When a week feels like a year...

Tomorrow, Thursday, it will be a week since we called 911 for Zane.

Hard to believe that it has only been a week. It seems to me like it has been FOREVER. I guess that whole situation sucked a lot out of us. All of us. I wanted to say thank you to my parents and my in-laws as they helped us through this past week. It helped so much to know that Cade was safe and well cared for so that we could focus on Zane in the hospital.

Diana, Jim's mom, took off work to come and visit us in the hospital and to take Cade for the afternoons and evenings. My parents took care of Cade the rest of time and would sit with Zane in the hospital for a few hours so Jim and I could run home and shower and change. Diana brought us cookies and Starbucks. My mom did our laundry. The support from our family is amazing--and priceless. Thank you!

Tomorrow, Thursday, it will be a week since Cade had his pictures taken with the Easter Bunny. I seem to have a valid excuse of why it has taken me so long to get these pictures up, but here they are!

Life in the PICU

**I started to write this post on Saturday...so it is a little old, but it tells you our whole story. That we know has a happy ending! Thanks to everyone that has supported us with prayers and love. Thank you!**

What is the PICU?

Pediatric Intensive Care Unit.

A place we never dreamed we would be. A place where a nightmare puts you. A place where my baby is getting the best care possible to keep him alive.

That sounds so scary to say. But, it is true. How long can you live without breathing? Not long.

Zane had congestion since early this past week. I called the doctor's office last Monday and they said it was probably just "newborn congestion" and as long as he wasn't running a fever, we should be fine.

Zane was seen on Wednesday at the doctor's office. The doctor did his circumcision and listened to him and said that although he was congested, his lungs were clear and to follow up on Friday for his congestion, to check on his circumcision and his weight since he had not gained any of his birth weight back.

Zane pretty much slept the next 24 hours. He would wake up once in a while to eat--and I was waking him up to eat since he needed to gain weight. But he just seemed tired. We thought he was just traumatized from his circumcision and needed to sleep.

Thursday morning we went to the mall. Zane hung out in the stroller--still sleeping. We had lunch and took Cade to see the Easter Bunny. I had taken Zane out of the stroller so he could get his picture taken with the Easter Bunny, too...but I changed my mind and just had Cade in the picture. My Mom took Zane so I could pay for the pictures and we walked out of the mall. When we got outside, Mom said she was glad to be outside in the sun because when we were in the mall Zane's upper lip looked a little blue. But he looked better outside.

I sat next to Zane in the back seat of Jim's truck on the way home from the mall. I was watching Zane pretty closely as my Mom's statement had freaked me out a little. His breathing seemed shallow--and his skin pale. I told Jim that he had to watch Zane when we got home to see if we needed to get Zane to the doctor on Thursday instead of waiting until his appointment on Friday. By the time Jim pulled him out of the car seat at home, Zane was really pale and limp. Jim told me to call the doctor's office--he needed to be seen. I was put on hold with the doctor's office. Watching Jim's face change, I knew this was a little more pressing than running to the doc. Jim then said lets go to the ER. Then told me to call 911.

I called 911 and the rest of what happened is somewhat of a blur. Jim was trying to keep Zane breathing and occasionally blowing air in his mouth. Zane quickly turned a grayish blue color and Jim said he wasn't breathing by the time the fire department got to our house. The fire department came in and took over right away. Cade just wanted to go outside and see the firetruck. The firemen got Zane breathing again and stabilized him enough for transport to the hospital.

I rode in the front seat of the ambulance to John C. Lincoln where they have Mendy's Place--an ER for kids. Once there, a team of doctors and nurses took over keeping Zane breathing. After a couple of tense hours there, they transferred us by ambulance to the PICU at St. Joes hospital down town. We got there around 7:00pm. They tried to do a lumbar puncture on Zane to get a culture to rule out meningitis. However, he stopped breathing a couple more times, so they stopped. We spent the next three days in the PICU and then was transferred to the regular pediatric floor for one more day. They had Zane on oxygen, fluids, antibiotics, monitors...the poor baby had so many wires and tubes coming out of him it was hard to hold him.

The RSV swab came back positive. A viral infection that most kids and adults respond to like a cold, but in the little babies can be very dangerous. Since Cade was recently battling a viral infection that left him with steroids and breathing treatments, we are pretty sure we know the source of the infection. It just hit Zane hard.

