Baby Hayden has arrived... but with some caveats...

As we put Sybilla to bed this evening I held her a little bit tighter than normal and offered up a prayer of thanks to the Old Man Upstairs for my beautiful, perfect, healthy child. She is smart and clever and walking since nine and half months. At fifteen months old, she has at least 20 words to her vocabulary and she has gained weight well and hit all of the milestones on her chart and then some with flying colors. We are blessed. I read blogs and articles everyday about other parents who are living the stuff of nightmares and I thank God I am not one of them. But I also offered up prayers for all of them as we experience some of that so close to home.

My best friend gave birth today to her third baby at 12:59 pm, Hayden Alucard, and he has certainly shattered all of our expectations as to what to expect. His labor was longer than either of his siblings and he came much earlier than expected. We expected him to be early since his older sister and brother were too, but not three weeks earlier. And if his birth weight and development is any indicator, he is actually five weeks early; Hayden weighed in at 4.5 pounds, 17" long. And lastly, the kicker in all of this is the small horseshoe shaped hole in the roof of his mouth preventing him from being to swallow or breathe properly which appears to be a cleft palate.

While a cleft palate might not sound that serious given modern medicine, it doesn't negate the fact that we don't know when he'll come home and meet his older siblings and that his mom and dad have to endure this added stress on top of a newborn baby with two older children. My initial research is that cleft palate is treatable and if his condition is serious enough to prevent him from eating or breathing without assistance, they would most likely operate soon. There's also a lot of unknowns; how long will he remain in the hospital and what is involved in the recovery and rehabilitation process? Could his small size and early arrival signal some other developmental issue that has of yet been undiscovered?

The upside to all of this is that at least the pregnancy and the birth experience have gone well for Kellie and Anthony. They utilized the Austin Area Birthing Center, which so far has exceeded all of their expectations and so much more. When they left for Dell Children's this evening, the midwife that has been working with them accompanied them to be their advocate and to support them as needed until we know more. The pregnancy was relatively smooth with very little hiccups and morning sickness and Kellie was able to get all of the antibiotics needed during delivery (she's GBS positive) unlike the previous pregnancies.

Our prayers tonight are for our friends and their family and that the diagnosis is positive. We hope that you too will keep them in your thoughts and prayers over the next few days as we learn of what's to come and that Baby Hayden gets to come home soon. I will share some pictures as soon as we have had a chance to meet the little munchkin, but until we find out more, your imagination will have to suffice.

Thanks for listening,
Kelly & the Gang