COOPER WILLIAM KEEFER

We would like to introduce Cooper William Keefer. He was born November 28, 2007 at 12:18am. He was 5lbs 14.8 oz and 19 in. long. He is adorable!!!!!

What an adventure the last few days have been. Labor and delivery went well. We checked into the hospital a little before 5pm on Tuesday and he was here a little after midnight on Wednesday. Everything after that has been a blur. Right after delivery I was able to hold him for a few seconds before the neonatal team took him to the NIC unit. Terry was able to go and kept me posted with pictures. About 1 1/2 hours later they took me up to see him before he was transported to Children's Mercy. I thought I was prepared for how hard all of this would be but nothing can prepare you for this. They let me hold him for a short while before the put him in the transport unit. It was very hard to see him with all his IVs and to not know how long it would be before I could see him again. After he was transported Terry and my Dad went to Children's Mercy to be with him. I was able to sleep from about 4am to 6am. When my doctor around 7am I was ready to be released and to my surprise he allowed this. We were all shocked. So I was discharged and off to be with Cooper. What I did not know is this would be the longest and hardest day ever! At Children's Mercy things were hectic. It seemed as though we met a thousand people, none of who I was keeping straight. We were not allowed to hold or really touch Cooper because of his IVs and medication he was taking. He was doing very well though considering the situation. Around 8 or 9 pm we checked in to the Ronald McDonald House and this is when I lost it. Not only did I feel like there was no end to all of this but now I was sleeping in a cold room with neither of my babies and I had never felt so overwhelmed in my life. Terry was amazing, assuring me that it would all be ok we just needed rest. (Terry had not yet slept at all). I felt completely helpless and missed Raelynn terribly. The worst part was I could not figure out in my mind how we were going to deal with all of this for the length of time it seems we would be there. The next morning things were not much better. We went back to the hospital met several more doctors and nurses and then we met Megan. She was our nurse and she let me hold my baby! I had to hold him in all his bedding and didn't really get to touch him, but I held him all the same. Then she let me help change his diaper and take his temp. Since then things have gotten much better! Cooper has now had both IVs in his arms removed and one in his belly button removed also. Last night he got to eat for the first time. He was not too sure about it but I think he will catch on. He is Terry's son after all! He is schedule for an exploratory procedure on Monday where they will go inside him and take pictures of the heart. After that they will schedule his first surgery which will probably be another 7-10 days. Then there will be recovery time which they say is usually about 2 weeks and then maybe we will be able to go home. Awe....light at the end of the tunnel. We have been spending days with Cooper and nights with Raelynn. This balancing act is taking some time to get use to for all of us. Raelynn feels the change but I am hoping will fall into the routine soon.

We owe many thanks out there for all the prayers, gifts and thoughts we have received. You are all amazing.

THANKSGIVING FUN!!!

What a great Thanksgiving break! We spent Thanksgiving with the Keefer's and Raelynn had a blast playing with Nanny and Popo. Especially while Popo was trying to sleep :) Karli spent Wednesday through Sunday with us as well. We love having her around!!! Friday morning she and I got up at 4 am and braved the crowds. Karli got all her Christmas shopping done and we were home by 7:30 am. I, 0f course, already had mine done so it was kind of fun to just be part of the chaos. With Karli and Raelynn's help we got the house all decorated for Christmas too. Friday night we all headed downtown to see the arrival of Santa Claus. It was very cold but we had a great time. Raelynn and Daddy danced around the streets like crazy people. It was adorable!

Raelynn actually sat on Santa's lap and everything. We all had a great time!

So here we are exactly one week from Cooper's scheduled arrival. I have to say that I am crazy nervous and anxious. I am trying to make sure everything is done and everything is a lot of things :) I also am a little concerned as to whether we will make it to the 3rd. I started having cramps and lower back pain late this afternoon which makes me a little nervous. I did actually start packing my bag and let Terry know he should probably at least start thinking about it. I know I am probably just paranoid but who knows!!!! Anyway, whenever it happens I am definitely ready to meet our little boy!!!

