Quiet Days with Tyler

Sorry we haven't posted much in the last couple of days. Tyler has been very stable and cooperative for us. We got back mid Sunday afternoon and found him resting very comfortably on very low settings on the high frequency ventilator. Essentially he was breathing the same mix of air as we do and the pressure it was being thrown at him was below the lowest that machine could handle. So while they got the CPAP system ready and the bed cleaned, I got to hold my baby boy for the first time since his unexpected arrival. I had him in my arms for about 45 minutes. He would watch us for a minute than fall asleep for a while. If someone talked he would open his eyes again and then sleep. It was so therapeutic for both of us. He was calm and relaxed looking and I got to hold my boy.


















Unfortunately the calm had to end with a very angry little boy. Not only did they move him off me, but the pulled out his breathing tube and hooked up the CPAP to his nose. He cried, fought, squirmed away, everything in his little power to protest being fussed over. They put the CPAP in around 5 pm. It took some doing to get him completely settled back down again. Around 10pm that night we shut off the Biliruben lights and swaddled him very tight with his first binky. He likes to breath through his mouth and the binky provide a great plug to make the CPAP work better. Since then his Oxygen is back to just above room-air (26%), his breathing is strong and sats look great!. At rounds this morning the docs decided to let him hang-out like this for a few days more.













has closed Monday, we came in to Tyler looking great on CPAP. They rechecked his heart with another ultrasound to see if PDA significantly. We still don't have actual reports from radiology, but everyone here believes it is significantly better. They don't hear the murmur and Tyler is able to maintain his oxygen levels beautifully. If there is still a large PDA, they are not going to do much about it other than watch it. In the afternoon, Daddy got to finally hold his little boy. I'm not sure who was in danger of falling asleep first, Tyler or Ben. They both were very comfortable and happy. Made me smile.

The Developmental therapist came in today and gave us some more good news. First Tyler is more body responsive. When he's not happy he wiggles or cries, some babies use their O2 Saturation to show displeasure. Do something they don't like and their O2 Sat tanks. Tyler keeps his O2 nice and high the whole time and kicks, flails and cries to show his displeasure. He also demonstrated that he adjust to discomfort. When you take his temp he'll be fussy for a moment then relax when he has acclimated to the placement of the probe. It's like putting on a watch, for the first day you notice it all the time, after a day or two your brain acclimates and doesn't register the constant presence of the watch. She also pointed out that his jerks and spasms that have had Ben worried are exactly what she would hope to see at this point. As his neurons get wired in signals will travel at different rates through different nerves.

Tomorrow we are planning to go back home to have a few fun and relaxing days with Rachel. I'm hoping she will not be too bored without her cousins and Grandparents. Overall I think she is having a great time playing. She was very happy to see us this weekend and seemed to not overly cling to either one of us.
The picture of Rachel on the swing is at David's House when I was still pregnant. The other picture is one she asked Daddy to take to send to Mommy. She is sweet. By the way if you've tried to reach me on my cell phone, it's been broken. It works now.