Halloween - October 31, 2013

Owen had a better day today.

His lungs looked better.  He still had a couple of episodes, but this is going to be normal.  He is having some blood come up through his breathing tube.  This is probably just irritation from the tube.  He was on ventilator settings that simulated CPAP breathing all day.  He did good.  Hopefully he will be extubated on friday or saturday and be on the real CPAP!

His liver is still not functioning great, but it is moving in the right direction now.

His urine and stool output are still good.

The ultrasound from a couple of days ago still hasn't been read yet.

He lost weight again last night.

He mainly rested today and will continue to do so overnight.


Praying for:

Kidneys to function better

Liver to function better

Adrenal glands to function better

Bones to grow stronger

Lungs to function better

Infections to stay away

Extubation to work

Eyes to work correctly

Heart problems to heal

The great pumpkin

First time to swaddle

Bronchospasm - October 30, 2013

Owen wasn't as fussy as he was yesterday, but he was still a little cranky.  He found out today that the pacifier could make it all better, though.

They went up to 44ml per hour every 3 hours on his milk feeds.

His liver is not processing stuff very good.  They had to start 3 phototherapy lights today.

One half of one lung didn't look good today.  They thought about extubating him, but he had a little spell on the ventilator and his white blood cell count went way up (which could mean infection).

Later this afternoon, he had a big spasm when switching ventilator settings. It took a few people and a good while to bring him back.  We left the room.  Finally, he got better.  He was holding his breath and clamping down, which made his heart rate go way down and his oxygen saturation levels to drop (bronchospasm).  No extubation attempts today!  He is recovering from all that went on today.

His urine and stool output is still good.  He lost weight again last night.

He is getting cultured for infections again.

Ultrasound hasn't been read yet.


Praying for:

Kidneys to function better

Liver to function better

Adrenal glands to function better

Bones to grow stronger

Lungs to function better

Infections to stay away

Extubation to work

Eyes to work correctly

Heart problems to heal

No long term side effects from steroids

I can hold it myself!

Test results - October 29, 2013

We got Owen's results from the ECHO and the eye exam

On the ECHO, it showed that his right ventricle was a little bigger than his left.  This happens to babies that are on the ventilator as long as Owen.  This could cause extra capillaries to grow and make the lungs too oxygenated.  Later, they will probably start him on a medicine to help correct this.  He may even get sent home with some.  Hopefully this won't be a big deal and he will outgrow it although he could have to have bypass surgery a few years down the road.

The eye exam showed some minor things that the doctor will keep an eye on.  This is pretty good news considering.

His lungs looked a little better this morning but he was having a hard time keeping his oxygen saturation levels up all day.  He was crying and spitting up sporadically throughout the day.  Even with all this going on, they are still thinking of extubating him in the next couple of days.  Some wanted to do it today.  They are going to keep him on the dexamethasone steroid that they added yesterday, for a few more days to help with extubation.

His liver is having a hard time functioning properly.

On a good note, his bed settings have changed to where he can wear clothes for the time being!  Too, bad he threw up and pooped on them.

Praying for:

Kidneys to function better

Liver to function better

Adrenal glands to function better

Bones to grow stronger

Lungs to function better

Infections to stay away

Extubation to work

Eyes to work correctly

Heart problems to heal

First clothes after bath time 

Changing styles

ECHO and eye exam - October 28, 2103

Owen lost weight for a change last night.  He is now 6lbs. 4oz.

His liver numbers rose a little bit but they took the phototherapy lights off.  They will not help much with this kind of problem.  Breast milk and good urine and stool output will, though.

They increased his milk to 40ml over 1hour with a 2 hour break between feedings.  Owen is still doing good with digestive tract function.  So good that he squirted all over his incubator and they had to get another one.

His lungs looked the same as yesterday (just ok).  They started him on another steroid to help with lung function.  He is still on the previous steroid, also.  They are thinking of trying to extubate him again pretty soon.

They did an ECHO on his heart to make sure everything looks fine before the try to extubate him.  We don't know the results yet.

He got another eye exam today.  We don't know the results of that either.

They sent another Vitamin D test out.


