It seems that we are now in the second phase of this adventure God has put us on...the NICU phase.
The big news is that Gaines seems to be stabilized right now. I just spoke with one of the doctors in the NICU and they are currently switching him to his new machine. This new machine will be less stressful on Gaines than the ventilator. Pray that he takes to it well.
Praise the Lord, his oxygen saturation levels are back to where they needed to be after being given breathing treatments (nitric oxide I believe). Before we left the NICU this afternoon they had gone from low 50s to mid-upper 80s. The doctor I just spoke to said that he had been holding steady at 90. For a baby Gaines' size 88-90 is what they shoot for. However, she very quickly reminded me that he is still critical so please continue to keep Gaines (specifically his lungs) in your prayers. The first 24-48 hours of his life are so crucial.
What a long two days it has been. We started Thursday morning around 4 am with my contractions. After a few hours of that, they tapered off and I had a pretty normal day...just very on edge and very stressed at each twinge of my body. That afternoon around 4 I started having the contractions again. Needless to say they were very painful and we got very little sleep that night. I also had doctors constantly monitoring me and trying to decide if I was going into active labor.
After a dose of morphine and some other medicine that I can't remember, we were able to rest for about an hour. At 4 am this (Friday) morning they finally checked me to find that I was 3 cm dilated. So, off to the labor and delivery room we went. I had been in pretty severe pain since 4 that afternoon so after begging for and getting my epidural we were finally able to rest...for about an hour. Pretty quickly after that, my doctor checked me and I was fully dilated. About 2 minutes later there were about 12 people in my room and 2 minutes after that Gaines was here. I have truly been blessed to have had awesome doctors and nurses here. They have all been incredible.
Gaines came out crying and looked bigger than we expected. Later we were happy to find out he was 3 lbs 2 oz. It was so scary watching the NICU team work on and stabilize my baby. At the time they took him away they didn't think he needed to be on the ventilator but they realized soon after that he actually did. His little lungs are just very immature. Less than what you'd expect of a 29 weeker because of the lack of fluid.
The rest of the day has kind of been a blur. I moved rooms, showered, visited Gaines, my parents and Reed arrived and I had several housekeeping things to take care of (consent forms etc). When the NICU doctor came down here to talk to us our hearts dropped...the news was not good. Gaines had seemed so stable at my visit this afternoon. Beau and I were terrified. We went to the NICU and watched the machines. It was a bleak situation. A nurse asked if we wanted a clergy person to come up and baptize Gaines. That's when I really realized that they didn't think he would make it through. BUT, slowly but surely the numbers on the machines changed and he stabilized.
After we felt comfortable leaving we came back to my room to rest. My body is so sore from having contractions for so long, an epidural put in, labor in general, the emotional roller coaster of today and stress for about 37 days. I hadn't been able to eat or drink since 4 Thursday afternoon and my body felt like it had been hit by a truck. I did more today than I have in 37 days so you can imagine how weak I am.
Beau and I are resting right now, he's actually sleeping. We are headed back to the NICU at 9 to check on tell Gaines goodnight. I pray that everything is alright when we get down there. He really is a precious boy. He's opened his eyes for us a few times...especially when we talk to him. We've also been able to touch his little feet. We are already so impressed and thankful for the NICU staff here.
We knew that the NICU would be a roller coaster but this started off with more of a bang than we were expecting. I just don't think you can ever prepare yourself for what it actually is. We are going to have a rough time for the next several weeks. When you pray for Gaines, pray for comfort, peace and strength for Beau and me as well. This is SO hard but I know we will get through this. There is a reason God is putting us through this trial.
One last thing. We haven't gotten to see Reed as much as we'd like today but he is so precious and was a major bright spot in the day. He has learned so much the last two weeks and was a breath of fresh air in this room today. God has already blessed me with such a sweet and loving child...albeit rambunctious. I feel truly blessed to now be the mother of two little boys and I can't wait for them to grow up together. Please continue to keep our family in your prayers. We wouldn't be getting through this without them.
PS. I just heard from a NICU doctor that Gaines is on his new machine and is doing ok (they never say doing well I've noticed...it's always ok). His sats are up to 93 and he is down from 100% to 80% oxygen. They are doing another chest x-ray so they want us to wait until 9:30 to go down. Hopefully it will be a peaceful visit that helps us get a good night's sleep. One last thing...one of Gaines lungs had been working harder than the other. You could actually see it when he breathed but that has straightened itself out as well. Thank you all for your prayers today...Beau and I are truly humbled by every one's support.
Love to all,
Brittany
Friday, April 24, 2009
We need emergency prayers
We need emergency prayers for Gaines. He is not doing very well on the ventilator and the doctors have decided to switch him to another machine. The hospital is having to get this machine brought in. He should be hooked up to the new machine in about an hour. Hopefully this will correct the problem but please pray for his under developed lungs.
Beau
Beau
Specific Prayer Requests
We just met with one of the NICU doctors. Gaines weighs 3 lbs 2 oz which is awesome. It is still very early and we don't know much. The NICU team is currently running several tests. We'll know more from those later.
At this time, we do know that he is on a ventilator because his lungs are still immature...even a little immature for a 29 weeker. We were told this is probably due to the lack of fluid for him to "practice" with. They are giving him surfactant which is something term babies already make. This will help to keep his lungs open. Please specifically pray for Gaines lungs to develop and for other tests to come back normal.
I so much want a healthy baby. We should be able to see him in about 30 minutes.
Brittany
At this time, we do know that he is on a ventilator because his lungs are still immature...even a little immature for a 29 weeker. We were told this is probably due to the lack of fluid for him to "practice" with. They are giving him surfactant which is something term babies already make. This will help to keep his lungs open. Please specifically pray for Gaines lungs to develop and for other tests to come back normal.
I so much want a healthy baby. We should be able to see him in about 30 minutes.
Brittany
Thomas Gaines Daniel
Thomas Gaines Daniel was born at 9:35 AM Eastern. He came out crying and his color looked good. He has a lot of black hair. We don't know anymore at this time...he is with the NICU team. We will post an update once we have more information from the NICU team regarding Gaines. Brittany is doing fine.
Prayers are needed again
It is wierd to be writing this knowing that by the time most of you read it I will be a father for the second time.
Brittany began experiencing contractions again last night around 5:00 PM. They continued through the night intensifying and becoming more frequent. The doctors did everything they could to possibly slow down the contractions; however, at around 4:00 AM they decided to move her into a delivery room because she was already 3 centimeters dilated. Gaines will be born today, April 24th.
Praise God that Brittany held on to Gaines for 37 days after her water broke. She was admitted at 24 weeks 1 day and will give birth at 29 weeks 3 days.
Please pray for a healthy and safe delivery for Gaines and Brittany. The second part of this journey is about to begin.
Beau
Brittany began experiencing contractions again last night around 5:00 PM. They continued through the night intensifying and becoming more frequent. The doctors did everything they could to possibly slow down the contractions; however, at around 4:00 AM they decided to move her into a delivery room because she was already 3 centimeters dilated. Gaines will be born today, April 24th.
Praise God that Brittany held on to Gaines for 37 days after her water broke. She was admitted at 24 weeks 1 day and will give birth at 29 weeks 3 days.
Please pray for a healthy and safe delivery for Gaines and Brittany. The second part of this journey is about to begin.
Beau
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Update from Brittany
Hello all. Beau's done most of the posting today because I am trying to be as still as possible. We were so calm this morning but after I got off the monitor I didn't want to do anything that could start the contractions again. Plus I was super tired. I didn't sleep well and woke up fully at 4:30 this morning. I took a good nap and now I feel a lot better.
The contractions are pretty much gone. I still have one every now and then but nothing consistent. I pray that they hold off. They just checked Gaines' heart rate again and at first it was pretty high. A high heart rate is a sign of infection. So, they left me on the monitor for a little while longer and he settled back down. From what I understand, its fine for spikes to be in the 160s and 170s, but they don't want his baseline heart rate that high. The spikes are actually good because the show that his nervous system is developing. He ended up with a baseline about 140-150 I think. I hope that makes sense.
I honestly thought this morning that Gaines was coming today. He still could of course but it doesn't seem as imminent. I kept thinking...I'm not at 30 weeks yet...I want to make it to 30 weeks. Funny how 36 days ago I would have been happy with 25 weeks and now 29 doesn't seem good enough.
Oh, my temp and blood pressure were also ok so that's comforting.
Please continue to keep our family in your prayers. Pray against infection and labor, pray for a healthy Gaines no matter what, pray for comfort, strength and peace for Beau and me and pray for safe travels for my family and Reed tomorrow. He's flying and that always makes me nervous but I am SO looking forward to seeing that little face tomorrow!
We are so thankful for all of your prayers today and always. I'm going to run for now I still want to be a still as possible.
Love to all,
Brittany
The contractions are pretty much gone. I still have one every now and then but nothing consistent. I pray that they hold off. They just checked Gaines' heart rate again and at first it was pretty high. A high heart rate is a sign of infection. So, they left me on the monitor for a little while longer and he settled back down. From what I understand, its fine for spikes to be in the 160s and 170s, but they don't want his baseline heart rate that high. The spikes are actually good because the show that his nervous system is developing. He ended up with a baseline about 140-150 I think. I hope that makes sense.
I honestly thought this morning that Gaines was coming today. He still could of course but it doesn't seem as imminent. I kept thinking...I'm not at 30 weeks yet...I want to make it to 30 weeks. Funny how 36 days ago I would have been happy with 25 weeks and now 29 doesn't seem good enough.
Oh, my temp and blood pressure were also ok so that's comforting.
Please continue to keep our family in your prayers. Pray against infection and labor, pray for a healthy Gaines no matter what, pray for comfort, strength and peace for Beau and me and pray for safe travels for my family and Reed tomorrow. He's flying and that always makes me nervous but I am SO looking forward to seeing that little face tomorrow!
We are so thankful for all of your prayers today and always. I'm going to run for now I still want to be a still as possible.
Love to all,
Brittany
Contraction Update #2
The nurses came in around Noon and took Brittany's temperature. It was below normal...wonderful news. They also monitored Gaines' heart rate. It was not elevated...also good news. Over the past 2.5 hours Brittany has only felt a couple of contractions. We will keeep everyone updated.
Contraction Update
Brittany's contractions have slowed and eased. The doctors have taken her off the monitor. The contractions Brittany experienced this morning could be the early signs of her body letting us know that an infection is setting in. However, with no other definite signs of infection, the doctors are going to closely monitor the situation. They do not feel there is any reason to perform a c-section at this time. The doctors did check Brittany's white blood cell count this morning and it had risen to 12. While this is a increase from the 10.78 on Monday, the doctors are not overly concerned by this.
They are going to monitor Gaines' heart rate at 2:00 this afternoon (normally they only do this twice per day). If Gaines has an elevated heart rate, that would be another indicator of possible infection. The doctors are also going to measure Brittany's white blood cell count once per day rather than once per week.
The contractions Brittany experienced this morning could be nothing or it could be a sign of more to come. The peace and calm Brittany and I felt this morning are because of God's presence and your prayers. Only God knows what today holds for us. We continue to ask for your prayers...specifically for peace, comfort, a healthy Gaines and that His will be done.
Beau
They are going to monitor Gaines' heart rate at 2:00 this afternoon (normally they only do this twice per day). If Gaines has an elevated heart rate, that would be another indicator of possible infection. The doctors are also going to measure Brittany's white blood cell count once per day rather than once per week.
The contractions Brittany experienced this morning could be nothing or it could be a sign of more to come. The peace and calm Brittany and I felt this morning are because of God's presence and your prayers. Only God knows what today holds for us. We continue to ask for your prayers...specifically for peace, comfort, a healthy Gaines and that His will be done.
Beau
We need your prayers...
Brittany woke up this morning at 5:00 with pain in her lower back and general discomfort. The doctors have confirmed that she is having contractions. The contractions are approximately 2-3 minutes apart. Right now the doctors are monitoring the situation and giving Brittany fluids via an IV. The fluids could stop the contractions. If the contractions intensify and stay at regular intervals, the doctors will check to see if Brittany is dilated. The doctors do not want to have to do this as it is a great way to introduce infection. Some good news, the doctors did a sonogram this morning and Gaines' head is down.
Brittany is still in the same room...she will be moved to a delivery room if things progress. If the contractions stop, this "episode" is not an indication she would be giving birth any time soon. If the contractions stop we basically go back to just waiting again. She and I both are surprisingly calm and in good spirits. We know that God is in control of everything.
Please pray that the contractions stop or for Gaines to be delivered healthy.
Brittany is still in the same room...she will be moved to a delivery room if things progress. If the contractions stop, this "episode" is not an indication she would be giving birth any time soon. If the contractions stop we basically go back to just waiting again. She and I both are surprisingly calm and in good spirits. We know that God is in control of everything.
Please pray that the contractions stop or for Gaines to be delivered healthy.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Various Ramblings...
It's another afternoon here and things are still going well. Gaines' heart rate continues to look good and I still don't have any signs of infection. It's just been another looooong day here. We really are so thankful for each day that God gives us here but we also miss home very much. I know that we'll be there again when all of this is over but we so miss our "real lives". We are so blessed to have a wonderful son, a great dog, jobs we love, friends we miss and a house that we look forward to getting our family back to. Its just hard to have all of that taken away from you for a while.
The last time they let me "out" for my sonogram I was reminded that in the great scheme of things we don't have it so bad. I saw other patients being pushed around and realized that things could be much worse. That said, with the days getting longer around here, the missing home gets worse. Most of the day we are fine but there are a few times a day when you just want "normal" back. I feel so guilty actually putting that into words because I know what a gift the last 5 weeks have been. I almost feel like God will think I'm ungrateful if I don't stay super positive about everything. That couldn't be further from the truth...we are truly grateful. Gaines would have been here 5 weeks ago if it wasn't for God and all of your prayers...I know that and I thank Him everyday for it.
