Baby Pool Winner!

I know everyone was WAY off on the birthdate of Miss Lily but thank goodness that means the rest of her stats determined the winner.

Lily Rose Harlacher
Born 4/23/11
@ 7:13am
6lbs 4oz
19.5 inches

The person with the least amount of points is in the winner....

In 3rd place with 21.808 Points
Courtney S.

In 2nd Place with 21.654 Points
Dave H.

And the winner is....

Dawn S!
with 21.027 points

New Ipod for Dawn! Congrats on your win and thanks everyone for playing!

~Whitney

More Rewind/Recap....

Day5/6/7: Tues, Wed, Thur

All I can really say about these days is back and forth to the hospital and SO EXHAUSTED. Lily was still in the NICU and we were just waiting for those oxygen levels to get better. The doctor continued to decrease the amount she was needing and each day seemed like a feat in itself. I can not tell you how glued we were to her monitors to make sure her levels stayed in the 90's. Poor Dan wanted to buy a machine for home as we were so nervous about her breathing. Luckily we were assured she would not come home until they were confident she was fine. Here is a pic of the monitor...its the bottom number we were worried about and I think we were cheering when she would reach 100!




During this time Lily also developed Jaundice. I was not too scared at this point as I knew what it was and was a bit relieved that she was getting it taken care of while she was in the hospital. I know people who have had to bring their babies back for it. So instead of stressing over it we found the humor in calling her our little glow worm...



We were also a little amused by her little eye mask. The nurse decided to give her some eyelashes and we were cracking up. It was just to keep the light from the bili blanket out of her eyes...



Thursday around noon (about 5 minutes before I arrived) the tubes were removed! I was so happy. Lily kept trying to pull them out of her nose and I was told that once the nurse got one side off and out Lily ripped the other one off. She REALLY didnt like it. Here is my little girl tubeless...




Once the tubes were removed we were put on the wait list for a private room. At 10pm on thursday night we were moved to a private NICU room where they take babies who are almost ready to go home. This also meant that Dan and I could stay overnight with her. So thursday night we had our first all nighter with Miss Lily. Dan and I became her parents and had ZERO help from the nurses. I figured if we could survive a night in the hospital with horrible chair cot thingys and alarms going off we could survive anything. Here is a pic of the room with my cozy bed :) ha ha



I felt horrible that Dan had to sleep on it but my mom did give him a nice break the beginning of our hospital stay so I guess a couple days was not going to kill him.

Once we moved into our private room I knew it would be any day that we would be able to take Lily home. It had already been a rough week but I think by the time we hit this point I was done. I needed to bring her home. Of course we got a new doctor once we moved and it felt like we were starting over. I was hoping like crazy Friday would be the day we could take her home but no luck. I will say I am thankful Lily had a relatively short stay in the NICU. I know it could have been so much worse but any amount of time spent there is still tough on anyone.


Day 8/9: Friday/Saturday

Friday was a long day spent hanging out with Lily. We made sure either Dan, Me or my Mom was with her at all times. Which meant we took turns running to get food or anything else we needed. I know the nurse was there to help but there was no way I would leave her alone. At this point I felt the whole responsibility and knew that we would need to take care of her once she was home anyway. Doctor checked on her friday and said no way going home. All I can say is if it was not a Sat homecoming I was going to lose it. It had already been hard enough and I could not handle one more day of living at the hospital. When the doctor came in to check on her on Sat am she asked us "How we were feeling?" I just looked at Dan as the tears came. I couldnt even answer her. My mom had said to make sure I didnt act like it was all about me wanting to get out of there but I know that was a lot of it. I could not handle the stress anymore and just needed to be able to go home and take care of Lily. I was afraid to do anything in the hospital and honestly...I really needed a shower! LOL. Just kidding. Feeding was a struggle and they were very strict on when Lily ate and how much. So my stress was so bad I could barely feed her that last morning. If she didnt do good we were going to be stuck another night. I know Lily probably felt my stress I know everyone else could. The doctor admitted that keeping us there another night was not going to help anyone. Lily was doing so much better and if we had any problems we could call. THANK GOODNESS! My little girl was able to come home! I felt like we were breaking out of Jail as we quickly loaded up all our stuff and ran away. Bye Bye hospital hope its forever before I have to visit again.

