Snow Worries....It's in God's Hands

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First off, we want everybody to know that Hayden will make his big debut this Thursday, February 7th, at 9 pm on Fox 2 in St. Louis. We're not sure exactly what part of the newscast we will appear, but it will be sometime. I also have no idea how I will sound, but if they decide to keep me in the video, I know I will at least look funny in my clothes! If you can't find it on TV, they do have an iPhone/iPad App that carries live streaming of their newscasts. They might also have it on their website.


So yesterday was a rough afternoon. We went from tears of joy around 10 a.m. to frustration and worries around 2 p.m.

I slept in yesterday morning and didn't come in until 10! That is a first I think, but it was needed. That's ok though because I stayed late Friday night and Hayden and I listened to Matt Longo on the radio (Tuned In app) on the iPhone. It wasn't a win, but Hayden enjoyed listening to the game! He raised his right arm as if cheering a couple of times....when Matt would stop talking!

When we came in yesterday, Ann (our nurse for the day) was talking about his feedings and how he had the doctors had increased his feedings 1ml every 8 hours. We were up to 15ml/hr and were within about 24 hours of reaching his goal for his daily feedings. Ann told us that when we reach that, if Hayden can tolerate the feedings, they would probably take out his PICC line. This is the line that runs from a vein in his head close to his heart. It is used to give supplemental nutrients and is more of a permanent line since it can be so hard to insert an iv into his small veins. When she said this, I was overcome. It is so wonderful to think of my boy having one less line running to him. It is more of a mental thing, but I am so cautious when I pick him up because he has so many lines running to him. Four of them are just stuck on which monitor his heart, breathing, and oxygen saturation, but his NG tube and his PICC line are a little more permanent and I'm always so afraid of pulling them and hurting him when I pick him up. Kelsea is an old pro by now. As for me....I'm still learning to deal with it. The tears were great though. I never mind tears of joy!

Shortly after this, I was holding him and the March of Dimes came in for our first family photo session! We signed up for this, something they offer to NICU families every so often I believe. The photographers loved Hayden, as everybody does!

After 12:00, Hayden's O2 saturation levels started dropping. He couldn't keep them above 90% (I just assumed he inherited dad's sleep apnea!) and the nurse was not liking that. Neither was mom! we tried a couple of different things and gave him some Tylenol, but nothing seemed to work. He finally calmed down for a few minutes, so Kelsea and I snuck out to get some well-needed snacks! We went to the Ronald McDonald room for soda, combos, and a Kit-Kat! Kelsea headed back to go pump, and on my way back, I was talking to a maintenance worker in the hallway. She texted me a few minutes later and said I probably needed to get back because his saturation was down again, and his heart rate and respiration had increased and the doctors were bedside. Of course, this is never what you wanted to hear. We were a little anxious and overwhelmed I think because all three things were doing stuff they weren't supposed to. Doctors decided to give him a little help with breathing and give him some oxygen. Ann kept telling us not to worry, that this isn't a setback, but of course, when you have to add the nose prongs to give him a little help breathing, parent's don't like that!

Well, it was basically just room air, but it helped him. His levels immediately went back to normal and calmed down. His temperature stayed low and he was good to go.

After a good visit from Aunt Bonnie and Uncle Bruce, we met them for dinner at Fortel's Pizza Den in Creve Coeur....one of us soccer coaches favorites! We always consume mass quantities of Shelly's Deluxe when we're in town for Eric's tournament in the fall!

Kelsea and I headed back to the hospital around 7:00 and Hayden and I caught the end of the Blue Devil basketball game again (not a good one!). Well, it was more like I did because he was sound asleep and his vitals were perfect. We stayed until about 9:30 and he only opened his eyes once. It was such a good night!

As we left, it started flurrying. By the time we got home, got done with out chores (wiping down dining tables at night) and headed up for bed, it was coming down pretty good. The weather channel said we should only have about 1/2". However, when I left this morning...they were way off!! Ended up with probably close to 3" in Creve Coeur, less in the city. However, 64 was horrible coming in! Good thing it was early Sunday morning and there was zero traffic!












When I got here, Christina (the night nurse) filled me in on Hayden. His weigh jumped last night. He was up to 2725g (just a little over 6 pounds..first time he has been back over 6 pounds since the first few days when he dropped) and we are only 45 grams shy of his birthweight! Christina also said he did perfect overnight, had two small poops, and vitals were perfect. Plus, his oxygen prongs were not even close to his nose, so she told the doctor on rounds this morning that she doesn't think he needs it. Well...the end result is this we pulled the plug....I mean prongs and his heart rate, respiration are still fine and his O2 saturation is still at 97-98%! Great start to the morning! Surgery came in and changed his dressing on his "O." It is amazing how much it has changed. I purposely haven't put pictures on here because of it, but am going to today. However, I will put some space between the end so you have to scroll down to see it...if you want! It's not bad looking...just something different!

Again, all three of us thank everybody for your thoughts and prayers. Hayden is truly a miracle from God and it is truly amazing what he has done for us, our family and friends, and people we have never met. This has been a long journey, but we haven't questioned it. For whatever reasons, God chose Hayden for Kelsea and I and we couldn't be happier that His plan is so much better than we could ever fathom.