"You can stop treating him like a preemie and start treating him like a newborn!"
That is what our pediatrician told us this afternoon and for a 2nd straight week Porter has gained exactly another 10 oz. That is great weight gain, over an ounce a day.
He tips the scales now at 5 lb 6 oz! We are so happy and proud of the way he is progressing.
God is good!
I can't believe after all those days of reporting to you the happening of Porter that I have left you all hanging for a week now. Things are busy around her and "life" is beginning to take off again at a rapid fire pace.
I would ask that you lift prayers to our Lord on behalf of the Keith and Kristy Talley family. I reported last week that they had given birth prematurely to Kaitlyn Elizabeth 15 or 16 weeks early. Young Kaitlyn at 1 pound 6 ounces just didn’t have enough to survive and died Wednesday morning.
Please pray for them. We love you all,
Dad
Friday, July 31, 2009
Thursday, July 23, 2009
7-23 10:11 PM
Had our first check up this morning and all indications are that Porter is doing good!
He is up to 4 lb 12 oz now and is gaining over an ounce per day which is excellent. We will have to continue to see the doctor every week until his original due date of 8-14.
He is doing great though.
At home, big brother is doing a great job and is very concerned for Porter and wants to give lots of kisses and hugs. Very sweet boy. If I have a lover and a fighter, it won't be hard to figure which is which.
Karen and I are so grateful for his success and feel so blessed to have so many prayers. Of course we will always need them to continue but I would ask for you all to say a special prayer for another preemie from Weatherford. The little girl is 16 week premature and weighed 1 lb 6 oz at birth and is at Integris just like we were. She has a tough fight and a long road ahead. But we serve a very powerful God. Please pray for her strength and for her parents as well. Karen has spoken with the father and though we really don't know them personally, we feel like we know what they are going through. We are hoping to be able to be a blessing to them in the days to come. For now...let us pray!
God Bless the babies of the world!
He is up to 4 lb 12 oz now and is gaining over an ounce per day which is excellent. We will have to continue to see the doctor every week until his original due date of 8-14.
He is doing great though.
At home, big brother is doing a great job and is very concerned for Porter and wants to give lots of kisses and hugs. Very sweet boy. If I have a lover and a fighter, it won't be hard to figure which is which.
Karen and I are so grateful for his success and feel so blessed to have so many prayers. Of course we will always need them to continue but I would ask for you all to say a special prayer for another preemie from Weatherford. The little girl is 16 week premature and weighed 1 lb 6 oz at birth and is at Integris just like we were. She has a tough fight and a long road ahead. But we serve a very powerful God. Please pray for her strength and for her parents as well. Karen has spoken with the father and though we really don't know them personally, we feel like we know what they are going through. We are hoping to be able to be a blessing to them in the days to come. For now...let us pray!
God Bless the babies of the world!
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Happy to be Home!
Greetings all,
Just want to try to keep this Blog going but I find it hard to find time and tough to come up with information to pass along.
We are really doing good. Porter is on his same schedule from the NICU and eating every 3 to 4 hours. His appetite seems to be good as he is eating about 45 to 50 mL's each feeding.
Big Brother is quite the concerned one. when we are changing a diaper for handling Porter in any way, Charlie is right there. Porter was crying as we were taking his temperature the other evening and Charlie was right beside him saying, "It's OK Porter...it's OK!"
He offers kisses every chance he gets and is more interested then we ever thought he would be.
We are really only handling Porter at his feedings, other then that he is resting in his room. He has the apnea monitor so that really helps us feel comfortable to let him rest.
Will try to keep you all posted and keep new photos coming.
All my best, dad
Friday, July 17, 2009
Finally Home!
It took us exactly 5 weeks but we are all home sleeping under one roof.
The plan (as I blogged yesterday) was to come home today, Friday. Yesterday about 2:30 while Karen was out picking up a few things, Dr. Watson-Fraley came by to check on Porter. She asked me if we wanted to go home today, Thursday. She cautioned that she didn't want me to feel like we were being pushed out, but she just had so much confidence in Porters progression.
It took til almost 7:30 to do paper work and load the car, but we got it done and got home about 8:30. It all happened perfectly. It just so happened that Kelly and Grant were bringing Charlie up to see us. So, we all 4 got to come home together.
We stopped at McDonalds for supper and as I was passing Charlie his Happy Meal, he ask Karen and Me, "Where's Porter's Happy Meal?"
