Shall we dance?

Miles has been doing so well, that it was inevitable that he'd have a couple bad days. He was eating like a champ, off of his oxygen, heading towards getting out of his isolette......and then he started having apenic episodes, his heart rate started dropping randomly, he became tired and sometimes lethargic....he was trying to remind us that even though he's doing well, he's still small & is supposed to be taking it easy having everything done for him in utero! Yesterday he had a rough day with his feedings and actually took most feeds by his tube. He was not interested in waking up to eat, let alone eat well!
This morning when I arrived at the hospital, the nurse was stalling on moving him to an open crib. No big deal I thought. They just had 2 admits of bad babies and they were busy. That was until the nurse practitioner came in and talked to me for a while. She explained that he was back-sliding, taking 2 steps forward and one step back is normal, it's known at the NICU 2-step -- but we had taken 2 steps backwards. Since she went off 48 hours prior (when he was tube free and eating fabulously), he had regained all of his tubes back and was sluggish. She said that he looked like a totally different baby today. They sent some lab work down to see what was going on. Was it infection? Anemia? Everything normal and he was just trying to tell us to take it slow? Thankfully the labs came back showing that he was very anemic. His retic count came back and they decided to start him on the Epogen protocol. Epogen will help Miles make more red blood cells and should allow him to carry Oxygen better throughout his little body! Our prayer is that this helps him. He will receive the shots on M-W-F's. His first dose will be tomorrow AM and then the next on Monday, etc. They will draw labs on Tuesday to see how his body is responding to the treatment. Please pray with us that this helps and that we see him turn the corner back to his perky self. Prior to yesterday the little piglet was rooting an hour before it was time to eat! Thankfully he is continuing to gain weight. Last night he was 4 lbs 15.7 oz. We might hit the 5 lbs mark tonight!!!
There are 3 private rooms attached to the main room of the NICU. Last night the nurse moved a baby out of one of the rooms and put Miles in the room. So we now have a private room, and it has a bed in there for me!! I am spending the night tonight to work on breastfeeding with him (not that he has a problem with this!! Just trying to see how he does for 24 hours of breastfeeding). As exhausted as I am, I am looking forward to this sleepless, restless night!! I can't believe I'm getting to spend the night with my little man!!!
As anxious as I am to have him home, I have come to the realization that he's in the NICU for as long as he needs to be. As much as I long for a "going home" date, I have to practice patience and wait...and wait...and wait.
Yesterday and today I came up later in the day and it was nice having a slow morning at home. Graham is handling this all so well! But he is so confused. He doesn't understand why Mommy is gone a lot; why he stays at school a little later because Daddy is visiting Miles; why he can't go see Miles whenever he wants, etc. I know it must be hard on him.
I've rambled long enough and my dinner is getting cold! There is no internet at the hospital (real up to date, huh?) so I'm sitting at McAlisters :) !
Thanks again for all of the prayers! Keep them coming!
Praying for Strength,
Jeff, Lauren, Graham & Miles
Sorry for no pictures tonight - I left the camera cord at home...

Guess who's graduating out of his isolette?

Miles continues to do well! He was having an increased number of bradycardic episodes and his oxygen sats were dipping to 89%, so they have given him his oxygen back. He's only on 25%, and you & I breathe 21%.....the little stinker just wants that extra little sniff!! I guess I can't blame him - he's still supposed to be cooking for another 6 weeks. He's accomplished a lot in the last 2 weeks!

He is on his way out of the isolette! Since the outside temp has dropped in the last couple of days, they are taking it slow. We moved his isolette away from the window yesterday because it was downright cold right there!! Mom and I were freezing so I can imagine what the little guy was having to do to keep his temp up! But by the time we get there today, Miles should be in his big boy bed!!
I'm going to be able to stay at the hospital on Thursday night to work on feeds. I'm really looking forward to that! Since Miles still has alarms going off, they won't allow him to come to my room, but I'm sure that sleepless night will be bliss!! :)

Miles had an episode of apnea on Monday night, which means we will be there for at least another week. We have to go 7 days without an episode before discharge (we also need to get off of oxygen, continue to gain weight, not poop out during feeds). So please pray that we will not have anymore episodes!! This was his first one, and he resolved it on his own, but it still happened!

