Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Success!
Just wanted to let everyone know that in the midst of Noah being sick and Wyatt/Me taking refuge at my mom's house- Wyatt has gained weight. He is now 5 pounds, 11 ounces! Dr. Lee is very proud and doesn't need to see him until his 2 month checkup. Yeah!!! Finally some success!
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Doing great at home
Wyatt is adjusting well to his new home. Jeremy and I are also trying to adjust to our new sleep schedule. I actually took a 2 hour nap yesterday. I never slept when Noah napped, but I may need to do that with Wyatt.
We took him to the doctor yesterday and he weighed a big 5 lbs! Wow what a chunker! Dr. Lee seemed pleased with his progress, which thrilled me and Jeremy. We also gave him a bath when we got home. He was not happy with this idea.
It has been so nice having Jeremy home this week. It is wonderful to get to spend this time together as a family. We've just been through so much, so it is nice to have some down-time together. I think it is helping Noah adjust to his new brother as well.
I've been thinking a lot about how I'm going to juggle working after Spring Break and the boys. I guess most moms do this, but not with a 5 pound baby. Please pray that everything will work out.
We took him to the doctor yesterday and he weighed a big 5 lbs! Wow what a chunker! Dr. Lee seemed pleased with his progress, which thrilled me and Jeremy. We also gave him a bath when we got home. He was not happy with this idea.
It has been so nice having Jeremy home this week. It is wonderful to get to spend this time together as a family. We've just been through so much, so it is nice to have some down-time together. I think it is helping Noah adjust to his new brother as well.
I've been thinking a lot about how I'm going to juggle working after Spring Break and the boys. I guess most moms do this, but not with a 5 pound baby. Please pray that everything will work out.
Friday, March 20, 2009
Home
We are HOME! That's all I really need to say!
Wyatt is now sleeping in his bassinet in our room. It is a beautiful sight. He is wrapped up because his temperature is a little low, but other than that he is absolutely a perfect 4 lb. 13 oz. baby boy.
Thank you all for your prayers and words of encouragement. They are greatly appreciated. God tested me the past 10 days and I truly feel I came out of the scary, crazy, madness a stronger Christian.
Wyatt is now sleeping in his bassinet in our room. It is a beautiful sight. He is wrapped up because his temperature is a little low, but other than that he is absolutely a perfect 4 lb. 13 oz. baby boy.
Thank you all for your prayers and words of encouragement. They are greatly appreciated. God tested me the past 10 days and I truly feel I came out of the scary, crazy, madness a stronger Christian.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Going home....I think
The doctors made an announcement during rounds that Wyatt may be going home tomorrow if everything today goes well. The nurses were instructed to treat him like a "normal baby." So he needs to maintain his body temperature and his billirubin levels need to stay where they are. Everything else has already been checked off the list. My only concern is the temperature. He has been wrapped up for so long that I'm afraid he might have some problems adjusting. I don't know if they will send him home having to be swaddled. But I guess we will see.
We are very anxious to head home and be "regular." I do hope that the last day ever in a NICU for a Johnson baby will be tomorrow.
We are very anxious to head home and be "regular." I do hope that the last day ever in a NICU for a Johnson baby will be tomorrow.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Loving it at Pitt
We are so happy to be back at Pitt. Everything there is just relaxing as compared to Duke. We had a wonderful nurse today. Wyatt is turning a bright shade of orange. I wouldn't be surprised to see him baking in the lights in the morning. He also had a couple of bradys today but he was able to self-recover them. He didn't need any assistance coming out of them. He was snug as a bug in his little pod. Maybe tomorrow I'll post a picture of his new little house.
The best part of the day was when my dad brought Noah over to the hospital. We were all smiles while we visited. We were able to spend the day together and it was very nice to feel "regular" again. Unfortunately we were unable to get into the Ronald McDonald house so we decided that it would be best if we came home. There was a lot of dirty laundry! So tomorrow night Jeremy and I will stay at a hotel if we can't get in the Ronald McDonald house. I don't think I can be this far away from Wyatt again. Noah will go to school tomorrow and then my dad will bring him to Greenville on Thursday to spend the rest of the week/weekend with us. That way my dad can have a break because we will really need him again next week if Wyatt is still in the hospital.