Praying for:

Kidneys to function better

Liver to function better

Adrenal glands to function better

Bones to grow stronger

Lungs to function better

Infections to stay away

Extubation to work

Eyes to work correctly

Heart ECHO to be normal

So why do you want my eyes open?

An eye exam?  Oh no!

Low pH levels - October 27, 2013

Owen's pH levels were low today.  They gave him sodium bi-carb through his iv line.  It helped and everything looked ok after that but he will be given the bi-carb orally for a while longer.  He is currently taking all his medicines orally.

His lungs actually looked better for the first time in a couple of days.

His liver numbers are slightly improving finally!

Owen is tolerating his feeds nicely and is having good urine and stool output.


Praying for:

Kidneys to function better

Liver to function better

Adrenal glands to function better

Bones to grow stronger

Lungs to function better

Infections to stay away

Doesn't like getting his breathing tube taped down

Lots of milk - October 26, 2013

Owen is getting his milk over 1 hour with a 2 hour break in between feedings now.  He is doing fine with this so far.

They are holding off on the long term sedation to see if they can get him moving and trying to breathe on his own.  They also moved his breathing tube up 1/2 inch to get it into correct place.  This seemed to help.  His x rays were still cloudy, but with the new tube placement and the movement of fluids, we hope this gets better.

They are giving him an antacid and another medicine to help him digest faster.

He was still a little bit touchy today, but not like yesterday.

His cultures are still negative for infection.


Praying for:

• Kidneys to function better
• Liver to function better
• Adrenal glands to function better
• Bones to grow stronger
• Lungs to function better
• Infections to stay away

Lots of milk and there is a lot more stored at the hospital!

Picc line removed - October 25, 2013

Owen got rid of his picc line today!  This was where a lot of the meds and the TPN fluid was given intravenously.  He wasn't using it much anymore and the meds that they were using can be given orally.  This is one less spot for infection!

He is still tolerating the milk.

His lungs look a little hazy today, but his blood work looked good.  They went down on some of the ventilator settings today.  He seemed touchy today and was back to being a bit mad.  Eric tried to hold him today and it didn't go so well.  Owen ended up having to go back to the incubator and be bagged.  He recovered and we just let him rest the rest of the day and tonight.

They are checking to make sure he is hydrated enough.

Liver is still having a hard time processing things but hopefully being off the TPN and on the breast milk will help this.

Praying for:

• Kidneys to function better
• Liver to function better
• Adrenal glands to function better
• Bones to grow stronger
• Lungs to function better
• Infections to stay away

After bath time

Getting him moving

Tiny hand - October 24, 2012

Good news.  Owen is not allergic to breast milk!  They put him on full feeds spread out over 3 hours with an hour break after the 2nd hour.  They will gradually reduce the time he is feed from 2 hours down to 30 minutes or so!  This was the next step after the full feed on continuos drip.

His liver is still swollen and not processing things too quickly but we are hoping to see improvement in the next few days.

His lung x rays look a little cloudy today but that could be because he is moving his fluid around.  He lost weight again last night.  

He looks really good today and isn't getting mad as often.

He is starting a trial run of a medicine that will help stimulate him to make red blood cells on his own so that maybe we can avoid a transfusion or two.

He is still on the steroids and gallbladder medicine.

Lots of good stool and urine output.

Praying for:

• Kidneys to function better
• Lungs to function better
• Liver to function better
• Bones to grow stronger
• Adrenal glands to work correctly
• No long term side effects from steroids
• Infections to stay away

Good grip

Glow in the dark

Could possibly have rabies

Full feeds - October 23, 2013

Owen is still recovering from all the action a couple of days ago.  He is nearly back to the ventilator settings he was at pre-extubation.  His lungs still look good.

His jaundice levels are going the wrong way again.  His liver is taking awhile to process things.

They went up on his milk to 9ml/ hour continuous feed during the day and are starting 11ml tonight.  He is totally off of the intravenous nutrients!  This will be very good for his liver and other organs.  There is some possible bad news about his feeding, though.  He may be sort of lactose intolerant for the time being.  They are checking that out and will put him on soy formula if he is.  This would just be a short term thing if he had to do that.  Hopefully towards the end of his stay at the NICU, he would get breast milk again.

