Wow, I didn't realize it had been so long since I posted anything! My last journal stated that I was on bed rest and I was complaining about how bad it was. Well, things went from bad to worse and they ended up taking my baby by c-section on April 18th. I was on bed rest due to Pre-Eclampsia and I developed HELLP syndrome on top of it. They said she was "better out than in" and they delivered Kaylee at 3:55 AM. She was only 24 weeks gestational age (for all that don't know, a "normal" full-term baby is 40 weeks), weighed 1 lb. and was 11 inches long.

Little Kaylee was touch and go for a very long time. She was immediately taken to the NICU and had all sorts of tubes and wires coming out from all over. She was on a ventilator and had multiple PICC lines and needed total support just to keep her alive. We spent everyday just hoping our girl would survive to see tomorrow.

Kaylee slowly made progress - true "baby steps" on a day by day basis. She conquered multiple infections, battled the ventilator, and later the CPAP, pulled feeding tubes and blew out IVs, until 4 months later she was finally healthy enough to go home! Our little one pound fighter had surprised everyone and not only survived, but THRIVED!

In just a few days, Kaylee Jayne will be 6 months old. She is still (obviously) very tiny for her age, but she has made it up to 10 lbs and is still going strong. I created a Facebook page with pictures and videos, so feel free to pop on over and take a look if you want to follow her journey. You can find us at [link]

Thank you to everyone who was so supportive during the past 6 months. I truly believe that all your love and prayers pulled Kaylee through and I credit you all for helping keep her alive and surrounded by love. I tell her often how very lucky she is to have so many folks watching over her (even if it is just from a computer screen).

I appreciate all the wonderful comments and favs I've gotten while I was away. I'm blown away! You guys are really great for the ego

Obviously, our lives have changed very much, and I expect that the ride is just beginning. I will probably not be keeping up here on dA as much as I have in the past, but I promise to post pictures when I have time to actually take more and process them! lol

With love and affection,

Marci

Bed rest sucks. Alot.

I've been placed on bed rest since April 3rd because the baby is not tolerating my high blood pressure very well. They are trying to keep her inside for as long as possible, but they're thinking I might not get more than another week or so. They started me on steroids today to mature her lungs, so it's starting to get pretty serious. Please, keep us in your thoughts and prayers if you can. We can use all the well wishes we can get!

Thanks so much for all the faves and posts. Sorry I haven't been able to respond to everyone. It's been a crazy 6 months so far, and the baby isn't even here yet!

OMG!!! I logged in today and noticed that I have over a thousand page views. Thanks so much to everyone who took the time to come in and look around.

I'd like to send a special thanks to *andras120 ([link]) for all the wonderful support and encouragement. You are doing EXACTLY what I set out to accomplish when I picked up my camera for the first time. I've tried to capture nature as you have done, but I must admit I've failed miserably. I keep hearing that I should practice, practice, practice, and not give up. Supposedly, that will help. I sure hope so. I want to be like you when I grow up!

Wait a minute... I'm already grown up... drat!

I discovered today that I've officially moved into a new age bracket. How depressing and exciting at the same time! My birthday was Feb 21st (Happy Birthday to me ) and I just turned 35. I was filling out a survey online today, and I realized that I'm now in the 35-44 age group. Goodbye 18-34 youngsters. Hello fellow "middle-agers". Isn't that weird?

For those who know me, I just wanted to take a few moments to let you all know that I've passed my exam for the State Board of Nursing. I'm officially an RN! Thanks to all of you who believed in me and offered support and encouragement when I stopped believing in myself. If it were not for all of you (and you know who you are ) I would have never finished this journey. I love you all and you cannot know how much I appreciate everything you've done.