HOME! We made it! If you finished all this that is the last weeks recap. Now its just home time and fun posts. Stay tuned next for baby pool results. Dont worry there is still a winner even though EVERYONE was way off on the date!

~Whitney

Rewind 10 Days...

Wow...Where to even begin. It has been such a whirlwind these last 10 days that I cant even remember what day it is. All I can say is I am so thankful to be home and I know that we will get in the swing of things soon. This can only get easier right?

I know many of you have been waiting to hear my side of the eventful week so I am going to do my best to recap it for you guys. Thank you to Dan for giving updates while I was in the hospital! That was a Huge Help :)

Day 1: Friday, April 22, 2011

What a great day. I spent the morning at my friend Ali's classroom hanging with a bunch of 5 year olds and taking adorable photos of them. Then I headed to the studio for a maternity sales session with a client of mine who is having twin boys. Evening ended with a nice walk with Dan around the neighborhood a yummy dinner and then we were planning on watching a movie. Looking back it was a pretty hectic day as I had been only doing about one big activity a day or I would be too tired. Thinking I might have over did it a bit? Hmmm. Also this weekend was going to be our "pack the bag" and "figure out where we go at the hospital" and any other things we needed we were going to take care of. My 36 week appointment was supposed to be Monday and I will admit I was very nervous for it (ironic now). I guess Lily had other ideas for us...Like pack your bag in 5 minutes...Its time to go to hospital! ha ha! Dan and I had went upstairs to put some cozy pj's on for our movie night when my water broke. It was about 9pm. At this point I had zero contractions just my water broke. I started freaking out a bit but Dan kept his cool while he called the Dr. Thankfully my wonderful Dr Barrett was on-call for the weekend. I was so nervous about not getting her and was so relieved she would be there. Dr Barrett told us to head to the hospital....Dan got everything together (umm...my water was leaking so I wasnt much help at this point. oops. Luckily Dan is amazing!) On the way to the hospital I was pretty much in shock. There was no way I was being sent home without a baby....SO SCARY! I was also nervous at how early we were (4 weeks). I know babies can be fine even earlier than that but you still worry.

Hospital....

We checked into the hospital about 10pm friday night. I have no idea if I was dilated yet and they wouldnt check since my water had broke. But they got us in and all hooked up to the fancy crap (sorry...was not thrilled) and started monitoring my contractions. I kept asking how long it was all gonna take and I know no one actually knows but I still kept asking! ha ha. They offered me a sleeping pill which I declined (thank goodness). How they heck they thought I would sleep who knows? Dan was able to get a little...there was not a chance I would have slept with our without the sleeping pill. About 3am my Doctor checked in and I was dilated at 4. She suggested getting the epidural then if I was going to have one. As much as I did not want it my contractions were hurting so bad and were pretty much on top of each other that I broke down and said okay. After several attempts at placing the epidural who knows what happened. IT DID NOT WORK! Even a different person came in to try and add more meds...Ummm....I FELT EVERYTHING. Wow. Thats all I will say. Thankfully my labor progressed super fast. There was one point when my nurse said I just "checked" you (dilated at 5 at that point) and there was no way I was at 10. Well...I proved her wrong. Was at 10 and was already trying to push. I needed to get that thing OUT! It was HURTING! ha ha ha ha!

Day 2: Saturday April 23, 2011

7:13am Lily arrives. 61bs 4 oz 19.5 inches long. Dan says I was a trooper. I dont remember much other than needing ice chips like crazy, squeezing his hand to death, Pain and closing my eyes. I just wanted it to be OVER. I had a little bit of a scare as they could not get my bleeding under control. Thankfully my doctor stayed calm so I didnt worry but Dan was scared (he tells me after the fact). She worked her magic and got me taken care of. Then the next thing I know my daughter is being taken away from me. I sent Dan with her and once I was all stitched up it hit me. I called my mom (who was at the airport and on her way) crying as I didnt know what was happening. It all happened way to fast.

