JDP1:19:17 -<Click for Video
Day 20 in the NICU has been a great day so far! Joseph is up to 5ML of milk every 3 hours and has gained an ounce since yesterday! He is now weighing in at a whopping 1.10 pounds. We also learned that the respiratory team decreased his oxygen from 40% to 30%, 20% would be breathing room air. What a little fighter this guy is! We are hopeful to keep decreasing the oxygen and in a few weeks have the ventilator tube removed. We were told that when he reaches 3LBS we will be able to hold him for 30 minutes during each feeding, we are counting down to those days!
He did develop MRSA on his face which is very normal while in a hospital. He has not ran a fever or had any side effects from it. They will treat it with a antibiotic cream until it goes away. So, now Kirby and I are the only ones who can go in and out of his room and we have to wear full scrubs to get in. The girls were sad because this means they will not get to visit their itty bitty brother just yet, but they are enjoying the videos and pictures we are bringing home.
The kind words, prayers, text and affirmations we have received from friends and family is overwhelming. Your words of encouragement and strength mean so much to Kirby and I as we continue down this road. What I know for sure is that because of your prayers, little Joseph is growing stronger each day. Kirby and I know that with out a doubt Joseph was brought into this world to not just sit ideal but to make waves! He was created for a great purpose and vision. We know that when he is a grown man, he will look back on the tribe that prayed him through these days and be able to say with out a doubt this is my family. This is who God made me for. He will never doubt the goodness of our Lord.
So, today, on day 20, we praise God for providing Joseph with the strength we prayed for yesterday. We continue to ask for prayers for growth and development.
“For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me a drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.”
Matthew 25:35-36
Wow – look at those long fingers! Grandma had better not get rid of her piano – I see Joseph at the keyboard in just a few short years.