Aaron came home yesterday!
It was amazing to finally take one of the babies home. We checked him out of Abbot at 12:30pm and then made a trip over to see Anders before leaving. Aaron gave Anders a pep-talk and got to say hello to all of his nurses. Once we got home it was time to introduce him to his canine big brother and sister. The dogs were super curious and excited when we walked into the door. They were trying to smell Aaron’s car seat and figure out what/who he was. Athena settled down first and was gentle the entire time. She even sat at Noah’s feet while he was holding Aaron and rolled over on her back to show submission. Atlas is a different story, being the chicken that he is, he is still confused but excited and happy. He wants to be close to him and has not shown any fear or aggression – just excitement and curiosity. We are definitely going to keep a close eye on them but it seems they are both adjusting to having a baby in the house … if they only knew that there are two more coming!
Asher is doing AWESOME. He got the green light from neurology to come home whenever he is ready. The second head ultra sound showed more improvement so they are changing their plan and not “tapping” him until Wednesday, they will then do another ultra sound and if it looks good they won’t need to see him again for another month! He is still working on his feedings as he still is only taking about half of his full bottles, but once he gets it figured out more he can come home. The updated tentative date for him to come home is THIS THURSDAY!
Anders is also doing well; he is putting on weight and is slowly coming down on his oxygen needs. His breathing also looks less labored so they are hoping they can start turning down his settings next week.
This week will be tough for Mom and Dad, as we will have three babies in three different locations. However, we are extremely grateful we will have the time to ease into having three babies at home!
Happy Memorial Day – stay tuned for some updated pictures!
Weight update: Aaron (6lb 0oz), Asher (5lbs 8oz), Anders (3lbs 3oz)
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Big weight gains this week… Aaron (5lb 8oz), Asher (4lbs 13oz), Anders (3lbs)
Aaron is tentatively scheduled to come home on Saturday! He passed his car seat evaluation (sit in his car seat for one hour without having any heart rate or breathing difficulties) and he has move to un restricted feeds (eat as much as he wants).
Asher had another head ultra sound on Monday, it showed more improvement. The plan is to continue tapering down the frequency and amount of fluid in their tapping. They feel that if everything continues to go well, he could be ready to come home in the next 2-2 ½ weeks. Otherwise his bottle feedings are also going very well and he is finishing the majority of his bottles.
Anders is slowly improving and most importantly he is gaining weight. The doctors feel that his breathing difficulties will resolve themselves as he gets bigger, so we are taking it slow.
Aaron is tentatively scheduled to come home on Saturday! He passed his car seat evaluation (sit in his car seat for one hour without having any heart rate or breathing difficulties) and he has move to un restricted feeds (eat as much as he wants).
Asher had another head ultra sound on Monday, it showed more improvement. The plan is to continue tapering down the frequency and amount of fluid in their tapping. They feel that if everything continues to go well, he could be ready to come home in the next 2-2 ½ weeks. Otherwise his bottle feedings are also going very well and he is finishing the majority of his bottles.
Anders is slowly improving and most importantly he is gaining weight. The doctors feel that his breathing difficulties will resolve themselves as he gets bigger, so we are taking it slow.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Busy week…
Aaron is doing extremely well with his bottle feeding and is gaining weight rapidly. Right now he is bottling half of his feedings completely. He also had his circumcision this week as they are getting him ready for when the time comes to discharge him. They are expecting him to be ready in the next 2-3 weeks.
Asher is having a little more difficulty with his bottling coordination. He is taking about a third of his feeds completely by bottle but is experiencing apnea spells as he tries to breathe, swallow, and suck at the same time. He also had a great week for his reservoir treatment. Neurology did another brain ultra sound and it showed substantial improvement in his ventricle size. They are beginning to taper off draining the reservoir to determine if he will need a shunt, but as of right now everything is very encouraging. Right now he will definitely be in the hospital for at least another 3 weeks as they determine his long-term reservoir needs and treatment.
Anders is having a challenging week. He continues to have his feedings increased and is gaining weight steadily; however he is having difficulty with his breathing. His chest x-ray continues to look a lot better and his oxygen saturation is good, but he is requiring quite a bit of oxygen in his canula. He also had another blood transfusion as his blood count was down, thus they are hoping once his body recovers his oxygen needs will go down.
Weight update: Aaron (5lb 2oz), Asher (4lbs 6oz), Anders (2lbs 11oz)
Aaron is doing extremely well with his bottle feeding and is gaining weight rapidly. Right now he is bottling half of his feedings completely. He also had his circumcision this week as they are getting him ready for when the time comes to discharge him. They are expecting him to be ready in the next 2-3 weeks.
