February 28, 2009

Vann is 11 weeks old today, 77 whole days. There isn't much to update except for the fact he is still off the oxygen and doing great. It is such a sigh of relief to see our little guy thriving. He gets cuter and cuter each day and we are so excited to bring him home....soon! Enjoy the pictures!

February 27, 2009

More good news today! Vann is no longer on oxygen...the little guy is breathing on his own. It is amazing to think this time last week he was getting brain surgery. He has really taken some big steps in the last few days and we couldn't be prouder!

February 26, 2009

I think Jeff and I can say that this was a GOOD week! Sunday afternoon was the first sign that Vann was starting to come back to normal after his surgery. He was taken off the ventilator and back on the nasal canula. From there, things just got better.

Vann's breathing spells have really gone down, I mean A LOT. Jeff and I can actually hold him and not hear that horrible beeping. Vann started on 1 liter of oxygen and since Monday they have weened him down to 1/4 liter of oxygen. The doc told us that he will probably be off the canula and breathing completing on his own within the next few days. HOLY MOLY!!! This just shows us how much Vann's head was hurting 

him and we really feel like we made a great decision.

So what's next??? Well, the little guy has to learn how to eat. We have been practicing, but he still needs to build up his stamina and learn how to swallow the milk.

Jeff and I are finally seeing a light at the end of the tunnel and it feels great. It is going to be really hard not seeing some of the people we have grown to love at the NICU everyday, but we have made a promise that we will make frequent visits.

Vann is 5lbs. 3oz. as of today. He had another head scan as this is something we will have to monitor with the Neurosurgeon. Eventually, we hope he will be able to get the stent out. I know, which means another surgery, but it will all be worth it in the end. Oh, I almost forgot to tell you how the head scan was today, ventricle size has decreased...yeah!!!! Good news!

Thanks for all the prayers, looks like they are working!

February 20, 2009

Today was one of the hardest days Jeff and I will ever have. The doctors decided this morning that they needed to go ahead with the brain surgery on Vann. He went in at 2pm today...the hardest thing to do is turn your little baby over to a team of doctors to do brain surgery.

Good news...everything went great. The Neurosurgeon showed us pictures of the clot causing the clog and said there was NO way Vann would have been able to pass it, so surgery had to be done at some point. I am so glad today was the day. Now they will just keep a close eye on everything and make sure that no more clogs happen and everything is flowing the way it is supposed to.

The little guy is recovering and resting from his big day. Jeff and I are doing the same. Talk about being emotionally tired. We appreciate all the love and prayers!

February 19, 2009

We are asking all of our family and friends to get some extra prayers in for our little Vann. We spent the whole day at the hospital today waiting to speak with the Neurosurgeon. Vann's ventricles are continuing to increase. They believe that there is a little clog in one of his canals causing the buildup of fluid. It looks like they will do a procedure, which entails them going in with a tiny camera to the canal, sucking out the clog and then placing a stint to keep the canal open. The stint will have holes in it that will allow the fluid to flow in case something else gets clogged. The Neurosurgeon and NICU doctor will determine if and when this will take place. They may wait until Monday to see if it has resolved itself, but Monday is the latest. We know he is in the best hands and trust their opinion. 

February 15, 2009

Vann is 4 lbs. 8 oz. today! He is having a great day and seems to be having less spells with his breathing. 

He had his MRI Friday morning...we are still waiting to hear from the Neurosurgeon on what he would like to do regarding his ventricles. They said we should hopefully hear from him tomorrow (Monday).

February 12, 2009

Vann is knocking on the door of 4 lbs. 3 oz. He continues to grow and get strong. It has been a long week and his head scan showed his ventricles size is now increasing, which is not what we want. After speaking with the Pediatric Neurosurgeon he would like Vann to get a quick MRI which will show a lot clearer pictures of what is going on. He will have the MRI tomorrow morning. This is yet another little hiccup we must overcome. So keep your fingers crossed and say a little prayer tonight! We will make sure and keep everyone updated.

Our little guy is really amazing!

February 8, 2009

There hasn't been much to update as Vann has been continuing to do very well. He is up to 3lbs. 13oz. and we can't wait for him to hit 4lbs. He is still having a little bit of issues with his breathing, but that is to be expected. Vann is now 8 weeks and 1 day old...we can't believe it. Enjoy the pictures!

February 2, 2009

Good news...Vann has now been on the nasal canula for over 2 days. In hopes that he won't be going back on the CPAP, they moved his feeding tube from his mouth to he nose, which allows him to learn how to eat from his mommy and a bottle. We are so thrilled at how strong our little guy is and we also love the fact we get to see his face more.