Where Did October Go?

Wow, October has flown by. I guess when you split time between home and the hospital everyday, and try to keep up with the kid's schoolwork, soccer, dance, etc, time goes by quickly! This isn't a complaint though-just a statement of fact. We couldn't be happier with Luke's progress, and the other kids are all healthy and happy (and VERY excited about Halloween)!

Luke Update: He continues to eat from a bottle for 2-3 feedings a day. Some days, he eats the whole thing (just over an ounce) easily, while other days, he only eats half or so. Last night and this morning, he nursed well for the first time! The nurses count it as a "full feeding" if he nurses well for at least 10 minutes. He is getting the specialized high protein, high calorie formula four times a day, and breastmilk four times a day. As of last night at this time, he weighed 3 lbs, 15 oz!! I will call and check on him soon, and see if he has broken the 4 lb mark!
In other news, Eli got his first report card last week and did great. He is reading well above the kindergarten level, but needs to keep working I his fine motor skills. Nothing surprising. We are very proud of him! He has gotten used to being there a full day and gets ready each morning so much better than the beginning of the year.
Drew is still our Drew Bear-just snugly, sweet and ornary! He loves playing outdoors, going to school and play dates, and acting silly. Jordan is sweet as can be, wearing princess dresses daily. She only likes to wear pink socks, so add that to her Christmas list! She "tells stories" all the time, using real people and places, so sometimes, she really sounds convincing!
Also, Andy will leave for training in San Antonio in a month. We really hope and expect Luke to be home by then, and want to enjoy our time together as a family much as we can before he leaves. We haven't told the older kids yet about him leaving, but are going to start preparing them this weekend. I know it will be hard on them, especially since I was gone for a month unexpectedly. We are in our "groove" again, but will adapt as needed next month. We just hope and pray that none of these big transitions affect them negatively behaviorally now or in the future. Oh, and if you feel led to pray for us, please include me (Cathy) in them for patience, health, and sleep in the coming months! We have had so much going on over the past few months that I haven't been able to, nor wanted to, think about this next phase of our journey. I am a bit anxious, but know God will give us guidance and strength to get through it.

Bottles, Aunt Brandy, and More!

Luke continues to do well. He weighs 3 lbs, 9 oz tonight, which is the same as yesterday. The doctors are keeping a close eye on his weight gain curve because they think he should be gaining a bit faster than he is. Right now, he gets a high calorie formula twice a day and breastmilk at his 6 other feeding times. They can add another formula feeding in if necessary, so we will see what he does this week. He took his first full bottle from me yesterday, and another one for his nurse. Today, he took one again for me. Then, he took less than half for the nurse, and about 3/4 for Andy tonight. We are allowed to try bottle feedings up to 3 times a day right now. He will have to take all his feedings by bottle before he can go home, so we still have some growing to do.

We had a great visit with Brandy. She amazed me everyday at the amount of things she got done for us! The kids loved her, including Luke, as you can see in these photos. We miss her already!!

I am typing on my phone, so that is all for now. We are all doing great. Watch for Halloween photos next week. Luke has a costume ready that we got from Build-A-Bear!! :)

Eli Meets Luke, Luke's 1st Bath, and More...

Last week, the kids had Fall Break, so they had 3 days off of school.  We did lots of fun stuff since Andy was still off work, including going to the Martin Nature Park and making Halloween cut-out cookies.  It was nice not to have anywhere we HAD to be (ie soccer, dance, school).  Eli got to go to the hospital and meet Luke on that Friday!!  The rules at Baptist NICU is that only siblings ages 5 and older can go in, so Jordan and Drew got to stay in the lobby and play on the IPad, which they were okay with, surprisingly. 

