What a day!!

Well, little Cooper is still trying to figure things out! Yesterday was a very scary day for us all!! Cooper was dropping his stats (oxygen saturation and heart beat) quite a bit, and was requiring help to come back up. He even needed to be bagged twice. One of those bagging resulted in a "Code Blue" which was SO SCARY for me!!! After the dust settled, the nurse told us that she only pushed the code button because she could not reach the doctor and needed one quickly; they all came running!! WOW.

He spent most of the day requiring 90% or more oxygen from the ventilator. It was a rough day watching him go up and down and need so much help to come out of it. They ordered an x-ray late in the evening and saw that he was overloaded with fluid. They gave him some Lasix (sp?) and a sedative, and he settled down a bit. We didn't leave the hospital until close to midnight!! I called to check on him later and he was having a MUCH better time!!

This morning we slept in a bit knowing that he was so much better! We also stopped by Target to finally register for baby stuff. My first baby shower is in a few weeks and I needed to get that done so people can shop (hopefully!! LOL) Anyway...

I spent a few hours with Cooper and he was doing his dip thing. He was coming out of it without much help. It was nice to see. They gave him a new medication to help open up his lungs. It seems to have helped! They are also cutting back on his pain meds and he actually has to go on methadone to help get him off without withdrawal (he has been on it for weeks-but only a little bit!) Bless his heart, he has had a lot done to him and is doing so well!!

I learned that there is life outside of the hospital tonight!! I left early to go to my women's bible study tonight. Since we got there so late, Kevin stayed to make sure he is ok! It was SO NICE to laugh and be real with my girls! The video was good and gave me something to work for!! I can't wait to start the next one! Beth Moore--my favorite!!

No more jet!!

Cooper was taken off the jet ventilator last night! His CO2 levels were high again and he was breathing over it, so the doctors decided to put him back on the regular ventilator. He is doing quite well!! His CO2 levels have come down and he is allowed to breathe with this ventilator. We are still watching his O2 saturation go up and down, but it is not as severe as it was before the surgery. Apparently this is something all preemies do... He also got his first eye exam today. They don't test him for what he can or can't see, but they look at the blood vessels in his eyes to see how they are growing. His eyes are good so far! He has to be tested quite a bit due to him being on oxygen.

I feel so incredibly blessed!! Shortly after we got here this morning, he woke up and we got to see his eyes for a while! He had to be heavily sedated while he was on the jet, so him being awake was a HUGE blessing today!! He looked at me and I just stared at him! I am in awe of this blessing. He is so absolutely beautiful!! (Kevin would not like to hear me say beautiful, he prefers handsome!) He has made some amazing accomplishments in his brief month and 1 week on Earth. We are so incredibly thankful to God for our little miracle!!

The nurse just came in with his latest blood gas results and they are GREAT!! Praise God!!!

Back on the jet...

Merry Christmas!! We hope you have had a wonderful Christmas with your families! We have enjoyed many celebrations!

Well Cooper is back on the jet ventilator. This was an expected set back after the surgery. The chest X-ray shows pockets of his lungs that are not moving like they should. The jet ventilator is designed to expand his lungs gently. This should help him with breathing and get rid of the CO2 he is holding. He also has a bit of an infection. A little bit after surgery Cooper started needing more and more suctioning of his lungs. They sent a sample of the secretions to the lab and sure enough there was infection there. They put him on 2 types of antibiotics, so this should take care of the infection rather quickly.

This morning Cooper's CO2 level was very high and his O2 stats were all over the place. The doctors decided that he was trying to breathe over the jet too much so they gave him some paralyzing drugs that would help him relax and let the jet do its job. We saw almost immediate results! His CO2 levels went from 92 to 32 in about an hour!! Unfortunately this was not a permanent change. His levels were back in the 70s this evening. They adjusted the pressures and we are just watching to see what he does.

Our church came to the hospital to serve their annual Christmas dinner tonight. I was truly blessed to get to be on both sides of this ministry: I got to greet parents and get served dinner as well! I am truly blessed to be a part of a church that finds and fills needs!!

