Ours

Well.... today was Barbara's court date for termination of parental rights. Matt and I didn't have to be there but Matt went to be a support for Barbara. He just called me to let me know that Barbara sign off- Caelan is OURS!! YAY! We were confident that Barbara was still resolute in her decision but I must say it is nice 'knowing' for sure. We still have our court date and official 'stuff' in the next 4-6 months but in all practical sense, he is ours. Barbara has been amazing through this entire process- we really look forward to spending time with her over the years.

Caelan had his first doctor appointment on Monday- after he peed all over Matt and the exam table, he did really well! Everything checked out good- he is up to 7 pounds and half an ounce and has grown 1 3/4 inches. And they all loved him!

No new pictures right now- stll computer probs & haven't been downloaded to this computer yet... I am also holding the cutest little guy in the world trying to give a bottle. But I wanted to share the news with everyone!

(good to hear from you Judi!)

Hmmmm....

Hmmm... That doesn't look like a NICU bed!

Yep! CJP has come home! Karen called us Friday afternoon around 2:00 to let us know that he would be coming home on Saturday morning- he had to pass the car seat test that night which means being able to sit in the car seat for an hour without increasing his respiration rate or lowering his oxygen level. So... he passed! It was so awesome to see him the next morning with no wires attached and just being Caelan.

Here is his graduation picture

(he even got a graduation diploma!)

HOME!

I think he likes it!

Sunday, July 27

Caelan got his first bath at home on Sunday; he is in a really big bowl! He enjoys being bathed- it is very relaxing for him. He is actually asleep in this picture!

Grandma & Grandpa came to visit on Sunday as well; their first time to get to hold him.

Bright eyes!

His first 'trip' outside- we walked around the house looking at all the flowers & the garden


Daddy reading "Guess How Much I Love You"

Ooooo... I like this!

We LOOOVE you Caelan James! To the 'moon and back'!

Guess What Caelan Said Yesterday~

Look Mommy! NO MORE TUBES!!

Caelan is in the intermediate area of NICU- one step closer to being out the door as one nurse described it. And no more tubes- still doing great off the oxygen and his feeding tube is OUT! They have switched his feeding from every three hours to just whenever he is hungry- that's good too. He still gets a little ahead of himself sometimes while he is eating- but he is eating great. Taking 2-4 ounces each time. His weight last night was 6 pounds, 8 ounces.

I was up there yesterday for a really long time. It was so much fun- he woke up not long after I got there and I fed him. Then he was just wide awake for over 2 hours! We read a couple of books together and he is coaching his new neighbor on the "ins and outs" of NICU. His neighbor Kayla is also now in the intermediate area- I LOVE Kayla's mom Michelle- such a sweetheart! Caelan's nurse Jenni couldn't get over how alert Caelan was and for how long he was awake- she said he was pretending to be a 4 month old so he can get out of there. Actually, we are all just so amazed at how different he is than he was less than a week ago! Like a completely different child.

His circumcision is today- ew. But that is another sign of being closer to home- they will keep him for at least 24 hours after that. Hopefully.... maybe.... he will come home this weekend.

Circumcision? I don't think I like the sound of that!

Home soon after that though? Aaagh...

LOOK!!!

Caelan James

Taking a BOTTLE!

It has been an amazing few days! I went to the hospital Saturday morning after work and was able to give Caelan a bottle- I was surprised how nervous I was. It's not like just picking up a baby and feeding it- since he is still learning and is still a bit weak from being so sick, I had to be mindful of not tilting it too much, holding him high enough, making sure he didn't choke. I felt much better about it the second time. He initially was very easily fatigued and would only take about an ounce- the would give the rest through his tube. They would also skip some bottle sessions all together and just go straight for tube feeding- especially if he was sleeping or just worn out. It is a lot of work for him... but.. he held his own. The important thing was that he got the concept of it and that he maintained his oxygen level within normal. BY MONDAY- he was letting them know that he was HUNGRY! And he has moved leaps and bounds forward! Yesterday morning he took 5 1/2 ounces in less than 3 hours! He didn't eat as much during the rest of his feedings but WOW~ Mary (his nurse) said she did not expect him to do this well this fast- she is so excited for him. We are thrilled- still keeping in reality though, we understand that he has done really well but we don't want to push him beyond what he can handle.


The other big step.... Tuesday... OFF the oxygen!!!! That is a huge step too. They were concerned for a while that he may have trouble weaning off of it.

So... where does this all leave us? We had our weekly Care Conference with Dr. St Charles, Mary and a couple of others involved in his care. They are really happy with his progress. Dr.St Charles continues to stress just how sick our little guy has been (and really... still is)- he said that they have not seen this severe of a pulmonary insult in a very long time. He wants us to be aware that Caelan's lungs are still healing and that they will be for at least a couple more weeks after he is home- his lungs are having to rebuild tissue, and he CANNOT risk getting sick. So.... he doesn't get to join us to the adoption picnic in August, or any baby showers, or anything public really. Visits/contact is limited. We will get a very clear picture before we leave of who, when, etc as far as that goes. Home? SOON! Less than a week???

Here are some general pictures from the last several days...






Matt's cousin Peter (on right) and his friend Keith were in town- came to visit on Thursday night.
Matt's Aunt Ann and Uncle Ted also came to visit.

And then there was there was the change- these were taken on Friday or Saturday (sorry.. it all runs together right now) Anyway- there was an obvious change in Caelan- he was awake, bright eyes, interactive..... just feeling better.

Gnawing on his oxygen tube- that's supposed to be in your NOSE buddy!
Numbers we love! Heart rate on top- that has always been fine. The two bottom ones though are the ones we have been constantly watching. His oxygen level on the bottom- 96% without the oxygen on him!!! The number in the middle- that beautiful 33 is his respiration rate! Remember- that was at and above 100 less than 2 weeks ago- this has been the goal. Thank you God!

And then there's......

Daddy Time!

(Mommy is chopped liver)

It is such a beautiful thing to see Matt and Caelan together! And Matt's cherishes their Hold Time each night. The funny thing though is the way Caelan responds to Matt- his vitals have always improved when Matt holds him but also- Caelan perks up when he hears Matt's voice. He will move his head toward wherever Matt is and open his eyes. He smiles when Matt is near and when Matt talks to him. Here are some pictures of them- I LOVE it!

(also notice that the oxygen tube is gone- just the feeding tube and that is just in case it is needed)

OH YEAH.... did I mention..

He went to a BIG BOY BED!!

(out of the incubater- into a crib)