Dan returned with the news that Lily's oxygen saturation levels were low and she needed to be hooked up to oxygen. Luckily it was not a c-pap (I think that is what they call it?) but just regular oxygen..not forced. This was the ONLY thing that was wrong with her....however it meant that she was going to have to stay in the NICU until she could keep those levels up. Until someone has had a child in the NICU you can not even begin to understand how it feels. I can only say I am so thankful she had such a short stay compared to a lot of babies who have to have a visit to the NICU.

The moved us to a different room after the birth and on the way we stopped at the NICU so I could actually hold my little girl for the first time. I cried. Seeing her hooked up with tubes was really hard. They also had to put an IV in her that made me upset. I know it was all to make her better but no one likes to see that happening.


Day 3/4: Sunday/Monday

A blur. Well I guess the rest of the week was pretty much a blur as well but these two days were pretty bad. I was of course in the hospital and was not discharged until Monday afternoon. I was trying to recover but still see Lily whenever I could. The NICU is not just down the hall from where I was. Instead it was quite the adventure to go visit. I had to be escorted in a wheelchair...take two different elevators and finally arrive at NICU. I think this was one of my most frustrating parts of the experience. I also hated leaving her but "sitting" all day in NICU was not helping me heal either. I was pretty miserable. My mom stayed with me in the hospital which I am so thankful for. I did not want to be alone and the sleeping "cot" for my guest was not fun. Dan would have stayed but he was pretty thankful to go home and get to sleep in our bed. Mom saved the day :) Having visitors was quite the challenge as well. I felt bad but there was no cell phones in NICU and that is where I was spending most of my time. Then IF someone wanted to see her we could only have 3 total people in their at a time. Which meant my mom or Dan had to leave. We finally got to the point where we just told our visitors to wait till we got home. This was obviously not the experience I was hoping for but it was the experience we were given.

Monday was the most heartbreaking day of my life. Having to leave the hospital without my little girl was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. I was thankful for a shower and my bed but that was about it. Oh and I guess I was thankful that Lily was being watched over 24/7 so I knew she was at least in good hands. Didnt change how I felt about leaving her there but I tried to think of the positive.



This post is feeling very long and overwhelming. Not sure how many of you will actually read through the whole post :) So I am going to stop here and will continue the rest of the story soon so check back.....

~Whitney

HOME.

There are no words to describe HOME. The relief and joy we felt Saturday as we were finally released and able to take our little girl home was incredible. Dan has been hounding me to get this blog updated with all the week events and I will start on that this week since we are finally home. It was a very eventful week and I know many of you are waiting to hear the details. Hang in there with me and I will give you all a good rewind/recap of the last week.

Until then here is one shot of Miss Lily right before we checked out of the hospital...

Almost Home

Hello to all our friends and family who have been following along. We are sorry we haven't been keeping the blog up to date but it has been a crazy week. Whit will fill you in on all the details soon but here is an update for those who haven't been watching Facebook.

Well we got moved to a private room last night. Now we can stay overnight with Lily. She is breathing with no assistance and her oxygen saturation is normal. Hurdle number one is over. She is eating better now as well, up to 55 ml every three hours and Whitney is working hard to keep production up. No help or tube feeding for a couple of days. Hurdle number two down. The jaundice is going away, no more photo therapy. Hurdle number three complete. Today she gets a bath and the mighty car seat challenge (to make sure she can ride home). We have baby CPR class at 4:00. Only a couple more hurdles to go. We are hopeful we can bring her home today or tommorow at the latest.

- Dadio

Lily has Arrived!

Well this was a shocker! Little Lily decided to arrive a month early and was born at 7:13 on Saturday morning. She is 6 pounds, 4 ounces and 19.5 inches long. Whitney is doing great, she was amazing during labor. She managed to avoid punches or yelling at me despite a faulty epidural. She basically did it natural. Lily is doing well too. Her lungs may be a little under developed or have some fluid in them. They moved her to the NICU so she can have some extra help breathing. Hopefully she will only be there a few days and we will be able to take her home soon.

