2013 is Luke's Year!

So sorry for all of you who aren't connected to us through Facebook. I tend to type a lot when I blog, so I end up just putting a short update on FB because I am so tired when I get to bed.
Our latest news is that Luke is doing great! After slowly weaning him from the nitric oxide, he has begun weaning on his ventilator rather quickly. We joke that it was because the doctor mentioned that we should be prepared for Luke to need a tracheotomy. However, if he continues to wean from the vent like he has the last few days, we won't need to do that! Today (Saturday), he has been on the lowest vent settings all day and they did a two hour test by putting the ventilator on pressure support mode. This means that Luke was doing all the work of breathing on his own, and the ventilator would just kick in and help if he needed it. We are almost at the two hour mark now, and he has done great! He hasn't shown any signs of getting tired. They will let him rest tonight and do some longer stretches on pressure support tomorrow. If he continues doing well, he should be off the ventilator within a couple days!! We are beyond thrilled and are trying to remain patient so that its done when he is ready and not before.
They have also been weaning back Luke's narcotics, which means he has been a lot more alert. He has done very well when awake, surprising the nurses with his big smiles and contentment. Usually babies are very agitated when you start taking away drugs they have become used to! Since he is more stable, they allowed Andy and I both to hold him today. What therapy for us, but I can tell you that it just makes me more anxious to get him off the vent so I can hold him more (and snuggle tighter)! He definitely knows my voice, and I usually get him to smile several times in a row. :)
As for the other kids, they have had an amazing break. The Warran family surprised us and drove out from Indiana! The kids got to swim at the hotel and play together with all their new toys. I got to have some girl time with my dear friend, and Luke got to meet his Uncle Tim. The guys even snuck away for sushi one night. We also got to see the Allen family for a few days on their way back to Altus from Indiana. Watching Olivia and Carter at with our kids brings us so much joy. We will miss being so close to them when we move to Florida!
As for the rest of the month, we continue to take it a day at a time. Andy is still able to be here on emergency leave. Eli starts back to school on Monday. We have decided to pull Jordan and Drew out of school to try to protect them, and Luke from all the germs that are so prevalent this time of year. We plan to just hunker down once Luke gets home and wait to explore once Luke is a little older. They have told us that he will get sick very quickly, and severely compared to other kids because of his immature lungs and the scarring that they have, and also because of his pulmonary hypertension.
As for me, Luke's smiles are very therapeutic. I am still working on my anxiety over taking him home. I still relive the morning he had to come here often, but less than last week, and less than the first week. I don't yet know how I will be able to sleep, but am working through it all with God. He has been with us every step of this journey, and I know He will help me through the next phase too. I am going to be a lot more protective than I was because I have to for Luke's sake. My guess is that it will make the next few months seem lengthy, but he is worth it!