Please pray that Wyatt will have brady-free days and that he will not need treatment for jaundice. Pray for Noah as he is adjusting to all this madness.
The best part of the day was when my dad brought Noah over to the hospital. We were all smiles while we visited. We were able to spend the day together and it was very nice to feel "regular" again. Unfortunately we were unable to get into the Ronald McDonald house so we decided that it would be best if we came home. There was a lot of dirty laundry! So tomorrow night Jeremy and I will stay at a hotel if we can't get in the Ronald McDonald house. I don't think I can be this far away from Wyatt again. Noah will go to school tomorrow and then my dad will bring him to Greenville on Thursday to spend the rest of the week/weekend with us. That way my dad can have a break because we will really need him again next week if Wyatt is still in the hospital.
Please pray that Wyatt will have brady-free days and that he will not need treatment for jaundice. Pray for Noah as he is adjusting to all this madness.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Back in Greenville!
We had a great day today! Things seem to be going our way.
Last night Wyatt was transferred to the Special Care Nursery at Duke. We didn't know what to expect but we were surprised when we got there. I couldn't believe we were still at Duke when we entered the nursery. There were 6 babies in this nursery and the room was the size of a closet. One of the babies was going through drug withdrawal. It really was awful but the good news was that we were leaving. We were told shortly after our arrival that we were being transferred back to Pitt this evening. We were ecstatic and relieved! I would have had a hard time leaving him in this new nursery. By going to Pitt we knew then we could see Noah more frequently and that the facility would be very nice as compared to the Special Care Nursery. Don't get me wrong, we were very happy with Wyatt's care at Duke especially in the NICU. The nurses and doctors were wonderful and thorough, but we just needed to be closer to home.
Wyatt went for his kidney study around 2. The results were very positive. He didn't have any urine reflux back into his kidneys, which is exactly what we wanted. The kidney specialist does want to track Wyatt and see him for another study at around 3 months of age. I liked this plan because we want to stay on top of this kidney problem. After the study, we were told that the Life Flight transport team from Duke would be transporting him at 7. Fortunately they moved up the transport to 5. It felt so good to be heading towards home. Jeremy and I were all smiles.
Wyatt was admitted to the Pitt NICU and they were very pleased with his progress. He is feeding extremely well for his age. He was starting to look a little orange this evening, so they will see if he needs to go back under the lights tomorrow. He is also continuing to have "brady" episodes and he really needs to be brady-free for about 7 days before he can go home. So we will be here at least another week, but that is ok. I don't want him to forget to breath when he gets home. Plus the Pitt NICU is just a beautiful facility. It really felt like entering a totally different world from the Special Care Nursery.
So tonight we are staying in a Greenville hotel, but we hope to get in the Ronald McDonald house Wednesday night. Jeremy and I decided that we should probably spend the night at home on Tuesday. We are out of clean clothes and I want to work on the nursery. It wasn't quite done, so I need to do a little work in there for Wyatt. Also I think it will be really good for Noah.
I want to thank my Primary School friends again for their generous donation. We weren't able to stay at the Ronald McDonald House, but a local hotel gave us a great rate. We were able to stay for 4 nights and have meals on that gift. It really meant so much to us.
Please pray that Wyatt will start having brady-free days and is able to increase his feedings. Also pray for me as I start to try and breastfeed tomorrow. This will be my first time and I'm a little bit nervous. Most mothers don't have to be on display when they are learning to breastfeed. Noah never would because he spent so much time on a bottle in the NICU.
Last night Wyatt was transferred to the Special Care Nursery at Duke. We didn't know what to expect but we were surprised when we got there. I couldn't believe we were still at Duke when we entered the nursery. There were 6 babies in this nursery and the room was the size of a closet. One of the babies was going through drug withdrawal. It really was awful but the good news was that we were leaving. We were told shortly after our arrival that we were being transferred back to Pitt this evening. We were ecstatic and relieved! I would have had a hard time leaving him in this new nursery. By going to Pitt we knew then we could see Noah more frequently and that the facility would be very nice as compared to the Special Care Nursery. Don't get me wrong, we were very happy with Wyatt's care at Duke especially in the NICU. The nurses and doctors were wonderful and thorough, but we just needed to be closer to home.
