we have a baby girl! her name is Arianna Beth. she was born at 4:23 pm on March 17, 8 lbs. even and 21" long. if you go to our photobucket site, there are about 24 pictures of our little girl. the address is http://s92.photobucket.com/albums/l6/laura_siegrist/Arianna/ our friend, joanna, came to the hospital just after she was born to take these pictures and she might be adding some more in the future, so check it again in a few days.
some of you already know the situation dave and i have been faced with today. we found out this morning that arianna has a heart murmur and the dr.'s wanted to do some routine testing to find out how serious it was. when they were done, they told us that she will need heart surgery and that they needed to take her to danville, pa, today. basically, from what we understand right now, is that her pulmonary artery is going to the right place, but coming from the wrong part of the heart. what that is doing is giving her pulmonary hypertension and will eventually fill her lungs with fluid. we talked to the dr. down there tonight and they have tentatively set surgery for this thursday. they can't do it too soon because it runs the risk of her heart not getting enough blood to the lungs. if they wait too long, her lungs will fill with fluid. so the trick is to find the right time. ideally they'd like to wait until she is about 1 week old, but they will determine it on a day to day basis. so right now, she has to make it until thursday without having the fluid in her lungs. other than that, she is a perfect baby! she scored an 8-9 on her apgar score and is a very calm baby thus far. since she arrived at Geisinger (the children's hospital), they said she hasn't needed any anesthesia or medicine. she has been sleeping and is in good health. so we are very encouraged by this news.
it was very difficult for david and i to hear the news and have her taken so quickly from us. but we are dealing with it much better as the day goes on. we have had many friends and family around us for support and we already have a family to stay with while in danville. the hospital is about 1 1/2 hrs. away, and the family lives 3 miles from there. we are very thankful for all of the prayers from everyone and we ask that you pray that this will be over soon. we just want her to have the surgery so she can come home.
we will keep you updated as often as we can.
19 comments:
Congrats! She is beautiful. We will keep you guys in our prayers that all will go smoothly with her surgery.
Take care!
Kathy Bitar
La and Dave-
I know that God has you and your new girl in the palm of His Hands- and I know he will continue to comfort you as you embarke on this new life. I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers. Enjoy each moment with her- each one is so very precious. Love you both!
Meegs
Laura and David, I just want you to know that I am keeping you both and little Arianna in my prayers. She is a beautiful baby and God has blessed you both so richly by bringing her into your lives. I have friends praying down here as well and I know that God hears them all. Fervently praying, JoyAnna
Laura, I am praying for you and your little family. What a beautiful baby the Lord has brought into your life.
Rachel Balardelle (Gaskill)
*I found your blog in a roundabout way. I know we haven't seen each other since high school. It is so good to see what you have done with your life.*
Congratulations on the birth of your new baby girl. I pray that the labor went smoothly. We will definitely be in prayer for your daughter's heart murmur. Wow- that must be really hard...but know that the Lord is in control and will take care of her!!
Laura and Dave!
I'm in my office, and I randomly decided to check your blog. I was at a that Holocaust conference yesterday, and so didn't hear in church about your having the baby. Congratulations! She's beautiful!
Hi Laura,
This is Tina (Maddocks)Lucas. Bethany Raymond referred me to your blog. I just want you to know that Richard and I will be praying for you and your little girl. Our son Caleb, now a year and a half old, had open-heart surgery when he was just four weeks old. One day he just stopped eating and had to be rushed to the Children's Hospital for emergency surgery. God was gracious in spairing Caleb's life and now shows Himself gracious in spairing your daughter's too. If you ever need to talk please don't hesitate to call (502.266.8529).
You are in our prayers.
-Tina
I found you from Joanne's site. Arianna is breathtakingly beautiful. I am praying for her upcoming surgery, and for your peace throughout it all. My son has special needs - I understand what you are experiencing. I will pray faithfully. -Alesha
I saw the pictures of your beautiful girl on Joanne's site. I just wanted to let you know that I will be praying for you.
I came by way of Joanna's site and I just wanted to tell you that I'm praying for your sweet girl. As a mother I can't even begin to imagine what you are going through. Lots of prayers for you.
i was reading "mymeanderings" this morning and she linked to you, however i think i've already read a few of your posts through WFMW or another blog carnival.
miss arianna is beautiful! my heart hurts for what y'all are going through right now. i'll be praying for all of you. i look forward to updates about the surgery and recovery.
Laura your litte girl is precious, and I HAVE been praying for you guys ever since I got Dave's email. I am so glad you updated your blog and posted the pics, Joanna did an amazing job taking the pics.
Love you girl, and congratulations!
I saw what Joanna posted about your precious baby girl, and I wanted you to know that I am praying for her. Babies are near and dear to my heart, and I am sorry for what you are going through. I know God has big plans for Arianna and will carry her safely on. My God continue to enrich and bless your lives through her precious life.--Amanda
She is beautiful. Our prayers are with you guys. Remember to cast all your cares on our sovereign God.
In Him,
Josh, Moriah, and Charis
Phil. 4:6-7
just an update for readers...
Laura and Dave are having a hard time accessing the internet. so here's the update from last night's conversation:
baby arianna is doing ok. she's breathing on her own and is doing just fine. she's located in the NICU at Gyseinger and has open heart surgery scheduled for tomorrow morning--7:30a. they met the surgeon, who spent a lot of time with them and explained the who procedur (i'm sure laura will write about that later).
laura and dave will not be able to hold arianna for several days (maybe weeks) after the surgery, so today will be their last day to hold her for a while. this is particularly hard to swallow as a new mother. i can't imagine. :( please pray that the Lord would help the time go quickly and that arianna's recovery would be fast. also pray that dave and la would have GOOD experiences with the nurses...who, as you can imagine, are not always the friendliest.
thank you for all your prayers and comments. they're so encouraged to know that so many are rallying in prayer for this surgery.
ashley wittmer
(la's best friend)
I found your site through mymeanderings. You look familar, and I believe I remember you from BBC. (Maybe you were in my husband's class?? Jim Darling)
I just wanted you to know that I prayed for your family and especially your precious daughter. What a hard thing for you to have to go through. May God's grace pour over your family.
She is BEAUTIFUL:-), what a precious baby girl you have been blessed with. I will be your little lady in close prayer.
What a lovely gift you've been entrusted~ Praying for your princess and your family, knowing that God holds each of you tight against His heart.
I know Ash and Joe so found you through them. We are praying for your family. We have a 5 1/2 month old son Isaiah, who was never supposed to be in existence according to Dr's. God's ways are so much higher. Your precious girl has a great purpose!
Andy & Erica Brokopp
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