Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Feb. 10 - Everything is in "Moderation"




Well - we got a bit of good news tonight! According to the latest heart ECHO, Colton's PDA went from "Large" to "Moderate". What this means is that the PDA is reducing in size and appears to finally be closing! Now of course we need the whole thing to close to get past this milestone. But, the fact that it's starting to close is a very positive sign. We are so grateful, thankful, elated and pumped that we got this great news tonight! Go Colton Go!

Wendy, Nick and I visited Colton again today. I did not get a chance to go by the hospital on Monday as I spent my first full day back at work. I was immediately amazed at the difference one day has made. He is truly starting to look more and more like a full term baby - albeit still on the small side. His color is looking great, he is cooing and making little baby noises when you hold him, and he cleans up real well. He's a good looking kid if I do say so myself! In fact, rumor has it that all the girl babies are on a waiting list to be moved closer to his area. :)

He was completely off his light therapy today which means his bilirubins dropped to an acceptable level. He also had the tube removed from his mouth that helped drained any excess air and fluid in his belly. Remember, he is still being fed by IV as they wait for the PDA to completely close. So today we really got our first glimpse of him without any tube, tape, or anything else stuck to his head or face.

I finally got to hold my boy today for the first time. It was great to spend a little quality time with him and tell him about all the fun things we have planned. I told him I have too much estrogen in my house (wife, daughter, 3 female dogs and 2 female guinea pigs) and needed a little more testerone to help balance things out. Don't get me wrong, I love all my girls but it will be nice having another guy around the house. I told him about all of the football games we'll be watching - hopefully he won't pick up my bad habit of yelling at the TV.

Tomorrow is sibling visit day so we'll have Sydney up again tomorrow afternoon. Hopefully, she will get to hold him for the first time.

While we are elated at the great news today, we all realize that this is a process. Wendy and I are both ready to get him home but we are probably looking at mid-March before that happens. But, we will take each success and celebrate it as we did tonight. Colton is a strong kid, is much loved, and has people praying for him all over this great land. I'll never tire of thanking everyone for their love and support. We'll continue to keep Colton in the capable hands of the good doctors and nurses at Texas Woman's NICU and under the watchful eye of God who is definitely hearing your prayers and is in complete control. With love and respect - Bret, Wendy, Sydney and Colton.

3 comments:

Lora said...

Tears in my eyes!! I'm so happy that he is doing so well. I can't wait to meet this strong little man. Nate and Ryan are looking forward to it too. Nate keeps asking to see the pics of him you have sent to my phone. He says "I wanna see baby Colt!"

Scooter said...

Cheers to that!

Pam said...

Oh this is fantastic news! The updates keep going uphill!

Love the photos of you ( Brett ) and Nick with Mr. Colton!

Colton's closeup looks fantastic!!! He looks plump and precious!! He also looks really long for 30 weeks!!!

Keep those positive updates! You remain in my prayers!!!

Much love to all of you!