My mom just called and Reed's 18 month checkup went great. He's perfectly healthy and the doctor said that he is one of the most "well adjusted 18 months old he's seen". Not super sure what that means but I'm sure it's because of the way I've raised him. :)
I almost forgot, Beau was given a new job today here at the hospital...well volunteer job. Our favorite attending came in this morning and asked him to compile all of the resources he had come across in our search for housing, food, organizations etc. It really could not have come at a better time for him. I know he misses his job and this will give him something to work on. I think he was pretty flattered that they asked him to do it. Apparently people stranded away from home are not uncommon here-I guess with this being a big city and a city that draws a lot of tourists. They just don't have any compiled resources for people in our situation or people who have family in town for extended periods.
I guess that's it for now. Please continue to keep our family in your prayers.
Brittany
The last time they let me "out" for my sonogram I was reminded that in the great scheme of things we don't have it so bad. I saw other patients being pushed around and realized that things could be much worse. That said, with the days getting longer around here, the missing home gets worse. Most of the day we are fine but there are a few times a day when you just want "normal" back. I feel so guilty actually putting that into words because I know what a gift the last 5 weeks have been. I almost feel like God will think I'm ungrateful if I don't stay super positive about everything. That couldn't be further from the truth...we are truly grateful. Gaines would have been here 5 weeks ago if it wasn't for God and all of your prayers...I know that and I thank Him everyday for it.
My mom just called and Reed's 18 month checkup went great. He's perfectly healthy and the doctor said that he is one of the most "well adjusted 18 months old he's seen". Not super sure what that means but I'm sure it's because of the way I've raised him. :)
I almost forgot, Beau was given a new job today here at the hospital...well volunteer job. Our favorite attending came in this morning and asked him to compile all of the resources he had come across in our search for housing, food, organizations etc. It really could not have come at a better time for him. I know he misses his job and this will give him something to work on. I think he was pretty flattered that they asked him to do it. Apparently people stranded away from home are not uncommon here-I guess with this being a big city and a city that draws a lot of tourists. They just don't have any compiled resources for people in our situation or people who have family in town for extended periods.
I guess that's it for now. Please continue to keep our family in your prayers.
Brittany
Wednesday Morning, April 22
It is hard to believe that April is almost over. It is such a weird feeling to know that we will have spent the entire month of April here at GW Hospital. Although we are extremely appreciative to be here, it is strange to see an entire month go by. I know Brittany and I miss Reed, our friends, family, jobs, Jack and everything else back home. If I have done the math correctly, we will be bringing Gaines back home sometime in June, possibly July.
Brittany is still sleeping. For those of you who know her, this probably comes as no surprise. Everything still looks good regarding Gaines. It is amazing to think that the doctors originally told us that they really wanted Brittany to go 48 hours, 7-10 days would be really good, and that 4 weeks would be the best case scenario. As of today, Brittany has been at GW for 5 weeks. I pray that she and Gaines continue to prove the doctors wrong for a very long time.
Beau
Brittany is still sleeping. For those of you who know her, this probably comes as no surprise. Everything still looks good regarding Gaines. It is amazing to think that the doctors originally told us that they really wanted Brittany to go 48 hours, 7-10 days would be really good, and that 4 weeks would be the best case scenario. As of today, Brittany has been at GW for 5 weeks. I pray that she and Gaines continue to prove the doctors wrong for a very long time.
Beau
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
29 Weeks-Afternoon Edition
I don't have much of an update this afternoon. Things here are still going well. Gaines is staying put and I still don't have any signs of infection. I know Beau explained the WBC count this morning. That explanation from the doctor last night made me feel much better. I must have freaked out about it a little more than I realized because I've had three nurses and three doctors come in here to talk to me about it. I really didn't mean to cause such a stink over it but all of their reassurances has made me feel a lot better about it. Really, I was already over it before the first doctor ever came in last night, but that's ok.
We had a visitor from Montgomery today. Someone I work with was up here for other reasons and came by. That was a nice distraction for a while. I feel like we talk any visitors we get to death. Other than ourselves and our poor nurses and doctors we don't have anyone but each other to talk to. Our favorite attending just came in a few minutes ago. I let her off easy this time, but last time I asked about her vacation, her education and basically her whole life.
The days here are getting longer but I'm thankful for every one of them. I know that we are in such a better place now than we were five weeks ago. If we make it to 34 weeks we are now halfway there. Tomorrow it will be all downhill. It could be sooner but in no more than 5 weeks, Gaines will be here and phase two of this adventure will start.
One more thing and I'll go. I found out that little boys have a harder time and take longer to get out of the NICU than little girls do. I'd pretty much known that all along but a nurse finally confirmed it for me yesterday. We were talking about something related and I just asked her. She hesitated before she answered but I appreciate her honesty. Knowing that will help me from getting discouraged if things take a little longer. Please keep praying for a healthy Gaines.
Ok...that's it for now. Hope you all have a great afternoon.
Brittany
We had a visitor from Montgomery today. Someone I work with was up here for other reasons and came by. That was a nice distraction for a while. I feel like we talk any visitors we get to death. Other than ourselves and our poor nurses and doctors we don't have anyone but each other to talk to. Our favorite attending just came in a few minutes ago. I let her off easy this time, but last time I asked about her vacation, her education and basically her whole life.
The days here are getting longer but I'm thankful for every one of them. I know that we are in such a better place now than we were five weeks ago. If we make it to 34 weeks we are now halfway there. Tomorrow it will be all downhill. It could be sooner but in no more than 5 weeks, Gaines will be here and phase two of this adventure will start.
One more thing and I'll go. I found out that little boys have a harder time and take longer to get out of the NICU than little girls do. I'd pretty much known that all along but a nurse finally confirmed it for me yesterday. We were talking about something related and I just asked her. She hesitated before she answered but I appreciate her honesty. Knowing that will help me from getting discouraged if things take a little longer. Please keep praying for a healthy Gaines.
Ok...that's it for now. Hope you all have a great afternoon.
Brittany
29 Weeks
Unbelievable...Britt is now 29 weeks along. She was admitted at 24 weeks 1 day. What an amazing God we have.
Gaines' heart rate monitoring was great last night. He continues to prove that he is a little fighter. Many times the nurses have a hard time keeping him on the monitor because he is so active and moving around so much. Brittany and I have been hoping that Reed was going to be our "busy" child. I am afraid that Gaines may take that title.
One of the doctors came in our room last night and reassured us regarding Britt's white blood cell count. The doctor explained that a pregnant woman's wbc count is high anyway. A normal blood cell count does top at 10.8 on the scale; however, the doctor told us that a pregnant woman's can be normal at 14 or even 18. He informed us that they are more closely monitoring any significant jump in Brit's white blood cell count and not necessarily looking at the number. This is good news. Even though Britt's last count was 10.78, her wbc has not fluctuated enough for the docotors to be concerned at all.
We are only seven days away from the next goal of 30 weeks.
Beau
Gaines' heart rate monitoring was great last night. He continues to prove that he is a little fighter. Many times the nurses have a hard time keeping him on the monitor because he is so active and moving around so much. Brittany and I have been hoping that Reed was going to be our "busy" child. I am afraid that Gaines may take that title.
One of the doctors came in our room last night and reassured us regarding Britt's white blood cell count. The doctor explained that a pregnant woman's wbc count is high anyway. A normal blood cell count does top at 10.8 on the scale; however, the doctor told us that a pregnant woman's can be normal at 14 or even 18. He informed us that they are more closely monitoring any significant jump in Brit's white blood cell count and not necessarily looking at the number. This is good news. Even though Britt's last count was 10.78, her wbc has not fluctuated enough for the docotors to be concerned at all.
We are only seven days away from the next goal of 30 weeks.
Beau
Monday, April 20, 2009
So close to 29 weeks...
It's Monday again. We actually like Monday's because we are kind of back to normal. There is better tv on during the day and it just seems more normal. We were able to watch the University of Alabama A-day game on ESPN on Saturday so that was kind of nice. Although a scrimmage isn't quite as exciting as a real game. Beau found out that 45,000 people attended Auburn's A-day game and was kind of impressed at the turnout. I told him it's because Auburn fans wanted to go to a game that Auburn actually won. Kidding...Auburn fans please keep praying for us. :)
I do have a specific prayer request. I'm not supposed to be worried about this (per my nurse and Beau) and I'm not too worried about it but adding it to my laundry list of requests can't hurt. My white blood cell count came back today at 10.78. The normal range is 4-10.8. So...I'm just on the cusp of normal...white blood cell wise. My other readings have all been around 9-10ish but this is the highest one yet. According to my nurse they fluctuate and this number isn't concerning because it was such a slight change from my 9.9 last week. She says they would be looking for more of a drastic change like 14 or 15. I just wanted to ask that you pray that this isn't the start of an infection. I've asked them to check me again on Thursday so we'll see. Thankfully, I don't have any other signs of infection at the moment. Please pray that this continues.
A few people have asked about Reed and Jack so I'll update on them. Reed is with my parents right now and will be flying back up on Friday to see us again. Please pray for their safe travels. Most of my family lives in the same town so he is also getting to spend a lot of time with my grandparents and aunts and uncles. Today he is with my aunt and grandmama and they say that he's doing great. My grandmama was just telling me that he helped her plant flowers last week. She also taught him last week to ride a broom like a horse. We'll have to get him one of those horse heads on a stick...let me know if any of you know where to find one.
My mom told me that yesterday they had their Roomba (vacuum cleaner that just roams around) going and that it trapped Reed in a corner and that he about jumped out of his skin. Poor boy. I hate it for him but I bet it was hilarious.
Every time he is here Beau and I notice all his new words and tricks. He repeats almost anything now and he just does so much funny stuff. We can't wait to see him again. We are SO blessed to have families that we can trust to take care of him and to bring him up here so often. Not having to worry about him makes this so much easier.
My parents have also taken in our first child, Jack. I think Jack is having a harder time adjusting than Reed is. God has given us such a peace about being away from Reed but I still worry about Jack. I know...he's a dog...but he's my dog that I've loved for almost five years now and it's hard to be away from him too. I guess I feel like Reed is so young that he doesn't even really miss us but I know that Jack does. He's very sensitive. That sounds crazy but he really is. Any non-dog lover can just roll their eyes...I don't care.
I guess that's about it for now. Gaines' heart rate looked good this morning and everything continues to go well. Please pray that it continues and pray for Gaines to keep developing into a healthy baby. Thank you all for your continued prayers.
Brittany
I do have a specific prayer request. I'm not supposed to be worried about this (per my nurse and Beau) and I'm not too worried about it but adding it to my laundry list of requests can't hurt. My white blood cell count came back today at 10.78. The normal range is 4-10.8. So...I'm just on the cusp of normal...white blood cell wise. My other readings have all been around 9-10ish but this is the highest one yet. According to my nurse they fluctuate and this number isn't concerning because it was such a slight change from my 9.9 last week. She says they would be looking for more of a drastic change like 14 or 15. I just wanted to ask that you pray that this isn't the start of an infection. I've asked them to check me again on Thursday so we'll see. Thankfully, I don't have any other signs of infection at the moment. Please pray that this continues.
A few people have asked about Reed and Jack so I'll update on them. Reed is with my parents right now and will be flying back up on Friday to see us again. Please pray for their safe travels. Most of my family lives in the same town so he is also getting to spend a lot of time with my grandparents and aunts and uncles. Today he is with my aunt and grandmama and they say that he's doing great. My grandmama was just telling me that he helped her plant flowers last week. She also taught him last week to ride a broom like a horse. We'll have to get him one of those horse heads on a stick...let me know if any of you know where to find one.
My mom told me that yesterday they had their Roomba (vacuum cleaner that just roams around) going and that it trapped Reed in a corner and that he about jumped out of his skin. Poor boy. I hate it for him but I bet it was hilarious.
Every time he is here Beau and I notice all his new words and tricks. He repeats almost anything now and he just does so much funny stuff. We can't wait to see him again. We are SO blessed to have families that we can trust to take care of him and to bring him up here so often. Not having to worry about him makes this so much easier.
My parents have also taken in our first child, Jack. I think Jack is having a harder time adjusting than Reed is. God has given us such a peace about being away from Reed but I still worry about Jack. I know...he's a dog...but he's my dog that I've loved for almost five years now and it's hard to be away from him too. I guess I feel like Reed is so young that he doesn't even really miss us but I know that Jack does. He's very sensitive. That sounds crazy but he really is. Any non-dog lover can just roll their eyes...I don't care.
I guess that's about it for now. Gaines' heart rate looked good this morning and everything continues to go well. Please pray that it continues and pray for Gaines to keep developing into a healthy baby. Thank you all for your continued prayers.
Brittany
Monday Morning
Good morning everyone. Brittany has made it to 28 weeks, 6 days. We have been in GW Hospital for 33 days. Britt is doing fine and so is Gaines.
Thank goodness it is Monday. The hospital gets so quiet on the weekends. We have a hard time remembering what day of the week it is but we can always tell you if it is a weekday or a weekend. We tend to get bored on the weekends. There are fewer nurses, fewer doctors, fewer patients and less commotion in the hospital on the weekend. This past weekend, we played a lot of Uno. Brittany is winning...by a lot.
We have received a couple of questions about our dog Jack and other son Reed. Brittany will update everyone on them later today. She is about to get on the monitor so the nurses can monitor Gaines' heart rate. Thank you for prayers...miracles are happening every day.
Beau
Thank goodness it is Monday. The hospital gets so quiet on the weekends. We have a hard time remembering what day of the week it is but we can always tell you if it is a weekday or a weekend. We tend to get bored on the weekends. There are fewer nurses, fewer doctors, fewer patients and less commotion in the hospital on the weekend. This past weekend, we played a lot of Uno. Brittany is winning...by a lot.
We have received a couple of questions about our dog Jack and other son Reed. Brittany will update everyone on them later today. She is about to get on the monitor so the nurses can monitor Gaines' heart rate. Thank you for prayers...miracles are happening every day.
Beau
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Sunday Evening Commentary
Sunday afternoon and not much to report. We are still here and Gaines and I are still together...thankfully. His heart rate tracing looked great again this morning. I think they are looking better and better. I'm not an expert on it but everyone around here seems to be describing them more favorably. For a while it was, "Well that's what you'd expect of a 24 weeker" or "It's what you'd expect from someone with broken water". Lately it's been "It looks beautiful" or great, excellent, whatever...you get the drift.
