UPDATE: I should have written this so long ago, but I could not bring myself to write these
words. I guess I was holding on for as long as I could.
Meghan Elizabeth lost her fight with prematurity & cystic fibrosis on Sunday November 26, 2006.
She fought long & hard for 8 months & gave us wonderful memories. She is now our precious angel
in heaven smiling down on us & sucking on her favorite Dum-Dum lollipop-banana!!!! Meghan was 8
months & 5 days old when she passed away. Her memory will continue to live on in our hearts &
she will forever be on our minds. We want to send a great big Thank You to the entire Neonatal
Intensive Care Unit staff at New Hanover Regional Medical Center in Wilmington, NC for their
love, dedication & care towards Meghan. They have become a part of our family & will always be.
Thank you also to the staff at UNC Children's Hopsital Newborn Critical Care Center for their
loving care towards Meghan. We also send a giant Thank You to everyone who kept us in their
thoughts & prayers over the past 8 months. Your prayers helped keep Meghan with us so that we
could create lasting memories with her. Please remember all the other babies in the NICU as you
continue to pray.
***********************************************************************************************
11/03/06 It's been a long time since I last updated-I'm sorry. Meghan is
having a good day today-she is finally out of isolation-no more having to
wear gowns & gloves to see her. (She is infection free for the time being!).
She weighs about 6lb 5 oz. Still has some fluid that she needs to lose, but
not too much. She looks like a newborn baby. Her hair is starting to fill in
again-lots of peach fuzz! We don't know when she will be coming home yet-the
doctors still want to do everything that they can for her before they send her
back to NH. Her trach is still doing good for her. Its great to see that face
without all the tape. She is starting to make lots of different facial
expressions. I'll try to get a new picture on the web page soon. Please keep
her in your prayers. The doctor said that she needs a miracle!!!! She's gotten
this far b/c of all your prayers & love. Thank You!!!!
***********************************************************************************
10/25/06 Meghan's surgery was a few days ago & it went well. She will get the
first trach change tomorrow-they will change the piece that they put in during
surgery. She will get the piece changed every few days so that she stays infection
free. It is so nice to see her without any tape on her face. She still has chubby
cheeks!!! She is slowly starting to close her mouth, but it be awhile before it is fully
closed. She'll have to learn how to swallow, she's got the sucking part down pretty
good-or at least she did when she had the vent tube in her mouth! We don't know how
long we will be up here for. She still has to accomplish a few more things.
Please continue to keep her in your prayers. I miss all of you very much. Thank you
for your thoughts & prayers & cards. I miss you all.
**************************************************************************************
10/18/06 Tomorrow is surgery day. No time yet, either morning-that's when babies are done, or
afternoon-that's when add ins are done. Surgery should last about 40 minutes. But she will
stay in the recovery room for a little while. She'll be sedated for a few days after so that
the trach can heal. It'll be so nice to see her face without any tape on it!!! We're going to
learn how to clean it, suction it & change it. She now weighs 5lb 7.1 oz. Her feedings are at
5ml per hour which is 120 ml per day or 4 ounces per day. Not too much but hopefully she'll be
able to grow from that. Thank you for all your thoughts & prayers. I loved getting the cards
today. Thank you!!!!!
*************************************************************************************************
10/15/06 Today is Meghan's 3 month "corrected age" birthday!!!! Things are settling down a
little bit. She got her scope done last week & it turns out she has a "floppy airway". There
is not much that can be done except to get her to grow stronger so that she can outgrow it. She
will be getting a trach done sometime this week. This is how she will breath. Instead of
ahving the tube coming out of her mouth, it will come out of her throat. The trah is put into
place during an operation. I don't know the date or time yet, but will post it when I find
out. The trach will help with her developmental growth-she will be able to move her head more
freely, she will be able to start taking her feedings by mouth (very slowly though-she will have
to learn how to swallow), she will be able to start acting like a baby! Other than that she is
doing pretty good. She came off her IV nutrition on Wed., now she is getting all her nutrition
from her milk! We are very happy about that. Please continue to keep her in your prayers. If
things go well, mayber she'll be able to come home soon! I miss all of you!!! Thank you for
all your kindness & prayers over the past 6 months (will be 7 month on Sat)!
