Thursday, August 28, 2008

Extubation Day

Yesterday, Tuesday, August 27th was the day Mason was to be extubated. When we arrived to the CVICU early that morning he had just had another tube put into the back of his chest. The fluid that has been building up needed to be removed prior to having his tube come out and therefore his planned extubation needed to wait another day.

Ernie headed over to CVICU this morning to find that the doctors had decided that they would go ahead and remove his tube today. I remained back at the house to finish up some paperwork and got a text from Ernie saying they were about to do the procedure. Daddy was there to take the pictures and see the wonderful event. I'm actually glad I wasn't there since I didn't need to see him under any stress. Luckily, everything went well and he was able to breathe on his own. Another great accomplishment for our little one. He remained awake for the next five hours. His beautiful little eyes followed each of our faces. He looks so beautiful!

Starting out at 8 pounds 14 ounces sure must have come in handy,since now he looks so thin! Most likely he will be weighed in the next day or two and we'll be able to see just how much weight he has lost. Soon, the goal will be to put some of that weight back on. We are eagerly awaiting the dotor's ok to begin his feeds again. This is breast milk fed through the tube in his nose. One of the challenges for me has been to keep pumping every two hours or so for this little one. It's just a small thing to have to do compared to everything he has been through so far. As so many care to remind us, it's a long haul.

1 comment:

decarlijd said...

Thank you so much for sharing your journey. How much this will benefit every parent who shares your experiences! I love the photos, and Mason is such a beautiful baby. Since Ernie told me about the blog, I check it all the time just waiting for any new additions. Bless all you guys! All my love-Jeanna