2 Months Old

We apologize again for not being as timely with our updates as we try to be. Things get crazy, and Logan definitely puts us through a lot on a daily basis!
Anyway, Logan turned 2 months old on Thursday. We would like to tell you that he is also over 2 pounds...but he is still working toward that goal. He is about 852 grams or 1 pound 14 ounces. He is about 13 and 1/2 inches long, so at least he is growing. Slowly, but he is growing. He is also still off the ventilator. He has been off the vent for 10 days and about 8 hours. We know that because of his size, there is still the possibility he could go back on the vent, but we are praying every day that he doesn't. He is still getting 10.5 mL every 2 hours. His breastmilk is now fortified with Vitamin D, Potassium, Calcium, Phosphorous and a Human Milk Fortifier. It looks similar to the consistency of a strawberry milkshake. We were told on Saturday that he is so low in phosphorous that the calcium is getting drawn out of his bones and he is now at an elevated risk of rickets which is (we think) when the bones become brittle. So everyone has to be much more careful with him so his bones don't fracture. Hopefully his phosphorous levels will start to come up so we don't have to worry about that anymore. He is starting to get his voice. We feel bad because we like tol hear him cry so we always listen to how cute he sounds and let the nurses worry about what's wrong with him! That will have to change when he comes home, but for now, we just appreciate that he has a voice.
Please keep up the prayers. We are amazed every day at what the prayers and love have been able to do for our little boy.
Love to all of you,
Meghann, Lance and Logan

Back off the Vent!

Logan got his second try on the SiPAP today. He was scheduled to be extubated yesterday, but he had an eye test that was pretty traumatic for him so they decided to wait again. So far, he is doing well off the vent. We try not to get our hopes up too high, but it is encouraging and we hang onto every good day we get. We really hope that we have seen the last of the ventilator. He is also off his IV fluids and is getting all of his nutrition from his feeds - 8.5 mL every 2 hours. Mom's milk is fortified and also has potassium and sodium added to it. His incubator area in the nursery looks so different without all the equipment around it. We like it! Now it just needs to stay that way... We also got the results back from the labs they drew looking for infection, and there is not one right now. They thought he might have had an infection because his white blood cells were up. But so far, so good on the front.
Our major concern right now is keeping Logan on the SiPAP and off the vent. Your prayers are, as always, very much appreciated.
Much love,
Meghann, Lance and Logan

Logan is getting another shot at life off the ventilator. They are looking at extubating him tomorrow (after 3 days of trying to decide). He is on the lowest settings he can be on his vent and the tube seems to be causing a lot of problems for him. The nurses think it is gagging him and causing him to drop his oxygen saturation and heart rate more than normal. We will see when he gets onto the SiPAP. He got another blood transfusion today - number 13. We're hoping that is the last one as he will be able to start getting a drug to help his body create its own blood. He is also getting checked out for infection again because his white blood cell count was high again. Hopefully he is still infection-free! A second eye test is planned for tomorrow morning. It probaly won't show anything yet, but they will do the tests weekly until they are able to see something (or nothing if we are lucky!). He is up to 8 mL on is feedings which is the most they can feed him until he gains some weight. As of Monday night, he was down to 780 grams or about 1 pound 11 ounces. Gaining weight is really his biggest challenge. He's good at eating and cuddling...it's everything else that is hard for him! Mom got to hold him again last night for about 3 hours. He does amazingly well while kangarooing - and it is good for Mom's spirits as well!
For now, we could use the extra prayers that we have seen the last of the ventilator. That would be one big obstacle out of little Logan's way.
Thanks for the love,
Meghann, Lance and Logan

Logan is back on the ventilator. By Monday night, he was just too tired to continue breathing on his own. Although we were disappointed, he did make it off the ventilator much longer than anyone thought he would. And even though the vent is causing quite a bit of lung damage, he needs to be on it so he can grow. Right now, the most important thing is that he grows because he is still so very small (about 1 pound 9 ounces) for being 31 weeks gestational age. And when he is off the vent he uses all of his energy and calories breathing and not growing. So for now he just needs to eat, sleep and grow. We told him that this is the only time in his life when everyone will tell him to eat as much as he can, sleep all day and gain weight! He had is first eye test today. His eyes are still too small to be able to see anything so he will get eye tests every week for the next few weeks. We're really hoping that the eye tests don't show anything and that will be one less thing to worry about for once. Dad got to hold Logan for the second time today. The two of them took a nap together and seemed to enjoy themselves very much. Logan just loves to cuddle! Logan is also almost back up to full feeds (7 mL every 2 hours) so he is getting almost all of his nutrition from his breastmilk (along with a few supplements they will add).
Meghann started back to work this week. Although she is getting worn out from getting up and going every day, she has said that she needs a distraction from everything that has been happening. Plus she needs to be able to take time off when Logan is able to come home.
As always, thanks for the continued prayers and love. Keep them coming!
Love,
Meghann, Lance and Logan