Ellisyn Drew is here!

Ellisyn Drew has arrived! She came into this world 4 weeks and 1 day early at 11:43am on 9/9/09. She weighed 5 lbs 15 ozs and was 19.5 inches long. Her platelet count was 239,000 and her lungs were absolutely perfect! God is so great!

We arrived at the hospital the night before because my amniotic fluid was a little low. They wanted to give me an IV just to make sure I was plently hydrated. The next morning, Ethan came by to see us before we had Ellie. Then, a little before 11:00 they wheeled me back to the operating room. My friend Jamie was in there with me during the surgery. She was able to be my support person while they gave me my spinal and before David could come in. She then took pictures during the surgery.

The c-section went really fast. I was just so anxious to hear her cry! When I heard her for the first time it was the sweetest sound! They cleaned her up then let David hold her and let me see her. While I went to recovery, David wheeled Ellisyn out to our waiting parents, grandparents & Ethan. Ethan was so excited to see her for the first time. He wore his "I'm a big brother" t-shirt and was so cute!

Ellie spent the first night of her life in the NICU to make sure that her platelet counts were okay and her breathing was right where it should be. I was able to go down and nurse her around 5:00 that afternoon. We then went back several times that night to feed her and hold her.

She was released to the newborn nursery the next morning around 11:00am. To say we were so excited was an understatement! One of my prayers for this pregnancy was to be able to have my sweet baby in my room with me. It was so wonderful to be able to keep her in with us all day and night.

Ethan got to come and see Ellie the next day and he was so sweet. He was so excited to see his baby sister. We were worried about him being really jealous but he has done great so far! We were released from the hospital on Saturday and were excited to be able to go home and take Ellisyn with us.

So far, she has done really well. She sleeps almost 23 hours a day since she is a preemie and she does really well breastfeeding. When we left the hospital she weighed 5 lbs 9 oz and on Tuesday at her first doctors appointment she weighed 5 lbs 10.5 oz. She is gaining weight and her color is great! We hope to get a good report when we go back next week.

As for having her home, its been wonderful and Ethan is loving it! He's so sweet. He gives her tons of kisses and wants to hold her hand. It's so sweet!!

Our church family has been so sweet in bringing us food since we've been home from the hospital. It really is a lifesaver. After my csection, the last thing I want to do is cook! We are so happy to be home, and happy that Ellie is healthy and perfect. All the glory to God for our sweet miracle!