The beginning

So, here we go...I am so not a writer, but Sean and I thought this would be a good way to keep everyone in the loop with Hadley's progress. We have also found great benefit and comfort in many other blogs we have discovered dealing with Spina Bifida. You can read all the articles and definitions, but reading about someone else's personal experiences has helped a great deal.

I will briefly start at the beginning to catch everyone up to speed. We were in our "gender" ultrasound (19 weeks) where the ultrasound tech told us we were having a girl! (our 2nd!) and then got oddly quiet and took a ton of pictures of the brain and then told us we should go to the waiting room. And we waited for a long time. Next thing we knew we were in back in the ultrasound room and in walks a Dr. who we have never met and says he needs to double check on some things. He performs the ultrasound again and tells us our baby has a birth defect called Spina Bifida. Oh and by the way she also has Chiari Malformation II. We need to do an amnio and I can do it right now or you guys go have lunch and think it over and call me. Yeah, that was not a good day. Needless to say the amnio was performed and he was right on the money on all accounts.

Fast forward to April 23rd. Hadley's Birthday! It was a very stressful day to say the least. The plan was that she would be delivered via c-section and then would be taken to NICU to check her out and within the hour be transported to Children's Hospital to their NICU where the neurosurgeon would do his eval and then schedule the closure surgery. Thankfully everything went according to plan. But still very stressful and very emotional. Both my girls were delivered c-section so at least I had experience with that. With Hadley it seemed there were about 20 more people in the room she was taken and they had to cover the opening along with giving her oxygen.

They brought her over to me but she was on her belly and I was not even close. But I did see her! They left and Sean went with and I was taken to recovery. By myself. Yes, that is my pity party. If I could ever offer advice on anyone preparing for this it would be to insist that someone else be allowed back to the recovery room besides the husband. Here I was by myself, just had a baby, and Sean was with the baby and I was just laying there. Luckily Sean and Hadley were brought down to me before they left for Childrens.

So Hadley and Sean went to Children's and they determined that her closure surgery would be at 7am the next morning. It was about 3 or 4 pm at this point. Sean spent the night taking family back and forth to Hadley and me. I was so thankful we were right across the street.

Hadley's surgery was the next day and they also let me "out" for a few very painful hours to go across the street to see her.

This was just after the surgery and she did really good in the NICU.

This was the first day I got to actually hold her, on a pillow. She was 3 days old.

We were there for a total of 9 days. No shunt when we left but her head was borderline the whole time.

Her first Wagon ride! 9 days old!

She had her shunt placed a little over a week later and then we were able to be home and enjoy the newborn stage. If you know us you know our first child, Rylee did not sleep a wink and at 4 now it is still questionable. Hadley on the other hand was sleeping through the night at 8 weeks. I was actually keeping her up because that is what I was used to and suddenly I realized she wants to sleep. So pretty much from 8 weeks bedtime is a firm 7pm and wake up is 6-7ish. I cannot complain!