We talked to the Dr. again today and Kadin has 2 different bacteria growing in his secretions ... one is staph and the other is something that will cause pneumonia. The antibiotics have had a full day to target these infections and he has actually shown immediate improvement both thru the xrays and in his sats ... He did not de-sat one time while I was visiting him this evening. To know Kadin is to know that he doesn't sat routinely high or low, he is all over the place ... weird. But anyway, he looked so good tonight. He was getting his feed and sucking on his tubes ... cute. I tried to give him his paci but it didn't happen. He got mad and clamped his mouth shut! :) Atta boy ... got that stubbornness from his mommy!
I had to sign a consent form for them to insert another PICC line (Per-Q, whatever it's called!) because they had to take his IV in his head out and insert another one on the other side of his head. I understand this is being done (again!) because he is such a difficult stick. Fine by me, I don't like him having to go thru the procedures of having several IV's when ever he needs something like that...
I can't wait to see him tomorrow! I will update as soon as I can.
Night ... or is it morning??
Leslie
Friday, January 9, 2009
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Setback
Just a brief update before I head to the hospital...
Kadin's tracheal secretions from the culture 2 days ago have tested positive for an infection. They were about to start his IV yesterday when I got there, so I spent maybe 5 minutes looking at him and then left. My heart can't take watching him get an IV, especially since it took awhile for them to get it. It ended up being inserted in his head, which they say is a really good place - it frees his feet and hands - but still ... it looks awful. It's necessary, I understand this, but the sight of it is a little uneasy for me.
Antibiotics began yesterday afternoon. Not sure what kind we are getting but they are obviously for a broad spectrum of infections. He will receive this one until the "bug" is identified and then a med to target the infection will begin.
I know these are all aspects of the life of a 24-weeker, but I am ready for him to flourish. I just want to see him "ok" ... I know he will get there when he is ready, so I just keep plugging along patiently.
He now weighs 4 pounds 6.2 ounces! They sent home some of his preemie clothes saying he looks like a tootsie roll in them! :) So I guess it won't be long and he will need newborn clothes. YAY, shopping time! We went to Babies R Us over the holidays (to look at carseats and pack 'n plays) and saw some really cute clothes there.
That's it for now on how he is doing. I am not feeling well ... very very tired and my body just doesn't feel right ... not sure what is going on there, but I have a good guess. It isn't "sickness" or anything like that, but still ....
More later when I know more ... Have a great Thursday!
Kadin's tracheal secretions from the culture 2 days ago have tested positive for an infection. They were about to start his IV yesterday when I got there, so I spent maybe 5 minutes looking at him and then left. My heart can't take watching him get an IV, especially since it took awhile for them to get it. It ended up being inserted in his head, which they say is a really good place - it frees his feet and hands - but still ... it looks awful. It's necessary, I understand this, but the sight of it is a little uneasy for me.
Antibiotics began yesterday afternoon. Not sure what kind we are getting but they are obviously for a broad spectrum of infections. He will receive this one until the "bug" is identified and then a med to target the infection will begin.
I know these are all aspects of the life of a 24-weeker, but I am ready for him to flourish. I just want to see him "ok" ... I know he will get there when he is ready, so I just keep plugging along patiently.
He now weighs 4 pounds 6.2 ounces! They sent home some of his preemie clothes saying he looks like a tootsie roll in them! :) So I guess it won't be long and he will need newborn clothes. YAY, shopping time! We went to Babies R Us over the holidays (to look at carseats and pack 'n plays) and saw some really cute clothes there.
That's it for now on how he is doing. I am not feeling well ... very very tired and my body just doesn't feel right ... not sure what is going on there, but I have a good guess. It isn't "sickness" or anything like that, but still ....
More later when I know more ... Have a great Thursday!
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Letting A Few More Days Go By
So it's Tuesday ... and I am having a hard time sometimes with keeping up with what day it is exactly. It's probably because of us having just got off of Christmas Break. With the kids home, we did the very same thing every single day. Wake up, eat, go to hospital, go home, eat, read, play games, go to hospital, eat, bed, lol ... Every single day! I'm sure there were a few variations, but the past 9 weeks have flown by for me when in the beginning I could not see how I would even make it the first week. Strange how our hearts and minds can become adjusted to such volitale situations and make it work. I never imagined being able to cope in an environment where there is such unexpected changes as often as is in the NICU.
Things have pretty much been the same for the past few days. It's the same road with different scenes now and again ... JT has gotten to spend more time with Kadin and even Robbi has gone in a lot more lately with me. Kota will be seeing and holding Kadin FIRST when the time comes since he has never gotten to see him.
We are still on the vent but he is putting on good weight. Currently, he weighs 4 pounds 5.1 ounces. His feeds have been increased again. I am thinking they increase it due to his weight. He is on 34 mls and is about 16 1/2 inches long. I helped measure and weigh him the other night when Kimber (way cool RN!) was on duty. That Cadillac of a bed is fabulous!
I was able to hold him yesterday with JT in there with me. Kadin did very well. I helped with his breathing treatment also. I held the vibrator on his sides/chest to help break up the mucous in his lungs. Dr. Porter said that it isn't really fluid, it's more like mucous from his body fighting the vent being in there. They have taken a culture (again) of the lungs secretions to see if he is getting another infection. The nurse tonight told me his secretions were a little yellow now, but that he is not acting sick. Not sure what they will do about it except give him antibiotics again and wait it out. Dr. Porter will be gone on about the 14th, so we will have to become adjusted to another Dr. at that time.
There's not really much else to report on him at this time. He is really growing. A nurse that had him when he was much smaller (and who I can quote as saying her paychecks were not nearly big enough for the butt-whoopings he gave her while she was his nurse!!!) had him last night and tonight and commented several times on how big he has gotten !!!! He really is growing ... I'm just more ready than he is. It's been 9 weeks now .... can you believe we have endured this for NINE weeks? Again, I'm ready to get off the ride.
I think I wrote about the eye exams. Something about the zones and stages and something something ... I'm not a Dr. but I understood the basics of what he told me. I will let you know when he has his next exam and what the results of it are.
For now, I'm going to pass out in my bed and TRY to rest. JT went back to Breckenridge today and we miss him terribly.
Buenos noches .......
Leslie
Things have pretty much been the same for the past few days. It's the same road with different scenes now and again ... JT has gotten to spend more time with Kadin and even Robbi has gone in a lot more lately with me. Kota will be seeing and holding Kadin FIRST when the time comes since he has never gotten to see him.
We are still on the vent but he is putting on good weight. Currently, he weighs 4 pounds 5.1 ounces. His feeds have been increased again. I am thinking they increase it due to his weight. He is on 34 mls and is about 16 1/2 inches long. I helped measure and weigh him the other night when Kimber (way cool RN!) was on duty. That Cadillac of a bed is fabulous!
I was able to hold him yesterday with JT in there with me. Kadin did very well. I helped with his breathing treatment also. I held the vibrator on his sides/chest to help break up the mucous in his lungs. Dr. Porter said that it isn't really fluid, it's more like mucous from his body fighting the vent being in there. They have taken a culture (again) of the lungs secretions to see if he is getting another infection. The nurse tonight told me his secretions were a little yellow now, but that he is not acting sick. Not sure what they will do about it except give him antibiotics again and wait it out. Dr. Porter will be gone on about the 14th, so we will have to become adjusted to another Dr. at that time.
There's not really much else to report on him at this time. He is really growing. A nurse that had him when he was much smaller (and who I can quote as saying her paychecks were not nearly big enough for the butt-whoopings he gave her while she was his nurse!!!) had him last night and tonight and commented several times on how big he has gotten !!!! He really is growing ... I'm just more ready than he is. It's been 9 weeks now .... can you believe we have endured this for NINE weeks? Again, I'm ready to get off the ride.