Praying for:

• Kidneys to function better
• Lungs to function better
• Liver to function better
• Bones to grow stronger
• Adrenal glands to work correctly
• No long term side effects from steroids
• Infections to stay away

Trying to pull my air tube out

I  can't hear you

I'm mad

Recovery - October 22, 2013

Owen recovered from his extubation attempt nicely.

His lungs still look good.

They are giving him small maintenance doses of the long term sedation and another medicine to continue to help with the liver function.

He is tolerating the breast milk at 6ml per hour.  His stomach may have been a little distended today, but it went way and they plan on going to 8ml per hour continuos feed tonight.

His kidney numbers are improving finally.  He has times when he is peeing good and times when its not too good.  Overall, it is in the range they want to see so far.

He is off of the antibiotics for now.

Praying for:

• Kidneys to function better
• Lungs to function better
• Liver to function better
• Bones to grow stronger
• Adrenal glands to work correctly
• No long term side effects from steroids
• Recover from the long day
• Infections to stay away

Powdering

Failed extubation - October 21, 2013

Owen had a long day today.

They attempted to extubate him, but he didn't do too well.  They had to intubate him and put him back on the ventilator.  This really tired the little guy out.  They should be able to try again next week.  His lung x rays still look good.

After that, he had his first eye appointment.  This was also very stressful on him.  His doesn't open his eyes most of the time and even if he wanted to, he would have a hard time because of the edema.  They forced his eyes open and held them that way to do the tests.  The good news out of this was that his eyes are doing good considering he has been on lots of oxygen.

He is continuing to pee good.  He even lost a little weight overnight.  Some of the kidney numbers are still too high, but it seems to be working a little.  They are going up to 6ml per hour on his breast milk.

His liver is still having a hard time processing things.

They are giving him medicine to help his gallbladder.

They are discontinuing his antibiotics after today.  The cultures all turned out normal.

They got his vitamin D levels back from the lab in California.  He only has half of what he needs.  They are continuing with the vitamin D supplement.


Praying for:

• Kidneys to function better
• Lungs to function better
• Liver to function better
• Bones to grow stronger
• Adrenal glands to work correctly
• No long term side effects from steroids
• Recover from the long day
• Infections to stay away

Before

During

Star Wars audition

Waiting to exhale - October 20, 2013

We gave Owen a bath last night.  That must have been the trigger, because he has been peeing really good ever since.  In fact, after he got a bath and his new bed, he completely soaked it!  Some of his kidney numbers still aren't that great, but it doesn't necessarily mean that they aren't working.  The doctors will have to figure that one out.

His lungs looked good enough to extubate today but the doctor wasn't going to be available all day so they are thinking about doing it Monday or Tuesday.

His liver is still hangin in there.

His digestive system is working good.  He is very regular.  They are increasing his milk feedings to 5ml per hour this evening!


Praying for:

• Decision to extubate or not
• If to extubate, let it go smoothly
• Kidneys to function better
• Lungs to function better
• Liver to function better
• Bones to grow stronger
• Adrenal glands to work correctly
• No long term side effects from steroids

Trying to pull the tube out himself

Spread em' - October 19, 2013

Amy got to hold Owen again today!  He is not peeing too much today, but he has been having regular stools.  They increased his milk intake to 3ml per hour.

He is continuing with his blood transfusion today.

Some of his kidney numbers aren't too good, but the doctor thinks they are working.

The lungs still looked good today.  They are looking good enough that they are thinking about extubating him tomorrow!  It didn't go too good last time.  He hasn't even cried yet.  We are hoping that this time he will leave the ventilator for good!  He will be put on c-pap and with all the tubes out of his mouth and throat, we should eventually hear a soft hoarse cry!

His liver is slowly getting better.

Praying for:

• Decision to extubate or not
• If to extubate, let it go smoothly
• Kidneys to function better
• Lungs to function better
• Liver to function better
• Bones to grow stronger
• Adrenal glands to work correctly
• No long term side effects from steroids

Spread em'

Sitting up - October 18, 2018

Owen continued to have good urine output.  He also got a bath last night.

His lungs look really good.

He is getting another blood transfusion today.


They are removing his catheter today.

Owen is getting 2ml of milk per hour today!

