Home (sort of) for the Holidays!

I lost it. I cracked....

Friday the 21st I went into McMaster to visit Sophie and heard, yet again, that there were no beds available for her to be transferred to St. Catharines. The nurse asked me how I was doing and I said:

Fine...............no wait.
Not fine. (*queue the uncontrollable sobs
and ball-bearing sized tears)
You need to go get the social worker
(Karla). I need to talk to her now. I'm done. I'm done.....
I'm taking my baby and I am going home.

So, Karla comes to see me and explains that there's nothing they can do, and that it would be unethical for me to take the baby now, and that it's only a little while longer to wait for a bed and that she thinks I need to go home and rest....yadda yadda yadda. I continued to cry and beg for them to do anything ANYTHING to get my girl closer to home and out of the level three NICU she had outgrown. I even told them to ask St. Catharines if I could put her in a box in the corner of the old people's ward and I would stay and care for her myself. I hit the wall.

Then, like out of an O.Henry Christmas story, a magical thing happened. A nurse practitioner named Sandy came over to me and told me that she would do her best to make things better for me. I had never seen her before in all of our time at the NICU, but here she was and she was going to help me! She disappeared into the hubub of the NICU and left me to wipe my mascara tears off of Sophie's head. Shortly after, she reappeared, and let me know that there was a bed available in Niagara Falls and it was ours if we wanted it. YES! WE WANT! WE REALLY WANT!

I love you Sandy nurse practitioner. I have a fantasy that I call the McMaster NICU and ask for Sandy and they say, "Why, there's no Sandy that works here...." and then a bell rings and I know that Sandy got her wings....

This is the first Christmas in my life that we didn't have a tree. We didn't buy gifts for each other and we didn't bake. I have a Christmas theme every year and for a year in advance I am preparing a gift wrap and decor colour scheme. This year there was only hurried wrapping of a few simple gifts with no thought as to how they would look together under a tree. Somehow, though, we still had Christmas. Spending our afternoon with our beautiful girl and our families and being so grateful for what we have made it through...being so grateful for the people we share our lives with. I'd like to say that I found the true meaning of Christmas....but I still missed baking, shopping and wrapping gifts in my extra special way. We're having a family Christmas in January, when we can all be together.

So, long story short....our girl got her wings and came to Niagara Falls to spend the rest of her time growing in the NICU there. Our amazing holiday was spent letting various family members hold her. The most amazing thing was seeing my brother Gord hold my daughter for the first time. They're hospital pals and all we wanted was for them to be home for Christmas together.

So, we got our Sophie sunshine home for the holidays, but she still isn't home home. She is gaining weight steadily (she's 4lbs, 4oz now) and has no more tubes. She eats from a bottle and is still learning how to breastfeed. She doesn't have a lot of stamina, so I don't make her try for too long, but I've been pumping for 3 months, so I don't want to give up now. She is still having little battles with reflux, and desats to the '80s once in a while, but she is really stable and looks just like a newborn baby. Her due date was January 4, so we hope she's home by then.

In town on the clown

We've spent the last week in Hamilton thanks to Ronald McDonald house. Ronald McDonald house makes it possible for families with children in the hospital to stay in town with them for only $10 a night. They also provide dinners, free laundry facilities and soap and free long distance anywhere in the world. When we arrived at the house we were greeted with a hot dinner and an amazing room. It's huge and clean and has a four poster king size bed. It's nicer than our house.

The incredible kindness and my gratitude for the people at the house started me thinking about all of the hands that have helped to support us along this journey. I thought about Dr. Nwebube in Grimsby, whose gigantic hands wrote my blood pressure prescription and ensured the safety of my baby while in utero for those weeks. I thought about all of the nurses in Grimsby, especially the one who massaged my neck the night I couldn't sleep because of the pain and worry. I thought of the hands of Dr. Patricia Smith, who was the first to touch our Sophie and who welcomed her with the words, "It's a tiny tiny baby girl..". All of these hands, all working together to help us, to help our baby girl. More hands, in Hamilton, the amazing nursing staff of the NICU, who taught us how to use our hands to soothe Sophie back to sleep.The hands of Dr. Marrin and Dr. SantAnna, who kept our girl safe. Finally, I thought of the hands of the people who made the dinner for us at Ronald McDonald house.

