Date Night...

As another month comes to a close, a sense of normalcy is no where to be found.  Days and days should not be spent going to and from the hospital.  It is mentally and physically exhausting, but we know that it is being done for the best reason possible. 

To try and find a bit of normal activity, Mom and Dad went to a movie while Stella stayed with Grammie and Pa.  It was sort of a date night, and ironically we saw the movie "date night".  It was pretty good, but it was great to laugh at nothing of great importance.  It was also nice to walk outside on this peaceful and gentle night.  We cannot wait for the days at home when we can have our regularly scheduled date night, which we decided we would always have. 

Trey continues to truck along.  He was awake and alert for most of the afternoon and did not require any extra medicine to calm him down.  This is a good thing because this has not happened for many days in a row.  He continues to grow and we can be sure that the long process of building new lung tissue has begun.  We understand that this will be a long journey to complete recovery, and there is no reason to rush our little engine that can!

Changing Routine

With Randy @ work most of the week I usually spend all day at the hospital - literally.  From 9 am until 7:30-8:30 pm.  Since we've been here for such a long time and have been disconnected from anything normal for what seems like forever, today I tried to adjust my routine just a bit.  Rather than staying at the hospital all day I left for a few hours during the middle of the day.  I was able to take care of a lot of things I had been putting off - paying bills, doing some things for work, running errands.  I've been away from work nearly five months and it's time for me to get back at it.  Not because I'm being pressured from my employer (everyone at SUNY Potsdam has been unbelievably supportive) but because I need something for myself to get through the coming months. I love to work and it felt good to feel productive today.  We've spent so much time here just going through the motions.  When I went back today for the second hold of the day (pictured above), I had just a moment where I felt truly happy holding the babies.  These moments have been few and far between for me because our lifestyle is not ideal, it is actually just devastating. Reality set back in quickly because the hospital/NICU environment took over.  Luckily for us Randy surprised us shortly after - we weren't expecting him until tomorrow night.  It is awesome having him back.

Trey has had a rough couple of days and today was no exception.  Simply put - he has just been really agitated.  His CPAP was turned back up to 6 today, and he was given some extra medication to help him settle.  Not only did it make him feel better, it made it easier for me to leave for a few hours because I knew he would be sleeping the entire time I was gone.  Late in the day some additional diuretics were started.  Trey has required a bit more oxygen for parts of the day, but overall he really is doing well.  We don't see the CPAP increase as a setback - there is no hurry to wean his support so he may as well have the extra pressure for now.  I haven't had a hospital volunteer with me this week for every hold.  Stella has been very well behaved for the most part, but on occasion she is situated on a pillow with Trey and I which seems to work out nicely and feels very special (even though they don't notice each other yet!).

Steering Clear of Infection

It has been a few days since Trey has played in the bouncy seat but we thought we'd post the picture as a representation of how well he has been doing.  The NICU staff has done a great job at working to keep Trey on track developmentally.  He really enjoys being in this seat so we are grateful!

Trey had a pretty rough morning today.  He just simply was agitated off and on for several hours.  After giving him some extra medication he settled down for most of the remainder of the day.  Today some more blood work was drawn to do extra tests to ensure Trey has not caught any other type of infection or virus.  Some traces were found on the lab work he had last week which the doctors believe are contaminates but they want to redo the tests just to be sure.  We were reminded today by the doctors about just how fragile Trey is and will continue to be for the coming months.  Even the smallest cold could be life threatening for him.  This makes us feel like getting home is truly only half the battle.  Unfortunately because Trey will be so delicate it will be difficult for us to take many visitors when we do finally make it home.  It will be so important for him to stay healthy through the next flu/rsv season and avoiding exposure will be the best method of prevention.

Stella continues to do well.  She was a really good girl today when Trey was fussing.  She was a little loud later in the day when she was hungry.  Trey is very sensitive to noise and often doesn't like it when other NICU babies cry - somehow he slept through Stella's cries today though.  She doesn't seem to bother him, perhaps he just knows it's her.

Sleeping Beauty

Stella is such a good little sleeper.  Our volunteer Caroline calls her Sleeping Beauty.  Trey too enjoys his sleep (just not quite as much as Stella).  We are so very jealous of how much sleep the babies get - mom jokes about drinking several margaritas and sleeping 10 hours the day she decides to stop pumping! 

