Micah's first month at home

Melissa's better qualified than I to talk about Micah's medical matters right now: work has been hectic for me, and I haven't been home as much as I'd like. I'll say just a few things about The Life of Micah in General and post a few pictures, though.

He's eating very well. He pulled his own nose-feeding tube two days after coming home. We'd been trained on how to reinstall it, but he hasn't needed it: he's bottle-fed like a champ. I think Melissa has enjoyed the flexibility and (relative) freedom that have come along with having a bottle-fed baby. She can run errands, go out of town for the day, and even sleep at night a little every now and then and (apologies to Greyhound) "leave the feeding to Dad."

His need for oxygen support seems to be tailing off a bit. We brought him home on a constant flow of 1/16th of a liter of oxygen per hour. As needed, we'd tweak him up to a 1/8th liter flow. Now, we can set him at 1/32nd and leave him there for the most part, jumping up to 1/16th only when he's mad or refluxing (or, as usually is the case, both at once).

His brothers love to hold him (see the pictures below).

I'd best get back to work. Melissa will write more later...

He's home!

Hello all,

Micah and mom (I) came home on Friday June 8. He came home on oxygen and with an NG feeding tube (through his nose). After two and half long weeks of trying to teach him how to nurse, we (I) finally recognized that for him, nursing was not a viable option. I asked the doctors if we could try a bottle before having a G-tube (tube placed surgically directly to his stomach for feedings) placed. He surprised everyone and did excellently. His only hang-up was his energy level--he would sleep through feedings. Because he did so well, the doctors agreed to teach us how to place the NG tube for those feedings he was too tired for and send us home.

The saturday evening after we arrived Micah decided to pull it out. We decided to just replace it the next time he needed it. I guess he enjoyed having a semi-empty nose because he hasn't needed it since. What a trooper!

He still has good days and bad days, and bad nights and worse nights (sleep and night don't belong in the same sentence for him). But we are coping and so glad to be home (it had been four months since I had lived at home).

We are keeping him some-what quarentined and so will continue to post pictures of our little guy. (If I ever learn how) He is about 21 inches long, and just this week reached 9 pounds, triple his birthweight!

We are so thankful for all of your prayers, thoughts, etc. We would love to have a list of names or little note from everyone who has been following our story through this blog, so please post a comment or something!

Thanks!

Micah coming home!

Micah's decided that he's had enough of Club Med (the hospital) and will come home with us on Friday. Today, he'll need to pass a carseat test (three minutes to go, as of now) and an ominously named "Room Air Challenge" (less exciting than it sounds) before he's completely cleared for takeoff, but we don't foresee any problems on either front.

Happy news!

Micah's bathtime pictures

Here are some pictures of Micah's bath (or, more accurately, immediate post-bath), as promised.

Pictures added to post about Spencer's funeral

Melissa's cousin Megan Wilcken kindly provided me with some pictures of Spencer's funeral. I've added them to our original post about the event (under "April"). Thanks again to everyone who came and supported us!

Quick update: May 28th

We were able to give Micah his first non-sponge bath on Sunday. He really enjoyed it. I'll post some pictures tomorrow. He's doing well, all things considered, and is reasonably good at nursing when he decides it's worth the effort. Unfortunately, he's still quite content to receive his food the easy way (i.e. through his nose-tube while he sleeps). Oh, well: baby steps to coming home, right?

Update with pictures

Hi all. Our updates of late have been distressingly picture-free, no? I'll make up for the lack in this one. Melissa's been our primary blogger over the last month or so as I've been buried at work.

Melissa's living in the Ronald McDonald House in Salt Lake City until further notice. The order of the day (week) (several weeks) (month) is to teach Micah to nurse. In all other respects, he's ready to come home. He's still on a little bit of supplementary oxygen (30% on a half-liter flow, which isn't much), but we can certainly take him home with an oxygen bottle. At this point, we'll be happy to take him on any terms.

If Micah can't learn to nurse consistently (or if his stomach continues to give him trouble), he'll need to go to Primary Children's Hospital again so that the docs can install a "G Tube" device. This, essentially, is a little port in the tummy through which we'd feed him directly. Just plug and feed, pretty much. It's a pity that these can't be installed electively in 6-, 4-, and 2-year-olds. Bypass the taste-buds, and they might actually eat something other than peanut butter and honey. :-)

Here are some recent-ish Micah pictures: