Merry Christmas!

Brody was released from the hospital on X-Mas Eve and we were able to spend a nice Christmas at home. More detail to follow...

My First Christmas Present

Brody got his first Christmas present. A youth hockey association from Sauk Rapids came around and gave gifts to all the kids in the hospital. It was a really fun surprise.  The gift was from Gavin.  Thanks, Gavin!

Mr. Happy Now

Brody was admitted to the St. Cloud Hospital yesterday with bronchiolitis. He is wheezing and his lungs sound crackly. He has been getting nebulizer treatments, steroids, and an antibiotic. He was on 1 liter flow of O2 over night (regularly on 1/16th) because he wasn't able breath deep enough to keep his oxygen saturations up. He was turned down to 3/4 today, so we'll see what he does over night. In order to go home, he needs to maintain his saturations at his normal oxygen level, 1/16th of a liter. We'll be here for at least a couple more days.  He has been pretty happy this afternoon, but hates his nebulizer treatments and, of course, getting his nose suctioned out.

This was Brody last night when he wasn't quite so happy.

Big Week For Brody

Hi! This is a big week for Brody. On Monday, he got his circ done at the U of M...

Then, on Tuesday he went to daycare and Russ went back to work full time! We have an awesome daycare provider and we are getting used to a new schedule now.

Ha! This looks like they are looking at the camera, but really they are watching football on the TV behind me. Brody really likes the sights and sounds.

The Roll Over

My first time rolling over

Happy Halloween!

Here are some pictures of my first Halloween. Trick or Treat! 

And my cousin, Zoe was Supergirl!

My first pumpkin was from the Nelsons. Thanks!

Look, Ma, no tube!

Brody can go a half hour without a dip in his oxygen, so we were able to take off his tube for a short time and take a picture.

And, my first time sleeping in my crib (vs. basinette)...

First Time Eating from a Spoon

My First Time Grabbing a Toy

Here's a short clip of Brody grabbing and holding his toy for the first time. He got startled by Dad's voice and started coughing, so we had to stop.

Some Good Laughin'

Saturday Night

Tonight, we went to church and then to supper and to Sam's Club. Our family Saturday night date night. Brody lost a shoe on the way in to church, so as soon as we sat down I had to go look for it. Within ten minutes of the start, Brody pooped, so we had to go out for a while. Then, toward the end he had a crying fit. Gotta love the babies in church. Maybe next time we'll need to sit in the crying room.

Sunday

Brody is sitting in his Bumbo chair! He sees his pacifier, but doesn't know how to get it yet.

His favorite thing right now is to have his hands on his head. Sometimes it is one, sometimes two.

Here's a sad face.

Today, Brody weighed in at 12 pounds, 5 ounces and measured 22.5 inches long. His hernia incisions are healing great. There is still some swelling, but it has gone down drastically since the surgery. The surgeon said it can take up to a year for all of the extra fluid to go away. This was his follow-up appointment at the surgeon's office. Tomorrow, we go to the Pediatrician, and next week we go to the NICU follow up clinic. Life is busy when you are 6 months old and a premie.

Mom, you're so funny.

What are you talkin' about, Dad?

Look at me! I'm gonna crawl away.

6 months old!

Can you believe it? Our baby Brody is 6 months old as of September 13th! He is doing great. His incisions from the surgery are healing fine. He is still on oxygen and might be for a while. He likes to smile and coo.

All wrapped up in his blankie from CM.

Found my thumb!

Brody went to the doctor yesterday. He weighs 11 pounds, 11 ounces. The incisions are looking good and the bruising is going away. He seems very comfortable now that his hernias are fixed.  He is a very smiley baby and is starting to interact much more.

Monday, August 29

Hello,

Baby Brody is doing good. He seems to be in some pain from his surgery, but we are giving him Tylenol. We follow up with his pediatrician tomorrow.

Going Home

Brody was discharged from the U of M today at 5:00 p.m. and we are on our way home. His hernia surgery site is looking good and we worked out some eating issues. He was coughing and sputtering during eating, so we are thickening up his formula with some rice cereal. This is working really well. We also got some reflux training which showed us how to prop up his bed at a 30 degree angle and we got a sling to keep him from sliding down to the bottom of the bed. So it was a really good day for information that will make things better for Brody.

Wednesday night

Good news! Brody's breathing tube is out and he is back on his regular oxygen amount. He ate 45 mLs at 7:30. Now all he needs to do is keep eating and we can go home!

Wednesday

It is Wednesday afternoon and Brody is still intubated. His pain medicine drip was discontinued so that he will wake up and start breathing on his own. The tube will be removed when he starts breathing over the ventilator. He will be put on a high flow cannula and then weened to his usual low flow cannula. If he is not ready to be off the ventilator, they will re-intubate him and leave the ventilator on for two days while he recovers. We knew the surgery could set his breathing back, so this is not entirely unexpected. His hernia site is swollen and he has two big cuts that are bruised up. But the hernia site is good (as expected). We'll post more as the day goes on...

