1 week with no major episodes!!!!

Today I am praising God that Alegria has not needed resuscitated in the last week!!! A week ago, we had begun to wonder if this wasn't going to be a frequent occurrence. She had stopped breathing 3 times in 10 days time (2 of which were only 24 hours apart). While we certainly do not know the future, it has been a refreshing week.

Her projectile vomiting has almost completely resolved though she does still spit up small quantities from time to time. We have not yet started working with bottle yet as the doctors all wanted us to give her some time to recuperate, but I anticipate starting that again soon. She definitely likes her paci again!

The PEG tube is healing well it seems. I think overall it has been a much better choice for both Alegria and her mommy. Both feeding and burping are much simpler. That certainly doesn't mean they are necessarily always easy though. We have had numerous incidents already of the syringe coming lose from the tubing, or the side port opening in the middle of the feeding, or forgeting to clamp the tube shut in the middle of the night and they all result in a big mess! We are learning not to cry over split milk though :) One thing that I think I forgot to mention was that when they did the surgery, the doctor found and removed a juvenile polyp growing near the exit from her stomach. He said this may have intermittently blocked the exit from the stomach causing bloating and discomfort. In my human logic, I did not initially see the wisdom in putting Alegria through this surgery, but God in His omnipotence knew and planned that this surgery would not only make feedings easier but also resolve a problem of which we didn't even know!

I am still learning how to keep these monitors working. It seems that I am frequently troubleshooting their connections, and I am doing well if one is working without constantly false alarming! We have found the oximeter to be the most helpful as it gives more detailed feedback, and it seems to alarm far in advance of the apnea monitor (thankfully the apnea monitor hasn't had a true alarm yet). Both Al and I appreciate this because it gives us an opportunity to watch her and make any necessary adjustments before we are actually in a crisis. Just repositioning her or stimilating her brings her oxygen saturation back up quickly.

We have been enjoying the absolutely beautiful weather God has given us. Alegria and I have both spent some time outdoors the last 2 days. It is so refreshing! Yesterday while we were outside, we discovered where our 2 female cats had hidden their new litters. The other children were very excited to find that they now have 8 kittens! It is always so much fun to watch them with the baby animals!

Jill