Another little piece of Heaven entered the world September 23, 2012. She weighed 3lbs 13oz and was 17.3in long. Tiny right? That's because she came 8 weeks early. My sister had been feeling off her whole pregnancy and by almost month 7 she had a talk with her Dr. who decided it would be best to run some more blood work. When it came back the Dr. sent her to the hospital for more because her counts were definitely off. She went in and they decided to give her some steroid shots to help the baby's lungs develop faster because by the numbers she was producing they could tell something was up and the baby would more than likely have to be taken out early. Then they sent her home,but she ended up going back a few days later and they admitted her. Damon was down south harvesting pistachios and waiting for news to see what he should do so my niece Kinsley came to stay with us. They determined that Audrea had something called HELLP Syndrome which is kind of like preeclampsia, but way worse and way more serious. Damon came home for a couple days to make sure she was ok and the doctors said they wanted to keep her in the hospital until after the baby was born. They were going to push her as long as she could without it getting too scary before delivering the baby by csection. Damon went back down south to keep working. September is their busiest month and he couldn't leave his brother there alone to deal with everything so he kept his phone close and waited to hear how things were going day by day. Meanwhile Kinsley was having a blast at our house. We tried our best to keep her distracted from thinking where mom and dad were and she did really well. There were times though when things would slow down and you could tell she was a little homesick, but for the most part she was a happy camper!
The kids had a blast with her! They really seem like they see each other as brother and sisters because they've spent so much time together before all this happened so it really wasn't that much different. Kins fit right into our family.
One night Janeane and David went to go visit Audrea and my parents came over to help watch all of the kids. They had their own little cousin party.
They had no clue what was going on. Their worlds were peachy keen and they were totally happy!
Between my sisters and I Kinsley was able to go see mommy at the hospital a few times before the baby was born. I know this helped Audrea so much because I'm sure it was hard to be away from her for that long. She was in the hospital for about a week and her counts kept getting worse. Everyone was concerned. Finally they decided it was time. Damon came back and they went in for the csection.
The waiting room was pretty intense. Everyone was worried how things would go. We knew a baby born at almost 32 weeks would need help developing, but we were all hopeful.
It was a complete relief when Damon came and gave us the news that things went as good as could be expected and that the NICU was taking good care of the baby and getting her situated and stabilized. We got to go in and see her that night and you could tell she was trying her hardest to breathe even with the help from the tube in her nose. She looked great for being so early and Audrea felt so much better. Even though she just had a csection you could tell her body was already recovering.
Damon was all over between checking on baby and mommy. He did such a great job! They kept Audrea a few days before sending her home without Harlow. I know she was happy about being able to come home and be with Kinsley, but I also know that leaving the hospital without the baby that you were carrying in your belly for all that time is such a hard thing to do.
Harlow Claire was kept in the NICU for about a month. She progressed so fast and everyday mommy went to visit her.
Kinsley was such a trooper about being shuffled back and forth between my sisters and I every day while Audge went to see her sister.
I was able to leave the kids with Derek and go with Audrea to see her a couple times. She was making progress and when they took her off the machine that helped her breathe everyone was so excited. She was still getting fed through a tube in her nose, but she was doing great!
Kinsley finally got to hold her sister! Little moments that are special about having a baby like this were 100x more special in my sister's case because they were long awaited.
I also need to add that I do believe in the bond between mother and baby, but I was able to witness first hand the importance of this tiny little girl hearing my sister's voice and being held by her. You could tell how comfortable Harlow seemed when she was snuggled up with her mom. I know that Audrea being there for her everyday helped her more than anyone will ever understand.
After a little while Harlow was able to eat by herself every feeding! We were anxiously awaiting the day that they could bring her home.
The day finally came and everyone was so happy for them.
A few days later Peyton and Jax were able to meet their new cousin that they kept hearing about.
It's so nice for her to be out and free from the hospital! I love her so much! This little girl is a total fighter!
Peyton loves her too! I can't wait to have our baby so she can have her own little sister!
It's been over a month and a half since she was born and now she seems just like a healthy baby that could have been born yesterday! During the last two months there was a lot of emotions going on. The only thing I could think of to tell my sister in her dark moments was that soon this will all be something we got through and she would eventually have a healthy baby home and be able to start their life together as a family. That all this was going to be a memory that she would be able to look back on and say, "I'm glad that's over with!" Finally I think we've reached that point in time! I'm so proud of my sister and her family and the way they pulled through. I know there were melt downs and tears, but for the most part my sister was so strong and held it together very well. She is such a compassionate caring person that both of her daughters are lucky to call her mom. I'm very blessed to be a part of such a great family and to be able to watch them grow! I can't wait to see what the future has in store for them!