*************************************************************************************************
10/04/06 I'm sorry I haven't updated here in awhile......Things have been a little crazy.....We
are actually in Chapel Hill at the Children's Hospital. Meghan was transported here Thurs
night, we go up here late Thurs night. Meghan came up here to get bronchioscope done (a camera
would go down her breathing tube & it could look to see if anything is obstructing her airway &
what her lungs look like). They need to wait until she is fully stabalized before they try the
procedure. She began her feedings again-this time she getting formula-easier for her to disgest
since she has had all her problems with her stomach. She now weighs 5lb 3.5 oz & she has pooped
again (2x). Who know we'd be so happy over poop. It is hard being away from home & from a
hospital that we have grown to love. We have good nurses & docs up here, but its not the same.
Please continue to keep Meghan in your prayers. Keep the docs in your prayers too, so that they
can find the strength to take care of her.
*************************************************************************************************
9/17/06 We have poop!!! We have been waiting for Meghan to poop since the surgery. Today when
we went to see her, the nurse said she had a suprise for us.....Meghan had a poopie diaper (they
actually saved it b/c the doctors wanted to see it-it was a smelly one!!). She also had another
suprise for us-Meghan started to get her feedings again. She will get 3ml (about a teaspoon) of
breastmilk every 6 hrs. She will get 4 feedings in a 24 hr period. They will see how well she
does with this & then decide if it will be increased soon. Friday was Meghan's 2 month
(corrected age) birthday. This Tuesday she will be 26 weeks old & on Thursday she will be 6
months old. She is doing really well-her vent settings have come down greatly (she is getting
20 breaths per minute & doing about 30 on her own). She has been requiring minimal amounts of
oxygen (about 21-25%). Growing is still a big issue that we need for her to overcome. She
still is only about 4lb 14 oz. Hopefully the milk will help her to gain weight & to
grow.
************************************************************************************************
9/8/06 Sorry it has been so long since I have posted an update. Meghan had her reconnection
surgery (to reconect her intestines)yesterday. Surgery went well. It did not take as long as
we expected, only about 1 1/2 hrs. She only lost about 3 cm (if even that much) of her
intestines. The incision is very small & should heal quickly. Now we waiting for bowel sounds
& poop before she can begin her feedings again. Before surgery she was weighing about 4lb 11 oz-
a long way from her birth weight! She will be 6 months old on the 21st of Sept. Sometimes it
seems as if the time has flown by, other times it seems to stand still. Thank you for keeping
her in your thoughts & prayers!
************************************************************************************************
8/22/06 Yesterday Meghan was 5 months old, today she is 22 weeks old. She hit the 4lb
mark over the weekend. Yesterday she was 4lb 2oz! The end of last week was a little
rough for her. Her heart rate starting to take lots of dips & her temperature wasn't
stable (she'd bounce from high to low temps). The doctors didn't think she was getting sick,
but decided to do a blood culture yesterday just to be on the safe side. The incision from her
last surgery looks really good. It has healed nicely, but that won't be the final result,
she'll have one more surgery to reconect her intestines. I guess in a way its good that things
haven't changed too much over the last few days. Her oxygen requirements went up a little bit
(another reason we kind of suspect sickness). There still hasn't been any talk of when they
might begin feeding her. I hope they try soon-we want to get her stomach working. Please
continue to keep her in your prayers. I will continue to update this site during the school
year. Enjoy the last few days of summer. I will see everyone Monday!
************************************************************************************************
8/16/06 Yesterday was Meghan's 1 month birthday (corrected age!) & 21 week birthday!! She is
doing well-her vent settings are down very low (she is getting 14 breaths per minute & doing the
rest -about 40 breaths-on her own), she has been pooping so she got her ostomy bag Sun night,
she is still in her crib (she was cold 2 mornings in a row, so she sat under the heat
lamps for awhile). There is talk of starting her on some kind of feedings just to see what her
stomach & intestines will do (it would be such a minimal amount that it would have no
nutritional value). It was also mentioned that she might have surgery Sept 8 to reattach her
intestines again. Growth & gaining weight is still the big issue-she hasn't grown in a few
weeks. The doctors have been adding more calories to her iv nutrition to help her gain weight,
but so far nothing. She started to maintain her weight better. The last few weights have been
almost exactly the same from day to day. Last night I got to give her a sponge bath & a baby
massage. She loved it! ( & I did too!) Since she is in a real crib she wears footed onesies
to help keep her warm. She looks so cute dressed up! Of course even the smallest clothes
swallow her, but she did out grow the tiniest preeemie clothes! Yeah!! Please continue to pray
for her (growth expecially & the feeding issue too)! Enjoy the last week of summer vacation
& I will see everyone bright & early Mon morning!!
