Tuesday, October 28, 2008 - Our Pumpkin

The internet was down over the weekend at Camp Carol, so I'm updating this blog from Mexico. I tried to talk Lisa into letting me put Aiden in my suitcase, but she won't let him out of her sights.





Aiden has had two eye appointments since the last post. Both visits showed no changes in blood vessel growth. This is good and bad. It is good that the vessels haven't started growing towards the center of the eye, but it is bad that the vessels aren't growing. The doctor will continue to monitor it every week.



Aiden has a doctor's appointment tomorrow to get a renal exam to check the function of his kidneys. Next Wednesday he has a doctor's appointment with the graduate clinic to see how he is progressing. We are hoping Aiden can drop some of these medications. It is a heavy burden on Lisa to bottle feed Aiden and then breast pump separately since all these meds are put into bottles throughout the day.


I will be returning from Mexico to take our little pumpkin Trick-or-Treating! We dressed him up early for Halloween. I know Aiden is excited about getting all that candy. He really likes Reese's Pieces and Almond Joys. No apples or healthy treats - Aiden doesn't like that stuff.



I hope everyone is doing well.


Happy Halloween!!!

Keep Aiden in your prayers.


http://lisaandtwins.blogspot.com

Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 2nd Week Home

Aiden is doing great. We survived another week with him home. Aiden only had one Doctor's appointment this past week. This was only for his immunization shot. He weighed in at 7lbs -14oz.

We are still learning the best method and times for his feeds. It has been fairly easy to read his cues, but sometimes nothing makes sense. He is inconsistent in his sleep patterns, but he did sleep for 6 straight hours last night. Hallelujah!

We are so happy to have him home, and so far everything has been going great. Lisa loves singing to him, and I love to pester him.

He has another eye appointment tomorrow. Keep Aiden in your prayers!


Today is our 6th year wedding anniversary.



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Monday, October 13, 2008 - First Week Home

I know, I know.... I haven't been updating the blog enough. Being new to fatherhood, it is hard to find time for anything extracurricular. Aiden has kept Lisa and I very busy this past week. (At least that is my excuse anyways)

Aiden is doing great. We absolutely love having him home. It is great not to have to visit the hospital every day. Aiden pretty much just eats, sleeps, cries, and pees all day long. We are feeling more comfortable with his situation. He rarely has any heart rate or respiratory rate drops now. Part of it is because we have learned to tape the leads down to his body, taking away all the false alarms. Part of it is better management of his bottle feeds.

I've already had to apologize to poor little Aiden. His mother has been dressing him up like a little doll. It is a little embarrassing for him, and I'm sure he will never live this down...

As you can tell by the expression on his face, he is wondering what in the world his mother is doing to him. Don't worry, I rescued him.

Aiden had 4 doctors appointments since the previous post. Two to the eye doctor, Dr. Howell, and two to his Pediatrician, Dr. Hambrick. His eye appointments have gone well so far. Another appointment is setup for next week. The doctor said the blood vessel growth in his eyes have improved, but it is still "worrisome". Aiden has retinopathy of prematurity. Basically, the blood vessels must grow on the outer edge of the eye and not towards the center. Once they see growth towards the center, they can perform laser surgery to try to stop retinal detachment.

Keep Aiden in your prayers.

Next post will be Sunday.
http://lisaandtwins.blogspot.com

Sunday, October 5, 2008 - Great Weekend

Although UK lost the game, it was the best football game ever...


Everything is going really well so far. We are starting to get everything figured out with his medications, monitor, and oxygen support. We learned the hard way last night, but tonight we are strategizing his feed times and amounts to try to maximize our sleep.

We took a road trip to our home in Paris today. Aiden did great in the car seat. He slept the whole way there and back. Tomorrow we have a doctor's appointment with his Pediatrician in Georgetown.










Aiden is 16 weeks old today. Keep the little guy in your prayers. We love having him home.

http://lisaandtwins.blogspot.com

October 3, 2008 - Finally Home!

After 135 consecutive days of hospital visits, our family is finally home. Aiden spent 110 days in the NICU, and he was released today from UK Children's Hospital at 2:30pm. We left with oxygen, a monitor, 8 different drugs, lots of paperwork, and memories for a lifetime.




Aiden's arrival at Camp Carol:



We are so thrilled to have him home. Our nervousness has settled down, and we are ready to start being parents. We always knew we had a son, but now it feels real. So far all the practice in the NICU has paid off. We've only had to call for help once. Luckily, a handful of nurses and doctors have passed on their cell phone numbers in case we have questions. It also helps that his home monitor will wake the neighbors when it goes off.

We will continue to keep you posted. Unfortunately Aiden's struggles are far from over. The status of his eyes have gotten worse, and now the doctors are checking him every week. They told us not to be alarmed, but they just need to keep a close watch on it. He already has multiple doctor visits scheduled throughout the next few weeks.


Tracey Robinson and Alice Carpenter - two of Aiden's primary nurses


The doctors and nurses of the NICU have been amazing. We couldn't have gotten through such a difficult time without their help. It takes a special person to do what they do. They deal with babies like Aiden and Caleb every day.

Thank God for the doctors and nurses of UK Children's Hospital!

Keep Aiden in your prayers.



http://lisaandtwins.blogspot.com