Happy 1 Month Bindi!

Did you notice that we decided to spell her name without the 'h'? Bindi is eating very well and weighed in today at 8 lbs 9 oz. She gets cuter by the day. Check out the baby glamor shots.

Going home...

Sorry folks, we have been pretty bad at updating the blog over the last few days. There has been a whole lot going on, and without the endless hours of boredom at the hospital we have been having a hard time finding time to blog. So here is the most recent update. Bindi is home, we came home on sunday afternoon and we couldn't be happier. The primary issue has been her feeding. Her digestive problems have not been an issue what-so-ever, we thought because of the omphalocele that she would have problems with her bowels. But the surgery went so well the only real problem was one we didn't know would be factor, her cleft palate. She has a cleft in her soft palate, so it's not visible, but it makes it impossible for her to create suction. Long story short, she is not able to feed very naturally. It was a lot of work to try and figure out what we would do to get her to feed. The ENT lady had us try various specialty bottles, but nothing seemed to work. Finally, she suggested we go to babs-r-them and buy a "nuby" bottle. The entire bottle is silicon, so it allows you to basically squeeze the milk into her mouth, then all she has to do is swallow. A day after buying the bottle Bindi drank all of the milk with out the need for the feeding tube. This was such an improvement the ENT lady took the feeding tube out. The next several days were full of frantic attempts to learn how best to feed her. Once she started gaining weight and feeding well, it was only a matter of time before we could come home. Now, it's been exactly a week since coming home from the hospital. Rachel and I are both pretty wiped out, every night i get up to feed the baby and Rachel gets up to pump. Still I prefer this much more than being at the hospital still. Being home with Bindi has given us the chance to actually feel like parents, and we like it, so that's probably good. Bindi's scab from her surgery is healing nicely and should hopefully be gone around the same time an umbilical cord usually falls off. Other than that, all's well. We are so blessed to have our little one safe and sound, and we thank all of you for your prayers and support!

A few more things to say

Just to play catch up on what news has come our way lately - we've seen the genetic counselor, the pediatric surgeon, and the ear nose throat doctor since we last posted. The genetic counselor doesn't have anything new to report - a summary of her condition: no heart problems to speak of, not too many physical abnormalities except for her long fingers and toes, she does have a cleft in her soft palate (which is at the back of her throat rather than at the front of her mouth) that will cause some eating difficulties and would cause speech problems, but they're going to correct it at about 10-14 months of age. Possible problem with her pinky fingers not being able to straighten, which may or may not need to be corrected later in life. Although we have no idea what developmental problems could arise in the future, we are grateful that she has done so well so far. It's a good sign that her disorder is not severe. She has been able to eat very well considering her cleft palate, and even tried to breast feed today (although she didn't care for it). She lost a little weight (as most newborns do), but as soon as she's able to eat normally and starts to gain weight again, they'll send her home. Probably another week. I'm still recovering from my infection, not quite able to walk for more than a few steps yet, but since being discharged from the hospital last night I've been doing a lot of sitting, which hasn't been possible before. Having trouble with breastfeeding (or rather breast pumping), so I'm going to meet a lactation counselor tomorrow. We've moved to the Ronald McDonald House, which is not a bad place to stay. Also I've been busy eating at all the restaurants that were on my list to eat at once I was no longer diabetic. I have crossed off Pizza Hut and Diary Queen. Krispy Kreme coming soon. Don't worry, it's just a binge while I'm recovering from birth, then I'll be back on my healthy schedule. Being a mom is great!

Forgot to mention that Jack and Danielle got married on July 9 at the Sacramento Temple. Luckily we were able to attend and see their beautiful ceremony while the baby was in the hospital. They're going to be a very happy couple.