Week 33

We are on the eve of 6 weeks old and Cora capped it off with a big milestone...her first bottle feeding!  Preemie babies typically start nippling a bottle and nursing at 34 weeks, this is around the time they are developmentally ready.  I've been able to do some non-nutritive feedings with her and she has done well with that and started showing other cues as well. Tonight the nurses tried it and Cora nippled her ENTIRE feeding!! I am one proud mama and so excited!  

This all comes after a week of a serious growth spurt from our girl.  She gained 12 oz this week and is now weighing in at 4lbs 15oz!  Cora is doing just what she needs to do, sleep, eat, poop and gain weight.  The doctors have been happy with her progress and it has truly been amazing to watch her grow every day. Next week she has her 2nd eye exam which she will hopefully pass with flying colors. Can't wait to see what this next week brings! All good news!  

{ Day 33 }

{ Day 34 }

{ Day 35 }

{ Day 36 } 

{ Day 37 }

{ Day 38 }

Someone is starting to get some cheeks! 

{ Day 39 }

{ Day 40 }

a special visit from Mema and Poppi

{ Day 41 }  

The nurse left a note in Cora's isolate to relay the good news for us to see on our live stream video

This was also a big week for Joss...she is officially in her BIG girl bed and she's had some great success with her potty training (finally!).  It is incredibly amazing to watch her little mind grow and gain confidence - this girl is taking her big sis role seriously! 

Welcome Cora Grace Shipley

Hi Friends and Family! On April 18th we welcomed our second daughter, Cora Grace Shipley. At only 28 weeks she changed our world fast and furious, ready or not, she was here. Here are some photos of Cora from her first month and we will continue to update and add to this as she grows...we can't wait to bring her home!

First a quick and HUGE thank you! The love, support, prayers, words of encouragement, visits, cards, emails, messages, meals, care packages, flowers and all the little things have been absolutely overwhelming and humbling. We are truly touched and beyond grateful. Words cannot express our gratitude and we are incredibly blessed for the people we have in our lives.

Here's is Cora's journey so far...and while things started off a little scary and unknown, she has made such great progress and it's amazing to see Cora's strength and endurance through it all. She finally has some momentum in gaining weight and is currently at 3lbs and 15oz. She recently had her 2nd head scan which showed the small cyst she previously had has reduced and it's not something of concern. She also had her first eye exam which all looked good! We pray things will continue to go well and hope to bring her home sometime in June!

Introducing

CORA GRACE SHIPLEY

2 lbs, 14 oz

15.25 inches

{ Happy Birthday Cora }

{ Day 5 }

First time holding her was on the day I was discharged...

and she had quite a hold on her daddy too.

{ Day 8 }

First Family Photo!  Joslin loves talking about her little sister.  

{ Day 9 }

There is nothing quite like holding a little life so close...such a miracle.

And finally, less breathing tubes and more cuteness to see!

{ Day 10 }

 { Day 13 }

Two weeks and already looking so much healthier and alert!

{ Day 15 }

Officially no more breathing devices! (the remaining tube is for feeding only)

Time for some funny faces

{ Day 22 }

 Mother's Day and more family fun

{ Day 24 }

Long and lean but a growing machine...making big strides daily in gaining weight finally!

{ Day 29 }

Someone is getting more active and graduated to swaddling!
She is now at (what would have been) 32 weeks.

{ Day 32}

a little view of her first home

{ Cora's Story }

March 24th: I had gone to a doctor's appointment in the morning for a regular check up. I had recently been having weekly cervical checks but all was looking good and my doctor even said all was great and lifted my physical activity restriction (a previous precaution). I returned to work and carried on as usual until I felt some fluid. Only being 24 weeks along, I wasn't thinking it would be my water breaking, it was still way too soon. After calling my doctor they advised to go to the hospital to be examined. Within 30 minutes, they determined it was amniotic fluid and my water did indeed break (precise medical term...ruptured). As the news sank in and they told me I wouldn't be leaving, the tears started flowing and all I could think about in that moment was Joslin and not being home with her and Joe.  The two of them came to the hospital that night and as they left I just felt a growing sadness.  Bedtime was one of my favorites with my little family...reading books, saying prayers, rocking and singing with my girl. Needless to say that was a hard night on all of us.

