12/15/99 - 2:30am

Although this photo looks a bit ominous, Mom and Dad were extremely proud of her at this time. This photo was taken when Stela was 45 minutes old. However she was already breathing on her own. The blue tube on the right was part of a ventilator that was there as a precaution. But from the beginning, Stella was breathing, fussing and doing everything that a normal baby was supposed to. The sensors on her torso were for monitoring her breathing, heart beat and blood-oxygen level. She also had an IV tube in her umbillical cord.

1/5/00 - 7:00pm

Dad tried to be diligent and take photos and video every Wednesday, the day Stella was born. This one was the third week. We happened to catch her without the feeding tube that she usually had in. She looks much more like a baby in this picture than a patient!

1/26/00 8:15pm

Finally! Although the nurses and doctors took wonderful care of our little girl, we were happy to bring her home. Stella left Lucille Packard Childrens Hospital on January 26th, 2000, six weeks after being born! As you can tell Stella is just thrilled to be leaving.