Welcome Madeline Juliana Tawil

We were all a mix of emotions the morning of January 27th. While I was relieved to finally not be pregnant so they could treat my kidney issues, I was scared at how early the baby was going to be. We were told with some certainty that she would spend some time in the NICU immediately following birth. That was a difficult thing to wrap our brains around. My parents were able to get a flight that got in to San Antonio around 3. That worked out well because I was scheduled for a c-section at 5:30. I have to admit, a scheduled c-section is quite different from an emergency one... I did my hair and put on makeup for the first time since all the kidney issues began. Right before we left the house for the hospital, we took a couple of "belly" pictures (as we did right before we went to the hospital with Isabella). It was only the second picture I'd taken this pregnancy. Once at the hospital, things moved along fairly quickly. I had a great group of doctors and nurses - that always helps. After all the pain and frustration over the last few months, it all felt SO worth it at 5:45pm when our beautiful Madeline came into our lives. She was small, as they predicted, but amazingly strong.

Here she is, all 4 lbs. 1 oz. of her:



And as luck would have it, the pregnancy was the sole cause of my kidney block, not the stones. Apparently, Maddie was laying in a position which put pressure on my right ureter (the tube that connects the kidney and the bladder) and it was basically swollen shut. The minute Maddie was delivered, the problem began correcting itself. They determined I didn't need surgery after all and had the tube removed the very next day!