Saturday, May 30, 2009

MAY 30TH

A Quick Update...

RYAN IS HOME!!!!

He came home Thursday afternoon and is doing very well. Joey and Lisa have adjusted to his oxygen and monitoring equipment and he's had no problems.

Feedings are going well. Ryan weighed 5 lbs. 13 oz. yesterday, which was a weight gain from the day before at the hospital!

Ryan is a great sleeper and Joey and Lisa are able to get some sleep in between those 4 hour feedings.

Alec is thrilled to have his little brother at home finally!

We will post pictures and more details soon.....Right now we're going to get some sleep.

Thank you for your prayers. Keep them coming.

Lisa, Joey, Alec and Ryan

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

MAY 27TH

Ryan is still coming home tomorrow. Just wanted everyone to know.

I'm going to spend night with him tonight and he will be at home with his family hopefully by noon Thursday.

Thank you for all your prayers. We will keep you updated.

Lisa

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

RYAN IS COMING HOME THURSDAY!!!

RYAN IS COMING HOME THURSDAY!!!!

OK we can now say it because it's official from the doctors! Ryan will come home Thursday. It's almost impossible to believe and incredibly exciting.

Wednesday afternoon Lisa will get training on his oxygen, monitor, medicines, etc. She will then room in with him on Wednesday night. On Thursday, hopefully in the morning, he will be able to go home! Home health will follow us home and set up all Ryan's equipment, teach Joey how to use the equipment and then Ryan is all ours!!!

We will continue to keep everyone updated after he gets home!!!

Thank you for all your prayers. They have helped Ryan thrive and grow and helped our family through the past 11 weeks.

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers. We can still use all the help we can get as we start a new chapter of our lives with Ryan at home.

Thank you,
Lisa, Joey, Alec and Ryan

Monday, May 25, 2009

MONDAY MAY 25TH

Hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend!

Here's the scoop on Ryan:

He weighed 5 lbs. 7.5 oz. last night and he is 17 1/4" long

Also, he is not going home yet....

I "roomed in" with Ryan Friday and Saturday night. It was a completely wonderful experience. I actually got to totally take care of him (except giving meds) for almost 2 days. It really made me feel like his mommy. I can't even describe that feeling in words. I'm so happy that gave me the opportunity.

But, WOW, did I forget what it's like to be with a newborn! As great an experience as it was, it was also a VERY tiring one.

Ryan sleeps during the day and is awake at night, so I didn't get much sleep (maybe 3 broken up hours) each night. I didn't get to sleep in the day much because it was so loud and the nurses came in a lot more in the day, plus I still had to feed him every 3 hours. However, I changed him, bathed him, and most of all held and loved him. It was a great bonding experience.

What was decided is that Ryan wasn't ready to go home yet because of his feeding issues. He is not gaining weight and that's a problem. This is because he exerts so much energy during his feedings that he burns up all the calories he takes in.

We discussed it with the doctors and here's what has changed. Ryan was put back on the low flow cannula - oxygen - at the lowest setting all the time, not just for feedings. Hopefully this will give him more energy when it's time to feed. Also, they have changed his feeding schedule from every 3 hours to every 4 hours and increased the amount he takes each feeding. He has been doing this since Sunday morning.

The good news is that as of 6 p.m. this evening, it seems to be working. Joey did Ryan's feeding at 10 p.m. last night and it went well. Lisa did 2 feedings during the day today, both of which were his best so far. The nurses also have gotten better feeds out of him than in the past. It seems things may be looking up.

I'm not going to post when I think he's coming home because every time I do, it ends up not happening.

However, I will say that as soon as his feeds are going well and he is gaining weight he will come home. He will come home on oxygen, monitors and medication, but we are prepared for anything.

Ryan has made incredible progress and continues to defy our expectations and surprise us at every turn. He is such an added blessing to our family. I know your prayers have helped him through his journey so far. Please continue to pray for him.

Thanks to all of you,
Lisa