Out of Surgery

The hernia repair went well. As expected, his breathing isn't the greatest. So, the breathing tube is staying in for now and he is going to the NICU for recovery. We were expecting to have our own room for a night, but he needs closer observation so he is going to the NICU to see all of his old friends. The tube will hopefully come out in a day. We are waiting to see him now.

Surgery Day

Hello! We got down to the hospital at 6:30 this morning. His surgery was scheduled for 9:30. It started a little late, so it is now 11:00 and he is still in surgery. We will post another update after his recovery.

Back to the U of M!

We are going back to the U of M for Brody's hernia repair surgery tomorrow morning. We will be there overnight for observation. The surgery is at 9:30 and will take about an hour and a half. I will post again when it is over. Your prayers are very much appreciated.

Sunday, August 14th

Brody is very alert and staying awake more during the day. He is really watching toys and things and is starting to interact when we talk to him. We just started the 5th formula. He continues to not eat very much, or when he does eat a normal amount he tends to throw up.

Brody with cousins Avery and Brooke. He sure likes these girls (and they sure like him)!

There's not much new to share about Brody. He is doing very well at home. We are still in the process of finding a formula that will work for him. His hernia surgery is scheduled for the 23rd. He needs to be on an 1/8 liter of oxygen or it might get postponed again. We are able to keep him on an 1/8 for a few hours at a time and he made it the entire night last night on 1/8. He is tired of the cannula in his nose and has been pulling it out lately. He grips the hose right by the sticker and pulls the sticker and all off of his face. He is starting to coo a little bit and pushes with his legs like he's trying to crawl.

Chelsea's visit

Chelsea stayed with us for two weeks. It was such a good time! She enjoyed spending time with Brody and helped us out a lot. We will miss her very much. While she was here, we picked raspberries, visited relatives, went to Brody's baby shower at the Tiernans', went to a movie, walked around the mall, went to Brody's doctor appointments, went to the Benton County Fair, hung out at home, and much more. She was able to enjoy a couple of good thunderstorms, which she says are few and far between in Texas this summer. Chelsea is going back to school this fall. Thanks for visiting us, Chelsea, we love you! Oh, and Happy 20th Birthday today!

August 1st

Last week we went to the mall to walk around. This picture was taken when we sat down for a break. It turned out to be one of my favorites.

HELLO!

It has been the longest period of time without posting on this blog since Brody was born. But we've been very busy being new TIRED parents. The time has been flying by. Everything is 'as it should be'.

Let's see. His formula isn't agreeing with him, so we started a new sensitive formula two days ago. So far, he seems better. Also, his hernia has been bothering him. We are working on getting that surgery scheduled. His oxygen needs are still the same. He is 9 lbs., 10 ounces! He is a bright eyed and happy little boy!

Tummy Time!

Here's a picture of Brody having some time on his tummy. He is very strong and can hold his head up for a little while. He gets tired after about 10 minutes and starts to cry. Brody now weighs 9 pounds, 3 ounces!

Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th of July everybody! Brody got to visit Grandma and Papa Johnson's and Roger and Anne Tiernan's houses this weekend. We had a great time!

Brody now weighs 8 pounds, 5 ounces. He is doing very well at home. He is waking up a couple of times per night. We are starting to get more organized and comfortable with taking care of Brody.

Busy weekend

Well, we lasted 27 hours out of the hospital, but we are back home again! Saturday night, Brody's oximeter alarm kept going off so much we didn't know if the problem was Brody or the monitor, so we brought him in to the hospital. It turned out to be a combination of a bad cord and Brody. We stayed Saturday and Sunday nights for observation and tests. Brody is needing a little more oxygen than planned. We ruled out any infections and swallowing problems. We are back at home now, trying to get into a routine.

Home

We brought Brody home! He was at the hospital until about 7:00 p.m. Friday, June 24th. We came home with oxygen and two monitors. One is a pulse oximeter that measures his pulse and oxygen saturation level. We leave this one on at night and hook it up and check it three times per day. He also has an apnea monitor on continuously. This will alarm if he stops breathing for more than 20 seconds. It is quite the production to haul all of this around with Brody, but we'll manage. We are very excited but very nervous too, and tired. It will take us a while to get into a new routine. But we are so glad to have our baby home.

Rooming In

Wednesday and Thursday we roomed in with Brody at the hospital to practice for bringing him home.

Today, Brody was switched to a low flow cannula, which is the equipment that he will be coming home with. This cannula pumps 100% oxygen into his nose at 1/8 of a liter compared to the high flow cannula that was pumping 3 liters of air into his nose with adjustable oxygen levels. So far, he is doing great with it. He didn't even notice a difference. If he does well with this, he will be coming home soon!

3/13/2011

6/19/2011

Brody is 7 pounds, 4 ounces. He is eating four bottles per day (half his feedings). He is doing great!