11 days?

Today has been a good day. Other than those fleeting moments of worry and wonder, I woke up surprisingly overwhelmed with a confident peace that the Lord was taking care of things. And once again, He has.

As you may know, we, along with the doctors, have set a goal of Nov. 16 for Ella's birthday. Earlier this week, I asked Dr. Thorp if Nov. 15 came around, and things were still good, then what? He said if I made it to next week, we would revisit that question then. We know that the docs. know best, and we don't want to push too far, but we (J especially) don't want to short ourselves or our daughter on time. Again, we are praying every day for more and more time, as that will be less time she has to be in the hospital. It's funny how much my point of view has changed lately. I feel so blessed with each passing day, and just thank our Father above that I am still here. My nurse and I were discussing today just how sick I was when I came here (AND HAD NO IDEA), and as I've said before both of my docs. have said they both thought I would have delivered by now. They weighed me the other day, and I have lost 21 pounds since I have been here. Just fluid. I am truly, truly amazed at how far I have come, and I shudder to think of what could have happened had I not been transferred from Dothan that night. Tomorrow will be one month exactly. The days do seem to be passing faster, but I guess it's because my days are full of lots of sleeping. I can tell my poor mother is wearing down, as HER days are filled with crossword puzzles, reading, and walks through the courtyard. I can not imagine being here without her.

The itching is MUCH better, so thanks for all the prayers about that. My bp is still kind of all over the place, but just not as high as it was before. They are discussing changing my meds a little, and that is scary because I never know how my system will take even a minor adjustment in medication. Please be in prayer about that. I am also praying that Ella will arrive healthy and strong, and that the docs. will be amazed at how well she is. Ultimately, I will say again, we realize she is in the Lord's hands, and He loves her more than we do. I really never knew you could love someone so much when you haven't even met them!

Dr. Thorp just came in and said my strips (where they monitor her heartbeat three times a day for an hour) looked better today than he has seen them, and that today is the first day in several weeks that the bloodflow through the umbilical cord was not absent, which is good. Though my fluid was a little lower yesterday, it was back up today, and everything is looking great. She's been moving a lot, which he says is the most important indication of how things are going. Before he left my room, he said "Nov. 16, right?" I just laughed and told him we would talk about that next week. He said he is usually pushing patients to go further, not the other way around. He said he has never had a patient push him before. Well, we just believe God is doing amazing things every day, and we have much faith that He will continue to work miracles. We give Him the glory in everything, and we continue to thank you for your support and your prayers. As one of my favorite (resident) docs. said to me the other day, "It ain't as long as it has been..." This will all be over soon, and I pray that one day Ella can use this story to speak of God's amazing love and faithfulness. I know Jason and I will. We will never be the same, and really I am excited about how the Lord will use our story for His kingdom. We will see...