will she have great hand-eye coordination of a tennis player, golfer or basketballer like her dad? Oh, the possibilities! Here’s a few pictures of us growing up – what do you think?

Jared as a newborn


Brooke as a newborn


Jared


Brooke


Jared - 1st Birthday


Brooke - 1st Birthday


Jared


Brooke


Jared


Brooke

As far as answered questions, we do know that she had another good report from the doctors yesterday. She got a score of 10 out of 10 on fetal movements, amniotic fluid and non-stress tests. We will go back for our final appointments next Monday and will have a full report on her growth at that time.

Should all go as planned, we will arrive at Methodist Hospital at 5am on Wednesday, August 4 for our scheduled c-section at 7:30am. We will have the OB team for me and a full neonatal team on hand for Nuggs. I’ll get a quick look at her and then she’ll be taken immediately to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit where they will work to stabilize her. Jared will follow her straight to the NICU and has been instructed to be on full camera duty. He should be able to stay with her for the majority of the day and continue to come back for frequent checks. I’ll be in recovery and will hopefully be up for a wheelchair visit later that evening. By Thursday, I should be up and walking so will be able to make frequent visits to the NICU. The pediatric surgeons and neonatologists will meet on Wednesday and Thursday so we hope to have a plan of action by the end of next week. They will have to assess her situation in person before any determination of the next step is made. The NICU has pretty strict rules about visitors, allowing only 2 parent passes and 4 grandparent passes. Of these passes, only 2 visitors are allowed at a time. Jared and I will spend the night in the hospital until Sunday when I’ll be discharged. From there, we’ll be able to visit the NICU around the clock with the exception from 6:15am – 8am and 6:15pm – 8pm when the nurses have shift changes. Another uncertainty is what our schedules will look like once we are released from the hospital. We hope to fall into some kind of normal routine but I suspect most of my days will be spent in the NICU. Jared will need to get back to work but does have the flexibility of working from a laptop if necessary at times. I keep joking that this will be my new job. Some moms become stay at home moms, some become soccer moms, some become stage moms – I will be NICU mom. I wonder if I can get business cards printed???

One good piece of advice that our neonatologist gave us was to make sure to take time for ourselves outside of the NICU, both as individuals and as a couple. I’m sure this will be hard at first but I think it’s so important to help keep our sanity. I’m hoping I can get back to running soon. It’s been part of my routine that I’ve missed so much. So I ask you, friends and family, to serve as a reminder to us to make time for ourselves a priority.

So with all of these questions, I continue to pray for peace of mind and to not let the questions get the best of us. We need to trust in God’s plan and know that there is a road mapped out specifically for the Meabon family. We don’t have a GPS, we don’t have a map, and heck, we don’t even have a compass - we don’t know what the final destination will be but must trust that it will be well worth it in the end, regardless of the potholes we encounter along the way. It reminds me of our trip to Costa Rica. Jared and I decided to rent a cart to drive from Papagayo Peninsula to Arenal. The roads were treacherous and we thought there’s no way we weren’t lost. A two hour trip on paper ended up being a five hour trip in the car. There were strange animals standing in the middle of the road and, twice, the road stopped altogether and we had to off-road to get back on path. But low and behold, we came around a corner, the view opened up and we saw the most magnificent view of Lake Arenal, blue waters surrounded by rainforest mountains. It was well worth the trip. I know there is a beautiful view in our future and I can’t wait to see what it is.

I’d like to wish a very happy birthday today to Sutton Elaine Kelly, born to Amanda (Knocke) and Patrick Kelly this morning! Congratulations Amanda and Patrick. Baby Sutton and Amanda are doing great.

I’d also like to ask for your continued prayers for Baby Lincoln who will have surgery later this week to repair a diaphragmatic hernia and possibly his omphalocele. His parents Elisabeth and Tendai have had a rollercoaster of the last two weeks and I ask that you keep them lifted up through this difficult time.

