Today was a rough day for Rowan, mommy and daddy.
Rowan got some new equipment this morning. His blood/gas levels were still kind of icky last night. He is having trouble breathing off the CO2 and they kept suctioning a lot of gunk out of his lungs. They also had to give him pretty high percentages of oxygen throughout the night. Because of all of this, they switched him from the regular ventilator (they had maxed out the number of breaths per minute) to the high-frequency oscillator. This ventilator breaths 600 short and gentle breaths per minute. It is much more gentle and makes slight vibrations to help loosen up the gunk in his lungs. They've done several x-rays today (Rowan apparently likes getting his picture taken) and they have all been consistent. He still has some fluid in his lungs, but it isn't getting worse, which is a good thing. Hopefully the new vent will help get rid of that fluid. The new machine was a surprise for mommy and daddy when we got to the hospital, but we know that it is what is best for him and hope that it will only be a short lived thing.
They continued the new antibiotics today. They also repeated his CBC and crp levels. His crp looked great and went from a 3.8 to 0.9 (they want him below 0.6, so we're getting close). His white blood cell count was much lower today, but still shows that he is working to fight the infection. He went from 10% immature white blood cells to 6% and his platelets were a bit lower but still in an ok range. His red blood cell count also looked good. His blood culture from yesterday is still negative after 24 hours, so fingers crossed that it will remain negative after 48.
This afternoon, the doctors and nurse practitioner decided that they needed to check to see if Rowan's PDA artery had opened back up. They thought that that could be the reason that he was needing more oxygen today (he needed 60% or higher all day today 😞). So, they did another echo cardiogram to check his heart out. Everything came back clear from that. The doctor said that the PDA artery was just barely open and that it was definitely not causing the breathing issues nor does it need to be treated. This was good news, but still leaves us with a bit of a mystery as to what is going on with his breathing. One possible theory is that Rowan's lungs are inflamed. This is most likely because he has been on the ventilator for so long and exposed to so much straight oxygen. The doctor said that this inflammation is what contributes to asthma. This is treatable with steroids, but they don't administer those until he is 14 days old and he has to be getting negative blood cultures. So we are waiting and hoping that he gets to the point where he is requiring less oxygen and that we get some negative blood cultures so that he can possibly get the steroids next week if he needs them.
Today they also did another ultrasound of his brain to check for brain bleeds. This was just a routine test that they usually do at 10 days old but decided to do it today since he was already being bugged with all of the other tests. We haven't gotten official results back from the ultrasound, but the doctor said they looked clear.
Needless to say, with all of this going on, John and I were pretty stressed and worried today. Post pregnancy hormones and having a baby in the NICU are not a good combination. John has been amazing and remains strong for the both of us when I fall apart into a mess of tears. There is nothing worse than sitting in a chair watching your tiny baby struggle and knowing that there is nothing that you can do other than hope, pray and stay as positive as possible that things will get better.
On the bright side of today, John was able to sweet talk the nurses and lady at the reception desk into letting Aunt Saige come and visit Rowan today. She hadn't been able to visit because she isn't 16 yet, but we got her in today and Rowan really enjoyed getting to meet her. 😊
We continue to remain hopeful that Rowan will overcome the issues that are coming up. He is a fighter and has been stronger and done better than any of the doctors expected him to. Today we took a couple steps backward, but we're sure that we'll be back to taking steps in the right direction soon.
Love, hugs and appreciation to all of those who are sending positive thoughts and prayers. We know that they are helping.
We're ready to get back to having good days.
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Thursday, May 5, 2016
Wednesday, May 4, 2016
Good Days and Bad Days
Upon entering the NICU, we knew that there were going to be good days and bad days. Today we had our first bad day. John and I got to the hospital a little after 9:00 this morning. His nurse was working on getting all of his labs done and her morning assessment. She told us that his blood/gas levels didn't look very good and that they had had to increase his vent settings quite a bit overnight. They changed him to 60 breaths per minute which is the highest it has been since the day he was born. They were also giving him another round of meds to raise the pH of his blood because it was low and also giving him another blood transfusion. Because of the transfusion they needed to stop feedings for the day. These were all things that aren't a huge deal and didn't worry us too much because they have had to do this before. We knew that being so young and little that he would have ups and downs with his breathing. The good news from the nurse was that she was hearing bowel sounds this morning (they didn't hear many yesterday) and that he had pooped during the night. Overall, we were pretty happy with his progress.