*************************************************************************************************
8/10/06 Sorry it has been so long since I have last posted an update...We
did meet with the doctors (last Thurs) to find out the next step. The big
thing that Meghan needs to do now is to gain weight! She has not grown in
about 2 weeks. The doctors say she needs to do it soon, or it may be hard
for her to catch up later on. They have been adding different sugars & fats
to her iv nutrition in order to give her more calories. So far she seems to
be tolerating them. She got moved into a "real" crib on Fri! No more
isolette (incubator). She began wearing clothes again. Since she is in a
crib, we are trying to get her on tract with her development. One of the
nurses made her a mobile to hang over her crib, she has begun listening to
music (she loves it!). So far she seems to be tolerating everything. The
doctor said that she needs "alot of you right now", so I have been visiting
& holding her 3 times a day! She loves to be held & usually goes right to
sleep. A few times she has been in such a deep sleep that she doesn't even
wake up when the nurse puts her back in bed. In fact Tues after I held her,
she had to be woken up for her next touch time! So as of right now she
needs to grow, grow, grow!!!!! as well as get her lungs stronger to come
off the vent again, get her intestines in working order (There is an article
in Tues Aug 8th's Star Newspaper page 5B,Local & State section, about her
NEC problems) so that she can begin to get her feedings again.....still a
lot to do but she's keeping up with everything!!! Enjoy the last few weeks
of summer. I'm going to enjoy my last week of morning visits with Meghan
before heading back to school!!!
~~~~Thank you to everyone that has written me emails throughout the summer.
I want you to know how much I enjoyed reading them & to know that you are
thinking of Meghan & our family! I'm sorry I haven't responded to them, but
know that they are well received & greatly appreciated.~~~~~~
*****************************************************************************
8/1/06 What a weekend we have had.......After getting such a good report
from the doctor on Thurs, Meghan decided she wanted to stir things up a
bit...She had emergency surgery Fri morning to find out what was wrong with
her intestines again. The surgeon called us at 7:30am & said he needed to
get her into surgery. She was oozing from her incision from her last
surgery (to reconnect her intestines). Well it turns out that her
intestines perferated again. The doctor did not expect that at all.
Surgery was fairly quick. She now has a stoma again (intestines sticking
out of her stomach), but this one is very small b/c she doesn't have much
left to pull to the surface. They have no idea what caused it. She seems
to be recovering ok. But this kind of puts us back quite a bit. We need to
wait for bowel sounds again, then for her to poop out of the stoma before
any feedings can begin. Its almost like we stepped back to April 26 (the
date of the first surgery to open up her intestines), except that she
older/bigger & hopefully stronger this time. If that wasn't enough......We
saw her Sat night & she was going good-very alert, moving around......well 2
hours later (at 11pm) we get a phone call that she had dropped her heart
rate to zero. They had to give her medicine & chest compressions to bring
her back. Of course we rushed over to see how she was doing. She was back
to her normal self when we got there. By looking at her, you wouldn't have
believed what had gone on just moments before. We think she got stressed
over the events that had taken place before (she had her touch time, had her
tube retaped, had been moved to a clean bed, etc) & she didn't like
everything that had happened. She has been fine since, so far no more
episodes like that. She has even had her vent settings lowered. We're
hoping to meet with the doctors again this week to find out what the next
step is (since it has changed b/c of surgery). She is 19 weeks old today, &
is 2 1/2 weeks old corrected age. Please continue to keep her in your
prayers. We still have a ling road ahead of us. Enjoy the last few weeks
of summer.
*****************************************************************************
7/28/06 I'm sorry that I haven't written any updates in a long time. Last
week was pretty uneventful for Meghan. She gave me quite a scare on Wed.