His weight is down to 5lbs. 14oz.

The nurse set him up today and he opened his eyes and turned toward Amy's voice!


Praying for:

          Kidneys to function properly
          Lungs to develop
          Digestive system to function properly
          Bones to get stronger
          Infections to stay away
          Steroids to work with no harsh side effects

Sitting up

Looking at mom

                                             

Lots of pee -10/17/13

Just in case some of y'all have tried to leave comments but couldn't, we figured out how to open comments to all and not just registered users.  Everyone should be able to comment now!

Once again, Owen started peeing again!  He didn't have as much blood in his urine either.  He peed more in one 4 hour period than he usually pees over a whole good night!  He has moved up to newborn diapers because of this.  He was 6 1/2 pounds this morning before he started to pee!

The steroids that help with his adrenal glands are on day 2.  The blood pressure medicine has been taken on and off all day.  Antibiotics are still going and he is at 1ml per hour continuos drip of milk.

The ultrasound of his kidneys, bladder, etc. looked good.

His lungs still need work.

He wasn't very active today so we think something may be a little off.

Praying for:

         Lungs to develop

         Digestive tract to work

         Kidneys to function

         Liver to function

         Adrenal glands to function

         Bones to get stronger

         Infections to stay away

                                                              Cry baby!

Kidneys again - October 16, 2013

Owen hasn't been peeing very good over the last couple of days.  Overnight and into this morning he had total quit peeing.  Kidneys were failing again.  He is up to 6 lbs. They adjusted some things and by 4 this afternoon he had peed a lot.  Too bad he peed some blood.  They had to get another ultrasound to see if all was ok.  It looked fine, probably just from putting the catheter in.  They think the adrenal glands are causing the problems now, since the kidney was working before.  They started a steroid treatment today to help kick the adrenal glands into gear.  His blood, urine, and lung cultures still show negative except for the low levels of naturally occurring bacteria.  It will take a little time to see if the cultures end up growing something.  To be safe, he is on two antibiotics.  The steroids will mask infections if he has any and thats why its important to treat him until we know for sure that there is no infection.

The ultrasound (from yesterday) on his kidneys, bladder, and liver came back today.  It all looked good on the outside.  No water or air around.  They are continuing to feed milk.

His lungs looked better on the x ray this morning but his oxygen levels were going up and down today.  Tomorrow may be a different story.

His liver seems to be working better.

On monday he was 17" long.

Praying for:

• Kidneys to function
• Liver to function
• Adrenal glands to function
• Bladder to function
• Lungs to develop
• Bones to grow stronger
• Infections to stay away

Go to sleep

Tanning bed - October 15, 2013

Last night there was concern over Owen's digestive system.  The milk was stopped until an x ray was given.  Everything looked fine and they started him back with the milk but at half the rate.  Today they did an ultrasound of his kidneys, liver, and digestive tract to see if anything is suspicious.  We haven't received those results yet.

His lungs still look hazier today.  This could be because of the weight he's gained over the last couple of days and the way the extra ounces affect his breathing and ventilator.

They are continually adjusting fluid levels in Owen.  It is a balancing act to keep all his various fluid levels in line.

The liver seems to be making progress.

He is still having some minor temperature fluctuations.  They put him on two antibiotics just to be safe. They will reassess this once the cultures show results.

Praying for:

• Liver to function properly
• Digestive tract to function properly
• Lungs to develop
• Infections to stay away
• Bones to grow stronger

During the tanning bed

After the tanning bed

Liver problems - October 14, 2013

Owen was put on a continuous drip (1ml/hour) of milk today.  The doctor says that breast milk will fix 60%-80% of his problems.  We hope we can keep feeding more and more.

The nutrient fluids he has been getting since birth are starting to hurt his liver.  They are cutting back on these and adding the milk and a saline drip to give the liver a break.  His jaundice levels spiked and he is also under the photo therapy lights.  The long term sedation medicine he is on is also processed through the liver.  A side effect of that medicine is for the bone marrow to not produce many platelets.  He is being given extra platelets to help replenish his supply so the liver can get rid of the jaundice causing agent.  Even though they haven't given the long term sedation in a few days, the levels in his system are still high.  It may take a while for the liver to process all of this out.

