Finally, an update...

More than a few things have happened since my last post!  Most of the people reading this will have been updated on Ben's birth and all that happened following that via our e-mails.  We cannot thank everyone enough for praying for our little boy and for all the love and support we received during that time!  And I thank God daily for all of His grace, and power, and love that sustained us, and for healing Ben.


I can't believe sometimes that these are the same little boy...

God has brought us so far!

A few things that God showed me during that time...

1. His ways are not our ways, His plans are not our plans, but they are definitely good!  I had all of these plans for the hospital stay, and all these ideas for what it would look like, and only getting to have my son with me for a couple of hours, then him getting ill and being rushed off to another hospital, while I got discharged quickly and then spending the rest of Alain's paternity leave, and the first week of my mom's time with us in the NICU was not in my plans!  But God used that time to show us his personal love for me and taught me to trust Him more through so many ways that wouldn't have happened apart from this trial.  I still wish Ben wouldn't have ever had a seizure, but I see God's goodness through them!

2. My husband is amazing.  Prior to Ben's delivery, I used to go for walks around my neighborhood and used that time to pray for various things.  One day I was praying for the labor & delivery, and just felt led specifically to pray that God would use this time to increase my love & respect for my husband, and He certainly answered that prayer.  During my labor, it was so evident to me that no one could have cared for me during that time better than him.  And when Ben was in the NICU, Alain led us as a couple so well in trusting in God.  2 specific instances stand out to me...
--One day we had to go take care of various things to get Ben enrolled on our medical insurance before going to the hospital that morning to see him.  The errands took longer than expected, and the longer they took, the more anxious I became to go see my little boy.  Rather quickly, fear began to grip my heart, as I became assured that "something was wrong" with Ben and I began to cry.  Alain was so patient and had me open to Romans 8 and read it aloud.  That truth was exactly what I needed to hear in that moment, and I was so grateful that my husband cared for my soul in that way!
--On the day we met with the neurologist to go over Ben's MRI results, the doctor told us that there were multiple areas of swelling still in Ben's brain, and that damage could lead to disabilities that would only be revealed with time.  Alain's response was one of trusting in God immediately, that he would guide us and give us grace for whatever He had in store for Ben.

3. God uses the Body of Christ to care for His children!  Our whole church was praying for us almost immediately, and they quickly mobilized to bring us 2 meals a day.  Christian friends from all over were praying and encouraging us.  Christians that we didn't even know, but who knew people who knew us started praying and sending us encouragement notes!  God used this encouragement and prayers to strengthen our faith so much during that time.

So how is Ben now?
He is doing very well!  There has been so sign of any seizures since he came home, praise the Lord.  He has been doing all of the normal new baby things...eating, sleeping, pooping. :-)  He has been able to lift his head up well and look all around, and this past week he started smiling, mostly at his papa!  He is still taking anti-seizure medication, which most likely he will take until he is at least 6 months old.  We have had one follow up with his neurologist, where he did some testing on his reflexes, which he did well on. He will be evaluated by an occupational therapist next week to see if he is meeting his developmental milestones or if he will need some help with that, but from what we can tell, he seems to be doing fine so far, so it may be too early to know if he will need therapy of any kind.   He will have another MRI & EEG in mid-June to compare to his last MRI & EEG to see if the swelling has gone down in his brain.

He is such a precious boy and we are so blessed to be his parents. :-)  I love seeing how excited he is to see me first thing in the morning.  He makes his cutest faces between 2-5 a.m., which makes it hard to put him back to sleep.  I love watching him spend time with Alain.  They already love each other so much, and Ben always seems calmer and happier when Alain is home.  I love it when he falls asleep on me & when his little hand grasps my shirt while I'm feeding him.  I love how he listens intently when I read him a story out of his Kid's Bible.  There is so much to love about this season!!

Of course, there are times when he is crying and crying and I can't figure out why, and he doesn't seem to like to take naps during the day, but that only makes for a cranky baby by the afternoon, and mamma is suffering from sleep deprivation too!  But getting to hold him and see him smile or look around makes it all worth it.  I love being a mom!