In the home stretch!!!

Luke is doing A.MA.ZING!!!! Everyone is so surprised at how well he is doing. Since my last post he has hit two major milestones....he got taken off his vapotherm and now is just on 1 liter of oxygen through his nose and  he is now breastfeeding!!!! The first day he got to was last Monday (1/30)...it was awesome! He knew exactly what he was supposed to do. He nurses better than I have seen most term babies nurse! We tried a bottle the next day and he didn't do so well with that. He has one problem....he is sooo eager to eat! He gets to sucking and sucking and then forgets to breathe! Everyone assures me that this will pass and he will coordinate his suck, swallow, breathe pattern soon.
We recently brought in his bouncy chair and he loves to sit in it. He just looks around and is taking it all in.

He has also graduated out of preemie clothes and is now in newborn! Today he is 36 weeks and 3 days and weighs 6 lbs 3.2 oz. He is a chunk!!

His eyes still seem to be his only problem. They haven't gotten any worse, but they also haven't gotten any better. We are still just taking it one week at a time.

Here are some pictures we have taken....enjoy!

He loves to sit and talk to daddy!

So tired....

Where's my food?!?!?

Sleepy baby....

Mommy's little monkey!

Hi Everyone!

Sorry

I know...I know...I know....been way too long since my last update. I don't even know where to begin....

Luke continues to amaze us everyday. We feel so blessed that he has done so well. Luke spent about three weeks on the ventilator and then they made the decision to take him off again and see how he did. He was ready, and he did awesome!!! At first they put him on a cpap machine and then a few hours later did some blood work to see how he was doing. The blood work showed he was being over-ventilated (the cpap was helping him breathe and then he was breathing on his own as well) so they switched him to something called Vapotherm.  That is basically just oxygen through a little tube in his nose. He has been doing fine with that!

His head ultrasounds and cardiac testing continue to be normal, however his last eye exam showed some changes from the previous one and they are going to start watching him more closely to make sure it doesn't progress into something worse.

He is still eating through a tube that goes in his nose and down to his stomach. I am still pumping and they give him my milk with some extra calories added to it. He takes 42 ml (about an ounce and a half) every 3 hours. He loves his food! Matt and I have been amazed at how quickly he is growing! He usually gains a couple of ounces every night. Sometimes he looses a little when he takes a really big poop, but that is normal. They continually try to wean down his Vapotherm and he tends to do well with that. The first time they tried was last week and at that exact same time he got a cold (my fault...I could't stay away from him when I was sick), so he didn't do so well and they had to increase his oxygen again. Since then his cold has gotten better and they decreased it again yesterday. If he keeps doing well, they will decrease it again the beginning of the week and then I will finally be able to nurse him!! I am so excited for this moment...I think it will actually make me feel more like a mom to be able to feed my baby!

Here are some quick stats, notes, etc on Luke:

He was two months old on Jan. 23rd, but corrected to 34 weeks and 3 days as of today.
He is quickly becoming the favorite in the NICU with the nurses arguing over who gets to take care of him!
He currently weighs 5 lbs 2 oz and is outgrowing his preemie clothes. The sleepers still work, but the onesies  and gowns are getting way too tight!
He is becoming a bit of a flirt...he loves to look at the nurses when they are doing things with him and give them a little smile :)
They now keep him in a sleep sack and just like before, he likes to break out of it (at least his arms). You can't contain this boy!
He loves his pacifier! The speech therapist comes to see him every once in awhile to check on him to make sure he is ready for feedings and she is always amazed at how well he sucks. We used to have to keep his pacifier in his mouth by holding it, but now he holds it in all on his own. That is something that he shouldn't be doing yet, but he does!!
He likes to poop and pee in his clothes, on the floor, in his crib, etc. Therefore I do a lot of laundry now!
He is discovering his voice now. While he doesn't cry much, when he does he wants you to know he is mad! He is very talkative and is constantly making noises!
He loves his baths!
He gets massages from the Occupational Therapist here and he loves those as well.
Dr. Hertz the head neonatologist here is in love with Luke and refers to him as his "little buddy"

Matt and I are continuing to do well. We are home now, but still spend the majority of our time at the hospital. I just started back to work and am getting back into the swing of things after being off for 6 months.  On my days off I come up to the hospital in the morning and then go back home around 2 pm to do some stuff around the house. Matt comes home about 4 pm and we both go back to the hospital until about 8 pm. We are nearing being finished with the nursery, I will post pics when it is done.

