95 Days and growing

My entries keep getting quicker and quicker (and more poorly written!)! We have growing boys and we rejoice. Yesterday Aaron weighed 4 lbs. 2 oz. and James weighed 7 lbs. 12 oz. James is a big eater and Aaron is on his way there. Aaron is up to 3 bottle feeds a day. He had some additional laser surgery done this past week on his right eye. His eyes are not responding quite the way the Opthamologist would like. He is still at risk for being completely blind in at least one eye. This week we may need to discuss the option of injecting something into the eye that attaches to the molecule that causes ROP. There are potential risks and we will discuss the option with the Opthamologist if the situation progresses. We still have about 3 months of weekly eye check ups until we are out of the woods. The MRI was postponed, as it is very cold where the MRI is located. Aaron will definitely have imaging done before discharge, but not this week. Basically, he is so small that maintaining body temperature for an hour and a half would cause him to lose weight.

James is a good boy; he eats, poops, and sleeps. Hannah is starting to come around. We are seeing fewer behavioral outbursts and a willingness to embrace her brother. Cory's dad is coming this week for a visit. He really misses Mart, but we are thankful for the lone. Thank you for your prayers. The Lord has grown both of the boys and is sustaining us. Enjoy the pictures!

Turning the corner

Real quick....I need sleep. Today was a hard day, but I am trying to focus on the postitive. We dropped by the NICU after one of James' appointments and one of the baby's had passed away. Being that we can relate a little to what the family is going through as far as NICU life goes, it was a little emotional today (this is the third baby we have seen pass since we have been there). Please pray for Zachary's family. One one hand, I am reminded of how quickly things can still change and on the other I am very thankful to God for sustaining Aaron's life. The grat news is that Aaron weighs 3 lbs. 6 oz. He lost 2 oz. yesterday, but he has finally gained substantially. He is doing well. The nurses are having a difficult time getting him to bottle feed, so hopefully he will master this soon. Other than weight and bottle feeding there is nothing complicated to report. So, PRAISE the Lord! Thank you for your prayers.

Hannah is having a difficult time with James being here. Please pray for my wisdom in handling the situation. My mother and mother-in-law are helping out tremendously. I am thankful for their help.

James is definitely gaining weight. He is still on a great schedule and he is still our 'chill' baby. I will post pictures soon. We are enjoying getting to know him and snuggling with him.

Thank you so much for your prayers. Our little squirt (as my dad calls him) is really making forward progress. Next week Aaron will have an MRI of his head which will indicate where he is neurologically. Please pray that whatever the outcome we will feel that we are in God's hands and that He can get us through anything. I have been a little worn down, but find myself turning a corner. Thanks for stopping by.

Settling In

James is settling into our family life just fine. So far he is a relatively easy baby, and hopefully he will stay this way. He gained a whopping 6 oz. his first 4 days with us. Hannah seems to like him and has started taking on the "Big Sister" role. Next week we have many appointments; one day will be a 7 hour day toting him around to all of his specialists. He will see opthamology every week until he is at least 50 weeks old (gestational); these are two hour appointments. He eats and poops well. All is good in James' world.

Aaron is still not gaining weight. Today he was 2 lb. 13 oz. He is not currently fighting anything, but the doctors think all of the work he has done fighting has attributed to his inability to gain weight. We dodged yet another bullet last week. He had an MRI and CT scan to rule out a bone infection. The Neonatologist, Infectious Disease Doctors, and Orthosurgeons all concluded he does not have a bone infection. It turns out that there is no doubt that he has Rickets. Otherwise known as hairline fractures caused by poor nutrition. He is now on full feedings and 27 calorie/ounce formula fortified breast milk (normal breast milk avg. 20 cal/ounce). We are still hoping he turns a corner. His appearance is shocking to me. I had not seen him in 5 days. He looks malnourished. At times he is very alert, looking about his issolette and smiling. He has the most beautiful smile; like his daddy. Please pray his bones do not become infected, that he puts on weight, and makes only forward progress. I hit a wall today and broke down. Obviously I am fearful he may not make it and it times it is frankly heartbreaking.

James is ready for his 11 pm feeding. Thank you for your prayers. We wouldn't be where we are without them.

One down and one to go!

