Back to the real world

Sorry I have been so bad at posting these last couple weeks. Life has been a bit hectic since being home. We are so grateful to be home and my hips are so happy to see a real bed again though. Belle is doing a lot better. We had the feeding tube in her these past two weeks, which was horrible. She hated it and kept pulling it out. We just got the orders today, that she is eating orally well enough and gaining enough weight so we can take it out!! That makes me so happy. She was extremely sensitive to the tape on her face and it kept giving her horrible sores that she is still healing from. Now we just have to work on getting her as many calories as possible. In some very exciting news, Belle really crawled for the first time today!!! I thought she was completely unable to coordinate her arms to work with each other, but she proved me wrong. She only crawled a couple feet at a time then stopped to do something else like downward dog but it is such a huge exciting step!!!

In pregnancy news, I am now 33 weeks. I could be having Gracelyn as soon as this coming month!! My back is killing me and the Braxton hicks are quite frequent, but the doctor said I am extremely healthy which is always good to hear. I have so much to do before she gets here. It’s a bit hard with zero energy though ha ha. Tonight is yoga with Deana. I am excited, it always makes me feel better. I just read a book called fit2fat2fit it was a really good read and it makes me excited to hopefully get in really good shape after I get the doctors go ahead . It will be harder with two babies, but all the health problems I keep seeing in my overweight relatives really puts it into perspective. It’s not just about looking good, But feeling good and being around to take care of my family for a long time.

I hope everyone is doing well. Here are a few pictures of late...

Downward dog. Yoga baby!!




Big belly





Grandpa!




Piggy tails!! Finally enough hair!





Cheese!!





She can stand when holding on to things!!!



We live in a hospital now.

These last couple weeks have been stressful to say the least.  First Belle got the stomach flu and it was a long few days where she just threw up everything. It slowed down to where she was throwing up once or twice a day and we thought she was getting better. Then the bug hit me out of nowhere and it was really bad. I am used to throwing up from morning sickness, but I just couldn't stop and it was so painful. I went to the hospital the next morning and had to be stuck on iv's and medicine for the day. I felt a lot better after a couple of days and things went back to normal. I was having a really hard time getting Isabelle to eat though and it looked like she was losing weight. She was still throwing up at least once a day as well. On Monday I went to get her up and saw her whole crib was covered in throw up and she was really lethargic so I knew we had to at least take her in to the doctor. Everytime I have taken her to the hospital when she is really sick they never do anything and send her home after a few hours so I decided to take her to the doctor first. When we weighed her we found out she had lost almost 4 lbs or 20 percent of her body weight and was extremely dehydrated and lethargic. That would be bad in any baby, but with a baby with failure to thrive it is really dangerous, so he sent us straight to the hospital. We were admitted pretty quickly and got her started on iv's and medicine. We have now been here a week. It has been really hard. I have been staying at the hospital almost everynight on a hard couch thing in her room which is killer on an 8 month prego body ha ha. My parents have been a big help for Ben and I taking turns watching Belle so we can have a few breaks and shower and relax for a couple hours. Belle is still not eating hardly anything. They have put an ng tube  ( a feeding tube that goes from her nose to her stomach) in her to help her get the calories she needs to gain weight. She is a lot more energetic, though not her normal level. We are really hoping to get some answers while we are in here. We need to figure out what the overlying problem is. All of her tests have come back normal so far which is both good and frustrating at the same time. We hope to be out of the hospital sometime this week. Prayers are always welcome :)

Pregnancy note: I am almost 31 weeks now!!! It is flying by. I am getting bigger and more uncomfortable by the week but that is normal. I was having some bad braxton hicks and the baby had some distress so they gave me a shot to help me from going into labor. I am supposed to take it easy which I am trying to do. So hopefully Gracelyn will stay in there until she is good and cooked.



I love him <3



That pout kills me.



My favorite people!!



We love pizza mart!!! Maybe a little too much ha ha



She is still darling in a hospital gown and mussy hair.



Big belly!!



Those teeth!!



She is the most cuddly baby!
 



iv buises.. poor baby



Still smiley!
 



Her cute blanket and toys they gave her.



Uncle Christian