1,000 words

Friday morning

Sarah, you are so cute this morning! Happy third day of Hannukah! Happy 9 week birthday (yesterday)! And happy 34 weeks if you were still inside the momma!

I held her again this morning, and I know I said it before, but it's such a great way to start my day. Almost better than Starbucks. I kid! It's way better than Starbucks! (Almost....)

Anyway, I was so excited to hold her, I forgot to ask about her weight. But she is doing great. She had another explosive, four diaper, change-the-bed episode this morning. What a big girl, but not very ladylike......

Yesterday was Erika's father's yarzeit, and I miss him very much (Erika does too!). I know he'd be so proud of little Sarah, and that he is watching over her now. Mark was a great dad, and I hope I can do as well with Sarah as he did with Erika. And Michael and Joe, too.

Quick Thursday Report

I am happy to report that Sarah gained full 1 ounce last night. Her weight is approximately 960 grams (2lbs 2 ounces). The countdown is on to that 1000 gram milestone! Keep up the good work young lady. We are so proud of you.

Humpday lunch report

Here is Sarah's first Hannukah gift, an electric menorah. It's pretty, just like you, little princess.

Sarah's halfway through the time in her cast (I think). She's scheduled to have it removed on December 10, which can't come fast enough! You go, girl.

Last night, the doctor removed a portion of Sarah's cast, which was covering her belly. She's already reaping the benefits, as she's getting tummy time again. She loves it so much, and it makes me so happy when she's comfortable.

Wednesday morning snuggle report

So we decided that Sarah needed to be held a little more often now that she's getting bigger. More human contact is good for her, and good for us.

I'm the lucky one that now gets to get up even earlier (at 5 a.m. on the dot, no more snoozing until 5:15), leave the house by 5:30, arrive at the hospital at 5:45, and hold baby Sarah from 5:50 until 6:30.

I LOVE IT!

She's so cute and so sweet and so snuggly. I just love holding her, and would do it all day (or until my arms fell off), if I didn't have to leave. I think we're going to have to get Sarah a sibling real quick because I don't think I want to share her with mom anymore. I even stole mommy's snuggle time yesterday evening, too!

Here's a map showing where everyone is

To use the map, click on it once, and then you can zoom in and pan around the map to identify where everyone is. Let's continue to populate the map people. If you want to be included, please click on the link at the right "Where in the World Are You???" and we will update the map. Thanks for all the support!!!

Tuesday morning

So Sarah was a little fussy last night, and Nurse Rochelle couldn't figure out was wrong. There wasn't a dirty diaper (Rochelle knows to check there first). After a little while, she realize that Sarah just wanted to be held. So, from 2-4 a.m., Sarah got some tummy time in Nurse Rochelle's arms. It calmed her down immediately, and she slept peacefully the entire two hours!

Sarah gained 5 grams last night, which is good. We were expecting a possible decrease because on Sunday night she gained 80 grams, and when the gain is so big, sometimes all the weight doesn't stick. So a 5 gram increase is great. But really, with the cast on, and all the molestick protecting Sarah's skin, it's really hard to judge her weight at all. One piece of padding under the cast could weigh a few grams, and one piece taken away could cause a weight loss. So, what I'm saying is, I can't weight to get the darned cast off!

Have a great Tuesday.

Speaking of Miracles...

On this, the eve of Sarah Chaya's first Chanukah, we are so grateful for the miracle that baby Sarah is, so I felt it befitting to share the story of the great miracle of Chanukah...

The story of Chanukkah begins in the reign of Alexander the Great. Alexander conquered Syria, Egypt and Palestine, but allowed the lands under his control to continue observing their own religions and retain a certain degree of autonomy. Under this relatively benevolent rule, many Jews assimilated much of Hellenistic culture, adopting the language, the customs and the dress of the Greeks, in much the same way that Jews in America today blend into the secular American society.

More than a century later, a successor of Alexander, Antiochus IV was in control of the region. He began to oppress the Jews severely, placing a Hellenistic priest in the Temple, massacring Jews, prohibiting the practice of the Jewish religion, and desecrating the Temple by requiring the sacrifice of pigs (a non-kosher animal) on the altar. Two groups opposed Antiochus: a basically nationalistic group led by Mattathias the Hasmonean and his son Judah Maccabee, and a religious traditionalist group known as the Chasidim, the forerunners of the Pharisees (no direct connection to the modern movement known as Chasidism). They joined forces in a revolt against both the assimilation of the Hellenistic Jews and oppression by the Seleucid Greek government. The revolution succeeded and the Temple was rededicated.

According to tradition as recorded in the Talmud, at the time of the re-dedication, there was very little oil left that had not been defiled by the Greeks. Oil was needed for the menorah (candelabrum) in the Temple, which was supposed to burn throughout the night every night. There was only enough oil to burn for one day, yet miraculously, it burned for eight days, the time needed to prepare a fresh supply of oil for the menorah. An eight day festival was declared to commemorate this miracle. (from jewfaqs.org).

This should be the first of 120 years of Chanukah's that Sarah gets to celebrate! While she can not have candles in the ICU, we bought Sarah her first Chanukah gift, an electric menorah, that we will light with her every night.

Monday lunch

Here's Sarah sleeping, sucking on her pacifier, with my hand protecting her

Sarah showing what a big girl she is and how

she can hold her pacifier all by herself.

Sarah is now eating 22 mL each time. That's a lot of milk, little girl! Keep it up.

Monday morning report

Sarah continues to grow every day. She's over 1200 grams today, but you have to subtract about 260 grams for her cast. She's been gaining consistently.

She was very fussy this morning, and a poopie diaper was the culprit. A quick change made her happy again and she went right back to sleep.