Then, Dr. Harris, the infectious disease doctor came in to talk to us. She said that Rowan's infection wasn't really responding to the antibiotics that he was on and that they were going to change one of them. She also told us that they think the infection site might be in/around his umbilical cord. She said that since his "life lines" go in through his umbilical cord it may be causing all of the positive blood cultures, but there is no way to know because we can't remove those lines. Dr. Harris said that his platelets and white blood count looked good and showed that he was trying to fight the infection. Then she dropped a bomb on us and told us that she wasn't sure if he was going to be able to beat this infection. This whole time, John and I have remained very positive and hopeful that Rowan is going to beat this and hearing that just took the air right out of our lungs. We were certainly not prepared to hear those words spoken out loud. We know it's a possibility that things could go wrong, but we're choosing to be strong and remain positive for our little guy.
After Dr. Harris left, Dr. Sidlinger, the NICU doctor, came in and provided some major reassurance. He said that Rowan is doing a great job of fighting the infection and that is shown in his white blood cell count. He said most babies as young as Rowan don't fight as hard as he is fighting. He told us that the new antibiotic is one of the best and that he hoped it would help Rowan. Dr. Sidlinger's words were reassuring, but I remained pretty shaken up all morning.
Rowan had a much better afternoon and after some lunch and a break his mommy felt better, too. 😊 Throughout the day, they were able to decrease his oxygen levels and he became more active. This was reassuring to us, too. We spent the afternoon looking after our little guy and being thankful for all of the progress that he has made.
I had one of my sweet students visit me this afternoon. It was great to see her and catch up with her on what has been happening at school. I also had some friends come by and visit Rowan and I which gave John the chance to get out for a bit and run some errands. He's cooking up something special for Mother's Day and has me very curious as to what he has planned.
Early this evening, they changed the vent bar to a bigger size so that it wouldn't be resting on his face as much. It's nice to need something bigger for him for once! I enjoyed getting to see his whole face and he is working really hard to open his eyes! He is doing much better this evening and we hope and pray that the new antibiotics start doing their job and that he starts kicking this infection's butt!
John and I continue to be blown way by all of the support that we have been given. They say it takes a village to raise a child... Well, we have a pretty darn good village. Keep the prayers and positive thoughts coming!!
Daddy bought "The Little Engine That Could" for Rowan today, so now I'm going to go try to read it to my sweet little boy without bawling my eyes out. Wish me luck! 😊
Then, Dr. Harris, the infectious disease doctor came in to talk to us. She said that Rowan's infection wasn't really responding to the antibiotics that he was on and that they were going to change one of them. She also told us that they think the infection site might be in/around his umbilical cord. She said that since his "life lines" go in through his umbilical cord it may be causing all of the positive blood cultures, but there is no way to know because we can't remove those lines. Dr. Harris said that his platelets and white blood count looked good and showed that he was trying to fight the infection. Then she dropped a bomb on us and told us that she wasn't sure if he was going to be able to beat this infection. This whole time, John and I have remained very positive and hopeful that Rowan is going to beat this and hearing that just took the air right out of our lungs. We were certainly not prepared to hear those words spoken out loud. We know it's a possibility that things could go wrong, but we're choosing to be strong and remain positive for our little guy.
After Dr. Harris left, Dr. Sidlinger, the NICU doctor, came in and provided some major reassurance. He said that Rowan is doing a great job of fighting the infection and that is shown in his white blood cell count. He said most babies as young as Rowan don't fight as hard as he is fighting. He told us that the new antibiotic is one of the best and that he hoped it would help Rowan. Dr. Sidlinger's words were reassuring, but I remained pretty shaken up all morning.