She kept dropping her heartrate & her oxygen levels. The doctor said she
was "clamping" down & wasn't letting any air pass into her lungs. She has
since gotten over that. The rest of last week went fine. This week started
out good.....She pooped (at least something of a poop) on Sun, so she was
able to start Pedialyte. On Mon they switched her to breastmilk (1 cc every
hour) & she went back into isolation Mon night for the "water bug" she had
in her et tube a month or so ago. Wed they increased her feedings to 2 cc
every hour. She seemed to be tolerating it. Her vent settings have gone up
on the course of the week, but her oxygen stayed in the 20-low 30%. Thurs
morning we met with the doctor. Everything with her stomach & intestines
seemed to be working. They were going to increase her to 3 cc & we talking
about having her off the IV nutrition by late next week. The doctor said
his 1st priority is her feedings then her vent issues comes 2nd. They are
going to give her one more chance to come off the vent & go on CPAP. If she
doesn't last this time, then they will consider putting in a "trach". It
means they will move the vent tube from her mouth to a small hole at the
base of her neck. This will enable her to move her head freely & to develop
normally. She would also be able to use her mouth more freely as well.
However all this changed this morning at 7:30am when we got a phone call
from the surgeon who said her needed to do surgery on her now. It seems
that her incision was oozing something (they thought maybe her g-tube was
leaking). They needed to go in & fix it. Well it turned out to be NEC
again. NEC is what she had when she was 1 month old. It is a perferation
in her intestines. The surgery that she just had was to close up her stoma
(which was a result of the NEC). Well today she got another stoma. This
time on her right side & it is much smaller than the first (b/c she only has
60 cm left of her small intestine, the doctor didin't have much to bring to
the surface of the skin). So now it seems as if we have taken a giant step
backwards to April 26. Hopefully since she is older/ bigger/stronger that
her recovery won't be as long. Hopefully the few days of breastmilk will
give her the extra edge she needs. The beginning of this week I felt like
she was making so much progress & now I don't kow what to think. It is true
that the prognosis of preemie babies change so quickly. Please pray that
she will pull through this set back & move forward with no more setbacks.
We are so ready for her to begin her life with us at home. She is now 18
weeks old (2 weeks corrected age tomorrow) & we are ready to begin acting
like parents. Right now it doesn't seem like I am the mother of a 4 month
old. I promise I will update more frequently. Enjoy the last few weeks of
summer vacation.
*****************************************************************************
7/18/06 Well Meghan (& us) enjoyed the weekend without the vent, however
she got tired & went back on the vent last night around 7pm. She had a good
4 days off it though. She wasn't releasing the carbon dioxide from her
system. It was building up in her blood. We did get the results back from
her liver biopsy-everything is ok for now. Her jaundice is just "medically"
induced from the nutrition she gets through the IV. Once she is off that,
it will take several months for the jaundice to go away. We are still
waiting for poop & bowel sounds. She is 17 weeks old today!!! & 3 days old
corrected age. From now on she will have 2 ages: chronological age (17
weeks) & corrected age (3 days) which is what we will use to determine when
she should be accomplishing her milestones. Basically she should be acting
like a 3 day old newborn. Please continue to keep her in your prayers.
Enjoy the rest of the summer.
*****************************************************************************
7/14/06 10:20pm I have more news regarding Meghan!!!! It certainly has
been an amazing week. As of now she is off the CPAP & on a nasal canula
(just oxygen prongs in her nose!!!)!!!!! Brian & I couldn't believe it when
we went to see her this afternoon. As we were washing our hands, one of the
respiratory therapists was in the hallway. She told us that Meghan had a
suprise for us. We weren't sure what to expect. She said, "She's on nasal
canula!" We did not expect this for a while. It seems that her small nose
is acting in her favor. The CPAP wasn't able to make a tight seal, so they
decided to give the canula a try. So far so good. She is only requiring
about 30-35% oxygen!! If she were to tire out, she would just go back to
CPAP. I'm still in shock over the whole thing. It is truly amazing! Now
we just need to get her stomach working & coming home might not be that far
away! Its time to pray for poop again!!!
*****************************************************************************
7/14/06 Meghan made it through her first night vent free!!!!! She is
moving right along. Her numbers are still good. Brian got to hold her last
night (1st time in a long time for him) & we didn't have to tape her tube to
the chair (like we did when she was on the vent). Keep saying your prayers
that she doesn't tire herself out too much & have to go back on the
ventilator. Still nothing back on the liver biopsy.