Porter does have an apnea monitor to alarm us if his heart rate or respiratory rate gets too high or too low. He is to be eating 40 or mL's every 3 hours or if he will take 50 mL's we can let him go 4 hours between feedings. Well, he has been eating 60 mL's every 3 hours. So, needless to say, he has an appetite.
As far as home and visitors; we are trying to emulate the NICU for Porter and keep most of the same rules. Obvious precautions have to be taken though as he is still not supposed to be out of Karen's tummy for another month. We are going to try to keep a very low key environment around here with only two visitors at a time and a limited number of visits per day.
Please keep us in your prayers as we navigate these waters on our own without the positive reinforcements from docs and nurses and without all the dings and dongs of the monitors telling us what we need to do.
May God bless you all as he has us!
-dad
The plan (as I blogged yesterday) was to come home today, Friday. Yesterday about 2:30 while Karen was out picking up a few things, Dr. Watson-Fraley came by to check on Porter. She asked me if we wanted to go home today, Thursday. She cautioned that she didn't want me to feel like we were being pushed out, but she just had so much confidence in Porters progression.
It took til almost 7:30 to do paper work and load the car, but we got it done and got home about 8:30. It all happened perfectly. It just so happened that Kelly and Grant were bringing Charlie up to see us. So, we all 4 got to come home together.
We stopped at McDonalds for supper and as I was passing Charlie his Happy Meal, he ask Karen and Me, "Where's Porter's Happy Meal?"
Porter does have an apnea monitor to alarm us if his heart rate or respiratory rate gets too high or too low. He is to be eating 40 or mL's every 3 hours or if he will take 50 mL's we can let him go 4 hours between feedings. Well, he has been eating 60 mL's every 3 hours. So, needless to say, he has an appetite.
As far as home and visitors; we are trying to emulate the NICU for Porter and keep most of the same rules. Obvious precautions have to be taken though as he is still not supposed to be out of Karen's tummy for another month. We are going to try to keep a very low key environment around here with only two visitors at a time and a limited number of visits per day.
Please keep us in your prayers as we navigate these waters on our own without the positive reinforcements from docs and nurses and without all the dings and dongs of the monitors telling us what we need to do.
May God bless you all as he has us!
-dad
Thursday, July 16, 2009
7-16 11:18 AM
Where do I begin?
Mr. Porter has decided he is a big boy! WOW!!!
Wednesday we got to OKC just in time to feed Porter and make it to our discharge class. Pretty much a waste of time. Things like, "Don't leave your infant in a car alone!" Really?!?!
Ok, so during that class Porter passed his "car seat challenge" which is where we take the car seat in and they put him in it hooked up to all his monitors and make sure he doesn't have any heart or breathing problems. Basically to make sure the ride home won't stress him too much.
They then moved us to the "penthouse" the 10th floor or Pediatric floor. We are caring for him around the clock and we are all so happy. He is doing good and we are doing great.
The most exciting part is that it looks like we will be home tomorrow!!!! God is amazing! Karen and I will stay again tonight and Kelly and Grant Schamburg are bringing big brother over this afternoon and he will get to see Porter for the very first time. We are obviously excited about this.
I just can't begin to express Karen and My's gratitude for everything you have all done for us. Your prayers, your cards, your gifts and the list goes on. We are so very blessed and we have you all to thank for so much of that.
I was telling someone Tuesday; I would not want anyone to go through this and I sure don't want to go through it again but this has been a huge blessing. I have seen first hand the power of prayer and the strength of our Lord. ...To bow in prayer when things are going rough and to walk in 30 minutes later and watch him eat an entire bottle, for example would send chills up my spine to know that our prayers are being heard and that our God is watching over us.
Please continue your prayers as we journey home tomorrow and also say a special prayer for all that babies and families we are leaving behind. From the babies born to drug addicts to the mother we were with in our discharge class who is a single parent and her baby has had two surgeries and is finally ready to go home after 3 months in the NICU. Please pray for them as well.
I love you all and thanks to Independent Insurance Agents of Oklahoma for the use of the computer this morning.
XXOO, -dad
Mr. Porter has decided he is a big boy! WOW!!!
Wednesday we got to OKC just in time to feed Porter and make it to our discharge class. Pretty much a waste of time. Things like, "Don't leave your infant in a car alone!" Really?!?!
