Stephen's Birth Day

First off...thank you for all your prayers.  I don't doubt that they are the reason today went so smoothly.

Stephen Joseph Russell was born at 3:56 pm, 8 lbs 2 oz and 20.5 inches long. 

 It was a slow process to get settled in and induced into labor...but boy once they did it went by so fast it has us all laughing.  I went from 5cm to 10cm in about 15 minutes.  They were literally checking minute by minute because it went that fast.  The was a team of 9 people who joined us for the delivery so I had a lot of cheerleaders  =0)  My doctor, Dr Sean Daneshamand, was amazing.  He made Joe and I so comfortable and was the perfect doctor to have in the room.  He was calm and so encouraging.  He made me smile and laugh, and given the situation, that was what I needed.  He is the founder of a great organization, Miracle Babies, that provides education and financial support to families with newborns in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.  

www.miraclebabies.org  (check it out)

The Sharp NICU team stabilized Stephen in our room and I was able to hold him long enough for Joe to say a prayer and me to give him a kiss.  Joe went along with the transport team the Radys Children's Hospital were they then put line in through his umbilical cord, took X-rays and performed an echo (ultrasound) on his heart.  The diagnosis is exactly what we were told in utero.  He is doing very well and for now is stable.  It is hard to believe that the picture below means stable...but it does.  The oxygen over his nose is to help his lungs expand a little more and the tube in his mouth is to take the air out of his stomach.  He is fully breathing on his own =0) The rest of the tubes are monitors all over him to watch his vitals and an iv in his little hand.  He has not started feeding yet...but hopefully he can tomorrow.  Tomorrow they will also be checking his brain and kidneys by ultrasound and running more x-rays.  And I am hoping that Joe will soon get to hold him too.  We both miss that cuddle time and the joy of having them sleep on our chest.
There is no date for surgery just yet.  Because he is doing well they would like to keep him this way until possibly early next week so he can begin feeding and have his lungs expand a little more.
I think Joe and I are doing ok.  Our way of coping today was to just not think about it.  If we did we wanted to cry.  I basically wanted to cry all day but tonight when they wheeled me over to see him it just warmed my heart.  He is adorable under all of those cords.  He has a head full of blonde hair and makes the cutest little noises.  Even though I can't hold him I could sit there forever just looking at him and holding his tiny hand.
Please pray for wisdom for the doctors and nurses as they care for him.
Pray for our kiddos...we are hoping they get to meet him tomorrow =0)

Pray for Joe and I.  Today was exhausting.  I know we need rest physically but today was emotionally draining and it is only the beginning.

And or course please continue to pray for this little guy.  The hardest part has yet to come.

Thank you for all of your kind words and support.      
Your messages are so encouraging...they truly make us feel loved.

Much Love, The Russells