Rowan had a much better afternoon and after some lunch and a break his mommy felt better, too. 😊 Throughout the day, they were able to decrease his oxygen levels and he became more active. This was reassuring to us, too. We spent the afternoon looking after our little guy and being thankful for all of the progress that he has made.
I had one of my sweet students visit me this afternoon. It was great to see her and catch up with her on what has been happening at school. I also had some friends come by and visit Rowan and I which gave John the chance to get out for a bit and run some errands. He's cooking up something special for Mother's Day and has me very curious as to what he has planned.
Early this evening, they changed the vent bar to a bigger size so that it wouldn't be resting on his face as much. It's nice to need something bigger for him for once! I enjoyed getting to see his whole face and he is working really hard to open his eyes! He is doing much better this evening and we hope and pray that the new antibiotics start doing their job and that he starts kicking this infection's butt!
John and I continue to be blown way by all of the support that we have been given. They say it takes a village to raise a child... Well, we have a pretty darn good village. Keep the prayers and positive thoughts coming!!
Daddy bought "The Little Engine That Could" for Rowan today, so now I'm going to go try to read it to my sweet little boy without bawling my eyes out. Wish me luck! 😊
Tuesday, May 3, 2016
One Week Old!!
So, when I originally decided to do this blog I thought I would have plenty of time to keep it perfectly up to date. Boy was I wrong! I apologize for being a little behind, but here is the latest update... better late than never, right?
Today our sweet Rowan is one week old! I can't believe it's already been a week since he made his debut. He is doing remarkably well for his age and size. He is still fighting a blood infection and he has the doctors sort of perplexed because his blood cultures keep bouncing back and forth from negative to positive. The NICU doctors are going to consult with the infectious disease doctor (sounds really terrible and scary, but she basically just know blood and infections really well) to hopefully get to the bottom of what is going on.
Rowan continues to breath well on the ventilator. He is consistently taking between 40-60 breaths per minute on his own over the ventilator. The vent usually breaths between 25-35 breaths per minute for him depending on how his blood/gas labs look each day. Sunday, Dr. Sidlinger even said that if he were older, he would consider taking Rowan off of the ventilator and putting him on a CPAP machine. Since he is still so young, they will keep him on the vent for a while longer.
Yesterday, they started feeding Rowan some of my milk. He will get 2 mL every 12 hours through his feeding tube. He did really well with his first feeding yesterday but spit up quite a bit of milk last night. They thought maybe his GI tube wasn't in the correct place, so they did a chest and abdominal x-ray this morning. Everything looked good with the tube, but they did notice that he has quite a bit of air in his bowels. Nothing major, but it did contribute to his bloated tummy and quiet bowel sounds this morning. They will continue to feed him on a very slight graduated schedule and he will hopefully be up to full feeding amounts in a few weeks.
Today, Rowan's bilirubin levels were low enough that they were able to remove the photo therapy lights again. This makes him happy because he can't be swaddled when the lights are on so that he can absorb the light. We've found that he likes to be all cuddled up and he likes sleeping with his hands up close to his face and chest. I can't wait to cuddle with as soon as he gets a little bigger!
The other big development in the last couple of days is that Rowan is starting to open his left eye! He's only gotten just a little sliver towards the inside corner of it open, but he is sure trying. We think we're going to have a blond hair, blue-eyed little boy on our hands. :-)
The nurses and doctors here have been absolutely wonderful. I fully trust everything that they are doing for our little guy and am so thankful for their dedication and expertise. Entering into the NICU, I figured we wouldn't be able to touch him or help take care of him, but we've gotten to do a lot. We change his diaper, take his temperature and clean his mouth out every few hours. For the record, he's peed on us twice already... we've been officially initiated into the club of being parents to a boy. We've also gotten to very carefully pick him up and hold him for a couple of seconds when they change out his bedding.
We couldn't be more thankful for how well Rowan has done in the last week. They kept telling us the first three days that babies usually have a 72 hour honeymoon and then they sometimes decline or have some set backs. Our guy is a fighter and although we've had a couple of hiccups with his infection, he is still doing better than we could have ever imagined. John and I both know that all of your thoughts and prayers are a huge factor in his success. There are not enough words to express how grateful we are for each and every positive thought and prayer. Please continue to pray that Rowan keeps fighting off the blood infection and that he continues to get stronger and stronger each and every day.
