I went to visit Gaines this afternoon around 1:45. I walked into the NICU, scrubbed up, put on my gown and headed towards Gaines' bed. As I arrived at his bedside, his Nurse told me he was at 1 Liter of flow. He had been at 1 Liter a good portion of the day and his SATS were above 95%. At one point during the morning, he was asleep on 1 Liter of flow and his SATS were 98% and above. What a great way to start a visit to the NICU. So many times you walk into the NICU just hoping that your child hasn't gotten worse...it's a wonderful feeling to walk in and hear they are doing better.
After hearing the great news, I picked Gaines up and gave him his bottle. The little guy sucked it down and then promptly fell asleep in my arms. I was sitting in a rocking chair at Gaines' bedside with him asleep in my arms and all of a sudden I noticed there were a lot of nurses kind of hanging around me. About that time the doctor came over. I think all the nurses just wanted to be there when I got the news. Long story short, Brittany and I might be spending the weekend at the hospital "rooming in". Let me explain.
There is the possibility that Gaines will be released next Friday. There is also the possibility that he will be in the hospital for many more weeks . Only Gaines knows which time frame is correct. Either way, the doctor thought it would be a good idea for Brittany and me to "room in" this weekend in preparation for his impending release date. "Rooming in" would mean they would put us in a Post Pardom room with Gaines. The doctors would switch Gaines' oxygen, monitor, gadgets, etc. from the ones in the NICU to the ones that he would be on at home. Then they would move him from the NICU to the Post Pardom room. This would give us the chance to become accustomed to Gaines' "equipment" during the course of the weekend. If we had questions or concerns we would have the NICU staff only 30 feet away. This would also give the NICU staff the opportunity to observe Gaines on the new equipment. Basically we would be taking care of him but the nurses and doctor would be able to monitor Gaines from the NICU.
We will find out tomorrow whether or not we will be rooming in. Apparently the hospital doesn't do this that often and they have to confirm they can get similar equipment that Gaines will be on at home. Again, this is not an indication that he is going home in a few days. We have spent more than 4 months getting Gaines ready to go home, now it is time to get Brittany and me ready.
Beau
PS- There was a comment to the last post asking if we would continue the blog once Gaines came home. We originally started this blog to keep family and friends informed of Brittany and Gaines' progress when we were stranded in DC. However, God has used this blog to recruit hundreds of prayer warriors for Gaines. Originally we had said all along we would "retire" from blogging once this ordeal was over. Who knows what we'll do. In the mean time, this journey is not over and we still need your prayers.
20 comments:
God is so good. Gaines has come so far, granted he still has a ways to go, but the end of his NICU stay is in sight. What a huge blessing.
I have enjoyed following your blog since the beginning. If you decide to continue blogging, I'll be following. If not, I will still pray for little Gaines.
Mary
Still praying in Michigan and would LOVE for you to keep blogging after Gaines comes home! :) It's been a joy to follow your journey and an honor to be able to pray along with you and 100's of others! :) God Bless You this weekend - praying the rooming in plans go well and you enjoy a wonderful weekend with your little guy! :)
The four of you, and Jack, too, are in my prayers daily and will continue to be as long as I know what your needs are. May you have a good weekend where ever you spend it. Our God is an awesome God!
What great news!! Remember when I was in D.C. in June and you two were wondering when you could make it home? I am SO happy for you all and SO proud of Gaines. What a strong little boy and living proof of God's special and wonderful plan for each of us. You have had so many prayers from Raleigh and they continue! Thank you for the updates, they mean more than you will ever know!
Kirsten:)
With tears in my eyes and my hand over my mouth I rejoice and thank God for this miracle! I know, it may be premature, but the fact that this is even a possibility is a miracle! We love you guys!!
Praise the Lord!! I am so happy for you and your family that you got such encouraging news today.
Even if you decide to stop blogging (it IS an addiction!), my family will continue to pray for all of you!
Beau and Brittany,
It is clear that God has a purpose for your family and Gaines. You are doing great work through this blog, and I hope you can continue once Gaines comes home. So many people are continually praying for Gaines and your whole family, I hope we can keep up with the progress once he comes home! You guys are both showing how merciful God is, and how he hears our prayers and uses us for His work.
Love,
Susannah Edwards
The journey is never really over. Keep up the blog!
I hope you get to room in-- exciting!
I am so happy to hear all this good news! All of these months of praying for Gaines' lungs have paid off! I can't wait to see what improvements he makes in this coming week.
Rooming in is such a wonderful way to bond with your little one. Cherish every moment of it. We roomed in with our first twin to come home but didn't have to with the second. Enjoy and keep the good updates coming. God Bless you and your family!
Way to go Gaines!!! Now, be nice with your parents when you guys room-in. They will be pretty nervous. But they will have you around all to themselves. =)
Good luck Gaines!
Happy Tears...
What wonderful and exciting news! :)
I'm so excited for you guys! Such WONDERFUL news! I'm continuing to pray for little Gaines' progress.
Have a great weekend! If you get to "room-in", I hope everything goes well. I'll be praying for that as well.
Allison
Wonderful news...how awesome it would be to spend the entire weekend with Gaines!
I pray you will keep the blog up and running. We have grown quite attached to little Gaines and would love to keep up with his progress!
I always hold my breath as I scroll down to see the latest post for the Daniel family and reading today's brought tears to my eyes.
My family and I went through this exact thing with my little brother 20 years ago. I have you in my prayers daily as well as Reed.
God just keeps the GREAT news coming! We've been praying here in Florida from the beginning!! :)You be sure and whisper to Gaines that he (and Reed too!) get to be "honorary" Gators!!! :)
Just thought I'd let you know I've probably added about 50 clicks to your ticker! I've been praying all day for some good news for Gaines...hope it's still going well!!
I am so glad to hear that Gaines is doing so well! I hope that he will coming home to you sooner than later!
Beau and Brittany,
Hello, my name is Robin Livingston and you don't know me. I am a Youth Director for FUMC, Andalusia, AL. I received your thread from Nicole Jackson about 3 months ago. I can't tell you how blessed I have been while reading your post. One of the wonderful parts of intercessory prayer is that it also allows the pray-er to get closer to God while having the joy of blessing someone else.
Let me get to why I am writing you. I want you to know that I am using your story this morning in Sunday school with my Youth. We are going to talk about Moses and the Amakelites, (EX 17:10-13) when Aaron and Hur hold up his arms to help win the battle. Your story is such a beautiful example of this. As of this morning you have had 430,939, at least, prayers of the people holding up your arms for the "long battle".
Well, I just wanted y'all to know another way that your life has touched others, God is so great. Please know that we are here and we will continue to hold up your arms!
Robin Livingston
rlivingston@andalusia-umc.com
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