A few pictures

Below are some pictures I have recieved from my dad and Chuck's iPhones by email and a few taken by my camera...I will have to get some more from other camera to put up soon, but I wanted to put up a few of the fun we have had so far. There are MUCH better pictures of Ellie I will have to get on here soon, but you can tell even here how BEAUTIFUL she is!

Valerie, Esteban, Ellie, Dr. Arona and I minutes after Ellie was born...2:44 am!! Almost awake for 24 hours at this point.

Precious Ellie only minutes old.

Daddy checking out his daughter.

Esteban changing his first diaper!

Julie coaching Esteban

Ellie and I hanging out a few hours after she was born.

Julie, my mom, Ellie, Esteban and Chuck a few hours after Ellie was born!

Proud grandma with Ellie! It was very comforting to have my mom there through it all (she wasn't in the room for the actual birth, but the before and especially while we were in the hospital)

Chuck and Julie Scott- they are Ellie's 3rd set of "grandparents" :)

Sweet baby only hours old.

Ellie and Grandpa (my dad)

Ellie and I hanging out...she is awesome!

My good friend Amber and her boyfriend Frank. Frank loved holding Ellie! When they were leaving I said, "Thanks for coming!" and Frank said, "Thanks for having a baby, this is awesome!" Too cute.

Daddy and Ellie taking a nap after a LONG day!

Flowers from both sets of grandparents.

My awesome diaper bag! My parents neighbor, Michelle, helped me design this bag that was hand made by a friend of hers! It turned out awesome and I love it!!!

A few pictures of Ellie in the NICU

Beautiful Ellie resting peacefully in my arms while in the NICU.

So sweet.

Ellie and I hanging out in the NICU, can't wait to be doing this at HOME soon!

Our beautiful baby girl! Love her!!!

Update on Ellie

Ellie had a GREAT day today! We went to see her around 11:30 am and the nurse said that she was doing really well- her oxygen level was lowered, her respiratory rates were in a good range and staying steady, and they increased the amount of breastmilk she is getting (she is being fed through a tube right now since her breathing is still heavy at times).

Basically, she has fluid in her lungs that they are pretty sure is from birth, but they still have her on the antibiotic just incase it is an infection. Because of the fluid, it is harder for her to get oxygen, which makes her breathe heavier. I was able to hold her while she was being fed, which was SO wonderful! She is so sweet and I can't wait to have her home and hold her all I want! Esteban and I have such comfort knowing Ellie is getting the best care, but that doesn't mean it isn't hard not to hold her all we want! While I held her, I watched Ellie suck away at her passy and hold my finger while she ate (the tube goes through her nose so she can have a passy at the same time). She loves being held and wrapped up in a blanket, but the process of getting her in and out of bed with all the wires gets her worked up so we try to limit the holding, if any.

When we went back tonight to see her, the new nurse said she was still doing really well. The earlier nurse fed her a bottle at 3 pm because her breathing was level enough- which is really great! She took the entire bottle. Ellie was sleeping so peacefully the whole time we were there. She does get a little excited when she hears us talking around her and touching her, which is so hard not to do! It is so tempting to kiss and touch her, but for right now it is better if we don't.

The nurse said she was scheduled to give Ellie a bath and weigh her tonight. She said she would only do that if her breathing continued to stay level since it would get her worked up, she didn't want to do too much- which I completely agree with! The nurse said that they usually have the babies off oxygen for 48 hours before they can go home, which was a good milestone to know. Obviously, things can change daily but it helps to know little goals at a time. She will be done with her antibiotic on Wednesday. Esteban and I are so proud of our daughter and so thankful for how great she is steadily doing! It really is just a matter of time for her to get rid of the fluid and get everything else under control.

Thanks for all your love and prayers, we will keep you guys posted with updates and can't wait for Ellie to meet you all!

ELLIE IS HERE!

