Benjamin's day

We wanted to share a note that was left taped to Benjamin's bed today by one of our dear medical friends, Alyssa P., from church. She shared that one of her favorite verses is about the tribe of Benjamin...

Deut. 33:12 About Benjamin he said, "let the beloved of the Lord rest secure in him, for he shields him all day long, and the one the Lord loves rests between his shoulders."

Today Benjamin did so well and a prayer was answered when he had not one but five "big poopy..." diapers as his brother Barrett would say. This seems like such a small thing but it is allowing them to up his feedings of breastmilk down his OG tube from 1cc an hour (which is where he started on Monday evening) to 15cc an hour. We believe that is about the same amount of liquid as a can of coke a day (correct us if we are wrong all our medical friends in a comment...we are trying to calculate on little sleep and very little metric knowledge). This should help his BR level which will hopefully mean no more sunbathing under the blue light. It is amazing how happy he is when they let him have the glasses off for a little 15 minute break (which they will do twice a day)...he just opens his big eyes and is so entertained looking at all the lights. He is so aware and jumps every time he hears the lab result canisters being shot into the bin that is close to his bedside. Needless to say he will hopefully be able to sleep through anything after this (or we are going to have to make a recording of all the bells and sounds of the NICU to be his sound machine in the nursery).

Benjamin also had a day with a little less pain than yesterday (or so it seems). He slept comfortably most of the day with just occasional outbursts of crying and when we left him tonight at 10:00 he had not had any morphine all day. We definitely aren't against him having pain meds if he needs them but are thankful that he seems comfortable today without them. I can't imagine how much happier he will be to have the chest tube out (which you see in the pic today laying at his lower right side) as well as the OG tube down his mouth. He often moves the OG tube around with his tongue and makes a really sad/mad face when it gets in his way. He also swats at it pretty regularly (so again...please pray that the little guy doesn't pull it out...)

We were told today that they have schedule both a Esophogram (a test to check the flow of liquid through his esophogus by running a contrasting dye down into the stomach...looking for any possible leaks) as well as a VCUG test (which is the same contrasting dye test but tracks urine flow through the body). Please pray that both of these will have good results and that the doctors will have wisdom as to how to proceed with his feedings, ect. We also pray that his kidneys, ect are functioning normally.

Today we tried to carve out more time with Barrett because we both just needed to be near him. We stayed home for the beginning of the evening visiting hours at the NICU and Jerry and B took a wagon ride to Avondale park to throw rocks into the pond...which B loves (and so does his daddy). We then ate dinner together and played before we left him in the good hands of a friend as we headed off back to the hospital.