I'm in better spirits today. I wasn't in bad spirits yesterday...just one of those days when every so often you get nervous/scared/worried etc. Last night when I was saying my prayers before bed, I had barely started thanking God for giving us another day when tears started rolling out of my eyes. I didn't even really know why. I've only cried maybe 4 times since I've been here so it was weird. I think I just finally let myself think about what happens when Gaines actually gets here. For the last 32 days I haven't let my mind go there. The unknown is very scary to me. Enough of that...I just wanted the record to show that I am back to having a positive attitude.
I had three doctors that came in this morning but one was actually an attending so I asked her a question that had been nagging at me since last night. One of the functions of the fluid is for a baby to practice breathing before they are born. I asked how having no fluid was affecting Gaines' lung development. She told me that he doesn't have no fluid; he has 4.5 whatever they use to measure (it should be closer to about 16 if I was unruptured). Since he has some it shouldn't be a concern. Apparently, he doesn't need a lot for his little self to practice. It was such a relief to hear that. She explained that if they did a sonogram and it showed up that he had no fluid they would put me on stricter bed rest (no bathroom and no showers) and hook me up to fluids in an attempt to build it up.
Our favorite attending came in a few nights ago and I had her explain the hierarchy around here again. I pretty much understood it but I wanted to know who constitutes a "real doctor". I confessed that at this point I always questioned anything that anyone other than an attending told me. I don't mean to sound so untrustworthy but this is my very early baby we are talking about. I might take their word on a cold or something (actually knowing me even that's questionable) but not this. Bottom line, I still don't know who is a "real doctor" and who isn't. All I really got out of it is that different levels have different levels of responsibilities. My real reason for asking is because I wanted to know which level person would be delivering Gaines. The good news is that an attending has to be in the room. I won't go into all the details of it but basically they are right there.
I guess that's about it. I know not everyone cares about my questions concerning the doctor hierarchy and various other rants but I think my family and close friends do...and if they don't they better start. Anyway, I just try and explain all of this as I learn about it.
A quick Uno update before I go...We have decided to keep one big game going while we are here. I am ahead by 204 points. Not that I'm keeping track but if we were playing to 500 like we should, I would have already won...by a lot.
Hope you all had a great weekend.
Brittany
I'm in better spirits today. I wasn't in bad spirits yesterday...just one of those days when every so often you get nervous/scared/worried etc. Last night when I was saying my prayers before bed, I had barely started thanking God for giving us another day when tears started rolling out of my eyes. I didn't even really know why. I've only cried maybe 4 times since I've been here so it was weird. I think I just finally let myself think about what happens when Gaines actually gets here. For the last 32 days I haven't let my mind go there. The unknown is very scary to me. Enough of that...I just wanted the record to show that I am back to having a positive attitude.
I had three doctors that came in this morning but one was actually an attending so I asked her a question that had been nagging at me since last night. One of the functions of the fluid is for a baby to practice breathing before they are born. I asked how having no fluid was affecting Gaines' lung development. She told me that he doesn't have no fluid; he has 4.5 whatever they use to measure (it should be closer to about 16 if I was unruptured). Since he has some it shouldn't be a concern. Apparently, he doesn't need a lot for his little self to practice. It was such a relief to hear that. She explained that if they did a sonogram and it showed up that he had no fluid they would put me on stricter bed rest (no bathroom and no showers) and hook me up to fluids in an attempt to build it up.
Our favorite attending came in a few nights ago and I had her explain the hierarchy around here again. I pretty much understood it but I wanted to know who constitutes a "real doctor". I confessed that at this point I always questioned anything that anyone other than an attending told me. I don't mean to sound so untrustworthy but this is my very early baby we are talking about. I might take their word on a cold or something (actually knowing me even that's questionable) but not this. Bottom line, I still don't know who is a "real doctor" and who isn't. All I really got out of it is that different levels have different levels of responsibilities. My real reason for asking is because I wanted to know which level person would be delivering Gaines. The good news is that an attending has to be in the room. I won't go into all the details of it but basically they are right there.
I guess that's about it. I know not everyone cares about my questions concerning the doctor hierarchy and various other rants but I think my family and close friends do...and if they don't they better start. Anyway, I just try and explain all of this as I learn about it.
A quick Uno update before I go...We have decided to keep one big game going while we are here. I am ahead by 204 points. Not that I'm keeping track but if we were playing to 500 like we should, I would have already won...by a lot.
Hope you all had a great weekend.
Brittany
28 weeks 5 days
Brittany and I actually got to sleep a little late this morning. We are continuing our game of Uno while we wait for her breakfast. We have played two hands already and I won both...although I only gained a total of 22 points.
Brittany is feeling fine and Gaines will be monitored later this morning. We have been here for 32 days, please continue to pray for more.
Beau
Brittany is feeling fine and Gaines will be monitored later this morning. We have been here for 32 days, please continue to pray for more.
Beau
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Borrowed Time...
Beau is out for a little while so I thought I'd post a blog about, well nothing really. Everything medically is still the same and going well. I just have the feeling lately that we are on borrowed time. I know I shouldn't, but we have just been SO blessed to have been given 31 days since this ordeal started, that I wonder when we've reached our limit. I go long stretches of time without thinking about it but every so often it pops in my brain.
I can't really explain it. I feel a big sense of relief from having made it to 28 weeks but I still know that an early birth and a very preemie baby is looming. Even if we make it to 34 weeks, that's still 6 weeks early. I've let a little fear creep in wondering if Gaines' lungs will be able to handle it out here. The odds are so much better than they were but there are no guarantees. If Beau were here right now he'd tell me there are no guarantees in anything...even having a healthy baby at 40 weeks. Of course I know that...it's just scary not knowing what's going on with your baby.
I'm sorry to be kind of a downer right now but I just read an update on a girl I've been following with the same circumstances (broken water) only she was having twins. She delivered at 32 weeks and its not good for one of her babies.
I'm going to take it as a reminder that all of this is in God's hands, as it always has been. Please continue to keep us in your prayers. Please pray specifically for Gaines to continue developing, no infection or labor for me and for continued comfort and strength for Beau and me. We've had a good day so far...I pray that they continue and we have a healthy baby in 5 weeks and 3 days.
On a much lighter note, Beau and I are currently engaged in a rousing game of Uno. We are on a break right now but at this point I'm beating him 349 to 141. I'll let you know how it turns out.
Oh, and someone drank my chocolate Ensure last night. I had it in the fridge to get it cold (they send it up here hot) and someone drank it. So, I had to drink a strawberry one and it wasn't so good. Also it was warm and poured over ice. Gag.
I'll get off of here now before I keep rambling. I hope you are all having a great weekend.
Love to all,
Brittany
I can't really explain it. I feel a big sense of relief from having made it to 28 weeks but I still know that an early birth and a very preemie baby is looming. Even if we make it to 34 weeks, that's still 6 weeks early. I've let a little fear creep in wondering if Gaines' lungs will be able to handle it out here. The odds are so much better than they were but there are no guarantees. If Beau were here right now he'd tell me there are no guarantees in anything...even having a healthy baby at 40 weeks. Of course I know that...it's just scary not knowing what's going on with your baby.
I'm sorry to be kind of a downer right now but I just read an update on a girl I've been following with the same circumstances (broken water) only she was having twins. She delivered at 32 weeks and its not good for one of her babies.
I'm going to take it as a reminder that all of this is in God's hands, as it always has been. Please continue to keep us in your prayers. Please pray specifically for Gaines to continue developing, no infection or labor for me and for continued comfort and strength for Beau and me. We've had a good day so far...I pray that they continue and we have a healthy baby in 5 weeks and 3 days.
On a much lighter note, Beau and I are currently engaged in a rousing game of Uno. We are on a break right now but at this point I'm beating him 349 to 141. I'll let you know how it turns out.
Oh, and someone drank my chocolate Ensure last night. I had it in the fridge to get it cold (they send it up here hot) and someone drank it. So, I had to drink a strawberry one and it wasn't so good. Also it was warm and poured over ice. Gag.
I'll get off of here now before I keep rambling. I hope you are all having a great weekend.
Love to all,
Brittany
Still here...
Today is day 31. I am 28 weeks and 4 days pregnant. Ten days until I hit the new goal of 30 weeks.
There isn't much to report this morning. They let you sleep in around here on Saturdays. It is so nice. My doctor this morning said Gaines' heart tracing last night looked great. Hopefully this morning's will go just as well. I am still showing no signs of infection. I forgot to mention that my white blood cell count this week came back fine. So...we are just praying for more of the same today.
It hit us last night that if I make it to 34 weeks, this Tuesday will be the halfway mark. Kind of exciting I guess. It's weird to think that we'll have a new baby in about 5 weeks or less. Not quite like I planned it.
More later this afternoon. I let myself eat pancakes on the weekend and they are here. They won't be any good cold.
Love to all and please keep praying.
Brittany
There isn't much to report this morning. They let you sleep in around here on Saturdays. It is so nice. My doctor this morning said Gaines' heart tracing last night looked great. Hopefully this morning's will go just as well. I am still showing no signs of infection. I forgot to mention that my white blood cell count this week came back fine. So...we are just praying for more of the same today.
It hit us last night that if I make it to 34 weeks, this Tuesday will be the halfway mark. Kind of exciting I guess. It's weird to think that we'll have a new baby in about 5 weeks or less. Not quite like I planned it.
More later this afternoon. I let myself eat pancakes on the weekend and they are here. They won't be any good cold.
Love to all and please keep praying.
Brittany
Friday, April 17, 2009
Day 30
Just a quick post to let everyone know that Brittany is doing fine. She took a nap this afternoon. The nurses should monitor Gaines' heart rate again later tonight. We will post again later tonight if there is any news to report. If everything is normal tonight, we will post in the morning.
Beau
Beau
Good Morning. Just a quick post for now. Everything is still going well here. Last night's monitoring went great...good heartbeat, no contractions. I still am not showing any signs of infection...Praise the Lord. I was just thinking this morning about how blessed we are and how each of the 30 days we've been here have been a blessing.
My nurse last night was my nurse from my first night here. We actually have her every night that she is working. Anyway, she told me last night that other than the contractions that showed up Wednesday night, my contraction line had always been flat...except for my first night here. She said that I wasn't feeling them on that first night but that they were definitely there. She told me that was normal because when your water breaks, your body starts producing oxytocin which causes contractions. It would have been so easy for me to have gone into full labor that night but I believe that because of all the prayers that started going up that night, they stopped. I'll never know for sure and that could just be a normal thing but that's the way I'm going to look at it.
I had a couple of questions in the comments from the last post that I'm going to try and answer. I think several people probably wonder about this. Remember...I'm not a doctor so bear with me. Someone asked how Gaines can keep developing with no water around him. The lack of water doesn't keep him from developing. The amniotic fluid (water) has 3 main functions. I'm sure there are more but these are the three I know about. First, it is to give the baby something to move around in. You want him to keep moving so that he doesn't develop problems with moving his limbs. So far, this baby has no problems moving around. Second, the fluid is there for the baby to "breathe". It gives his lungs practice breathing. I'm not exactly sure on this one but I believe that since I still have some fluid he's still able to get some practice in. The thing about the fluid is that the baby is constantly making more. Basically, he gets nutrients from the placenta and uses the bathroom (just like we do) and the urine is the amniotic fluid. So, he's constantly making more...but I'm still losing it. While it is possible to re-seal, that hasn't been the case for me and is apparently pretty rare. Third, the fluid is there to float the umbilical cord. This keeps the baby from "stepping on his cord". Whenever he does, it causes his heart rate to decrease until he figures out what he's done and gets off of it. As long as he keeps getting off the cord, things are okay.
The last question was, if I'm able to make it past 34 weeks, why won't they let me? At that point, the risk of letting me go longer outweighs the risk of having a 6 week premature baby. Because an infection can be so bad for the baby, it just makes more sense for him to be here at that point.
Okay...I think that about covers it for this morning. I'm going to quit calling these things quick...they never are. I hope you all have a great day. Please keep us in your prayers.
Brittany
My nurse last night was my nurse from my first night here. We actually have her every night that she is working. Anyway, she told me last night that other than the contractions that showed up Wednesday night, my contraction line had always been flat...except for my first night here. She said that I wasn't feeling them on that first night but that they were definitely there. She told me that was normal because when your water breaks, your body starts producing oxytocin which causes contractions. It would have been so easy for me to have gone into full labor that night but I believe that because of all the prayers that started going up that night, they stopped. I'll never know for sure and that could just be a normal thing but that's the way I'm going to look at it.
I had a couple of questions in the comments from the last post that I'm going to try and answer. I think several people probably wonder about this. Remember...I'm not a doctor so bear with me. Someone asked how Gaines can keep developing with no water around him. The lack of water doesn't keep him from developing. The amniotic fluid (water) has 3 main functions. I'm sure there are more but these are the three I know about. First, it is to give the baby something to move around in. You want him to keep moving so that he doesn't develop problems with moving his limbs. So far, this baby has no problems moving around. Second, the fluid is there for the baby to "breathe". It gives his lungs practice breathing. I'm not exactly sure on this one but I believe that since I still have some fluid he's still able to get some practice in. The thing about the fluid is that the baby is constantly making more. Basically, he gets nutrients from the placenta and uses the bathroom (just like we do) and the urine is the amniotic fluid. So, he's constantly making more...but I'm still losing it. While it is possible to re-seal, that hasn't been the case for me and is apparently pretty rare. Third, the fluid is there to float the umbilical cord. This keeps the baby from "stepping on his cord". Whenever he does, it causes his heart rate to decrease until he figures out what he's done and gets off of it. As long as he keeps getting off the cord, things are okay.
The last question was, if I'm able to make it past 34 weeks, why won't they let me? At that point, the risk of letting me go longer outweighs the risk of having a 6 week premature baby. Because an infection can be so bad for the baby, it just makes more sense for him to be here at that point.
Okay...I think that about covers it for this morning. I'm going to quit calling these things quick...they never are. I hope you all have a great day. Please keep us in your prayers.
Brittany
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Quick Hello...
Good Morning. Let's be honest about this title...are my posts ever quick?
Beau is out dropping off our laundry with our laundry fairy (thanks Elizabeth!) so I thought I'd post a little update. I guess I don't have too much to say but I don't have too much to do either so just humor me.
