Tori Time...

Jared loves his "Tori time" and I love watching him with her - whether it be when he is singing her their lullaby, when he is feeding her, when they are cuddling, when I catch him watching her when she sleeps, or when they are reading together! Jared, Tori couldn't have a better dad - I know that she loves her "Daddy time" so much!!!

Queen of the Boppy

Tori is definitely the queen of the boppy at our house!!!

2 Weeks!!!

Our baby girl is two weeks old! Yet, it feels like she has been a part of our family for so much longer. It has been so neat seeing her grow and change already. We are so excited for all of the adventures that are still to come!!!

Here are a couple of our 2 week old celebration pictures:

Just a little explanation about Tori's very special teddy bear. Our second day in the hospital, Jared had a few surprises for us. He brought me the most beautiful roses and a gorgeous figurine of an angel holding a baby. And Jared brought Tori her very first teddy bear. I really think he was the most excited about her bear - which she already loves!

Jared, thank you so much for all you do to take care of your girls - we love you tons and tons!!!!

Like Daddy, Like Daughter

Over the last few weeks, Jared and I have had so much fun discovering the many entertaining sleeping positions of Tori. Today I made another great discovery - she comes by this very honestly...

Saying goodbye...

Dear Grandma Harrison,

We are all so sad that you had to go home to Utah today. We are already missing you terribly. Thank you for doing such a great job of taking care of us while you were here. Thank you for cleaning our house and cooking for us. It helped so much not to have to worry about any of that. Thank you for taking your "Tori time" in the middle of the night so Jared and I could sleep when Tori decided it was time to play. I am sure that you two had a great time during those wee hours of the morning! Thank you for being such a trooper when we were in and out of the hospital - I'm sure it wasn't very fun sleeping in the family lounge. Thank you for being here on your birthday (sorry we didn't do a very good job of celebrating with you - we promise to make that one up). And thanks for all of the other little things you did that made our lives so much easier! We love you oh so very much!
Love,
Tori, Rachel, and Jared

Here is our 3 generation picture (taken right before we had to leave for the airport):

Grandma Harrison, Rachel, and Victoria Mae

Check out that grin, can you tell that Grandma Harrison LOVED holding Tori?

Tori's "New" Sleeping Position

As most of you know, it is greatly stressed that you need to put your baby "back to sleep." Or, that you should always have them on their back when you put them down to sleep. Jared and I have been very diligent with this counsel. But, time and time again we find our little Tori like this... At first we were thinking that this was something new. We do love how cute she looks up on her side, her hands by her face, and usually with her ankles crossed as well! Upon closer inspection, we have seen this before...

Basically, in all of our last ultra sounds, Sally (our ultra sound tech that is just awesome) had an extremely difficult time getting a good picture of Tori's face. The reason being that at least one hand was always in the way. Sally even predicted that Tori would probably sleep with her hands by her face - she was right on!

The Preemie Outfits of Tori

As you all know, our Tori is very little. But, she doesn't let that keep her from being ever so stylish all the time. So, without further ado - here are some of the many outfits of Tori!

A huge thank you to Grandma and Grandpa Allen, Uncle Douglas, Aunt Nikki, Uncle Kurtis, Uncle Derek, Uncle Alec, and Uncle Dillon for the following adorable outfits!!!

Uncle Dillon - Tori loves the outfit you picked for her. It keeps her all cozy and warm!!!

Thanks to everyone from work for this delightful outfit. She looks so cute in it!

Tori's First Bath

So it has been a while since Tori's bath in the nursery and Rachel and I were wondering how often do you bathe preemies if they do not soil themselves in poop or puke. We referenced our baby books and discovered that an infants skin dries out really easy and so unless needed a bath should typically take place every three days until they get older and the cord leftovers fall out. We figured that today fit the time frame and got all ready to bathe our little girl for the first time. While Rachel was prepping Tori, I went into the bathroom and got her sweet tub all ready. I used a turtle thermometer to test the water in the tub and once it reached the optimal temperature we laid Tori in the infant net in the tub that helped us to keep her mostly dry and used a rag to clean her. Once she was stripped down she started to cry because she was cold but as soon as she was in the tub she stopped and was wide awake enjoying every minute of it.