Graham is ready for Miles to be home, too! Last night, Mom brought me to the church to get Jeff & Graham (someone locked their keys in the car for the second time in 2 weeks....) so that we could go rescue Jeff's car keys and car from the Mortgage Company parking lot. When Mom dropped us off and we got settled into Jeff's car, Graham says "Hopipal. Miles." He wanted to go see Miles!! MELT MY HEART! He was so upset when we said that we were going home. For a split second I thought about loading Graham up and heading back the hospital ... but then I came back to reality and realized there was no way that I was going to handle both boys, by myself, in the NICU ... not to mention I was exhausted!!

Thanks for keeping up!! We feel the prayers!!
Anxiously awaiting a discharge date....

Jeff, Lauren, Graham & Miles

PS - We should be closing on our house at the end of next week!!!! :) I wonder which house Miles will come home too...

2 weeks old

Once again, I apologize!! Between trying to fit in pumping every 3 hours, eating, sleeping, quality time with Graham & Jeff and being at the hospital for 6+ hours a day, blogging has taken the backseat.

Since I last updated, Miles has taken his first car (ambulance) ride, come on and off of Oxygen a couple of times, managed to pull out several feeding tubes, is breastfeeding like a champ, has been fed a bottle by his big brother, and has become much more alert!

Last Tuesday, we were transferred to North Florida's Level II NICU. Miles no longer needed to be in the Level III NICU at Shands, and the docs felt like we would have a more pleasant experience at North Florida. It is a smaller, more intimate, family friendly setting -- 6 babies as opposed to 54! I'll take that!! So far, we have loved our nurses. One small run-in but that was cleared up with some orders!

Overall, Miles is doing FANTASTIC! Who would have thought that he would be breastfeeding as well as he is. I'm trying to be there for at least 3 of his feeds a day. It's not as easy this go-round...having a 2 year old throws a whole new dimension into the mix! Not to mention the hospital is 50 min. away from home. As of now, he is still pooping out with some of his feeds, so they are having to use his feeding tube 2 out of the 8 feeds a day - not too bad (although we wish we didn't have to use it at all!). He is also using Oxygen with some of his feeds. Not all of them, but he tells us when he needs it!! So we aren't tube free anymore, but we're heading back in that direction - and that's progress!

On Saturday, Graham came up to see Miles. I love seeing my boys together!! :) It truly melts my heart! I can't wait to have Miles home with us so that we can fully adjust to being a family of four. As much as I want to have Miles at home, I know that he is where he needs to be right now. He's still experiencing some drops in his heart rate and his oxygen sats; fortunately they resolve themselves, but he is still little! I know that he will come home when he is ready, but the mom in me still wants to rush him home so I can love on him whenever I want!!

Back to the boys being together.....I had just finished feeding Miles and he was needing to be supplemented. So I asked Graham if he would like to help Jeff feed Miles, and he replied "OK!". So I hand the bottle to Graham (not sure what I was thinking!) and he attempts to put it in Miles' mouth, only Miles won't open up. So Graham then puts the nipple in HIS mouth and quickly pulls it out, frantically begins wiping his tongue and saying "AHHH. YUCKY".....it was a bottle with formula in it! I'm hoping Graham learned his lesson! I then started over with a new bottle and put it in Miles' mouth. Graham grabbed a hold of the bottle and took Jeff's hand off of the bottle saying "No thank you". Mr. Independent wanted to do it himself! And he was mighty good if I say so myself! :)

On Sunday, Pops took a little break from class in Jax to come spend some quality time loving on Miles and visiting with me! We had a great time together, even though it was short! One things for sure.....Miles will never be without someone to hold him and love on him!