God is so good!! I am blessed beyond anything I deserve!! I am working on giving my fear to Him and allowing Him to be in control! I have control issues and this is EXTREMELY hard for me! I have not been in control of any part of this whole situation!! Our past losses have also contributed to some extra fear and I am trying to just give it away! I know that He knows my heart and knows how fearful I am. His number one commandment (the one in the Bible the most) is "Do not Fear; Do not be afraid". I am working on that!! Giving Him my fear!

One month!!!

Cooper is one month old today!!! He has had a busy month here. He has been on 2 different kinds of ventilators, billy lights, and billy blankets. He has had head ultrasounds, blood transfusions, x-rays, Picc line, blood tests, and surgery...whew what a month!!!

Cooper was doing so well after surgery that we left the hospital to get some rest. We were so tired from all the weeks excitement that I actually slept through the alarm to get up to pump! We got a phone call from the doctor at 7am. Cooper didn't have such a good night. He apparently "clamped down" on the ventilator and no air could get through. He had to be bagged and re-intubated and even got some chest compressions. This is apparently VERY common in preemies. SCARY but common. Their lungs are just not mature and they clamp down if frustrated, in pain, or upset. They changed his tubes out and he came out of it. I am so thankful for great doctors and nurses. God was watching over our little guy. I am so glad I was not present for that! We got to the hospital as soon as we could and watched him the rest of the day. He had a GREAT day!! His stats were good all day and he had no "spells".

I got the greatest present today! I got to hold my baby!! The nurses found out that I have not held my son at all since birth, and they agreed that this was the best medicine for both of us. She said Cooper needed to be held and kissed by me as much as I need to hold and kiss him. I sat in the chair and she put a pillow in my lap and laid Cooper in my lap. I held his head with one hand and held his hands in the other. I spent the next hour in awe of my son!! God is so wonderful!! He has blessed me beyond anything I deserve!!! The whole time I held him his stats were high. It was so wonderful!! What a great day!!

We were a little nervous leaving him tonight, given that he had a bad night. We left and I warned the nurse that I would probably be calling her a LOT tonight!! She welcomed me to call!! I just got off the phone with her and he is doing great!! Can't wait to talk to her again later!! LOL worried mom!!

Whew!!!!!

What a day!!! Today was Cooper's heart surgery. I have never been so nervous in my whole life! I held it together pretty good until the doctors came to pick him up to take him to the OR (I cried like a baby!!!). Our pastor Erik Reed, friend Tiffany Chevurant (sp?), my father in law, Kevin and I and about 5 doctors and nurses were crowded in the room while they were unplugging him to take him to surgery. It was a little crowded! Pastor Erik prayed with the room and over Cooper and I felt a little better. I know they do these surgeries all the time, but this is the first time on MY baby!!

We got to ride in the elevator with the doctors to the OR and say goodbye at the door. Then we met our family and friends in the waiting room. We started waiting at 11:00 and by 11:45 the surgeon came in the waiting room to say the surgery went just as planned! They didn't have to do a chest tube and there was no blood loss. He said the vessel was quite large so we should see a big change! Pastor Erik prayed with us again and we all praised God for the great news!!

We had to wait an hour for them to get Cooper settled in his room. They called and we went running to the room. He looked SO GOOD! He was still asleep but we talked to him and felt so much better. We spent the rest of the day watching his stats and praising God! He did have a brief time where his heart rate was high. She took this as a sign that he was in pain. They upped his meds some and suctioned him and he went right back down. We decided to leave around 7:30 pm to get some much needed rest!! We slept at home last night, but neither of us got much sleep from thinking about the day ahead! So we are exhausted and excited!! God is SO GOOD!!

Thank you all for your prayers!! To God be all the glory!! We love you all!!

Big days for a little guy...

This has been a big few days for our little Cooper. He was moved to Vanderbilt Sunday night in preparation for the PDA surgery. His first car ride was in an ambulance and they gave us a shirt to prove it! It was a pretty cool experience. They have a portable incubator with a ventilator built in. I was a little nervous (OK, A LOT nervous!!) but he made the trip in one piece! We hung out at Vanderbilt and slept in their sleep room so we would be there early for his tests and it was a new place! (The sleep room was nice to have, but it is not home and we were not prepared to stay overnight. It is good to be home. Ask Kevin about the cot sometime! Bless him for taking it and giving me the twin bed!!) Cooper arrived at Vandy just in time to meet Santa and get his picture taken with him and Mrs. Claus! It is precious.

