EXTUBATION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That's right--Par was extubated this afternoon--a complete surprise for us! We checked on him early this morning and the nurse said he was doing well and his blood gas had been good at 4am so he was weaned a tad bit more. When we got there it was really busy--the new CDH baby had arrived (a little girl) and the NICU was hoppin'! We visited with him for a while--he still seemed a little confused by his new surroundings--but we had a big surprise for him--his new mobile! We were also a bit confused--he looked different but we couldn't figure out why--and then we realized the oximeter strip (the thing on his forehead that measures oxygen in the brain) was missing--we were seeing Par's head for the first time--and it is just as cute as the rest of him! When I left to pump (which if you haven't figured out by now, is an every two hours ritual)Darrell and Mary took turns visiting with Par. When I was finished, I sat in the waiting room and waited for Darrell to come out so I could go back in and sit with my precious baby. Rusty and Darrell came out together and Rusty said (without any sort of facial expression), "Dr. Kays says he needs to speak with us together"--or course I had a mini-freakout in my head and quickly asked why. Rusty then said, "He thought Par's mama would want to hear him cry for the first time when he extubates him"--I was so excited! So we went in and waited excitedly by Par's bed. I was telling Par everything that was about to happen--he just stared at me looking very confused. Dr. Kays came over and joined the two nurses and....well...just watch the video. (FYI- you will see the actual extubation, so if you don't like seeing tubes pulled out of a little baby's throat--then you may want to prepare to turn your head) Rusty and I are so proud of Par--this is such a HUGE step for him and we are praying that he will take to the CPAP. The CPAP is the getup he has on in place of his ET tube.



We are headed back over to visit our baby and will update later tonight with some precious pictures of him. Liz, Rusty & Par

UPDATE: 12:10 AM

Par is sound asleep--he is tolerating the CPAP very well with saturations of 100/100. We tucked him in with his blanket made by his Gigi--he is very warm and cozy. As much as we wanted to wake him up--we knew it was best to leave him asleep since he had been a little agitated earlier by this big change. Rusty and I stood over him and said our bedtime prayer.

Please keep Jonathan, Ella and new CDH baby girl in your prayers. We ask God to bless each of these babies and all of the parents--we thank him sincerely for this amazing journey.

May God bless you.
Liz, Rusty & Par