*****************************************************************************
7/13/06 What a week this has been-first surgery ( still recovering really
well) & now today being extubated!!!!!!! Her breathing tube was taken out
around 11:15am this morning (It's now 5;30pm). I was there just after they
took it out. I got to see her face without anything on it. It was
wonderful! She went right to CPAP & has been doing really well. CPAP
allows her to breather on her own, but it provides her with constant
pressure to help keep her airways open. So far her heartrate has been
great, & she is requiring only 31% oxygen (we breathe 21%). The CPAP is a
small triangular shaped device that fits over her nose & has a tube coming
out the top that forces the pressure out. She wears a hat with velcro to
hold the mask in place. Hopefully she won't get tired & have to be
retubed. I forget to mention on Tues that she had a liver biopsy done to
determine the extent of her liver damage. We are still waiting for those
results. Please continue to pray for her & that she continues to get
better. This Sat (July 15) is her due date. As of today she is 3lb 11oz &
about 15 1/2 inches long.
*****************************************************************************
7/11/06 Meghan is 16 weeks old today!!!! Surgery started at 9:15 this
morning & lasted until 12:30pm. Everything went well. Meghan stayed strong
throughout the surgery. Her settings on the vent were great, her heart rate
& blood pressure were normal. Now we are just waiting for her to recover.
The doctor said that she lost most of her small intestine (she has about 60
cm left out of about 200cm). This should not cause any problems for her
later on in life. He said he optomistic that she will be eating hamburgers
& hotdogs some day!! She can't begin to get any feedings yet until the
nurses hear some bowel sounds. With the last surgery, that took a couple of
weeks, hopefully with this one it won't be that long. Thank you for all
your prayers over the past few months. The road has definitely been a long
one & we've still got some traveling left to do. Hopefully there won't be
anymore bumps on the road we've got left to travel.
*****************************************************************************
7/10/06 Surgery is back on-in fact it is scheduled for tomorrow (Tues), but
I don't know the time yet. All of her infections have cleared up. Her vent
settings have been wonderful, the nurses keep saying that if she wasn't
having surgery, she would have been extubated by now!! Hopefully she will
bounce back & can get off the vent real soon. She also started on
breastmilk on Thurs, but it had to be stopped Sat night in order to get
ready for surgery. She now weighs (a healthy) 3 lb 14 oz. I'll keep
everyone posted on the outcome of surgery. Thank you for all your prayers &
support.
*****************************************************************************
7/3/06 Meghan definitely likes to be in control! Last week things were
looking good. The doctors were talking about surgery to put her intestines
back together. In fact it was scheduled for Thurs July 6th. However Meghan
has different ideas. She decided it was time to get another infection. She
started to look sick again Sat. As of today, her blood cultures have come
back positive. The doctors do not know the name of the infection yet. She
was started on antibiotics last night. She has gained quite a bit of weight
in the last few days (fluid weight). She now weighs 4 lbs 8 oz (way too
much). Because of the infection her surgery has been postponed. Her
breathing has being going crazy as well. She is only requiring about 21-30%
oxygen (we breathe 21% which is room air), but she is requiring alot of
pressure to get the air into her lungs. The doctors were hoping that the
surgery would help her build up her strength which would help her get off
the vent, but we'll have to wait on that for awhile. The main issue right
now is to fight the infection. Depending on the name of it, she may need to
get another spinal tap done to rule out meningitis. Please continue to keep
her in your prayers. Have a Happy 4th of July & enjoy your summer!!
*****************************************************************************
6/26/06 5:45pm Well I didn't make it in time to see Meghan without
anything on her face. By the time I got to the hospital (about an hr after
I spoke to the nurse), they had out her tube back in. The nurse said she
wasn't getting the hang of it, she was trying to breath from her mouth
instead of her nose. She is now back on the (regualr) ventilator & doing
well. Hopefully they'll try again soon. She will get an echocardiogram
done tomorrow to find out if there is anything wrong (function-wise) with
her heart. At least this time she stayed off longer (30 kintes the 1st
time, about 2 hours the 2nd time). Keep the prayers coming.............
*****************************************************************************
6/26/06 12pm I just got off the phone with Meghan's nurse. She was
extubated this morning around 9am (a littler earlier than we thought!). She
is now on CPAP (which is continuous pressure into her lungs, but she is
doing all the breathing on her own!) She is doing ok. The nurse said she
is trying hard. Please continue to prayer for her. If she can keep this
up, it will help jump start her on the right road. I'm off to go see
her....more later..............
*****************************************************************************
6/26/06 Meghan had a great night. Her settings have been coming down on
the vent. She was given one dose of caffine yesterday afternoon & will
receive the 2nd does this afternoon. The caffine aids in her respiration,
although last night it made her very jittery, so I got to hold her & comfort
her. She wiggled for just a little bit & then went to sleep. She was still
sleeping as the nurses put her back in bed. She slept most of the night.
