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10/01/05
Home Alone...
Well, not at home, really. And not alone, really either. Dawn is here. I'm at work and seriously bored. Apparently there's a pretty important boxing match going on tonight. To be perfectly honest, I think I'd rather be here than watching a couple of dudes punch each other for five or six hours. Especially when it cost $50 to watch it. Just my opinion. At least the internet is working now. Watched John Q again. Wonderful movie. Tonight I'm gonna watch Robots. I've been looking forward to that movie since I first saw the previews. I guess I'll be here till 11....ahh well. c'est la vie.
David had his two month shots today. He recieved the Haemophilus Influenzae Type b (Hib) Vaccine, the Diphtheria Tetanus & Pertussis Vaccines, the Polio Vaccine, the Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine, and the Hepatitis B Vaccine. Poor baby. She said he handled it well, and will be receiving tylenol around the clock to help him feel better. He also got a new respiritory tube yesterday.
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10/02/05
David weighs three pounds ELEVEN ounces now!!!!
And is 15 1/2 inches long!! YAY!
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10/03/05
Baby shower!!!!
The wonderful people at Corporate Systems threw me a baby shower!!! YAY for
them! They are seriously the best. Here are the pictures:
People:
Yvonne's daughter:
Yvonne and Aty:
Carla:
Brent:
Cole (in hiding):
Alice & Manuel:
Me:
Gifts:
Guess who got me this??
The "card" everyone signed (that's right, Cole signed "I'm sorry")
The cake:
The mum that Carla made:
The diaper cake that Carla also made:
The babies:
Manuel:
Donovan:
Future teleclaim EE!!
Decorations:
THANK YOU SO MUCH EVERYONE!!!! YAY!!!
And here are the latest pictures of David:
He's getting a double chin!! Actually, it's swelling, but still...he's getting chubby!!! Starting tommorrow they will be trying the chronic wean, where they go down on his rate by two every morning before they do his gasses...hopefully until he's able to come off. We'll see what happens.
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10/04/05
Ug.
David is sick again. He has RSV. If he can catch RSV in the freaking NICU, how the hell is he gonna manage to stay healthy out here? With the RSV they won't do anything different except for move him into a different room (so the other babies won't catch it). They'll still be doing the breathing treatments & everything just like normal. And, thankfully, they are continuing on his chronic wean, to try & get him off the vent. Hopefully he'll be able to continue handling it. They also think he has a bacterial infection AND they've stopped his feedings again because his tummy got big & hard.
The nurse made me mad last night though. I had gone in before work, and he was fine. I went in after work and 1) he had residual, 2) his tummy was way swollen, and 3)his tummy was rock hard. I tried telling the nurse (who had never had him before, mind you) that there was something wrong. I told her that he NEVER has residual, his tummy is WAY bigger than it had been, just hours before, and WAY harder. I said "you aren't going to feed him again, are you?" she says "yeah, he's fine." grrrrrrrrrrr. Well, needless to say, they stopped his feedings this morning. I freaking told her. I'm not trying to act like I know more than a nurse, but for crying out loud, at least CONSIDER what I have to say. He is, after all, my baby, and he is almost two months old. I think I know when something is different.
Anyways, say an extra prayer for him today, hopefully he will pull through this fine.
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10/06/05
Congratulations, Isabel!!!
I wanted to dedicate this post to my friend, Isabel, whom I will not get the chance to go drinking with for at least nine more months....Congratulations!!!!
But, since the blog is about my baby I gotta put an update in here too...he weighs 3lbs 14 ounces now. He's still on pretty high settings on the vent, but they are still weaning. They started feeding again, he's back down to 5ccs/3hours. It's STILL the same milk as before. Oh, and he's the cutest baby EVER. :)
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10/08/05
If this doesn't make you cry that means there's something wrong with you.
Many years ago, when I worked as a volunteer at a
hospital, I got to know a little girl named Liz who
was suffering from a rare and serious disease. Her only
chance of recovery appeared to be a blood
transfusion from her 5-year old brother, who had
miraculously survived the same disease and had
developed the antibodies needed to combat the
illness. The doctor explained the situation to her
little brother, and asked the little boy if he would
be willing to give his blood to his sister.
I saw him hesitate for only a moment before taking a
deep breath and saying, "Yes I'll do it, if it will
save her." As the transfusion progressed, he lay in
bed next to his sister and smiled, as we all did,
seeing the color returning to her cheeks. Then his
face grew pale and his smile faded.
He looked up at the doctor and asked with a
trembling voice, "Will I start to die right away?"
Being young, the little boy had misunderstood the
doctor; he thought he was going to have to give his
sister all of his blood in order to save her.
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David weighs FOUR pounds, TWO ounces now!!!
I can't stop smiling!!!!!
Tommorrow he gets another bath (and the TOLD me about it this time) so I am going to go up there. I will take lots of pictures ok??