The nurse is having a hard time keeping his temperature under control.  It could be the extra heat from lights.  It could also be and infection.  All the usual blood, urine, and secretion panels for infection were drawn today.

His x rays showed his lungs clouding up a little but his chest edema going down.  He may be putting on some good weight.  That said, his head and feet looked more swollen today and he gained weight overnight.

Overall, many people have commented on how much better he looks from late last week.

Praying for:

• Liver to function properly
• Kidneys to keep functioning properly
• Lungs to develop
• Bones to get stronger
• Infections to stay away
• Jaundice to go away

Sleeping baby

Don't pee on me - October 13, 2013

Owen was taken off his blood pressure medicine today.  He was on a very low amount to help with kidney function.

His digestive x rays came back fine.  He was put back on 1ml of milk every 3 hours.  If he tolerates that, he will be on a 1ml/hour drip starting tomorrow.  They are also increasing his overall fluids and giving him extra potassium.

Owen was given some vitamin D today.  His bones are very thin.  He will need lots of calcium and vitamin D over the next few years.

His lung x rays looked good (for him).  The doctor seemed pleased.

He gained a little weight overnight and is starting to swell again.  This could be a number of things, but it is expected in situations like this.

He peed all over Eric today.  Expect more of this!

Praying for:

• Kidneys to continue to function
• Swelling problem to be taken care of
• Lungs to function
• Digestive tract to function
• Bones to get stronger
• Infections to stay away

Birthday photo from the 10th

Stange heart rhythm - October 12, 2013

Things are moving through Owen's digestive system just fine.  They did x rays to see if there might be an intestinal tear.  At first, the nurse thought there might be.  Then, the radiologist read it and said he didn't see one.  They did one more x ray, this time on his side, to get a different look.  We haven't gotten those results yet.  He has been taken off of milk until he is reevaluated tomorrow.

Eric got to hold Owen again today.  After a couple of hours, he started having some strange heart rhythms.  We put him back in his bed.  It only did it for a little bit.  They stopped some of the nutrients they were giving him that could have caused this and he hasn't done it since.  They also gave him more glucose.  The EKG machine wasn't working today, but they will take another look at it later to see if anything is abnormal.

Otherwise, Owen seems to be plugging right along.

Praying for:

• Lungs to develop
• Kidneys to continue functioning
• Heart rhythms to be fixed or explained
• Digestive system to function

Where is Owen?

EKG time

New hat

Old hat

Zach Thomas with Owen - October 11, 2013

Owen has had a big 24 hours!

Zach Thomas came by to check on Owen!  He also have him a signed football.  This has got to be some kind of NCAA violation!

He is peeing so well that he had lost 10oz by this morning!  His kidneys are starting to function.  They are reducing the amount of kidney blood draws, blood draws for the ventilator, and x rays, to one a day instead of two.

His lungs looked a little cloudy today, but that could be from all the excess fluid that is moving around. They weened him of the nitric today.

His heart looked really good from the ECHO that he got.

Last night we got to give him a bath.  His foot with the cords and tape on it really stinks!

The occupational therapist came by and showed us how to do all his mobility stuff.

He had a blowout in his diaper this evening!  Biggest one yet.  They are checking to see if everything is ok in his digestive system.


Praying for:

• Lungs to develop
• Kidneys to continue to function
• Digestive system to work properly
• Bones to get stronger

Zach Thomas and Owen

The family with Zach Thomas

New bed - October 10, 2013

Owen is one month old today!

He is still peeing well.  His kidneys are doing better.  He also got an RSV shot today.  Owen is getting more milk, too!

He got his weekly ECHO today.  Preliminary results are good.

His lung x rays are holding steady.  He is still being weened off the oxygen and nitrous while on the regular ventilator.  Slowly but surely.

The swelling went down enough for Owen to open his eyes a little bit this morning.  Today is the first time he has lost weight!  He lost 30 grams.  Hopefully it will be a good while before he gets back up to 6 pounds!  Maybe it won't be excess fluid either!

The night nurse made him a new bed and rearranged the room.   He looks so much more comfortable and it is a lot easier to move around in!  

He is not being sedated as much, so he is moving around so much more!