So as it looks now, the doctors will try to take out her breathing tube
sometime after 3pm this afternoon. Let's hope it works this time!!!! It's
time to lose the tube! She also lost some weight (lost 250 grams last
night) so she's starting to get back to normal size. Keep the prayers
coming. Once the tube is out she'll need prayers to help her continue to
breath on her own. I'll keep everyone posted. Until then...............
*****************************************************************************
6/24/06 When we went to see Meghan last night, she was back on the regulat
vent, but when we called this morning to see how she was doing, we were told
she is back on the ossilator. So far she has been given 2 doses of the
steroids (one yesterday & one this morning. She can be extubated while on
the ossilator as long as her settings are low enough. Hopefully the
steroids work & she can come off the vent totally. We've heard that it
takes anywhere from 24-72 hours for the steroids to take effect. I'll keep
everyone posted. Please continue to keep praying. If she can get off the
vent, we feel it will also help with her other problems.
*****************************************************************************
6/23/06 What a week this has been!!! The spinal tap came back showing
elevated protein & white blood cells which means there is an infection. The
good thing is that she was put on antibiotics before the test so it was
caught in time. She does have pneumonia, & is already being treated with
antibiotics as well. She ballooned up tp 4lb 9oz, & is slowly starting to
lose the fluid. The doctor is going to take her off the ossilator & put her
back on the regular vent either today or tomorrow. She is starting to get
back to her old self again. She will begin getting steroids to day to help
get her off the vent for good. We had thought about this a few weeks ago &
the doctors tried weaning her off (didn't work). She is now at the point
where they need to get off soon before the vent does more damage to her
lungs. She should be ready by Sun to try coming off the vent again. Please
continue with the prayers. We need for it to work this time. She has been
on it too long.
I hope everyone is enjoying their summer so far.
*****************************************************************************
6/20/06 Meghan is 13 weeks old today & she needs your prayers now more than
ever! She had her eye surgery Thurs morning. It went well, but the doctor
show alot more growth from Tues to Thurs. She may need more surgery. She
was doing good after surgery. She moved out of isolation Friday night (a
good birthday present for her Daddy). Sat night though was a different
story. She looked very sick when we went to say good night to her. We got
a phone call around midnight saying that she had to be put on the ossilator
(a step down from the ventilator she had been on), that she was very very
sick. She has many blood infections that are being treated with
antibiotics. She had a spinal tap done yesterday to see if the infections
have invaded her spinal fluid & if it traveled to her brain. We won't know
those results until sometime tomorrow. She has had about 3 blood
trnsfusions & numerous platelett transfusions since Thurs. The infections
are eating away her plateletts. Before all of the infections, she was
weighing around 3 lb 11 oz, now she weighs over 4 lb because she has blown
up so much. In the last 2 nights she has gained 230 grams (way too much).
(If I remember correctly 28 grams equals 1 ounce)I know she is a strong
fighter & will pull throught this, but please continue to pray for her.
*****************************************************************************
6/14/06 Meghan had an eye exam yesterday morning. She will be having laser
eye surgery Thurs at 12pm to get rid of scar tissue that is forming on her
eyes. The surgery will allow for the retinas to attach the way they are
supposed to. I've been told the surgery should only last about 10 minutes,
but she may have to be sedated. Please keep her in your prayers.
*****************************************************************************
6/13/06 Meghan is 12 weeks old today!!!!Sorry I haven't written in a
while.....it has been quite a week. Last Sunday night Meghan was able to
start wearing clothes!!! She looks so cute in them. Monday night we got to
give her a (our first) sponge bath. She loved it, she fell asleep. Tuesday
morning she had an eye exam. It went ok. Wednesday we found out she had
some kind of bug growing her in breathing tube, so she had to be moved to
isolation (we now have to wear gowns & gloves when we see her). Thursday
morning was the big day...they were going to take out her breathing tube.
They took it out around 10:30am & she had a hard time keeping the pressure
in her lungs. The tube was put back in at 11:15am, after the doctors tried
several different masks to help her. It looks like they are going to try
again tomorrow or Thurs. Keep praying that she is ready this time. She now
weighs 3 lbs 6 oz. Thank you for voting for her in the May photo contest,
however she did not win the final contest.
