Sunday, February 2, 2014

The PICC Line is Out!!!! Day 84-86

My very first outfit!!!
After the momentary blip in the road on Thursday, this weekend was unbelievably great with our amazing little man.  On Friday, I arrived at the hospital and got the wonderful surprise that our nurse, Mary Anne, had dressed Benton in his very first outfit!  Benton looked unbelievably cute in his outfit which was white with little elephants.  Seeing him in clothes made Benton look like a regular baby despite being in his incubator rather than a crib.  It truly made my heart soar seeing him in such normal attire...it felt like taking him home could honestly be around the corner.

Incubator sans IV line!
On Saturday when we arrived at the hospital the doctors had removed Benton's PICC line and he was on full feeds.  It was so wonderful to see him without an IV hanger for medications stationed next to his bed and it truly opened up the space around his incubator.  In addition, when I changed his diaper Benton no longer had a line inserted into his foot which made diaper changes so much easier.  We could not be happier that his PICC line is out.  It's yet another step forward and one step closer to him coming home. :)

 With Benton's PICC line out we were able to hold Benton a lot over the weekend with both Joe and I taking turns.  This weekend we held him swaddled in our arms and were able to look at him while he interacted with us.  Watching Joe hold our son was such a sweet, tender and emotional moment.  The two boys would look at each other and Joe had the biggest smile ever on his face. 



Now that Benton is on full feeds of 10ml/hour and his PICC line is out the doctors felt that Benton was stable enough to graduate to the next aisle in the NICU.  While he is not yet ready for the step down unit for "feeders and growers" he is stable enough to no longer be in the critical first bay of the NICU.  So when we walked in to the NICU this morning Benton had been moved to a new spot.  I was happy to know that the doctors felt that he was stable enough to graduate to the next bay but it was kind of sad to say goodbye to our old spot.  We had been in the same spot for almost three months and it's weird how an area that at one point was so foreign now feels like home.  But change is good and we couldn't be more thrilled with Benton's progress. 

Our little cutie!
Please continue to pray for Benton's lungs to continue getting stronger with each passing day.  With him now on full feeds his next big challenge will be getting off the ventilator.  Benton still needs to reduce his ventilator pressures and reduce his oxygen requirement which will be a long road, but we will be by his side every day encouraging him on his road to recovery. 

4 comments:

  1. LorrieFebruary 2, 2014 at 10:28 PM

    Oh my gosh ~ this is all such fantastic news! Benton looks adorable in his little elephant onesy. It's easy to see why you all love this little guy so much! I can't thank you enough for sharing this amazing journey with all of us. Being a childless woman, it's been especially heartwarming and gut wrenching reading your blog. I think of how far medicine has come and what could have been. I know that my days of having children are long gone, so I've got lots of prayers stored up for couples like you and Joe who are going through this incredible life altering experience. I've also got lots of prayers stored up for the special children like Benton, who need extra prayers and good vibes sent their way. We know that Benton had a big mountain to climb, but he's certainly doing his best to get to that summit ~ to the top of that hill. And when he does, there will be a huge village of all of us who've prayed and kept Benton, you and Joe in our thoughts. May God continue to hold you all in the palm of His hands. May He continue to help Benton's lungs get stronger and stronger every day. God Bless you all :)

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  2. LorrieFebruary 2, 2014 at 10:30 PM

    PS - very nice pictures of your family! There's a lot less look of worry and a lot more look of pure love and happiness :)

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  3. SarahFebruary 5, 2014 at 5:19 AM

    Hooray for Benton!!! I'm so glad to read that the PICC line is out and that he's moved out of the critical bay. He's looking so much bigger, and I can't wait to see him in more onsies! Nate and I send all our love to you three and pray for Benton's continued improvement. <3 The Greenwoods

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  4. UnknownFebruary 8, 2014 at 6:06 AM

    Dear Marika: "Praise be to God from whom all blessings flow." It is so wonderful to see your son's incredible progress and perseverance. How wonderful! You all are in my prayers.

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