No word on when he gets to come home just yet. I don't think it will be very long though, he just needs to get off his oxygen and learn how to eat!

Well, that is all for now. I promise I will try to update more often! I was going to put some pictures on here, but there are many and most of them are on Facebook anyway!

Doing Well :)

I figured it was time for an update since it had been 2 weeks since the last! Everything is going well here. I don't think I could have asked for a better outcome. When the NICU people came to talk to use 3 weeks ago and told us all the possible things that could be wrong with him, we were very scared. I think he heard them and said, "nope, I am going to be fine" because he really hasn't had any of the "major" issues. They told us that most babies his age would need to be on blood pressure medicine to maintain his blood pressure...nope, his blood pressure is just fine. They said he was at risk for brain bleeds, nope...all his head ultrasounds show nothing! Way to go Luke!! I will give you a timeline of the last 2 weeks...

The first few days of Luke's life he was on the ventilator and not allowed to be touched. We would come in and look at him and talk to him often. We finally got to touch him and change is diaper on Friday (11/25). We were so excited! From there they started letting us touch him more (every 6 hours) and they started feeding him very small amounts (4 ml every 6 hours).

Tuesday (11/29) they surprised us by saying they were going to extubate him and see how he does. They said he would either fail miserably and immediately or he would go with it and we would see how long he would last without it. He did the latter. He could have cared less that we removed the tube and he did awesome on the sipap machine!! This was amazing for us. We really go to see his personality come out during this time. We learned that he does not like to be in a wet diaper very long (he gets very fussy and cries), he hates being bundled up in the little snuggy thing they put him in...they would put him in it and within 5 mins he would have his legs and arm out and moving! We also learned that he loves his pacifier! Most babies at his gestation don't have a suck reflex, but he does and he loves using it!!

With his doing well, we also got a new privilege...we go to hold him!!! I had been waiting for this and was in heaven when it actually happened. Matt and I decided we would take turns holding him...

He was doing well until Monday (12/5). When we went into his room that morning, I just knew something wasn't right with him. He wasn't moving as much and he wasn't crying as much. He was also having a lot of episodes where he would stop breathing and drop his heart rate, which tell us that he was getting tired. By Wednesday morning he lab work was bad, his chest xray was bad, and they said it was time to go back on the ventilator. I was somewhat okay with this. I knew it was what he needed but it saddened me because I knew it was going to be awhile before we got to hold him again or hear him cry. I think he sensed this because right before they put the tube back in he let out a big cry as if to say, "it's alright mom". I cried, but it was a happy cry. 

So, that is where we are now! Matt and I are still staying in the NICU, however we are planning on going home this weekend. We feel he is stable now and we need to start to get back to normal. I am recovering well from my c-section. I have had some incision issues, but I feel much better than I thought I would. I will try to keep updating and posting pictures!!!

It's Empty Again........Our little boy is here

Things had been going better since last Monday (Nov. 15th), until Wednesday.  That morning my contractions started getting more intense and more frequent.  They tried giving me a mag bolus, but that barely touched them.  I also got a dose of nubain, which had helped before, but wasn't much help this time.  So things continued to progress and Dr. Bemenderfer came to check on me around 3 pm.  She did an ultrasound to check on Luke, and then tried to check my cervix, but all she could feel was my bag of water.  Since labor had already progressed to that point, she said it would probably be best to have a C-section to avoid the possibility of complications.  Matt and I both called our moms and told them that it was time.  So they started prepping me for the O.R.  My nurse for the day, Chrissie, who was supposed to go home at 3 pm, insisted on staying until I delivered, even though I told her she should go home.  What a great friend.  The whole time they were prepping me for the OR, my room was full of other nurses who just come in and wish us well and make sure we were ok.  I love the people I work with.

They took me back to get my spinal in, which turned out to be quite an ordeal.  The CRNA was having trouble getting it in because I had to lay down instead of sitting up to avoid breaking my water.  They finally got the spinal in after about 45 minutes and then went to get Matt.  Shortly after he arrived they started the surgery.  My leg had been pulled up with my knee bent in the air when it went numb, so the whole time I felt like it was in that position even though they had straightened my leg and laid it down again.