Praying for:

• Good official ECHO results
• Kidneys to continue to get better
• Lungs to develop
• Digestive tract to get better
• Able to keep weening on the oxygen and nitrogen
• Bones to get stronger

New bed

Eyes open again

Sucking on his fingers

Pacifier - October 9, 2013

Owen seems to be doing well today.  He is still peeing good.  Last night he had his first poop that wasn't meconium!  This received a fist pump from the serious and quiet doctor!  He is getting a little more milk today.

The occupational therapist came to put a little strap on both his feet today.  They will be worn until it looks like he can hold his feet up better.

His kidneys continue to show signs of improvement.

He also got to try a small pacifier today.  He seemed to like it, but couldn't hold it in because of the tubes in his mouth.

Praying for:

• Kidneys to function properly
• Lungs to develop
• Digestive tract to function properly
• Infections to stay away

First pacifier

Eric holding Owen - October 8, 2013

Amy got to hold Owen for the second time in a row last night!  He had some breathing issues with the move, but they got it all worked out soon.  It was easier to move him over this time because he is still on the regular vent.  It seems like he likes it, and his breathing treatments are better applied through the regular vent.

He is peeing good for the time being.  They feel like his kidneys are trying to move fluid better.  He looks a lot better today!

The ultrasound results were pretty good.  He doesn't have any brain bleeds.  There is some fluid around his liver, but this could just be the fluid from his swelling.  They will keep an eye on it.

Eric got to hold Owen for the first time this morning!  Owen did real good moving from the incubator to Eric.  The more he is moved, the better he will get.

His latest lung x rays looked better.  They are getting to ween him of the oxygen and nitrous a little bit.

The occupational therapist came by to check his mobility.  She moved him around a bit and did some stretching.  She will be back tomorrow to show us how to move and stretch him.  She may put a splint on his foot and leg to keep his heavy swollen foot from dropping down and causing trouble.

Owen got his first taste of milk today!  A very small amount was placed in a tube that drains into his stomach.  It is mixed in with the water they are giving him.

Praying for:

• Kidneys to function properly
• Urine output to remain steady
• Owen to tolerate the feedings
• Lungs to develop
• Owen to respond to the stretching

Eric and Owen

First time holding Owen - October 7, 2103

Owen had a big night last night.  Amy got to hold him for the first time!  Its nice to see tears of joy instead of the alternative.  It was very complicated to do, but the great nurses got it done!  It took Owen a little while to settle down, but he did great once he did!  It was an amazing 3 hours!

He still didn't pee much overnight, but with a few changes, he got back on the right track today. Since he is so swollen, the doctor decided to change his breathing machine up.  He went from his high frequency ventilator to a regular ventilator.  The regular vent is more like real breaths.  This is probably just a temporary thing to help him get more blood flow to his organs.  Since he started peeing after this, it sounds like it may have worked.  He even liked lying on his back today!

His lungs are still pretty cloudy, but several changes have been made to help change this.  His kidney indicator levels are staying mostly the same with some getting slightly better. He also got his regular ultrasound today.



Praying for:

• Good report from the ultrasound
• Kidneys to function properly
• Lungs to develop
• Urine output to continue
• Infections to stay away

Momma and Owen

The whole family (minus PJ)

Blue and orange hat - October 6, 2013

Owen was back to having good urine output over night.  Today has been a little less urine, but the suppository worked!  Too bad he got another one today. They kidney function numbers are slightly improving.

They are continuing with the extra potassium, phosphate, and calcium, but they cut his sodium out.  We thought he might be running a fever, but things are back to normal hopefully.  They had to remove the art line ( a catheter in the artery for taking blood samples and measuring real time blood pressure).  They may put another one in on the other arm if he starts needing to get more blood samples or if his blood pressure isn't stable.

The lungs are still not full of enough air sacs and there is still too much fluid.  Moving him side to side, and getting rid of some edema should slowly help with this.

They are still hoping to try feeding him some breast milk in the next couple of days.  We also learned that Amy may get to hold him for the first time tomorrow night! 

Praying for:

• Kidneys to function properly
• Lungs to develop
• Antibiotics to kill infections
• Continued urine output
• Digestive system development
• Breast milk feeding to be successful

At least his hats fit now!