I will be sure to update a detailed blog with the whole "birth story" soon, but I wanted to go ahead and update Ellie's status so you all could be praying for her. About 24 hours after Ellie was born (I think it was 2 am) the nurse came into our room and told us that Ellie was breathing irregular (respiratory distress) and that they were going to bring her down to the NICU. The nurse was very calm the way she told us, so I didn't freak out right away. I was having really bad cramps at this point, so Esteban went with the nurse to watch them bring her down and get situated. He went down again around 5 am and sat with her for a while. She was on oxygen and an IV and they started an antibiotic incase there was an infection. She has been breathing on her own the entire time. There are more details, but long story short she is doing well and responding to the treatments they are giving her. Last night she was moved from nursery A to nursery C- which is a huge step and one step closer to home. She is off the IV for nutrients and 100% on my breast milk. Due to her irregular breathing, she is being fed through a tube. She has a little oxygen and the IV for the antibiotic still. From what we gather from all the nurses, doctor, and nurse practitioner we spoke with, this is all and waiting and TRUSTING game right now. Ellie is continuing to do great and we are so proud of her! She is beautiful and I can't wait to post pictures soon. My dad took a ton the first day she was born that I will have to get from him. Please pray that she continues to improve and get strong. As much as we want her home, we know and trust that she is in the best place for her right now. We got to hold her a few times yesterday, but it is really better for her to let her rest and get strong without any interruptions. Esteban has been amazing the entire time (again, I promise to give more details soon!) Thank you for your prayers and love! I will continue to update on here as needed.

love, Esteban, Jenn and Ellie

PICTURES!

I finally uploaded pictures...they might seem kind of random...a little of Ellie's nursery, baby showers, farm-o-ween and such.

YOUNG LIFE BABY SHOWER

On Sunday, I was blessed to have a Baby Shower hosted by Sherry Miller and Jennifer Governale (two women on our YL Committee for Mill Creek). It was so much fun to share this exciting time with the committee ladies and all of my YL girls! They have been so excited since we told them we were expecting and couldn't wait to buy clothes (and shoes) for Ellie!

Delicious cake from Publix

Some of the girls and I before the fun began.

Measuring to see who guessed the proper amount of TP squares to fit around my belly...Lauren Governale won. You can see how much my stomach has grown in this picture. I have not been good about taking "belly pictures" so this will have to do.

Some gifts from the shower...

SHOES!

First monogramed gift, a blankie/stuffed animal from Jennifer Governale...so soft!

Abby Dollar made this sweet frame with John 1:16 inside. Abby is very creative and I love the verse!

LOTS AND LOTS OF DIAPERS!!

FARM-O-WEEN

My sister, Krissy, and I at the Northern Gwinnett Young Life "Farm-o-ween"

I was lame and didn't dress up this year...but it was lots of fun! Esteban hosted "Farm-o-ween" this year so he had to have a good costume- he and some of his YL guys wore all black and painted their faces and hair...too scary to put on a sweet baby blog :) They had a lot of fun and he got his scary costume out this year because Ellie would be too scared in the years to come.

THE NURSERY

A few nursery shots...still rearranging and putting everything in its place, but just wanted to show our pretty furniture and bedding.

The convertible crib

The crib

Closer look at the bedding.

Ellie's "First Teddy" hanging out in the crib.

Dresser/Changing table

Book shelf/toy box (not decorated or organized here, just wanted to show off this pretty piece of furniture)

The top of the book shelf- we found pink ABC blocks at Target and spelled out ELIZABETH.

Rocking chair from MY GREAT GRANDMOTHER ELIZABETH! My mom used it with all 5 of us kids, painted, striped and re-stained a few times over the years. We decided to keep it the natural color. The blanket hanging on the chair was made by my Grandma for Ellie.

BELLY PICTURE

36 weeks pregnant!

36 week appointment

Today we had our 36 week appointment with Dr. Arrona. She said everything is looking and sounding good. I am 1 cm dilated and 50% effaced. (She said that is a "gift" because if I needed to be induced for any reason from here on out they would be able to.) Ellie's heartbeat sounds great and she is growing "perfectly." We are now going to the doctor every week...which is making everything even MORE real! We are getting sooo close and it is really hard not to be anxious. My prayer has been to trust the Lord's perfect timing and enjoy this time before parenthood begins. Esteban and I have been having a lot of fun together lately (mainly just hanging out and relaxing because we both have so much going on right now in a million different directions). I finally have all my sub plans together for my maternity leave, which is such a HUGE sigh of relief!

