April 06 Update

Mommy and Daddy's foreheads feed baby Jayna!

Sound asleep....

As some of you may know, we were waiting to hear the results of Jayna's repeat brain ultrasound yesterday. Good news - the brain bleed has not grown, and is showing some resolution! Praise the Lord! Jayna is still on O2 at varying levels, and everyone is still in the dark as to the cause of that - though the prevailing theory is that she's still getting over a cold. Apart from that, she is growing as she should. She is still under 3lbs, but should have that benchmark broken by week's end if she keeps gaining weight at the rate she has been.

As a family we are all looking forward to the day when we can get back into some semblance of a workable routine. Housework, homeschooling, groceries - all of these things are kind of in throw together mode right now as we've added daily rides to and from hospital and recovery time for Mommy, who I'm afraid feels her only raison d'être at this moment is to pump, eat and sleep. She has been staying positive though and with a little help from the rest of us is allowing herself the time she needs to regain her strength. Life will be changing all over again once Jayna begins breastfeeding (right now, she's still only being tube fed), and then again when we finally get the little pink bundle home to her family!

On a different note, I want to convey our thanks to all who have helped us in some way over the past 4 weeks, and who continue to help by way of prayer, encouraging notes and other material things. We received dinner every day between March 11-31 as well as frozen meals that we've been able to pull out in a pinch since then. We've been given grocery gift cards, monetary gifts from church, friends, and family, restaurant gift cards from family, baby clothes, crib and other items in such a shower of blessing that all I can do is shake my head. People have come by to help us clean our house, bless the kids with McDonald's lunch and visits from family and friends, and a fresh supply of deadly (ouch, my foot!) lego to keep them occupied, and just to say hi, and this has all been greatly appreciated. We do intend to do up individual thank-you's for everyone, but we'd like to also give this sort of 'blanket-thanks' to you all! God bless each one of you.

The view out our window on April 06

Right now as I look out my window at the blizzard taking place outside (cue the laughter from all you Arctic dwellers), it's hard to believe that gardening season is just around the corner. Not that any of us here have a green thumb, I'd say muddy-brown at best, but we do intend to do our best to stick something in the ground this year that we might be able to dig up later on and eat. It offsets ever so slightly the cost of feeding the ravenous teenagers in our midst. But for now I just sit and watch the snow fall.

God is good!