- Dadio, guest blogger

Flintstones?

First here is my view...



Yes that is my crazy HUGE tummy. Sorry not the most attractive photo. I keep wondering how it can get any larger...but somehow it finds a way. Whew. Luckily this "thing" is blocking my view from this...




EWWWW. Feet. I am not a fan of feet and can not believe I am even allowing myself to post this but I officially have Flintstone feet! Yuck. My narrow skinny feet are now little fatty's. Not loving it. I "guess" its normal but still....Do my feet have to match Fred's? I much prefer my long skinny toes.

Lucky for me I am at the point I can not only see my feet but I can not reach my feet to put on socks either. Flip Flops have been my friend (thank you weather for giving us at least a couple non-rainy days). I did get some very special advice this week however. My good friend Dave hurt his back and has been struggling with his socks. Says he found the Perfect Solution for me!

SALAD TONGS! Yup...thats right. He sent that to me and I could not stop laughing! Just hoping my next dinner visit he WASHES them first! LOL. Just teasing! Thanks Dave for the advice. For now Dan has been helping me with socks/shoes and bowling and there is only one more week of that (thanks honey!). So hopefully I can continue to avoid socks till Lily gets here. It is Summer almost right?

Until next time,

~Whitney

Excited? hmmm

I think its funny when everyone else seems so much more excited than I am? Dont get me wrong...I am excited but I think nerves have over taken the excitement. Its a little different when YOU are not the one anticipating childbirth. Of course YOU are excited! ha ha ha. 3rd Trimester is definitely starting to take its toll on me. I had been doing good but now Im ready. Dan was laughing this last weekend at me. What I asked him? "I can just tell you are over this...get this baby out!". LOL. I guess I have started complaining now and I am sure you can read my face....Not happy. I am working on being a good sport and I know we are in the homestretch now so this temp problem will soon be over! However I know keeping this girl IN is a lot easier than OUT! ha ha. But I am ready to have my energy and body back to normal or closer to normal at least. Im ready to play some Volleyball!

No more complaining...Lily will be here soon :)

~Whitney

Baby Pool

We went ahead and started a fun Baby Pool! I have added a link at the top so you can keep an eye on it. The prize for the winner will be a new ipod! One guess per person AND please make sure you have your name and email so we know who the winner is and can contact them after Lily is born. Pass the word! Lets make it a BIG POOL!

PS...if you are guessing late AND over 8lbs...I officially HATE YOU! LOL Just kidding!

Here is the link:

Baby Pool

~Whitney

How Sweet!

Well Lily officially has her own Sophie the Giraffe now! Cousin Landon and Grandma Teri went to Babies R Us and got her one. Landon wasnt sure he wanted to give it up but Grandma traded him for a new car! Thanks to both of you! Lily is sure to LOVE it! Here is a pic of Landon with Sophie...isnt he CUTE! And one of the new toy!

Sophie The Giraffe?

What in the heck is this silly little toy? I have seen it everywhere and just a few days back my sister (who works at the mall) saw like 5 babies with it. I dont get it? Well...my mom sent me the "scoop" on it here...


Sophie the Giraffe, full of discoveries and activities to awaken baby's senses. Sight: The dark and contrasting spots all over Sophie the Giraffe's body provide visual stimulation and make her easily recognizable to baby. She soon becomes a familiar and reassuring object. Hearing: Her squeaker keeps baby amused and stimulates his hearings. Taste:Sophie the Giraffe is very flexible and has lots of parts for baby to chew like ears, horns, legs. She is perfect for soothing baby's sore gum when teething and is completely safe. Made of 100% natural rubber and food paint. Touch: Sophie the Giraffe is perfect for baby's small hands. She is very light and her long legs and neck are easy for baby to grip. She is very soft to touch, stimulating soothing physiological and emotional responses. Smell: The singular scent of natural rubber makes Sophie the Giraffe very special and easy for your child to identify. Sophie is Phthalates and BPA free.