Big news here today. Beau tell me that they are painting the walls in the hallway. I expect to see the small section I can see painted in the next two days. That will be exciting. The paint color is Grape Mist. I haven't seen it yet but its got to be better than Institution Gray. I've asked my nurses if I can get an accent wall. I'm not holding my breath.
So far its been a good day. My monitoring went well. Gaines looks great and it didn't show any contractions. Still no signs of infection either. I have to confess that little contraction bit made me a little nervous last night. Any time the doctors are relying on me to tell them if my body's doing something weird I get a little panicky. I just start to be ultra sensitive about any little thing I feel and I obsess over trying to figure out if its something I should report, or if its just a regular part of pregnancy. I'm also very wary of telling them that somethings going on. I have a fear that it's really nothing but now that I've told them, they'll rush me off and take my baby before they really had to. Maybe all that makes sense. That's why I have several times asked for prayers that I'll know when something is wrong.
One thing I forgot to mention yesterday is that I will be able to briefly see Gaines after he's born (as long as there are no major issues). I was afraid they'd just take him off without me even getting a glimpse of him. Hopefully all will go smoothly and I'll at least get a look at him.
Also, several people asked me after one of my recent posts what the five questions are that they always ask me. Basically it goes like this:
Any bleeding?
Any cramping?
Any contractions?
Still leaking fluid?
Baby moving ok?
I keep telling them. If any of these things are happening, they will know before they can come in here and ask me each morning.
On the NICU post I did last night. I tried to just give a brief summary of everything we learned. It was in no way comprehensive...that was a lot of info to take in and I am not a doctor or nurse. I do feel like this hospital is very cutting edge in the way they do things so some of it could be very different than what other people have experienced. We choose to trust our doctors here but will not hesitate to question something that we are uncomfortable with. Anyone that knows me knows that.
One last thing. Beau and I are handling this situation the best way we know how and in a manner that we think is best for us. Please bear with us and support us unconditionally. Even people who have been through this before all have different experiences. There may be times when we use this blog to vent, air frustrations and articulate our fears. I never want to sound like I'm complaining about our experience because God has truly blessed us over the last 4 weeks, but there are times that this is very hard and life's petty frustrations are still there. We aren't perfect and there are certainly times when we aren't strong. During these times we still need your support, prayers and positive feedback.
Oh...I had a shower today and was able to dry off with a fluffy yellow towel! It was so nice. Thank you Until Journey's End!
I hope you all have a great day. Please keep praying for us. God is working a miracle in our lives because of your prayers. Only 12 more days until I hit 30 weeks!
Love to all,
Brittany
Beau is out dropping off our laundry with our laundry fairy (thanks Elizabeth!) so I thought I'd post a little update. I guess I don't have too much to say but I don't have too much to do either so just humor me.
Big news here today. Beau tell me that they are painting the walls in the hallway. I expect to see the small section I can see painted in the next two days. That will be exciting. The paint color is Grape Mist. I haven't seen it yet but its got to be better than Institution Gray. I've asked my nurses if I can get an accent wall. I'm not holding my breath.
So far its been a good day. My monitoring went well. Gaines looks great and it didn't show any contractions. Still no signs of infection either. I have to confess that little contraction bit made me a little nervous last night. Any time the doctors are relying on me to tell them if my body's doing something weird I get a little panicky. I just start to be ultra sensitive about any little thing I feel and I obsess over trying to figure out if its something I should report, or if its just a regular part of pregnancy. I'm also very wary of telling them that somethings going on. I have a fear that it's really nothing but now that I've told them, they'll rush me off and take my baby before they really had to. Maybe all that makes sense. That's why I have several times asked for prayers that I'll know when something is wrong.
One thing I forgot to mention yesterday is that I will be able to briefly see Gaines after he's born (as long as there are no major issues). I was afraid they'd just take him off without me even getting a glimpse of him. Hopefully all will go smoothly and I'll at least get a look at him.
Also, several people asked me after one of my recent posts what the five questions are that they always ask me. Basically it goes like this:
Any bleeding?
Any cramping?
Any contractions?
Still leaking fluid?
Baby moving ok?
I keep telling them. If any of these things are happening, they will know before they can come in here and ask me each morning.
On the NICU post I did last night. I tried to just give a brief summary of everything we learned. It was in no way comprehensive...that was a lot of info to take in and I am not a doctor or nurse. I do feel like this hospital is very cutting edge in the way they do things so some of it could be very different than what other people have experienced. We choose to trust our doctors here but will not hesitate to question something that we are uncomfortable with. Anyone that knows me knows that.
One last thing. Beau and I are handling this situation the best way we know how and in a manner that we think is best for us. Please bear with us and support us unconditionally. Even people who have been through this before all have different experiences. There may be times when we use this blog to vent, air frustrations and articulate our fears. I never want to sound like I'm complaining about our experience because God has truly blessed us over the last 4 weeks, but there are times that this is very hard and life's petty frustrations are still there. We aren't perfect and there are certainly times when we aren't strong. During these times we still need your support, prayers and positive feedback.
Oh...I had a shower today and was able to dry off with a fluffy yellow towel! It was so nice. Thank you Until Journey's End!
I hope you all have a great day. Please keep praying for us. God is working a miracle in our lives because of your prayers. Only 12 more days until I hit 30 weeks!
Love to all,
Brittany
Day 29 (28 weeks, 2 days)
Brittany is doing fine this morning...the nurses have not monitored Gaines' heart rate yet. Brittany and I met with the NICU the Doctors last night. Brittany posted a very detailed post last night regarding this meeting. Please read the post below (Busy Evening) if you would like to know what the NICU doctors had to say.
Beau
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Busy Evening
We've had a busy afternoon. This could be long. I apologize in advance.
We decided at 28 weeks that we wanted the NICU doctors to come back in and give us an update. I was a little nervous but this was a MUCH better conversation than the first one. The first one honestly just wasn't good. They were giving us survival rates and chances for developmental problems for a 24 weeker and they weren't very encouraging to say the least. This time things went much better. I'm going to try and summarize the conversation below. The NICU attending that came in was from Egypt. She was very comforting and really seemed to know what she was talking about. Her accent was a little thick so the resident that came with her took some notes for us. Bear with me on the information below...
Also, keep in mind that this stuff is very general and can change from week to week. This info is based on Gaines' current gestational age of 28 weeks.
In four weeks we have gone from a 60% survival rate to an almost 90+% survival rate. I don't remember where we started, but as of 28 weeks there is only a 25-30% chance of a developmental delay. That's encouraging to me because we know that even at 40 weeks, you aren't guaranteed a healthy baby.
They told us that at this hospital they didn't like to put a baby on a ventilator. If possible they prefer to use a CPAP machine. They feel like the ventilator just isn't the best choice for a variety of reasons. They still use them if they have to but they prefer not. The CPAP basically just keeps his lungs a little inflated so that they don't fully collapse (not sure if that's the right word). Basically this just keeps the baby from having to use so much effort to reopen them with each breath. The ventilator in essence breathes for the baby. First of all, they'd have to put a tube in his throat for that and they are harder to wean the baby off of. Also the CPAP machine uses just room air most of the time and not oxygen. Apparently prolonged use of oxygen can cause eye problems?
There is a chance that he could need a blood transfusion at some point if they determine he doesn't have enough iron in his blood. Iron carries oxygen to the brain and other organs but I think babies don't normally have the iron needed until closer to 34 weeks. That about covers the breathing.
There is a valve that goes between the baby's lungs and heart that is open in all babies. In term babies this valve generally closes on its own. In preemies it might not and they treat it with ibuprofen. In rare cases they have to do a procedure to close it but apparently even this is minor.
Brain bleeds are still an issue. Rarely this can be a problem for 40 week babies so its not a concern that we can ever mark off the list until he's here and doing well. They are however less likely at this point. There are four different grades of brain bleeds. The first is not a real concern and really the second isn't either. Third and fourth grade bleeds are the ones that can cause the developmental delays. They will do an ultrasound of Gaines' brain at 3-5 days, 14 days and at 4-6 weeks or right before he goes home. The likelihood of a bleed goes way down after the first few days.
They will insert a PICC line (I think...this or an IV I can't remember) for a short time that will be used to give Gaines nutrients. They will also put a tiny tube down his nose or throat into his stomach that will be used to feed him until he's about 33-34 weeks when he's old enough to start sucking and swallowing.
Right after Gaines is born they will do a blood culture to test for any infection. That will take a few days to get results on so in the mean time he'll be put on antibiotics. If the culture comes back clean, they will discontinue the antibiotics.
All in all they think that he'll be in the NICU until about 1-2 weeks before or after his due date. However, the nurses have told me that in general, it sooner than this. I guess we'll see.
My favorite attending came in tonight. She'd been on vacation for about a week and was glad to see that we were still here. We basically just chatted with her for about 30 minutes. Mostly just conversational stuff but she did reaffirm the other doctor's analysis of my sonogram earlier this week. I did find out that she isn't a regular OB. She is a Maternal Fetal Medicine Specialist which is a little more specialized than an OB...from what I understand. Either way we like her and I think Beau and I feel more at ease whenever we know that she is working.
Tonight they kept me on the monitors a little longer than normal. Gaines' heart rate looked great but they thought they saw a couple of contractions. I didn't feel them but they said that's definitely what they were. There weren't any others so they let me off and just told them to let me know if I felt anything tonight. I think they were from me laughing while I was hooked up but no one seems to buy that explanation. I need to find out if Braxton Hicks contraction show up on the monitor. I know that I feel those from time to time.
I think that's probably about it for today. I'm tired and need to get to bed. I hope I did the NICU info justice and didn't totally butcher it. Please keep us in your prayers. 28 weeks is awesome but 30 plus would be so much better. Please pray that Gaines continues to get stronger and for no infection or labor for me.
We decided at 28 weeks that we wanted the NICU doctors to come back in and give us an update. I was a little nervous but this was a MUCH better conversation than the first one. The first one honestly just wasn't good. They were giving us survival rates and chances for developmental problems for a 24 weeker and they weren't very encouraging to say the least. This time things went much better. I'm going to try and summarize the conversation below. The NICU attending that came in was from Egypt. She was very comforting and really seemed to know what she was talking about. Her accent was a little thick so the resident that came with her took some notes for us. Bear with me on the information below...
Also, keep in mind that this stuff is very general and can change from week to week. This info is based on Gaines' current gestational age of 28 weeks.
In four weeks we have gone from a 60% survival rate to an almost 90+% survival rate. I don't remember where we started, but as of 28 weeks there is only a 25-30% chance of a developmental delay. That's encouraging to me because we know that even at 40 weeks, you aren't guaranteed a healthy baby.
They told us that at this hospital they didn't like to put a baby on a ventilator. If possible they prefer to use a CPAP machine. They feel like the ventilator just isn't the best choice for a variety of reasons. They still use them if they have to but they prefer not. The CPAP basically just keeps his lungs a little inflated so that they don't fully collapse (not sure if that's the right word). Basically this just keeps the baby from having to use so much effort to reopen them with each breath. The ventilator in essence breathes for the baby. First of all, they'd have to put a tube in his throat for that and they are harder to wean the baby off of. Also the CPAP machine uses just room air most of the time and not oxygen. Apparently prolonged use of oxygen can cause eye problems?
There is a chance that he could need a blood transfusion at some point if they determine he doesn't have enough iron in his blood. Iron carries oxygen to the brain and other organs but I think babies don't normally have the iron needed until closer to 34 weeks. That about covers the breathing.
There is a valve that goes between the baby's lungs and heart that is open in all babies. In term babies this valve generally closes on its own. In preemies it might not and they treat it with ibuprofen. In rare cases they have to do a procedure to close it but apparently even this is minor.
Brain bleeds are still an issue. Rarely this can be a problem for 40 week babies so its not a concern that we can ever mark off the list until he's here and doing well. They are however less likely at this point. There are four different grades of brain bleeds. The first is not a real concern and really the second isn't either. Third and fourth grade bleeds are the ones that can cause the developmental delays. They will do an ultrasound of Gaines' brain at 3-5 days, 14 days and at 4-6 weeks or right before he goes home. The likelihood of a bleed goes way down after the first few days.
They will insert a PICC line (I think...this or an IV I can't remember) for a short time that will be used to give Gaines nutrients. They will also put a tiny tube down his nose or throat into his stomach that will be used to feed him until he's about 33-34 weeks when he's old enough to start sucking and swallowing.
Right after Gaines is born they will do a blood culture to test for any infection. That will take a few days to get results on so in the mean time he'll be put on antibiotics. If the culture comes back clean, they will discontinue the antibiotics.
All in all they think that he'll be in the NICU until about 1-2 weeks before or after his due date. However, the nurses have told me that in general, it sooner than this. I guess we'll see.
My favorite attending came in tonight. She'd been on vacation for about a week and was glad to see that we were still here. We basically just chatted with her for about 30 minutes. Mostly just conversational stuff but she did reaffirm the other doctor's analysis of my sonogram earlier this week. I did find out that she isn't a regular OB. She is a Maternal Fetal Medicine Specialist which is a little more specialized than an OB...from what I understand. Either way we like her and I think Beau and I feel more at ease whenever we know that she is working.
Tonight they kept me on the monitors a little longer than normal. Gaines' heart rate looked great but they thought they saw a couple of contractions. I didn't feel them but they said that's definitely what they were. There weren't any others so they let me off and just told them to let me know if I felt anything tonight. I think they were from me laughing while I was hooked up but no one seems to buy that explanation. I need to find out if Braxton Hicks contraction show up on the monitor. I know that I feel those from time to time.
I think that's probably about it for today. I'm tired and need to get to bed. I hope I did the NICU info justice and didn't totally butcher it. Please keep us in your prayers. 28 weeks is awesome but 30 plus would be so much better. Please pray that Gaines continues to get stronger and for no infection or labor for me.
Pictures
A few people have asked to see pictures of Reed at the Easter Egg Roll. Below are a few pictures of him and a picture of Beau's friends that visited us on his birthday.
