DAY 9 - SATURDAY APRIL 19, 2008

ANDREW - Today Andrew is our miracle baby. He is doing much better than expected after his ventilation tube was removed last night. He continues to breath on his own but is still provided extra oxygen. We know that it has been through everyone's prayers and the power of the priesthood that he has been able to make it this far. This morning he did have a small amount of congestion in his lungs, which caused him to breath with a bit of a gurgling sound. But as the day progressed he began to breath better and better and sounding more clear. When he cried we were able to hear a short barking sound when he inhaled. This afternoon when I (Katie) went to visit him I heard him cry for the first time since he was first born.  I became so  overwhelmed with gratitude with  the progress he's made since a week ago that it made me cry too.  I never thought I'd be so excited to hear my baby cry!  Due to the Tracheal-Esophageal Fistula the lining of his trachea is very thin, so when he rapidly inhales during crying, coughing, or laughing his trachea collapses or vibrates rapidly making a short barking sound. The Doctor says that this will occur for about 3 years until the cartilage in his trachea begins to harden. In the future, because he is susceptible to choking, we will also need to be very careful that he doesn't eat foods that he can possibly choke on such as small hard candies, hot dogs, chunks of meat etc. As he gets older we will also have to make sure he chews his food thoroughly before swallowing. In the afternoon they removed several small IVs that were inserted into the veins of his remaining umbilical cord. They in turn inserted what is called a pick-line which is a very small tube inserted into a large vein in his leg which follows the vein to near the heart. It will provide a better route to provide medication and fluids. His pee has diminished a bit because they have taken him off the medication that removes the excess fluid from his body. On Monday he is scheduled to have a Barium test (or "swallow test") on his esophagus which will determine if their are any leaks at the site of the surgery. If there are no leaks he may be able to get the chest tube out of him. If that happens we may be able to start holding him and feeding him. Over the past few days he has lost a lot of the swelling throughout his body. His color is also very good and his skin is not as puffy. He looks like a new baby!  An even more beautiful baby!  (We're not biased or anything...)  His kidneys are still doing well and there isn't any plans in the near future to fix anything just yet. Our Pediatric Urologist is the greatest, she keeps close tabs on him on a daily basis and she always keeps us informed on how his kidneys are doing. (PICTURE: Andrew feeling and breathing much better)

AARON - Aaron is our second miracle baby (so as to not to exclude him). He continues to drink down his bottle during each feeding every three hours. Each day the nurses increase his feeding amount 10 cc and today he is up to 60 cc. Just a few days ago we were lucky to get just 20 cc into him before he fell a sleep on us. We would have to feed the rest of it through his feeding tube. At a minimum he has to drink at least 38 cc, so he has become a little piggy. But that is good because he needs to gain as much weight as he can. But this is just one more step that he has to complete before we can take him home, and he is doing a wonderful job. He also passed sitting in his carrier all strapped in for an hour today. He still has to get a hearing evaluation before he can go home too. We hope that can be done tomorrow and then he will be able to go home with us. We can't believe that he actually might be home with us tomorrow. It's so exciting. We will definitely provide updates on his progress at home too. (PICTURE: Please take me home will ya)