All of these people worked together without knowing each other and without knowing us. All of these people gave so much kindness and gentle care to our family. All of these amazing people who just do these things because it's what they do. I am in awe.

Sophie is doing amazing. She weighs 3 pounds 7 ounces now. She's on the path to come home. We met with her doctor yesterday and he said that if she gets another negative eye swab on Tuesday then she can come out of isolation. She can then be transferred to St. Catharines if they have space for her. We just love seeing her blossom and it's really like she's a newborn, even though she's 10 weeks old. She cries and smiles and is learning (slowly) to breastfeed. I told the nurses that I feel like breastfeeding this 3 pound baby is like trying to park a Buick in an econo spot....

We are going crazy wanting this to be over. Both Kie and I feel exhausted, like we need a vacation, and the hardest part is coming up. Sometimes it feels like we've been running a marathon and we're almost done - until someone moves the finish line a little bit further away. The only way we've made it through has been on the support of all of your hands, our families and friends. We love to read your comments and they keep us going. We thank you all so much.

The road home

Hey everyone

It has been a whirlwind of activity for the past few days, with Sophie getting better and better and gaining weight like crazy. It seems like all of a sudden she was a big healthy baby and the nurses started to talk about her going home! HOME!

She's still in isolation while we wait for the result of her eye swab for the pseudomonas bacteria. You really can't tell she has any kind of infection, and she just seems to be getting bigger by the minute. Her nurse (Bonnie, who we absolutely love) is working to get her into a cot in the next few days. Bonnie is working with us on discharge planning, so she lets us take Sophie out of her isolette, bathe and diaper and dress her on our own. I love taking care of her, and it makes me want to hurry her up to get home.

In order for her to be discharged, she has to be off of the caffeine, have had no spells for a week and breastfeeding every meal and gaining weight. It seems like a tall order, but our girl is up for a challenge. Bonnie said we're probably looking at 3 to 4 weeks. It's hard not to try to push her to get home faster. I would love to have her here for Christmas, but she needs to come when she is really ready. I tried breastfeeding for the first time on Sunday, and Sophie did really well. She didn't fuss too much, and even took a couple of sucks. Yesterday we tried again and she did even more. Bonnie said she's a smart girl. We think so too.

All of this talk of home made us realize how incredibly underprepared we are to have her here. Once she is breastfeeding, I have to live with her at the hospital, and I haven't got her nursery ready at all. We've scurried in the last couple of days to register for baby stuff, find a car seat, look at cribs and furniture, buy paint for her room and clean it out to get ready for painting. While we were at Toys R Us last night looking at car seats, I had a sudden surge of joy that this moment had come. We are so very lucky and grateful to have our beautiful girl, and I can't wait to have her at home. I have a feeling that I have absolutely no idea how much my life is going to change when she's here but I can't wait to see what it will become.

Here's your Baby!

Sophie hit 1227 grams Thursday night and was taken off CPAP at 12 pm Friday. This means that she is breathing completely on her own with no assistance and no extra oxygen. She is doing great. She still has moments of apnea where her oxygen level goes down, but she quickly recovers and does some quick breaths to catch up and bring her oxygen level back up. We are so proud of her. I told her she was the strongest person I know.


The best part of being off of the CPAP is that her face is visible.


We were both so excited to be able to kiss her face and to see her nose and cheeks. When we got there and saw her asleep in her isolette with nothing on her face I was so happy that I cried. I was so happy to see her breathing on her own and sleeping so peacefully. I was so happy that she is older and more able to regulate her breathing. Mostly, I was just in awe of how incredibly beautiful she is. I thought that this must be what it feels like to look at your baby for the first time after you give birth.


So many times since she's been born I've wondered about the "normal" birth experience we had all missed out on. There have been times where I felt cheated out of my pregnancy experience and wished desperately for that "here's your baby" moment that always seems so amazing on TV. Our experience was amazing, but we were never handed a baby to hold and marvel at. This, the first time I've seen my beautiful girl's face almost completely unobstructed, knocked the breath out of me. I feel as though I got my moment. I keep getting my moments. Every day there seems to be some new opportunity to touch her, bathe her, dress her, or change a diaper. We are invited more frequently to take part in her care. This only makes me yearn for her to be home even more.