Please continue to check back here over the summer. I plan on posting
updates throught out the summer. Have a great summer & I will see eveyone
in the fall!!!
Please continue to keep the prayers coming!!!!
*****************************************************************************
6/1/06 Not too much has happened in the last few days. Meghan has been
keeping things steady. Her big issue over the next week or so will be to
try to be weaned off the ventialtor without the use of medication. She
pulled her breathing tube out last Tues & did well for about 20 minutes than
she got tired. We know she can do it, its just a matter of "when". I have
been holding her everyday since that first day I was able to. The other day
when I was holding her, she found her thumb & started sucking on it. She
weighs about 3 lbs 2 oz now. Most of that is true baby weight, just a little
bit is fluid (not as much as before). The doctors are still working with
the formula, they just increased it a little bit. They are trying to get
her intestines to "wake up". So far not too much of that is happening. We
need prayers to help get her off the ventilator as well as to get her to
start digesting her formula. The IV fluids that she has been getting since
birth that supply her with nutrition is causing her to become jaundice &
could cause liver damage if she is on it too long. The picture contest ended
yesterday. I will let everyone know the results when I find out. Thanks
for voting. Thanks for the continuous prayers.
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5/22/06 Meghan was 2 months old yesterday!! Its amazing how far she has
come in those 2 months. I remember she seeing for the first time the night
she was born & thinking she so tiny & fragile but a fighter who was going to
make her mark in this world. She has definitely proven her will to fight.
This was a great weekend...I got to hold Meghan on Friday & Sunday & her
daddy got to hold her on Saturday!!! It was the first time in about 3 1/2
weeks. It was amazing! I plan on holding her a lot more now. She also
began formula feedings this weekend. The doctor put her on a very mild
formula in order to get her used to digesting it, then she will get switched
to breastmilk. I just went to the babiesonline web site, her picture is on
page one, labeled "Baby S". It looks like voting takes place all week. Be
sure to vote! Keep the prayers coming....we're hoping she comes off the
ventilator soon (before it causes to much damage to her lungs).
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5/19/06 This has certainly been Meghan's week!!! She is doing so well.
Once she started with the poop, it took off from there. Her fluid weight is
coming down (she's now about 2lb 14 oz), so she doesn't look as
puffy/swollen as she had. She started on Pedialite yesterday at 5cc's & is
now up to 10ccs. She seems to be tolerating that, so hopefully she will
begin to get her regular milk feedings soon. Her oxygen levels have been
improving. Hopefully she will be off the ventilator soon. Keep those
prayers coming-they certainly are working wonders for her!!
Thank you to everyone who voted for Meghan! She won her round! She is now
entered into the final round (along with the winners from round 1 & 3).
Vote Monday May 22 at www.babiesonline.com/babycontest/vote.asp Her
picture is labeled "Baby S". I'm not sure if the voting takes place just on
Monday or if it continues all week. Thanks for voting!!!!!!!
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5/13/06 We got POOP!!!!!!! Finally!!!! When I went to visit Meghan
yesterday, her nurse greeted me at the door & said she had some news. I
thought it was something about her oxygen level or something else...but she
said when she changed her dressing..there was poop & the doctor said he
heard faint bowel sounds! She actually pooped twice yesterday. No more
over night, but we'll take what we can get. She is also down 10 grams
(which is good, she needs to lose a lot of fluid weight), so she is back to
3 lb 2 oz. She has about 200-300 grams of fluid weight to lose. But she
can do it...she's proven to us that she is a fighter & will keep on until
she gets better! What a great Mother's Day gift!
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5/8/06 Meghan will be 7 weeks old tomorrow. She is 2 lbs 14 oz (but alot
of it is fluid weight-she is very puffy). There hasn't been many changes.
There are still no bowel sounds or poop (Keep praying for those please).
Her incision from surgery is looking a little better, it had been very red &
inflammed. I do have one request (in addition to the prayers)-I entered
Meghan into a photo contest online. The theme is "Mommy & Me". I used one
of the pictures that was taken when I got to hold her for the first time.
The website is: www.babiesonline.com/babycontest/vote.asp
She is on page 25, labeled "Baby S". Click on the circle & then scroll to
the bottom of the page & enter your email address & zip code. You can only
vote once a day. The contest is from May 8-May 14th. Lets get her the most
votes.
Thanks for the votes & the prayers!!!!!!!!!