Reed and Beau at The White House
He was too small to actually "roll" the eggs
Reed and Pop (Brittany's Dad)
Beau's Friends
Day 28 (28 weeks, 1 day)
Yesterday was a great day. We got the official report regarding the sonogram and as Brittany already mentioned, the doctors said it was "very encouraging". We also found out last night that Brittany passed her gestational diabetes test. I know she is happy, she can continue to eat all of the sweets that you guys have sent us. I don't know what she would do if she didn't have a dessert after lunch and dinner.
I think Brittany mentioned in her post that five of my close friends from home visited us yesterday for my Birthday. Four of them flew in from Birmingham, AL and one flew in from Dallas, TX. They all flew out last night. They were only here for about 5 hours. They took me to lunch to a place close to the hospital and then we came back to the room. Brittany had somehow managed to get cupcakes to our room without me knowing so we all had a cupcake. We then just sat around the room and caught up with each other. Brittany and I smiled and laughed more in the five hours those guys were here than we have in the last month. It was such a blessing that those guys would take a day out of their life and fly to DC to spend a couple of hours with us. They are amazing friends and I will never be able to fully explain the impact their short visit had on Brittany and me. For a short time we were able to forget why we were here and how long we had been here. I can't thank them enough.
I also can't thank my wife enough. Brittany is on "bed rest" (not bedridden) and was able to make my 30th Birthday so special. Much to my embarrassment, beginning at 6 AM and continuing through the day she told every nurse, med student, doctor, cleaning person, food delivery person and anyone else that ventured in to our room that it was my birthday. As the day progressed it seemed as though everyone in the hospital knew it was my birthday. Every time I passed someone in the hall I was told "Happy Birthday". She also somehow got cupcakes delivered to our room. She is amazing. She is an amazing wife and an amazing mother. Gaines has no idea how lucky he is that he will call Brittany his mom.
Thank you all for your prayers. The only reason we are able to keep our sanity through this journey is because God is present in our room. Hopefully we will have no news to report today.
Beau
I think Brittany mentioned in her post that five of my close friends from home visited us yesterday for my Birthday. Four of them flew in from Birmingham, AL and one flew in from Dallas, TX. They all flew out last night. They were only here for about 5 hours. They took me to lunch to a place close to the hospital and then we came back to the room. Brittany had somehow managed to get cupcakes to our room without me knowing so we all had a cupcake. We then just sat around the room and caught up with each other. Brittany and I smiled and laughed more in the five hours those guys were here than we have in the last month. It was such a blessing that those guys would take a day out of their life and fly to DC to spend a couple of hours with us. They are amazing friends and I will never be able to fully explain the impact their short visit had on Brittany and me. For a short time we were able to forget why we were here and how long we had been here. I can't thank them enough.
I also can't thank my wife enough. Brittany is on "bed rest" (not bedridden) and was able to make my 30th Birthday so special. Much to my embarrassment, beginning at 6 AM and continuing through the day she told every nurse, med student, doctor, cleaning person, food delivery person and anyone else that ventured in to our room that it was my birthday. As the day progressed it seemed as though everyone in the hospital knew it was my birthday. Every time I passed someone in the hall I was told "Happy Birthday". She also somehow got cupcakes delivered to our room. She is amazing. She is an amazing wife and an amazing mother. Gaines has no idea how lucky he is that he will call Brittany his mom.
Thank you all for your prayers. The only reason we are able to keep our sanity through this journey is because God is present in our room. Hopefully we will have no news to report today.
Beau
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
28 Weeks!!!
We made it! I cannot believe we are actually to 28 weeks. So far its been a great morning. My attending doctor came in this morning with good news. They only have my preliminary sonogram report right now but he said it looked very encouraging. He also said that as long as Gaines stayed head down, I wouldn't have to have a c-section. I thought a regular birth would be too stressfull for such a small baby but he says that even small babies tolerate it well.
My doctor also mentioned my diabetes test this morning. They had to repeat the first part of my test because "the lab messed something up". I had to have my fasting blood retaken this morning at 6 a.m. Luckily, I didn't have to re-drink the bathroom cleaner. My doctor said that even though they didn't have that variable to look at that everything looked ok and I should pass. So that was more good news.
I forgot to mention yesterday that the supervising sonogram lady was asking me some questions about our situation and I explained it all to her. She said, "Well isn't that a hoot?" I told her I hadn't quite thought of it as a hoot but that yes, it is an interesting situation. I just thought it was funny.
One last thing. Today is Beau's 30th birthday. I am so blessed to have such a great husband to be by my side on this adventure. I am so thankful for him today and always.
I know I have more to say but I can't think of it right now and I want to get this up. I'll probably post again later.
Hope you all have a great day! Please pray for us to make it to our new goal of 30 weeks.
Love to all,
Brittany
My doctor also mentioned my diabetes test this morning. They had to repeat the first part of my test because "the lab messed something up". I had to have my fasting blood retaken this morning at 6 a.m. Luckily, I didn't have to re-drink the bathroom cleaner. My doctor said that even though they didn't have that variable to look at that everything looked ok and I should pass. So that was more good news.
I forgot to mention yesterday that the supervising sonogram lady was asking me some questions about our situation and I explained it all to her. She said, "Well isn't that a hoot?" I told her I hadn't quite thought of it as a hoot but that yes, it is an interesting situation. I just thought it was funny.
One last thing. Today is Beau's 30th birthday. I am so blessed to have such a great husband to be by my side on this adventure. I am so thankful for him today and always.
I know I have more to say but I can't think of it right now and I want to get this up. I'll probably post again later.
Hope you all have a great day! Please pray for us to make it to our new goal of 30 weeks.
Love to all,
Brittany
Monday, April 13, 2009
Finally...
Finally a chance to update. Crazy morning. I was woken up at 5 am by someone in a white coat. I'm assuming it was a med student. I know they do rounds early but it is so frustrating to be asked the same five questions by three different people within 30 minutes of each other. I'm sorry but it is. At 6 am my nurse came in to draw blood...the "before" in my Gestational Diabetes test today. She then did my vitals and made me drink the super sweet lemon lime drink for my test. Now I love a good sweet anything but that thing is ridiculous. It is so sweet and you have to drink it so fast that it really almost makes you sick. I think it kind of tastes like very sweet bathroom cleaner.
So after all that I was almost back to sleep and another doctor comes in...same five questions later; she leaves. Just back to sleep again. At 7 am my nurse comes to take more blood. They have to have the test source, and three more samples. 8:15...more blood.
9:00...more blood, hooked up to the monitor, breakfast arrives, and my transport for my sonogram shows up...all at once. They decided I'd been on the monitor long enough to go for my sonogram. I guess everything went well. It didn't seem like I was on very long at all though. I had the transport hold on for me to run to the restroom, put in my contacts and change into clean pajamas. The ride down was a treat. It was so nice to be able to at least sort of see what my surrounding were around here. Even the area right outside my door looked different than it does from in here.
My sonogram went well. Gaines is 2 lbs, 1 oz...give or take 5 ounces. He is also not breech anymore, although he still has time to turn around again. When the lady was doing the sonogram, she asked if we wanted to know the sex of the baby. I said sure, even though we already knew. "Looks like a girl" she said. Beau almost fell out. She explained that it was hard to tell but that's what it looked like to her. A few minutes later her supervisor had to come in because she was having trouble measuring Gaines' head (because he was so low...Reed was too). That lady confirmed that it was "definitely a boy". I think I heard Beau breath a big sigh of relief. You should have seen his face.
I haven't had a chance to talk to my doctors about the sonogram or the results of my Gestational Diabetes test yet so right now I don't know how they interpreted the sonogram or if I passed my test. I'll update whenever I hear.
On the way back from my sonogram they took me by my nurses station. I waved to them like I was in a parade. It was just so nice to see something other than my little gray room. Once I got back, my family and Reed were here waiting on me. I had a package from some of my sweet neighbors back home (thank y'all!) so we opened that and Reed entertained himself for about 30 minutes playing in the box of peanuts. I'll try and get pictures of that up here at some point. It was really funny. It just felt so good to laugh. I try not to laugh, sneeze, cough, cry etc. just to be safe. I know that's silly but I don't like doing anything that jars my body or makes me use my stomach muscles.
Right now Beau, Reed, my dad and sister are all at the egg roll. Reed looked SO cute. My mom is here with me and I'm getting ready to take a nap.
A quick encouraging story...my neighbor here had her baby earlier this week. Her water broke at 32 weeks and they were going to schedule an induction for her at 34 weeks. The night before her induction she went into labor on her own. Her baby was 4 pounds and something and is doing well. They think she'll only be in the NICU 7 to 10 days. I'm just so encouraged to know about that outcome at 34 weeks after what I was told about my possible 24 weeker when we first got here. Ten weeks makes a huge difference and I've already done 4 of them.
Tomorrow is 28 weeks. Please continue to pray against infection, for Gaines to keep developing and to stay strong. Also, safe travels for my parents and Reed this afternoon. We love you all for your prayers and support.
P.S. Today is Beau's last day in his twenties...He turns 30 tomorrow!
Brittany
So after all that I was almost back to sleep and another doctor comes in...same five questions later; she leaves. Just back to sleep again. At 7 am my nurse comes to take more blood. They have to have the test source, and three more samples. 8:15...more blood.
9:00...more blood, hooked up to the monitor, breakfast arrives, and my transport for my sonogram shows up...all at once. They decided I'd been on the monitor long enough to go for my sonogram. I guess everything went well. It didn't seem like I was on very long at all though. I had the transport hold on for me to run to the restroom, put in my contacts and change into clean pajamas. The ride down was a treat. It was so nice to be able to at least sort of see what my surrounding were around here. Even the area right outside my door looked different than it does from in here.
My sonogram went well. Gaines is 2 lbs, 1 oz...give or take 5 ounces. He is also not breech anymore, although he still has time to turn around again. When the lady was doing the sonogram, she asked if we wanted to know the sex of the baby. I said sure, even though we already knew. "Looks like a girl" she said. Beau almost fell out. She explained that it was hard to tell but that's what it looked like to her. A few minutes later her supervisor had to come in because she was having trouble measuring Gaines' head (because he was so low...Reed was too). That lady confirmed that it was "definitely a boy". I think I heard Beau breath a big sigh of relief. You should have seen his face.
I haven't had a chance to talk to my doctors about the sonogram or the results of my Gestational Diabetes test yet so right now I don't know how they interpreted the sonogram or if I passed my test. I'll update whenever I hear.
On the way back from my sonogram they took me by my nurses station. I waved to them like I was in a parade. It was just so nice to see something other than my little gray room. Once I got back, my family and Reed were here waiting on me. I had a package from some of my sweet neighbors back home (thank y'all!) so we opened that and Reed entertained himself for about 30 minutes playing in the box of peanuts. I'll try and get pictures of that up here at some point. It was really funny. It just felt so good to laugh. I try not to laugh, sneeze, cough, cry etc. just to be safe. I know that's silly but I don't like doing anything that jars my body or makes me use my stomach muscles.
Right now Beau, Reed, my dad and sister are all at the egg roll. Reed looked SO cute. My mom is here with me and I'm getting ready to take a nap.
A quick encouraging story...my neighbor here had her baby earlier this week. Her water broke at 32 weeks and they were going to schedule an induction for her at 34 weeks. The night before her induction she went into labor on her own. Her baby was 4 pounds and something and is doing well. They think she'll only be in the NICU 7 to 10 days. I'm just so encouraged to know about that outcome at 34 weeks after what I was told about my possible 24 weeker when we first got here. Ten weeks makes a huge difference and I've already done 4 of them.
Tomorrow is 28 weeks. Please continue to pray against infection, for Gaines to keep developing and to stay strong. Also, safe travels for my parents and Reed this afternoon. We love you all for your prayers and support.
P.S. Today is Beau's last day in his twenties...He turns 30 tomorrow!
Brittany
Quick Update
I'll post more later...just wanted to let you all know that all is still well. Reed is here now but is leaving for the egg roll in 40 minutes so I'll update then.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Day 25 is almost over
What an eventful day...Reed was in town, Brittany had a second gestational diabetes test, Gaines had two heart rate monitorings and confirmed Brittany is scheduled for a sonogram tomorrow.
Gaines' heart rate monitoring this morning and tonight went fine...what a relief. Brittany's temperature is still stable and there are no signs of infection.
Brittany's second gestational diabetes test was this morning. She did not pass. She will have another more accurate test tomorrow morning. If she fails the test tomorrow morning the doctors will regulate her diet. We have been told that this will in no way affect Gaines, however; it will make life a little less pleasant for Brittany.
Brittany has a sonogram tomorrow morning. Hopefully, Gaines has put on a little weight and is developing well (when Brittany was admitted 25 days ago Gaines was estimated at 1 lb 3 oz).
On a side note, someone from Brittany's hometown of Andalusia, AL visited us today. She is on vacation visiting DC with her family. They were walking through downtown looking for a Metro stop and came across GW Hospital. They had been reading the blog and recognized the hospital name. They decided to stop in and say hello. Now they can go back to Andalusia and say they saw all of the monuments, museums, and Brittany & Beau. Their trip is complete.
Beau
Gaines' heart rate monitoring this morning and tonight went fine...what a relief. Brittany's temperature is still stable and there are no signs of infection.
Brittany's second gestational diabetes test was this morning. She did not pass. She will have another more accurate test tomorrow morning. If she fails the test tomorrow morning the doctors will regulate her diet. We have been told that this will in no way affect Gaines, however; it will make life a little less pleasant for Brittany.
Brittany has a sonogram tomorrow morning. Hopefully, Gaines has put on a little weight and is developing well (when Brittany was admitted 25 days ago Gaines was estimated at 1 lb 3 oz).
On a side note, someone from Brittany's hometown of Andalusia, AL visited us today. She is on vacation visiting DC with her family. They were walking through downtown looking for a Metro stop and came across GW Hospital. They had been reading the blog and recognized the hospital name. They decided to stop in and say hello. Now they can go back to Andalusia and say they saw all of the monuments, museums, and Brittany & Beau. Their trip is complete.
