Our Bundle of Joy!

In the words of my mom, "y'all've added a little person to your 'Faris wheel of life' ". And of course, we couldn't be more thrilled to have our little Ivey Joy finally here!

Ivey Joy Faris 

Born June 13th

5lbs 9oz. 18in. 

Because of so many peoples prayers, Iveys strong perseverance, and Gods mercy, she has overcome so many obstacles in just her first week here. We are so humbled by what our mighty Lord can do. We had prepared ourselves for everything the doctors had been telling us for months and The Lord has opened many doors. We were told that Iveys intestines would be put into a "silo" bag for 4 to 7 days before they could do the surgery to close up her Gastroschisis.... She was doing so well they did her surgery that night right after she was born.  For a few weeks they said that she would be immediately transported to the Children's  (Egleston) campus for her surgery and recovery. The night she was born we were informed that the Egleston campus' NICU was so full they had no room for Ivey; this was a huge blessing because she would remain at Scottish Rite which is next to Northside and also closer to our home!

In less than a week our little trooper was breathing so well on her own they removed her ventilator. She is now off all of her pain medicine and is only taking an IV drip. She still has a tube that collects her bowel secretion and we are hoping that that will eventually clear-up and that tube can be removed from her mouth....which is really the next step we are waiting on. Once that tube is removed they can slowly begin her feedings (which is the longest process) - praying she takes those well!

It's amazing how you can start to see her little personality already. She is super feisty and a strong little goober. She loves being sung to and having her head rubbed. She HATES baths. She loves being snuggled :) We say this a lot but we cant thank you enough for all the prayers for Ivey and for us as well. There are people we have never even met that have been praying for our family and we are so grateful. Please continue to pray for little Ives and that soon her stomach tube can be removed so that she can begin feedings and also that her bowels tolerate her feedings.

We continue to covet your prayers.

- Trent & Bekah

Update On Baby Ivey

Our little munchkin is growing and as active as ever.  She keeps me busy with eating, sleeping, and doctors visits.  We had 3 doctors visits this week. Monday Ivey had another stress test, Wednesday we met with her pediatric surgeon, and today went to see her perinatal specialist for her weekly ultrasound.

Wednesday we found out that she will definitely be moved by ambulance to Children's in Atlanta as soon as she is born. Of course, I didnt really want to hear that my little girl will be moved to a completely different hospital, but I am thankful that Trent will be able to go with her and I know that at Children's she will get the best care that she needs. Her pediatric surgeon has told us to prepare for her to stay in the Children's NICU anywhere from one to two months.... We have expected this for a few months now.

Today during her perinatal ultrasound they weren't able to get good measurements because she was in  a little ball face down - one of her favorite positions. My little Rolly Polley :) they were very pleased with her breathing.... She was doing well with her "practice breathing" and her heart rate was 165. This is good. However, today they did notice some changes. Her small and large intestines are inflamed.  They were also able to see the hole were the Gastroschisis is and it was fairly big. They also saw that her stomach was also trying to come out as well. These are all not uncommon for babies with this birth defect, and they are confident in her situation especially since her "practice breathing", heart rate, and activity have been very good.

But because Ivey's intestines are now inflamed and her stomach is trying to come out as well, they will induce at 37 weeks (if I have not gone into labor on my own before then). Please pray that we can make it to 37 weeks - naturally it would be best for Ivey to stay in as long as possible to get as much development and nourishment as she can. Please pray that she continues to grow in strength, she's definitely a tough little cookie. It helps ease our minds knowing that she is perfectly happy and in no discomfort.

We know that all of this is in our Lords hands and He will protect our baby girl in the ways He sees fit. There are so many things that are uncertain and that change from week to week with this situation. Thankful for our God who never changes or moves in our times of trials. He is constant.


We are thankful for your continued prayers.