Bryce is continuing to do well! He is up to a huge 4 lbs 13 oz (close to 5 lbs) His weight is good to go and he is able to eat and breath well and keep his body temp stable. We are just waiting out his apnea (he may need to come home on a monitor for a few weeks). Kyle and I are now patiently waiting and praying that our little man comes home soon!!! Please pray that the apnea will be gone!

Bryce has taken off this week!!!! He is up to 4 lbs 7.6 oz!!!! He is no longer on CPAP and is on a free-feeding schedule (and boy does he love to eat!) He is doing great with breast and bottle feeding and no longer needs a feeding tube. We have been told that he is now on his way to coming home (just has to go 7 apnea/brady free days). This past week has been amazing to watch our little boy grow and mature. Kyle and I are planning on rooming-in (where we get to sleep over with Bryce and be his primary caretakers at the hospital) on Thurs. and Friday this week to practice being full-time parents. We are so excited!!!

As you can see even our kitty cats, Oscar, Max, and Zues are ready for their baby brother to come home and play!!!!

Keep up with the prayers, God is doing an amazing job, we are so blessed!

Big steps!!!!

WOW our little guy is growing bigger each day!!! Up to 4 lbs 2.3 oz! He also got taken off the CPAP today and did awesome (only one apnea all day). If he continues to do well by tomorrow we are going to try breast feeding. Bryce also got his first big boy bath today and was a trooper (no tears just lots of bubbles).

It feels like Bryce has taken off in the past few days, the doctors and nurses are starting to hint to us that it shouldn't be too much longer until we throw him a going home party!!!

God is GOOD all the TIME!

Happy Family

Bryce is now 3 lbs 15.4 oz (as close to 4 lbs as you can get!) He is gaining weight at an incredible speed (the doctors asked me if I'm putting quarters in my milk) haha. This is going to be a big week for our little guy. Tonight he was put into an open big-boy crib because he is finally big enough to regulate his body temp. They are also going to be trying him totally off CPAP and breast feeding in the next few days!!! Our little man will finally have his feeding tube taken out and nothing else to cover his beautiful face! Keep your fingers crossed with the breast feeding (I hear preemies have a difficult time but we are still hoping for the best!)

I had my baby shower on Sunday and we now have everything ready at home (but the baby of course!) Thanks to everyone for all the gifts, cards, prayers, love, and support! You all mean so much to the three of us and we feel blessed.

God bless!

no more old man body!

We can't believe that our little man will be 1 month old soon! Time is flying by (which is good for now while he's in the hospital). He is doing super thanks to all your prayers!!!! Big weight gain tonight and up to 3 lbs 9 oz. He is finally on his way to the big 4 pound mark. His face and body are really starting to fill out and he isn't looking like an old man anymore! His apnea is still being a pain for our fellow but his caffein dosage was increased today so we are hoping that will help. We can't wait for them to take that stinken CPAP away (so finally he won't have those adehesive strips on his cheeks anymore! Keep up the prayers!! God bless you all!

Sleepy head

Bryce gained another 2.5 oz yesterday!!! That's a huge gain for a little guy! Now up to 3 lbs 5.8 oz. Even the nurses are commenting on how big he's getting.

Bryce is still having some difficulty with his apnea. Yesterday he was taken off the CPAP for 8 hours and had some problems. Today has been better so far and we're hoping it was just a fluke thing yesterday. The doctor also called me today and to inform me that he is doing exceptionally well with is weight and he is also almost able to maintain his own body temperature. They had to keep turning down his temp in the isollette because he was too hot (this means that soon he will be moved from the incubator to an open bassonette. ) The doctor did however have some not-so-good news, he heard a small heart murmur today but assured me that it was no big deal and would most likely go away on its own. Heart murmurs are very common in preemies (but still it's just another thing Kyle and I have to worry about). Please keep our little man in your prayers!!! I just know that's what is helping him to no end!

Soooo Big!

Look how cute Bryce looks in his little outfits (and boy are they little!) These are preemie clothes and are huge on him (much room for growth) Kyle and I couldn't stop laughing when we put his little hat on and it fell over his eyes!
Our little man is up to 28 ml every 3 hours of breast milk and is doing excellent off CPAP 3 hours twice a day (we are hoping they up it to 4 hours tomorrow) Keep your fingers crossed that his apnea is going away! Still 3 lbs. 3 oz.

Getting Bigger!

Bryce is getting to be such a big boy! 3 lbs 3 oz. He is now off CPAP 3 hours twice a day (let's cross our fingers that he does well with no apnea!) Today was the first day he was dressed and put into big boy diapers (premie diapers) he kept peeing through his ultra preemie diapers (like father like son!) We will put up some new pictures of him dressed in the next few days! Here are some pictures of him getting weighed and laying with daddy!

nook

I love sucking on my nuck!! If only I wouldn't forget to breathe sometimes!

edit 7/3/06: I gained 1.2 oz. and am now up to 3 lbs. 0 oz.!! My family is so happy for me!!

My First Pictures!

Say hello to our little miracle...Bryce Andrew.

So handsome!

First pictures with Mommy! Here you can see Mommy doing what is called "Kangaroo Care", where little Bryce lays where he can hear mommy's heartbeat. This type of treatment is very beneficial for babies, especially preemies.

First pictures with Daddy! This picture shows clearly how very tiny Bryce is!

Here is Bryce all snuggled up. You can see his tiny hands and feet!

Here you can see the special lights (top left corner) and goggles that were used to help Bryce. The blue tube you see is the CPAP.

The Basics

When our little guy was born, he weighed in at 2 lbs. 8 ounces. Like any baby, he lost weight after birth and dipped to 2 lbs. 3 ounces. Now, he is steadily gaining a few ounces here and there. As of last night, Bryce weighed 2 lbs. 14 ounces!

After being placed under special lights for the first several days after birth (for jaundice), Bryce is finally doing well on his own! He doesn't need his "alien goggles" (which were nearly as big as his head) anymore.

Bryce is fed through a feeding tube several times per day. As the days progress, his total intake is increased to up his calorie intake in hopes of quicker weight gain.

A special device called a CPAP runs through Bryce's nose most of the day. This machine ensures that our little guy's lungs don't completely collapse when he exhales. For about 2 hours twice a day, usually when mommy and daddy get to hold Bryce, the CPAP is removed, and overall, he has been doing very well!

Thank you so much for your thoughts and prayers!