Feb. 7 Update - Week #2 Begins!

Well, we all made it through the first week. I think Wendy and I are starting to come down off the adrenaline some and starting to breathe a little more now that Colton is making progress. It's been a rough start for all of us but we are grateful for all the love, support, prayers and hope.

We got to make a 2nd trip up to the hospital to see Colton yesterday. Wendy also got her incisions checked out by one of the docs while we were there. I've got her slowed down a little today because in the midst of all this with Colton, Wendy needs to heal from that c-Section. The incision will take some time to heal but she is getting there. I always said if it was up to men to have babies this would be a desolate planet. I have to say I admire Wendy's strength.

So the latest is the PDA has not reduced in size. Likely, this thing is not going to close on its own. So we hope to talk to the neonatologist (Dr. Gee) tonight or tomorrow to see the next course of action. The PDA is evident on the heart ECHO as well as hearing the murmur with a stethoscope. His breathing is not labored but his respirations are higher than desired due to that PDA still being open. We should have more details on next steps tomorrow.

The little man is still under the lights for his bilirubin although that bilirubin count did reduce slightly overnight. He had a couple of good poops last night so his plumbing is working correctly! He has his splint now on his right arm so that fracture can begin to heal. He also had another ultrasound of his abdominal area to detect any bleeds or other issues and I'm happy to report that came back normal. He had an arterial IV line removed as well. They had difficulty with the inserting his PIC line last night and they will likely try again tonight. The PIC line is more of a long term IV and will allow the NICU to remove Colton's umbilical line. Long term, it's good to remove the umbilical line due to increased risks of infection. Once that umbilical line is removed, we will finally be able to hold Colton. We are hopeful the PIC line is successful tonight so we'll all get a chance to hold him tomorrow (including Sydney).

On a personal note, we are appreciative of all the calls, emails, prayers, food, and support during this time. If we haven't returned your call or responded to your email, please know that we are reading everything and appreciate you. It's tough with the schedule we are keeping right now to get to everything. We are both looking forward to the day that we can repay everyone's kindness. It's important for you tall to know that we won't forget what you are doing for us - that you can take to the bank!

The hardest part for Wendy and I both is not being in control of anything. As a parent, there's not much you won't do for your children. I can tell you that Wendy and I either one would trade places with him right now if we could. While we remain optimistic and are pleased with all of his progress, the worry and fears can overtake you if you let them. We put our faith in the good doctors and nurses at Texas Woman's NICU and most importantly our Faith in God that he is in control 100% and will see us all through this.

Colton started out 10 weeks early, had to be resuscitated at birth, was bruised all over, had a broken arm, was intubated to assist with breathing and had a host of other issues. One week later, the guy is breathing completely unassisted and truly has made great progress in most areas in such a short time. I certainly will give credit to Colton, the doctors, the nurses and all of the trained medical staff for the tremendous progress that Colton has made this week. But I'm thoroughly convinced (and good look convincing me otherwise) that prayer does work and it's more than good medicine coming into play right now. Keep the Faith as will we.....Bret, Wendy, Sydney and Colton

Feb. 6 Update - Where did that CPAP Go????

Wendy and I just got back from visiting Colton at the NICU today. To our pleasant surprise, the CPAP was no longer connected! This is great news as he is now 100% breathing on his own!

Also, we got great news today from his head ultrasound. No brain bleeds! This had been a concern due to his traumatic entry into this world and the bruising around his head. So we are very thankful for this great news!

The ECHO of his heart did indicate that the PDA is still there. However, Dr. Hernandez does not know the size of it yet as it needs to be evaluated by a pediatric cardiologist. Due to his stability and the fact that he has been extubated, they will try to the medicinal route to try to close that PDA. A pediatric cardiologist at Texas Children's Hospital will read the results of the ECHO to determine if the PDA is closing. We hope to hear news on this later this evening. Keep your fingers crossed and those prayers going that the PDA is starting to shrink!

We also had a concern with him not moving his right arm. Well, turns out he had good reason for not moving it. His humerus is broken! An x-ray did confirm a fracture of his humerus that was not initially seen on his first x-ray due to the angle of the image. Dr. Epps evaluated Colton and he will be splinting him tonight. We told you he had a rough start!

Colton is also opening his eyes some to see all those scary people hovering over his crib. He also protests profusely when his diaper is changed. Today, I turned on my cell phone video camera when Wendy was changing his diaper. He definitely let us know his displeasure as you can see in the attached video on this post! That cry is music to our ears and we will gladly welcome that cry at home.