There's not much news today.  Some of Trey's medications were adjusted and they started adding some extra protein to his diet.  Trey continues to gain weight - he is now 7 lbs. 13 1/2 oz.  This is the best news we could ask for, since the continued theme from the doctors remains that his ticket out of the hospital will be through good nutrition.

Just another NICU Monday

It was a quiet day today for the Todd family.  Dad woke up bright and early and left for Brushton at around 5 am - the day passed quickly so fortunately Friday will be here before you know it and we can all be together again.  Trey gained nearly 2 ounces yesterday.  His CPAP was adjusted down slightly late in the afternoon, hopefully he will like this change.  So far so good!  Stella was a good girl today - she quietly entertained herself this morning for over an hour so Mom could have some time with Trey.  The babies sat together with Mom for about 20 minutes but they were both sleeping and hardly seemed to notice one another.  That day will come though, and hopefully they will be best friends!

Return to Vermont

After a quick trip back to New York, the three of us returned to Burlington.  It was good to see Trey and he really liked being held by his dad.  It was bittersweet to go home and we can not wait until the day the four of us can make that drive across the lake together. 

Trey had a nice weekend.  Everything is on the steady, which is very different than the past week or so.  It seems like they have got his medications in the right proportions, which makes him very comfortable most of the time.  This is key to having him gain weight because when he gets worked up, he tends to work extra hard and burn tons of calories.

Thanks to everyone who visited us at home this weekend!  It was great to see all of you and we can't wait to see everyone else from home also.

Stella Visits Home

The Todd Family minus one visited home today.  It was Stella's first trip to NY and mom's first time home in a long while.  We hated to make the trip without our little Trey but after 120 days in Burlington the time had come.  The trip was especially worthwhile as The Hooley's were visiting from Columbus.  Their visit was the motivation for the trip, and Mom has been really anxious to visit Cole.  Hopefully this 22 hour visit will provide some much needed rejuvenation as we come into the home stretch.

Trey is being well taken care of in our absence.  His central line was removed today - it was no longer being used and keeping it brings along an infection risk.  Caroline, who usually sits with Stella, generously offered some of her time to sit with Trey today.  We wanted to make sure Trey was held while we were away so we really appreciate her help.

While we were here we had the chance to set up our webcam, which was an early homecoming gift from Stella and Trey's Aunts.   We skyped with Aunt Patti and Haley today; it was so great to see them.  Aunt Patti is just weeks away from her delivery and although we talk with her frequently it was wonderful to actually see her.

Tomorrow a few of our friends will be stopping by for a quick breakfast before we head back to Vermont.

It was an emotional day but with the agony of deciding to make the trip behind us and the joy of family time we can rest assured that we made a choice that was right for us.  We look forward to being back with our little buddy tomorrow afternoon.

Care Conference #2

Today we had our second care conference for Trey.  We again had a room full of professionals who want the best care for our little boy.  Since Trey has been doing well and had an exceptional night yesterday the conversation was very positive.  For now the plan is to just wait and see how Trey does.  Initially nobody thought Trey would tolerate nasal cpap so discussions about persuing a tracheostomy took place.  This option has been tabled for now.  We will have another meeting again in three weeks to evaluate his progress and talk about moving forward  based on how Trey has progressed.  As parents we are doing our very best to advocate for Trey which has not been an easy task.  In our minds, for right now, being patient and giving him time for his lungs to heal and grow makes the most sense.

Dad's quick return...

After being gone for two days, Randy returned this evening.  It was a great feeling to walk into the unit and see my family.  Greatest feeling ever = your daughter smiling at you when you first say hi.  It was also great to see Trey: It had only been two days, but he looked much better tonight.  He was awake and alert, and very comfortable.  After being treated with some lasixs, his oxygen requirment came down significantly.  Hopefully this is a sign of things to come.