Here are two images of her in the tub enjoying life.

Once all clean we were able to use her adorable duck towel for the first time. Doesn't she just look so cute in her towel. Rachel and I think so.

Over all her first bath was an awesome experience and can not wait for the next one.

StretchTori

I am pleased to announce that Tori takes after her most amazing father in at least one way. She loves to stretch everything at once and just relax as she is waking up. Rachel loves to watch me wake up in the morning because of my stretching session and she says Tori is taking after her amazing father. She is so stinking cute when she does stretch. She extends both of her legs as far as she can, her hands down as far as they can go, and her neck as high as it can go. We swear she gains at least 6 inches when she stretches and is so adorable. We hope you enjoy the stretches as much as we do.

Here she is getting warmed up for a stretch.

Here she is mid stretch... notice the legs, arms, and neck.

Finally, here is Tori ending her stretch with a small cute stretch.Tori your mom and dad just love watching your wonderful personality come out and cherish every learning moment we have with you.

Tori's Homecoming

With her all cozy in her car seat and with Dr. Duck's permission Tori came home this afternoon. She slept during the whole ride home with Rachel in the back seat the entire drive just making sure she was okay. It is really nice having her here and when we got home we arrived to a sparkling clean house (Thanks Grandma Harrison). We put Tori in her bassinet that was provided for us by a friend at church and she went sleep. We are excited and nervous at the same time to have her home and cannot wait to show her off as soon as she gets bigger.

Here is our baby girl in her pajamas relaxing on our bed after being fed.

Here she is all snug as a bug in a rug in her bassinet.

The Car Seat Test

Due to her small stature and being in the special nursery for a week, Tori had to pass a car seat test the hospital does before she could be discharged. We brought in her car seat and they placed her in it with her still attached to the monitors. Tori had to sit in it for an hour to show that even in the car seat she was still able to breathe, move, and stay alive. They only did it for an hour because they estimated that if she was ever in it she would probably not be in it for much longer than that. In order to pass the test they had to use two side blankets to help keep her stable and they also had to use a crotch towel to keep her from sliding down. The nurses then informed us that because she passed with these blankets in place, whenever we go somewhere these exact blankets/towels have to be used and in the correct position. She did pass which was awesome and she looks so small in the car seat.

Here she is during the test sound asleep.

Here she is getting ready to go home!!!

The BEST Phone Call EVER

Today I had to report back to work and start my long awaited student teaching. During my prep period this morning I received the best news ever from Dr. Duck (Tori's Doctor). He informed me that Tori had made such great progress that she was able to come home with us tomorrow and that he was scheduling a room in for that night. For those of you who need some clarification a room in is where Rachel and I would check back into the hospital and have Tori in a bassinet in our room. Under normal circumstances this would occur right after birth, but due to Tori's size she was in the nursery under 24 hour surveillance. They have those whose babies are in the special care nursery do a room in to see if they can survive a night outside the nursery. The nursery nurses assigned to Tori that night (Missy & Laura) would be the ones coming in and checking on us periodically through the night just to see how we were doing. As soon as we arrived we got another family photo.

After her dinner we changed her diaper and got her in her pajamas. We saved these pajamas that her Uncle Dillon picked out just for her. Isn't she just so adorable.

This picture was taken sometime in the night when she was fussy and I was attempting to quiet her down.

Needless to say, it was a very eventful night that most new parents can remember. It was filled with waking up at every noise or movement she made and rushing over to check on her to see if she was okay. In the end we did pass and the next morning got some final advice from the lactation nurse, gave Laura one more time to feed her and give Tori her medicine, and then received the okay from Dr. Duck to take her home and to schedule an appointment in a week for her first check-up.

Here is our cute little girl in her going home from the hospital outfit (compliments of Grandpa and Grandma Allen)!

