Sunday, March 15, 2009

At The Hospital Part 3

Wowie Kazowie Batman! Baby J just weighed in at 14 lb!. He hasn't registered that high on a scale in quite awhile...months actually. I was so shocked. I had them re-weigh him in. I think he was supposed to be weighed much earlier this morning because the nurse was surprised when I asked if they were going to weigh him today...she thought it had been done about 7am. Anyway, yesterday morning he was 13 lbs 9 oz...so that is a 7 oz gain IN A DAY! It is most likely because he can't throw up or not absorb the IV fluids. Further proof he is not absorbing enough.

Snug was happy to visit us at the hospital. He got to ride in a wagon, bring a balloon and eat some Cheerios.

Last night was a rough night. Baby J just could not go to sleep. By midnight he was doing a whiny moaning sound and just could not settle himself. I gave him 2 more oz of PediaSure thinking maybe he was hungry. After a few minutes he threw that, along with what the nurse assessed to be everything he had had in the past few hours, up. That was very discouraging. About 1 am I asked that they please contact the doctor and ask again about the IV or NG tube. I was done waiting for "something to stay down". He was very lethargic and doing this awful moaning sound, hadn't had a decent urine output all day and I don't care how much spit he had, he was not well. Period. They started IV fluids shortly afterwards.

Baby Jail


About 3am Baby J woke up and wanted to nurse...rooting and grunting galore. He nursed like he hasn't in a few days and was drifting to sleep when he was done. He slept until 8am. In fact he slept through vitals checks, that I barely remember either, I was pretty tired. We actually slept through Dr. M coming to tell us about tomorrow's procedures, but the intern did a good job explaining it later. They were worried that if they started an IV he wouldn't want to eat, but it has done the opposite...he is more alert and happy and wanting to eat. They started him on a medication this morning to settle his tummy so hopefully he won't upchuck anything else today.


A very sick Baby J last night right after they started his IV.

Tomorrow he is having two procedures done.

1. An esophagogastroduodenoscopy
For this he can have nothing after midnight by mouth until after he has recovered from the anesthesia. He will be put completely under for this procedure because Dr. S. says it is considered invasive. They will look at his esophagus, stomach, and the beginning of the small intestine. If they find any suspicious areas they will do biopsies.
2. An upper GI. He will drink some barium (and keep it down) and then have a series of X-rays of his abdomen. This will show how food moves through him.
We don't know yet what time these will be done or when we will have results. If he continues to gain without an IV we will get to go home!

Ok, on a non-medical note here is what we are doing besides watching lots of cable on closed captions and trying to let him rest.
I got to take a room temperature shower this morning, apparently they will never have a child scalded here in a shower. Hypothermia may be a problem however. I used the baby shampoo provided to Baby J, but his hair really isn't that dirty at this point, and he can't have an immersed bath because of his IV anyway. He was happy to share. I smell baby fresh. I have also been using his baby lotion. My hands are very dry after using hospital soap and washing my hands at least two times an hour. The towels are about as soft as the tissues. I had #1 bring some tissues from home because poor Baby J's nose is getting rawish.
After I got out of the shower I tried to take Baby J out of the baby swing. One of his favorite pastimes is sitting in the swing in our open door watching other kids and families. The nurses routinely do this with babies who don't have anyone here with them so they don't feel lonely. (Isn't that SO SO SAD???) When I went to get him out, the safety clasp wouldn't open. After three of us had worked on it for awhile one nurse got it undone...I think his swing times are over.
This organization gave Baby J a blanket as we were being admitted Friday. We were scared, overwhelmed, and he was agitated. As soon as they wrapped his new fleece blanket around him he relaxed. Thank you Project Linus. Click on their icon to learn more.
I have to admit I kinda like giving him a bottle. He will take one from me now, even directly after nursing (which is going much better today, supply still low). He gets so excited to have it, being that it is filled with vanilla cake batter PediaSure that he is learning to L-O-V-E. I am kinda afraid he will never ever take anything else to drink after being on it for a few days. That was my admission for the day. I thought I was going to have a problem giving him bottles (when he tried formula at home it is almost always from someone else) but it is actually a nice cuddly time. I just love being with him and hearing his happy little hungry sounds. I love knowing he is getting enough calories. I have been assured before that my milk supply is adequate (pre-hospital stay) but it is reassuring to see all that creamy liquid going down into his mouth.
Thanks for the praying, tomorrow will be a long day I'm afraid.

He, Baby J is a boy. Everyone who comes in says "she". Clearly there are too many baby girls in Dayton being named J******.

12 comments:

Christine said...

Hurray for fourteen pounds!!! That is such great news. Snug is a great big brother. Love the pic of the two of them. Praying that the procedures go well tomorrow and that you get to go home soon. When my niece wasn't gaining weight, she got Pediasure too. I wonder if they could mix it with formula? So it tastes the same but has more nutrients. Hmm. Happy to hear he nursed well. Give it a couple days and keep drinking lots and lots of water, and your supply should come back.