Beau
Happy Easter
Gaines and I are still here and still together but we did have a little scare last night. After my family left with Reed, my nurse hooked me up for my nightly monitoring. Well Mr. Gaines decided to drop his heart rate a couple of times so I got to stay on the monitor for a good bit longer and talked to two doctors. Drops in his heart rate are normal because of the lack of fluid. One of the purposes of the fluid it to float the cord. If you don't have much fluid the baby can "step" on the cord and cause his heart rate to drop. This is nothing new to us as it happens all the time and is expected. Last night he dropped it pretty low (I think it hit in the 80s...120-160 is the preferred range) and it took it a little longer than normal to come back up. That type of drop only happened twice but it was enough to send two doctors in here.
Anytime a doctor comes in that isn't on regular rounds (at the crack of dawn) it scares us. This first doctor just basically told us that I was going to have to stay on longer and watch to see if it kept happening. He explained that it could also have been Gaines moving around and the machine picking up my heart rate for a minute. Either way, we held our breath and stayed on the monitor. A while later that doctor and his attending came in. Now, if one doctor is scary...two doctors is really scary. I just knew that this was it. He was coming in to tell me they needed to take the baby. Luckily, that doctor thought everything was ok. He agreed that the drops were concerning but by the time he came in, Gaines heart rate looked "very reassuring" and like the "heart rate of a 35 weeker". Hopefully this morning's monitoring will go well. Please pray that Gaines' heart rate stays in the acceptable range.
Beau and I decided that this was God's way of reminding us that He is in control. After 25 days of nothing, you start to get a little bit of cautious confidence and maybe aren't relying on God quite as much as you were. I was quickly reminded that I'm not responsible for these positive results we've been having...God is. It was also a wake-up call for us that you can have those 25 good days but eventually something is going to happen. The younger doctor from last night reminded us that even though we are so much better off than we were, almost 28 weeks is still very early for a baby to be born. He listed some of the various problems with a baby born so early...thanks doctor...just what I wanted to hear.
In other medical news, I am now having my 3rd gestational diabetes test this morning. I have no idea why and neither does anyone else around here. The only explanation I can get is that they normally do it around 28 weeks for the best results. Who knows? Please pray that I pass.
Also, I have a sonogram scheduled for Monday. Please pray that Gaines is growing and developing as he should (or ahead of schedule!) and that there is a good leval of fluid around him.
My breakfast is here so I guess I'll run. I decided pancakes would be an appropriate Easter breakfast.
Oh, did the picture of Reed yesterday not melt your heart? That little lovefest lasted about a minute but it did wonders for my spirit.
Happy Easter!
Brittany
Anytime a doctor comes in that isn't on regular rounds (at the crack of dawn) it scares us. This first doctor just basically told us that I was going to have to stay on longer and watch to see if it kept happening. He explained that it could also have been Gaines moving around and the machine picking up my heart rate for a minute. Either way, we held our breath and stayed on the monitor. A while later that doctor and his attending came in. Now, if one doctor is scary...two doctors is really scary. I just knew that this was it. He was coming in to tell me they needed to take the baby. Luckily, that doctor thought everything was ok. He agreed that the drops were concerning but by the time he came in, Gaines heart rate looked "very reassuring" and like the "heart rate of a 35 weeker". Hopefully this morning's monitoring will go well. Please pray that Gaines' heart rate stays in the acceptable range.
Beau and I decided that this was God's way of reminding us that He is in control. After 25 days of nothing, you start to get a little bit of cautious confidence and maybe aren't relying on God quite as much as you were. I was quickly reminded that I'm not responsible for these positive results we've been having...God is. It was also a wake-up call for us that you can have those 25 good days but eventually something is going to happen. The younger doctor from last night reminded us that even though we are so much better off than we were, almost 28 weeks is still very early for a baby to be born. He listed some of the various problems with a baby born so early...thanks doctor...just what I wanted to hear.
In other medical news, I am now having my 3rd gestational diabetes test this morning. I have no idea why and neither does anyone else around here. The only explanation I can get is that they normally do it around 28 weeks for the best results. Who knows? Please pray that I pass.
Also, I have a sonogram scheduled for Monday. Please pray that Gaines is growing and developing as he should (or ahead of schedule!) and that there is a good leval of fluid around him.
My breakfast is here so I guess I'll run. I decided pancakes would be an appropriate Easter breakfast.
Oh, did the picture of Reed yesterday not melt your heart? That little lovefest lasted about a minute but it did wonders for my spirit.
Happy Easter!
Brittany
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Reed is here!
Britt's family arrived this afternoon around 5:00. Below are pictures of when Reed arrived. 
Day 24 (27 weeks, 4 days)
Reed comes today! He won't be here until late afternoon but Brittany and I are extremely excited. Brittany and Gaines continue to be okay...she is only 3 days away from our current goal of 28 weeks. Please pray for my in-laws as they are about to spend about 8 hours in the car with Reed.
Beau
Beau
Friday, April 10, 2009
Still here...
We're still here. Not much to report but I just thought I'd let anyone checking in know that all is still well. Gaines' monitoring looked great this morning, I am clean and still have no signs of infection. We've had a great nurse today so all in all its been a good day.
Please keep us and Reed (and the rest of my family) in your prayers. My parents and sister are traveling with Reed and will be here tomorrow. Can't wait to see that little guy. One quick cute thing he's doing now. He says "Night, night" and then lays down and fake snores. It's hilarious. Since I don't see him all the time I'm even more impressed with his little cute tricks.
Sorry, got off track there. Please keep praying for no infection and for Gaines to stay happy where he is.
Thank you for all of your prayers!
Brittany
Please keep us and Reed (and the rest of my family) in your prayers. My parents and sister are traveling with Reed and will be here tomorrow. Can't wait to see that little guy. One quick cute thing he's doing now. He says "Night, night" and then lays down and fake snores. It's hilarious. Since I don't see him all the time I'm even more impressed with his little cute tricks.
Sorry, got off track there. Please keep praying for no infection and for Gaines to stay happy where he is.
Thank you for all of your prayers!
Brittany
Day 23 (27 weeks, 3 days)
Another day has come and gone...praise God. We are getting Brittany ready to see Reed as he comes tomorrow. She is going to shower this morning and the nurses are going to change the sheets on her bed. I know that doesn't sound like a monumental feat, but this constitutes a busy day for us.
All of the temperature readings and heart monitorings continue to be excellent. I figured out that the nurses have taken Brittany's temperature approximately 112 times since she has been here and Gaines has had his heart monitored almost 46 times. You start to get a false sense of security, forgetting that it only takes one not so good temperature reading or heart monitoring to turn our world upside down.
By the way, Brittany figured out yesterday that if she makes it to 34 weeks Gaines' birthday would be around May 26. Only a month and a half to go!
Thank you for your prayers.
Beau
All of the temperature readings and heart monitorings continue to be excellent. I figured out that the nurses have taken Brittany's temperature approximately 112 times since she has been here and Gaines has had his heart monitored almost 46 times. You start to get a false sense of security, forgetting that it only takes one not so good temperature reading or heart monitoring to turn our world upside down.
By the way, Brittany figured out yesterday that if she makes it to 34 weeks Gaines' birthday would be around May 26. Only a month and a half to go!
Thank you for your prayers.
Beau
Thursday, April 9, 2009
27 Weeks: 2 days
All is well this morning. We've made it another day. So far so good today. Beau's in the shower and I'm waiting on my breakfast. I'm hungry this morning for some reason. Apparently they send up the Ensure warm so I'm going to have Beau put it in the community freezer here and I'll have it as a mid-morning snack. Maybe it will be a little frozen by then and be kind of like a shake. I really hope its not gross. I'll keep you posted. Whatever it takes to keep this little guy healthy.
At my 6 am vital check everything still looked good for me. We'll get Gaines on the monitor around 10. He's wiggling around a good bit this morning. I think the fact that he's so active is a good thing. One of the concerns of a baby with no fluid is their lack of movement. I think it can cause problems with their limbs. I don't ask what sort of problems exactly (because I don't want to know) but that was one of the things mentioned to me. Once I hit 28 weeks, I'll ask. That puts me close to 30 days. When I first got here I was told they didn't like babies to be without fluid for more than 30 days. Since I've been here that statement has been amended (because it can re-build up around them) but I'm going to really press it when it gets closer.
I'm still not sure if I get an ultrasound today or not. My nurse said that my doctors were going to discuss it this morning. That's one of the frustrating things about having so many doctors. At some point I was told I'd have one every 3 weeks. Really I was told that I'd get one every week but I guess that plan got scratched. I might really push for one today. Please pray that if I get one it goes well. It could be really discouraging to me if the results aren't what I hoped.
I thought I might list a few non-complaints here. I'm not complaining about anything (because I'm just thankful to be here), just making a few observations.
1. My skin is like a lizard and my lips are constantly chapped. I have lotion/chap stick here and I'm using it a couple times a day but the air in this hospital is so dry. Makes me appreciate the humidity back home.
2. I don't really love drinking out of juice containers and eating off of plastic food warmers. If it were possible I'd have someone ship me my dish/glass cabinet from home. I cannot wait to drink out of one of my own glasses again.
3. Hospital towels are less than stellar. I guess it's to exfoliate all the dry skin. Good think I don't use them every day. :)
4. Even when you can order your own cafeteria food, its still cafeteria food. I don't think they use a bit of salt on anything down there. Luckily if you ask for salt you get salt packets but it's not the same. It's like adding sugar to your tea after its cooled off. It just doesn't mix in the same.
One quick sad thing and I'll run. Beau and I were going to be leaving after work today headed on a long weekend getaway for his birthday. We had taken Friday off and were going to drop Reed off with my parents. Sad. We'll do it when we get home and re-settled. Maybe by Christmas.
Ok...y'all have a good Thursday. Keep us in your prayers.
Oh, congratulations to my niece Kathryn...she slept through the night with no oxygen. That's huge. It's the last step in getting her completely off oxygen. She's been on it since she was born in July 2007. (She was the 24 weeker) Congrats Kat (and Kelly and Greg)! Also a big thank you to my other niece Maddie for helping take care of Reed last week.
Love to all,
Brittany
At my 6 am vital check everything still looked good for me. We'll get Gaines on the monitor around 10. He's wiggling around a good bit this morning. I think the fact that he's so active is a good thing. One of the concerns of a baby with no fluid is their lack of movement. I think it can cause problems with their limbs. I don't ask what sort of problems exactly (because I don't want to know) but that was one of the things mentioned to me. Once I hit 28 weeks, I'll ask. That puts me close to 30 days. When I first got here I was told they didn't like babies to be without fluid for more than 30 days. Since I've been here that statement has been amended (because it can re-build up around them) but I'm going to really press it when it gets closer.
I'm still not sure if I get an ultrasound today or not. My nurse said that my doctors were going to discuss it this morning. That's one of the frustrating things about having so many doctors. At some point I was told I'd have one every 3 weeks. Really I was told that I'd get one every week but I guess that plan got scratched. I might really push for one today. Please pray that if I get one it goes well. It could be really discouraging to me if the results aren't what I hoped.
I thought I might list a few non-complaints here. I'm not complaining about anything (because I'm just thankful to be here), just making a few observations.
1. My skin is like a lizard and my lips are constantly chapped. I have lotion/chap stick here and I'm using it a couple times a day but the air in this hospital is so dry. Makes me appreciate the humidity back home.
2. I don't really love drinking out of juice containers and eating off of plastic food warmers. If it were possible I'd have someone ship me my dish/glass cabinet from home. I cannot wait to drink out of one of my own glasses again.
3. Hospital towels are less than stellar. I guess it's to exfoliate all the dry skin. Good think I don't use them every day. :)
4. Even when you can order your own cafeteria food, its still cafeteria food. I don't think they use a bit of salt on anything down there. Luckily if you ask for salt you get salt packets but it's not the same. It's like adding sugar to your tea after its cooled off. It just doesn't mix in the same.
One quick sad thing and I'll run. Beau and I were going to be leaving after work today headed on a long weekend getaway for his birthday. We had taken Friday off and were going to drop Reed off with my parents. Sad. We'll do it when we get home and re-settled. Maybe by Christmas.
Ok...y'all have a good Thursday. Keep us in your prayers.
Oh, congratulations to my niece Kathryn...she slept through the night with no oxygen. That's huge. It's the last step in getting her completely off oxygen. She's been on it since she was born in July 2007. (She was the 24 weeker) Congrats Kat (and Kelly and Greg)! Also a big thank you to my other niece Maddie for helping take care of Reed last week.
Love to all,
Brittany
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Random Thoughts Part II
Let's see, where to start? First of all my nutritionist just came in. I was weighed again today and re-gained the 5 pounds I had lost. It makes me wonder if I ever lost them in the first place. Who knows? Fun fact, my nutritionist just happens to be from Alabama...so we like her. We'd like her anyway but we like anyone from the south around here and we really like anyone from Alabama. Also she went to UA like me and she wears cute shoes so she's got to be good. She wants me to start getting more calcium. I guess the cheese on my daily sandwich isn't cutting it. Anyway, she said ice cream counts so maybe I'll start getting that sometimes. Plus she's having the kitchen send up an Ensure with my breakfast everyday. I hope they are good. I guess that's really about it on the nutrition front.
Yesterday one of our chattier nurses came in and talked to us for awhile. She is the second nurse to tell me that we were in the "lucky room". She says that everyone who goes a long time here is always in this room. Right now I'm in a post-partum room and I have three other people around me with broken water just trying to hang on. My nurse says that she always gets the best feeling in this room. I don't know what's going on in the other rooms but I know how many prayers are being sent up from and through this room so I choose to believe that's what it is. She also said that when she first met me she had to bite her tongue from saying that she thought I was going to make it a long time. She said that she had a feeling that I could make it to the 30s. I so hope she's right. She mentioned that anytime I hit a milestone like yesterday that in their morning meeting they all kind of cheered. Just makes me feel good to know that they care. I guess it could be because they eat better when we are here. We share snacks with them. I know who I want to keep on my side.
Medically, I'm still holding out. Gaines' heart rate was great this morning and I still have no signs of infection. I feel like I'm probably boring everyone out there reading this because I don't have more exciting news to report but I am so thankful for that.