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5/2/06 Meghan is 6 weeks old today! I can't believe it! She is now over
the 2 lb mark (about 2 lb 3 oz). Her surgery was one week ago tomorrow &
nothing is happening yet. We need prayers for some movement in her bowel
(sounds or poop would be good!). She can't get feedings until something
happens. We also need prayers for her to get off the ventilator by herself
(no drugs). She has been on it too long & the doctors are talking about
using steroids to wean her off. We know that if she can get her feedings,
she can get stronger & wean herself off the ventilator. This is what we are
praying for. Her eye exam that was scheduled for today has been rescheduled
for May 17th, which is when she will have her next brain ultrasound. Thank
you for all your prayers. We truly appreciate everything everyone has been
doing for us & Meghan. Keep praying!
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4/26/06 Surgery is over! It actually lasted about 1 1/2 hours. It went
well & Meghan is now recovering. The doctor said she had quite a blockage
in her intestine. The doctors want to give her intestines a day or two to
settle down & start to heal before they start her feedings. Hopefully by
Monday she will be getting milk again. This will help her to grow bigger &
stronger & hopefully get off the ventilator sooner. Thank you for all your
prayers & support.
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4/25/06 I just got back from visiting Meghan. I spoke with the doctor &
they told me that she will be having her intestinal surgery tomorrow (Wed)
morning at 7:30am. The surgery will last about 3 hours. She'll be needing
lots of prayers tomorrow. I asked the nurse about her weight.......She has
hit the 2lb mark!!!!! She weighs 2lbs 1 oz!!!!!! Wow, what a great way to
celebrate 5 weeks!!! I will post how the surgery goes sometime tomorrow or
Thurs.
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4/24/06 Meghan will be 5 weeks old tomorrow. I can't believe it. She
is doing well. She had surgery on Friday (4/21-on her 1 month birthday!) to
close a value between her heart & lungs. In term babies, it closes
automatically, in preemies it must be closed either with medicine (which the
doctors tried, but it didn't work) or by surgery. She spent the weekend
recovering & now she alomost back to her old self again. She will be having
another surgery at the end of the week (not sure exactly when). This
surgery will be to unclog her intestines so that she can begin getting milk
again and will start to grow bigger. She hasn't be weighed in a few days,
but the her most recent weight was 1 lb 10 oz. I can't wait for her to hit
the 2 lb mark! Thank you for all your prayers. They are working wonders!
Keep them coming!
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4/15/06 Well the week is over & Meghan has proven her will to fight
through the tough times.....She had 4 tests on Tues. They all (so far) have
come back negative!!! Tues was also a special day for her, not only was it
her 3 week birthday, but her daddy got to hold her for the first time!!!!
He was in heaven!! She has continued to gain weight all week (as of this
morning she weighs 1 lb 11 1/2 oz!!!!). I got to hold Meghan for the third
time today! Each time it justs gets better & better! I can't wait to hold
her for the first time without any wires & tubes connected to her. Keep
praying for her. Happy Easter to all!!!!
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4/10/06 This is going to be tough week for Meghan. She has to have a
bunch of different tests done to determine what is wrong with her
intestines/stomach , and to determine if she has any infections. Her weight
is increasing. She is up to 1lb 7oz, however we don't know if it is her
true weight or if it is fluid that she is retaining. She will need your
prayers more than ever this week.
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4/6/06 I got to hold Meghan again today!!!! It was great! She is up to
1lb 5.5 oz. Hopefully she will continue to gain & not lose anymore. We're
still watching her intestines. They are not fully developed & are giving
her some problems. Other than that she is doing ok. Keep those prayers
coming!
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4/2/06 Meghan is still doing well. I got to hold her for the first time
on Friday. It was the most wonderful feeling in the world. I did not want
to give her back! As of yesterday, she has gained a few grams (she nows
weighs 550 grams which equals 1 pound 3.25 ounces). Keep praying for
her!!!!!
Meghan Elizabeth is now 1 week & 3 days old. She had a good night last
night. She is doing well this morning. I want to thank everyone for
love,support & prayers for Meghan. She has a long journey ahead of her, but
she has so many people praying for her, that I know God will keep her safe
in his arms until she is ready to come home.
I truly appreciate all the visitors & phone calls I had while at the
hospital. Since I have been home & going back & forth to the hospital, the
meals & gift cards & phone calls of support have been great.
Keep praying for Meghan & I will keep updating everyone here.