James came home Saturday afteronoon. He is quite the little noise box; even while sleeping constant noise. We are doing pretty well. As usual we have help from my folks (Mom and Dad brought over brisquit - a favorite) and Cory's Aunt Marcia is in town providing all sorts of help. I can't imagine two babies being here. It will be crazy! I know the Lord will equip me to provide and I will have help from our parents.

Hannah is doing pretty well. She kissed "little man" today. She generally giggles and snuggles up by the two of us when I am holding James. There is a little jealousy, but I think it is all par for the course.

Please pray for Aaron. He had a large residual (left over food in the stomach from prior feeding) this morning, so they stopped feeding him breastmilk. We are praying his afternoon x-ray shows no gas pockets (evidence of NEC). He has not gained any weight in the past 3 weeks. Please pray his tummy will heal and that the NEC does not return. [5-21: Aaron's xray came back normal and he was able to feed again. However, he had another large residual last night. He is being watched closely, so I am confident that they are on top of anything that may appear.]

Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. I will keep you posted. I have to go eat and pump while I can!

Love,
Laura

Getting Ready to Celebrate!

Very quick one. Aaron is off the ventilator!!!! He is on the CPAP at 35% O2; I will get some pictures today. He is beginning to feed today. Please pray that the NEC does not return, or he will most likely need surgery. Please pray that the doctors would have wisedom regarding a safe rate to increase his feeds. He is starting with 1 ml. Aaron is still hoovering around 3 lbs. plus or minus an ounce or two depending on the day. Hopefully he will turn the corner and have a "normal" preemie progression.

Due to some apnea, James will not come home until Wednesday - Friday next week. He is 4 lb 4 oz. Please pray his hernia repair and cicumcision goes well (Monday or Tuesday), so that he can come home. Got to go, Hannah is fussing!

Have a nice weekend and thank you for the prayers!

Tuesday

I will be quick. I am getting ready to go to the hospital. I got some antibiotics (first time in 13 years), so I will be free to see the boys. James will likely be home in the next 7 days, so we are getting the house all ready for him. Hannah's new room is set up, now she just needs to sleep in the "big girl bed".

James is doing well. He is 5 lbs. 1oz. He is eating well and occasionally needs help pooping. He will have a car seat challenge tomorrow. The nurses place the baby in the car seat for an hour to make sure they do not have any apnea or bradycardia while riding in the car seat.

Aaron is doing pretty good. He has a raised white blood cell count, so his team is looking for infection via blood cultures and ultrasound. He weighs over 3 lbs. I don't think they have come down on his vent setting anymore. When they are sure he is stable, they may try to take him off all together and see if he can "fly" on his own without the vent but with some other o2 device. James has been visiting Aaron's issolette every other day or so, enjoy the pictures.

Friday

Aaron had laser eye surgery a couple of hours ago. Cory met with the surgeon and felt like it was the obvious and prudent choice to make to go ahead with the surgery. The surgery went well and Aaron tolerated it well. He weighs a strapping 2 lbs. 14 oz. He is through the crucial part of the NEC, but it is still impacting his system. Please pray that the NEC leaves, his system heals, and that it is gone for good! Our little guy has gone through many preemie hurdles, and I pray that this is the last one. He has been stable and cozy most of the week. He is moving quite a bit and probably hates being tied to his vent. His ventilator settings continue to come down. We are hopeful that he will turn a corner and work his way home to us. We don't anticipate him until August.

James is moving to bigger bottle feeds and is a growing boy. He weighs in at 4 lb. 12oz. He still needs some assistance lately pooping, but this is common for preemies. Hopefully he can continue to move forward and take all feedings by bottle. I hope to begin breastfeeding him this week.

We are doing ok here. We have been sick on and off. Our family cold has now taken on a cough. Some days are good, while others we feel awful. I have been laying low the last few days hoping that I am well enough to visit the NICU Sunday or Monday. We have quite a bit of rearranging to do around the house. I am confident it can all happen in the next week. Thank you for your faithfulness, you thoughts, and prayers. Oh, and thank you to whoever sent us a cute and anonymous layette gift from Adventura, Florida. The Lord is most definitely sustaining us. I am amazed at all He is doing in us, but think that in a year I will be even more amazed as I look back on this time. Have a great weekend!