Oh, I almost forgot. Reed is coming back up this weekend because we got tickets for him to go to the Easter Egg Roll on the White House lawn. I HATE that I won't be able to go with him but I'm glad that he'll get to go. I know that he's not old enough to really get it but he'll probably never have this opportunity again. We are very lucky to have the tickets. As anyone who has ever had an 18 month old understands, he can't spend long stretches of time in this little room so we have to plan activities for him. He's good for a little while but then he has to walk around and the hospital hallways only entertain him for so long.
I'm glad that he's getting to do so much fun stuff like the zoo, building museum, circus and egg roll but it is really hard for me to lay here while Beau takes him off to do the fun stuff. Last weekend when he was here he grabbed my finger and tried to pull me out of bed. It broke my heart. I just have to keep picturing being home one day with my two little boys, Jack and Beau. I know that what I'm doing is the best thing for my family but it's hard. I CANNOT wait for a long boring Saturday with them at home.
I'll go for now...I know I've "talked" your ear off. Please continue to keep us in your prayers.
Brittany
Yesterday one of our chattier nurses came in and talked to us for awhile. She is the second nurse to tell me that we were in the "lucky room". She says that everyone who goes a long time here is always in this room. Right now I'm in a post-partum room and I have three other people around me with broken water just trying to hang on. My nurse says that she always gets the best feeling in this room. I don't know what's going on in the other rooms but I know how many prayers are being sent up from and through this room so I choose to believe that's what it is. She also said that when she first met me she had to bite her tongue from saying that she thought I was going to make it a long time. She said that she had a feeling that I could make it to the 30s. I so hope she's right. She mentioned that anytime I hit a milestone like yesterday that in their morning meeting they all kind of cheered. Just makes me feel good to know that they care. I guess it could be because they eat better when we are here. We share snacks with them. I know who I want to keep on my side.
Medically, I'm still holding out. Gaines' heart rate was great this morning and I still have no signs of infection. I feel like I'm probably boring everyone out there reading this because I don't have more exciting news to report but I am so thankful for that.
Oh, I almost forgot. Reed is coming back up this weekend because we got tickets for him to go to the Easter Egg Roll on the White House lawn. I HATE that I won't be able to go with him but I'm glad that he'll get to go. I know that he's not old enough to really get it but he'll probably never have this opportunity again. We are very lucky to have the tickets. As anyone who has ever had an 18 month old understands, he can't spend long stretches of time in this little room so we have to plan activities for him. He's good for a little while but then he has to walk around and the hospital hallways only entertain him for so long.
I'm glad that he's getting to do so much fun stuff like the zoo, building museum, circus and egg roll but it is really hard for me to lay here while Beau takes him off to do the fun stuff. Last weekend when he was here he grabbed my finger and tried to pull me out of bed. It broke my heart. I just have to keep picturing being home one day with my two little boys, Jack and Beau. I know that what I'm doing is the best thing for my family but it's hard. I CANNOT wait for a long boring Saturday with them at home.
I'll go for now...I know I've "talked" your ear off. Please continue to keep us in your prayers.
Brittany
It has been 3 weeks (Day 21)
Brittany and I slept late this morning. Actually, she is still asleep. Last night was a late night. Brittany was assigned a nurse she had never had before. The nurse had trouble monitoring Gaines. Long story short, Gaines' heart rate monitoring did not end until midnight. The good news was that Gaines' heart rate was perfect.
Yesterday we got a really cool card in the mail. In Montgomery, Reed goes to "school" at Little ALFA (ALFA is the company Brittany works for and they have a daycare on site). His class made him a card to let him know much they miss him. His friends used their hand prints to make flowers and their thumbprints to make ladybugs. A picture of the card is below. Brittany loved it.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Day 20
I forgot to mention that my mother and I took Reed to The National Building Museum on Sunday afternoon. Someone on the subway told us that the museum had a great interactive room for children. Reed loved it, especially the fountain in the lobby (1st picture). Here are a few pictures:
27 Weeks!
Brittany was admitted to GW Hospital 20 days ago and she was 24 weeks, 1 day pregnant. As of today, Brittany is 27 weeks pregnant. Praise God. The new goal is 28 weeks.
As you can probably tell, Brittany and Gaines are both fine. I have to quit posting...Brittany wants me to get her a doughnut.
Beau
As you can probably tell, Brittany and Gaines are both fine. I have to quit posting...Brittany wants me to get her a doughnut.
Beau
Monday, April 6, 2009
Bedridden
I know that sounds random but Beau just referred to me as bedridden and I didn't really appreciate it. I'm on bed rest...I could still function if it wasn't better for me and Gaines to rest. I think Beau has actually taken to bed rest himself today. He's spent the better part of the afternoon wrapped up in a pink and purple quilt (which we are graciously borrowing from some friends up here) laid out on his chair. He's currently sipping on his ginger ale and eating animal crackers. I just think its funny. He kind of looks like a little old lady. His shirt even matches his quilt. It's too funny.
Sorry for that...I'm easily amused these days. So far we've had another good day. Gaines and I are still together thankfully. No big medical news to report. His heart rate looked good this morning and I still have no signs of infection. Tomorrow is 27 weeks. Another milestone. We are so thankful. I am getting so close to that 28 week mark but I'm afraid to look too far ahead to it. I know that things could change any minute so I try and just be thankful for what God has given us thus far.
In other news, I look more pregnant today. When my water first broke my stomach got fairly flat. It was pretty sad for someone supposed to be 24 weeks pregnant. Last week I thought I was starting to look a little more pregnant again. I asked Beau what he thought but he didn't think it was in his best interest to answer the question. I was actually hoping he'd agree with me. Later that night one of my nurses noticed. It made me happy. I don't know...I feel like it means he's growing or something. Another nurse last night made a similar comment. She was my very first nurse so I was glad she noticed as well. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror today and I thought I looked even more pregnant than last week. Just thought you'd like to know.
Speaking of getting bigger, Beau supported some cause this morning and bought us some Krispy Kreme doughnuts. Now I know I have more food than I can eat in this room right now but I just didn't know when I'll have the chance for Krispy Kremes again. Long story short, I've had three today...and I'm not going to feel bad if I have another one...so there. I figure as long as I'm eating meals too, they count as dessert. I might even see if Beau will heat it up for me.
I guess that's about it for now. We just heard that Reed made it home safely. Thank you for all of your safe travel prayers for him. Keep them up. Tomorrow he goes from Birmingham to Andalusia (about a 3 hour drive) and he hits the road again this weekend headed up here. We still need your prayers here too. Gaines and I have not made it this far without them. I am constantly begging God for at least 28 weeks. Hopefully He and I can renegotiate once I get that far. The closer I get to 28, the better and better 30, 31, 32,33 and 34 look. I'm kidding about the negotiating of course, but wouldn't that be awesome? Please pray for no infection and a baby that stays happy where he is.
Oh, I'm pretty sure he had the hiccups yesterday so maybe that means he's growing. I think I have another ultrasound on Thursday. Please pray for a good report on that, if I actually have one. They do them every 3 weeks because apparently, the results wouldn't change my treatment...of just laying around.
Thanks for all of your prayers and support. They are doing more than you know.
Brittany
Sorry for that...I'm easily amused these days. So far we've had another good day. Gaines and I are still together thankfully. No big medical news to report. His heart rate looked good this morning and I still have no signs of infection. Tomorrow is 27 weeks. Another milestone. We are so thankful. I am getting so close to that 28 week mark but I'm afraid to look too far ahead to it. I know that things could change any minute so I try and just be thankful for what God has given us thus far.
In other news, I look more pregnant today. When my water first broke my stomach got fairly flat. It was pretty sad for someone supposed to be 24 weeks pregnant. Last week I thought I was starting to look a little more pregnant again. I asked Beau what he thought but he didn't think it was in his best interest to answer the question. I was actually hoping he'd agree with me. Later that night one of my nurses noticed. It made me happy. I don't know...I feel like it means he's growing or something. Another nurse last night made a similar comment. She was my very first nurse so I was glad she noticed as well. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror today and I thought I looked even more pregnant than last week. Just thought you'd like to know.
Speaking of getting bigger, Beau supported some cause this morning and bought us some Krispy Kreme doughnuts. Now I know I have more food than I can eat in this room right now but I just didn't know when I'll have the chance for Krispy Kremes again. Long story short, I've had three today...and I'm not going to feel bad if I have another one...so there. I figure as long as I'm eating meals too, they count as dessert. I might even see if Beau will heat it up for me.
I guess that's about it for now. We just heard that Reed made it home safely. Thank you for all of your safe travel prayers for him. Keep them up. Tomorrow he goes from Birmingham to Andalusia (about a 3 hour drive) and he hits the road again this weekend headed up here. We still need your prayers here too. Gaines and I have not made it this far without them. I am constantly begging God for at least 28 weeks. Hopefully He and I can renegotiate once I get that far. The closer I get to 28, the better and better 30, 31, 32,33 and 34 look. I'm kidding about the negotiating of course, but wouldn't that be awesome? Please pray for no infection and a baby that stays happy where he is.
Oh, I'm pretty sure he had the hiccups yesterday so maybe that means he's growing. I think I have another ultrasound on Thursday. Please pray for a good report on that, if I actually have one. They do them every 3 weeks because apparently, the results wouldn't change my treatment...of just laying around.
Thanks for all of your prayers and support. They are doing more than you know.
Brittany
Day 19 (26 weeks, 6 day)
Brittany and Gaines both made it through the weekend with Reed. Brittany continues to show no signs of infection and Gaines' heart rate continues to look great.
Reed has already left this morning. It was heartbreaking, he gave me a hug and said "bye-bye daddy". He is so hard to say goodbye to. Brittany or I will post more later...we are both tired from seeing Reed this weekend.
Beau
Reed has already left this morning. It was heartbreaking, he gave me a hug and said "bye-bye daddy". He is so hard to say goodbye to. Brittany or I will post more later...we are both tired from seeing Reed this weekend.
Beau
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Day 18
First of all, everything is still fine. I thought Beau posted a quick "All is well" this morning but with Reed here we are a little out of sorts. I still have no signs of infection and Gaines' heart rate still looks good. One of the attendings came in this morning and I asked her what she thought about Gaines' strips (that's what they call the printed readings of his heart rate). I think I asked if they looked okay. She said yes...if they didn't look okay you'd know really quickly. I explained that I meant, do they look ok for now, or do they look good? She said they looked very encouraging. I was happy to hear that.
Also, yesterday another attending came in. She said she met me on my first night here. I must have been really out of it because I don't remember her at all. Anyway, I talked to her for a little while and I really liked her. At one point she said something to the effect of what a better place we were in now than we were when I first got here. I told her that I didn't know what the difference was but that I felt like 26 weeks was a milestone. She mentioned that maybe I should have the NICU doctors come back in. I told her I didn't want to. She said she understood but that they'd be able to give us more favorable information at this point. Maybe I'll let them back in at 28 weeks. I don't know. I just figure I shouldn't even have that stuff in my brain right now. I'll get there when I have to. One little thought that has been encouraging to me whenever I worry about having a healthy baby is that you aren't guaranteed at healthy baby even if you deliver at 40 weeks. I know that its in God's hands. Thankfully I've had more of a peace about this the last few days.
I really cannot believe we've been here 18 days. That's 18 days of not cooking dinner, 18 days of not picking up my little boy, 18 days of not working, or straightening up or wearing clothes other than pajamas, or being what used to be normal. The weird thing is that this has become normal very quickly.
If I had heard of someone else going through something like this, I wouldn't have even been able to fathom it. I would have been paralyzed at the thought of how you handle something like this. Being in danger of having a baby way too early, being 900 miles from home and my child, and finding a way to live in an expensive city while paying for our life back home (just to name a few of the concerns that come along with this) is overwhelming. BUT...through all of this, God has provided. I mean He really has. Every prayer that I have sent up thus far, has been answered. I just wanted you all to know that if one day you end up in one of these trials (and if it can happen to me it can happen to anyone), just have faith that God will provide...He so does.
I'll get off my soapbox for now. Time for a little color commentary. People in DC are crazy about this cherry blossom business. I mean they have been all over the news here, the metro has been packed (according to Beau) and the hotels and flights are more expensive (according to my in-laws that picked this weekend to visit). So, if you are ever in DC around this time of year...be sure to see the cherry blossoms.
One other quick thing that I thought was funny. I caught the tail end of a transmission commercial this morning. The part I saw said, "Leaking fluid? We'll fix it.". It might just be me that finds this funny but I thought it was hilarious given my current situation.
Sorry for the delay in posting today but with Reed here life has been different. I LOVE seeing him. Keep us in your prayers tomorrow...he leaves. Please pray for safe travels for Reed, no infection and for Gaines to keep being happy where he is.
It's been a good day.
Brittany
P.S. I let Beau "edit" this since apparently, I am not quite the writing prodigy I thought I was but I had to go back in an fix a mistake he made. So Ha Beau.
Also, yesterday another attending came in. She said she met me on my first night here. I must have been really out of it because I don't remember her at all. Anyway, I talked to her for a little while and I really liked her. At one point she said something to the effect of what a better place we were in now than we were when I first got here. I told her that I didn't know what the difference was but that I felt like 26 weeks was a milestone. She mentioned that maybe I should have the NICU doctors come back in. I told her I didn't want to. She said she understood but that they'd be able to give us more favorable information at this point. Maybe I'll let them back in at 28 weeks. I don't know. I just figure I shouldn't even have that stuff in my brain right now. I'll get there when I have to. One little thought that has been encouraging to me whenever I worry about having a healthy baby is that you aren't guaranteed at healthy baby even if you deliver at 40 weeks. I know that its in God's hands. Thankfully I've had more of a peace about this the last few days.
I really cannot believe we've been here 18 days. That's 18 days of not cooking dinner, 18 days of not picking up my little boy, 18 days of not working, or straightening up or wearing clothes other than pajamas, or being what used to be normal. The weird thing is that this has become normal very quickly.
If I had heard of someone else going through something like this, I wouldn't have even been able to fathom it. I would have been paralyzed at the thought of how you handle something like this. Being in danger of having a baby way too early, being 900 miles from home and my child, and finding a way to live in an expensive city while paying for our life back home (just to name a few of the concerns that come along with this) is overwhelming. BUT...through all of this, God has provided. I mean He really has. Every prayer that I have sent up thus far, has been answered. I just wanted you all to know that if one day you end up in one of these trials (and if it can happen to me it can happen to anyone), just have faith that God will provide...He so does.
