6 in-6 out for Z-man

Our sweet 12 week old munchkin.

Getting some loving from big brother.

Sweet outfit from his Godparents--it's finally fitting him.

Look at that double-chin and those thick cheeks!

Zachary is 12 weeks old today. That means that he has spent as much time with us at home as he had spent in the hospital. 6 weeks each! That is so super hard to believe. The time he has been home has just flown by.

We got the results from Z's ultrasound. Dr. Mike (our pediatrician) wasn't satisfied with the results of it and discussed the results with a neurosurgeon at Children's Mercy. We are going to have to do an MRI to rule out any significant problems. I can't remember exactly everything that was discussed, but something to do with the end of his spine, near his tailbone, is not at the right place on a vertebrae or something. Dr. Mike assured me that I shouldn't worry, and that it should be fine, no problems. Of course I'm a mommy and if there could be problem with any of my children, I'm going to worry. It obviously isn't too much of an immediate concern b/c the MRI won't happen either for 6 months or when he is 6 months, I can't remember. The big down side to having an MRI is that they will have to put him under anesthesia, which is never a perfect thing for a young one. They need them to be perfectly still, and it is hard to guarantee just how still a baby can be. So, we will pray that the results of the MRI show nothing and that we can finally dismiss this concern. I'm not sure on a lot of details of this, I will discuss it more thoroughly with Mike the next time Zach has a doctor appointment.

Zachary also had a urologist appointment this week. He is satisfied with the positive renal ultrasounds from the NICU and didn't feel a need to do anything else with that. Unfortunately, Zach is going to have to have surgery in August. He has a slightly more complicated circumcision and they are going to have to do a lot more work than your average circ. The surgery will be at Children's Mercy downtown and is scheduled for August 25th. It should take 2 hours for the surgery. Yes, this will also require our little boy to be put under anesthesia again, which stinks!! However, we will be happy when this is over.

Whew, receiving both of these pieces of news in one week is enough to make this mommy's head spin! We feel extremely fortunate that we are connected to wonderful doctors who are watching out for our little man, and that we are located near to the children's hospital that will make all of this easier for him. We ask all of you to pray for positive results of his MRI and that his surgery is successful and not painful for our precious baby boy.

Zachary honored us on his 12 week bday by sleeping thru the night! He ate at 10 pm and slept until 7 am. This mommy feels quite refreshed this morning. (So much so I had fed a baby, 2 loads of laundry done, showered, pumped 4 oz!!, and taken care of Emers potty accident all by 8:30 am). We are so pleased with the disposition of our little Z-man. He is a cuddly little boy, loves sleeping on our chest or in our arms when he can manage his time amongst the chaos of his siblings, but will also sleep just as well in his bed. The noise of our crazy house doesn't seem to bother him at all, which is a blessing indeed. He is really starting to like his pacifier. He does indeed have some seriously stinking toots! We have about 2 things marked preemie that he still fits into but is starting to fill out his newborn-sized clothing. The unofficial weight and length at the urologist yesterday was 8 lb 10 oz (but he had all his clothes and diaper on which he usually does not) and was 19 1/2" long (same as the last doc visit). Zachary has really begun to look around at his siblings and is smiling more and more with the occasional coos of excitement. His siblings can't seem to get enough of him. Even when Zachary does wake up in the middle of the night he eats and goes right back to sleep for us. He is eating 2 oz these days, which hasn't changed in the last 6 weeks, but he seems satisfied and doesn't always finish that, and he is still gaining weight. We are pretty happy with the progress of our little man who, 12 weeks ago, started off at a mere 3 lb 14 oz and was having major issues breathing on his own and was unable to even eat for many weeks. What a difference time can make!!

I was able to visit Zachary's NICU buddy, Dawson, this week in the hospital. He is doing really well and we continue to pray for his health and for his mommy, Christy. We are so anxious to hear when they are able to finally go home. Dawson has grown so much. He is the same weight as Zachary, but he just seems like a bigger boy. He and his mommy have been moved from the NICU to the PICU at KU Med. It was weird visiting b/c the PICU only has 6 rooms--a different place than the 42 beds in our NICU at OPR. Prayers for Dawson to go home soon, healthy and happy with his mommy!!!

Prayers also remain with Isaiah who landed back in the hospital after being out for only 2 weeks. He has a surgery coming up and is trying to recover from some nasty illness he picked up. Reminds me why we are so picky about washing hands and staying confined in our little bubble. Best wishes to Isaiah and his family.