Asher is having a little more difficulty with his bottling coordination. He is taking about a third of his feeds completely by bottle but is experiencing apnea spells as he tries to breathe, swallow, and suck at the same time. He also had a great week for his reservoir treatment. Neurology did another brain ultra sound and it showed substantial improvement in his ventricle size. They are beginning to taper off draining the reservoir to determine if he will need a shunt, but as of right now everything is very encouraging. Right now he will definitely be in the hospital for at least another 3 weeks as they determine his long-term reservoir needs and treatment.
Anders is having a challenging week. He continues to have his feedings increased and is gaining weight steadily; however he is having difficulty with his breathing. His chest x-ray continues to look a lot better and his oxygen saturation is good, but he is requiring quite a bit of oxygen in his canula. He also had another blood transfusion as his blood count was down, thus they are hoping once his body recovers his oxygen needs will go down.
Weight update: Aaron (5lb 2oz), Asher (4lbs 6oz), Anders (2lbs 11oz)
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Big steps this weekend…
Aaron and Asher were moved to bassinettes (see new pictures). The big boys also started bottle feeding today! Aaron finished his entire feeding from the bottle and Asher finished 1/3 of his feeding.
Anders had another chest x-ray and showed that his lungs look a lot better. They still are a little “wet” (have fluid in them) but it’s much better that before surgery. They are hoping he has a big week and can slowly wean off the high flow nasal canula.
Weight update: Aaron (4lbs 12oz), Asher (4lbs 1oz), Anders (2lbs 5oz)
Aaron and Asher were moved to bassinettes (see new pictures). The big boys also started bottle feeding today! Aaron finished his entire feeding from the bottle and Asher finished 1/3 of his feeding.
Anders had another chest x-ray and showed that his lungs look a lot better. They still are a little “wet” (have fluid in them) but it’s much better that before surgery. They are hoping he has a big week and can slowly wean off the high flow nasal canula.
Weight update: Aaron (4lbs 12oz), Asher (4lbs 1oz), Anders (2lbs 5oz)
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Getting closer to coming home!
On Tuesday night they moved Aaron and Asher back to Abbott Hospital’s Special Care Nursery. It’s a step-down nursery where they will stay until they are ready to come home. Now they only have to gain weight, learn to regulate their own temperature, feed from a bottle, and breathe in a car seat! They are doing well in their new home and are enjoying the quite… but they miss their little brother.
Anders is still at Children’s NICU as he is breathing with a high-flow nasal canula, once he gains some more weight and no longer requires the high-flow he can join his brothers. He is also doing very well though; they have brought his feedings back up and past where they used to be before surgery. His breathing is slowly getting better; his biggest challenge right now is to grow. His poor little lungs are just too small right, so it’s time to pack on the weight!
On Tuesday night they moved Aaron and Asher back to Abbott Hospital’s Special Care Nursery. It’s a step-down nursery where they will stay until they are ready to come home. Now they only have to gain weight, learn to regulate their own temperature, feed from a bottle, and breathe in a car seat! They are doing well in their new home and are enjoying the quite… but they miss their little brother.
Anders is still at Children’s NICU as he is breathing with a high-flow nasal canula, once he gains some more weight and no longer requires the high-flow he can join his brothers. He is also doing very well though; they have brought his feedings back up and past where they used to be before surgery. His breathing is slowly getting better; his biggest challenge right now is to grow. His poor little lungs are just too small right, so it’s time to pack on the weight!
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Happy mother’s day!
Today was a GREAT day with the boys, they continue to do well and grow each day. Aaron is now 4lbs 2oz, Asher is 3lbs 8oz, and Anders is 2lbs 1oz.
Dad and I had another first today; we gave the big boys (Aaron and Asher) baths today! It was super cute and they did very well. Both boys seem to enjoy the water very much. Aaron didn’t cry at all and was very calm the entire time. Asher only made a few noises while Mom tried to figure out how to flip him forward so she could wash his back … once she got it figured out he calmed right down. Anders needs to get a little larger and it will be his turn next!
Thank you to everyone for all the thoughts, wishes, and prayers - they are definitely working and we wouldn’t be able to make it through all of this without them! They boys are doing so well and we thank God every day for his blessings … we are truly blessed!
Today was a GREAT day with the boys, they continue to do well and grow each day. Aaron is now 4lbs 2oz, Asher is 3lbs 8oz, and Anders is 2lbs 1oz.
