Piglet

Auntie Shannon grinning ear to ear during cuddle time with H man.



Cuteness!


Well, Henri continues to make enormous improvement in the area of feeding! He has been taking most, if not nearly all his feeds by mouth for 24 hours, and has even nursed without supplement once in that time. He is getting stronger and more opinionated every day and Josh and I are so excited about it. We should also say that although his feedings are going great, there is a trade-off. His weight last night was unchanged, but we had not lost any!!!! So he remains in the incubator with it turned off. Henri will have to demonstrate the ability to nurse and take feeds WHILE gaining weight before he can be moved to an open crib. Having said that, there is no rush. He will just be 12 days old this afternoon, and we are asking him to do a lot without complaining! Lucky for us he continues to amaze us everyday and make improvements toward home. Yesterday we got a cute shot, and his Aunt Shannon got some cuddle time with him as well. Until next time...enjoy.

We are not calling him chunky....yet!

So we have decided that every single day in your child's life is momentous to you. Although, there are some that are bigger than others. Today just so happens to be one of those days for Henri. Henri is weighed every night with his 8 pm care. We are always sure to be at the hospital for that care and tonight was no exception. Henri was placed on the scale tonight...and drum roll please..........came in at 4 pounds even!! We were so amazed that is has happened so soon, yet..... Henri has amazed us everyday for the past 9 days. He is beginning to nurse and getting a little more consistent with his bottle feedings. Consistency is great, and the feeding tube is still coming in handy at about every other feed when he is simply to tuckered to take anything by mouth. Henri's neonatologist thinks that he may be challenged in an open crib by the end of the week! We have the weekly comparison photo with his turtle and another of Henri being his expressive handsome self. Enjoy.

One Week!

A very proud Uncle Chris.



Snugggle time with Daddy.



Sweetness.


So yesterday was a bit hectic and we did not get around to this post, but Henri turned a week old yesterday! We are both amazed at what has passed before our eyes in this last 7 days. Henri is well on his way to becoming a "feeder/grower" in the Special Care Nursery. And for those who may not know.....that is great news. Henri has had no IV for 3 days, his jaundice is resolving, he is holding his own temperature in the incubator, and most of all, he is tolerating his feeds and has gained weight! He is up to 3 lbs. 11 oz, so only 3 oz down from his birth weight. That is simply amazing. He is a very expressive boy and has initiated both of us with bodily functions this week. Mommy was nursing and got thrown up all over, and Daddy was changing a diaper and apparently not swift enough, because Henri drenched his shirt from inside the incubator! They were both very normal baby events that made us both very happy. Henri's grandparents, great-grandma, and uncle were able to visit with him this weekend and he enjoyed being loved on so much. Sunday is one of Henri's bath nights, and he will be weighed again. We will also snap another photo of him next to his turtle. We will do this weekly on Sunday's so that everyone can keep track of his growth. Now it should be said that this is a move that we have totally stolen from our great friends the Broge's. They did this with their twins, and it works great! Sometimes it is hard to know just how little a baby under 4 pounds really is, so we hope this helps. Her are a few pictures for you to enjoy....although you should be warned that you may weep uncontrollably from the rush of cuteness.

Down with the TPN, up with the Feeds

Bath time! As you can see...he is oh so excited for it!



This is what we mean by kangaroo or "roo" care. This is where Henri gets to lay skin to skin with us. It is great for his development. He really feels like he is back inside there because it is warm and he can hear my heartbeat. He sleeps better there than in his incubator.




This is Henri under the bili lights....the goggles protect his sensitive eyes from the light.


So Henri continues to amaze his parents every SINGLE day. Yesterday was a huge day! His jaundice coloring is resolving since he has been under the bili lights, and he was advanced to his current goal feeds. He getting just over an ounce of breast milk every three hours. He was also able to to get his IV out because he no longer needs supplemental nutrition through it. He was bathed last night...and in true newborn fashion....hated every minute of it. Although it should be said that there was a light at the end of that tunnel for Henri. He began to root after his bath and we put him to the breast for the first time. He was able to latch, suck, and even take a few swallows before he was tuckered! It was most likely a bigger day for mommy than Henri when that happened. We will post some pictures of him from the past couple of days and thank everyone so so much for the continued support, prayers, and inquiries.

Amazing Men in my life.

