good news

Things have improved dramatically over the last two days. We got to Children’s today to find our son was no longer under the baby warmer. He had also had all of his EEG leads removed and his hair was washed. (I’m finding out that most of the nurses working with him would love to have done this. They love his hair.) He was swaddled and under a blanket with a cute blue hat on. Riley was able to maintain his temp. overnight and all day as well. Another benchmark attained.

Riley has also been taken down to one dose per day of Phenobarbital which will be given in the evening. This ought to make him more alert during the day which will really be fun! Today during the time that he was awake Shelby was able to start working with a lactation consultant on breast feeding. He was still a bit groggy at times, but he seems to get the idea pretty easily which is cool to see. Especially since the consultant tells us that breast feeding is a learned skill, not something instinctual. Our boy looks like a natural, and Shelby is very patient and loving as they both learn this new and wonderful thing. Riley looks ready to get all of his food straight from mom. Now if he can just stay awake…

I got some good daddy bonding time in while Shelby was off pumping. I read to Riley from his Rhyming Bible Book. It was so cool to have him watch me so intently as I read to him. In my mind he’s soaking in the truths of the Gospel even though he’s only one week old. A foundation gets built one piece at a time though. It’s never too early to tell my boy about the God who loves him so much.

I got a good lesson in diaper changing today as well. In retrospect I remember someone telling me to put the new diaper down under the old before taking the old one off. I found out why after having him poop as soon as I took his dirty diaper off and cleaned him up. Lesson learned. My boy is a good teacher.

The best news of the day came to me as I was standing in the hallway tonight. I happened to run into Dr. McAlmon out there who told me that they are very pleased with Riley’s progress. As a matter of fact we’re going to be meeting with the team tomorrow to discuss the next steps in his treatment. It’s possible that he’ll be sent back to Beverly Hospital to finish treatment by the weekend. We may get to find out more of a timeframe for when he’ll be coming home as well. It’s hard not to get our hopes up too much. We’ll have to be patient and rest in God’s timeframe. The nurses all seem to think he’ll be leaving soon though. They all tell us that they’ll miss him. I hope he’s as popular with the ladies when he hits manhood.

So our boy is looking more and more like a normal newborn. It’s amazing, Shelby and I knew that we’d be able to put up with the nighttime crying and late night feeds that come with having a new baby. Now we find ourselves with a new perspective on them. We are looking forward to them. They mean a normal, healthy child. One who is living at home with his parents.

We can’t wait to have our boy at home with us.

We love our boy!

Jonathan