One Month Old!

May 20
Adelyn is declared fever free! We continue to wait for lab results (which take 48 hours to culture) to see whether she has an infection.

Genetic test results came back normal, which is great news!

That morning, Adelyn had three apneic episodes (brief periods when she stops breathing) while awake. She recovers without much intervention (aside from repositioning and blowing in her face), but has scared Mom (who was bedside) and nurses alike.

Through the afternoon, doctors look for reasons for her apnea. Adelyn has a chest x-ray, a head ultrasound, and a series of x-rays to follow the path of her shunt, all of which come back normal. This means her apnea is not being caused by an issue with her lungs, a problem with her heart repair, or a mechanical failure with her shunt.

May 21
Lab results come back showing that Adelyn does not have an infection! The last of her stitches from her heart surgery are removed.

However, Adelyn's discharge from the hospital is put on hold for at least five days as doctors continue to explore possible causes for the previous days' apnea. Late Monday night her head was covered with 25 censors and wrapped in gauze as neurology watches her through a camera and evaluates her brain activity during a seizure study. After 12 hours the results are inconclusive, so they decide to continue monitoring Adelyn for a full 48 hours.

May 22
The seizure study ends, and doctors conclude it's unlikely Adelyn's is having seizures. Her head is unwrapped.

Acid reflux becomes the main suspect in the hunt for a cause of the apnea. Though she is already being treated for reflux, she is prescribed an additional medicine and nurses begin "venting" her more frequently (an pediatric critical care method of burping an infant by pulling air out of the stomach through the feeding tube).

May 23
Thursday morning Adelyn has another apnea episode where her oxygen levels dropped all the way to 30%. She has quite an audience for this performance, as the Chapman grands and Chleboun family were visiting and Adelyn's team of doctors (who were in the middle of "rounds" where they make a daily visit to see and discuss each patient's care) were all at her bedside. Later in the day she had another apnea event where she desaturated dramatically again. James and Laura are thankful doctors were able to observe Adelyn during one of these, and also grateful Adelyn recovers from both without intervention.

Adelyn's discharge clock is reset and her release date is pushed back another five to seven days. James and Laura are disappointed that her homecoming keeps getting delayed, but they are grateful to be in medical care rather than at home during these frightening moments when their daughter stops breathing.

The seizure study head gear goes back on. Neurology hopes to be able to catch one of Adelyn's more serious episodes while closely monitoring her.

May 25
Laughably, Adelyn does not perform her tricks for neurology. Nevertheless, they once again conclude with a fair amount of confidence that she is not having seizures. Doctors agree gastro-intestinal issues are the most likely cause for her apnea.

May 26
Adelyn is a month old! Happy four weeks of life, sweet baby girl.

James, Laura, and all of Adelyn's nurses and therapists continue to help her work towards feeding and growth goals. Adelyn is slowly gaining weight and strength. Doctors say they will revisit her discharge after the long weekend.

Now
Please pray:
1. Praise God that Adelyn's fever has resolved and that she is infection free!
2. Praise God that her incisions have all healed!
3. Praise God that she is gaining weight and strength!
4. That the cause for her apnea will be discovered and properly addressed to mitigate future events so she can go home safely.
5. That her acid reflux meds would treat her discomfort and that she would learn to take breastmilk from a bottle and then learn to breastfeed.
6. That discharge will become a reality for Adelyn soon, and that James and Laura would be competent and feel confident in all aspects of their daughter's care.
7. For God's provision in all the Rosenbergs' needs.

Help!
We are so blessed by the ways many of you have moved toward us during such a difficult time for our family. As Adelyn's time in the hospital extends, we are more and more grateful for your continued help. Your prayers, meals, encouragement and gifts bless us so much. Thank you!

As before, if you are local to Durham, NC, you might like to participate in the MEAL TRAIN that Laura's sister has set up for our family. Not having to worry about cooking meals has eased the stress in our daily schedule. We also have a GIFT REGISTRY for Adelyn. And finally, if you would like to contribute toward Adelyn's medical expenses tax-free, please get in touch and we'll provide you with the necessary information to do that.

Our Little Fighter

Adelyn is now three weeks old! She is such a little fighter. Praise God for how He's been sustaining our sweet baby girl. Here is an update from the past week.