This week, we have been blessed to have Brandy here to visit and help.  She has been ridiculously busy keeping up (and getting ahead) on my housework, playing with the kids while I visit Luke, and of course, meeting and cuddling on Luke!  She was my photographer on Wednesday night when we went up to the hospital and gave Luke his first bath.  ;)  He enjoyed it for the most part.  He was wide awake afterwards, so we got some great photos!  He is doing well this week.  We try to give him a bottle or two a day, but he hasn't really been interested in them.  He may take a few milliliters, which is less than what he did the first couple of times we tried.  He is up to 3 lbs 8 oz, and is awake more often.  He is "cranky" sometimes, and the nurses theorize that he is afraid of the dark.  Ha!  He will fuss at them until they come over and pull back the cover on his isolette, which lets some light in, and then he stops crying.  They say every baby is different, and he is one that likes the lights and noise more than others.  I told them that it was good he is like this because of the craziness he is going to come home to!  Also, he had his second head ultrasound this week and it was normal. 

Today, Eli, Brandy and I went and saw Luke briefly in between a birthday party at the science museum and Drew's second soccer game of the day.  Eli held Luke for the first time, and loved it.  He kept tickling his chin, saying "gucci, gucci, goo", and saying how cute Luke was.  He is definitely a proud big brother!  

Once again, this site will not upload my photos!  I created a photo album on Facebook titled Fall Photos, which all the photos I was going to put on here are now in.  Check it out if you are interested, and I will try again sometime to get some on here...

More Photos

I am holding Luke as I type! He is swaddled and wearing adorable preemie size pajamas that his big brother Drew once wore (good thing I held onto all those preemie clothes to loan out to friends)! Here are some fun photos from today and yesterday.

He continues to just thrive! The nurses all say that they can't believe he is only 32 weeks because he acts like such a "big boy". He is getting dressed and swaddled now, but is still in his isolette with the temperature turned down. Today, they have started giving him a protein supplement twice daily for calories. He weighs 3 lbs, 6 oz, which is up from last week when he was down to 3 lbs, 2 oz. Also today, they are letting him attempt to bottle feed twice daily! I was here this morning when his nurse gave him his first bottle and he sure acted like he knew what he was doing!! However, he only took 5 ml of his 30 ml bottle. We didn't want to push it, so let him start there. For reference, 30 ml is only about 1 oz, and he gets it every 3 hours. They feed him the 30 ml through his NG tube over a 1 hour timeframe, and then he gets 2 hours to digest it before the next feeding.

He continues to be off all oxygen, and only gets morphine once or twice a day (still from weaning from the other narcotic, fentanyl). He loves his pacifier, and holds it in with his hands sometimes! He has long fingers that are adorable to me. :) He is still on caffeine, which is normal for preemies. That is most of what I know!! Now, enjoy the photos.

Some Fun Photos

Here are some pictures of Luke from this weekend. The one with Mark and Chantelle is from Tuesday. As you can see, Luke continues to do well and is growing. He loves his pacifier now that his feeding tube is in his nose instead of his mouth. He is awake and alert more, and gives the nurses an ear full once in awhile when he isn't happy. I will post more medical detailed update later when I have my notes in front of me from our care conference with the neonatologist. Right now, I am on my phone because I am holding our little man!! We love to nap together!

12 days old: Update and Photos

Just wanted to apologize for not having more updates for everyone.  Luke is doing great!  There haven't been any huge changes for him, so there hasn't been alot to share.  Besides, the other 3 keep me pretty busy when I am home with them.  I have held Luke every morning this week, and we both look forward to our time together.  He didn't even cry today while I was getting him ready to pick up.  It's like he knew what was going to happen, so he was being patient.  :)  The nurses agree that the boy has a temper, and a good set of lungs (yes, quite the contrast to his birth day).  He can cry loud enough for them to hear him across the room, with his isolette closed.  Here are some updates from the past week:

He is off of his blood pressure medicine; his head ultrasound was good, showing no indication of any brain bleeds, which are common in preemies; his heart valve and other minor heart issues have all resolved; he is on 3 liters of oxygen through his nose cannula, and going down on it appropriately as his lungs are able to do more of the work as they develop; he has been on and off phototherapy for high levels of bilirubin; he is getting 7 ml of breastmilk an hour through his OG tube in his mouth, which is almost a full feeding.  He needs to be able to tolerate a full feeding because they aren't able to get a PICC line in him, which is how they supplement their nutrition.  So, we thought for a day that he may have to get a central line put in, which meant surgery, but instead, the doctors decided to challenge him and see if he could handle increasing his feedings and he has!  He has an iv in his hand with fluids for now, and will be weaned off the fentanyl (pain medicine) by tomorrow.  His routine xrays, blood gases, and tests all look great also.