I'm going to try and get a quick note in while Josh is getting some much needed sleep. First......we have done it...through no great surprise from the Almighty, we have done it. God has gotten me through things in the past two weeks that I conceived were completely impossible. Second....my husband. Girls like me must arbitrarily fall into the laps of men like my husband more often than not, but he has been so amazing getting not only me, but his son through the past week. I have told him several times that it just would never have worked with anyone else, and it's the truth.....I love that man more every day. He is such a natural with our son, and makes me appreciate so much more the impact he will have on Henri's life. I love you so much Josh. Third...the new man of my life...what do you say? You can't say anything most of the time. You just observe....quietly....and in those moments you realize what God must feel about you. You realize that you have been given a privilege in life that some people for whatever horrible reason don't get to experience. You realize in those moments that creating a child and being his parent is so far beyond what you can take credit for. I just got off the phone with the special care nursery, and Henri had a great night. He has tolerated advancing his feeds, and has actually taken the last three feeds mostly by mouth. He is still under the bili lights (picture to come soon) and working on his growing. Occupational therapy is working with him, and we are able to do kangaroo care at least once a day with him now, sometimes twice. Thank you to everyone for all your support and prayers, it's going to get all three of us through this.

He doesn't know he's a whimpy white boy...

It is difficult to put the moments that define life into words. But, the moment I first held Henri Warren Byrge was my greatest moment. I'm sure Melissa will agree that seeing him made the lowest lows of the past 7 1/2 months fade into that happy place of forgetfullness. Here is how it happened...

Friday August 14, 2009 Melissa was admitted to Missouri Baptist Medical Center for "observation" and to get steroids that would help Henri's lung development if he were to be delivered early. We suspected that Melissa's lab values (uric acid, platelet count, protein in her urin, etc ) would continue to worsen and that Henri would probably be delivered sometime the following week (we were told there was a chance we could have three more weeks).

Saturday August 15, 2009 Melissa called me (I was at home working on Henri's room) and said her platelet count had fallen enough that Henri would be delivered around 3pm.

At about 3:10pm, I stood outside the O.R. I will spare the dirty details (though they are really cool and I have photos AND video if you're interested), but at 3:36pm on Saturday August 15, 2009, Henri Warren was deliverd via c-section. For Melissa, the most relieving moment was when he cried for the first time. I have to say I have a lot of respect for Melissa's ob/gyn. She did a great job.

Because Henri was delivered 6 weeks early, his current address is in the Special Care Unit (SCU)at MoBap. There he has made progress toward all three major pre-requisites for coming home.

They are:

1) Breath on his own. Henri has well developed lungs and has never needed support in this area. So, check for number one!

2) Regulate his own body temperature. Henri has progressed from the heating table to an incubator. The temperature has been slowly lowered to its current point, the last point before before graduating to an open crib. So...good progress toward number 2!

3) Eat/grow. Henri started IV nutrition late Sunday. He had his first nipple feeding this morning (about 6mL). The goal is to get to just over 1oz every three hours. Part of this process does require a feeding tube in his nose for the formula/breast milk that he is too tired to take via the bottle. That is not actually a bad thing.

It has apparently been shown that different people groups fare differently in the SCU. Those who do best are normally black and female followed by black males and then white females. Pulling up the rear, are the "whimpy white boys." Kathy, one of the SCU nurses said of Henri, "He must not know he is a whimpy white boy...don't tell him!" Henri is doing well. Though challenges could still lay ahead, he is wonderfully made.

Here are a couple additional pics of our handsome little man. If you drool, Henri can lend you a burp cloth :) Enjoy.

Finally...Melissa is also doing well. She is likely to come home Wednesday. I saw what they did to her Saturday. She is THE man! (My mother-in-law is now telling me that being the WOman is better than the man. If it were not 12:25am, I'd tell her where to go.) Goodnight.

Prenatal Photos

So I was trying to plan a bit ahead of last Thursday's doctor's appointment, and it seems to have worked out. Josh and I went for prenatal photos on Wednesday and we wanted to share a few of the shots with everyone. The nursery is coming together nicely, and Josh is making feverish progress on it. He really is a workhorse when things need to get finished. A shout out to my dad for all of his assistance as well. As usual, you really are ALWAYS a kid and can't get it finished without parents. Mom has taken her fair share of duties on in anticipation of Henri as well, so thanks! Enjoy the photos everyone! (And one day I may figure out how to turn these darn photos that are in the landscape view, sorry!)