Luke has been doing great and the doctors are SLOWLY weaning his vent settings. He is up to 4 ml of breast milk an hour through his feeding tube. Today he was down to 28% oxygen and still on 10 of nitric. The doctors started him on Viagra yesterday. Yes I said Viagra!!! They have found that Viagra helps with pulmonary hypertension and has been used for that on babies for many years. Luke will have another echocardiogram on Monday and if his pulmonary hypertension is stable then they will start weaning his nitric. Praying that the Sildenafil (Viagra) will work and Luke can wean off his nitric. Luke has been a WILD man lately. He has always been feisty but now that he is feeling better he is all over the place. While it is good that he is feeling better, he was so wild the other night that his breathing tube came out! He got a new breathing tube and extra sedation and was great the rest of the night. Ken and I are getting to hold him once a day!! Ken held Luke for the first time on his birthday. Happy 30th Birthday!! I love you Ken!! Luke has his eye exam and it was pretty good. His eyes are still pretty immature and the doctors will recheck him in a week. Hopefully with the increased nutrition everything will get better and healthier--including his eyes. Luke is around 2lbs 8oz!
Luke's mad face:
Jack is doing great. The other day Ken and I were talking to the APN and she started asking us if we had car seats, bassinet, and also mentioned trying to find a pediatrician. She then said "The reason I am asking these questions is because Jack will probably be coming home in about 2 weeks!!!" He is currently on 1/2 liters of oxygen, in a little baby bed (out of the isolette) and getting his tube feedings over 30 minutes. He started taking a bottle yesterday and is doing good. He is still learning how to suck and swallow. He is taking about 15ml of his 35 ml feed. He only gets to take a bottle twice a day. Once he starts taking over 26 ml with every feed they will increase the number of bottles he can take. He had his eye exam and it was very good and normal. He also had his hearing screen and passed 3 out of 4 tests. They will come recheck it when he is off oxygen because it interferes with the one test he didn't pass. He is getting so big too. He is very close to 4lbs!!
Jack's First Bottle and his new bed:
Today I was holding Luke and Nurse Lindsey went and got Jack. I got to hold both my boys together for the first time!! It was a little hard because you can't really move much when holding Luke due to his breathing tubes but it was great to have them both in my arms. It is also the first time since they were born that they have been together. We gave Luke a pep talk and told him that we can do a whole lot more fun stuff if he just gets big and strong and keeps growing!!
Ken and I are trying to clean and get their room put together so it will be ready when Jack gets home. My dad has been refinishing the furniture for the boys room and it is almost done. He has done an AMAZING job and it looks great! I will have before and after pictures soon.
I know that I say this almost every time but THANKS to everyone who are praying for the boys. Your prayers are being heard and answered. We are thankful for everyday the boys are here and for their continued improvements. Pray that Luke continues to get bigger and healthier and that he has no more setbacks. Pray that Jack will get the hang of taking a bottle and he will be able to come off the oxygen soon. Pray for Ken and I that we remain healthy and for us to not get run down. Thank you!!
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