I don't know what it will take for her to come home. I'm not sure if we are looking at weeks or months. All I know is that every other night, when she gets weighed I pray for that magic number to go up faster. I just want my baby girl home. We both miss her so desperately. Every visit we wash our hands before we go home so that we can smell the soap that reminds us of her. Kie and I both have had excited moments when, late at night, we have found a spot on a hand or on an arm that has remained untainted all night and still smells like Sophie. We close our eyes and inhale it deep while dreaming of the day she will be home with us.

Sophie's Patrice

Sophie is having a wonderful time with her nurse Patrice. She bundles her up and tucks her into bed so perfectly and I can tell she loves it. Patrice taught me that Sophie likes to have her head and mid section covered with both hands. It makes her feel safe. Lorraine and I couldn't make it to the hospital yesterday but we felt secure knowing she was with Patrice. Thank you so much.

Sophie is slowly gaining weight and it really shows on her legs. Her last weigh-in was 1186grms.... she's so close to 1200. My father last saw her at 886grms or so and he noticed she looked much more baby like. She has some chubby cheeks now.. at both ends of her. Also her feeds are gravity fed, 'bolis' method I think it's called. It takes her 10 minutes to eat and now she seems to wake up early before her next feeding time. She gets 16ml every 2 hrs and I think they will increase that. She gets weighed again tonight so hopefully goodbye cpap.

Here's a picture of Lorraine drying off Sophie after bathtime.

Happy Birthday Dad

This is my(KIE) second post and I want to share a memory with you.
My dad makes me feel safe. When I was little my favourite thing was spending time with my dad. I used to lay on his chest while he napped and I can remember he would take a deep breath in through his nose... pause .. then 'pooof' slowly exhale from his mouth. I would rise up and slowly sink back down. I felt so safe and comfortable. I think my Sophie feels this way with me.

Eye-solation

Well, it's been a pretty eventful couple of days. Thursday we decided to stay home, figuring that Sophie had been doing so well and we needed a break. Kie called to check on her, and they said that she was in isolation because she had contracted an eye infection from the water in her CPAP. I was really worried that this infection would be a setback, or that it was the start of the scary stuff we had managed to evade so far. On the rollercoaster ride of having a preemie, I didn't know if this was a little dip or a slow approach to a huge downward plunge. We were really concerned and felt a little guilty for not being there for her.

Friday we went up and met with Bonnie, her day nurse, (who is amazing) who let us know that Sophie had NO problems, just a simple eye infection that wasn't a big deal and that we get the bonus of having her in a private room. Sophie had been moved from her spot in the NICU (which is kind of like a ward with 2 beds on each side) to a private room in the back of her "pod" (which is how they refer to the wards). She has her own sink and table and a window with a view. We have to wear gowns when we go in (to keep from bringing any bacteria into the rest of the pod).

Other than the gowns and the new room assignment, nothing much was different. We were really pleased to see that she was doing so great. She's just getting some antibiotic ointment put on her eyes to stop the infection. She didn't seem bothered in the least...she didn't even seem to have any yuck in her eye. She has gained 62 grams since her last weigh-in...she hit 1110 grams! They told us that when she gets to 1200 they will try her off the CPAP again. She really looks so much bigger and sturdier. She is getting dimples on her knees and a pudgy face. She has way fewer spells of apnea so we think she will do great when she's breathing on her own.

We got to do bathtime and cuddle for a long time. We helped nurse Marion (our favourite) with washing and drying. Enjoy the video....we enjoyed our time so much.

The Kilo Club

We were ecstatic to be there tonight for Sophie's official weigh-in and entry into the "Kilo Club"....she has finally made it over 1000 grams! (Imperialites - that's 2.2 pounds). As you can see, she weighed in at 1029 grams, which means she has almost gained a pound since she was born.

After her weight and bath, Sophie spent some time with her Daddy. My instincts made me want to scoop her up and steal her away, but I know that Kie needs her just as much as I do. He hasn't held her for quite a while, and he really needed to feel her in his arms.



Sophie has spent a lot of time in our arms, but her first cuddle from a grandparent came from Grandma, who really needed it. Grandma said it was just like medicine.



Times have been pretty rough for her lately, and some special Sophie time was just what she needed. She said,

"We can’t wait to get her home and hug her. I think it will be 8 more weeks and we will save up the cuddles. We love you Sophie! Thanks for your courage and strength and helping us all to get through these difficult times. Uncle Gord is rooting for you."

Sophie's doctor said that she probably will be staying in Hamilton for some time, which is a mixed blessing. We are so confident leaving her at McMaster. The care is amazing and everyone there is really professional and so kind. We just want to pick up the building and drop it a little closer to home. I worry a little about driving in the winter, and I really wish sometimes I could just drop everything and go for a quick cuddle.

Sometimes I feel like my baby is still in utero.....just not mine. It's weird to hear the nurses talk about her as her gestational age (she's 34 weeks now)...it's like she isn't real yet...like she's not "done". Kie's mom and dad talk about how amazing it is to be able to watch this process - to see a baby grow. We really are lucky to know Sophie and see her grow as she should have inside of me.

I have to admit that I had been feeling really guilty that I wasn't able to keep her growing in my body. I thought that the way this happened wasn't right, and that I had put Sophie at a disadvantage by not being able to continue the pregnancy. With all of the amazing comments, thoughts, gifts, and prayers we have received on her behalf, I feel like this is really how it was meant to be. Sophie's experience is touching so many people in so many different ways. She is not yet supposed to be born, and has already taught us so much. I am so proud to be her mom and I feel so honoured to have been chosen to be her parent.

Thank you all for your amazing response to our beautiful girl.

The Grind

Hey everyone

We went up today to meet with Sophie's new doctor and to have a visit with our girl. We usually meet once a week or so with the doctor, nurses and social worker to get an update on Sophie's progress and to ask any questions or discuss any concerns we may have. It is really amazing to have all of these people in our corner, helping our girl to grow and supporting us through this process. Today's meeting went really well. We met Sophie's new doctor and he let us know that she is doing really well. They have done all the investigation possible to try to find out why she is having so many apneas (forgets to breathe) and bradycardias (where her heart rate goes below 100), but ultimately it's because she's little and it's what preemies do. I had hoped to hear she'd be home for Christmas, but the doctor said 7-10 weeks until she's ready for that. Basically, we are just waiting for her to grow.

We're so fortunate and grateful that her stay in the NICU has been pretty uneventful. Her journey could have been a lot scarier and had more challenges than what she has experienced. I think, though, that this point in the experience presents a different set of challenges for everyone. We have to wait and be patient for her to grow. I have never been very good at either waiting or being patient. I always pop the toaster before it does it on its own....

Kie and I have been trying to balance our "normal" life with the NICU experience, and it wears slowly on our souls. We ache for our little girl. We want her home with us and we want to experience what it's like to be parents without nurses and doctors and machines. We want to hold her without a time limit. We want to change her diapers and bathe her ourselves. We just really feel ready to have our girl home with us and to start our new lives as parents. We just have to wait until she's ready for that, too.

The past month has been so difficult, and I keep trying to find reasons or lessons in what's going on. With Gord's leukemia and Sophie's early entry into the world, it's been made crystal clear that we have to make every moment count. I guess all of this time spent waiting and watching her grow just makes us more aware of how every single moment of our time with her is magical. I just want to write it down so we remember this when she's screaming in the grocery store, or when she has a keg party in our house when we're away on vacation.

Dad's First Post

Hello all, this is my first post as you can tell by the title. Well my wonderful girl is having a great night. She is spending the night with her (mom&dad's) favourite nurse Marion. Sophie got to come out for some much needed kangaroo care. I let Lorraine cuddle her first, just cause Sophie asked for her. Looking at my wife and daughter together instantly melts my heart. The way Sophie 'sinks' into her mom's chest, you can tell she needs her momma. When she rests on her mom, I can see her numbers reflect her happiness. She had no 'spells' while sleeping.

Finally it was my turn. Lorraine had to restock Sophie's milk supply. She definitely didn't want to leave her mom and started to cry a little. She shifted and rustled until she was comfortable. Then for about 3 minutes she was wide awake looking around. She could hear all the alarms and bells going off and darted her eyes to the right. She is so smart, I can tell she hears things the way I do. In the next instant she was asleep. She tucked her hand under her head and dozed off to sleep. This was my second time doing kangaroo care with her so I really enjoyed it.

Baby in a Bucket

I think this is my favourite picture. Sophie got her first bath in a "tub" (which was more like a 2L ice cream container) and she loved it. They don't normally do this, but her nurse wanted us to get a cute photo...I think we succeeded.

Sophie is still doing really well with her breathing. She still has short apneas, and her oxygen levels go down, but she can bring herself back up fairly quickly. Sometimes she needs to be shaken to get her to wake up and breathe, but not as often as before. Her feeds are going great and she is eating 10.5ML every 2 hours. They think she may have a reflux problem, so they're giving her medication to help her move it all along.

She is really such a light for everyone, and we are constantly amazed at all of the smiles that she brings from people. Even people we have never met have left comments on her video for her and are cheering her on. Thank you so much everyone.

Still shining

The past few days have had us thanking our lucky stars for our beautiful girl's continued growth and good health.



We've been spending a lot of time doing Kangaroo care, where we get skin to skin contact. She has been spending a few hours zipped into mom or dad's shirt most visits this week.



Yesterday, they tried her off of her CPAP, with only little oxygen prongs in her nose. We got to see all of her beautiful face, and she was so alert and happy. She did really well breathing on her own, and we are hoping that she can stay off of the CPAP from now on. She's little, but really strong, and she keeps surprising everyone with her capabilities.



She has been consistently gaining 30 or so grams every 2 days or so. We were amazed last night to see her get on the scale and have 859gms come up! She gained 54 grams in the past 2 days. She keeps getting bigger and is looking more and more baby-like every day. Her weight gain has revealed big cheeks and a cute little pouty chin that we think looks like Kie's dad's.





After her time on the scale, I got to hold her in my arms. She tried on the little hat that her Grandma made, and she just looked so cute staring up at me. Her eyes are so big, and when she was all swaddled up she reminded me of the tiny, tiny baby with the big dark eyes who stared out at me before being rushed away when she was born. It's hard to believe that over a month has gone by since then. We are so grateful that this amazing person has chosen us to be her parents.



Holding her in my arms makes me want her home even more. I'm not sure when she will make the move to the hospital in St. Catharines. When we first met with the doctor, he told us 6 weeks...it has been 5. It seemed impossible then, but she seems to be meeting all of the milestones they set out for her. It seems like time has gone so fast even though sometimes it feels like forever. We can't imagine our lives without her. I can't wait to have her home and cuddle her whenever we want.

On we go!

Hey everybody!

Sophie is still doing so great, we couldn't be happier with her progress. She is showing us all that she is a mighty force in a tiny package.



She's growing really fast now that they are adding fortifier to her milk. She gets weighed every other night, and she has gone from 716 to 747 to 773gms (1lb 11oz) in the past week! She was having some trouble with apnea again, but she seems to do it when she is uncomfortable. When they moved her feeding tube from her mouth to her nose, she did a lot better and now she very rarely has to be helped to breathe again. She continues to amaze us with her strength and courage.

Halloween in the NICU was pretty quiet, but our girl made a stir with her first Halloween costume. Of course, we forgot the camera on this most important day, so we only have some poloroids the nurses took. (We are going to try to sneak her hat back on so that we can get some better pics soon!)


Here is a pic of her hat....everybody loved it and it looked so cute on her little head.


Yesterday we had a great visit. Kie got to change her diaper and give her a little sponge bath. When she was all cleaned up, she spent over an hour in his arms, and they both loved it. She settled right in and fell asleep with her soother. He almost fell asleep, too. I love to see the look on his face when he looks at our girl. We both love her so much.



We're so glad that she is doing so well. My brother Gord was diagnosed with ALL (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia) last week, which came as a complete shock. It has been hard to deal with this news AND to take care of our Sophie while still keeping up with our day to day lives. Having Sophie has made it easier for us to be strong and to help support Gord through this. She has shown us that strength of spirit overrules the physical, and to enjoy and be grateful for every single minute of every day. Please think some good thoughts for Gord, who is starting chemo this week.

Still riding smooth, baby!

Don't you just want to eat those tiny toes? Her big toe is smaller than a pea.

Sophie is still doing great on her CPAP. She is still having little episodes where she doesn't breathe, but they are not as scary and crazy as they were before. I got to hold her again tonight, and it still feels as amazing as the first time. She is just an amazing girl and we are so proud of how well she is doing. She is showing everyone that a strong spirit can overcome any physical difficulty. We learn so much from her everyday.



Thanks so much everybody for posting your comments. Kie, Sophie and I have been really moved and encouraged by all your positive messages and support! We will save them all and put them in Sophie's baby book so she can see how many people were interested in her story.