Once Dr. Bemenderfer got into my uterus, I think Luke changed his mind.  She kept trying to pull him out and he kept trying to go back inside.  I couldn't see anything, but Matt said he saw his feet sticking out 2 or 3 different times, but they kept disappearing.  So they had to cut my uterus a little more, vertically this time instead of horizontally like the first incision.  This ensures that if we have any more children, I will be having a C-section.  Then she was able to get him out and they laid him on my chest to suction his mouth and nose before the NICU people took over.  They immediately started to intubate him and check his heart rate and temperature.  They had a little trouble getting the tube into the right spot, but eventually got it in and got him stabilized.  They did an awesome job!!!!!  Matt was bouncing back and forth between me and Luke the whole time trying to make sure both of us were ok.  While they were working on him, we heard him let out a few small cries.  It was amazing!!!  Once the tubes were in and they had checked his breathing, they quickly took Luke from the room and upstairs to the NICU.

The official time and stats were:

Lucas Matthew Healy
Born: 5:13 pm, Nov. 23, 2011
1 lb. 13 oz. - 13 inches long

Then Dr. Bemenderfer finished stitching me up and they sent me back to my room.  We had a wait of about 2 hours before anyone could go see Luke, with not a lot of updates.  We just kept being told they were working on his IV and feeding lines and getting his breathing and heart rate stable.  Finally around 8:30 or 9 Matt was able to go up and check on Luke.  After both sets of grandparents were able to go up and see him everyone headed for home or hotels around 10.  I was feeling pretty good after the surgery, so Matt and I went up to see him around 11.

So far he is doing well.  He is really bruised from the delivery, but his skin color is improving daily.  He was  black, blue and purple from head to toe Wednesday night, but is starting to turn pink in his chest, hands, feet and even a little in his arms and legs today.  His heart rate and blood pressure are doing well along with most of the other levels that the NICU is monitoring.

This morning when Matt and I went up to see him, they let Matt take his temperature and change his diaper (Matt's first ever).

Right now we just hope and pray that our little guy can keep going strong and slowly improve with each day that passes.

We really appreciate the thoughts, prayers and support that all of our family and friends have given us this far and we know they will continue to be there as we move forward.

It's Been a Rough Couple of Days

Monday's cervical length started out ok.  Luke looked good and my cervix measured 3.5 cm. . . . but then I had a contraction and it went down to 0.6 cm with some pretty bad funneling.  I was HORRIFIED.  A little later one of the doctors came in and checked my cervix and said I was dilated and she could feel his head.  That got me extremely worried and I was just sure that he was coming out.  Luckily that was not the case.  There was also some bleeding and fluid coming out.  Dr. Bemenderfer was concerned that my water may have broke, but again, luckily that was not the case.  They gave me some more meds and upped my mag in the evening and things seemed to quiet down overnight.

Tuesday morning brought more contractions starting at about 5:30 a.m.  I got some more meds to help, which they did, but I am still contracting.  Some hours it may only be one or two, while others it seems to be 8 or 10.

A nurse practioner from the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) came down to talk to us about what to expect if I were to deliver today or in the near future.  It was not a very pleasant conversation, but it was probably a good thing that we did it.  For now we are just hoping that doesn't happen for awhile.  Every day and week counts a lot right now and we are just hoping for the best.

Since all of happenings on Monday I have been restricted to my bed, I don't even get bathroom privelages.  My wonderful and loving husband (he is the one doing the typing now, so I don't really have control over what he says about himself) has had to do and see things that he is not particularly fond of.  He doesn't do well with dog poop, not to mention mine.  All in all, it has been a rough couple of days, but we are hanging in there and Luke is still inside - where he belongs.

Everyones' thoughts and prayers are greatly appreciated.

The Day Has Come...

Just when I was starting to relax....NOT! So let me update you on the latest....
Tuesday I had a scheduled ultrasound to check my cervical length. I went just like any other appt thinking everything would be fine and I would be back home in 30 mins. Again, NOT! The ultrasound started off just fine. She measured my cervix and it was 3.0 (this was shorter than Friday's measurement but only by 0.1 cm). Then we were just watching him move around (he has taken to head butting the ultrasound probe and it is quite comical) when I saw my cervix opening on the big screen and she saw it too. She asked what I was feeling and I was feeling a contraction, but not a bad one. What we were seeing was something called funneling (for my non-nursing friends it is too hard to explain, just Google it) and that isn't good. While this was happening my cervix shrunk to 1.6 cm, which isn't good again! She had me get dressed but placed me in a waiting area while she got my doctor. I knew what was coming so I started alerting the media (Matt, mom, etc). My doctor came in and basically said we knew it was probably coming and I was going to get taken over to the unit for some monitoring and then we would go from there. For some reason (why, I don't know...I should know better) I was starting to get hopeful that I would still go home.

