Making Progress

Last week was a big week for Elliot! He hit the 5-pound mark and weighs five pounds, three ounces - a pound above his birth weight. He also was moved out of his isolette and has been regulating his own body temperature for five days now with no problems. So those are two HUGE praises.

The only hurdle left is eating. Little guy is working hard on his feedings. He starts every bottle now and finishes about half of them, which is a huge improvement. As soon as he starts finishing all of them, we'll be able to bring him home. How sweet that day will be!

As much as I love and appreciate the doctors and nurses at Woman's, I'm so ready not to see that place every day! It's been a crazy summer for sure and I can't wait to get back to some sort of normalcy.

Whenever I visit Elliot, there is always some quiet time where somehow all of the other babies stop crying, the beeping machines seem to go into a lull and the nurses give us some space. I use this time to pray over my boy. The prayer is always about the same and it covers his mind, body and heart. It's not all that different from what I pray for Adele, but obviously there are some pointed differences. I would love to share with y'all what's on my mind when I say this prayer every day.

• Mind: I pray that somehow, some way he will not be held back academically. I am not naive. I realize the chances of him going to college and becoming a degreed professional are extremely slim, but I do pray that we find resources that will help him keep up with and excel in his schoolwork within his abilities. I pray that he can be ready for mainstream kindergarten with minimal aids and down the line is able to hold a steady job where he can feel successful, fulfilled and independent. 
• Body: I pray that he develops physically. I've read a lot of information on how long it takes for Down syndrome children to sit up, crawl and walk. It breaks my heart to know that many of his little friends will be running circles around him while he might still be struggling to sit up. I will accept whatever comes our way, but I do pray that we are sent physical therapists that will help us help him achieve his milestones at the front end of the statistics that I've seen.
• Heart: More so  than what I've prayed for his mind and body, I pray that Elliot's life is full of love. I pray that Justin and I cover him with love every day. I pray that our love for Christ shines through us to him and encourages him to build a personal relationship with Jesus. I pray that the love of Christ fills his heart completely and that he will fully understand what this love means. And though I realize through the scriptures that not everyone is meant to marry, I do pray that (one day far from now) he finds a special girl one day that will love him for who he is and vice-versa. And, if that girl is out there somewhere I pray all of these things for her heart too. 

I pray about a lot of other things too for both Adele and Elliot, but what's listed above is usually what I focus on. I have come to treasure this quiet time in the NICU when it's just the two of us and I can just pour out my heart over him. In a way I might actually miss it and will probably always look back fondly on this prayer time once he's home.