6.12.14 Spencer Update

It's been a busy couple of days. Spencer is doing really well. His condition is holding steady. He continues to wear the CPAP and have just a little bit of air pushed to the back of his mouth. He still has to do all the work to decide to breathe, but the gentle puffs of air help make it a little easier for him. When he forgets to breathe, they call that bradycardia, or "bradys." It's important he wakes himself up and take a breath, rather than relying on the nurses to wake him up and remind him to breathe (by massaging his back or foot). Babies born at 26 weeks can typically have 50-60 episodes a day where they stop breathing. Spencer has only been having 15-16 episodes a day, and in the last two days, he has woke himself up and started breathing again on his own every time! We are learning this is an exciting accomplishment for his gestation and are so thankful he is doing so well.

Another common symptom of babies at 26 weeks is jaundice. Spencer has a little bit of this so he has been under the light on and off for the past few days. The last two days he has gotten a break because his bilirubin levels have been lower. Even if he has to go back under the lights, there is not a lot of concern around jaundice.

I was discharged from the hospital yesterday and came back to Lincoln for the night. It was really hard to leave the hospital, to leave Spencer there. But coming home and getting a big hug and kiss from Carter was the best thing. I feel so conflicted to have two kids living in different cities and feel such a sense of obligation to both. When I am with the one, everything makes me think of the other and wish they were there. It was a hard night trying to adjust to this new reality and feelings of sadness.

It is also difficult to do much of anything while trying to recover from a C-section incision. I give so much credit to the moms that have done this before me! And - I was thinking about how I have it slightly easier than most because I don't have my baby to take care of at home on top of everything else! Matt has been amazing at taking care of all the house duties and most of the Carter duties so that I don't wear myself out too much.

Today I took a "mental health day" and didn't go see Spencer. It was so hard to be away from him. And there is a constant level of anxiety that they could call at any time saying there has been a change in his condition. It's concerning to be an hour away from him, but we truly believe he is getting the most amazing care at Methodist. I spent most of the day just getting settled back in Lincoln and picking up a few necessities. It is much more comfortable to be at home than in a hospital room, so that has been nice.

Tomorrow we will head back to Omaha to spend most of the day with Spencer. For the next two weeks or so, I can't drive because of the C-section incision and pain meds so we will be figuring out how to get to Omaha and back as much as possible. After that, things should settle in a bit as I can make the drive by myself each day.

Here are a few pictures from the last few days. Because Spencer is doing so well, they allowed us to do "kangaroo time" or skin-to-skin which means Spencer got to lay on our chest and take a nap. It was such a great experience and brings us closer to him as we get to experience him in a different way than when he is in his incubator.

The last picture shows a little bit of his room. Each NICU baby gets their own room with couch, chair, TV, sink, etc...it is a really nice set up. We have only great things to say about Methodist and all the staff, but I will save all that for my next post.