Much love to you all as the countdown continues,

Brooke

The Waiting Game

Two weeks from tomorrow – so close, yet so far away. As Jared said today, each day we wake up, we’re one day closer to August 4. Seems like a bit of a “no duh” statement but that’s just how it feels. For awhile there, it seemed like the days were flying by but the last few days are feeling long and a little without purpose. I don’t know if its lack of sleep at night, reaching that uncomfortable point in pregnancy, getting use to not working or just general anxiety but I’m starting to feel pretty listless. The house is done, the errands are run, we’re as prepared as we’re going to be for our baby girl and I’m not too enthralled by Oprah, Ellen and Dr. Phil these days. The word "marinate" keeps coming to mind. I know there will be a day soon enough when I’ll long for these easy days of no responsibilities, days of rest and relaxation, but Ms. Type A doesn’t take too well to waiting it out. Fourteen days…

We were so happy to have my friend, Jenifer, in town this weekend to help pass the time. Our friends in San Antonio are amazing but I’ve missed my Atlanta friends. It was so good to have such a dear friend here for a visit. We walked each morning, lounged at the pool, ran errands but really just enjoyed catching up. I cherish my friendships, especially those where we can pick up right where we left off and I was so happy to have Jeni as one of our first visitors from the Dirty South.

We had our weekly appointments yesterday and the best news is that as of this week, I’M FULL TERM! What a landmark – 37 weeks pregnant! We are still hoping that we make it to August 4 for the C-Section date since the longer she cooks, the better. However, should Nugget come between now and then, we’re in the safe zone of not having to worry about complications outside of those caused from the omphalocele. The other great news from our appointments is that there is no new news. All is steady and stable and our little girl continues to grow.

I’d like to give a very warm, “Welcome to the world!” to Lincoln Lynch. Lincoln’s mom and I have become acquainted through each other’s blogs on our omphalocele babies. Lincoln came out a strong 8 lbs 5 oz and is a beautiful baby boy. He sounds like a fighter and is setting a good example for Nugget to follow along! Keep up the good work Lincoln!

So here I’ll continue to marinate and wait, as ready as we’re going to be. Tick, tock, tick, tock….

Saturday of Surprises

Saturday was a great day and will surely stick out in my mind as a great Nuggster pregnancy memory. Here’s the email I received from Jared on Friday:

Please don't ask questions and just do the following.
Pack an overnight bag to include a bathing suit, dinner gear and brunch gear and whatever else you see fit to pack for an overnighter.
Be showered and ready by 8:49am Saturday.

Hmm, okay. As a reminder, we found out the sex of our child, Jared and I open our Christmas presents on December 23, I am a planner….in other words, I am not good with surprises. Jared laughed to see me wiggle and squirm to try to decode what was going on.

Saturday morning roles around and there I was, dressed and ready by 8:49am. To make things even more maddening, Jared was taking his precious time not getting dressed and instead, looking like he was about to go to the gym. What was going on??? And then off went our personal alarm system (Rooney) indicating that someone was at the door. Low and behold, there were my friends Krisana, Kathryn and Courtney with a gift in hand! The girls here in SA had put together a monogrammed book bag filled with books for me to take to and from the hospital to read to Nuggs. What a great gift! The girls then treated me to brunch and pedicures for a little relaxation before the madness begins. I’m a lucky girl to have such thoughtful friends here in SA. Thank you for making it a fun morning!

When I got home, the car was packed and off Jared and I went. After driving and finally heading out on I-35, Jared told me the plan. We were headed to the Four Seasons in Austin for a little getaway. Whoo hoo! With the move and craziness of the last few months, we never got the chance to take a “babymoon” so this was our little mini-getaway. We relaxed, sat by the pool, took a nap and then headed out for a steak dinner. The next morning, I had a spa appointment followed by breakfast and then back to San Antonio. Ahhh, I could do that on a regular basis! I think my husband did a pretty good job with his surprise Saturday plans, don’t you?

We had our Monday morning appointments yesterday, first with Dr. Higby, followed by Dr. Cox. Nugget had her measurements taken and she’s growing so that’s good news. I am currently at 36 weeks in my pregnancy. She’s measuring at 35 weeks everywhere except her abdomen which is only measuring 30 weeks and in the 9th percentile (down from the 13th percentile at the last measurement). Her weight is showing about 4 lbs 12 oz. We were sad to hear that abdominally, she’s still so small but Dr. Higby said this is to be expected and her percentile will probably continue to decrease. All went well with Dr. Cox. I asked when he’d start measuring me for dilating. Since I’m a scheduled C-Section and they don’t want to do anything to cause me to go into early labor, I won’t be measured. So it’ll be a “hang on and wait” and hope this baby doesn’t decide she needs to come out any earlier than August 4.

