All is well here. Jonathan slept will last night. After his 11pm feeding he slept till 4am and then again till 7am. That would be great if Andrew didn't keep waking me up in between those times. It was one of those rough nights for him.
Here are a few pics of our morning. I'm working with Andrew on a daily basis to sit at the table and color or write in preparation for preschool. Since he knows most his letters we try to review or just color. It is hard though because he wants to play or watch tv. I've set the timer and he now knows when it goes off he can get up. His coloring is really coming along. He use to color one line and call it a day but now he wants to color in the whole picture. I think it might be encouraging his OCDness but at least he is starting to want to color.
Jonathan is starting to get his routine but it is very slow. I don't remember this much crying with Andrew but I'm sure it was just as bad. I remember Andrew would give up after a few minutes but Jonathan will con't on until someone acknowledges his presence. He's only 3 weeks, I should cut him some slack. Sometimes my expectations are set too high and I realize that.

Here's Chris and the boys.


The boys are playing in Andrew's room. Two seconds later Jonathan had a fit. Glad I snapped the pic when I did.


Here's Andrew's latest coloring project. He's very proud of his work.

Still Adujusting

Sorry it has been so long since the last post. I'm sure you're wondering what's going on in the life of our house. Chris' mom just left and I'm sad because she was a lot of help. Andrew loved being able to go outside whenever he wanted to without waiting for Jonathan to wake up or finish eating. Jonathan is doing well. He had his 2 week weight check and was a whole 8lbs 1oz. We were excited because you never know if a nursing baby is getting enough. Another prayer has been answered with nursing. Jonathan is officially off the nursing shield. That is such a huge praise because now he doesn't have to work as hard to get his dinner. The doctor also told us that he would now consider him a normal healthy baby. His lungs and chest sound like all other babies. It is amazing how quickly they can heal.
Andrew is doing well too. He is still having sleep troubles. We think he thinks things are going on and he is missing out. He has had a small cold so the cold medicine has been helping him sleep more soundly. According to some of my friends I can't give that to him forever but I'll give it to him as long as I (opps I mean he) needs it. (Disclaimer: I would never intentionally dope my child up, it is a joke I promise.)

Many of my friends have come by and here is Sophia enjoying her time with Jonathan.


Andrew is playing peek-a-boo with Jonathan but Jonathan isn't really into it. Jonathan really likes to watch the lights on the radio. Andrew was teasing him by moving it around so much.


Here's Jonathan slowly growing up.


Jonathan loves to watch Andrew. His little eyes will follow Andrew or his head will move when he hears him talk. Here he is learning how to suck his fingers like his big brother.

Adjusting To Home

Every day is different here. Some days are good days and some days are bad days. Andrew is adjusting too. His tender heart is made evident in so many ways. He doesn't like to hear Jonathan cry and offers him a pacifier to calm him down. Andrew will pass by Jonathan's room and tell him it will be okay and to stop crying. As for playing with him...nothing. I'm sure that will change with time. Here are some pics of our life now.
This is Andrew meeting Jonathan for the first time at the hospital. He gave him so many kisses.

This is Jonathan's first bath. This was not a relaxing time for him. Of course, laying there naked with lukewarm water on you is never very relaxing.

This is an example of Andrew wanting to take a picture with Jonathan. Andrew is still in his pjs. The first thing he did was ask to take a picture with him.

Huge Praise

We are all home finally!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yesterday was a crazy day but in the end we all came home. We checked into the hospital Monday night and it was awesome to hold Jonathan without all the attachments. Just to be able to move around and not worry what monitor I would set off. That night went really well surprisingly. In the morning he was about to wake up and all the the nurses decided take blood, check his vitals, and all the other things that are necessary but annoying.
On a more girly note, but a huge pray that God answered. We were really struggling to get him nursing. He would latch on but not stay on. I had a lactation consultation just before leaving and she introduced me to a shield that feels like a bottle for Jonathan. He took to that right away and ever since then feedings have gone smoothly. I was so thankful for he because I was at my wits ends with nursing.
Our first day and night went relatively well. Please cont to pray for us. Sleep deprivation is a nasty feeling.

Pics Update

This is what they call a milk coma.

See how your prayers are being answered.

Just a quick update...they have tried a couple of times to take Jonathan off the breathing tube but have not had much success. So continue to pray that his lungs will mature. As soon as that happens he can come home. I'm already at home and it is very hard driving back and forth to the hospital for feedings and dropping off milk for him. It is taking a toll on Chris more so than me because I can't drive while on the meds. Please pray the God will con't to give him the strength he needs. I feel better but keep forgetting to take my meds. Andrew is doing well too. He can't wait for Jonathan to come home. He looks foward to seeing pictures or video we take while at the hospital. Please con't to pray for us. It is amazing how I can feel your prayers when I need it the most.

He is feeding so well...

Update picture...

Jonathan

Okay, I know you want pics and I want to give you pics but as you can tell it is really early and Chris is still sleeping. As soon as he gets up we'll post some pics and you can see how your prayers are being answered. Yesterday was a great day for Jonathan. He is still in the Special Care nursery but has improved in lots of ways. I got to hold him for the first time yesterday (a great Valentines gift) and the doctor saw how well he did all bundled up next to me that he decided to take him out of the hood and use a nasal tube for oxygen. Jonathan definitely needs the O2 but they are weaning him from it very slowly. It is so much nicer to be able to go in and truly look at him and not struggle to see through the hood.
He is still on an IV and they had to put it in his head because they couldn't find any good veins in his hands. So prepare yourself when you see the pics. It doesn't hurt him at all but it isn't pretty to look at either. The good news is that he ate from a bottle 2 times yesterday and I got to feed him one of those times. He started the day eating 5ml of milk to eating 35ml of milk by dinner time. Apparently a lot of his fussiness and lack of sleep was from a lack of food. The good news also is that my milk has come in so he is eating mainly mommy's milk and only a little formula. That is truly an answered prayer from the Lord.
It was such a special day yesterday and I just thank the Lord because I know it came from Him. I don't when Jonathan will be out of the Special Care nursery but we're not pushing it because I want him to be healthy. They did another chest x-ray and it was still hazy (which indicated that he has premature lung disease) but no pnuemonia. All the tests for bacteria infections came back negative so he is also off the antibiotics. Continued blessings from above. God is good.