It had to happen sometime...

Last night we had our first emergency room visit with Ellie. Annette noticed that Ellie's breathing was a little labored after her bath last night, so we phoned the nurse on call. After asking many questions, she directed us to the pediatric emergency room at a local hospital. We were there from 9:15pm last night till the same time this morning; after several exams and 2 chest x-rays, it was determined that Ellie has bronchiolitis from RSV. She had a couple of breathing treatments and oxygen most of the night, but she felt much better this morning. She's still not completely out of the woods, but she's able to be watched at home. We feel very lucky and grateful that this wasn't more serious.


Here's Ellie just after check-in. She was pretty sick; her breathing was shallow and rapid and her chest was junky. The hospital was great about getting her triaged quickly and into the ER for care.

Ellie got hopped up on her second albuterol breathing treatment! It was just before 2am and she was hyper and manic, literally climbing the walls of her hospital crib. At this point of the night, she thought the whole hospital experience was a riot.

By this morning, Ellie was sleeping comfortably from the oxygen she got during the night. Her breathing was much less labored, thank god. Seeing her on a monitor again reminded me of her infancy, though. Poor little baby!

Shortly after this photo was taken, Ellie woke up, had a bottle, was examined, and got discharged! We're watching her for signs of breathing distress, but so far, so good. Knock wood, okay?

A very kind gift

Over the weekend, Ellie's wonderful nurse D. gave her this matching hat and blanket. D.'s sister crocheted it, and it's so soft and snuggly!

At the NICU spa

I've never met a baby who likes bath time more than Ellie. It's her favorite part of the day.

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy One-Month Birthday, Ellie!

Happy Groundhog Day!

Ellie's wonderful nurse B. made her this great Groundhog Day card. Isn't it the best card ever?

Sleepy baby, three weeks old

Four days old

I love this picture of Ellie for sentimental reasons: The pink blanket in this photo is from her birth family and the blanket draped over her bassinet is from the hospital. Annette and I brought her the green blanket and the little burp cloth she's lying on. To me, this picture perfectly captures life in those first few days with Ellie in the hospital.

Two days old

Ellie's Birth Day

Ellie made her way into the world at 5:10pm on Friday, January 12, 2007. She was 7 pounds, 7 ounces and 19 inches long at birth. She was just as beautiful and perfect as she could be.

Happy Birth Day, baby Ellie! We love you so much, and we're so happy to be your adoptive parents.