This morning the Vanderbilt doctors ran a BUNCH of tests on him. They wanted to make sure he was ready for the surgery, an echo to see where the murmur was is, how big it is, blood checks, head ultrasound, and a PICC line. I was most nervous about the PICC line, but the nurse that puts them in was wonderful and put us all to ease. She only does PICC lines and explained them very well. She got it in the first time!!

After waiting most of the day for an answer as to when the surgery will be, we were told that the surgery would be tomorrow, December 22nd at 11:00 am. We spoke with the surgeon, and he went over the surgery and the risks and benefits of the surgery. Basically, if they do not repair this PDA valve, he will have trouble getting off the ventilator. The risks are the same risks with any surgery. The actual procedure will take about 15 minutes!! There is set up that can make the procedure last about an hour beginning to end. Basically they make a small incision under the ribcage, deflate the left lung, identify the valve,clamp it closed, re inflate the lung, and stitch him up with stitches that dissolve. We are praying that it is that simple!! I will keep you posted on the procedure!

No Jet!!!

Cooper got taken off the jet ventilator on Friday!!!! This is a huge step in the right direction!! They are monitoring his CO2 levels frequently to make sure he is doing well without the extra pressures. So far so good!! We are so proud of our little guy!!

As for the murmur, the PDA valve is still open and moderate. They are thinking that surgery is probably necessary. They are going to give him a little more time to be sure.

He is growing a bit and is weighing close to 2 pounds and 3 ounces!

Thanks for your prayers!

Updates

Well it has been a few days since the last post... I am not very good at this. We are still working on finding the balance between "life" and visiting Cooper in the NICU. Right now we try to sleep in a bit, then go visit him in the afternoon and stay a bit after the shift change. That puts us home later in the evening, so I am really tired and don't feel like blogging!!! We got up early this morning because the Titans were coming to visit. We actually got to meet David Ball and THE Kyle Vanden Bosch!!! We got our picture taken with them and Cooper and they signed a poster and bib for Cooper! It was a cool experience. They asked questions about Cooper and his progress, and seemed very genuine. I thought they were so nice!! BTW they are HUGE!!!

Cooper is doing good. He has given us a few scares lately, but he is doing good. He is still on the jet ventilator. He had such a good day on Saturday that we thought he was showing signs he was ready to come off the jet and go on a regular ventilator, but Sunday he started slipping back with his CO2 and oxygen. His little lungs are not getting rid of the CO2. Monday was an ok day, he was just a bit lower than the weekend, but not as good as Saturday. Today was a major scare. Since this weekend, Cooper has been somewhat unstable. He doesn't tolerate touch very well (his stats drop when he is messed with!) so that means I don't get to help with the care of Cooper. I was getting to take his temperature and change his diaper, but since he is not stable, I cannot! Dr. Rojas introduced a new medication today that helps open up the lungs, and it seemed to work almost immediately!! We are hoping that he gets stable very soon! I ACTUALLY miss changing his diaper!!!

We are also praying that his PDA valve closes on its own. He is now too old for the medication to close the valve. At this point it would only cause kidney problems and other issues... So our options are for it to close on its own with fluid restriction or surgery. They are going to wait a little bit to see if it closes. They are concerned with the valve causing issues with the breathing so it is a BIG issue right now...

Thank you so much for all your prayers. We love you all!!

Cooper Dale Jones

On November 23rd 2009 our lives were blessed beyond measure. Our son, Cooper Dale Jones made his appearance on that Monday due to my pre-eclampsia and possible signs of anemia in him. I was only 26 weeks pregnant. We met with the NICU doctors and were told what to expect with a 26 week old baby. Cooper was delivered by C-section and he was wisked away to the NICU, but not before meeting me, I got to touch his sweet little face!! He came out fighting and making noise, which everyone was surprised by!! Kevin went with Cooper and the NICU team to get him settled there. After the surgery, I was put in a recovery room and put on magnesium for 24 hours, so I couldn't visit Cooper for a whole day... Cooper is now 2 weeks old! He is doing great! Life in the NICU is a bumpy, busy road!! We are trying to balance "normal" life with NICU life. We try to visit Cooper as much as possible, and get plenty of rest. We are still learning how to balance!!