Light at the end of the Tunnel

We decided not to post any new pictures today b/c one of our biggest fears for Colby became a reality this morning.... Over the past 5 months we have tried to prepare ourselves for what he might have to endure during this process of healing. The doctors had warned us from the very start that it might be hard to see him hooked up to all of the machines in the NICU. We had prepared ourselves for the worst and fortunately most of those fears have not become a reality. Becca and I were talking the other night about some of the things he had been able to allude during his stay in the NICU. Among that list was an IV in his scalp (that is "head" for my slow friends). Well that fear became a reality this morning. He had done so well over the last 9 days with his IV ports especially since they were able to hook up most of his stuff last week through the main line in his umbilical cord. Well they removed that line on Saturday so ever since then they have been using std IV ports. Apparently a typical port is only good/ functional in a baby for 3 days so they have run out of hands and feet to start new IVs so today as a last resort they had to put an IV port in his head. Permitting he doesn't need any additional meds that should come out Thursday or Friday AM. Even though he had to get the "Unicorn" port today he has been able to avoid a pic line as well as many other things typical in the NICU. So we are thankful.

Now for the good news.... This port was put in so he could finish his antibiotics that he started on Sunday to fight off a potential infection. He will finish up that round of meds tomorrow. So hopefully he will not have to take any additional meds after Thursday. Other good things that happened today...... They stopped his anti-seizure medication today at noon. We had hoped he would be able to stop taking that medicine before he went home. They decided to discontinue that medicine after they got his EEG report back this morning and were able to conclude that there were no signs of seizure activity and the brain appeared to be responding positively since his last seizure episode last week. They also told us that his body temperature appears to be stable. He has been off the warming bed since mid-day yesterday..... More progress.

Oh yeah Colby has done really well in the feeding arena as well. Might not surprise those that know his big brother Brody. Colby has gained just over a pound in the last week, which is really good for a NICU heart baby. I must credit Becca with this success b/c she has been diligent and patient in feeding him. Yes, she is the best mommy in town.

Conclusion of today's activity: no more positive cultures for infection, discontinue seizure medicine, and body temperature appears to be stabilizing.... These are all pieces to the "going home" puzzle. Tentatively the doctors are wanting to discharge Colby on Friday. Yeah!!!!!

Despite the Unicorn IV in his head, today was filled with great news and a lot of progress.
Colby's demeanor is a lot like Brody's calm, laid back, and happy. All of his nurses keep talking about how happy he acts and how laid back his temperament is. I guess he gets that from him awesome mommy.

We are so happy to see the light at the end of the tunnel. We are trying not to get our hopes up too much but at the same time we are pretty excited about the thought of having both our little boys at home together and it seems like it might be sooner rather than later. We will continue to pray that he doesn't have anymore setbacks yet we pray that he is stable and healthy when they do release him into our care. Apparently the doctors are judging our parenting skills on Becca's aptitude rather than mine otherwise Colby would be 18 before they released him.

We can't thank each of you enough for your diligence in prayer and support and we can not give enough credit to the healing hands of God. Despite the emotional roller coaster Becca and I have been on for the past 10 days there has never been a moment in which we felt alone or did not feel the loving touch of God.