CrysRich said...

Yay for the weight gain! I love you, Jenney, I can't imagine all of the emotions you are going through. You are still and will continue to be in my thoughts and prayers. Give Baby J and Snug hugs and kisses for me!

All Things Family said...

Great news on the 14 lbs! And I know that kids real name..and can't believe anyone is calling baby J a she! If it makes you feel better, before Zaden got his big boy hair cut around christmas time, he got called she on the airplane by several people...and HE was wearing a blue and brown shirt with a football on it! Hang in there, am sure you're exhausted, but you sound like you're doing well considering!

Anonymous said...

Hey just letting you know we're continuing to pray for Baby J love you all!

Unknown said...

I am so glad to hear that Baby J is doing better today! GOOD FOR YOU for standing up to the staff and demanding what was best for your baby (IV). 14 lbs! Praise God! We are still praying for you - praying you through the tests tomorrow (I'm sure it will be a VERY long day) and that they are able to figure out exactly what's going on with Baby J. Side note, I've had an Upper GI done before and had to drink that barium stuff... how do they plan on getting it into Baby J? It's not exactly appetizing. Curious.
Another side note, my mom would tell you that if you want to work on your milk supply, remember that cows eat hay - she'd suggest shredded wheat. I tried it when I had a really low supply around 2 months with Grayson (that little bugger was draining me in the afternoon and nights were getting extremely rough) and it totally worked. I still eat it most mornings for breakfast. Just a thought. Hugs and kisses to the whole family. Hang in there, you are doing great!
Melissa

Anonymous said...

Hi Jenney, I went to school with #1 and just wanted to say hi and that my thoughts and prayers are with you guys!

heather@it'stwinsanity said...

Good for you for making sure he got the IV! He needs to be properly hydrated and obviously it helped him to feel much better. Keep pumping when you can so you can maintain some milk supply. If he ends up being able to nurse again after everything is figured out, your supply will adjust. Don't worry too much about the amount you are getting when you pump either because I am sure that the stress is a major factor! Just watch to make sure you don't get engorged or get a plugged duct. I hope that the testing brings answers!

Deb said...

Praise the Lord! 14 pounds (and good nursing) must be a huge sigh of relief. We'll keep praying that it sticks and he keeps gaining.
I had a nurse in the NICU that even after caring for Danica all day kept saying 'he' (like 10 times) and I was like "Um my baby is a girl, are you sure you are telling me about the right baby?" And the first time we took her to church- with a pink blanket (it covered her green dress) and a pink diaper bag, people that KNEW I was having a girl still said 'he', Geez.
I'm so glad things are finally looking up for you guys. We will keep praying of course... for another good night and that the EGD and GI go so well and give you some answers!

Anonymous said...

SO GLAD to hear the good news. Praying for you all... for perseverance and wise doctors and definitive answers!!

Keep packin' the pounds, baby Apple Jack!

I love you!

Lindsey said...

You don't know me, but I was one of Melissa's college roommates at one time. You cute little guy has been in my prayers ever since she posted the request on her blog. I'll be praying tomorrow too! I hope the doctors are able to discover what is wrong and your baby has a quick recovery!

Anonymous said...

I was just given this by Melissa to read. You may or may not know that Melissa's brother was 11.5 weeks early. Yes you read that right 11.5 weeks early. Although not exactly in your spot it is very much the same. Now he is 26.5 years old and I want to share with you what the Lord taught me in all of this. THE LORD IS IN CHARGE. He hold baby J in his hands just like he did Zachary's. I did not find out for 19 years why we went through this but the Lord in his ultimate wisdom know what he was doing. His being born under the circumstances was a way that the Lord answered a prayer of a 14 year old girl....me. We never knew what was going to be the outcome of our baby. All we knew was that we were to take him home love him and let him do all he could do. We also knew our entire church was praying for him. I know how hard this is for you. You would take all of it on yourself to spare your baby all of it. No matter what the outcome our Lord is in control. He is faithful to us and loves us more than we can imagine. Please know our family is praying for you daily. We will make it our number one priority. We will pray the Lord keeps you in his loving protective arms. We will pray that Baby J is kept peaceful, will gain weight, and you can take him home very soon. We will pay that the Lord grants the surgeons, nurses, and all those taking are of Baby J will be granted wisdom in bringing a quick accurate diagnoses. If we can do anything for you, please please let us know. xo xo xo The Kereji Family

Anonymous said...

Hey -- i am so out of the loop. i just noticed your post on facebook & ventured over here. i didn't realize what's been going on -- too busy with my own 4, i guess:) know that you're in my prayers today.

oh -- & ashley is a part of project linus... she helps make blankets on wednesdays after school. i'll tell her about j getting a blanket. how cool:).

love ya,
april:)