BABY SUMMER
Donation protected
Most of the people that follow me know that my daughter Haley is expecting a baby- I posted some beautiful pictures a few weeks back.
Haley went into premature labor at 33 weeks and was admitted to the hospital. They were able to stop the labor. After a week in the hospital, they sent her home. After the medication to stop contractions wore off, she was re-admitted. That was a little over a week ago. They induced her labor on Sunday, May 26th . Summer was not positioned correctly, so she was born by C-section. Haley’s sister, Jessie, was able to be there in the room. As most of you know, I now live in Oregon.
Baby Summer was born. She was born with a noticeably smaller head than her 35 weeks should be. Many tests were ran. Blood, infectious disease, eyes, ears, heart, genetics, you name it. The baby was transferred to Valley Children’s Hospital on Tuesday, May 28th for a brain MRI. I was able to make it to Fresno on that Wednesday.
My daughter and I waited for the MRI to be read. On Thursday afternoon Dr. Pietz, Chief of Newborn Medicine at VCH came in and asked if the baby was eating well and we said yes, she’s doing great. He said I don’t see any reason why you cannot go home to tomorrow. Haley and I were relieved, but we had not gotten the MRI results. We asked if she was ok. I will remember this for the rest of my life- the doctor said “it’s bad…real bad.” We both were shocked. I felt like someone had put a knife in my heart. Haley began to sob and all I could do was hold her as she held Summer. We asked what does that mean…he just said that they would send us home and set us up with supportive services. I said, no one read the MRI to us, what does this mean?! He looked surprised and sat down. “So this is the first that you’ve heard of this?” HOW IN THE HELL DOES HE NOT KNOW THIS??? I was speechless….I managed to ask what do you mean supportive services? He said to attempt to help her walk, talk, read, etc…and that she may not do any of those things. I asked about life expectancy. He shrugged his shoulders and said “we just don’t know.” He asked if we had any more questions….as if we could even think at this moment. He notified us that he wouldn’t be in the next day and he was “really sorry.” ARE YOU F**** KIDDING ME?!?!
SHOCK, GRIEF, FEAR, HELPLESSNESS, ANGER….every emotion you could ever feel all at once. The next 24 hours were like walking in a fog- with UNANSWERED questions. I put a message out to some close friends about what was happening and they put me in touch with Dr. Lebby.
Dr. Lebby was soon in our room at VCH. He asked if anyone had read the MRI to us. We told him we were just told “it is bad, real bad….” He told us to give him 30 minutes to review the MRI and he would come back. He did. He led us downstairs to his office and put Summer’s MRI up on the screen. Dr. Lebby explained what we were seeing on the screen. He explained how the brain develops from the inside out, sending cells to form the layers of the brain. He said that somewhere along the way there weren’t enough cells and some of Summer’s brain had not developed in many areas. There were areas where there should be brain mass that were filled with fluid. He said that there was some blood present inside the brain, most likely from a stroke. This would quite possibly explain what happened when Haley went into premature labor. He told us that he could not tell what Summer will be capable of. He said that Summer is prone to have seizures and may or may not be able to see. He said that Haley may have to make decisions in the future about feeding tubes and respiratory machines. He was honest. This was very hard to hear as I am sure you can imagine. It’s as if you are outside of your body watching a movie.
Dr. Lebby told my daughter “Your pregnancy was like a trip and you thought that you were going to bask in the sun in Hawaii. You packed your bags and your bikini and suntan lotion. You got onto the plane and when they opened the doors you got out and you were in Alaska. It is cold and you have to wear a jacket. It’s not what you were expecting, but everyday that you are in Alaska you find out there are beautiful and amazing things there. He hugged and congratulated my daughter on a beautiful baby and told her that everyday Summer will let us know what she needs and what she is capable of. We thanked him for treating us with respect and answering and explaining everything to us.
We brought Summer home on Friday, May 31st. There is a lot of uncertainty. There are emotional highs and lows. One thing I am certain of- Haley and Summer need to be close to family. My husband and I are in the process of securing a place for her where we live now in Oregon. It has been challenging as rentals are hard to find there. We are working on a short term place first and then a long term place. One thing at a time.
I don’t know that any family could ever plan for this. I know that I have been through many things in my life, but this is by far the hardest thing I have had to wrap my mind around.
Then there’s Summer. She is beautiful. She is perfect to us. She is eating, drinking, and doing everything a baby should be doing at 11 days old. Only time will tell what she will accomplish. One thing is sure….everyday will be SUMMERTIME.
All funds raised will aide in relocation and potential medical costs associated with Summers care.