Today, mom & I visited Miles for a while. Mom got to love on him....and it's amazing how he just fits in the crook of her neck! I have a feeling he will fall in love with that spot a lot over his lifetime! The NP today wrote orders to start weaning Miles out of the isolette into a big boy bed!! We are going to take it slow so that we don't end up back in the box, but nurse Karen seems to think we'll be in our big boy bed tomorrow!! WHOO HOOO!! :) :) :)

Thanks again for all of the love and prayers!! We feel them and see them at work in Sweet Little Miles!

Love,

Jeff, Lauren, Graham, and Miles

Saturday Update

Miles is doing so well! In the hustle and bustle of going home, visiting the hospital & trying to recover, I've failed at updating!! So here's the abbreviated version of the last few days!

Miles came off of the vent yesterday and did very well! He went to CPAP and as of this morning he was down to room air (21% oxygen) and a PEEP of 4 (pressure to keep his lungs fully expanded).
Mom & I went and dropped off his groceries yesterday and were told by the MD that I could hold Miles. The crotchety nurse didn't like this idea so I waited until the 3P nurse came on and she said ABSOLUTELY!! :) I was able to hold Miles for about 30 minutes and then mom got in on the action! Unfortunately, neither of us had a camera! I loved every minute of it! He opened one eye and looked at me then decided I wasn't that interesting and drifted off to sleep again. :)

Today, Graham let Jeff & I sleep in! HEAVEN! :) So we all headed to the hospital before lunch and ended up having a GREAT day! Nurse crotchety was on, but I told her how well Miles did with us holding him yesterday, and she reluctantly agreed to let us hold him! Jeff held him first and as soon as Miles was in his Daddy's arms, his eyes were wide open! He gave Jeff a good stare down for 15 min. or so. Graham and I went back to see Miles as well, and Graham thought it was hilarious that Miles held onto his finger. Miles enjoyed some kisses from Graham as well. I can't describe the feeling of watching my boys interact for the first time! HEART WARMING! Jeff took Graham out for a nap and I got to love on Miles for about an hour!

He should be coming off of the CPAP tomorrow and going onto a high flow nasal cannula. So we'll be able to see his pretty face & hair!!! :) They have been increasing his feeds daily and lowering his IV fluids, so we are hoping that he will be able to come off of his IV fluids in the next couple of days. There was talk of inserting a PICC line (longer term IV access) but since he appears to be tolerating his feeds (he's at 15cc every 3 hours right now; will go up to 20cc at 9AM) that procedure should be put on hold. Graduating from CPAP also means that his UAC (arterial access through his umbilical cord) should come out. By losing the CPAP and UAC we will be able to hold him more often.

I know I've rambled, but just wanted to update you on what's going on. I'm feeling great. Having a NICU baby motivates you to move!! In between visits, I'm trying to play with Graham, rest, and hydrate myself so I can provide nourishment for Mr. Miles. Thanks for all of your prayers!! We can feel them!!

Strength & Hope,

Jeff, Lauren, Graham & Miles

**UPDATE**

Jeff and I headed back to see Miles tonight, and we were told that he was really struggling to breathe. Even though he is on the CPAP, they are having to up the amount of Oxygen as well as pressure that he is on. The doc has decided to go ahead and intubate Miles and give him some medicine which will help his immature lungs. I know that this is what is best for Miles, but it is still hard signing the consents and knowing what he will go through. Please keep us in your prayers. The doc is hoping that Miles will be able to rest while on the vent, seeing as he won't be having to focus on breathing. She is hoping that he might be able to be backed down off of the vent tomorrow at some point, but obviously this will be decided after looking at Miles' labs, breathing patterns, xrays, etc.
Thanks again for all of your prayers!

Miles Thomas

Miles Thomas was born Monday, 12/29/08 @ 1358 EST.

He is 8 weeks early and weighed in at 4 lbs 6 oz. He was 43 cm long (about 17"). Has a head full of red hair and looks just like Graham! He's currently in the NICU.

