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Home? ~*UPDATE*~

Update: Yes!

Archie and I are going home today! The pediatrician said Archie’s recovery has exceeded all his expectations. This morning’s checkup shows a thriving baby boy with a clean bill of health. He is like an entirely new baby—even from last night, when I thought he looked good.

Praise the Lord, O my soul

(more spiritual thoughts to come…reflecting back over this week I have some amazing things to share beginning with the wee hours of Monday morning, before I had any inkling Archie would be born that very day…)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It appears the only time I have to write is at 4:00 am.

I can’t believe it’s been 24 hours since my last update. Time is strange in the land of the rising blood pressures. I had no idea this experience would feature so many highs and lows, and all within minutes of each other.

There were several discouraging moments yesterday, like when Archie wouldn’t wake to eat for hours. He was doing spectacularly with everything else—breathing room air now, holding his temperature steady, bilirubin and sugars normal, x-ray improvement. They said I could try to nurse him, but he wanted nothing to do with it. Nothing. I returned to my room for lunch and cried.

Little did I know, a few hours later, he’d nurse for almost an hour solid while wide awake! The rest of his feedings yesterday went beyond my hopes. Archie nursed like a champ. Not quite like he invented it, but more like he was a big investor in the scheme and was on hand for the ribbon cutting ceremony. It was that good.

Then the word “home” was mentioned…

I have to leave today. I can’t imagine leaving without him.

Today’s x-ray has to show improvement, again. What are they looking for?

They want to make sure the air in his chest cavity is gone. What happened anyway, Gretchen?

When he was born, a small hole tore in one of his lungs. The sheer force of his first breath caused a leak of air into his chest cavity which slowly built up so much pressure each time he inhaled that his chest organs were distorted, displaced, and on the right side, collapsed. Usually, it is apparent very soon after birth, but with Archie they are speculating that his hole was very small and tore a little more on Tuesday afternoon (hence the sudden appearance of serious trouble).

It’s called pneumothorax. He was (this close) to needing a chest tube.

This brings me back to thoughts of home. He isn’t far from moving in to our happy yellow house. Will it be today?

January 9th, 2009 | Category: Life

47 comments to Home? ~*UPDATE*~

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