May 14
The neurosurgeon who placed Adelyn's shunt said "I couldn't ask for anything better. This is her best case scenario," while reviewing the newest MRI images of her brain. Her stitches were removed.

After waiting a week for a spot to open up in an over-crowded NICU, Adelyn was instead moved to a pediatric step down unit. Though James and Laura were thrilled that Adelyn was doing well enough to no longer need intensive care, the change to a transitional floor was a hard one.

May 15
We continue to work toward Adelyn's feeding and growth goals with speech, lactation, dietician, occupational, and physical therapists (in addition to the nursing staff).

May 16
The nursing staff in the step down unit begin to equip us to take over Adelyn's care with the goal of bringing her home on Monday! Training in how to operate, replace, clean, etc. her feeding tube is the most challenging part, but with a vision of soon being together as a family of four, we eagerly worked toward the necessary skills. We also got busy creating a nursery of sorts for our daughter's sooner-than-anticipated discharge from the hospital. Adelyn passes a car seat test (meaning she can safely ride in a normal infant car seat).

May 19
Adelyn turns three weeks old! Though we had been preparing to bring Adelyn home on Monday, she spiked a fever on Sunday morning, and plans for her discharge were placed on hold.

Now
Please pray:
1. That Adelyn will quickly recover from her fever and doctors will be able to identify the cause. 
2. That her brain will continue to recover and grow to a healthy state.
3. That her heart surgery incision site would heal completely.
4. That she will be able to digest her meals well, gain weight and meet growth goals, as well as learn to bottle and then breastfeed. May the antacid meds help her feel more comfortable.
5. That James and Laura would be competent and feel confident in all aspects of Adelyn's care.
6. For Owen, as he prepares for yet another big transition in welcoming his baby sister home.
7. For God's provision in all the Rosenbergs' needs.

Help!
Again, please do not underestimate the power of your prayers. The time each of you spend in prayer with us is so valuable! Thank you! Thank you too for the meals, cards, and gifts. So many of you have already helped in significant ways and blessed our family with your generosity! We're grateful.

If you would like to help in other ways, here are three further ideas.

One: If you are local to Durham, NC, you might like to participate in the MEAL TRAIN Laura's sister has set up for our family. Not having to worry about cooking meals every night has been such a relief.

Two: We have made a GIFT REGISTRY for Adelyn. As her hospital discharge nears, we are busy trying to collect all the baby paraphernalia that will help her homecoming feel celebratory! On this registry there is also an opportunity to make a financial gift that will be used toward Adelyn's medical expenses.

Three: If you would like to make a tax-free contribution toward Adelyn's medical expenses, please get in touch and we'll provide you with information about how you can do that.

XOXO

Adelyn Gray

April 28th

Welcome, Adelyn Gray Rosenberg to the world and our family! We're so excited that this sweet baby girl is here! She made her debut even earlier than expected and was born Sunday, April 28th at 12:08 PM. Laura went into labor in the wee hours of Sunday morning, so her c-section scheduled for Tuesday was hastily moved up. Adelyn weighed 6 pounds, 14 ounces, and measured 21 inches long at birth. She went immediately to the NICU.

April 30th

As most of you know, our daughter has serious health complications. She was diagnosed with hydrocephalus during her 22-week prenatal anatomy scan. And as anticipated, she had surgery shortly following her birth to place a shunt in her brain to drain off the excess fluid. The pediatric neurosurgeon said it went well.

Owen, who'd been splitting time between both sets of grands while the immediate members of his family were in the hospital, went to visit Laura for the first time since Adelyn's birth.

May 1st

Laura was discharged from the hospital.

May 2nd
Adelyn was stable after her brain surgery, and so Owen came to the hospital to meet his baby sister. It was such a sweet time for the siblings! Owen wore his new "big brother" t-shirt, saw the drawing he'd made her hanging on her NICU bassinet, held her with daddy's help, and gave her a bunny lovey. "Aw, she's so cute!" he said. "I love her little nose."

Just a few hours later, James and Laura were called back to the hospital because doctors had found a problem with Adelyn's heart. She had a coarctation of the aorta. This birth defect is rarely detected in utero because mom's blood bypasses that spot. It's often a fatal defect, as babies go home just fine, and then as mom's blood stops flowing hours/days after birth, babies have a cardiac event or stop breathing while the problem is still unidentified. In Adelyn's case, her only symptom was a slight difference in blood pressure reads between her upper and lower body, which triggered concern with the staff in the NICU. They ordered another echocardiogram, and they caught it. (Praise God for the diligence of the NICU staff and that all that poking, prodding, and testing saved Adelyn's life once again.)

