Update #3

Lori has been staying with mom a lot over the past couple of days.  I stole the following post from her blog, Life is Golden.  Being the journalist, she's able to convey some stuff better than I can:

Mom made some good progress today, including initiating breathing for six and a half hours this morning and coming down significantly on the dosage of medicine that's keeping her sedated.

She's still not able to communicate with us or respond to commands from the doctors and nurses (she doesn't squeeze your hand when instructed or look at you when you say her name, for example). The docs say that she's struggling with anxiety issues and pain and is not able to make additional progress because of it. It's clear, though, that she is aware of her surroundings to some degree. We've been asked to stay strong and positive when we're with her. I believe that she's in the process of digging down deep and finding the faith and courage to fight through this! I've heard from so many people this week who love her and who are rooting for her.

 Needless to say, it's not been an easy week. But if Mom can push through, so can we. Thanks, everyone, for your faith and friendship.

Updates (Mom #2, Baby Appt)

Mom Update #2:

Mom had a successful tracheotomy yesterday afternoon.  This allowed the doctors to remove the breathing tube from her mouth which has caused her quite a bit of discomfort since it was put in on Thursday.  Dad, Lori and I were able to see mom yesterday afternoon and she looked quite a bit better.  She still has a feeding tube down her nose, but at least now she can close her mouth.  She's been sedated for a while since she was trying to fight the tubes.  The doctor did mention that he'd like to put in a smaller trache tube in about a week which will minimize the scarring on her trachea.

Early this morning they lowered the sedation and took her off the ventilator for a while.  Dad has been up at the hospital most of the day and said she was able to breathe on her own for a few hours!  Good news to hear.  She's still on morphine among other drugs to keep her pain free and as comfortable as possible, so she's not back to the point where she can communicate with us again.

Baby Appt:

I had my 6th month appointment today (I'll be 24 weeks this Saturday).  I've gained 5 pounds this month and the doctor says that's right on target.  I'm measuring a few weeks ahead, but he thinks that this is just a growth spurt.  I need to get another picture on here of my belly.  It feels like it's getting bigger every day.

Mom Update #1

It's been a very rough week for my family. Thursday afternoon I got a frantic call from my dad asking me to send Ryan over to check on mom. Ryan and his dad, Brent, ran over to her house to find her not able to breathe very well. She was having problems getting enough CO2 out (as opposed to getting enough air in). They ended up calling an ambulance, which transported mom to Wesley ER.

She's been intubated in ICU since she arrived Thursday afternoon and has been feed by a tube since Friday. She isn't making very much good progress. Today (and part of last night) she kept fighting the tube, so the doctors switched her medication and had to put her in restraints. They are talking about possibly putting a trache in her throat so they can take the tube down her throat out but we haven't been given a time frame.

I'll try to post more once we have something more to update.

5 1/2 months!

WSU Graduation is over! Thank goodness. Saturday also marked my 22nd week or 5 1/2 months of pregnancy. It's so weird to think that there's only 4 months left until we get to meet and hold baby Kaden.

This month's fruit is a papaya. Month 5: Watch what you say -- baby is now able to hear outside noise from down in the womb. Studies show that baby finds gentle music and your own voice most soothing. Nipples are starting to sprout, and that little face is fully formed. And, baby's starting to settle into sleep cycles, snoozing about 12 to 14 hours a day. It shouldn't be hard to figure out when -- just pay attention to those kicks as they start and stop. Average size: 10.5 to 11.8 in, 12.7 to 20.8 oz.

He's been kicking quite a bit for the past few weeks. This morning I slept in to catch up on sleep and when I was thinking about getting up, I felt him move on both sides of my belly. It was so weird!

Home improvements: The bathroom floor down stairs is about 50% done. We're getting closer to moving the office downstairs which Ryan and I are both looking forward to. There's also supposed to be a Lowe's that's going to be built by Fall 2008 just around the corner from our house at 29th and Maize. It may not help with finishing the basement, but it will help with the deck and shed we'd like to put in the back yard sometime next year.

