Here are a couple of pictures of Grandma and Pops with Taylor.
Taylor is officially off of the jaundice light!!! She still has some jaundice in her system but her levels are low enough that now we just have to sit in front of a window a few times a day to allow her to get some natural sunlight. I'm so glad she's off the light! I held her pretty much all day just because I could :). No more nurses poking you each day baby girl!
We went on our first outing together to Applebee's to eat lunch with my Mom, Grandma, and Pops. Look how tiny she looks in her car seat. Sweet baby girl. It felt so good to get out of the house for a little bit and Taylor did great!
Now, we just have to work on getting some meat on her bones and I'm pretty sure we're on our way! We changed nipples yesterday and my little tater tot started eating like crazy. Poor baby, I've been making her work so hard for it for the last week. Before we were struggling to get her to eat half an ounce in an hour. Last night she ate 3 oz like it was nothing. I was worried that we may have fed her too much but she didn't spit up or lose any of it. She slept so good too, completely relaxed. Thank you Jesus! This is a little trick that Daddy taught Taylor... he's so proud that she can already "hold" her bottle :).
Things are getting easier, I think we might be starting to figure out a little routine. My body is still getting adjusted to working on minimal sleep though. This whole experience is so amazing. I'm overcome with emotion every time I look at my little girl. She is the most beautiful, perfect, and amazing little girl that I've ever seen. I'm so in love!
It wasn't two minutes after I clicked publish post after my last blog on Friday that my phone rang. I knew it was a call from the hospital and I figured they were just calling to verify the c-section that we had scheduled on December 31. I answered the phone and much to my surprise it was my doctor, Dr. Phillips. She asked if I was having contractions. I said I had Thursday night but none on Friday morning. Actually, I woke up Friday thinking that I could go to work. I really wanted to tell my sweet students bye and give them a great big hug. I decided I better just sit on the couch as I was told. Dr. Phillips wanted me to come to the hospital to be monitored. She said she had worried about me all night and was really worried that I was going to go into labor and Taylor be in trouble. She said, "I'll see you when you get here. We might just have a baby today!" I hung up the phone, woke Winston up (who had only been asleep for 2 hours because he worked the night before), and jumped in the shower. I called my Mom and she headed this way. We got to the hospital around 10 and when Dr. Phillips did an examination she found that my bag was bulging (getting ready to bust). She also said that I had dilated a little more. She gave us two options. I was 36.6 weeks pregnant so she felt pretty confident that Taylor would be born healthy if we went ahead and delivered her. We could choose to do a c-section then or I would be admitted in the hospital for observation for a few days and then we would do the c-section. Winston and I decided that we'd go ahead and do the c-section on Friday since Dr. Phillips was confident that Taylor was strong enough. I didn't want to sit in the hospital longer than I had to anyway. She said, "Okay! We're gonna move you across the hall to labor and delivery and we'll have a baby in 30 minutes!" Holy cow!!!! 30 minutes!!!! Ready or not, here we go! We got to out L&D room and they were throwing forms at me to sign, starting an IV, in and out, in and out. It was a crazy couple of minutes for sure! We actually didn't end up going back for my surgery until about 4:30. Hurry up and wait!
She had to stay under the warming light for a while until she regulated her body temp. I finally got to hold her after about 2 hours. It was the most amazing feeling to hold her in my arms. 
She is the most perfect thing I've ever seen. Everyone says she looks like her daddy and I do have to agree with them! 
We stayed in the hospital from Friday through Monday. Her daddy really likes holding her.
We got to come home around lunch time on Monday. When we left the hospital she had jaundice but it wasn't too bad. I called Taylor's doctor and they wanted to see her on Tuesday to check her levels and weight. This is her all bundled up before we left the house. My baby is so tiny.
She had lost a pound and was down to 5 lbs 7 oz. I have had to stop breastfeeding and start her on formula to fatten her up some. Her jaundice levels had more than doubled in 24 hours so we had to start a special treatment for her. Special nurses delivered a bed to our house that has a special light designed to drop her levels. She has to lay in the bed for 20 hours a day and the nurses come over everyday to check on her. 
The only time we can hold her is to feed her and change her :(. It's been hard because I want to hold her and cuddle her. It's hard for her too because she still needs to be cuddled tight and feel our body warmth. It's hard to get her settled once we lay her down. This is how precious and peaceful she looks when she's resting. Now I'm sure you understand why I want her in my arms!
Her levels dropped some yesterday so that is really good news. The nurse just called and she is on her way to check her weight and levels now. Hopefully they are down from yesterday and her weight up and she can get out of this bed within the next day or two. She is really doing well on the formula and she is starting to eat more and get a little stronger. I've actually been able to get some sleep the last couple of days too because now my Mom or Winston can help with feedings. My mom is going home today and I'm sad about that. She has helped so much since she's been here, I couldn't imagine where we would be without her.
TAYLOR ADDISON LAYMAN
