Maintenance

Nothing terribly exciting today, status quo. Rebecca's sister, fiance' and mom have headed back to Shreveport, so things are a little quiet and Thomas will just have to be happy with us staring at him. Since there's not a lot going on, I wanted to paste in the emails that I had sent prior to setting up this blog, just so that everything is in one place. Its like watching the History channel. Enjoy..

Sent December 29th "Update on Rebecca and the baby"

Hi to everyone,

Sorry for sending out this information in this format, but things have happened rather quickly and so we have not had time to talk to anyone about what is going on. As some of you may know, Rebecca and I found out just before Thanksgiving that the baby was not growing as quickly as they wanted. We saw a specialist and did some tests and thought we were out of the woods. Last Monday we went back to the specialist for a check up and the progress still was not where it needed to be. Not to get into any great detail, but the baby is not getting the necessary blood to support growth. Rebecca was put on bed rest and we came back in today with the strong possibility of her being required to stay in the hospital, which is what has happened.

At this point, the doctors are trying to keep the baby in the womb as long as it's safe and beneficial, which may be a day or may be a week, or more, it's a day by day thing. Because it is still very early in the pregnancy, once they determine the baby needs to be delivered, the baby will go straight into ICU until term. Rebecca is safe and in good spirits. She is in Baylor, can receive visitors, email and phone calls. We are very hopeful and appreciate any prayers and well wishes you can send her way.
Thank you,
Mike and Rebecca Elliot

Sent January 1st "New Year Update on Rebecca"

First I want to thank everyone who has come by, sent flowers, emailed, called, etc. It has been wonderful and overwhelming. We also really appreciate those of you have shared similar experiences that they or loved ones have gone through. Its really surprising and comforting to know that so many people have had to deal with this and come through it stronger and with positive outcomes.

Since Monday when Rebecca was admitted, we've actually gotten mostly positive news. The biggest issue which hastened all of this has actually subsided. Our specialist was actually surprised by this and was certain that Rebecca would have given birth by now, which makes me wonder how special he really is (just kidding, he's reallly, really good). The baby's heart beat has been consistently strong and the baby really active, especially after Rebecca eats something with sugar in it. The doctors are still very cautious and historically its more of a matter of when the issue comes back as opposed to if. But every day we don't have to do anything increases the odds for the baby and tomorrow is 26 weeks, which is a good milestone.

Again, thank you for all of the offers for support and well wishes. I will send another update next time there's something interesting to share.

Mike and Rebecca

Sent January 2nd "Baby Boy Elliot"

Apparently 26 weeks was more of a milestone than we thought. Despite several good days in a row, the issue that was destined to return, did, and the doctor made the decision to go after him this morning. So rather than going to the Cotton Bowl to root on Ole Miss (which he will be reminded of for the rest of his life), Rebecca and I came to grips with a January baby and went down to Labor and Delivery to wait for the proper time. As predicted, it came right as Texas Tech was about to kick off.

Baby Boy Elliot was born at 1:48pm and weighed exactly 1 pound. So whoever had January 2nd in the baby pool can collect their winnings at the hospital. According to the doctor, every thing went textbook. We got to see the baby before they took him up to the NICU. The nurses said he was cute and looked just like a baby, only smaller. So, so far so good.

Rebecca is resting in Recovery right now and will be moved back up to her room (LR311) this evening. She will remain in the hospital til Tuesday.

We're still working on a name, this kinda snuck up on us.
Mike and Rebecca Elliot

Sent January 4th "We have a name"

It is Sunday evening and we'd like to anounce that we have chosen a name. Before the big reveal, I'd like to thank all of the unsolicited contributors, especially those of you humbly offered up your own. We also got many names related to the Cotton Bowl, but I think Jevan-Graham Snead-Harrell “Cotton” RedRebelRaider Elliot is a bit wordy.

So we're going with Thomas Alexander Elliot.

This will also be the last time I will clog your mailboxes with my cleverly worded emails, at least as it relates to Thomas. I've set up a blog for those of you that would like to keep up with Thomas as we go through the next few months. The blog can be found at http://thomaselliot.blogspot.com/.

Rebecca, Thomas and I would like to once again thank all of you. Its been a very surreal and trying time and things will certainly be challenging going forward. All of your well wishes and support have really made a significant difference. We are overwhelmed and indebted to you. I also apologize that we have not been able to answer everyone's email yet. Please continue to send emails to Rebecca if you get a chance, it truly means alot.

Thank you,
Michael, Rebecca and Thomas