It’s hard to believe that August 4 is only 3 short weeks away. The reality seemed to hit us both like a bus yesterday and we both left Dr. Higby’s office in tears. I can remember my friend, Carey, telling me when she got to the end of her pregnancy that part of her wished she could just keep Aiden in her belly since it seemed so safe in there. At the time, that seemed like such a weird thing to say. I now fully understand what she meant when she said this. If I could just keep this little Nugget tucked inside me, I know she’ll be safe, without the risk of infection and not have to deal with the long, rocky road ahead. I feel like the situation is in my control when I can feel her every movement and know she’s safe and warm in there. Lesson: Brooke, you are not in control! I have to keep reminding myself that God has put this precious little Nugget in our lives for a purpose. I can plan all I want but His plan is so much greater than mine. This is a daily battle for me and, lately, I keep letting the “why me, why us, why our baby?” doubts and questions creep in my mind. I’m thinking about tattooing, “GOD IS IN CONTROL” on Jared’s forehead so I have a constant reminder. That should do the trick, right?

Thank you for your continued love and support. I am constantly amazed by the people in our lives and the love this baby girl already has waiting for her when she gets here.

All my best,

Brooke

Independence Day

Happy Independence Day! I hope you all had a safe and happy 4th of July weekend. It’s hard to believe we’re almost half way through with summer and even harder to believe that Nugget’s due date is one month away from yesterday!

The countdown is on and the celebration of “independence” got me thinking. Jared and I are in the last few weeks of our independence as a family of two. In one month, we’ll no longer have the independence we currently have. We are so excited about the arrival of the Nugget but it’s also a little overwhelming to think that our lives will be completely different - our time, our priorities, our peace of mind! Current member of the parenting club keep telling me that no matter what we do, it’ll be totally different from what we anticipate so we celebrated our last “independent" 4th of July as a couple and are getting ready for a lifetime of parenting. We had a fairly low key weekend but enjoyed all of the rain we got from the aftermath of the hurricane.

We had a great time at Lake LBJ with the Boswells last weekend. The weather was perfect and I love being on the lake during the summers. You can see some of the pictures from the weekend and everyone got in some good belly rubs to feel the Nugget shifting around. We are blessed to be part of such an amazing family.


Floating

Brooke and Brent

Jared, Sam, Will and Bobby

Jared on the rope swing

Dylan caught a catfish

Lynn and Steve

Evelyn with great-grandbaby #8

Lily talking to the Nugget

Elena feeling her cousin move

Jared putting sunscreen on his daughter

As for baby updates, we met with our perinatologist this morning for a quick check on our little girl. All is stable and there aren’t any changes with the status of her heart so that’s all good news. We’ll have measurement checks next week but we’re still looking to be on track for Wednesday, August 4. She’s now become the queen of hiccups. This little girl has started getting the hiccups 3 times a day! I’m not sure if it’s the spicy food I eat but they’re almost becoming as regular as her sleeping patterns. She's also a mover and a shaker. You can see the belly shifting as she shimmies from side to side.

As for mom and dad updates, my back is much better but in its place, I’ve developed TMJ. I called Jared after a visit to the doctor and his response was, “so you’re telling me my wife has lock jaw???” Well, not exactly but I think with all we’ve had going on recently, I’ve started clenching my jaw at night…so that’s fun. I also discovered that Nugget is not a fan of Sudafed. I came down with a cold last week and am allowed to take Sudafed but quickly discovered, I’d prefer let this cold take its course. Hello kickboxing! The medicine had this poor child WIRED! I’ve had such a painless pregnancy from a physical standpoint that I guess its only fair I have a few road bumps as we near the end. I'm still relatively comfortable and walking most mornings. Jared’s trying to get as much work wrapped up in the next few weeks since August will be a little hectic. I will say he’s becoming the king of yard work though, especially since our neighborhood has a “Yard of the Month” competition. Give the guy a prize to shoot for and the competitive streak comes out!

