The Final Countdown

 

There are officially less than 100 days until Elena's expected arrival. Exciting!! We got this little Baby Countdown clock from Ray's mom early in the pregnancy. It hasn't held TOO much interest until today. And now we're in DOUBLE DIGITS!!!!

Last night we went to the parent's baptism class for preparations for Elena's baptism. Now, I know what you are thinking, "This early? Isn't that jumping the gun a bit?" Elena will be baptized in January 2008. The preparation class for that group of baptisms (and incidentally, the next available class) will occur during the period that we may still be in Ann Arbor with Elena. Luckily, we looked into baptism early, and did not miss our chance to go to the class this time around.

Per the request of MANY people, here is a quick glimpse into Elena's room. There's not much to it yet, but it is starting to take shape.

3 More Days.....

....until my next post. Stay tuned!

A Day in Ann Arbor

It is 6:00 and we just returned from a full day in Ann Arbor. Four appointments in one day. Quite a lot, but well worth the time, as we were given good news all day long!!

As evidenced by the many tests, pokes and prods she endured today, Elena is doing very well. She currently weighs in at 1 lb 1 oz, up 2 oz since our last visit. Her heart looks very good (the cardiologist couldn't stop taking pictures!!)

But the best news of all came from the surgeon. While we have been taking all precautions and considering all possibilities that are wrapped up with an omphalocele, the surgeon said that he feels that Elena's condition is more consistent with an umbilical hernia. This is better for a number of reasons. Needless to say, we are VERY happy and relieved parents-to-be today.

We also got a tour of the NICU and labor and delivery areas of the hospital. This baby is gonna be born in style!! We were happy to see stellar facilities, and were happily surprised to see how friendly the ENTIRE staff was.

Other highlights of the day were our lunch excursion to Krazy Jim's Blimpy Burger and a visit to our nephew on the way home.

All in all, a very good day for this family (seriously, how many times did I use the word "happy" in this post?) Now we can kick back, relax, and concentrate on battling the heat!!