She’s Here — Our GG Girl
On April 7, 2026 at 9:50am, our sweet girl, Gianna Grace Lafferty, was born at UNC Hospital in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
She weighed 6 pounds, 13 ounces and measured 19½ inches long, with APGAR scores of 9 at one minute and 10 at five minutes – strong from the very start.
The moment she was born is one I will never forget. All I remember praying was,
“Lord, please let her cry… please let her keep crying.”
And she did. Praise God.
Her First Days
As expected, Gianna was taken directly to the NICU with Dad on watch, where she stayed until April 10 (her original due date).
From the very beginning, she showed us the strength God placed inside of her. She required no oxygen support, was able to come off the heater early and regulate her own body temperature, and began feeding by bottle while lying on her tummy – a precaution due to the meningocele on the back of her neck as we waited to confirm the skin was strong enough to handle pressure.
Every update felt like grace. Every milestone, a gift.
Once the pediatric neurosurgery team confirmed that it was safe for us to hold her, and that surgery could be delayed, everything changed. We were finally able to hold our girl.
Our next goal was breastfeeding.
A couple of days in, we began noticing some choking during feeds, both with the bottle and occasionally at the breast. While she was doing well overall, the team brought in speech pathology to monitor her more closely.
To ensure safe feeding, an NG tube (a tube from her nose to her stomach) was placed. It was difficult to watch, the wires and tubing taking attention away from her beautiful face and, if I’m honest, interfering with the countless kisses I wanted to give her. But even in that, we knew she was being cared for well.
Because she was doing so well in other areas, she was cleared to move from the NICU to the children’s floor, where we could finally stay with her while they continued monitoring her feeding.
Learning, Testing, and Decisions
The days that followed were full – and at times, overwhelming.
Weekends brought slower progress, which was hard, but we held onto hope for the days ahead.
On Monday, April 13, Gianna underwent a swallow study. The results showed that she was aspirating on all consistencies, sometimes even silently. There are several possible reasons for this – she may need more time to mature and learn, it could be neurological, or it could be related to the meningocele.
The truth is, we don’t fully know yet.
From that point on, we met with many different specialists. It felt like a constant stream of conversations, tests, and decisions. Our sweet girl endured more pokes, pricks, and procedures than we ever imagined in her first couple of weeks of life and we were there for all of it. Watching your child experience discomfort is something that is hard to put into words.
But even in the overwhelm, we saw God’s provision – a comprehensive team forming around her, ensuring that we have the right care and support in place not just now, but for the future.
Eventually, we were faced with an important decision. In order to go home, we needed a safe and sustainable way to feed her — and oral feeding alone was not enough.
We had two options:
Continue with the NG tube, which we would need to replace ourselves if it came out – an emotional challenge that we weren’t particularly ready to take on with a high risk of occurrence due to our strong handsy girl or move forward with a G-tube, a feeding tube placed directly into her stomach through surgery.
After prayer and thoughtful consideration, Shawn and I chose to move forward with the G-tube, which was also the option recommended by her care team.
A Step Forward
On April 17, Gianna had her surgery. And it went beautifully.
Still Waiting, Still Grateful
As I write this, we are still in the hospital. We haven’t left since the day she was born. We are waiting to go home, and while there is nothing medically keeping us here, we are working through the final logistics: ensuring supplies are delivered, care is coordinated, and everything is in place for us to confidently care for her at home.
We are so close.
I can’t wait to introduce her to her family, fur siblings, for her to see her nursery, and to begin settling into a rhythm that is our own.
Holding It All
There have been so many blessings in this story — the greatest being that she is here.
The road ahead still holds many unknowns. Being a first-time mom, healing from a c-section, staying in the hospital for an extended time, navigating decisions, operating on very little sleep – it has been one of the hardest seasons of my life.
And at the same time, it has been one of the most joy-filled.
I cannot believe the Lord has entrusted Shawn and I with this perfect gift and chose us to be her parents here on earth. What an honor it is to love and care for her.
We will cherish her all the days of our life.
Thank you for being here with us. We would love for you to continue to pray with us.
We are choosing love – one day at a time 🤍
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