I’d like to wish a very happy birthday to Mary Hodges Wamberg who was born on Friday morning at 8:33am. Andrew and Angeline are our friends in Atlanta and Angeline and I were due the same week but Mary Hodges decided to make a little bit of an early appearance. Welcome to the world Mary Hodges! I’d also like to ask for your prayers for Field Johnson who went in for his first heart surgery this morning at 7:30am. This is the first of three surgeries to begin repairing his heart. He is having a band placed around his pulmonary artery so help control the blood flow and we hope he’ll be back home on Wednesday.

Thank you for your continued love, support and prayers.

All my best,

Brooke

Heartbeats

Chuga-chuga-chuga-chuga. As a pregnant mom-to-be, the sound of a baby's heartbeat becomes familiar and reassuring with every doctor’s appointment. The first time you hear it, its sounds so odd – too fast to be a heartbeat. But with each appointment, you get to the point where that little chuga-chuga is the most beautiful sound in the world. Heartbeats, both big and small, have been on my mind all week this week.

My heart broke this week as we learned news about our friends, Brad and Lisa. They welcomed little Field into the world on June 14. Soon after his arrival, they learned that Field has a congenital heart defect and will undergo a series of three surgeries - the first at 4 weeks, the second at 6 months and the third at three years of age – to reposition the arteries in his heart. Field has been in the NICU at Methodist Hospital all week but was welcomed home late yesterday afternoon. He is a beautiful little boy and the faith, determination and strength that his parents have shown have been an incredible lesson to me. What a special friends for our family to have! The Nugget and Field are sure to be friends and will know what a miracle their lives are by the scars they will bare. I ask that you keep the Johnson's in your prayers as they prepare for Field’s first surgery.

On the Nugget front, I am now seeing the perinatologist once a week to monitor her progress. We had a growth measurement test on Monday and she’s still measuring small – now in the 13th percentile. As I’ve said before, these measurements are based on her abdominal size so aren’t necessarily true to her actual size. During the ultrasound, Dr. Higby (Dr. Gordon’s partner) seemed to focus an abnormal amount of time on her heart, checking and rechecking. Chuga-chuga-chuga-chuga. As we’ve now confirmed, Nug’s heart is growing in size and is about 60% of the size of her abdomen (remember, this is a small abdomen). Since the blood flow to her liver and other organs is abnormal, her heart is pumping extra hard to get blood to the necessary areas. This extra work is causing her heart to enlarge. If the heart continues to grow and continues to pump excessively, this could lead to heart failure. We will continue to monitor her heart closely and, should they detect heart failure, will need to deliver early. Each doctor keeps telling me, the main goal is to get me as far along in this pregnancy as possible. With an omphalocele this large, early delivery could be harmful as we’d add extra problems to the Nugget’s list. My heart is hoping that we make it to August 4 and that this little baby stays tucked in my belly until she is as cooked as she’s going to get. Please pray for that sweet, little chuga-chuga and that God develops her heart to be strong and viable.

Now Nuggalicious and I had a little discussion before the ultrasound started. We talked about her stage presence as the cameras begin to roll and, low and behold, I think our little mother-daughter chat worked. I’ve included a few of the pictures from her time on camera, one of her profile and the other of her foot. Can you make out those precious little details? I must say, I think she’s beautiful…but maybe I’m a little biased.

We were happy to have Dad and Julia and my little brothers, Parke and Nathan, come for a visit this last weekend. I can’t believe Parke and Nathan are getting so big! As a four and five year old, they are full of energy and are looking forward to the arrival of their niece.

We head to Lake LBJ today to spend time with the entire Boswell clan. Summer lake trips have been a constant in my life and one of my favorite parts of summer. We look forward to this weekend each year and will relax, laugh and have fun with all of the extended family. Its hard to believe we’ll be adding another body to the growing family this time next year! But rest assured, I will take it easy - no boating or jet skiing for me. Once again, the pregnant lady will continue to float.

We continue to be comforted by your emails, calls, texts, prayers and positive thoughts. We are constantly amazed by the strength of our support system out there and are thankful for each and every one of you. I hope you are all having a wonderful summer!

Love to you all,

Brooke

2 Showers, 2 Appointments and a Nursery

The house is finally feeling settled and I feel like I can rest. Unfortunately, I think I’ve pull a back muscle with my crazed obsession to get it all done (I do believe that would be “nesting” I’ve heard so much about) so you can imagine the last few days have been spent lying down on a heating pad. I’m feeling better today but, rest assured, I will be taking it easy for a little while.