So I guess this means Lily needs one huh? Anyone's baby have one? Got an opinion?

~Whitney

Funny Bib...

My cousin Sarah found this funny bib and said she thought of us! Cracks me up. Thanks Sarah for thinking of us and sending! Its cute!

~Whitney

35 Weeks...

Your baby doesn't have much room to maneuver now that she's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 1/4 pounds (pick up a honeydew melon). Because it's so snug in your womb, she isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times she kicks should remain about the same. Her kidneys are fully developed now, and her liver can process some waste products. Most of her basic physical development is now complete — she'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.

Oh Boy....35 weeks...The countdown :) We now know that baby is head down! Yeah! That is good news. Now if I can just convince this girl she wants to come early we will be good. Dr. Says no more than two weeks early but two weeks is good!

~Whitney

Guest Book/Advice Box

I couldnt have a shower without some kind of craft project for the guests right? Most of my friends/family are pretty crafty anyway so I thought it would be fun to give them something to create! Connie created the beautiful Craft Box and supplied the goodies to help decorate. The idea was for guests to make a tag with advice for the new parents OR just share something...Or just sign and say LOVE YA! I know a few people said they had no advice but it was also our guest book. So IF you are reading this and you DID NOT participate you are in TROUBLE! LOL

Here is a couple of photos of the framed instructions and the craft table...






I snagged a few shots of the tags that were made to share too! This is not all of them....but I wanted to post a few. The tags were adorable and I LOVED reading what everyone wrote! Thanks Connie for putting this together...and thanks to everyone who used some of their creativity to help make this project possible!

Shower Part Four...

Am I driving you crazy yet? Just a few more posts I promise. Its fun to spread it out...then my 3 blog stalkers have something to look forward to right? Here are a few more gifts I thought it would be good to post. I wont be able to post everyones gift...So forgive me if you dont see yours. We LOVED everything we got I just wanted to pull a few that I thought would be good to post.

First I forgot to post the cute little tags my sister-in-law, Jenn made for our seats.




Next we have a Diaper Tower that Jessica MADE! Wow right? I thought you could buy these things but she made it from scratch! Sorry about the photo Honey...but its the only one I had :) The tower has already been taken apart, washed and put away! Thanks Jess! We LOVE IT! So fun and so creative!



We officially have Lily's first camera thanks to the Kraft's! I was scared when I saw the potential noise maker in the gift back. Im always the "Aunt" who buys the drums and anything noisy. All I was thinking was paybacks...Until we opened up and saw that it was a Camera! Too perfect! And its actually the perfect amount of noise! Thanks B & T! Its awesome!



This next gift was from my brother and sister in law. The sheep is SO SOFT and is a pillow with a super soft blanket that wraps up inside. Perfect for traveling! I think the sheep is a nice touch to my cozy chair! Thanks guys! So CUTE!




This keepsake is a gift from Lily's Grandma Teri...aka my mom. I LOVE IT! Its an adorable piggy bank but I guess its more of a watering can/butterfly bank? That would be more appropriate. Its beautiful and looks great in her nursery. We are putting quarters in it and once its filled we will add it to Lily's savings account. My mom started it off with several dollars worth of quarters but it still has a ways to go to be full. So if you come to our house...better empty those pockets! LOL Thanks Mom. Lily is going to love it!



SHOES! Love these cute shoes! Thanks Melanie!



I really love all the special custom/handmade items we have been getting. These are from Grandma (aka my mom) who had them designed just for Lily. They are burp rags with the cutest embroidery on them! LOVE THEM! Plus an adorable blanket also embroidered with Lily's name on it! SO CUTE and SO SOFT!





There is so much more that I can not even begin to post it all. Tons of clothes...as well as necessity items such as baby monitor, changing pad, bath goodies, sheets, mattress pad, traveling kit, more awesome handmade items etc. I may post a few more things along the way when I need a post. So sorry if I did not "feature" your gift on the blog. Dan and I LOVED everything and are very Thankful!

Hugs!

~Whitney