A ray of sunshine

Hi everyone

With some recent bad news that has knocked the wind out of my family, it turns out our Sophie sunshine is working her magic bringing light to a pretty dark place. We are so glad to have her and she is doing really really well.

In our doctor's meeting, the doc suggested that Sophie's ventilator may be causing her to stop breathing. Long story short, her little trachea is still kinda soft, so they were thinking she may be wiggling and moving the ventilator tube out of place. He suggested that they very carefully try to extubate her and see how she does with just some CPAP support (it's a tube under her nose that blows air constantly to help her breathe). She was extubated on Friday at 2pm, and has done amazing since. She has stopped having her "spells" where she doesn't breathe and needs to be assisted with the bag. She still has apneas, but they are little and she seems to be getting herself out of them. We are so incredibly proud and in awe of how much life and strength there is in this little girl. She inspires me to be strong every day.

Another bright spot is that I got to change her diaper and hold her against my skin for the first time. This is called "kangaroo care" - I literally zipped her up into the front of my hoodie against my skin and we snuggled for an hour and a half. I felt like the Sophie shaped hole that was missing from my heart had finally been filled. It was the most peaceful and satisfying time I have spent with her.

She continues to grow, and gain weight and breathe on her own. We can't ask for better. We've been told many times that having a preemie in the NICU is like being on a rollercoaster. Right now we are enjoying a smooth ride...hoping it lasts much longer.

out of the box

We finally got to hold our girl while she was being weighed last night. Our hearts just about burst when we put out our hands and cradled her. She settled right down in our hands, and looked around with those big dark eyes. She knew that she was safe being held for the first time by mommy and daddy. Kie couldn't resist giving her a kiss on the head and I was just in awe of the gigantic feeling in my heart when she was in my hands. (the nurse Dana took this pic for us...) Sophie was doing better, having less "dips" where she doesn't breathe, and less "De-sats" where her oxygen level goes down. Nurse Dana put her on her belly in her big girl bed and snuggled her in tight with a new hat and her soother. She fell asleep and slept soundly for 2 hours. She just loved it.

breathe, baby, breathe!

We spent the afternoon with Sophie, who was making her nurse (Loretta) run for her money today. She has spells where she stops breathing and her chest wall clamps down, so not even the ventilator can get air into her lungs. She did it quite a few times this morning, and Loretta let us know that she alerted the docs to this behaviour. When we spoke to one of the doctors, he let us know that Sophie didn't have an infection, and it didn't seem like she had something wrong with her brain that would cause her lungs to stop working. He put her on a medication to dry out her lungs from any residual yuck that was in there and a medication that would help her to keep her feeds down so she doesn't breathe in any spit up. We requested an appointment to meet with her doctor before the end of the week.

Other than that, she was looking great! Last night she weighed in at 700gm, which they thought was quite a big jump from her previous weight, and she was moved into a different isolette - they call it her big girl bed. (Sorry no pics --I went to take a picture today and realized I left my camera at home.) She was making the cutest faces and at the end of our visit she opened her eyes wide to look at Kie and me...they tell us that she can only see shadows but when those eyes lock with mine I can feel it. She sees us. I know it.

October 21, 2007

The doctors warned us it would be a roller coaster ride, and now I understand what they meant. Sophie is still doing OK, but she continues to need the ventilator to breathe and is having apneas (short periods where she doesn't breathe and her heart rate and oxygen level goes down). Today during our visit, the nurse suctioned her lungs and they got a lot of yuck out of there. We're hoping that once that stuff is all cleared out she will do better and can start to breathe on her own.

She is being fed mom's milk (which is the one thing I feel like I can do to help her) every 2 hours. They have her on a continuous drip of milk to her stomach through a feeding tube in her nose and she gets 2ml of milk over the course of an hour. She is tolerating her feedings so that's a good sign. She is gaining weight and now weighs 630gm. She looks really good and pink....just soooo tiny.

The nurses tell us she is really feisty. Yesterday she wiggled herself out of her diaper, and kicked it over the edge of her bedding. She wiggles a lot and opens her eyes for us when we visit. She makes us so happy, and we love her so much.

Hi Everyone!

We've been so busy in the past 17 days, travelling and sleeping and making calls to the NICU at McMaster. We want to thank ALL of you for your amazing support and interest and love for our beautiful Sophie. I'm gonna try to keep you all updated on what's happening with our girl and how we are all doing during this scary and wonderful and crazy time we are having.