On Sunday, June 6, the Ha-Ha’s threw a baby shower but, this time, it was a grandparent’s shower with Mom and Steve and our dear friends, Cindy and Dennis Knocke, as the guests of honor. They are the last two Ha-Ha’s to have grand babies so it was a fun afternoon with a Dr. Seuss theme. Amanda and her husband, Patrick, were able to come in so we had both grand babies-to-be in attendance. Amanda is due just two weeks before we are so “Little Spice” and “Nugget” are sure to be fast friends…just like their sweet grandmothers.

This past Saturday, it was Nugget’s turn to be honored again with a San Antonio baby shower. I had family members drive in from Houston, Midland, Granger and Georgetown to celebrate the Nug, along with our friends here in San Antonio. Thank you to everyone who came to celebrate her upcoming arrival and to our fabulous hostesses for making it such a fun party!

Yesterday, Jared and I had a morning full of doctors’ appointments, starting with the perinatologist, Dr. Gordon. It was a quick appointment with an ultrasound of the Nugget, followed by monitoring her heart. Her heart was strong and doing exactly what it should be and Dr. Gordon said all looked good and stable. I’ve determined she’s a little camera shy (unlike her mother) since she had her head buried in my hip bone. Not ideal for a cameo - we’ll have to work on that one! She was completely stretched out from her head in my hip bone to her feet in my rib cage. This sleeping position is clearly inherited from her father who loves to stretch out and take up as much space as possible. No wonder I’m feeling a little like Sigourney Weaver in Alien – this kid loves to stretch!

After meeting with Dr. Gordon, we headed over to Methodist Hospital to meet with Dr. Alex Kenton, the head of the NICU at Methodist Children’s Hospital. We were able to discuss what our time in the NICU will look like, as well as tour the facility. I think you have to be a special person to work in a NICU because every staff member we came in contact with was compassionate, caring and eager to help. We also met Susan Caster, Director and Head Nurse of the NICU. Both Dr. Kenton and Susan gave us their personal cell phone numbers to reach with any questions or concerns we might have. While it was sad to see that we’ll be spending so much time there as opposed to home with our sweet little girl, it was comforting to meet the amazing people that I’m sure we’ll get to know so well. Again, we were happy to know that we’ll all be in such good hands after August 4.

The main purpose and goal of Nugget’s stay in the NICU will be to have skin grow over the omphalocele and hopefully reduce the size of the omphalocele, as well as increase her abdominal size for her final surgery. Infection, both of the omphalocele and at the IV entry points, tends to be the leading cause of problems. Dry surfaces are ideal but many of the skin growth stimulants keep a wet surface on the area and wet surfaces harbor both bacterial and fungal infections. You can see where there has to be a close eye on the process and why there isn’t necessarily a “best method” to fix an omphalocele. By the time she comes home, the omphalocele will have a strong covering on it so we won’t need to worry about being too delicate with her prior to surgery but this also accounts for the expected 6 month stay in the NICU. Dr. Kenton, again, stressed that this will be a long process and that we’ll have our ups and downs but we were happy to know that we’ll be surrounded by such a great staff.

And as requested and promised, I will now show off my inner-Martha and introduce you to El Cuarto de la Nuggita. I got a little teary last night thinking that it will be some time before she can sleep in her own room but I’m so happy that she’ll have such a cute little room to come home to when its time.

On another note, I just got off the phone with Mom and Steve and Steve just had another clear brain scan! Praise the Lord! This is his first since being completely off chemo so I’m just filled with joy at the fact that “Grandy” will be part of Nugget’s life where as two years ago, we didn’t think this was a possibility.

I also want to wish a very happy birthday to Field Johnson who made his debut yesterday afternoon. Congratulations to our friends Lisa and Brad! We look forward to future play dates.

As the summer heat starts to take its toll, our new neighborhood has a pool so the large, pregnant lady will spend her time sprawled out on a floating raft. I’m off to float.

Love to you all!

Brooke

Updates galore!

We have a date! A delivery date that is. I met with our OB, Dr. Cox, today and have officially scheduled our c-section for Wednesday, August 4 at 7:30am. Its hard to believe that our nugget will be here in 8 weeks and life will be completely different for Jared and me. We're both excited, anxious and a little scared all at the same time.

