Catch 22

Poor Jude. He's stuck in a catch 22. He has inflammation in his trachea that is causing a lot of secretions. This is very common when babies are on the ventilator for extended periods of time. However, he can't get off the ventilator until the secretions are significantly less. Basically, the secretions are caused by the vent, but he can't get off the vent until the secretions go away. The doctor said that it's a slow process where he will be given some medication and we just wait for him to get older. We're just really anxious for him to be off the vent since it looks so uncomfortable, so this was a little hard to hear. On a positive note, he's still doing quite well with his feeding!

Hazel should be off the lights this afternoon, which means I'll be able to hold her! She got a shot this morning and took it like a champ! No crying or anything! Maybe she learned from me since I was getting 4-5 shots a day when I was in the hospital. The shot is supposed to help her make her own red blood cells so that she won't need anymore blood transfusions. She'll be receiving these shots 3 times per week. She's still struggling with her feeding. It will be great once they are both eating more and can wean off some of the additional nutrients they are receiving through IV's.