This week has been crazy. Well, the last almost three weeks since Zane was born and in the NICU have been crazy. But, thank God we are home and mostly healthy. We are hoping to keep it that way.

It's Official

Cade is sick.

For the last week we have been hoping it would just disappear. But, all the virus did was move from the head and into Cade's chest. So... back to our usual course of steroids and breathing treatments. And of course, dealing with the nightmare child that follows that course.

Poor Zane went to the doctor today, too. However, he got a little more than a check up! Zane was circumcised today. The we had to take him to the lab for his second set of newborn screenings. Zane has pretty much slept the rest of the day away. Apparently he was a little traumatized!

Jim goes back to work Monday and that will be an adjustment for all of us. I kind of like having Jim around--one kid per parent works out pretty well. It will be interesting when Jim isn't here to tag-team with me. I am sure he is not looking forward to going back to work as he is at a new store, but we will all make it through!

And I am tired. Just tired. Must sleep!

Stolen Moments

I only have a few precious moments before Zane wakes up hungry.

But, I wanted to thank Kim for her guest post and welcoming Zane into the world.

Life in our house is crazy right now. Lack of sleep always makes the world seem a little off kilter.

We have a newborn. In case you didn't know (or don't remember), newborns don't sleep through the night. And they cry. And they are sweet angels that win you over with a smile in their sleep that is probably caused by a gas bubble.

We also have a two year old. And two year olds love to say, "No". And they are confused when another being enters the household and disrupts their normal life. Cade is sick. Fever, cough, runny nose, congestion...he is miserable and not sleeping well. And the hardest part is trying to keep him away from Zane. Don't need a newborn with that virus!

However, no matter how crazy things are, I am trying to focus on the good. The blessing of our new baby boy.

Thanks for all the well wishes!

Perfection

*** Guest Post by Kim, spouting nonesense from the (and almost spring) frozen wilderness of Wisconsin.

While Courtney is being waited on hand and foot by her adoring husband recouperating at the hospital, I've snuck into the Monkey House through one of the upstairs windows. Actually, while she was delusional from pain and desperately waiting for the pharmacological juices from heaven to kick in, I took full advantage of the situation in order to get her to give me the keys to her cyber-apartment. She did make me promise to put the seat down when I was done though, so she wasn't completely incoherant. heh. Of course, Courtney knows me pretty well and is wise enough to not let me run amok in her tidy little space without a darn good reason.

Zane Rylan Morales

Zane was born on March 04, 2009 at 12:11pm. He weighed a 7lbs 4oz and was 20" long.

Courtney is recouperating and doing well. We had a little bit of scare with Zane due to some fluid in his lungs but he seems to be flourishing now.

Isn't he the most gorgeous little piece of perfection you have ever seen?

No, really. He is.

I have two boys of my own who locked up my heart at their very first breath and I'm here to tell you that neither one of them looked that beautiful immediately after they were born. Their were red, splotchy, screamy bundles of yummy baby. I thought that's what all newborns looked like. Apparently I was w-r-o-n-g. Just look at that face.

Here, maybe this will help:

Perfection!

Congratulations Courtney, Jim and Cade.

I love air conditioning...

Current weather where my some of my friends and family are:

• Deforest, WI: 10
• Roy, UT: 56
• Kingston, NY: 15
• Iowa City, IA: 20
• Philadelphia, PA: 17
• Houston, TX: 50

Current temperature in Phoenix: 78. The high today was 90.

Yes, you are reading that correctly. Therefore, since it bumped the temperature in my house up to over 80...my air conditioning is on.

Hey...it was warm, and I am pregnant. Not a good combination.

Croup Continued...

Cade got his steroid shot at the doctor on Friday.

Friday night was rough. Apparently the steroids wired him. He didn't sleep much. I keep joking that Cade is preparing me for life with a newborn--with little sleep. I appreciate his thought, but would like to have a few more nights of solid sleep before they become a thing of the past. Saturday night was a little better as he only woke up once at 11:45pm. Of course, I had just fallen asleep and was very confused as to why I was being woken up by a little hand poking me in the back...But, after I got him back in bed, we were good until 6:30am. I am hoping tonight he will sleep all the way through. Wish us luck.

Jim and I ran to Target tonight to get a baby swing. Our old one is now missing vital parts and will not be useful. So, we picked out a new one. The Fisher Price My Little Lamb Swing. You can check it out here and see how cute it is. I am glad that we don't have to purchase all the big items this time around, but it is kind of fun. So, I am glad I got to do this!