I'm sorry its been so long since my last update but life here in San Antonio has continued to be a little hectic over the last few weeks. First and foremost, the moving truck arrived on Memorial Day! I was convinced we wouldn't see our belongings ever again but Jared remained hopeful. I think he was just trying to balance out the crazy pregnant lady he had sleeping on an air mattress! After being told on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, "the truck will arrive tomorrow", it finally made its debut on Monday. On arrival, they tried to charge us even more money before unloading the truck but that crazy pregnant lady came out of her shell and we were able to avoid that little swindle. Jared helped the two movers unload the truck and after 5 hours and working twice as hard as either of the movers, he was exhausted but we had our earthly possessions back in sight. So much for a holiday! We had some minimal damage but everything was accounted for so we were happy to see that truck leave.

The house is starting to feel like a home and a HUGE thank you to Mom and Steve, Cindy Knocke and my aunt Bonnie for all of their help. We could not have done it without them! If you know me, you'll know that I'm not one for playing the pregnancy card, almost to a fault. Our helpers and my husband have kept an eagle eye on me since I keep thinking its nothing to try to move a 200 lb piece of furniture on my own. The baby's room was the first room almost complete since her furniture was the only thing we owned not traversing the Southern US via moving truck. The glider arrives tomorrow and then her room is complete! I'll post house/nursery pictures this week. Rooney and Kitty are feeling very comfortable in their new digs. Rooney is really loving his new back yard and has even been caught frolicking in the grass when he thinks no one is watching.

Besides moving, we've had our fair share of doctors appointments and they'll only get more frequent from here. I've already reported on our appointment with the new OB, Dr. Cox. On Friday, May 28, we met with the new perinatologist, Dr. Gordon. Dr. Gordon is very knowledgeable and we feel comfortable in his hands. We got a long look at the nuggster during his ultrasound exam. Her omphalocele has now been classified as large to giant and is a little larger than 1/3 the size of her abdomen. It still includes her entire liver and most of her intestines. Dr. Gordon said its not the largest he's ever seen but it ranks up there...awesome. He's dealt with a number of omphaloceles and is currently handling 5 so we're confident with his knowledge. Dr. Gordon referred us to Dr. Robertson, the pediatric surgeon, and set us up with Dr. Kenton, head of the NICU at Methodist Children's Hospital.

On Wednesday, I met with Dr. Roberston to discuss surgery and the upcoming outlook where that's concerned. Needless to say, it was pretty deflating. The road outlined for us was alot longer that what we were originally anticipating but also serves as a reminder that we have to keep up our hope and faith and know the Lord is in control. Dr. Robertson said that there are a number of ways to treat omphaloceles, which means there's not a proven best method of treatment. Due to the size of her omphalocele, the surgery won't be immediate to avoid crowding her other organs and causing respiratory problems. The nugg's body size is still measuring small since it's developing without those organs inside of it. We can anticipate about 6 months in the NICU where a membrane will develop over the omphalocele sac. After that we'll bring her home. The omphalocele will remain herniated until surgery which could be anywhere from 1 - 3 years of age. Dr. Robertson said to expect alot of abdominal scarring and a very long and rocky road ahead. Can you see the deflation from where you're sitting? All of this being said, there's a blog network of omphoalocele moms with some truly amazing and inspiring stories so I'm going to keep reading these and keep my spirits up.

After a long talk and some tears, Jared and I are going to continue on the path we've started on - planning for the worst and hoping and praying for the best. I am reminded every day that the Lord has put us in San Antonio and with an amazing support system of family and friends. Our new home is 7 miles from Methodist Hospital and we have no doubt we are exactly where we are suppose to be. I've said it before and I'll say it again, our nugget will be perfect for us and has already made us better people and our relationship stronger. I could not do this without such an amazing man in my life and I'm so excited to see what a great father Jared will be.

Thank you to everyone for your phone calls, emails, thoughts and prayers over the last few hectic weeks. Our next appointment with Dr. Gordon is on Monday, followed immediately that day with Dr. Kenton and a tour of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Methodist Hospital. Now that we have internet up and running in the house, I will be more diligent about my updates and promise to post house/nursery pictures soon.

Love to you all!

Brooke