Watching Grass Grow

I can't deny that God cares enough about us to be in the details. My parents are out of town this weekend and although they are not the only people helping us, it's a little hard for me not to have them here for backup. Plus, the weekend days are still 24 hours long, Libby is still only 16 months old and, even on Saturdays and Sundays, Baby Will needs his mommy for some snuggle time.

Totally out the blue, details fell into place for help with Libby this weekend. A friend of my mom's, who works full time during the week, volunteered to help on Saturday morning. She said she could come from 8-12 which is the exact time we needed to be at the hospital for rounds. Amazing! My high school friend drove up from Columbus for this weekend just to be in town to help us. She came over Friday afternoon, this afternoon and is coming back tomorrow morning so we can be there for rounds again. How sweet of her! Another friend who is in town from California wanted to know if she could come over tomorrow afternoon to help and it just so happens to be during the time that we'd have some space in the afternoon. We are so thankful for the ways we feel God's faithfulness to us even in these little details.

Our little baby is making good progress this week. He's four grams short of 3 lbs 15 oz. I can't believe his weight gain! That's almost 10 ounces this week! During rounds this morning we were able to talk to Will's doctor. They may take him off the Vapotherm tomorrow or Monday. After turning it down to 2 on Thursday, he's been okay although he's had to learn how to work a little harder to breathe without the extra support. Although they'll remove it in the next couple of days, he could still go back on it if he can't maintain his breathing.

The next step for this coming week is going to breast whenever I am there. That way he'll get to practice the breathing, sucking, swallowing if he can but will probably only be able to latch. (My brother will be cringing as he reads this!)

We were hoping for some solid dates for his homecoming but Dr. Kokomoor said it could be as early as 35 weeks (gestation) or as late as 38 weeks. It's all up to Will. He said that the development process does not speed up because Will is out of my womb. It moves along just like it would if he were inside me. In other words, he said, it can be like watching grass grow -- which is exactly how this feels sometimes.

Our friends sent us this hat which is knitted to look like a blueberry. We put it on his head and it seemed to surprise him! Maybe he doesn't like the "personalize your baby" portion of his NICU stay.

We're still praying for Will's weight gain. He's had so much this week that it's bound to even out but we wouldn't mind bringing home a 5 or 6 pound baby! Please pray for his success off of the Vapotherm. It would be wonderful if he were able to eat a little on his own in this coming week. The rest of the list remains the same: protection from infection, disappearance of the brightness around the triangles in his brain. For Andrew and I, please pray that we would be renewed nightly by rest. It's hard to shut down all of the thoughts in our minds and go to sleep. For Libby, please pray for her peace throughout all of this. She's had a couple of rough nights when only Mommy would do. I think she misses me and it's hard not to let the Mommy guilt settle in. She has started looking at people suspiciously when they come to the door. She knows I'll be leaving soon after their arrival.

We are very encouraged by your notes, emails, calls, meals and prayers. We are so blessed to have friends and family supporting us in so many ways.