RAELYNN HAS PIGTAILS!

Have you ever seen such cute pigtails?!!!! :)

DOCTOR DAY!

What a day! We started visiting doctors at 12:15pm and saw the last one at 4:30pm. It was a very long day but went well. We met with the Neonatologist and a social worker first. They helped us understand what we could expect once Cooper is born. It was a little scary but I am glad they have prepared us. They expect that within a few hours of delivery he will be transported to Children's Mercy. I will probably be able to see him briefly in the delivery room, then again about 2 hours later. I have no idea why they think it will take 2 hours for me to be able to get in a wheel chair, go up an elevator and look at my baby but apparently they feel quite sure about this. I will argue the issue much more when the time comes. I think the hardest thing will be when they transport him because then I will not get to see him again for a few days. The good news is that Terry can! Of course, I will again battle the 48 hours they think I need to stay in the hospital as I am sure 24 hours will be plenty of time. From there we will not know exactly what to expect until the time comes. They have stated that they are sure we will have a long stay at Children's Mercy and encouraged us to check out the Ronald McDonald House. This was a little hard for me b/c I think I was holding onto this idea that just maybe we would get to go home with him within a week or so and they pretty much assured us this would not happen. They also prepared us for the fact that Cooper would have several IV's and possible oxygen and that it would look worse than it actual is. Again, I am very thankful for everything they told us but know when the time comes nothing can prepare you for seeing your precious little boy lying there and nothing you can do about it. Heck, Raelynn has a cold right now and I would do anything in the world to make that better!

Next we had another sonogram and little Cooper is growing great. He is approximately 5 to 5.5 lbs and is moving like crazy. I did not need a sonogram to tell them this :)
We left there and pre-registered at the hospital and were able to tour the NIC Unit. That was all fine and was only slightly confusing because of the short amount of time that we will actually be at the hospital before he is transported. Therefore, certain things such as circumcision, Hep B Vaccine and Hearing Screening we were asked to elect not to have so that they could focus on the more immediate needs and then Children's Mercy will do these things closer to the time he is ready to come home. Of course I had to make note of everything so I can make sure they get it done! :)

Finally we met with my doctor and everything seems to be going well. Cooper has dropped and I am 50% efface and about 1 cm dilated. All this means is I am where I should be at this stage of the game and that it is no wonder I go to the bathroom 50 times a day and am never comfortable, hahaha!

I am sure that everything is going to be just fine and things will turn out just as God has planned, but it does not make this any easier. I worry every day about what is going to happen. I worry about Raelynn too. I am going to miss her so much while we are at the hospitals. I know she will visit but I will miss picking her up from pre school and listening to her funny stories and cute little voice and no one else knows just how to read her stories or play with her hair when she can't sleep. I tell her everyday how much I love her so hopefully when I am not there to tell her she will still know!

HALLOWEEN FUN!!!

Mommy's 29th Birthday for the 4th year in a row!!!

Halloween was a real treat this year! Tuesday night Raelynn and Daddy carved pumpkins. Raelynn helped....for about 10 minutes then decided it would be more fun to go take a bath. Daddy was a little disappointed but like a real Dad would, he finished carving both pumpkins and waited to impress her with the finished product. She was impressed!

Wednesday night she was so excited to go trick or treating. Sherri and the girls came over and we let the kids go up and down our street by themselves while we watched from the porch. Raelynn thought she was very big and grown up. I think they all had fun. We then took Raelynn around to see some of her friends. She was over joyed by the idea that people were giving her candy and I wasn't saying no. She was even more amazed when I actually let her have a piece! Of course it was Wednesday night so we ended up at T's for dinner. She had to show her favorite bartender Zach her cute Care Bear Costume and he loved it. She has asked to go trick or treating every night since. I am hoping she will soon forget :)

Today we had another sonogram and little Cooper is 4.5 lbs. He is almost as big as Raelynn was when she was born!!! Everything is looking great. He is very busy in there and constantly fighting. We pray every day that he fights as much outside as he has inside.