I'll get off my soapbox for now. Time for a little color commentary. People in DC are crazy about this cherry blossom business. I mean they have been all over the news here, the metro has been packed (according to Beau) and the hotels and flights are more expensive (according to my in-laws that picked this weekend to visit). So, if you are ever in DC around this time of year...be sure to see the cherry blossoms.
One other quick thing that I thought was funny. I caught the tail end of a transmission commercial this morning. The part I saw said, "Leaking fluid? We'll fix it.". It might just be me that finds this funny but I thought it was hilarious given my current situation.
Sorry for the delay in posting today but with Reed here life has been different. I LOVE seeing him. Keep us in your prayers tomorrow...he leaves. Please pray for safe travels for Reed, no infection and for Gaines to keep being happy where he is.
It's been a good day.
Brittany
P.S. I let Beau "edit" this since apparently, I am not quite the writing prodigy I thought I was but I had to go back in an fix a mistake he made. So Ha Beau.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Day 17 Comes to a Close
Brittany is on the monitor right now and everything appears to be okay. Reed is at the hotel with my parents.
It has been more than two weeks since I have been with Reed all day long. This morning my mother and I took Reed to The National Zoo. This afternoon my step-father and I took Reed to a park. I am exhausted. I am about to lay down in my chair/bed and watch the Final Four. By the way, below are a few pictures from Reed's trip thus far.
It has been more than two weeks since I have been with Reed all day long. This morning my mother and I took Reed to The National Zoo. This afternoon my step-father and I took Reed to a park. I am exhausted. I am about to lay down in my chair/bed and watch the Final Four. By the way, below are a few pictures from Reed's trip thus far.
Beau
Day 17 (26 weeks, 4 days)
Same old, same old. Brittany and Gaines are both fine as we begin day # 17 in DC.
Reed did make it to DC with no problems. My parents said he did great on the airplane (of course he had three suckers). I'm sure the other passengers were extremely appreciative of those three suckers.
When he arrived, I met them in the lobby of the hospital. When I got off the elevator, he sprinted across the lobby laughing and squealing as he ran (it was an awesome feeling). I bent down and stretched out my arms waiting for a hug (Normally he doesn't want to be picked up. No matter how excited he is to see you, he will run to you and then stop just short). Yesterday, Reed ran straight into my arms and wrapped his arms around my neck. I picked him up and he actually kissed me on my cheek several times and continued to squeal and laugh.
That experience was awesome. We are so excited to have Reed here. We will keep you guys updated as the weekend progresses.
Beau
Reed did make it to DC with no problems. My parents said he did great on the airplane (of course he had three suckers). I'm sure the other passengers were extremely appreciative of those three suckers.
When he arrived, I met them in the lobby of the hospital. When I got off the elevator, he sprinted across the lobby laughing and squealing as he ran (it was an awesome feeling). I bent down and stretched out my arms waiting for a hug (Normally he doesn't want to be picked up. No matter how excited he is to see you, he will run to you and then stop just short). Yesterday, Reed ran straight into my arms and wrapped his arms around my neck. I picked him up and he actually kissed me on my cheek several times and continued to squeal and laugh.
That experience was awesome. We are so excited to have Reed here. We will keep you guys updated as the weekend progresses.
Beau
Friday, April 3, 2009
Random Thoughts
It's been a little while since I've posted but sometimes I feel like there's just not much to tell. The thing about laying in bed is that the more you do it, the lazier you get. Today has actually been a busy morning. I showered which takes a little while. We got a package yesterday that included shampoo for me and I am so thankful to be smelling fruity fresh instead of like the boy soap that Beau bought for us. Also, we got a package from my co-workers this morning. That took a little while to sift through and digest. I have to take this opportunity to thank them all for their extreme generosity. I work with such good people. I can't even begin to tell you how thankful I am for each of them.
I thought I'd try and fill you in on a conversation I had with one of my doctors a couple of days ago. This poor guy obviously drew the short straw and had to come down here and have me sign some paperwork acknowledging that I new the risks of the c-section that I may have to have. Poor guy then had to say, do you have any questions. I did.
I see doctors everyday but usually they wake me up around 6 and I'm not with it enough to process a real conversation. As this exchange was in the evening, I had my questions ready. Every so often someone would mention something to the effect of, "If you have to have an emergency c-section". I wanted to know just how quickly this emergency business would happen. Apparently if they deemed it emergency, Gaines would be here in about 15 -20 minutes. Crazy. He broke it down like this: 3-4 minutes to get you to the OR, 4-5 minutes to knock me out (an epidural is preferred but not doable in an emergency) and about 4 minutes to get the baby out. I'm sure I'm missing some other part because that doesn't really add up but you get the drift.
I'm still a little unsure as to what constitutes an emergency but I did find out that even a hint of infection (even if no labor is started), the baby is coming out...quickly. I asked what that meant and from what I understand, two instances of a fever could do it. Most of the time the fever would be accompanied by some sort of symptoms. It could be symptoms of something like a respiratory infection or symptoms of an infection around Gaines. If it was infection around Gaines, they'd obviously take him. If it was a fever with no symptoms they'd still take him. Apparently the risk to Gaines would be too high to wait to determine what the fever would be from if there were no symptoms. Basically, when Gaines is born he'll be a preemie (there is no way they'd let us go past 34 weeks) so the last thing he needs is an infection to fight off on top of everything else. I don't know that any of that makes sense but it helped us understand a little bit more.
I'll go for now. I want to rest before Reed gets here. He made it to Atlanta safely and will be here hopefully in about 2 hours. I was worried about them landing here as it was stormy weather this morning but the blue sky is out now. Answered prayers. Please keep praying for us. By my count, only 11 days until 28 weeks.
Love to all,
Brittany
I thought I'd try and fill you in on a conversation I had with one of my doctors a couple of days ago. This poor guy obviously drew the short straw and had to come down here and have me sign some paperwork acknowledging that I new the risks of the c-section that I may have to have. Poor guy then had to say, do you have any questions. I did.
I see doctors everyday but usually they wake me up around 6 and I'm not with it enough to process a real conversation. As this exchange was in the evening, I had my questions ready. Every so often someone would mention something to the effect of, "If you have to have an emergency c-section". I wanted to know just how quickly this emergency business would happen. Apparently if they deemed it emergency, Gaines would be here in about 15 -20 minutes. Crazy. He broke it down like this: 3-4 minutes to get you to the OR, 4-5 minutes to knock me out (an epidural is preferred but not doable in an emergency) and about 4 minutes to get the baby out. I'm sure I'm missing some other part because that doesn't really add up but you get the drift.
I'm still a little unsure as to what constitutes an emergency but I did find out that even a hint of infection (even if no labor is started), the baby is coming out...quickly. I asked what that meant and from what I understand, two instances of a fever could do it. Most of the time the fever would be accompanied by some sort of symptoms. It could be symptoms of something like a respiratory infection or symptoms of an infection around Gaines. If it was infection around Gaines, they'd obviously take him. If it was a fever with no symptoms they'd still take him. Apparently the risk to Gaines would be too high to wait to determine what the fever would be from if there were no symptoms. Basically, when Gaines is born he'll be a preemie (there is no way they'd let us go past 34 weeks) so the last thing he needs is an infection to fight off on top of everything else. I don't know that any of that makes sense but it helped us understand a little bit more.
I'll go for now. I want to rest before Reed gets here. He made it to Atlanta safely and will be here hopefully in about 2 hours. I was worried about them landing here as it was stormy weather this morning but the blue sky is out now. Answered prayers. Please keep praying for us. By my count, only 11 days until 28 weeks.
Love to all,
Brittany
Day 16
Just a quick post to let everyone know that Gaines and Brittany are both fine. Day 15 turned out to be another uneventful day. The nurses have already taken Britt's temperature this morning and was it normal.
Britt has promised to post a blog later this morning.
Beau
Britt has promised to post a blog later this morning.
Beau
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Day 15 Continues
Brittany is taking a nap right now. They monitored Gaines' heart rate this morning and it was perfect. The nurses just took Brittany's temperature and it was perfectly normal. The calm before the storm continues. At some point we know our world is going to be turned upside down and we are going to have our second son.
We did get a care package today from a nonprofit organization known as Until Journeys End. Their mission is to provide a support system to families living away from home to be with a loved one in medical crisis. I thought I would post their website so others could find out about this organization.
http://www.untiljourneysend.org/
I did have a good talk with some of the nurses this morning about prayer and how God has answered so many of ours. I told them that we know there is really nothing medically anyone can do for us at this time. We know that all of this in God's hands. We know that God is in our hospital room protecting Brittany and Gaines. We know that once Gaines is born, God will work through the NICU Doctors to continue to work his will.
Please continue to pray for no infection. We know firsthand that prayers are answered.
Beau
We did get a care package today from a nonprofit organization known as Until Journeys End. Their mission is to provide a support system to families living away from home to be with a loved one in medical crisis. I thought I would post their website so others could find out about this organization.
http://www.untiljourneysend.org/
I did have a good talk with some of the nurses this morning about prayer and how God has answered so many of ours. I told them that we know there is really nothing medically anyone can do for us at this time. We know that all of this in God's hands. We know that God is in our hospital room protecting Brittany and Gaines. We know that once Gaines is born, God will work through the NICU Doctors to continue to work his will.
Please continue to pray for no infection. We know firsthand that prayers are answered.
Beau
Day 15...Reed comes Tomorrow!
Brittany and Gaines are both doing fine this morning. The nurses haven't measured Gaines' heart rate this morning but Britt's temperature was perfect.
Last night, Gaines was moving around a lot (atleast thats what we think) so the heart rate monitoring was longer than normal. Basically, they could not get a good, consistent reading so they kept Brittany "hooked up" for about an hour. The nurses finally unhooked her and said the reading was fine. Other than that, yesterday was pretty dull...thankfully.
We'll post later.
Beau
Last night, Gaines was moving around a lot (atleast thats what we think) so the heart rate monitoring was longer than normal. Basically, they could not get a good, consistent reading so they kept Brittany "hooked up" for about an hour. The nurses finally unhooked her and said the reading was fine. Other than that, yesterday was pretty dull...thankfully.
We'll post later.
Beau
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Can't Believe It...
I cannot believe that we've been here two weeks now. When I was first admitted I couldn't see this far down the road. I am so thankful to be at this point. We've been here 14 days and in 13 days we'll be at the 28 week mark. We are over halfway to that goal that seemed impossible a few weeks ago. We still need prayers to get there but I know that God can do it for us. I just pray that's His will. It still seems like forever until we get there, but one day at a time, we'll make it...I pray.
Gaines' heart rate still continues to look good and my temperature continues to stay down. Praise the Lord. I still don't have any signs of labor either. Please continue to pray against infection and that I will know when something is going on with my body. I am still so afraid that I'll miss something I should be telling the doctors about. They keep telling me I won't miss it. I guess I'll take their word for it.
This morning one of my residents said, "You're really trying to make it a long time aren't you". I looked at her like I cannot believe you seriously just asked me that. OF COURSE I'm trying to make it a long time. It was just one of those instances I was telling you about that keeps us under the impression that they didn't really expect me to make it past day 10.
My attending physician (real doctor in charge of me) came in again this morning. Until our little talk a few nights ago, we'd only seen her twice. Ever since, she comes around every day it seems like. I think we've grown on her. I'm really comforted knowing that she's overseeing things. We like having so many residents checking on me. You know there are just that many more eyes watching you and offering different perspectives, but it can be disconcerting every time a new face walks in. Having this attending soothes those nerves.
Oh, I had to lay in Beau's "bed" this morning while they put new sheets on my bed. Do not feel sorry for him. That thing was comfortable. For real.
I guess that's about it for now. I'm going to try and post some pictures of Reed that my mom sent us this morning from his visit in Andalusia. Bear with me, I'm new to this. Reed comes in two days! Please pray for his safe travels. We just "talked" to him on the phone...I love that little boy.
Day 14
Britt has now been in GW Hospital for two weeks. A month ago I certainly did not think I would be praising God for two weeks in the hospital. It is amazing how quickly your life can change.
Britt and Gaines are doing fine. Britt's temperature and Gaines' heart rate monitorings continue to come back normal. Today is 26 weeks and 1 day.
On a separate note, I found out a couple of days ago that Britt had been planning a surprise party for me as my 30th Birthday is in two weeks. She had to cancel the party since we will be in DC. Even under the circumstances, I could tell Britt was a little discouraged that we would be spending my 30th in the hospital. I told her that would be great...I would love to spend my birthday in the very same room we are now in. That would mean she would be 28 weeks.
Yesterday, I received a call from one of my best friends...several friends from home have already purchased plane tickets and are flying to DC on my birthday (Britt had no idea). They are arriving on the earliest flight that day and leaving on the last. They will only be here for a couple of hours...just long enough to visit Britt and maybe go to lunch with me. What a blessing to have such unbelievable friends. I know this unexpected trip on my birthday has lifted my spirits and Britt's. Isn't amazing how the Lord provides.
Please continue to pray, I know the Lord will continue to provide.
Beau
Britt and Gaines are doing fine. Britt's temperature and Gaines' heart rate monitorings continue to come back normal. Today is 26 weeks and 1 day.
On a separate note, I found out a couple of days ago that Britt had been planning a surprise party for me as my 30th Birthday is in two weeks. She had to cancel the party since we will be in DC. Even under the circumstances, I could tell Britt was a little discouraged that we would be spending my 30th in the hospital. I told her that would be great...I would love to spend my birthday in the very same room we are now in. That would mean she would be 28 weeks.
Yesterday, I received a call from one of my best friends...several friends from home have already purchased plane tickets and are flying to DC on my birthday (Britt had no idea). They are arriving on the earliest flight that day and leaving on the last. They will only be here for a couple of hours...just long enough to visit Britt and maybe go to lunch with me. What a blessing to have such unbelievable friends. I know this unexpected trip on my birthday has lifted my spirits and Britt's. Isn't amazing how the Lord provides.
Please continue to pray, I know the Lord will continue to provide.
Beau
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