8-13-2009

I went to the hospital to show my aunt the baby, and when I got there, the nurse was trying to call me because she wanted to feed him an hour early. He wasn’t even awake yet. I was just glad we went in early so I was able to feed him.

While I was there, I also spoke with the doctor, who said Sammy is doing much better and they are now working on weaning him off his C-PAP. All of his labs have improved, and his lungs are looking better. They’ve turned him down to a level 3 on his C-PAP. If all goes well, tomorrow (Thursday) they will lower it again, and then on Friday they hope to take him off completely. After that, they’ll monitor him for 24 hours to make sure there’s no relapse. If everything stays stable, he should be able to come home shortly after.

They’ve also put in a call to Children’s Hospital in Oakland to find out why his blood had clotting issues, and they’ve sent all of his labs over. This is just to make sure we know whether he might need any future blood transfusions, although the doctor doesn’t think that will be necessary.

As of right now, I’m hoping for him to come home on Sunday. If he comes home before then, I will feel incredibly blessed. If not, I’m just grateful we are so close and that he will be home in just a few more days. So I’m praying that nothing else changes and that he continues to tolerate each decrease in support.

This is my third baby in the NICU, and I have to say it is so frustrating when nobody knows exactly why your baby is sick. With Marissa and Zack, they knew what was wrong and could give answers and timelines. With Sammy, everyone knows he is sick, but they don’t yet know why.

My aunt and sister have been amazing with the kids. They don’t even seem to miss me. They’ve taken them swimming, on long walks, played in the front yard on bikes, and even shopping for back-to-school clothes. I’m so thankful for them—truly, thank you, thank you.