Today our sweet Rowan is one week old! I can't believe it's already been a week since he made his debut. He is doing remarkably well for his age and size. He is still fighting a blood infection and he has the doctors sort of perplexed because his blood cultures keep bouncing back and forth from negative to positive. The NICU doctors are going to consult with the infectious disease doctor (sounds really terrible and scary, but she basically just know blood and infections really well) to hopefully get to the bottom of what is going on.
Rowan continues to breath well on the ventilator. He is consistently taking between 40-60 breaths per minute on his own over the ventilator. The vent usually breaths between 25-35 breaths per minute for him depending on how his blood/gas labs look each day. Sunday, Dr. Sidlinger even said that if he were older, he would consider taking Rowan off of the ventilator and putting him on a CPAP machine. Since he is still so young, they will keep him on the vent for a while longer.
Yesterday, they started feeding Rowan some of my milk. He will get 2 mL every 12 hours through his feeding tube. He did really well with his first feeding yesterday but spit up quite a bit of milk last night. They thought maybe his GI tube wasn't in the correct place, so they did a chest and abdominal x-ray this morning. Everything looked good with the tube, but they did notice that he has quite a bit of air in his bowels. Nothing major, but it did contribute to his bloated tummy and quiet bowel sounds this morning. They will continue to feed him on a very slight graduated schedule and he will hopefully be up to full feeding amounts in a few weeks.
Today, Rowan's bilirubin levels were low enough that they were able to remove the photo therapy lights again. This makes him happy because he can't be swaddled when the lights are on so that he can absorb the light. We've found that he likes to be all cuddled up and he likes sleeping with his hands up close to his face and chest. I can't wait to cuddle with as soon as he gets a little bigger!
The other big development in the last couple of days is that Rowan is starting to open his left eye! He's only gotten just a little sliver towards the inside corner of it open, but he is sure trying. We think we're going to have a blond hair, blue-eyed little boy on our hands. :-)
The nurses and doctors here have been absolutely wonderful. I fully trust everything that they are doing for our little guy and am so thankful for their dedication and expertise. Entering into the NICU, I figured we wouldn't be able to touch him or help take care of him, but we've gotten to do a lot. We change his diaper, take his temperature and clean his mouth out every few hours. For the record, he's peed on us twice already... we've been officially initiated into the club of being parents to a boy. We've also gotten to very carefully pick him up and hold him for a couple of seconds when they change out his bedding.
We couldn't be more thankful for how well Rowan has done in the last week. They kept telling us the first three days that babies usually have a 72 hour honeymoon and then they sometimes decline or have some set backs. Our guy is a fighter and although we've had a couple of hiccups with his infection, he is still doing better than we could have ever imagined. John and I both know that all of your thoughts and prayers are a huge factor in his success. There are not enough words to express how grateful we are for each and every positive thought and prayer. Please continue to pray that Rowan keeps fighting off the blood infection and that he continues to get stronger and stronger each and every day.
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| Mommy and Rowan celebrating his 1 week birthday! |
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| Rowan enjoying some time without his eye coverings. We are still amazed with how much hair he has... both on his head and on the rest of his body. He's quite the fuzzy little thing. :-) |
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| Getting snuggled back in after changing his bedding. |
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Days 2-4 in the NICU
Here's a look at our days in the NICU from Wednesday, April 27- Saturday, April 30.