Hooray for pee!

Another lung infection - October 5, 2013

The doctors thought Owen could handle a reduction in fluid uptake last night, but he didn't have enough urine output for them.  They increased his fluids again.  It seems like he has been peeing more today.

Owen was put back on photo therapy today to prevent jaundice.  This seems to be a weekly occurrence.  His lungs still need more work.  The x rays showed average results but his blood work shows that there is slight improvement.  His bones looked lighter on the x rays so he has been given a fracture warning.  This lets everyone who is handling him know that it will be very easy for his bones to break.  Calcium and potassium were added to his fluids.  He will need a few years of calcium and vitamin D products to help this.

His ventilator breathing tube was replaced this week and they took a sample to see if any bacteria had been transferred.  Sure enough, it came back positive for an infection in his lungs again!  They have already started the antibiotics for this.

Poor Owen had his catheter replaced last night and a glycerin suppository today.  He can't catch a break!  They are trying to cut back on the times that they give him the paralytic.  They hope is that without as much of the paralytic and with a little help with the suppository, he can begin feeding on breast milk soon!

Praying for:

• Lungs to work properly
• Kidneys to function properly 
• Infection to be cleared up 
• Bones to grow stronger
• Digestive track to start moving

October 3

October 4

We love pee! - October 3, 2013

We didn't know that we could be so excited over 21ml of pee!  Owen finally started peeing again last night!  His kidney numbers are looking a little better now, but still need to improve.
He still put on a little weight, but at least we are moving in the right direction.

Owen's lungs still have fluid built up in them.  They are moving him from side to side to help with this. They also adjusted his ventilator to help with the fluid build up.  His ventilator settings were really stable today.

A veteran neonatologist out of El Paso has asked to be a consultant on little Owen's situation.  Our doctors are very welcoming of this, as he not only their friend, but very knowledgeable and well respected.  We are very thankful for this as well!

Owen is still getting blood products, saline with sodium, the diuretics, and he is now getting some extra potassium.  They have put him back on the paralytic to help the ventilator to work better.

Praying for:

• Kidney function to improve
• Lungs to develop
• Good management of fluids and electrolyts
• Urine output to continue

Kidney trouble - October 2, 2013

Owen's lungs are still looking better.  His heart is doing good as well.  He is a bit more swollen but not much.

His kidney stats are not looking too good today.  He is getting extra blood protein, extra blood, extra platelets, and the diuretic.  He still hasn't had much urine output at all.  The kidney function is becoming critical.

Praying for:

• Kidneys to start to function quickly
• More urine output
• Lungs to get better
• Heart to stay strong

Big boy - October 1, 2013

Owen looked like he gained even more weight overnight.  The doctors came up with a new plan for getting rid of his edema.  They are trying to put some proteins into his blood to help get some of the fluid out.  They are also starting another round of the same diuretics.  Along with all these things, they are restricting his fluid.  His kidneys are a little swollen but some of the numbers show that he is very slowly trending toward more normal kidney function.

His PDA is now official closed!  He is getting breathing treatments to help break up any stuff in his lungs.  His latest blood transfusion was complete and he still has his catheter.  Owen's oxygen levels are still a lot better when he is on his stomach. The doctor also upped his sedation medicine levels since they were still going off his birth weight when he is probably pushing 5 lbs. right now!

Praying for:

• Better urine output
• Resolution to his kidney and edema problems
• Lung development
  
  
  

  

  Big Boy!

Closed pda - September 30, 2013

Owen had an ECHO on his PDA today.  The preliminary results are that his PDA is closed!  He really likes being on his belly today.  They weened his oxygen and nitric oxide levels alot when he was turned that way, but by evening they had gone back up a little.

His urine output is still very low even on the diuretic.  They are having trouble getting enough in the catheter even.  It is scary how much weight he has gained.  He is up to 4lbs. 3oz. as of 8PM.  We are waiting on an ultrasound of his kidneys and bladder.  This is not the kind of weight gain we needed.  

Praying for:

• lungs to develop quickly
• Swelling to go down quickly
• Better urine output
• Normal or easily fixable results on kidney and bladder