I think I wrote about the eye exams. Something about the zones and stages and something something ... I'm not a Dr. but I understood the basics of what he told me. I will let you know when he has his next exam and what the results of it are.
For now, I'm going to pass out in my bed and TRY to rest. JT went back to Breckenridge today and we miss him terribly.
Buenos noches .......
Leslie
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Our Visit With the Dr.
I am both discouraged and encouraged with our discussion with Dr. Porter last night. Sometimes when I think I have all the hope and faith in the world, something is said or our baby makes a turn that kind of deflates that a little for me. I am not sure what to make of everything that he says, but we just roll with it. I have to admit, though, that some of it makes me a little uneasy, but regardless, Kadin is our son and we love him, now and always.
First of all, they were able to ween him down on the vent yesterday morning and when the Dr. came in last night, he weened him a little further. He is on a rate of 36 breaths per minute from the vent and from watching him last night his settings indicated he was breathing over the vent twice that. As long as his pressures are ok, he does fine, even with the fewer breaths from the vent.
Kadin is now weighing 4 pounds 2.3 ounces. He has meds last night again to pull off the fluid so he didn't seem to increase as he has been the past few weeks. He doesn't look puffy or anything, but the fluid in his lungs is still present.
The goal, as has been this entire time, is to get Kadin off the vent and back to the bubble cpap. After that, the goal will be same ... getting him off the bubble cpap and onto the nasal canula. Then, as pattern has determined, it will be to get him off of that with no extra oxygen! We are only 8 weeks from his due date and that seems like quite a LOT to get thru. I am having doubts about our coming home date and that is driving me nuts. I guess it's fairly common for the Dr.'s to not be able to tell you anything definite about that since it all depends on how the baby will do. He does well, he just doesn't breathe well on his own, which is absolutely to be expected being born at 24 weeks. As the lungs grow, the old lungs are taken over by the new, but it will never be like new healthy virgin lungs. Should we have to stay here longer than February 23, I pray I will have the strength to do it. I am trying to stay positive of it all and believe that he is one day going to all of the sudden just take off and show us all !!!
He had his eye exam on the 1st. He is scheduled for another one a week later. Dr. Porter said there was an indication of ROP but it will be monitored extremely closely. I can't go into details about everything he said because, although I understood what he was saying, I don't know how to articulate that back to everyone else. I do know that Kadin is at level 2 in his retina development and can stay in that level for a long time. He is also in stage 2 of level 2. There are stages 0 to 5 with 5 being retinal detachment. It is not uncommon for a baby to get to stage 2 and regress back to level 0 and be perfect. This is why they will monitor him very closely. If he progresses to a higher level, he will be a candidate for the laser surgery to correct the retinal issues. I asked him if any of that meant he will not be able to see and he said "Absolutely not!" He said it really doesn't affect acuity since they also closely monitor the levels of oxygen that the baby receives. He said it could possibly affect his peripheral vision but that won't be known until later ... So, we are waiting now for the second eye exam and will know more about that later.
He looks so adorable in his bed dressed in his clothes! We have sssssooooooooo many clothes for him now (Thanks to Kirsten/Joshua and to Hilarie/Preston!) I love to see him dressed in his clothes. He is keeping his temperature steady also, but is still in his isolette (with the top up) because it drowns out the noise enough that he can rest well.
Kadins calorie intake has been decreased ... they took most of the human milk fortifier out of the composite and he is still gaining weight! His stools are much better now tho he still has them very frequently. I am still pumping, but with our trip home, my milk decreased a little. I have not been able to build it back up as of today. I pray it doesn't dry up.
Insert Random Thought: My little man just asked me for a "Popper Pepper" ... even tho he is 7 and perfectly able to say "Dr. Pepper" ... he still calls it the same thing he did when he was small. And of course, here is his big brother sitting here talking about what he used to call it ... ROOT-ROOT. Yeah, not sure where that came from but it has stuck all these years. Robbi never cared for it much so there isn't a word she called it. She still prefers water to anything!