As the night went on, I had increased activity and some contractions. Around 4am, it was unsure if the baby was going to come or not. The doctor said I should call my husband and have him come if possible (always nervous words to hear from a doctor).  Joe got back to the hospital right as they started me on magnesium which is mainly used for neural protection of the baby if delivery might be imminent. It is also a strong muscle relaxer and can sometimes help quiet the uterus and potentially stop contraction activity. It is not a fun medication to say the least and it simply felt like I got hit by a truck. Those few hours were tough but within 3-4 hours, things had seemed to calm down a bit. Later that morning, a series of doctors would come talk to us including the neonatologist. He gave us an introduction on premature babies, what it means for us, and some of the important gestational milestones to try and meet. From that point on, I was determined it wasn't yet time for this baby to come. I didn't want to face having a 24 or 25 week baby. The thought was terrifying so we tried not to dwell on it and move forward.

We made it through 48 hours, then 72 hours passed and I was finally transferred from Labor and Delivery to Antepartum. As I got a little more settled in my new temporary home, it was at this point I realized I was already a mother of two. While motherhood sometimes doesn't feel like it starts until you hold your child in your arms, I was reminded that it truly starts well before that. Now my unborn child took priority. Minutes, hours, days have never meant so much. My daily objective was to stay in bed, have a boring day and pray the baby stays put just a little longer.  Every day I just listened to that little heart beat inside me praying to make it through another day.

Those first few days were really scary and hard being away from the family but we slowly adjusted and created a new routine and schedule. Joe was amazing at playing Mr. Mom in my absence and the rest of my family was an incredible help. I was able to see Joslin every day and she was resilient with the whole situation, it is so remarkable to watch a child accept such a big change. I missed our closeness but I knew it was only temporary. The days turned into weeks and I am so appreciative of everyone who text, called and visited to help keep my days busy and distracted from the monotony of a hospital room. And especially to my family who even made Easter weekend fun with a special egg hunt for Joss.

Every day was a victory and each week was a celebration for baby S to have had more time to grow. One of the doctors really early on had told me for every day baby stayed inside me was three less days in the NICU. We knew we'd be facing a NICU stay regardless of when baby would be born, but how long was up for grabs. And while I knew I ultimately didn't have control, I was determined to go as far as I could. The doctors said no matter what I would deliver by 34 weeks (assuming I could make it that far). That meant I prepared myself for a 10 week stay. And while we pushed forward towards that goal, we celebrated week 25, 26 and 27 and in the early morning on the start of week 28, baby decided it was time.

April 18th:  Joe had decided to stay at the hospital that night so thankfully he was already there. Around midnight, the contractions had grown a little strong so an on-call doctor did a quick cervical check and started some fluids to see if it could help subside the activity. After little change, they decided to transfer me back to Labor and Delivery where they started me on magnesium again. After another couple hours with no change and contractions 3-5 minutes apart, I spoke to the doctor on the phone and they decided it was time to deliver before anything else would happen and become a bigger emergency. Since baby was breech there was no option other than a c-section...which also terrified me.

They got us prepped and fortunately my doctor was on-call that Saturday so she made it just in time to do the procedure. At 7:11 am (ironically my original due date was 7/11) we found out it's a girl and she had 12 fingers, just like her mama! She was handed off to the NICU team right away and Joe followed her up to the unit while they initially worked on her. I didn't get to see her for a couple hours until after recovery and only then it was for a brief minute while on the way to my room. We weren't able to hold her as she was a little sick and had to be intubated for breathing. Those first days were a blur and Cora had been poked and prodded quite a bit and her skin had taken a bad beating but by day 5, the day I was discharged, I was finally able to hold her for the first time. I couldn't think of a better parting gift from my month long hospital stay and something for my heart to hold on to as I left her behind to head home.

It was a mix of emotions leaving our baby girl behind but it was a wonderful feeling being back home and to be able to start healing. We started to adapt to our new normal and would visit Cora in the morning and spend several hours there with her now since we could hold her skin to skin. The nurses and doctors have all been so great in helping to explain everything and reassure us along the way. Cora has been such a good little fighter and it's amazing to watch her progress every day. By two weeks, she was breathing without any assistance and was back to her birth weight. She continues to do well but needs to make bigger strides in her weight gain. In 2 weeks she can hopefully start feeding from a bottle and possibly nursing. While we aren't sure yet of when Cora will be home, we are so proud of her daily accomplishments. We look forward to the day when our whole family will be together and know it will be here before we know it!


Here is a quick glimpse of fun had during my hospital stay pre-Cora...mostly Joss!

when mom's away, it's dad's rules...someone got to nap on the couch

an artist and her work...perfect way to brighten up the room