Ok, so during that class Porter passed his "car seat challenge" which is where we take the car seat in and they put him in it hooked up to all his monitors and make sure he doesn't have any heart or breathing problems. Basically to make sure the ride home won't stress him too much.
They then moved us to the "penthouse" the 10th floor or Pediatric floor. We are caring for him around the clock and we are all so happy. He is doing good and we are doing great.
The most exciting part is that it looks like we will be home tomorrow!!!! God is amazing! Karen and I will stay again tonight and Kelly and Grant Schamburg are bringing big brother over this afternoon and he will get to see Porter for the very first time. We are obviously excited about this.
I just can't begin to express Karen and My's gratitude for everything you have all done for us. Your prayers, your cards, your gifts and the list goes on. We are so very blessed and we have you all to thank for so much of that.
I was telling someone Tuesday; I would not want anyone to go through this and I sure don't want to go through it again but this has been a huge blessing. I have seen first hand the power of prayer and the strength of our Lord. ...To bow in prayer when things are going rough and to walk in 30 minutes later and watch him eat an entire bottle, for example would send chills up my spine to know that our prayers are being heard and that our God is watching over us.
Please continue your prayers as we journey home tomorrow and also say a special prayer for all that babies and families we are leaving behind. From the babies born to drug addicts to the mother we were with in our discharge class who is a single parent and her baby has had two surgeries and is finally ready to go home after 3 months in the NICU. Please pray for them as well.
I love you all and thanks to Independent Insurance Agents of Oklahoma for the use of the computer this morning.
XXOO, -dad
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
7-14 11:12PM
What a day today has been!!! So much to tell!!!
Well, he has been doing great in the open crib and doing great with his feedings. He has taken every feeding from a bottle since 10:30AM yesterday, and they have removed his feeding tube! He had is hearing screen today and past 100% in both ears!
The most exciting news they give us today was...that they want to move him up to the Pediatric floor and we will be able to stay with him there!! This move will happen tomorrow afternoon, after we take the discharge class. This also means that in about 48 hours from then we will be bringing Porter HOME!!!! Can you all believe that??!! So, possibly on Friday he will be coming home to Weatherford to join his big brother!!!
Wow!! How amazing is this?? All the prayers and thoughts have been heard and answered!! Thank you all so very much!! We will still need them as we bring him home and adjust to being at home, so please keep them going!!
GOD IS SO VERY GOOD!!!
lots of love-mom
Well, he has been doing great in the open crib and doing great with his feedings. He has taken every feeding from a bottle since 10:30AM yesterday, and they have removed his feeding tube! He had is hearing screen today and past 100% in both ears!
The most exciting news they give us today was...that they want to move him up to the Pediatric floor and we will be able to stay with him there!! This move will happen tomorrow afternoon, after we take the discharge class. This also means that in about 48 hours from then we will be bringing Porter HOME!!!! Can you all believe that??!! So, possibly on Friday he will be coming home to Weatherford to join his big brother!!!
Wow!! How amazing is this?? All the prayers and thoughts have been heard and answered!! Thank you all so very much!! We will still need them as we bring him home and adjust to being at home, so please keep them going!!
GOD IS SO VERY GOOD!!!
lots of love-mom
Monday, July 13, 2009
7-13 11:00pm
Wow!! Porter is now in an open crib!!
He has had a great day, he took each of his feedings today from a bottle and took it all!! He is still getting 36mL every 3 hours. He now weights 4lbs 3.2oz!! He is making huge strides to coming home!! His temp has been good today as well!! The nurse said he is being a "big boy"!!
I'm going over tomorrow to spend the day with him, I can hardly wait to see him in that crib! I watched other babies make this step and can hardly believe that is now Porter making that move!
I know I've told you all that your prayers are being heard, but they are being answered beyond our expectations!!! Our God is an awesome God!! Thank you!!
love-Karen
He has had a great day, he took each of his feedings today from a bottle and took it all!! He is still getting 36mL every 3 hours. He now weights 4lbs 3.2oz!! He is making huge strides to coming home!! His temp has been good today as well!! The nurse said he is being a "big boy"!!
I'm going over tomorrow to spend the day with him, I can hardly wait to see him in that crib! I watched other babies make this step and can hardly believe that is now Porter making that move!
I know I've told you all that your prayers are being heard, but they are being answered beyond our expectations!!! Our God is an awesome God!! Thank you!!
love-Karen
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