SO...we are thrilled, and hope and pray that his progress continues.  There is still alot he needs to get through before he is able to be home with us, but we are making great strides in the right direction.  Oh, and is his back at his birth weight of 3 lbs 5 oz, which is good.  Below are a few photos.  I will try to take more this week and post.  Each of the kids has a photo of him to share with their friends and teachers, and they are excited to show him off.  They each have decided what they want to do when he comes home.  Jordan is going to sing him a lullaby; Drew is going to rock him; and Eli is going to change his diapers!  I am feeling great, and am able to do more with them, like push them on the swings and play, so they are happy about that.  They say, "your boo boo is ALMOST better!"  They are waiting for the day that I can give them piggy back rides again....it won't be long!

Kangaroo Care

On Friday, we said goodbye to Andy's parents, who headed back to Indiana.  We all went up to the hospital after lunch so they could see Luke one more time before leaving.  Much to my surprise, the RN was taking out Luke's arterial line, which meant he could finally be held!!  For those who don't know, "kangaroo care" is skin to skin contact between a parent and their child, and it has many benefits that have been researched and proven over the years.  So, I got to hold Luke for the first time!  It was the best feeling in the world (as every Mom knows), and I wished it would have lasted forever.  Andy had Jordan and Drew there, and kept them busy with a trip to the cafeteria and books/games on the IPad, while I spent an hour and a half holding our boy.  He loved it too, making little noises that resembled a mouse squeak.  He didn't move a muscle either.  I loved it so much that after putting the kids to bed, I went back to the hospital (drove myself) and held him again for another hour that night.  On Saturday, Andy stayed home with the kids and Luke and I cuddled for about 3 hours, napping on and off together.  Today, I let Andy finally have a turn. :) I have some photos of our latest milestone, and my computer finally let me load them.  Enjoy!

Luke is 1 Week Old! The Story of His Birth...

I apologize now that I haven't updated the blog as much as I would have liked to during this past week.  Hopefully, this post will give our family and friends some insight into how this week has been for us.  I will start with the day Luke was born, and give some updates of his progress.  When Andy and I were in the NICU the other day, we talked about this blog, and our story, and what we hope to share through it.  For me, it is HOPE and for Andy, it is TRUST.  We have come such a long way on our faith journey the last 6 years, and still aren't the best at sharing God's love in the way that we should.  We used to think that people should keep their faith to themselves.  I know that personally, I always thought it was hypocrytical of people at funerals or during a tragedy to talk about God, when I felt that these people didn't talk about God at other times.  I felt like they were "using" God to make themselves feel better about a situation.  I just want to share that because I know there are so many of you at different parts of your faith journey (or maybe you don't believe at all right now, and this makes you uncomfortable), but we KNOW that God was with us during this time (as He always is), and it isn't something that we just say.  We feel Him guide us through our prayers, our friends, the hospital staff, and our "intuition", which we believe is the Holy Spirit guiding us in our decisions.  That all being said, here is how Luke joined our family last week, and how it renewed our faith, hope, love and trust in God.

I posted that I was going to have a scheduled c-section at 1:00pm on Thursday.  My doctor wanted to do it at 7am, but my nurse told her that Andy wouldn't be here by then because he had all of the kids to get ready for school and a playdate.  Plus, they were really booked that day with elective c-sections, which they needed to work around or reschedule.  Hence, the 1pm decision was made.  I was so thankful because the entire time I was on bedrest, I prayed for a calm delivery.  Both of my other c-sections were "emergency" situations, and they were so stressful.  I labored for both of them clear to the point of delivery, and then had surgery in which everyone was rushed and on edge.  Well, this time would be no different.  My nurse came in at 9:45 am and said, "You are having a c-section NOW.  Well, at 10:30 or sooner.  The baby's baseline heart rate has changed and he needs to come out."  Andy wasn't there yet, so I called and he was fortunately, on his way and hurried.  They prepared me, and off to the OR we went.  I really did better staying calm this time through a conscious effort to do so, but I was scared.  We both were.  We had wanted Luke to grow as long as possible in utero, but also had to ask ourselves each time we stopped contractions, or waited another day, if we were waiting too long.  My doctor shared our concern, which was one reason we loved her so much.  She was going above and beyond to do what was best for Luke, and we trusted her completely.