Wyatt went for his kidney study around 2. The results were very positive. He didn't have any urine reflux back into his kidneys, which is exactly what we wanted. The kidney specialist does want to track Wyatt and see him for another study at around 3 months of age. I liked this plan because we want to stay on top of this kidney problem. After the study, we were told that the Life Flight transport team from Duke would be transporting him at 7. Fortunately they moved up the transport to 5. It felt so good to be heading towards home. Jeremy and I were all smiles.
Wyatt was admitted to the Pitt NICU and they were very pleased with his progress. He is feeding extremely well for his age. He was starting to look a little orange this evening, so they will see if he needs to go back under the lights tomorrow. He is also continuing to have "brady" episodes and he really needs to be brady-free for about 7 days before he can go home. So we will be here at least another week, but that is ok. I don't want him to forget to breath when he gets home. Plus the Pitt NICU is just a beautiful facility. It really felt like entering a totally different world from the Special Care Nursery.
So tonight we are staying in a Greenville hotel, but we hope to get in the Ronald McDonald house Wednesday night. Jeremy and I decided that we should probably spend the night at home on Tuesday. We are out of clean clothes and I want to work on the nursery. It wasn't quite done, so I need to do a little work in there for Wyatt. Also I think it will be really good for Noah.
I want to thank my Primary School friends again for their generous donation. We weren't able to stay at the Ronald McDonald House, but a local hotel gave us a great rate. We were able to stay for 4 nights and have meals on that gift. It really meant so much to us.
Please pray that Wyatt will start having brady-free days and is able to increase his feedings. Also pray for me as I start to try and breastfeed tomorrow. This will be my first time and I'm a little bit nervous. Most mothers don't have to be on display when they are learning to breastfeed. Noah never would because he spent so much time on a bottle in the NICU.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Kidney test tomorrow
Everything with Wyatt went pretty well today. His billirubin levels continue to go down and he is beginning to look less orange. He was able to feed from the bottle well with me today. He tires out pretty quickly but he is able to coordinate his suck and swallow efficiently. He does continue to have these "brady" episodes where he forgets to breathe, especially when he is sleeping hard or very comfortable.
Wyatt will see a radiologist tomorrow to do a study of his kidneys. Since he has this horseshoe shaped kidney, there is a risk that his urine could go back up into his kidneys and cause damage. So the radiologist will insert dye into his system and then watch his kidneys and bladder work. Hopefully he will perform well on the test, but we won't have the results until they are read by the urologist. I'm happy that we will have this connection with a specialist at Duke. However my mind just races that there could be something else wrong. I need to have more faith that everything will be ok. Unfortunatly I have read too much on the internet, which is always a big mistake.
He will be moved to the "Special Care Nursery" tonight. I know that means he is doing extremely well. I need to focus on that and not on the possibility of things that most likely will not even happen (my internet research). I hope that his billirubin levels will go down tomorrow and they will send us back to Greenville. I miss Noah so very much. I just want my boys to be at home and to be completely healthy.
Keep sending me those positive words of encouragement. I love a positive text message and so does Jeremy. Our cell phones are 571-5607 (jeremy) and 571-5608 (ashley).
Wyatt will see a radiologist tomorrow to do a study of his kidneys. Since he has this horseshoe shaped kidney, there is a risk that his urine could go back up into his kidneys and cause damage. So the radiologist will insert dye into his system and then watch his kidneys and bladder work. Hopefully he will perform well on the test, but we won't have the results until they are read by the urologist. I'm happy that we will have this connection with a specialist at Duke. However my mind just races that there could be something else wrong. I need to have more faith that everything will be ok. Unfortunatly I have read too much on the internet, which is always a big mistake.
He will be moved to the "Special Care Nursery" tonight. I know that means he is doing extremely well. I need to focus on that and not on the possibility of things that most likely will not even happen (my internet research). I hope that his billirubin levels will go down tomorrow and they will send us back to Greenville. I miss Noah so very much. I just want my boys to be at home and to be completely healthy.
Keep sending me those positive words of encouragement. I love a positive text message and so does Jeremy. Our cell phones are 571-5607 (jeremy) and 571-5608 (ashley).
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