Mike's Parents Visit

Mike's family came to visit us for the last week and Gabriel got to meet his Grandma, Grandpa, and Aunt Dani for the first time.  They were a great help, they made us a lot of meals and helped finish up some painting in the bathroom.  We didn't really do anything other than hang out around the house, but I think they were plenty happy with that since it gave them lots of time to spend with their first grandson.  Gabriel really enjoyed all the attention and got spoiled being held all the time!  Below are some pictures from their visit.

Finally Finished

The bathroom is finally finished.  Here are some pictures.

4 Weeks Old

Well, it's been busy since leaving the hospital, but we feel like we are getting into a bit of routine at home.  Gabriel turned 4 weeks old yesterday and is catching up for lost time.  He gained 13 ounces in the past week and is now 8 lbs. 3.5 oz.  He had a follow up appointment at Children's Hospital on Thursday and his incision is mildly infected.  It's a good thing that he loves his cherry flavored antibiotics :)  

He actually gets to go an entire week without having to see the doctor!  This week he will definitely be spoiled since Grandma and Grandpa Carpenter and Aunt Dani are coming to visit.  Maybe with visitors around we will remember to take more pictures!  

Finally Home!

After one week at Children's Hospital, we were all able to come home on Friday evening.  Gabriel gained weight after starting feeding again and seems to be healing very well after his surgery.  He is free of all of his IVs and heart monitors!  We are very excited to have him home and are praying that he continues to eat well, gain weight, and thrive!  

We will post some more pictures soon.

At Children's Hospital

Praise God that things went so well today, we were able to start feeding Gabriel today we had to start with little bits and work our way up about every 3 hours, just to make sure the food wasn't a sudden shock to his system. He has done well with it so far and has kept it all down. This morning Faith's mom arrived and she will be with us through the weekend. Here are a few pictures from the last couple of days.

Another Update

Here's an update on Gabriel: Very early Monday morning, all of Gabriel's IV's failed because his veins were no longer able to receive fluids/nutrition. There were about 15 different nurses that worked on him for several hours trying to place another catheter. It was very difficult for us to hear him cry while they poked him repeatedly. Finally an anesthesiologist was able to place a small catheter in a vein on his scalp which would only work temporarily. The doctors needed to place an IV through his arm into an artery near his heart under anesthesia. There was some concern with Gabriel's heart since his potassium levels have been high and have not reached the normal level yet. The doctor worked very quickly this afternoon and had the PICC (new catheter) placed in a short time. Gabriel joined us back in his room and slept very well for the rest of the day. We praise God for how well he did and that there were no complications with his heart or lungs.
We want to thank everyone for their prayers, errand-running, meals, and cleaning our house. We appreciate it more than we can ever tell you!

Gabriel's Surgery

We are currently at Seattle Children's Hospital. We came down to the ER yesterday afternoon because Gabriel was vomiting and lethargic. After some x-rays, the doctors determined he had an intestinal blockage and needed emergency surgery. He went into surgery at 8:00 p.m. last night and came out about 11 p.m. Praise be to God that the surgery went very well and none of his intestine needed to be removed. His intestines were twisted and started to turn blue; the doctors untwisted and rearranged them and also removed his appendix. He is recovering in the NICU and should be moved to a regular room in the hospital sometime later today. He is doing very well--breathing on his own and comfortable. It is very difficult for us to see him hooked up to machines and IVs. We are not sure how long he will stay in the hospital, but it will certainly be another few days. We would appreciate your prayers and thoughts.


Below are a couple of pictures of Gabriel recovering from the surgery.