Merry Christmas!

We hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas! We enjoyed spending time with family over the last few days. Christmas was a day of driving around town to visit my boys. I had great visits with Caden. He was happy and playful. He talked a lot and gave me lots of smiles! We also got a good report. He's been gaining weight everyday (he's 8 lb. 7 oz. right now) and the surgeon said his incisions look good. I also had a good time at the fire station. Both sides of the family came to see Nathan. After eating a huge meal the kids got to spray the hoses, climb in the fire engine, and try on fire gear. They had a blast. All in all, it was a nice day!

3 More Days Till Christmas

It's been over a week since the surgery. Caden has started eating and making poopy diapers! Everything is working properly! They will slowly increase the amount of milk he gets at each feeding until he finally reaches a full feeding. Overall the doctors are pleased with his progress.

We are looking forward to Christmas. It is so great to be off of work. And of course we love to spend time with family. My sister and her family are coming to Houston so that's exciting. I have to admit I'm a little sad about the thought of Christmas this year. Caden will be at the hospital and Nathan is working. The good news is I am going to be visiting both of them.

We wish everyone a Merry Christmas!

Another Successful Surgery!

It's kind of strange to be excited about a surgery, but in a way I am. This is the surgery that is needed for him to recover and come home! Dr. Bloss, the surgeon, had a good report. He said that Caden had more intestines left than he realized. He said that all the important parts were still there and that he should have everything he needs to digest properly. He gave us high fives for "poopy diapers." Thank you for all the prayers, sweet emails, phone calls, and visits!

* This is a picture of Caden after the surgery. You can see the incision and a bandage covering where the stoma was. Dr. Bloss left his signature on Caden's bandage.

A Big Day

Today I went back to work in order to save some of my FMLA for when Caden comes home. I'm used to getting ready and going to see him first thing in the morning. I have to admit it was hard this morning. However, when I got to school I was greeted by so many smiling faces. It made it a lot easier to get through the day.

After school I rushed to the hospital to see my Sweetpea. My mom was there holding him while he was sleeping. I'm so glad that I have such a wonderful family that spends time with him when I'm away. Then, I got Caden ready for his visit from Santa! I talked to Santa about how Caden couldn't get to the mall for his first Christmas Santa picture, so he said he would stop by the hospital. I think Caden won Santa over. I think he'll get exactly what he asked for.

Today we found out that Caden's surgery to reconnect his intestines is going to be this Wednesday. Please be praying for a successful surgery and a quick recovery.

Today's Blessings: Thoughtful coworkers, sweet students, dinner from a friend, hospital visitors, and Santa.

All Clear

Caden had a Barium enema today to check his lower GI for any blockages. We are excited to report that they did not find any problems! This means that they shouldn't need to remove anything else from his bowels during the next surgery. Thank you Lord for answering my prayer with a yes!!

Cade wore this outfit today on his field trip to the 2nd floor for the procedure. He attracted a lot of attention. The nurse said he enjoyed looking around in the hallways.

Half Way There

We've been at the NICU for 6 weeks, and it looks like we have about 6 more to go! We were informed that he will probably have his second surgery (to reconnect his intestines) in about 2 weeks. This week they will do tests to make sure that the lower part of his intestines, which are currently not being used, are clear from blockages and scar tissue. Please be praying for a good report. Then, he will most likely have the surgery the following week. After the surgery, they will start the feeding process again to make sure everything is functioning properly. Then he will get to home! There is no way to know how quickly the feeding process will go after the surgery. We are hopeful that he will be home at the beginning of January! Thank you for your prayers!

*In the pictures it was time to eat. He was waiting on me to get the bottle, but instead I grabbed the camera because he looked so sweet. Of course he got upset and startd to cry. I just love that pouty lip!