I can't think of anything else to update on Kadin right now. Really, other than what I have written about, nothing has changed much. He is just resting and growing. I can't wait to see him today. JT saw him for the first time since he came for a competition in November and he can't believe how big he has gotten.
So ... until my next blog, be blessed and if someone has done something nice for you today or recently, pay it forward. The results are heartwarming and inspiring!
God Bless .....
First of all, they were able to ween him down on the vent yesterday morning and when the Dr. came in last night, he weened him a little further. He is on a rate of 36 breaths per minute from the vent and from watching him last night his settings indicated he was breathing over the vent twice that. As long as his pressures are ok, he does fine, even with the fewer breaths from the vent.
Kadin is now weighing 4 pounds 2.3 ounces. He has meds last night again to pull off the fluid so he didn't seem to increase as he has been the past few weeks. He doesn't look puffy or anything, but the fluid in his lungs is still present.
The goal, as has been this entire time, is to get Kadin off the vent and back to the bubble cpap. After that, the goal will be same ... getting him off the bubble cpap and onto the nasal canula. Then, as pattern has determined, it will be to get him off of that with no extra oxygen! We are only 8 weeks from his due date and that seems like quite a LOT to get thru. I am having doubts about our coming home date and that is driving me nuts. I guess it's fairly common for the Dr.'s to not be able to tell you anything definite about that since it all depends on how the baby will do. He does well, he just doesn't breathe well on his own, which is absolutely to be expected being born at 24 weeks. As the lungs grow, the old lungs are taken over by the new, but it will never be like new healthy virgin lungs. Should we have to stay here longer than February 23, I pray I will have the strength to do it. I am trying to stay positive of it all and believe that he is one day going to all of the sudden just take off and show us all !!!
He had his eye exam on the 1st. He is scheduled for another one a week later. Dr. Porter said there was an indication of ROP but it will be monitored extremely closely. I can't go into details about everything he said because, although I understood what he was saying, I don't know how to articulate that back to everyone else. I do know that Kadin is at level 2 in his retina development and can stay in that level for a long time. He is also in stage 2 of level 2. There are stages 0 to 5 with 5 being retinal detachment. It is not uncommon for a baby to get to stage 2 and regress back to level 0 and be perfect. This is why they will monitor him very closely. If he progresses to a higher level, he will be a candidate for the laser surgery to correct the retinal issues. I asked him if any of that meant he will not be able to see and he said "Absolutely not!" He said it really doesn't affect acuity since they also closely monitor the levels of oxygen that the baby receives. He said it could possibly affect his peripheral vision but that won't be known until later ... So, we are waiting now for the second eye exam and will know more about that later.
He looks so adorable in his bed dressed in his clothes! We have sssssooooooooo many clothes for him now (Thanks to Kirsten/Joshua and to Hilarie/Preston!) I love to see him dressed in his clothes. He is keeping his temperature steady also, but is still in his isolette (with the top up) because it drowns out the noise enough that he can rest well.
Kadins calorie intake has been decreased ... they took most of the human milk fortifier out of the composite and he is still gaining weight! His stools are much better now tho he still has them very frequently. I am still pumping, but with our trip home, my milk decreased a little. I have not been able to build it back up as of today. I pray it doesn't dry up.
Insert Random Thought: My little man just asked me for a "Popper Pepper" ... even tho he is 7 and perfectly able to say "Dr. Pepper" ... he still calls it the same thing he did when he was small. And of course, here is his big brother sitting here talking about what he used to call it ... ROOT-ROOT. Yeah, not sure where that came from but it has stuck all these years. Robbi never cared for it much so there isn't a word she called it. She still prefers water to anything!
I can't think of anything else to update on Kadin right now. Really, other than what I have written about, nothing has changed much. He is just resting and growing. I can't wait to see him today. JT saw him for the first time since he came for a competition in November and he can't believe how big he has gotten.
