A breath of fresh air

We finally saw what we've waited a week to see: Anna took a deep breath, all her own. And now Jessica gets to hold her baby girl.
They took Anna off the ventilator shortly before 2 p.m. today. It's a remarkably quick process to pull the hose out of her throat, really. And just like that, she was off and breathing.
Now the biggest problem seems to be that Anna's a little ball of fire. Now that she has the ability to make noise, she doesn't want to keep quiet. She's been crying for most of the hour since they took her off the ventilator.
And that's where Jessica's need to hold Anna came into play. After more than half an hour of not being able to keep Anna happy, the nurse practitioner suggested the age-old crying remedy of mom's embrace. So Jessica's now rocking Anna in the special needs nursery.
It's been an afternoon of joyful weepings here. Jessica and I were both teary-eyed when we saw Anna breathing for the first time. And she's very emotional now that she gets to hold her newborn daughter.
As for me, I'm just a proud papa who's thrilled his little miracle is doing better. She's using nose clips to bring in a little oxygen now, which is a good reminder that there's still a little while left before she's ready to come home. But she cleared a major hurdle today, and I'm feeling so blessed.
-David