Update on the Howell Family

Just wanted to write a quick update on the newly expanded Howell family! We are all doing well. I came home from the hospital on Sunday morning, and I have to follow up with my doctor on Wednesday to ensure that my blood pressure continues to stay within an acceptable range. At this point, our hope is that I don't have to take any high blood pressure medication. I feel much better than I did last week, and Hannah is doing well too! :) In fact, she slept from 10:30 p.m. - 5:30 a.m. last night (what more can you ask for)! Lydia is a great big sister, and we are looking forward to adjusting to having a family of four! Thank you all for your generosity, prayers, and support over the past two months. God has certainly protected our family and surrounded us with wonderful family and friends like you! Thanks again!

Update on Emily & More Pictures

I wanted to share a few more photos of Hannah and her big sister.
Everyone is doing well and we were able to "Check Out" from SMMC on Tuesday. A couple of great days at home, but Emily had to come back to SMMC and be re-admitted due to similar symptoms that she had with her bout with eclampsia after Lydia's birth. Best news is that there were no seizures this time around - Emily and I started to notice the symptoms before everything got out of hand. Interestly enough, both times the symptoms started in earnest on day 6 after the birth. Emily is doing really well and we hope to have her sent home by Sunday.

More pictures

Hope everyone is doing well.

Love - Brian, Emily, Lydia and Hannah!

Pictures anyone?

Good morning. Yesterday was a really great day for the Howell's even though the delivery did not go as "planned". Just another reminder that God knew how all of this would work out for us. As usual, the nurses and doctors at SMMC have been amazing in their skill, knowledge and personal touch.

Emily is feeling pretty good this morning despite the surgery and she has even started to eat solid foods. The meds will be reduced today so that might be her next challenge.

Maybe one day I'll figure out how to post photos to this blog, but until then, here is a Kodak Photo Gallery link to the pictures. Hope this works!

Pictures of Hannah

Hannah Elisabeth Arrives!

Hannah arrived at 11:15 AM on April 11th -
7 lbs / 11 oz
20 in long
dark hair! ;-)

Mom and baby are doing well. Emily is recovering from a c-section, but otherwise doing well. Thanks for everyone's prayers and help during this time.

Not a bad 30th Birthday Present! ;-)

The Countdown is On!

I had my last non-stress test this morning. It went well - the baby didn't have nearly as many heartbeat accelerations as usual, but the nurse wasn't concerned. She told me that the baby just doesn't have any room to move around anymore (which I was definitely aware of). :) I can't wait to get this show on the road!

And I had another prayer request:
Pray that the baby comes naturally and doesn't require a C-section. Although Brian and I are aware of the possibility of a C-section, that would not be my first preference.

We will let you all know what happens tomorrow! Thanks again for your prayers and support!

Test Results - Final!

I just wanted to post a quick update to let everyone know that I got my test results back earlier this afternoon. My hemoglobin level is 10.4, which is slightly down from last week but still within an acceptable range with my doctor. Also, my liver enzyme continues to drop. Today, my liver enzyme level was 14 - the lowest it has ever been! Yeah!

The results of my 24-hour urine analysis were a little bit higher than they have been before. My protein level is 537 so it is probably good that we are going to have the baby on Friday as it appears that my pre-eclampsia may be escalating. I have also had some minor swelling in my face and my legs - both of which my doctor is aware of. So, we are still set to go to the hospital on Thursday night to get this show on the road!

A couple of prayer requests:

(1) That the baby's lungs are fully developed and that the baby would not require any time in the NICU
(2) That my signs of pre-eclampsia disappear once the baby is delivered and that I don't have any complications post-delivery

We are almost at the end of this journey, and we cannot thank each and every one of you enough. Your thoughts and prayers have sustained us! Thank you again for everything!

Update on Baby Howell Arrival!

I wanted to share with everyone about my doctor's appointment today. I had my non-stress test first which went very well. The baby's ticker tape, as I call it, which basically records the baby's heartbeat and any uterine activity that I am having, looked like the Rocky Mountains. That basically means that the baby was having a lot of large heartbeat accelerations which continues to be a great sign!

After that, I had my blood work drawn and turned in my 24-hour urine analysis (my last one before the baby is born)! Yeah! After my blood work, I had my appointment with my doctor. I had a list of questions for her, as usual. She confirmed that the baby was head down, which was a relief to me. She also couldn't tell us when I would likely be released from the hospital as she said that it would likely depend on any symptoms that I develop after the baby is born. Since post-eclampsia is rare, she said that it will depend in large part of my identification of symptoms that seem odd to me (i.e., swelling, headaches, etc.). They will do another 24-hour urine analysis while I am in the hospital and will be drawing blood work, but as for what will happen, it is really up in the air right now!

Also, we are still scheduled to go into Shawnee Mission Medical Center on Thursday night at 7:00 p.m. so that they can start my first round of medication. My doctor is actually on call on Thursday night so she should be around the hospital. They will start the pitocin on Friday morning and hopefully, we will have a baby by Friday evening if all goes well! :)

I will post another blog on Wednesday once I get my blood work and protein results and most likely another short blog after my last non-stress test on Thursday. Then, we will post another blog on Friday once the baby arrives! :) So stay posted - we are almost there! Thank you again for all of your thoughts and prayers! We so appreciate everything that you have done for us!

Non-Stress Test Success

This morning, the baby was much more cooperative during my non-stress test. The nurse was able to immediately find the heartbeat and the baby was back to normal. The baby had a ton of accelerations (which is a very positive sign) so we are hopeful that the baby has re-positioned itself once again. The nurse was again convinced that the baby was a girl - I guess that we only have a few more days until we find out! :) I will post more on Monday after my next doctor's appointment - thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers! God is definitely good!

Positive Test Results - Again!

Just wanted to post a quick update to let everyone know about my test results from my blood work on Monday. My liver enzyme level continues to decrease. Today, it was down to 16 (from 21 last week). Also, my hemoglobin level continues to stay high - which is very good. My hemoglobin level is 10.8 - we would like it to stay that high throughout delivery next week.

I have a non-stress test scheduled for tomorrow and hopefully the baby will be much more cooperative than it was on Monday! :) Assuming that the non-stress test goes well tomorrow, we should still be on for delivery next Friday! I will post more later!