Late that afternoon, Adelyn was transferred from the NICU to the PCICU (Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care Unit).

May 3rd

Less than 24 hours later, Adelyn had heart surgery. A thoracotomy. The pediatric cardiac surgeon said it was a successful, but difficult operation.

May 5th

Following her second surgery, Adelyn had so many tubes and wires and bandages that no one was able to hold her for several days. As doctors worked toward extubating Adelyn, they withheld most pain medications to keep her alert enough to do trial runs of weening her off the ventilator. The one-week anniversary of her birth was an excruciating day as Laura watched, "hand hugged," wept by the bassinet, and sang to her daughter as Adelyn struggled and cried.

May 6th

Adelyn was successfully extubated! Free of the ventilator and breathing on her own, she was slowly weened from a little oxygen cannula that was placed under her nose. She also began breastmilk feeds through her ng tube, and pain management became a higher priority. It was such a relief to see Adelyn more comfortable. Laura and James got to hold her for the first time since her heart surgery.

May 7th

As various doctors and therapists continued to watch Adelyn's recovery from both surgeries, it was discovered that one of her vocal cords had been damaged during her heart surgery. (Though a risk of which we'd been warned and a common occurrence in cardiac repairs, it was nonetheless hard news to hear.) She was also vomiting during feeds as her gut struggled to digest even small breastmilk meals.

The good news was that her chest tube (from her heart surgery) was removed, as was her oxygen cannula (she was once again breathing without any aids). It was nice to see our baby girl continue to shed tubes, cords, and lines. The neurosurgen also removed the bandages from her shunt surgery.

Adelyn's name was placed at the top of the list to return to the NICU, which was full.

May 10th
Adelyn's incision from her heart surgery had become obviously infected. In addition to antibiotics, the doctors changed the bandages and taped a vacuum hose to the seeping wound.

Owen visited his sister for the second time.

The NICU remained full, so Adelyn and her parents continued to work with lactation, speech, occupational, and physical therapists toward growth and recovery goals.

May 12th
On Mother's Day, we celebrated the two-week anniversary of Adelyn's birth! That is two weeks longer than some doctors predicted she would live. Praise the Lord. Adelyn has shown herself to be remarkably strong (and sweet)! We are confident she'll make it home from the hospital. Praise the Lord. And more than that, we have so much hope that she will be able to experience a high quality of life! Praise the Lord!

Now
Please pray:
1. That Adelyn will soon be able to return to the NICU now that her cardiac issues have been resolved.
2. That her brain will recover and grow to a healthy state.
3. That the antibiotics will clear up the infection at her heart surgery incision site.
4. That she will be able to digest her meals well, gain weight and meet growth goals, as well as learn to bottle or breastfeed. May the antacid meds help her feel more comfortable while eating.
5. That Owen, who has struggled with some separation anxiety, would feel safe and secure in his parents' love.
6. For an abundance of strength, patience, and grace for James and Laura.
6. For Gods' provision in all the Rosenbergs' needs.

Help!
First, please do not underestimate the power of your prayers. Adelyn's life is a gift from God, and we are incredibly grateful for every soul that is calling out to Him for her health and wellness with us!

If you would like to help in other ways, here are three further ideas.

One: If you are local to Durham, NC, you might like to participate in the MEAL TRAIN Laura's sister has set up for our family. Not having to worry about cooking meals every night (as Laura recovers from her c-section and we are trying to maximize our time both at home with Owen and at the hospital with Adelyn) has been such a relief.

Two: We have made a GIFT REGISTRY for Adelyn. We anticipate that she will have some specialized needs, and we will likely update this registry to ask for assistance with those as they materialize. But for now, we are looking toward her home-coming and creating a nursery stateside. (It is apparent that she will need a more traditional set up than our jet-setting first child, Owen.) On this registry there is also an opportunity to make a financial gift that will be used toward Adelyn's medical expenses.

Third: If you would like to make a tax-free contribution toward Adelyn's medical expenses, please send us a note and we'll provide you with information about how you can do that.