I didn't get to hold him tonight because he was too sensitive. :(
I told the nurses that I was worried about him scratching himself with his nails, because they are getting really long. She told me that I would have to bring baby nail clippers up there & do it myself. Apparently at some point, some nurse, somewhere, cut a baby's fingertip OFF while trying to trim their nails. I just thought it was kind of ironic that they could stick him with needles all day long but they couldn't trim his fingernails???
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10/09/05
Finally got pictures loaded!!
Stupid printer grrr...anyways, here are the latest pictures of David:
These are from 10-6-05, sorry they're so dark..
And these are from bath day (today)...they were going to give him a real bath but opted for a sponge bath because he was so sensitive. He hated it. But he sure was cute!!
All finished!!
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10/12/05
I guess I oughta update this thing...
The nurses said David is already over the RSV. He had a HUGE weight gain yesterday, he was up to 4lbs, 7 ounces. He lost a little bit tonight, he's back down to 4lbs, 6.5 ounces. They expected that though, they figured it was water weight. They're still weaning the vent slowly. Sometimes he doesn't tolerate it well, and they have to stay the same rate for a little while, then try to go down again. I get to hold him frequently now. He's actually got some weight to him, and it doesn't just feel like I am holding empty blankets!!
Pretty eventful day....
So the PLAN for today was to sleep in, maybe do a little laundry, visit David at 4:30, go to work at 6, visit David again at 10:30, then come home.
Well...that is NOT how it went.
First of all, Javier woke me up at EIGHT am...ug...he had just gotten home from visiting David and work, and was waiting for the clinic to open, because his job popped a random drug test on everyone....but then I went back to sleep....
But, the NICU called at about 12:30. All she said was his platelettes (sp?) were really low and they had to stop his feeding. Something about swelling, and the doctor wanted to talk to me. So Javier & I went back up there.
When we go there, both the nurse AND the doctor were at lunch. WTF? So, we waited for them. Then the doctor pulled us into another room and explained to us that because the oxygen he's on, it causes the blood vessels around his lungs to excrete extra fluid, which causes his chest to swell, and makes it harder for him to breath. He was on 100% oxygen. He said that he was confident that they had caught it early though. He didn't make it sound like it was something I needed to panic about, thankfully.
When I went back at 4, he was back down to 75% oxygen. He had a way heavy diaper, which means he is getting rid of the extra fluid. Now, he's back down to 60% oxygen. So, I'm assuming everything is better. He'll probably lose some of the weight that he has gained over the last few days, but that's okay, because it was just water weight anyways.
Javier called into work today since he was up all day long, going back & forth to the hospital. I went to work, and now I am exhausted.
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10/17/05
David is doing good...he had a bath yesterday, and he was soo sweet! He was crying but when I would talk he would stop & look around for me...it took three of us (and two bathtubs, he pooped in the first one lol)to bathe him, the nurse who held his vent & all of his wires, me holding the baby, and my sister washed him. It was neat to have her take part in the whole event. After his bath I got to hold him....and did great. But when she was putting him back into bed, he extubated (meaning the vent tube came out) and so respiritory & everyone was in there, trying to get his tube back in, it was so scary. He handled it well, though, and after they got him intubated, I swear he kept smiling, like he thought it was funny. Little stinker!!!!
Anyways, they're still doing the chronic wean on his vent, he's down to a rate of 31...he weighs 4lbs, 5ounces now....and she did his third set of foot prints & they're HUGE! I'll post pictures when I get a chance.
Yeah yeah yeah so I had an interesting night the other night. Met some interesting people. Found out some interesting things about people I already knew. I would elaborate, but this is a family oriented webpage.
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10/19/05
David is doing pretty good still. He was really sensitive yesterday so they had to go back up on his vent a little bit, but he went back down on it today. I held him tonight & was looking at his eyes...and they are so brown. Oh, and he outgrew his first outfit today! I couldn't believe that the little blue onesie they had on him wouldn't snap because it was too little!!! He's up to four pounds, nine ounces tonight. Here are the latest pictures:
Comparison foot prints:
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10/20/05
Bath Day!!
Today was David's bath day again. He liked it alot more this time. They did something different, though, instead of just sticking him in the tub, they swaddled him in a cloth diaper, and then dipped him in there. I think he felt safer that way.
David has a consult for his hernias soon. My nurses said it is way common.
Anyways, here are the pictures from today:
Throwing a FIT!
This one came out blurry! He looks so funny!!!
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10/22/05
I can't remember if I've posted this already, but David has what they call chronic lung disease, which means he'll always have bad lungs, and it will probably show itself by him getting sick very easily and possibly having asthma. Tonight David is at a rate of 30 breaths/minute, and at 45% oxygen. He got another infection in his lungs, though. Hopefully they'll be able to continue to wean him off the vent once he gets over this infection. He was completely free of all IV's for about three days before they had to put another IV in for his antibiotics. It's tough to watch him on the vent, although I know in my heart he doesn't know any different.
David is up to 39 cc/formula every three hours. That's just over an ounce. Also in his food he gets sodium, pottasium, a sedative they give to all babies that are on a vent, and corn oil (for extra calories).
