I can't believe it has been 3 years since our little Luke made his early and unexpected arrival into this world. It was a very scary and confusing time for us as we watched him be hooked up to more tubes than you could imagine. He was only 3lb 2oz. We couldn't even hold him for a whole week because of all the umbilical artery catheter and him being on the ventilator. It was definitely a different experience for us than when Blake was born. He fought through respiratory problems, sepsis and meningits. We endured weeks of physical therapy and speech therapy in the NICU and knew that something wasn't "right". Our biggest obstacle was feeding issues and that is what kept him in the hospital so long. An MRI prior to being discharged confirmed that he did have some damage to his brain on the right side, but no one could tell us what to expect or what the future may hold for this tiny boy. Would he walk or talk or do any of the things most children do? It was so strange to see him gradually lose this tube and then another and then go from the ventilator to CPAP to oxygen to room air. When the feeding tube finally came out he was free and finally unattached. He stayed 8 weeks in the NICU and was discharged home on his actual due date of April 27th. We thought that those 8 weeks were the hardest and now I'm not sure that they were. Each new stage brought new challenges and new frustrations, but also new joys. And yes, Luke did eventually walk and talk and achieve the milestones that Blake did. It required a lot of therapy, time and effort, but he did it. He still walks a little clumsily and there are times when only Kevin and I understand what he's saying, but he's moving in the right direction and everyone is pleased with his progress. He wraps everyone around his little finger. His smile and laugh are infectious and I never imagined that the tiny little baby God brought us would turn into this wild, rambunctious boy we see today.
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Luke 3/1/09
3lb 2oz |
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| Luke in the NICU |
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Luke 3/1/2012
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| Luke at his 3rd Birthday Party |
2 comments:
very touching...glad you shared this with us...
Praise God for this little miracle baby. What a gift from God. Yes, thank you for sharing.
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