7/23 Update

Today Brady seemed to have improved. They took his oxygen off today and started feeding him 10 ccs (1/3 of an ounce) of milk every three hours. He is still receiving IV fluids and continues to gain weight. Last night he weighed 4 lbs 8 oz! We're hoping for more improvement tomorrow.

7/22 Update

Last night Brady weighed 4 lbs 6 oz and seemed to be doing really well, even having some success with nursing and a bottle. However, he had a rough day today and suffered a set back. I got a call this morning around 11 from his neonatologist saying that he wasn't acting like his usual self and seemed to not feel well. Around 9 this morning he had trouble with his breathing and the drs and nurses had to use the mask to get him breathing three times within one hour. This was unusual for him and concerning, so they stopped feeding him and ordered blood tests and a chest and abdomen x-ray. His blood tests all came back fine and the x-ray had one spot in the intestines that they weren't sure about. The dr told us that with preemies the intestines are one of the first things that they check for infection and blockage. They also put him back on his nasal cannula so they can give him a little oxygen and started an IV in his head. They will feed him some sort of IV fluids for at least a day or two to make sure his intestines are clear and he has no infection. They also started him on some IV antibiotics in case he is getting sick. They are repeating the x-ray tonight and we will call the nursery sometime after 10 to find out the results. While we were visiting him tonight, the monitors seemed to beep a lot and it made me nervous. We're thankful that he is receiving the care he needs, but we can't wait for him to be well and at home with the three of us.

PS - We now have Internet and a home phone! If you'd like our home phone #, just send me an email and I will send it to you. We are trying to keep our cell phone use to a minimum because with no home phone for so long we went through our minutes way too fast this month. If I don't answer my cell I apologize and I will try to get back to you if you leave a message. Thanks again for all the phone calls, emails, cards, and most of all prayers!

7/17 Update

We still have no Internet or phone at home . . . so Carly and I are having tea and a cookie at McAlister's while Jon is at the car wash. I have spent hours on the phone this week with our phone and Internet provider and no one can really give me any help. Who knows when we will ever be connected, I am getting pretty frustrated with the whole thing.

Brady is doing well. He has gained a couple of ounces over his birth weight. Thursday night he weighed 3 lbs 13 oz. The meds they are giving him to help with the spitting-up seem to be working and when he does spit-up it isn't near as forceful as it had been. His feeding tube is still all he has connected to his cute little face. His heart and respiratory monitors don't go off as much as Carly's did. She had trouble with her breathing when she ate. We'll see how he does when he is big/old enough to eat on his own.

July 12

I made it home last Thursday night and have enjoyed being there. We make at least one trip daily to the hospital. We are able to get Brady out of his isolette and hold him once per day. He also is able to try to nurse or bottle feed at that feeding. He is no longer on any oxygen through a nasal cannula, and he's doing well on room air. The only tube he has left is his feeding tube through his nose. I think he pulls it out at least once or twice per day. He has spit up a lot, so they started him on some meds last night to try to help him digest better. He showed improvement today and spit up less frequently.

We still have no phone or Internet access at home, so I am typing a quick update in the lobby at the hospital tonight. I will try to do better once we're connected at home. Thanks again for all the calls, thoughts, and prayers.

Update

Brady and I had a good day today. I was finally able to hold him for about an hour late last night, it was great! I also got to hold him this afternoon during a feeding. He is being fed through a tube down his nose and throat in to his stomach. As of tonight, he has lost about an ounce overall and the nurses say that is great. From what I understand he is no longer receiving any medications or nourishment through his IV, so it may go away in the next couple of days if he continues to do well.

Unexpected Weekend

As you can guess, our holiday weekend got off to a very unexpected start. I had a routine doctor's appointment on Friday morning that turned in to a hospital admission. The doctor was concerned about some lab work and wanted to monitor me for at least 24 hours. Twenty-four hours turned in to waiting for more blood work both Saturday and Sunday. Then it was announced on Sunday morning that it was delivery day - 9 weeks early. It was scary and memories of our experience with Carly quickly entered our heads.

We have had a few bumps in the road with my blood pressure, lab work, and medications. I was finally able to get off the IV and out of bed today. Sunday and Monday were rough days for me. I was unable to get out of bed for over 48 hours and was able to see Brady only once each day, around 11 pm. I was able to see him then because the intensive care nursery was less busy and the nurses had room to push me, in my hospital bed, to his side. We were very excited when I was sent to the postpartum floor today and now have a room across from the nursery.

The doctors were able to remove Brady's vent tube last night so he is breathing on his own. They said he didn't need much help, but he has one small issue with his left lung that they are monitoring. So far we have received a lot of positive feedback about his condition and are hoping he continues to progress with strength at a pace that he can handle and sustain. We do know that he will probably stay in the ICN for about five weeks. I am already struggling with leaving another newborn as I return home, but I know it is a necessity.

Carly is doing pretty well with everything. This afternoon Jon and I introduced her to Brady and her facial expression was priceless. You could tell she was really soaking it all in and the wheels in her head were spinning. I was able to get some cuddle time in with her this morning - we both needed it after not seeing much of each other since Saturday.

We really appreciate all the good thoughts and prayers coming our way. We wouldn't have made it through the weekend without our family and friends, so thanks to everyone!


PS - we were able to complete our 2nd and final move on Wednesday, 6/30. We are excited to be in the house! We feel so fortunate we got the move completed before the weekend. Needless to say, lots of changes in our lives this week!!!

Born on the Fourth of July

Happy Independence Day! Today we welcomed our little boy, Brady Carl Class, to our family and the world. Brady was born at 2:10 pm and weighed in at 3 lbs 11 oz and was 17 1/2 inches long. We can't wait to introduce him to everyone!