More updates soon! Love Bret, Wendy, Sydney and Colton.

Overnight Update....by Wendy!

Hello!

Col-T continued to do very well overnight! His night nurse states he has been on the 6 setting for cPAP since midnight and appears to be tolerating it just fine. His bilirubin did spike up to 14 overnight and so he is back on the lights. We totally expected this as they were pulling the lights to decrease his fluids to trigger that darn PDA to close. He has not had the echo yet today but it is scheduled for later today. We should know by this evening if it has closed. The nurse said he was moving his right arm more for her overnight. She has been with him several nights and been able to observe him. She also said Colton protested some over the night. She believes he might be beginning to feel hungry and asked if it was OK to offer the pacifier. I told her that is fine, I had observed his oral care being done by the nurse yesterday and he seemed to like it and would attempt to suck on the sponge, so it might offer him some comfort. He won't be given a tube feeding until the issue of the PDA is resolved. Once that is resolved, it is my understanding he will get an NG or OG tube and be given the tiniest amount of milk to see if it is tolerated. Bottles will not even be in the picture until 2 criteria are met. The first is that he has to tolerate 8 tube feeds per day and he must be over 32 weeks gestation. He will be 32 weeks gestation on Valentine's day. He will be fed EBM. (expressed breast milk). The nurse told me they have already performed his head ultrasound this morning and results will be available later today. The plan as I understand it for this weekend is to pull his umbilical line vein and place a PIC line. While I am not thrilled with him having a new line, this transition will allow him to be held, which will be wonderful! I can't wait to hold my tiny baby boy.


Hasn't Bret done a fabulous job with the blog? I am so proud of him not only for the blog but for how well he has handled everything from his wife in complete denial that she is in labor to every challenge we have faced in this week. I am lucky to have such a wonderful husband.

I am also very lucky to have such vast support from friends and family. I have been blown away with the e-mails, text and phone messages. I can not tell you how much they all mean to me. I know I haven't been able to respond to each one yet, but I want you to know I am getting them and they are just what I need to keep my spirits up. I am doing well and healing well. I have had a marked decrease in post operative pain over the past 12 hours and can actually get out of bed by myself now!

Thank you all for your love and support! We will update again this evening.

Wendy, Bret, Sydney and baby Colton

Feb. 5 Evening Update

We went to visit Colton about 11:30 today. He continues to make progress with his respiratory system. His CPAP settings will be reduced from "10" to "8" today and he is still only on room oxygen. If he shows progress at the 8 setting, then they move him to 6 and finally to 4. What this all means is that if he continues at this rate, he will be CPAP free within a few days. This is a huge milestone in moving from the Level III NICU to Level II.

We spoke to his neonatologist today (Dr. Hernandez) and she is removing his light therapy (for bilirubins) and reducing his fluids for now. She hopes this will help trigger the body in closing that hole in his heart. He still has the murmur so the hole is still open. However, he will have his heart scanned tomorrow to see if that hole is starting to close. If the hole is closing, that would be some of the best news we have received yet. If it isn't closing, he might be doing well enough on some of his other targets to try the medicinal route to close that hole. At any rate, we should have answers by tomorrow afternoon on if the hole is closing or not. We continue to pray for a good outcome on his PDA.

We got to remove his hat today and see a little more of his face and head. Wendy got to change his diaper today which was really good since she has not been able to hold our baby. She also held him up as his little bedding was changed. Colton decided to relieve himself a little more when his diaper was off! So his urine output is good which is yet another good sign of kidney function.

We also got to hear the little guy cry for the first time today! With that breathing tube in, he was not able to make any crying noises. Wendy kept messing with his right arm (as a pediatric physical therapist is prone to doing) and he showed his complete dissatisfaction of being messed with! We've determined that he has his mom's disposition when he is mad.

We do have a new concern with his right arm. He's not really moving it although he does make a fist and move his fingers on that arm. Wendy's pediatric physical therapy instinct kicked in and she brought it to Dr. Hernandez's attention. Colton will be evaluated by a pediatric orthopedic specialist tomorrow to determine what's going on. Wendy suspects something with the brachial plexus but that diagnosis will need to be made by the orthopedic doctor.

All-in-all, a good day for Colton. Continued stability of vital body functions, respiratory improvement on CPAP, and quality time with mom and dad. More updates tomorrow! Love - Bret, Wendy, Sydney and Colton.

Feb. 5 Morning - Let There Be Poop!

