June 10th, 2006 (Silas is 2 months old!)

Dear Friends,

It has been two weeks exactly since we’ve come home. It is amazing how quickly time has flown by. Silas, who is now two months old, is becoming so much more aware of everything around him. It is beautiful to watch him staring and memorizing the faces of his siblings. They, in turn, are being so helpful with him. Savannah (8 ½ years old) especially takes pleasure in the presence of her baby brother. She loves to sit and hold him or just talk to him while he is lying down. I think she loves the fact that he likes to be held unlike our niece, Jasmine, who is only 18 months and wants to walk on her own. Savannah is so caring and has such a nurturing attitude toward Silas. She is going to make a great mommy some day.

Jerusha, however, (5 years old on June 14, 2006) wants to “play” with him. She doesn’t quite realize that, as an infant, he can’t be flopped around like one of her dolls. Even though I need to keep reprimanding her about being too rough around Silas, she remains unfazed and simply adores all things “baby”. Quite frequently I find myself hunting for the car seat, a blanket or some such item that she has requisitioned. When I find said item, inevitably it is filled with or wrapped around her dolls. We are giving Jerusha her own doll car seat for her birthday. . . Surprise, surprise, surprise!

Micah and his dad are off today participating in a Relay for Life program with the Young Marines. This is part of the community service the Young Marine organization does. The relay lasts 24 hours and it raises money to help cancer patients. The boys (and girls too!) are running/walking the track at the university in Ashland. At least two young marines will be on the track at all times and when their turn is over, they will participate in such strenuous activities as water gun fights, movies, contests, football, and whatever else the leaders have thought up to torture them with. The kids raised their goal of $5,000.00 and therefore the Commanding Officer, Mr. Chesney, is allowing them to do whatever they desire to his hair. He has given his word that he will wear it that way for 24 hours (after which he will promptly shave his head bald!). I can not think of enough good things to say about this program and if anyone is interested in more information, contact me at:

tanayakyne@hotmail.com

Or go to the Young Marine’s website:

www.youngmarines.com

Silas is starting to eat more at each feeding now and is waking about every 2 ½- 3 hours during the night to eat. I think he may be starting to make up for lost time. Next week I plan on removing the bottle completely and giving him 24 hours to see if he will transition to the breast. He is still, at this point, totally uninterested in nursing. I haven’t pushed the issue yet because I want to make sure he is gaining weight like he should so that he isn’t compromised and also because he has a little bit of a cold.

I have tried very hard to keep him isolated from the world to avoid compromising his not yet fully healed lungs, but it is difficult. Some well meaning, lovely people have wanted to see and touch him without being aware of his condition. I try to explain how a simple cold could land us back in the NICU, but I don’t think they really grasp the magnitude of what he has been through. One of the nurses at RVMC, where we get Silas’ blood pressure checked, started to lift the blanket off his car seat as she said, “Oh, I’ll just take a peak.” It just about kills me to insist that she not do it. I feel so mean and rude. And yet, my son’s health is still tenuous and I must be firm. I am torn because my desire to show my little miracle off is just as great as other people’s desire to see him. It is especially hard to not have all of our friends come see the little bear. Thank you all for your patience in this area. Please know that as soon as we get the okay from Silas’ pediatrician we will proudly take him places and introduce him to all the wonderful people who’ve been praying and hoping for his complete recovery.

In the mean time, we are taking him to doctor’s appointments every Monday and Thursday. The kids and I have appointments for dentists, doctors and hairdressers on the other days, not to mention cramming in a little grocery shopping. Since Silas can’t be exposed to other people’s germs, I have to coordinate appointments with Albert’s days off. (It is a good thing we got to spend so much time together in Portland because now it seems like we are two ships passing in the middle of a foggy night.) I think what I need is a personal secretary to keep track of and organize everything!

One thing we haven’t had to worry about is supper. We have been so blessed with the meals people are bringing. I was the recipient of meals once before when I injured my back and then had surgery. Then, as now, it is so wonderful to not have to think about trying to get supper on the table when there are so many other things I am trying to accomplish. Thank you to all the angel chefs diligently turning out delicious meals for our family.

I received an email from Nanette’s mom, JoAnn, today and I wanted to let everyone know that Nanette is doing fabulously. I’m told she is a content little thing and acts like a normal baby. She is gaining weight well and almost exclusively nursing now, with just one supplemental bottle a day. This gives me such hope for Silas. Please keep the Cookes in prayer as their family transitions to life with three munchkins. Their older kids are still struggling to establish their importance and place in the family dynamic just as mine are. A new baby is an adjustment anyway, but to have had Daddy and Mommy so absorbed with that new baby for so long. . . Well, it will take awhile to work out the wrinkles and establish new routines in our respective households.

I have fantastic news about Becky and Joshua. The doctors are again talking about sending them home. The goal date is June 20. Maybe when we go up for Silas’ nephrology appointment on June 29, we’ll be able to stop in at Becky’s house to visit her instead of going to “Ducky 8” in the NICU. Wouldn’t that be wonderful? To see them in their own home! Joshua is still throwing up but the acid in his stomach is under a lot better control now. It isn’t burning his skin like it was and the breakdown under his neck and on his bum is starting to heal. The doctors talked about doing another surgery and moving the gastric tube in his tummy down farther to prevent the vomiting. Becky emphatically said, “NO THANK-YOU!” She can’t wait to get that precious boy home.

I have bumped into Cayden’s mom twice since we’ve been back. He is the little boy from White City (near us) who was born with CDH just like Nanette and Joshua. He arrived in the NICU about three weeks after we did and he was discharged the same day as Silas. He is doing wonderfully and we hope to see them at cowboy church some day soon.
My brother and his wife had their baby, Isaac Lawrence, on June 8th. It was with great trepidation that I first learned there were complications. The little guy was turned face up and was stuck. Lisa had to have an emergency C-section and when they got him out, Isaac was limp and hardly breathing. He was rushed to the Rouge Valley NICU where he revived. He was brought back to his parents two hours later. The morphine really messed with poor Lisa and she had a hard time for a little while. It made her not be able to sleep and not think clearly. Then, the next day, the staff gave Lisa an anti-inflammatory which it turns out she is allergic to. She had a severe reaction to the medication, but they gave her Benadryl and things have calmed down. Praise God everything seems to be fine now. The thought of going through this whole NICU scenario again with another family member sends chills down my spine.

It remains heavy on my heart that there are so many families that are still in the midst of turmoil with a sick-child. There are also so many that have already gone through this terrible trial, and still more families who have their experience still ahead of them. I think of my friend, Rachel and her husband Matt. They are heading to Portland soon and are scheduled to have their little boy with a C-section at the end of June. His CDH (congenital diaphragmatic hernia) is quite serious and they’ve opted to deliver at Legacy where the ECMO machine is available if needed. Please pray for peace and God’s strength for the parents, healing and health for their son, and wisdom and skill for the doctors. They have a long road ahead of them and God will be by their side every step of the way with their little boy cradled gently in the palm of his hand.