School Baby Showers!

Everyone at Meadowcreek (the high school I teach at) has been so sweet and loving to me since I have been there, especially this year since I am pregnant. They are always checking on me and making sure I'm doing well. The students sometimes get too personal with questions and wanting to touch my stomach 24/7, but it is sweet that they care about me and are interested. My department is always good about celebrating birthdays or other special occasions within our little group, so they organized a school baby shower for me. Katie and I coached volleyball together and have become good friends since I started teaching last year, she was the main organizer of the shower and it was a lot of fun! I got some adorable outfits for Ellie- including a pink fur coat!! Anyone who knows me, knows I am not too into that sort of thing, but this one is sooooo cute! It's for 3-6 months so I hope she is big enough to wear it when it's cold!

On Fridays, my two Intro to Early Childhood Education classes have "Fun Friday." Students sign up for a Friday and are to come up with an activity for children any where from ages 2-6. They are required to bring in enough supplies for the entire class to participate, have a lesson plan to turn into me, etc. since we don't have children they can practice with. Well, this week the student assigned got the class together and had a surprise baby shower for me! I honestly had no idea! They had another teacher talk to me in the hall until the bell rang so they could set everything up. There was even a hostess who had games planned, cake, and gifts! It was a great way to end the week!

I have been starting to feel a LOT more pressure on my pelvis and occasional mild cramps and "acheyness." The doctor said these are all good and normal symptoms...I am anxious to go to the doctor Wednesday and see how everything is looking. I can't believe how close we are now!!! I have a hospital bag ready to go and definitely been feeling the "nesting" symptoms because I want everything in the house to be perfect all the time. I guess in my mind I want it all to be together so whenever it may be that we go to have her, we can come home to a clean house...not like it's not going to be messy once she gets here! LOL

I did not sleep well at all last night, so I slept in- missed church, but I am feeling good and rested. It is beautiful today so I think Esteban and I are going to go on a walk at Little Mulberry Park and then I have to get ready for my Young Life baby shower today! All of the girls have been so excited about the baby since we told them at the end of last school year and I love being able to share this with them, and EVERYONE!

I really need to post pictures sometime in the near future! I promise I will soon! Thanks for your love, support and prayers!

Time for REST!

I am slowly realizing it is getting harder to move around and get comfortable. I am still feeling great, but I am 33 weeks pregnant now. As I mentioned a little before, I was the varsity assistant volleyball coach at the high school I teach at this year. Not only had I never played the sport, but I am also pregnant... thankfully, the girls were very understanding about that :) I had a lot of fun and learn a LOT this season, but I am VERY thankful it ended this past week!! Teaching a full day and then staying until 5:30 pm (or later if we had matches) was getting to be too much! To top off the volleyball season being over, we have a 4 day weekend!!! Friday was a furlough day (state budget cuts) and Monday is Columbus Day. I think everyone needed this little break! On Thursday I was asking my students what they had planned for the long weekend and the majority of them said "SLEEP!"

I am very limited on what I can do around the house...I don't sit still very well and always like to be reorganizing, cleaning, etc. but thankfully my growing belly tells me I'm not allowed! :) I have been able to use this time to truly hang out with Esteban and not do anything! Este and I (well I really just watched) rearranged some furniture in the house and have the nursery officially set up! The house looks great! I love that all of our furniture goes well together so we can mix and match it to fit where we want it. My sister came over last night to hang out with us- I love that she can drive now! Krissy helped me put together the stroller, pack-n-play, and bouncy seat! I am so excited to have all the major things ready to go for Ellie! We need to hang a few things on the walls, but nothing major. To give myself a little project, I have been gathering things together for my "hospital bag." Nothing crazy, but something practical I can do without spending too much money!

I will post some pictures of the nursery soon!