Wednesday Afternoon

James had his 3rd trip to the OR today. He did a great job once again. They did not fix his espohagus because they could not get enough OR time (ugh!). Today they stretched his esophagus and now the gap between the upper and lower esophagus is less than half a centimeter! His next trip to the OR is already scheduled for Monday afternoon. The doctors expect to be able to fix his esophagus at this time (please, please, please). He is off the ventilator and doing well now. He's just a little fussy from the circumcision, but who wouldn't be?! Don't worry though, he's on enough pain killers to keep him comfortable.

Fun Weekend

James had a great weekend visiting with Grandma Sharon and Grandpa Dick. They of course found him adorable...who doesn't?!?

James is contemplating what to say to Grandma & Grandpa when he meets them.

Grandpa Dick and James talked about going fishing together.

James is telling his nurse to go away (with his eyes) so that he can have more time with his parents and grandparents.

Grandma Sharon and James talked about his cool uncle and aunts and cousin that live in St. Louis.

Back to the OR

James is scheduled for his next trip to the OR on Wednesday. The plan is to go in and dilate (stretch) his esophagus. If the distance between his upper and lower esophagus is small enough, then the surgeons will connect them together and James will be able to start the recovery process (this is what we are praying for). Please pray that the doctors are able to fix his esophagus and that he recovers quickly (so that he can come home sooner!).

Pictures, as promised

James is already an expert at blowing bubbles!

Relaxing after having his oxygen taken off on Wednesday. :)


Still enjoying no oxygen on Thursday! Nice work James!

Celebrating the the good news after his trip to the OR on Friday!! (wearing his hat from Aunt Abby)

Encouraging News

James did a great job today! They took him down to the OR bright and early this morning at 7:30 and he was back by 9:30. He is a strong little guy and came off the ventilator right away...yay! The gap in his esphagus is shrinking too...it was down to 1.5 cm! The doctors are going to stretch it a little each day for a week and then go back in early the week after next...at which time they should be able to fix him right up. He's in his birthday suit right now until he gets all warmed back up, but I will post a new picture soon. James is weighing in at a beefy 6 pounds 9 ounces today!

Update

James is still growing. He is now weighing in at 6 pounds 5 ounces (2.89 Kg). His surgeon is going to take him down to the OR on Friday to do an investigative procedure. They are going to measure the exact gap in his esophagus and stretch it some as well to lessen whatever gap there is. If the gap is less than 2 cm (it was 3.2 cm two-and-a-half weeks ago), then they will schedule James for surgery late next week or early the week after depending on the surgeon's availability. If the gap is more than 2 cm, then they will continue to stretch it and measure it each week until it is less than 2 cm. On Friday, they are also going to put in a Mickey button in place of his G-Tube. This will mean one less wire attached to him at all times and it makes his feedings easier.

Please pray that all goes well on Friday. They will have to intibate James for the procedure, so please pray that he comes off the ventilator quickly and successfully. Also pray that the gap is small and the corrective surgery can be done soon. (I still pray that God will just fix him without surgery, but I know that his surgeon is great if he needs it) I also found out that recovery time after the corrective surgery will probably be a couple of weeks, so please pray for Dave and my continued patience and sanity :)

Off topic, please keep the current and former members of FBC of Galveston in your thoughts and prayers. They are going through a lot right now and could use all the prayers you could send their way!

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

Happy Birthday James!

Yesterday we celebrated James' one-month birthday! We got him all bathed and then made him pose for pictures. I'm pretty sure James was thinking that his Mom is crazy the whole time, but I had fun! James is weighing an amazing 5 pounds 14 ounces now...nearly 2 pounds more than when he was born. Still no word on when the next steps will take place, but I will let you all know as soon as I do. My plan is to track down the surgeons on Monday to get some answers!

James...in the middle of bath time.

This is his my-mom-is-crazy face!

This is his enough-with-the-pictures-already face meant for his daddy!

Happy Labor Day!

We had a great Labor Day weekend! James was very excited to have visitors from Indiana. I mean look how happy he is!
Amos, Ashley, and Miriam made the road trip and we were all very excited to see them. We spent some time visiting James (obviously!) and also took them to see a few of the Pittsburgh sites. Amos and Ashley enjoyed their first Pittsburgher at Primanti's and we took the Duquesne Incline up to Mount Washington to admire the view. Ashley and I also visited the outlet mall. It was nice to get out and I was able to get some awesome Labor Day deals on clothes for Dave and James!
(sorry about the layout of the post...I'm still not very good at making my posts pretty)

Neighbors

So Dave and I have the best neighbors...Rich & Karen. Despite the fact that Karen had surgery the same week I had James, she has given us food several times to help keep us fed. We are profusely thankful and as we were told when we moved in, "No one ever turns away food from Karen's kitchen." Everything she sends our way is amazing, even things I wouldn't think would be like cabbage casserole and zuchinni cakes. All of it is fantastic. And as if the food wasn't enough, we came home from the hospital last night and our lawn was mowed!! Truly great people. Thanks Rich & Karen!