On Saturday, we headed out for a Walmart run, after I took my meds, and I noticed I was having contractions and knew for sure that it was because I needed to use the restroom. When we got home they didn't seem to be settling down so I laid down, hydrated myself and tried to rest. I found myself becoming more uncomfortable and finally told Jeff we should head to the hospital. I threw an overnight bag together "just in case" and Jeff loaded Graham into the car. Mom met us at the hospital and took Graham (thanks again Mimi!) and we headed up to L&D. The monitors confirmed that I was contracting. They gave me a double dose of Cardene, some Brethine, IV fluids and nothing did the trick. I finally won myself some Mag (YUCK!). I sent Jeff home when we felt like it was safe that nothing was going to happen that night. I tried my best to get some sleep, but even the Mag and Brethine combo wasn't keeping the contractions at bay.

Sunday morning, my MD made rounds and we discussed the option of transferring to a higher risk facility in the event that I were to deliver. I didn't want to be recovering from a C/S at one hospital and have my baby shipped to a hospital over an hour away. Once the ball was rolling for me to be transferred, the ambulance showed up 30 min. later and I was on my way. Jeff was in the middle of church, so mom headed to the hospital in her car.

I got settled into the new hospital, was admitted, and saw more residents than I thought I would see! I was doing alright and the plan was to stop the Mag, start me on some oral meds, and hopefully do a test 24 hours later to see if I was within a 2 week window of delivering. In typical Lauren fashion (knowing that things can't usually go the way they are planned!), I used the restroom and started to bleed. This changed the whole perspective. Contractions were harder but were manageable with meds. The rest of the evening was pretty uneventful (good thing b/c I didn't really care for my night nurse!).

On Monday at 4AM I started having an unusual pain in my abdomen. One nurse blew it off, and my day nurse came on and was shocked at how hard my belly was staying. The pain began to intensify and Miles was even moving away from the spot. We were able to get his heartbeat really low on the left side, and he started moving higher onto the right side, making it more difficult to monitor him. The pain became totally unbearable and the docs were in and out. Teaching hospitals are wonderful - but not when you are laying there miserable and you have to wait for the resident to track down his/her boss for any decisions. Finally at 1:15 they decided that the benefits of a 31 weeker delivery outweighed the risks. It was apparent that I was heading for an abruption and they needed to do something about it.
I was prepped and taken to the OR. Miles was born crying immediately, but the docs had to work really hard to get him out. I was told numerous times that they had made the best decision to go ahead and deliver - especially with what everything looked like once I was opened up.

They finished me up and took Miles to the NICU to "tuck him in" (get him admitted to his little tiny isolette).

Miles is on CPAP and doing well. I was able to hold him today skin-to-skin which was amazing!! Jeff also got to hold him today.

It looks like he will be here for a min. of 3-5 weeks. I will be going home on Thursday and then we will have to figure out our new routine. Graham has been a trooper! He's been playing with Pops and Big Nanny. God's timing never ceases to amaze me. My dad's sister & husband just happened to be in town this past week with their daughter and her 3 kids. Graham has jumped in and played with him like he's been surrounded by them his entire life! He's even calling Uncle Frank "Papa" which is what the kids call him! He's also calling the twin boys "Bubba" and he'll occasionally call Samantha Bubba as well!
Please keep us all in your prayers. This is not an easy time for any of us. Who would have ever thought that Miles would be here already???

Keep checking back, as this seems to be the easiest way to keep everyone informed of what is going on!
Thanks again for all of your love & support!!

Jeff, Lauren, Graham and Miles

Pregnancy brain takes over...

I'm not sure what I was thinking when I handed Graham CHOCOLATE PUDDING and a spoon. He ate very well for dinner, so I thought a little Calcium couldn't hurt anything...

This was after 10 minutes....TEN MINUTES! The child inhaled the pudding. At some point, when the spoon slipped out of his slippery, little hands, he decided that he could eat with his hands. Who was I to argue?

He promptly won himself a complimentary shower before getting in the bathtub. :) I spent a long time getting the bathtub sparkling clean today....and I didn't want there to be a chocolate haze on it within hours of it being so clean!! :)

Hope you are all doing well! Check back for some more updates!