Exciting Times

Hi all! Well Morgan is doing AWESOME! He was extubated again on Wednesday January 21st and has done awesome since then. I was a little nervous because the last time didn't go so well but this time he is doing much better. Yesterday the nurse took off his CPAP helmet so we could see his whole face. He did pretty well with nothing but he was working too hard at breathing. Today while my mom and I were holding Morgan the nurse put him on just the nasal cannula so we could see his face again and he did well on that too. They still put his CPAP back on after we were done holding him because they don't want to push him too fast to prevent a major set back. I am so relieved his breathing is improving because I knew that would be his biggest hurdle. He is still eating well and is up to 4 pounds 2.5 ounces and 15 inches long. He might soon graduate to another NICU pod where the "big boys" are where the main focus is eating and getting bigger to get ready to go home. He still won't come home until March but we are getting there! Other big new is that Brad got to change his first diaper for Morgan.

There was a new born baby next to Morgan when Brad and I went to visit him Friday night that ended up not making it. I am not sure how old the baby was, it looked small but it was a reminder how lucky we are that Morgan is doing well. I added the pictures I took this weekend. There is also a video of Morgan hiccuping, it was hilarious, it was so high pitched. It might be a little hard to hear because the doctors were talking in the background.

Hi everyone. Here are some more pictures. The date on some of them is wrong, I forgot to reset the date on my camera. Morgan is up to 3 pounds 14 ounces....almost 4 pounds!!! He is still doing very well. The big news is they tried extubating him on January 14th but they had to reintubate him on the 15th because he required too high of an oxygen level and he was working too hard at breathing. He just needs more time before they try again. That is going to be the biggest hurdle for him....getting off of the ventilator, but he will get there eventually. The top picture is of him with his CPAP mask on when they tried extubating him. Other big new is that he now gets to wear clothes. He is wearing an outfit in a couple of the pictures above. Also, my mom got to hold him yesterday when she came down.

Hi everyone. Morgan would have been 31 weeks today but he is 6 weeks and 3 days. He was up to 3 pounds 11 ounces, but he is down to 3 pounds 7 ounces because they have stopped his feeds again. Yesterday he was showing signs of an infection so he was started on antibiotics and his feeding was stopped. The doctors said by the time he is full term he will have the immune system just like any other baby born at full term. He will be more susceptible to respiratory bugs and we will need to keep him away from highly populated areas for a while. Hopefully they will start feeding him again tomorrow...it kills me to think he is hungry, but he might not be feeling very hungry if he isn't feeling well. He was very lethargic yesterday but was more himself today by moving around more. They have also started him on another medication to help his lungs and it might be making a difference because for the past two days he has only needed around 22% oxygen which is good, he was up around 35-45%. He is still sensitive to people messing with him but he seems to be getting a little better with that. Hopefully this "attitude" isn't a sign of things to come when he gets older! I really can't wait until he is off of the ventilator. It kills me to see him crying but he can't make any sound. The ventilator blocks the vocal cords. I got to hold him again the other day for 3 hours. That is about all for now. Hope everyone is doing well!

Update

Hey everyone. Well lets see....Morgan is up to 3 pounds 8 ounces!!! He is getting huge which I am so excited about. He is tolerating his feeds very well so he should keep putting on more weight. They decreased his ventilator settings again today so he is on the right track. We found out the other day that he has a hernia on one side for now, that they will just keep an eye on and operate on right before he goes home.

Unfortunately I will have to go back to work on January 22nd, my maternity leave is over and I want to save my paid time off for when he comes home. I also get 10 working days of parental leave which I can take when he comes home. So starting the end of January I will go down maybe one weeknight and then on weekends to see him. I know he is in good hands with the doctors and nurses down there and I will be ready here to take care of him when he comes home.

Update and more pictures!

Hi everyone. Morgan is still doing well. He has come down on his ventilator settings over the past few days so hopefully that means he is on his way to coming off of it.

In the first two pictures Morgan was using the booties and blanket someone had knitted for him. I'm not sure who made them, the nurse just said they were in his Christmas stocking. In the third picture Morgan is sprawled out, he was stretching his arms and legs out at the same time, it was so funny. In the fifth picture the nurse was changing the stabilizer on his ventilator tube so we were able to see more of his face. The mark on his face is the residue from the glue the use to keep the stabilizer on.

Morgan is one month old today

I hope everyone had a good Christmas. Brad came down to Charlottesville on Christmas eve to see Morgan and spend time with me. Brad got to hold Morgan for the first time on Christmas eve, he really enjoyed that. I have some pictures that I will upload later. We both went home Christmas afternoon to spend time with family. My sister and mom came down this morning to see Morgan, he has really grown. He is up to 2 pounds 15 ounces...almost 3 pounds! He is really filling out now. They started his feedings again yesterday and so far so good. I really think the next big hurdle is getting him off of the ventilator. His settings aren't as low as they would like but I guess they are slowly lowering them. The doctors seemed to be contemplating giving him a dose of steroids but are hesitant to do that if he is able to lower the settings and come off of the ventilator himself. That is about all that is going on here. I'll try to post pictures soon.

Update

Hi everyone. Sorry it has been so long since my last post. Things have been crazy! We went to closing on our new house in Bristow last Wednesday and have been painting, working on the house and moving since. I came home for a couple of days to help paint but Brad has had to do the moving on his own. He has done a really great job with taking care of everything back home!

Morgan is doing well. Today he was up to 2 pounds 10 ounces! I think he will gain and then lose a little, gain and then lose a little. He is definitely looking bigger though. It was really hard to be away from him for the 4 days I was at home. I called everyday to check on him. The second day I was home I called and the nurse had said that his left lung had collapsed and he was up on his oxygen which is something that happens with babies that have lung disease. One thing I didn't understand and am starting to realize is that most premature baby has lung disease just because their lungs are under developed. The severity of the disease varies with every baby. Morgan's chest xrays are looking better and he is down on his oxygen. I read on Webmd though that some children can out grow their lung disease which is hopeful. He will be on the ventilator for at least a couple of more weeks before they try to extibate him again.

The doctors also thought Morgan had some sort of intestinal infection because he had blood in his stool one day. They stopped his feedings and started him on antibiotics. They will start feeding him slowly again this Friday and see how he does. But other than those things he is doing well. He still looks great and is acting the same. The nurse also said that because he was still acting the same and responding to stimuli and opening his eyes that that was a sign that there are no neurological issues. It has definitely been a roller coaster ride so far but I feel that in the end it will all work out. I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!