Dad and I had another first today; we gave the big boys (Aaron and Asher) baths today! It was super cute and they did very well. Both boys seem to enjoy the water very much. Aaron didn’t cry at all and was very calm the entire time. Asher only made a few noises while Mom tried to figure out how to flip him forward so she could wash his back … once she got it figured out he calmed right down. Anders needs to get a little larger and it will be his turn next!
Thank you to everyone for all the thoughts, wishes, and prayers - they are definitely working and we wouldn’t be able to make it through all of this without them! They boys are doing so well and we thank God every day for his blessings … we are truly blessed!
Saturday, May 8, 2010
We have taken some huge steps this week!
Anders is now breathing on a high-flow nasal canula and is recovering quite nicely from both surgery & pneumonia. He has shed most of the extra fluid and weighs in at 2lbs 1oz, but could lose a little more weight as they are continuing to try to clear out his lungs. They have also started his feedings again, thus we are hoping he can start catching up to his brothers.
Aaron and Asher are now breathing on their own and they have started to have Aaron regulate his own temperature by setting his isolate at room temperature. Asher continues to do well with this reservoir and the surgeons are draining it daily. We pray that the clotted vessel opens up and doesn’t require him to have a permanent shunt implanted, but we are thankful that he is doing so well! Aaron now weighs 4lbs 2oz and Asher is close behind weighing 3lbs 8oz.
The nurses gave me an early mother’s day present today and I got to hold ALL THREE boys at one time! It was amazing to see them side by side – they are definitely identical. They look the same only in different sizes: small, medium and large.
Anders is now breathing on a high-flow nasal canula and is recovering quite nicely from both surgery & pneumonia. He has shed most of the extra fluid and weighs in at 2lbs 1oz, but could lose a little more weight as they are continuing to try to clear out his lungs. They have also started his feedings again, thus we are hoping he can start catching up to his brothers.
Aaron and Asher are now breathing on their own and they have started to have Aaron regulate his own temperature by setting his isolate at room temperature. Asher continues to do well with this reservoir and the surgeons are draining it daily. We pray that the clotted vessel opens up and doesn’t require him to have a permanent shunt implanted, but we are thankful that he is doing so well! Aaron now weighs 4lbs 2oz and Asher is close behind weighing 3lbs 8oz.
The nurses gave me an early mother’s day present today and I got to hold ALL THREE boys at one time! It was amazing to see them side by side – they are definitely identical. They look the same only in different sizes: small, medium and large.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Ander’s surgery went really well today, we are hoping that he has a strong day tomorrow. His infection was isolated in his lungs as they think he developed pneumonia. They felt that he was strong enough for surgery and that it would help clear up his lungs quicker with the correction of the PDA.
Dad got to hold the big boys last night (see new pictures) and made Mom extremely jealous. The boys didn’t seem to notice each other but they looked adorable and gave us a wonderful taste of what is to come J
Dad got to hold the big boys last night (see new pictures) and made Mom extremely jealous. The boys didn’t seem to notice each other but they looked adorable and gave us a wonderful taste of what is to come J
Monday, May 3, 2010
Anders continues to have trouble breathing, his chest x-rays are showing substantial fluid in his lungs and a partially collapsed lung. He also looks a little puffy with extra fluid so they have him on medication to shed the extra fluid. They conducted another echocardiogram which showed that his PDA was open substantially again so they are going to move forward with surgery, however his pre-surgery lab results showed that he has an infection so we are holding on surgery.
He sounds like his is in really poor shape, but he is doing pretty good considering everything going on with him. He is resting comfortably on the ventilator to ensure he doesn’t work too hard before surgery. We are hoping that he kicks his infection today and that he can have surgery tomorrow to close the PDA vessel for good. Stay tuned …
Asher and Aaron continue to thrive. They continue with their feedings every three hours and are packing on the pounds. Aaron weighed in today at 3lbs 12oz and Asher at 3lbs 2oz. The nurses have started dressing the big boys in little outfits. Aaron sucked his thumb for the first time the other night, which sparked the nurses to conduct an individual photo session for each boy. I will have to scan in the photos the nurses took, they are super cute!
He sounds like his is in really poor shape, but he is doing pretty good considering everything going on with him. He is resting comfortably on the ventilator to ensure he doesn’t work too hard before surgery. We are hoping that he kicks his infection today and that he can have surgery tomorrow to close the PDA vessel for good. Stay tuned …
Asher and Aaron continue to thrive. They continue with their feedings every three hours and are packing on the pounds. Aaron weighed in today at 3lbs 12oz and Asher at 3lbs 2oz. The nurses have started dressing the big boys in little outfits. Aaron sucked his thumb for the first time the other night, which sparked the nurses to conduct an individual photo session for each boy. I will have to scan in the photos the nurses took, they are super cute!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)