quick update - but with lotsa pics!

Kellen came through surgery fine!  They repaired inguinal hernias on both sides and a small umbilical hernia.  He is pretty sleepy, but otherwise doing well.  Praise Jesus!  Thank you for praying for this.

Carson did well too today and therefore gets to do 14 hours on trach collar tomorrow.  Yay Carson!!!

Enjoy the pics of our brave little men!

Carson: "WHAT? My brother is here and I don't get to SEE him?
Who is in charge here? This is completely unacceptable.
I wanna MANAGER."

Carson: "Imma give that ventilator
a left hook, then a right hook,
then, Imma get OUTTA HERE."

Carson...rockin' the trach collar

Kellen...one mellow little dude

Kellen: "Oh, really?  Milk you say?  Yes, please." 

Kellen: "Oh Mommy...you're HILARIOUS!"  

Time with Grampe and Meme Bunch

Carson and Kellen got to meet their Great Grampe Bunch for the first time today! They were both fans of him!

Carson had a good day today! He was on the trach collar for 10 hours and a blood gas was taken at the end of the trial. The CO2 was 55 which is great!!! He continues to do really well, we are awaiting a final decision on what to do about his Gtube. Dr. Yang is supposed to look at it to decide if a revision is necessary. It leaked over the weekend but did not leak at all today so we just ask for prayers as to the next step. We, of course, would rather it not need to be revised but if it is going to need it...the sooner the better in my mind. Carson's medication list continues to shorten...he is now off potassium and sodium and both levels have remained in the acceptable range.

Kellen is doing great! Please keep him and the surgeons in your prayers tomorrow. Surgery to repair his inguinal hernia is scheduled for tomorrow at 2 pm. It should not take any longer than a couple hours and is a fairly routine surgery. He will stay overnight and assuming all goes well, will be discharged the following morning.

Thank you again....for everyone's support, love, and prayers!

Carson did very well today with his eight hour trial of trach collar. Elizabeth spent the day with him in the hospital and was very pleased with how he did. Tomorrow, the plan is for him to be on trach collar for 10 hours and get a blood gas afterwards. We are so very proud of him. 

He did alright with his feedings, but continues to have difficulty with leaking at his G-tube.  More to come on possibility of surgery as the week progresses. 

Kellen is getting ready for his surgery on Tuesday and is giving us lots of laughs as usual. 

Happy Super Bowl Sunday everybody! 

Saturday update

Another good day on the trach collar. Carson had it on for six hours today.

Unfortunately, his G-tube keeps leaking. The doctors are discussing the options, but it looks like Carson may be having another surgery late next week. Kellen will have surgery on Tuesday for his hernias and then Carson later in the week.

For Carson, they probably will do a bronchoscopy to look at his anatomy and how it is healing in his throat, revise his G-tube, and check his hydrocele/hernia. We shall see what the doctors decide. It will be a setback, because he will go back onto the ventilator. However, the doctors do not believe it will take long to get back to where he is now on the trach collar. We will update more as we get more details.

Rainy weekend in St. Louis, but so much fun to be with family. GO MIZZOU!!!

Yay!

Carson had a fantastic day. He was on trach collar for 5 hours and did FABULOUS!!!! His blood gas had a carbon dioxide of 62, the same as last time. Tomorrow, he gets to use the trach collar for six hours. 

Also, he took his entire bottle today...first time ever while on trach collar. They actually put him back on the trach collar for his second bottle of the day, because he did better with the trach collar than CPAP.

Thanks for praying everyone!!!  Have a great weekend!

great job again, little one!

Carson did well again with his trach collar trial for two hours. He weighs 9 lbs 14 oz, so he is gaining weight which is fantastic (considering his G-tube leaked and he is working harder to breathe). Tomorrow, they will let him do trach collar for 4 hours (9 am to 1 pm) and check a blood gas upon completion to see how he is tolerating the trach collar. We are so proud of him.

So far, no more leakage from his G-tube. 

Kellen's surgery to repair his hernias is scheduled for 2 PM on Feb 7th, so be praying all goes well.

Carson with his trach collar
for the first time

Hip hip hooray!

Carson got to trial the trach collar for 2 hours! 

What a sweet and precious boy. Liz said he did very well and did not notice any changes while he was on the trach collar. He will have another 2 hour trial with it tomorrow. Friday morning, they will get a blood gas to make sure he is doing well on CPAP and his trials with the trach collar. 

Let's be praying together that the blood gas looks great!  

Thank you so much!