We both look really tired in these pictures because the first two days he was extubated Austin did not want to sleep (it took two doses of Ativan and finally some morphine to get him down on Tuesday night). He still had his central line in and I know it was making him uncomfortable along with a sore throat from the tube and I imagine a sore chest from the infection. Yesterday they took out his line and we were able to give him a bath and he was a much happier baby. Last night was a dream compared to the previoustwo- he settled to sleep easily slept for about 4 hours, woke up and ate then went back to sleep for another 4 hrs. Hopefully we are on the road to home soon. His oxygen needs have to be lower and the amount of junk they suction out of his nose needs to decrease before the doctors feel comfortable sending us home.

Praise! The doctors were able to pull Austin's breathing tube yesterday afternoon.  It was very tense yesterday as he is still struggling to breathe but hopefully they will not have to put the tube back in.  Andy and I stayed with him last night at the hospital and took turns staying up with him because he was really agitated and not wanting to sleep which was making it even harder on him to breathe.  The doctors ordered a medicine called Ativan to help him relax and sleep and it helped him to settle down.  I really want to nurse him but right now he is on too much oxygen and breathing too fast.  It is so hard to not be able to comfort your child when you see him in distress.  Please pray that his oxygen needs will decrease and that he will rest today.  I am charging the camera battery and will post new pictures (sans tube) as soon as I can. 

Our room at The Children's Hospital

Awake and alert this afternoon

Bath Time

More bath time

Snuggled up with Granna

Slow and Steady

The past 24 hours have been mostly uneventful. The good news is that Austin is continuing to do well overall. They removed his A-line, his peripheral IV and his foley catheter. He still has a central line and of course the ventilator tube. It is much easier to hold him now that he is not connected to quite so much. His sedation has been turned down so he is more awake which is good and bad. It is so amazing to see his eyes open and looking around, I even read him a book while holding him this morning. The bad part is that he is also more aware of the breathing tube and he hates it. He is coughing more so we are just suctioning as often as we can to keep him as comfortable as possible. The next step is to start weaning the ventilator so please pray that as they turn down the amount of oxygen he is receiving that is O2 sats will remain in the mid 90's. We are going to give him a little bath later and will be sure to take pictures.

Wednesday morning before he had to be intubated

Holding him Friday night

Austin had a better night last night.  After receiving a blood transfusion they were able to wean him off the blood pressure medicine and turn some of the ventilator settings down.  What an answer to our prayers. The latest labs look good and show he is maintaining his oxygen levels.  Now he just needs to rest and continue to get stronger. We will probably be here another week and hopefully the breathing tube will be out in a day or two.  I got to hold him last night which was quite a production as you can imagine with all the tubes and lines but it felt so good to have him in my arms again.  He seemed to like it too because we saw an improvement in his breathing and blood pressure even before the blood was finished infusing.  We are hoping for a good, quiet day.

Austin

So we moved to The Children's Hospital today around noon.  Austin was getting sicker this morning so we decided that we would feel more comfortable in a hospital the specializes in pediatrics.  Plus, Andy's sister Kelly works here so that is a huge bonus. He has RSV and h.influenzae pnuemonia and the combination is doing a number on his lungs.  I just spoke with his doctors and he is definitely improving his oxygen requirements on the ventilator are going down which is a good sign.  His blood pressure is staying a little low so he is on a medicine called dopamine to keep it up.  He will get some blood tonight and hopefully that will allow them to wean off the dopamine.  So please pray that his respiratory status will continue to improve and that his blood pressure will return to normal.   I will try to update once day and more often if anything significant changes.  Thanks again for all the support we can definitely feel the love and your prayers.

Two Months

Here are his stats: Ht. 25 in (98% ), Wt. 14 lbs 4 oz (96%) , Head 16 in (93%)

So far he is keeping up with Edward, barely outgrowing him and just as sweet.