Wednesday, April 27
Thursday, April 28
Friday, April 29
Wednesday, April 27
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| Rowan's bilirubin levels were pretty high (totally normal for his age), so he got to start spending time under the blue lights. They unswaddled him so that he could absorb more of the lights and it was fun to be able to see him wiggle around. He loves to wiggle around and stretch. |
Thursday, April 28
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| I started the day with a walk down to see Rowan. It sure felt good to get up and move around after being in bed for pretty much 5 days straight. I may have overdone it a bit though and paid for it later.... |
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| Our little glow worm taking a break from light therapy. |
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| Rowan's goggles to protect his eyes when the blue lights are on. They put these on and then they have to put another cloth around that because he doesn't leave these alone and they slide off all the time. John and I appreciate the fact that they are purple. :-) |
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| We love when we get to see his face! He hasn't opened his eyes yet, so he spends most of his time with them covered to protect them. |
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| Sweetest little face ever! |
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| They let me help change his diaper! Easier said than done! |
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| Rowan has very tiny diapers and I was more than a little nervous trying to maneuver around all the wires and cords. |
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I've changed lots of diapers in my life, but none that were this tiny! Thank goodness the nurse was there to help. |
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| He's got a fresh diaper and is now ready to relax. He is not a fan of having a wet diaper. |
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| I also got to swab his mouth with some breast milk. They do this to help clean out his mouth and to help build a good lining in his stomach. The antibodies in the milk help prevent infections and the growth of yucky bacteria. |
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| Pastor Michael and Janet visited us on Thursday afternoon and brought cards and a poster from the AWANA kids. They sure put a smile on our faces! |
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| Some of the gifts that Rowan, John and I have received. We have been blown away by all of the support and generosity that we have been showered with. This has not been an easy week, but the outpouring of love has made things less difficult to bear. |
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| Flowers from Great Aunt Becky and cookies (to help mommy's milk come in) from Aunt Saige. |
Friday, April 29
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| All cuddled up under the lights. |
Sunday, May 1, 2016
Pics from Rowan's Birthday
Here are some pictures from Rowan's first day here with us!
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
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| Rowan got settled into the NICU and had lots of visitors. After taking shelter for a tornado warning, mommy finally got to get out of bed and come down to visit. Rowan grabbed onto and held mommy's finger right away, just like he did with daddy earlier in the day. |
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| Holding mommy's finger. |
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| Sweet little baby feet. |
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| Live long and prosper... Daddy is pretty excited that Rowan is apparently already a Trekkie. :-) |
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| Chilling in his pod. |
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| Such a cute little nose! We love our sweet boy! |
Thursday, April 28, 2016
Rowan's Birth
Rowan John Pryor decided to make his entrance into the world on Tuesday, April 26, 2016 at just 23 weeks and 5 days gestation. He weighed 1 pound 11 ounces and was 12.5 inches long. Here is a bit of the journey that got us to where we are today.
On Friday, April 22, I went to the doctor with what I thought was a minor issue that I just wanted checked out before the weekend. My doctor began checking me over and found that I had a bulging amniotic sac. She also believed that my cervix was fairly dilated already. She immediately began getting things in place to have me transported to Stormont Vail in Topeka. At this point we were both trying to stay as calm as possible since we still didn't have a ton of information... we just knew we needed to get to Topeka as quickly as possible.
John and I went directly to Via Christi in Manhattan where they got an IV started and gave me my first shot of steroids. We knew the steroids would help Rowan's lungs develop, but we didn't realize just how important they would end up being. They got me loaded into the ambulance and we headed out on our incredibly bumpy and loud trip down I-70.
Long story short, they got my labor stopped, did a procedure to close things up and then found out Monday morning during a sonogram that there wasn't any amniotic fluid left. The baby was still doing ok at that point, so the plan was to just watch closely for infection and try and stay pregnant as long as possible. Monday night was a rough one and the baby's heart rate was pretty elevated all night long.
Tuesday morning, the doctors decided that the baby was under too much stress and that the elevated heart rate could indicate that he had an infection, so they decided it was time for him to join us. He was breech (actually he was laying sideways across my belly), so they had to perform a c-section.
Not gonna lie, it was extremely nerve-wracking going into surgery and not really knowing what kind of shape he would be in. John sat beside me until they had him out and then he went with Rowan while they finished closing me up. Rowan was born at 10:14 a.m. They got him intubated and hooked up to the ventilator and headed to the NICU.