Got to triage on the L&D unit (my second home) and got my monitoring started. It showed that I was very irritable (crampy) with a few contractions...which wasn't a change for me. But that was enough for my doctor to say, were done and it was time for me to be admitted. Not only was I going to be admitted, but I was also going to be started on a medicine called Magnesium Sulfate (Mag), which is an IV medication to stop my uterine activity, along with a slew of other medicines. This did not excite me one bit. I have see what this medicine does to you and I didn't want that. But I knew it would help keep him in there which is where he needs to be!

Luckily, a lot of my friends were working so they all were eager and ready to help get this going. They took me to my room (which was an inside room...without a window to the outside....not going to work...now I am in a new room with an outside window) and got everything going. They got the Mag started and it did everything I expected it to. Now, lets fast forward to today....

The Mag is still going, but I feel tons better than I did. My only big problems would be that I can't focus, so that make reading, etc (all things I was doing) not possible/much more difficult. Also, I am a walking furnace.  My room is kept cold (Matt is even saying he is cold) and I have a fan on me at all times, my face is also a wonderful "blush" color. The Mag also burns my arm, for which I keep an ice pack on it! Matt has moved our house into our room, and that is sad. I already miss my dogs (never thought I would say that) and my home. I have been told that I am going to be here until he comes out (unless my cervix decides to cooperate). We had another ultrasound yesterday (we will have many more) and the ultrasound lady who I have gotten to know quite well switched it over to 3D/4D so we could really see his little features and OMG! I wasn't sure how good it would look since he really doesn't have any fat on him yet, but it came out perfect....

I am in love with his little nose and chin. Too cute!!!

Well, that is all for now. I leave you with this...I am always welcoming visitors and if anyone has an idea how I can see Breaking Dawn I am all ears (I am not above breaking the law).  I will update more since now I REALLY have nothing to do!!!!

Half Way :)

Wow, 20 weeks.....wow. I had my doubts about even getting pregnant and now I am half way through. I am still in awe of this whole process everyday. Every ultrasound (and there are many), every kick in my belly (even in the middle of the night or very early in the morning), every ache/pain/contraction will be all worth it soon!

To update....my cervical lengths this week went well. Monday it was 3.3 and today it was 3.4, so all is good there. Today was supposed to be our gender ultrasound (but we found that out 6 weeks ago) so it was just another ultrasound. They checked to make sure he had all of his organs (kidneys, heart, stomach, bladder, etc) and he did. He was actually quite cooperative today (usually he isn't, he wants to move around too much). And get this....he is still a boy...he even showed us!

This was the first thing we saw, as if to say "hi mom and dad"!!

Saw more than just his "thing" today....

Love this picture, his cute little feet :)

Right when the lady needed to measure his leg bones he stretched one leg out for her...good boy!

Waving bye! See ya next time :)

My doctor appointment after the ultrasound went well too. I was excited to actually see my doctor since recently she has been out of the office or not on call when I have needed her! How dare she have a life ;)
She was glad to see my cervical length is stable. She also made me feel better but just saying she understands how nervous and scared I am and she is here for me whenever...I just love her! She is a little concerned with my weight gain (or lack of). My pre-pregnancy weight was 104 lbs and I am just now at 107. The baby's growth is still fine, but she is worried. I feel like I am eating enough, but maybe I am not. I really thought gaining weight while pregnant would be easy...guess not! She is having me keep a food log for the next week to see where I can improve. Hopefully she can give me some ideas :)

In other news, here is the belly shot everyone is anxious to see...I feel huge and I know I am not even close to that yet!

Also, the nursery is coming along. We finished painting and putting up the chair rail. Now we just need mattresses and bedding stuff....and a little decoration.

 What you see when you enter

The crib and my rocking chair that was my grandma's. The stuffed animals on it are mine and will be put somewhere.

The changing table

The dresser

My Scentsy warmer with the "newborn nursery" smell (it smells like baby powder)...thanks Meg!!

Grandma Janet has been hard at work....shopping :) There would be more but Matt won't let me buy anything :(

That is all for now...will update next week after my doctor appointments!