"Essie"

Austin and Grandma Susan came to the hospital to meet "Essie" today. (Zach and I thought we picked a nickname-proof name for our little girl...leave it to our two year old to prove us wrong.) Austin was pretty eager to go in and see her, although once in the NICU he was kind of distracted by all the monitors and machines. He peered in at her, though, and stuck his hand in the isolette to give her a little pat.

Esther is still doing well. Her bilirubin count came down a bit from yesterday on its own, so she may not have to go under the lights. The nurse thinks her breathing sounds better, although the rate is still too high. Her IV got moved to her head, which looks a little sad, but her hands and feet are now free of wires or tubes, except for her pulse oxymeter, which is nice.

Mom brought her new camera, so we got some better pictures than we get with our camera. Esther made some adorable faces for us, and she opened her eyes again! Both of them! Looking in her eyes is so precious.