We called the overnight nurse this morning to check on Colton and he had a good night. Sorry for the catchy title but the fact that Colton had a good poop is a great sign. His bilirubin, which had been creeping up, has leveled off and actually went slightly down (went from 9.2 to 9.0 overnight). His breathing continues to do well with the CPAP. He will be evaluated later this morning and we will find out the next course of action for his PDA. Look for another update this evening and keep praying! Love, Bret, Wendy, Sydney and Colton

Feb. 4 Evening Update - A new milestone reached!

Wendy, Sydney, Mimsi (paternal grandmother) and I visited Colton at 4:00 today. Earlier, his neonatologist (Dr. Hernandez) came by to let us know that the breathing tube was coming out! When we visited Colton, he was only wearing a CPAP which is a form of ventilation covering his nose. Removal of the breathing tube (extubation) is a positive step and important milestone in his continued improvement. His nurse had assessed him at 4:00 today and said all of his vitals looked good. So we were very happy to have this bit of good news today!

As far as the PDA, Dr. Hernandez and the other docs in her practice are discussing Colton's case this evening as to next steps: wait and monitor hole in his heart to see if it will start closing or go forward with the surgery. We should know more on that tomorrow.

As I type this, Wendy is getting her staples removed and we are preparing to all go home for the evening. Starting tomorrow, Wendy and I will make the daily trip to see our little guy and get updates on his progress.

I am attaching a few photos that we took today. Colton's color is looking much better although the bruising is still evident.

Thanks again for all the prayers and support (we are humbled) and keep praying for our little guy. Love to all....

Feb. 4 Morning Update

Hi everyone: Thanks again for all the prayers and support. We are appreciative and look forward to the day that we can return the favor. Wendy and I hit a low point yesterday after the new of the hole in his heart and the likely surgical intervention. We did however feel better after visiting with Colton's nurse (Sara) yesterday as she was a wealth of information. It turns out that the procedure to close the hole in his heart is done bedside by a skilled surgeon who had done thousands of these procedures. It does require anesthesia and is certainly not without risk but it's not the full blown open heart surgery with the rib spreader. They evidently go into his left side and do the procedure through an incision. They would go between his ribs and stitch the opening in his heart. As with any surgery, there are some risks involved, including anesthesia and possible damage to his vocal cord due to the proximity of the nerve that controls the vocal cords during this procedure. It's one of those judgment calls you have to make to decide which option has more downside and which option is riskier. It's something we'll continue to monitor for now. It also helped having a visit from my good friend Ron and his wife Marian. Ron is one of those guys that is naturally funny and can always bring a smile to your face. He has a twin brother and they were born at 30 weeks as well. He weighed in at a whopping 2 lbs at birth and this was over 40 years ago. As he likes to point out, he more than made up for weighing 2 lbs. Let's just say he weighs a little bit more these days!

They are also slowly trying to get Colton's breathing tube (intubation) out by reducing his dependence on any assisted breathing. As mentioned before, he is taking most breaths on his own. As they get him to the point of unassisted breathing, they will monitor his vitals (CO2 emmissions, blood oxygen saturation, etc.). They already reduced some breathing assistance and his vitals remained stable. They will likely move it down another notch today. If he maintains vitals properly over the next day or so with no assistance, the tube can then come out. They also will likely start backing down from the sedation levels on morphine. Removal of the tube and discontinuing sedation are both milestones that could help trigger the body to start closing the hole in the heart. When a baby is in utero, that artery is open as vital blood between mother and baby travels through it. When a baby is born, the cord is no longer connected, air enters the lungs and other post-birth actitivies help trigger the body to start closing that hole. The hope is as Colton starts doing more things on his own, this will help trigger his body to start closing that hole. Although it's likely the surgical intervention to fix the hole is needed, this does at least give us some hope of the hole closing on its own.

They also will likely start backing down from the sedation levels on morphine.
Wendy will be released from the hospital today. She is obviously sore from the c-Section but that has not stopped her from visiting her boy in the NICU at night. As in nature, never try to keep a mother away from her babies!

Sydney and Colton's paternal grandmother (Kay "Mimsi") will be visiting during family hours today. Sydney will also attend a class for siblings of babies in the NICU as well as get another chance to visit her baby brother. It should be a good experience for Sydney and will give her the chance to talk to other kids her age that likely have some of the same questions. We'll then take Wendy home and start the process of daily visits to the NICU. It's about a 72 mile round trip daily but a small price to pay to see your child in the care of one of the best NICUs in the country.

More updates as we get them - Bret, Wendy, Sydney and Colton.