My little man is getting strong! Although, he's using his strenghth for things that aren't very helpful! He's managed to pull out his ET tube (for his vent) TWICE this week! Little stinker. I wish he wouldn't do that.
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10/25/05
More pictures of my baby!
The VERY last pic take of David while still inside the isolette!
Daddy holding David:
HUGE Day for David!!!
David made the FIVE pound mark, AND went into a big boy bed...all in ONE day!! YAY!!! Here are the latest pictures:
He did have to go back up on the vent a little bit...but maybe he'll come back down tommorrow!!
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10/26/05
My baby, Enrique Evelio Escobar, would have turned three years old today. Anniversaries are the hardest for me, but this one is especially hard for me because now I have David. David should have a big brother at home, anxious for his arrival. Instead he has an angel looking out for him. You'd think that would make it better but it really doesn't.
The most important thing to me is to keep his memory alive. So please think of my little angel today.
In precious memory of
Enrique Evelio Escobar
Born prematurely on October 26, 2002.
Grew wings on October 29, 2002.
Mommy and Daddy love you sweetheart. Please watch out for your baby brother. I promise he will always know about you. I can't wait to see you again. I love you sweet little boy.
Here are the only pictures I have to remember my sweet boy by. By the way, if these bother you or offend you, don't look.
Right after birth:
His little feet & hand prints:
Mommy & Daddy holding baby, for the first, and last, time:
This is a card I carry in my wallet:
Front:
Back:
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10/27/05
Laser Eye Surgery
Tommorrow at 10am I have to go up to the hospital to sign all the release forms & talk to the doctors about David's laser eye surgery. I found out tonight that David's ROP has advances from a stage 2 to a stage 3. He also has PLUS DISEASE. He is scheduled for laser eye surgery at 10:30am. I will update everyone tomorrow on how it went. Please keep him in your prayers for tomorrow.
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10/28/05
Update on David's Eye Surgery!
David handled it very well, and the operation was a success. His little eye sockets are bruised right now from the devices they use to hold his eyes open, but he doesn't apear to be in any pain. Thanks for all of the prayers!
Before I was a mom....
Before I was a Mom I slept as late as I wanted and never worried about how late I got into bed.
I brushed my hair and my teeth everyday.
Before I was a Mom
I cleaned my house each day.
I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.
Before I was a MomI had never been puked on.
Pooped on. Spit on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts.
I slept all night.
Before I was a Mom
I never held down a screaming child so that doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep
Before I was a Mom
I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put it down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.
Before I was a Mom
I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy
Before I was a Mom
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache, the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much before I was a Mom
I guess this is what I'm in for! I can't wait!
Elaboration on David's Eye Problems
thebluestbutterfly, who has a very thought provoking blog, by the way, has asked me to elaborate a little on the newest complications.
David has Retinopathy of Prematurity. Apparently, the eyes are one of the last things to develop while you are "baking" in the womb. Since David 1)was extremely early (13 weeks early), 2)had an exremely low birth weight(1lb, 4oz), and 3)has had to be on the vent for so long, he is very prone to this disease. From what I understand, the blood vessels in his eyes began to grow at an alarming rate. The doctors tell me that without the surgery, there was an almost 100% chance of blindness. With the surgery, that statistic is only between 5-10%. I wish it was a 0%...but I'll take what I can get.
The only information I really have understood about this disease, I found HERE. An exerpt I found particularly helpful:
"Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) causes a disease of the retina. It affects prematurely born babies. It consists of abnormal retinal vessels that grow mostly in an area where normal vessels have not yet grown in the retina...ROP is divided into stages 1 to 5. Stages 1 and 2 do not usually require treatment. Some babies who have develop stage 3 ROP require treatment. The treatment is usually performed either by laser or cryotherapy (freezing)...Timing is one of the important factors that make the treatment successful in ROP, because the disease can advance very quickly and delayed treatment often reduces the chances of success."
The doctors say they feel like they caught this very early. They tell me that they feel like the operation was a success, but they will be checking him again next week to make sure that the operation did what it was supposed to do. The nurses tell me that it is very rare for a baby to have to have more than one eye surgery, but it does happen. Usually the second time around is a success.
I will definitely update as soon as I know anything else about this.
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10/31/05
David extubated himself today!!!
AND was able to stay off the vent for an entire HOUR!!! OMG!!!! I'm soooo excited! That gives me sooo much hope. They are going to start him on another round of steroids and the nurse just told me that in a couple of days he might be off the vent!! (I'd honestly be surprised about that because he's still on a rate of 56 but who knows?)
And today I went to Zookini's and met a friend of mine's sister...she bought me lunch and got me all sorts of things for David...I've taken pictures of it all, and will post them later on.....
Gotta go see David...Happy Halloween, everyone!!!
*****************Update*****************
After talking to the respiritory therapist, David was actually off the vent from 9am-11am...so actually, two hours. There's the good news...the bad news is the other nurses agree with me in that it's a bit much to ask for him to be off the vent in a couple of days.
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