Tori's First Nose Pick

I just thought it was a great idea to document all the things Tori does for the first time. This list would not be complete without her very first nose pick. I guess she was so relaxed during the hearing screen and wanted to let mom know everything was going to be okay she tried to make us laugh by picking her nose. We hope you enjoy the picture just as much as we do. PS: Tori we know you are going to hate us later for posting this but we apologize now in advance...Please forgive us!!!!

Tori's Hearing Screen

As you all know my darling wife is such an amazing woman and an even better audiologist (an ear doctor for those of you who need clarification). Ever since we knew we were expecting I would hear stories of little girls coming in and having hearing tests done because they did not pass their initial hearing scan when they were born. Without fail all these stories ended in a discussion about how she was nervous for Tori's test and praying that she would be able to hear. She would then go on to state that she wanted to be present when Tori did get her hearing screen and wanted a copy of the printout. My wife is so stinking adorable and tonight her dream came true with a special thanks to Tori's wonderful nurse Missy (and yes Missy you are so wonderful and Tori misses all of you in the nursery). Earlier tonight we asked Missy when she was planning on doing the screen and she said probably tonight sometime. Rachel got extremely excited and asked if she could be there and of course that made me respond probably not because she needed to rest. Then Missy, the wonderful nurse that she is, said "Shoot, we can do it right now if you would like?" As soon as she said that, I have never seen my wife so happy....it was hilarious.

Here is an image of the machine used to perform her hearing screen with Missy

Here is our adorable Tori with her being prepped with her ear muffins

Here she is with the electrodes used to pick up the response

We are pleased to announce that she passed in both ears and that piece of news was the best news Rachel has ever heard. Finally, she let go of her last worry and was actually skipping down the hall as we were leaving the nursery. Rachel you are too funny, but I love you oh so much!!

Hurdle Three Complete

Since yesterday I am pleased to announce that our little girl has gained 80 grams...Wooot...she is gaining weight which was the third hurdle she had to complete. Today with Rachel home we went to the Hospital for Tori's feedings (when Rachel had the energy of course) and when we arrived we found her in yet another cute outfit, enjoying life sucking on her pacifier.

While we were there in the morning Tori's substitute doctor came in and informed us he was excited to see her gaining weight and said we will wait until tomorrow when Dr. Duck is back and can see about scheduling a room-in for us to have Tori in our own room. This was excellent news and we are so excited to have our baby home soon.

I left my girls at the hospital to go to church for an hour and returned home to them that afternoon to get well rested for our visit again that evening. Tori is eating really well and is growing so fast. You can even see the difference from the first post to this one. After her afternoon feeding I had the opportunity to get some more Daddy time. These pictures will also help illustrate just how small our adorable little angel truly is.

Rachel and I appreciate every one's thoughts and prayers on Tori's behalf and are truly humbled to have witnessed a miracle with our little girl to come home so much sooner than projected. We are truly grateful and once we are home and settled we can not wait to introduce you to our pride and joy.

Hurdle Two Complete

Early this morning I went up to check on Tori to see how she did for the last few feedings we were not a part of because I was taking care of Rachel and getting our sleep and I noticed she was swaddled in blankets. I approached the nurse (Missy) with this and Missy informed me that earlier she had swaddled her, got her dressed, turned off the warmer, and that Tori had been maintaining her own body heat for over 6 hours now. This is a big step as well that needed to be overcome to allow for Tori to come home. I asked what outfit she chose and she unwrapped her and to reveal the following outfit Isn't she just the cutest thing you have ever seen!

(Special thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Allen and Fam for the cute outfit)

The above picture also shows a more active and happy side of our beautiful little girl, which is a direct result of how well she has been eating. Tori has the cutest smile and I finally got a picture to show it. Last night I was taking pictures of Tori for Rachel since she was confined to her bed to cheer her up. I asked Tori to smile for her mommy and this is what I got!

She is so stinking cute it's unbelievable. That is my hand in the image and this will give you a better perspective just how small my baby girl really is. Also the following image shows this perspective in relation to a normal pacifier.

