December 25, 2009

Merry Christmas everyone! This Christmas day is a bittersweet one--sad because Cooper can't be home with us for Christmas, but happy because this week he has made so many positive accomplishments. He's back on the nasal canula and they keep reducing his oxygen levels which means if all goes well he'll be breathing entirely on his own before long. He's handling his feedings well and they're upping the amounts he gets every day. He will probably have his IV's removed this week--yayyyy! Matt and I have been able to hold him almost every day, but only for a short time. We hope all these good things continue and we won't have to endure any other serious "bumps in the road". He'll be 4 weeks old on Sunday and now weighs 2 lbs. 11 oz. Thanks so much for all the prayers and please keep them coming.

December 17, 2009

Talk about being on a roller coaster, that's the way the last few days have been. We got great news on Monday--the small hole in the valve in his heart has closed and he's beginning to gain weight. I guess the mommy milk agrees with him. Then on Tuesday nite they had to put him back on the ventilator. He was having to work too hard to breathe and they didn't want him to overtire. They ran a blood culture to be sure all this grief wasn't due to an infection. Well, it was an infection, apparently coming from his "broviac" (central IV). He's on antibiotics and they're checking his blood again to make sure the antibiotics are working. They will remove the broviac but would like to wait until the first of next week when they feel they can take him off his "gatorade and fat" cocktail and feed him with only mother's milk. I sure hope so. Thanks so much for the prayers and good wishes. It sure makes the rough times a little easier to go through.

December 10, 2009

Little Cooper is doing well. He still has some "destats" which means lapses in his breathing, but the nurses say that condition will improve as his lungs mature. He's eating again-mama's milk-2 cc's 4 times a day-and if that goes well they will increase his feedings this weekend. He's still a bit under weight but hopefully the milk will put some fat on his little bones. In the meantime he has a yummy cocktail of electrolites and other nutritional stuff and lipids (fat) by IV. He likes sleeping on his tummy but they want him to be able to sleep on his back. So he tolerates that for a while and then the "wiggle worm" in him comes out and he moves his legs and arches his back trying to roll over. We catch him trying to put his thumb in his mouth which is ok with us because we want him to perfect his sucking reflex. Thanks for all the encouragement and prayers. It means so much to us.

December 8, 2009

We're feeling much relieved tonight. They ran a brain scan today to see if little Cooper has had any brain bleeds which are common in low birth weight babies. The results showed none. It was so hard to sleep last night wondering what they would find. We're so thankful. They also performed a spinal tap to see if there was any infection present, and that too was negative. Our little guy seems to be a real fighter. The nurse practitioner said she never would have believed he would be doing so well since he was really shaky when he was born. Next we have to see if a problem with an unclosed valve in his heart has been solved by medication, and, if not, another round of the meds. He's still on the light for his bilirubin levels, but they were lower today so maybe he'll be off that soon. I've been able to hold him yesterday and today for about 20 minutes , but I wish I could hold him longer. He still has some problems regulating his body temp, so we can keep him out of the isolette for so long. I guess as time passes all his bodily processes will mature and these things will clear up. Please don't forget us in your prayers.

December 5, 2009

Saturday, December 5--It's been an eventful couple of days. I got to hold my sweet tiny little baby for the first time yesterday. I couldn't believe the feeling--there's nothing like it. Cooper is doing better with his bilirubin levels and seems to be doing pretty well regulating his body temp. Today the doctors inserted a picc line which is a port for his iv's. Now he won't have to be stuck every time they need to give him something. He turns toward our voices when we talk to him. He loves it when they place him on his tummy. The doctors say he is doing very well, but we can expect setbacks. Since there was so much drama during my pregnancy, I'd love for there to be no drama with him. We'll see.

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Well, I'm at home and it's tough leaving little Cooper at the hospital. It's a whirlwind of activity there in the NICU--as of today 58 babies in some state of crisis or another. Cooper is doing fine so far. He lost about an ounce which is normal for all newborns, but he's made great strides in other areas. Today they removed him from the CPAP (which helped him breathe) to a Vaportherm, a small tube in his nostrils. I was allowed to change his diaper, pick him up while his nurse changed his bedding, take his temperature, and for the first time, see his face and head minus all the equipment. I see a lot of Matt in him, except for his nose. He has a good bit of hair and is well proportioned even though he's small. He was fed breast milk through a tiny tube that goes down his throat into his tummy. He's on a light for his bilirubin levels (liver function). He still has a long way to go, but it's a good start. Keep him in your prayers.