Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.
-Joshua 1:9
Tim and I knew that we would have tough days ahead when we brought Hayden home but never did we imagine it would be this hard. It has been awhile since my last post as time seems to slip away and the days and nights tend to run together. With Tim back at work, it has been a true struggle for us both.
Coming home with any newborn baby is challenging as you settle in and begin to establish a routine. You begin to learn their feeding cues and what makes them cry and you figure out how to console them through the sleepless nights. Although Hayden is almost 6 weeks old, 3 of those weeks were spent at the hospital in the NICU. So our transition home has been a lot more challenging as we adjust to meet her medical needs and our days continue to be filled with appointments, therapies, and specialists. Just in the past two weeks she has had 8 follow-up appointments with her Pediatrician, Plastic Surgeon, Cardiologist, Nephrologist, Ophthalmologist, Geneticist, Pediatric Surgeon, and Audiologist.
It is the little acts of kindness like an inspirational card in the mail, a meal left at our doorstep or just a note that everyone is praying for us that makes our hardships a little easier.Don't get me wrong, there are days that we both get frustrated, have lost faith, and have felt isolated and discouraged. But through faith, continuous prayers and outpouring support we continue to get strength even on the hardest days.
I know this is just the start of our journey and that God will never give Tim and I more than we can handle. We continue to praise God each and everyday for blessing us with such a miracle baby. With all of the odds stacked against her, Hayden will be 6 weeks on Wednesday. Although she has a lot of challenges and a tough road ahead, she continues to amaze us all and we have faith that everything WILL soon get better and that this too shall pass.
Coming home with any newborn baby is challenging as you settle in and begin to establish a routine. You begin to learn their feeding cues and what makes them cry and you figure out how to console them through the sleepless nights. Although Hayden is almost 6 weeks old, 3 of those weeks were spent at the hospital in the NICU. So our transition home has been a lot more challenging as we adjust to meet her medical needs and our days continue to be filled with appointments, therapies, and specialists. Just in the past two weeks she has had 8 follow-up appointments with her Pediatrician, Plastic Surgeon, Cardiologist, Nephrologist, Ophthalmologist, Geneticist, Pediatric Surgeon, and Audiologist. 
It is the little acts of kindness like an inspirational card in the mail, a meal left at our doorstep or just a note that everyone is praying for us that makes our hardships a little easier.Don't get me wrong, there are days that we both get frustrated, have lost faith, and have felt isolated and discouraged. But through faith, continuous prayers and outpouring support we continue to get strength even on the hardest days. I know this is just the start of our journey and that God will never give Tim and I more than we can handle. We continue to praise God each and everyday for blessing us with such a miracle baby. With all of the odds stacked against her, Hayden will be 6 weeks on Wednesday. Although she has a lot of challenges and a tough road ahead, she continues to amaze us all and we have faith that everything WILL soon get better and that this too shall pass.
You and Tim are both strong and courageous and are amazing parents. Just always remember you have a lot of love and support from family and friends and can ask for help whenever you need it. And make time for you individually and as a couple. We love you!
ReplyDeleteThank you Mom! We are grateful for you and Dad's help and for the support of all of our family and friends. We couldn't do it without you! Love you
DeleteThank you for sharing your burdens. It is so important that you do that so that we can pray specifically and stand in the gap when you are too tired to pray or have just run out of words. You are both amazing and I am very sure that God has blessings more abundant than you can even imagine. Even when we can't be .. or aren't faithful, He is... strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow..
ReplyDeleteThank you Kathi! I know at times it is easier said than done but we are grateful for your prayers and constant support.
Delete