 Once in the OR, my doctor had to wait on the NICU staff to deliver Luke, and everyone was getting a bit tense waiting.  They had been called several times, but weren't there yet.  I will never forget the multiple times that I heard Dr Mills say "I've never seen..."  It isn't the best feeling in the world to hear that when you are laying on an OR table cut open!  They got Luke out, and the instant she showed him to me, I fell even more in love with him.  I told Andy, "He looks big!  Like a baby, and not an alien" (compared to the triplets at birth).  They took him to the corner and began to try to intubate him.  The anesthesiologist told Andy to wait to go over and take pictures, so Andy stood by my head and watched them.  And I watched Andy.  It was a LONG 5 minutes.  He was worried, and kept shaking his head from side to side.  I tried to not watch him, so that I would stay calm, but I couldn't help it.  I asked Andy if they were doing CPR, and he said that he thought so.  We were scared beyond belief.  Why?  How?  We feared the worst.  I share this because we don't want people to think that just because we have faith, that we just float through life, and act nieve about bad situations.  NO.  We experienced all kinds of emotions in those 5 minutes: anger, doubt at our decision, fear, grief.  We both wondered silently why God would give us this miracle pregnancy to have it end with the baby dying in the OR.  But, during this time, we never gave up our belief in God, and we had HOPE and TRUST that God would get us through whatever the outcome; and that God could and would save Luke's life if that was His will.  We found out later that it took them two tries to get Luke intubated.  The first time, they thought they were in the right spot, but heard no breath sounds, so they took it out and re-intubated him, applying alot of pressure, and heard something "pop", and then heard breath sounds.  So, when I say "5 minutes", it really was that long because they told us that is how long it took them to get him breathing.  They then prepped him and took him in an incubator to the NICU.  Andy got a few photos, which we have shared, and I got to go see him in the NICU a few hours later.  Oh, and his heart never did stop beating in the OR.  What Andy thought was chest compressions, was actually them pushing so hard on his chest to get him intubated.

While all of this was going on in the OR, my doctor shared with her intern and with all of us, how bad Luke's lifeline in utero was.  She said that the placenta was in pieces, and all black and non-viable.  She said she had no idea how he survived, let alone grew with that as his nutrition source.  She also said that his umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck.  She untwisted it and went to pull on it and it fell apart in her hands.  She had never seen anything like it.  As I listened, I felt peace knowing that God is how Luke stayed alive in utero, and not any other reason!  She said that I had "holes all over my uterus", which again, she hadn't seen before.  She also shared that I had endometriosis "everywhere" and it was the worst she had ever seen in a pregnant woman.  Dr Mills said that if we hadn't already decided to tie my tubes, she would have recommended it during surgery.  In fact, she wants me to have a hysterectomy before we move to Florida!  I don't know that is going to happen, but I appreciate her honesty.  After hearing how bad my "insides" were, I felt even more in awe that we conceived Luke without any fertility treatments.  God chose us to have him, and we are so thankful!!!  He is worth every minute of bedrest, every tear, and every moment of wondering that I have experienced since May.

Well, I knew I would type too much and run out of time and energy for now.  I am going to get some sleep, and will post soon with the latest updates.  Please know that he is doing wonderful now, on his one week birthday.  He is off of his ventilator, has had a normal head ultrasound, and his heart valve is closing with medication.  His chest tube came out earlier this week also, and he is getting breastmilk feeds through a tube in his mouth.  We have only held him over his bed so far, as you see in the photos, but we hope to hold him even closer soon.  The other kids are GREAT.  So thankful for Mommy to be home, and to have had family here helping this past week.  Thank you to all of you for your prayers, gifts, meals, time, and love.  We are blessed!

More photos

I know I said I would write updates and haven't done good with that so far. Here are some photos from last week when my parents were still here. At hospital with Luke now and he is doing well. Lots of good changes this week, we hope, so I will update more later.