Hughes Family

Friday, October 17, 2008

That's my boy!

All of our prayers must have worked. Cameron decided he didn't need to have surgery after all. The docs did one last Echo this morning to make sure the PDA was still there, which is standard practice before a surgery. They wouldn't want to go in and try to close something that closed on it's own, after all.

So despite it being a 'moderate' size on Wednesday, as of this morning, it was closed! We are very thankful that he does not have to undergo surgery, at least for now. There is a small chance that the valve could re-open and surgery would be necessary down the road, but for now he doesn't need it.

He is doing really good today, and we're hopeful they will be able to start coming down on his ventilator settings soon. Thanks for all your positive thoughts!

Thursday, October 16, 2008

Life in the NICU- Surgery Tomorrow

It's hard to believe that Cameron is already 19 days old today. I have to say, everything we have heard about life in the NICU is right on. Every day is a challenge and it's like being on a roller coaster. He will be doing awesome when we are there in the morning, and when we go back later in the day, he will be having some issues. Or not so great in the morning, but awesome at night.

Mike and I have been spending as much time as possible by his bedside, but he needs a LOT of quiet time and rest, so we try not to bother him too much. They do his 'cares' every 4 hours, and they let us change his diaper, check his temp, etc, while they do any needed blood draws, suction his lungs, etc. We are there at least twice a day for several hours, and he really responds to our voices when we talk to him. He especially seems to respond to Mike and still loves gripping daddy's finger.

Overall, Cameron is doing as well as any other premie his age. He still relies heavily on his ventilator and needs oxygen adjustments frequently. He also has what is called a "PDA" or Patent Ductus Arteriosus. That basically means that a valve in his heart that should have closed at birth is still open. They were hoping it would close on it's own, and at first it seemed like it was going to. It went from small to tiny to possibly closed. Unfortunately, it seemed to re-open to a moderate size on Sunday, and despite treating it with medication to help it close, it still appears to be open. One of the side effects of this PDA, is that it can make his breathing worse. So the big news today is that they are going to do surgery tomorrow to try and clamp the valve closed. The hope is that by correcting the PDA, his breathing will improve and his ventilator needs will go down. Despite this being a fairly 'routine' surgery for premies, we are still nervous about it. PLEASE SAY SOME PRAYERS FOR CAMERON!

On a positive note, he is gaining weight and was able to start getting milk through a feeding tube, although they have temporarily stopped his feedings because of his PDA. He is up to 4 pounds, 2 ounces already!

Hope you enjoy these pics!

One week old. He is still in the 'tiny' diapers.

2 weeks old. Already graduated to the next diaper size!

Grandpa Hughes was in town over the weekend and helped us celebrate Cameron's 2 week birthday.

18 days old. He loves to have his hands up by his face. It's a self-comforting measure.

Next to daddy he looks so tiny!

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Welcome Cameron!

Introducing Cameron Michael Hughes. Christmas definitely came early this year, and we feel very blessed. After 10 days of trying to keep Cameron in, he just couldn't wait any longer and decided it was time to meet the world. Born on September 28th, at 27 weeks and 3 days, little Cameron weighed in at 3 pounds, 3 ounces, and measured 15 inches. He's been feisty right from the start, opening his eyes wide and gripping daddy's finger right after birth. He still has a lot of growing to do and will probably be in the NICU until close to his due date, but he is doing great so far. We will try to update this blog on a weekly basis, so we can keep everyone updated on his progress.

Please keep him in your prayers and enjoy the pics below. Also, for those of you that have asked, we are registered at Target and Babies R Us, the links to the registry are on the right hand side of the page.

Love,
Janie, Mike and Cameron

1 day old, he has a grip on mommy's finger and likes to kick daddy.

Minutes after birth, gripping daddy's finger so hard his little finger tips are white.

They gave mommy a chance to hold him, although only for a minute before taking him to the NICU.

Saturday, September 27, 2008

Keep Cameron in!

Talk about a scary week. We rushed to the hospital last Wednesday
night, Sept 17th and at barely 26 weeks, I was contracting every
two minutes. In the past 10 days I have gone from the labor and
delivery wing to the APU to the ICU back to labor and delivery
wing. I've been mag toxic, contracted pnemonia, gained 20 pounds,
lost 25 pounds and haven't had more than two hours of straight
sleep yet. It has been a crazy two weeks but we've been able to
keep Cameron in, so it's all been worth it. We are at 27 weeks and
2 days, trying to make it to at least 30 weeks. He just can't wait
to be born though. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers. Keep
thinking "Keep Cameron in!"

Dana and Nancy were my two favorite recurring L&D nurses. They started the "Keep Cameron in" catchphrase.

Here's Mike the first night. He got to sleep on that sweet looking cot in the corner.

Here I am the second night. Still in L&D and looking pretty 'normal'.

Here's where things started to go downhill. They moved me to the Antipartum unit and within 6 hours I was on a bipap machine and had about 25 pounds of swelling.