Thank you
Haley went into premature labor at 33 weeks and was admitted to the hospital. They were able to stop the labor. After a week in the hospital, they sent her home. After the medication to stop contractions wore off, she was re-admitted. That was a little over a week ago. They induced her labor on Sunday, May 26th . Summer was not positioned correctly, so she was born by C-section. Haley’s sister, Jessie, was able to be there in the room. As most of you know, I now live in Oregon.
Baby Summer was born. She was born with a noticeably smaller head than her 35 weeks should be. Many tests were ran. Blood, infectious disease, eyes, ears, heart, genetics, you name it. The baby was transferred to Valley Children’s Hospital on Tuesday, May 28th for a brain MRI. I was able to make it to Fresno on that Wednesday.
My daughter and I waited for the MRI to be read. On Thursday afternoon Dr. Pietz, Chief of Newborn Medicine at VCH came in and asked if the baby was eating well and we said yes, she’s doing great. He said I don’t see any reason why you cannot go home to tomorrow. Haley and I were relieved, but we had not gotten the MRI results. We asked if she was ok. I will remember this for the rest of my life- the doctor said “it’s bad…real bad.” We both were shocked. I felt like someone had put a knife in my heart. Haley began to sob and all I could do was hold her as she held Summer. We asked what does that mean…he just said that they would send us home and set us up with supportive services. I said, no one read the MRI to us, what does this mean?! He looked surprised and sat down. “So this is the first that you’ve heard of this?” HOW IN THE HELL DOES HE NOT KNOW THIS??? I was speechless….I managed to ask what do you mean supportive services? He said to attempt to help her walk, talk, read, etc…and that she may not do any of those things. I asked about life expectancy. He shrugged his shoulders and said “we just don’t know.” He asked if we had any more questions….as if we could even think at this moment. He notified us that he wouldn’t be in the next day and he was “really sorry.” ARE YOU F**** KIDDING ME?!?!
SHOCK, GRIEF, FEAR, HELPLESSNESS, ANGER….every emotion you could ever feel all at once. The next 24 hours were like walking in a fog- with UNANSWERED questions. I put a message out to some close friends about what was happening and they put me in touch with Dr. Lebby.
Dr. Lebby was soon in our room at VCH. He asked if anyone had read the MRI to us. We told him we were just told “it is bad, real bad….” He told us to give him 30 minutes to review the MRI and he would come back. He did. He led us downstairs to his office and put Summer’s MRI up on the screen. Dr. Lebby explained what we were seeing on the screen. He explained how the brain develops from the inside out, sending cells to form the layers of the brain. He said that somewhere along the way there weren’t enough cells and some of Summer’s brain had not developed in many areas. There were areas where there should be brain mass that were filled with fluid. He said that there was some blood present inside the brain, most likely from a stroke. This would quite possibly explain what happened when Haley went into premature labor. He told us that he could not tell what Summer will be capable of. He said that Summer is prone to have seizures and may or may not be able to see. He said that Haley may have to make decisions in the future about feeding tubes and respiratory machines. He was honest. This was very hard to hear as I am sure you can imagine. It’s as if you are outside of your body watching a movie.
Dr. Lebby told my daughter “Your pregnancy was like a trip and you thought that you were going to bask in the sun in Hawaii. You packed your bags and your bikini and suntan lotion. You got onto the plane and when they opened the doors you got out and you were in Alaska. It is cold and you have to wear a jacket. It’s not what you were expecting, but everyday that you are in Alaska you find out there are beautiful and amazing things there. He hugged and congratulated my daughter on a beautiful baby and told her that everyday Summer will let us know what she needs and what she is capable of. We thanked him for treating us with respect and answering and explaining everything to us.
We brought Summer home on Friday, May 31st. There is a lot of uncertainty. There are emotional highs and lows. One thing I am certain of- Haley and Summer need to be close to family. My husband and I are in the process of securing a place for her where we live now in Oregon. It has been challenging as rentals are hard to find there. We are working on a short term place first and then a long term place. One thing at a time.
I don’t know that any family could ever plan for this. I know that I have been through many things in my life, but this is by far the hardest thing I have had to wrap my mind around.
Then there’s Summer. She is beautiful. She is perfect to us. She is eating, drinking, and doing everything a baby should be doing at 11 days old. Only time will tell what she will accomplish. One thing is sure….everyday will be SUMMERTIME.
All funds raised will aide in relocation and potential medical costs associated with Summers care.
Thank you
Organizer
Jenifer Alcorn
Organizer
Brookings, OR