As you can see the pacifier covers over half her face and takes both her hands to hold it in her mouth. We are proud of her and the progress she is making and there is only one more hurdle to cross and she can come home. The remaining hurdle is she has to show to the doctor that she can gain weight through feeding with mom. Once she shows that she can maintain a steady weight gain we will be able to bring her home.

Here are two more cute pictures of her asleep all swaddled up.

Hurdle One Complete

Very late last night, I was checking in on my little girl up in the special nursery (once Rachel was calm and asleep a floor below), I noticed that she was not hooked up to the IV machine. I asked her nurse about it and she said that since Tori was making such beautiful progress in her eating (roughly 40 mL of milk per 3 hours) that she did not need the IV anymore. She then said that here in a bit she was going to be taking out the IV early the next morning when she was going to be feeding her next. This was such great news to hear for this was one of the major hurdles we had to pass over for Tori to come home. Currently, Tori's IV is in her hand after originally being in her foot and it will be awesome to see her IV free and well on her way to coming home.

Here is a picture taken of our beautiful little girl IV free and loving life.

Here she is sound asleep and enjoying being free from the IV because she gets to keep her cute, tiny hands in her favorite position...near her face!!

This favorite position has been noticed in all her ultrasound pictures we have of her.

The other two hurdles we need to cross for her to come home are for her to gain weight and to be able to produce her own body heat...hopefully these will be overcome just as fast as this one has...we love you Tori Mae!!!

Poor, Poor Rachel

This experience has been the best one of our lives to this day, but as we all know things tend to go wrong even when miracles like this occur. Yesterday afternoon was when the bad news hit. Rachel has had slightly higher blood pressure since her last trimester started but showed no other signs of a disorder called preeclampsia (protein in the urine, abnormal amounts of swelling, blurred vision, frequent headaches, and dizziness) which can affect both the mother and the unborn child. Once the child is delivered this particular disorder typically disappears. However, in rare cases it can show signs even after the birth of the child. Leave it to my beautiful wife to be one of those rare cases. Rachel was still showing high blood pressure after Tori was born and after being discharged on Wednesday evening, was asked to come into the office for a check-up on Friday. So, in between her two feeding sessions of our beautiful baby girl, Rachel went in for the check-up. She still had high blood pressure but now protein was found in her urine...aka I immediately got a phone call stating that she was being re-admitted into the hospital. They put her on bed rest and gave her magnesium through an IV to prevent seizures that come as a result of this disorder. They ran blood tests every six hours to see when she was out of the red, which did not come until late Saturday morning, and she is now on bed rest at home except for the few times she goes in to feed Tori. Everything else is going well with her and she is now getting more rest and will be going in for another check-up on Tuesday to see if the medication she is on is helping her blood pressure and her protein levels. She is such a trooper and such an amazing person. She has taken all of these problems our little family has faced with determination and a positive attitude and I truly love and admire her for that. Rachel, I just want you to know that I am so proud of you, that I love you with all my heart, and that you are such an amazing wife and will be an even more amazing mother.

Daddy & Tori Time

Yesterday evening I had the wonderful opportunity to feed Tori myself. This was a first for me and a very memorable moment. Since she is under the lights they want to make sure they get a good idea of exactly how much she is eating and so they let Rachel nurse for 20 minutes and then I get the last 10 minutes allotted before Tori has to go back under the lights. I fed her a bottle of the milk Rachel prepared for her of a desired amount so that the nurses know at least a minimum amount of how much she has been taking in. She is so tiny but it was so cool to be able to hold her in my arms and feed her and then burp her before she had to go back to bed. Due to her eyes being covered at all times under the lights Tori was wide awake for her feedings today and it was really neat watching her look around as she was enjoying her time in her dad and mom's arms. She was even looking up at me while I was feeding her and burping her. She is so cute and is looking healthier every time we see her.

Here is the happy father feeding his baby girl for the first time!!

Here they are staring each other down as daddy burps her!!

Oh and we almost forgot...Grandma Harrison even got in on the feeding frenzy and had the opportunity to hold her first granddaughter and feed her as well.