**Fun story: As John was with Rowan while they were still in the OR, he was talking to the NICU doctor. John mentioned that he was also a premie and was born 10 weeks early. Turns out, Rowan's NICU doctor was actually the chief resident of the NICU at Wesley Medical Center where John was born and was his primary doctor all those years ago. So we know that Rowan is in really good hands! :-)
From there, I went to recovery and John went to the NICU with Rowan. Dr. Sidlinger stopped at the elevator so that my mom and our Pastor could take a look at Rowan. We were all surprised by how much he weighed. The sonogram we had on Monday estimated that he would only be 1 pound 6 ounces, but he ended up being 1 pound 11 ounces. After a little while in recovery, they wheeled me down to see him. The machines that he was hooked up to were a little overwhelming, but I was beyond excited to meet our son.
Tomorrow, I'll type up a run through of our days from Tuesday afternoon through today, but for now, it's time for bed!
On Friday, April 22, I went to the doctor with what I thought was a minor issue that I just wanted checked out before the weekend. My doctor began checking me over and found that I had a bulging amniotic sac. She also believed that my cervix was fairly dilated already. She immediately began getting things in place to have me transported to Stormont Vail in Topeka. At this point we were both trying to stay as calm as possible since we still didn't have a ton of information... we just knew we needed to get to Topeka as quickly as possible.
John and I went directly to Via Christi in Manhattan where they got an IV started and gave me my first shot of steroids. We knew the steroids would help Rowan's lungs develop, but we didn't realize just how important they would end up being. They got me loaded into the ambulance and we headed out on our incredibly bumpy and loud trip down I-70.
Long story short, they got my labor stopped, did a procedure to close things up and then found out Monday morning during a sonogram that there wasn't any amniotic fluid left. The baby was still doing ok at that point, so the plan was to just watch closely for infection and try and stay pregnant as long as possible. Monday night was a rough one and the baby's heart rate was pretty elevated all night long.
Tuesday morning, the doctors decided that the baby was under too much stress and that the elevated heart rate could indicate that he had an infection, so they decided it was time for him to join us. He was breech (actually he was laying sideways across my belly), so they had to perform a c-section.
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| Daddy ready to head to the OR. |
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| Mommy before heading to the OR... it had been a rough morning! |
Not gonna lie, it was extremely nerve-wracking going into surgery and not really knowing what kind of shape he would be in. John sat beside me until they had him out and then he went with Rowan while they finished closing me up. Rowan was born at 10:14 a.m. They got him intubated and hooked up to the ventilator and headed to the NICU.
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| Rowan's first picture. |
**Fun story: As John was with Rowan while they were still in the OR, he was talking to the NICU doctor. John mentioned that he was also a premie and was born 10 weeks early. Turns out, Rowan's NICU doctor was actually the chief resident of the NICU at Wesley Medical Center where John was born and was his primary doctor all those years ago. So we know that Rowan is in really good hands! :-)
From there, I went to recovery and John went to the NICU with Rowan. Dr. Sidlinger stopped at the elevator so that my mom and our Pastor could take a look at Rowan. We were all surprised by how much he weighed. The sonogram we had on Monday estimated that he would only be 1 pound 6 ounces, but he ended up being 1 pound 11 ounces. After a little while in recovery, they wheeled me down to see him. The machines that he was hooked up to were a little overwhelming, but I was beyond excited to meet our son.
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| Rowan all hooked up and comfy in the NICU. |
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| Rowan's stats... we didn't decide on his name until about an hour after he was born. Needed to meet him first. :) |
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| Mommy meeting Rowan for the first time. |
Tomorrow, I'll type up a run through of our days from Tuesday afternoon through today, but for now, it's time for bed!
Welcome!
Hello everybody! John and I have had one heck of a week filled with many ups and downs. John and I decided to create this blog to keep everyone updated on Rowan's journey as he gets stronger and continues to grow while in the NICU. We've been downright amazed by the amount of love and support that has been given to us and we want to keep everyone as updated as possible. It is my hope that we will have a chance to update this site at least once a day. We'll be adding pictures and videos so that everyone can watch our little guy grow. We truly appreciate every single prayer and positive thought that has been sent our way and we know that they are making a difference! Keep them coming!
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