So ... until my next blog, be blessed and if someone has done something nice for you today or recently, pay it forward. The results are heartwarming and inspiring!
God Bless .....
Friday, January 2, 2009
Missing Our Baby
I don't know how we had the strength to leave FW for a night, but we did it. NYE we traveled home to see family and friends and I must say it was a very emotional time for me. I had not been home since October 27, 2008. I did not really want to come home, but for several reasons we decided a quick trip home would be best. Saying good-bye to our son on Wed. was so difficult. I know he has no concept of time or that we are going home, but it killed me to leave his bedside that day. It was one of the few times that he was really awake and looking at me and responding to my voice and touch. I felt it was as if he was telling me it was ok to go home ... I had said I was not going to come home until I could bring him with me. I knew entering our home would be more than difficult for me. Since Danny and the kids had been home before during my stay in FW, it was not as difficult for them. I entered our living room and broke down. I never dreamed it would affect me so hard. And now, I don't want to leave. My whole world revolves in these walls and we have so many memories here in this house. I am just more than ready to bring Kadin home and begin the rest of our lives.
Robbi had a bunch of friends over for NYE. One of her buddies, Eddie, walked in the door and was sssoooo surprised to see me. He gave me the biggest hug and I cried like a baby. He kept giving me hugs all night long, bless his heart. I just love that kid. I knew when all the girls arrived because the screams were probably heard for blocks! Since we are not far from the sheriff's office, I figured someone from there would be visiting us soon! Anyway ... we rang in the new year with my sister and nephew and all the kids outside! JT is with us also, which is really nice since he is such a busy teenager and we don't see him as often as we would like. Everyone else went to bed but Dakota decided he wanted to try to see New Year's Day thru the end, lol. We argued about it for a little while. I won! YAY ME! Robbi stayed with Anna and tonight at 11PM is the first time we had seen her since then! I don't mind as long as she is happy and having fun!
I was so draggin rear this morning though when Joe called to get Dakota. Since Dakota had been up til past 3 (well ok, arguing with mom about not wanting to sleep!) getting only about 4 hours of sleep was not near enough for him ... or me for that matter, so he slept until about 9:30 and got up. Joe got him a .22 rifle (Davey Crickett, it is the cutest little thing!) for Christmas so every chance that he gets, he takes Dakota to the gun range. Dakota has been asking me if I will go watch him shoot, so today was that day. JT and I went to the gun range and had a great time. We all took turns hitting the targets. It was great fun ... I forgot how much I loved to shoot. I had not done it in a long while - maybe about 12 years! JT's grandpa taught me how many years ago. Every chance he got, he took me outside for some target practice and actually said I was the best aiming girl he had ever known! Quite flattering for him to say that ... never lost my eye, either. Dakota lined out the ammo ... 2 for his daddy, 2 for him, 2 for his bubba, and 2 for mommy ... but somehow it ended up being like 8 for Dakota and one here and there for the rest of us. It was good fun. We really had a good time.
After that we went to my folks house - THANKS FOR THE COMFORT FOOD MOM! I have not seen my mom in a couple of months either. It was emotional to put my arms around her tiny frame. Of course, my sister is just that ... MY SISTER! She is a nut. She and Cam are living in our home to take care of it til we come home and we are sssooooooooo grateful! I woke Dad up from his nap to get a hug. I guess overall, shedding all the tears in the last couple of days has been good for me. I sense it has given me strength to endure the next 8 weeks. I little touch from home may have been just what we needed. Mom made us baked ham, black-eyed peas, corn, mashed taters, rolls, bbq little wiennies and omg a CHOCOLATE CAKE ...my downfall. I drank my first DP in several days. Trying not to do that.
We are about to get on the road in less than an hour. JT is going to a Texas Tech game with his dad tomorrow so he will be picking him up at our suite. I don't want to have to go back to life as we know it there, but for Kadin, I will do ANYTHING. I can't wait to see his precious little face again.
We have called several times since we have been home and there have been no real changes for him. He is now 4 pounds 0.2 ounces and tonight he was weened on his pressures a little bit because his gas came back EXCELLENT! It's what we have been waiting for. Kadin is the King .... he runs this show so we just have to wait on him and take what we can get. I can smell him even now.
We have hopefully good things in store for Danny tomorrow, but I will write about that later. Right now I have to go extract the liquid gold and then get on the road. Happy New Year to my family and friends . . . . .
Leslie
Robbi had a bunch of friends over for NYE. One of her buddies, Eddie, walked in the door and was sssoooo surprised to see me. He gave me the biggest hug and I cried like a baby. He kept giving me hugs all night long, bless his heart. I just love that kid. I knew when all the girls arrived because the screams were probably heard for blocks! Since we are not far from the sheriff's office, I figured someone from there would be visiting us soon! Anyway ... we rang in the new year with my sister and nephew and all the kids outside! JT is with us also, which is really nice since he is such a busy teenager and we don't see him as often as we would like. Everyone else went to bed but Dakota decided he wanted to try to see New Year's Day thru the end, lol. We argued about it for a little while. I won! YAY ME! Robbi stayed with Anna and tonight at 11PM is the first time we had seen her since then! I don't mind as long as she is happy and having fun!
I was so draggin rear this morning though when Joe called to get Dakota. Since Dakota had been up til past 3 (well ok, arguing with mom about not wanting to sleep!) getting only about 4 hours of sleep was not near enough for him ... or me for that matter, so he slept until about 9:30 and got up. Joe got him a .22 rifle (Davey Crickett, it is the cutest little thing!) for Christmas so every chance that he gets, he takes Dakota to the gun range. Dakota has been asking me if I will go watch him shoot, so today was that day. JT and I went to the gun range and had a great time. We all took turns hitting the targets. It was great fun ... I forgot how much I loved to shoot. I had not done it in a long while - maybe about 12 years! JT's grandpa taught me how many years ago. Every chance he got, he took me outside for some target practice and actually said I was the best aiming girl he had ever known! Quite flattering for him to say that ... never lost my eye, either. Dakota lined out the ammo ... 2 for his daddy, 2 for him, 2 for his bubba, and 2 for mommy ... but somehow it ended up being like 8 for Dakota and one here and there for the rest of us. It was good fun. We really had a good time.
After that we went to my folks house - THANKS FOR THE COMFORT FOOD MOM! I have not seen my mom in a couple of months either. It was emotional to put my arms around her tiny frame. Of course, my sister is just that ... MY SISTER! She is a nut. She and Cam are living in our home to take care of it til we come home and we are sssooooooooo grateful! I woke Dad up from his nap to get a hug. I guess overall, shedding all the tears in the last couple of days has been good for me. I sense it has given me strength to endure the next 8 weeks. I little touch from home may have been just what we needed. Mom made us baked ham, black-eyed peas, corn, mashed taters, rolls, bbq little wiennies and omg a CHOCOLATE CAKE ...my downfall. I drank my first DP in several days. Trying not to do that.
We are about to get on the road in less than an hour. JT is going to a Texas Tech game with his dad tomorrow so he will be picking him up at our suite. I don't want to have to go back to life as we know it there, but for Kadin, I will do ANYTHING. I can't wait to see his precious little face again.
We have called several times since we have been home and there have been no real changes for him. He is now 4 pounds 0.2 ounces and tonight he was weened on his pressures a little bit because his gas came back EXCELLENT! It's what we have been waiting for. Kadin is the King .... he runs this show so we just have to wait on him and take what we can get. I can smell him even now.
We have hopefully good things in store for Danny tomorrow, but I will write about that later. Right now I have to go extract the liquid gold and then get on the road. Happy New Year to my family and friends . . . . .
Leslie
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