Bananas, Bumps, Floor and Roof

Here's a general update of things that have been going on this week. I'm working all 6 of WSU's graduation ceremonies this weekend so I can pretty much guarantee that I won't be up for posting this weekend. Friday's time commitment will be from 1 pm to 9 pm which means I won't get to see Ryan that evening (and that sucks). Saturday will be from 6 am (which will also suck) to 6 pm. At least I'll be able to see him for a few hours Saturday before he has to go to work.

On to the review:

Week 21: Baby gulps down several ounces of amniotic fluid every day, both for hydration and nutrition and to practice swallowing and digesting. And, these days, those taste buds actually work! Studies show that after birth, babies are most interested in tastes they've already experienced through amniotic fluid. Meaning, think about what you want your future child to eat as you prepare your own lunch. Average size: 10.5 in, 12.7 oz

From here out, unfortunately, we only get one fruit per month instead of weekly (5 - 9 months). That means there's only 5 more fruits till Kaden's here!

Bumps! It feels like my belly has popped sometime during the past week. Kaden is still moving around and the day after I felt him move from the outside Ryan was able to feel him move too. It was so wild to have Ryan feel Kaden and I think it just makes it feel that much more real for him.

Floors. Troy, our firefighter friend, has started work on the bathroom floor. He's going to do concrete stain on the floor and it will be etched to look like tile. The cool part about the floor is that he etched the tile with wider grooves so we'll actually have to grout the floor. It'll make the floor look more like tile. I'm looking forward to getting it done since that will put us so much closer to moving the office downstairs.

And now for the (sarcastic) best part of this week's blog. Remember my blog about wind damage? If you think that sucked, look at this:



We have 3 spots on the front of our roof that have shingles that are "waving" at us and three or four spots on the back of our roof that have missing shingles. We called the roof guy on Wednesday around noon or 1 pm and he didn't call back until 7 pm Thursday. He said he would come over sometime Monday since he lives just right around the corner from us. Well, it's 10 pm and no sign of the roof guy. A naked roof does not look very cool. I'm hoping the rain will stay away!

Rocking and Rolling

Just a quick post tonight - yesterday (if you read the blog below) marked my 20th week or the start of my 5th month of pregnancy. Kaden has celebrated this by moving non-stop for about 45 minutes Sunday night! I can't wait to feel him on the outside.

**  Update!!  **  As soon as I laid to down to watch tv in bed last night, I felt him kick from the outside!  What a strong little guy!  I'm excited to see if Ryan can feel him now.

Wind Damage

Yesterday afternoon didn't exactly go like I hoped it would. I left my office last night and found the wonderful scene:

The whole back window on my car was shattered! Campus police said it was wind damage - I've never heard of that before. Anyway that was the longest drive (15 miles) back to the west side of Wichita that I've ever had. The window ended up collapsing into my car on the drive. Mom and dad let me house my car in their garage since our garage is full of tools, drills, table saws, carpet, wood, sheetrock among other things.

The repair guy showed up promplty at 9:00 and was quick to replace the window. He said I'll probably be finding glass shards for a while. Note to self: vacuum car before letting people ride in the back seat.

Halfway There!

Week 20: Baby's digestive system is busy creating meconium (a tarry black substance made of swallowed amniotic fluid, digestive secretion and dead cells), which will fill the first diaper after birth. And, speaking of the diaper situation... baby's genitals are now fully formed! Average size: 6.5 in, 10.6 oz

The doctor's appointment went smoothly this week. I had a morning appointment but had to come back later that afternoon since the doctor was running back to the hospital to deliver a baby. I've only gained 2 pounds and the doctor said that's fine and some women just don't gain weight the first couple of months. I'm supposed to gain 3-4 this month. We reviewed the sonogram information - nothing really new there.

House wise Ryan finished the laundry room - drop ceiling is installed and two cabinents are hung above the washer and dryer. I now even have a rod to hang up clothes right out of the dryer. The office is painted and we have a beautiful ceiling installed.

Ryan's gone this weekend for his last weekend drill. He'll have a 2 week trip in June that he'll have to do and then he'll be done with his one year contract in the Army National Guard.

1 Year Anniversary

Today is our one year wedding anniversary.  It's hard to believe that only a year ago we were on the beautiful beaches of St. Lucia in the Caribbean.  We've had a wonderful year and will soon be blessed with our first son.

Here's to the first of many good years to come.