Being here day after day with not many things changing, it is getting difficult to think of things to write about when there are not alot of changes. So, this will be a nice and short post, but at least I can "soup" it up with a picture from a few weeks back~

Oxygen Gods

Since Trey is a big boy now he has advanced from the cpap hat.  Nurse Kristen says his new head gear makes him look like a superhero!  At any rate he's probably not as hot now.  Trey's oxgyen requirement over the past two days has steadily increased, with no real explanation as to why.  All in all he appears very comfortable so we patiently try to accept that the increased oxygen is just what he needs right now.   His IV medication was discontinued today, so the IV line is no longer being used.  Hopefully it will be removed within a few days because it is an infection risk.  Trey's growth continues to be on an upward climb - he now weighs 7 lbs. 10 oz.

Stella is doing well and is tolerating her time in the NICU thanks to the generosity of some hospital volunteers.  Thank you again to Caroline for giving us her time, and thank you to our two new volunteers Julie and Cheryl.

Infections

Babies with chronic lung disease are especially at risk of becoming sick.  Today the doctors worried that Trey could possible have a viral or bacterial infection.  Luckily it was a false alarm!  Few changes were made today - just an adjustment with his medications and an increase in the frequency that he receives oil with his feeds to assist with growth.

Stella continues to do well.  She was able to sit with a volunteer twice today while Mom held Trey.

Dad had to go back to NY today after spending 11 days in Burlington during spring recess.  He will be greatly missed.  Being separated is devastating but as we like to say 'it is what it is'.  Trey will get better, and our family will get through this.

It's not always convenient to check e-mail or return phone calls right now but today there just happened to be time to open an e-mail from Dr. Kiltz, a reproductive endocrinologist.  Coincidentally, his quotes of the day hit home:

"There is time for everything."  

~ by Thomas Edison

"Nature never hurries. Atom by atom, little by little she achieves her work."

~ by Ralph Waldo Emerson

Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia

Monday, April 19

The genetic tests for surfactant protein deficiencies which were sent to the Mayo Clinic all came back negative!  This means that the best diagnosis for Trey's condition remains chronic lung disease, or bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD).  The following article explains this condition futher.  If you've read our blog from the beginning you will recognize many of the treatments mentioned as the NICU doctors here have been treating Trey for this condition from the beginning.

http://kidshealth.org/parent/medical/lungs/bpd.html#

Trey continues to be a fussy baby from time to time.  His small outbursts have recently been labeled 'BPD Spells'.  These are common in infants with chronic lung disease.  Today Trey had difficulty calming down which we attributed mostly to his discomfort on the nasal cpap.  He was trialed on high-flow oxygen for three hours, but in the end he was placed back on nasal cpap, which delivers a more appropriate level of support.  We hope to try again with high flow but he needs to spend another week or so growing and becoming stronger.  Unfortunately that may require extra medicine in order to keep in calm.  For now we take it day by day and hope that he continues to grow stronger and stronger despite his discomfort.

Stella continues to do well.  She kept Daddy up until 2 am last night, so thankfully she's now asleep!

Tummy Time

In the beginning Stella really didn't like being put on her tummy but she has grown more tolerant over time.  This is great news because developmentally it is really important for her to have 'tummy time'.  Trey is a very strong little boy and Stella has started to show her strength as well when she is on the floor or our chests.  Today she rolled from her tummy to her back three times!

Keeping Trey comfortable continues to be a challenge but it seems as though the doctors and nurses are very close to finding a combination of medicines which keep him calm and happy.  Overall he is doing well and he gained nearly an ounce yesterday which is awesome news!

Thank you to Grandma and Grandpa Goolden for visiting over the weekend.  They stayed with Stella on Saturday night so we could visit Trey and have an hour to ourselves.  We went to Ri Ra's Irish Pub on Church Street and had a meal by ourselves for the first time since Stella was discharged.  We talked about the babies the entire time which made us recognize our lives will never be the same again which we are so happy and excited about.  We finished off their visit with breakfast at IHOP, which has become a Sunday morning tradition.

Trey getting happier...Stella laughing...

On gloomy days it is sometimes tough to find things that inspire you.  If you're looking for some inspiration, here is what did it for us today:

First, Trey was a pretty happy boy today.  His oxygen requirement was the lowest it has been in a long time, even though it ended up going back up a bit in the evening.  He is gaining some weight, and he seems to be handling his CPAP very well.  Here are some pics:

He loves his rings!!!  (This is a mix of pics from when he was intubated and on CPAP)




Stella is doing great.  She is starting to smile and laugh more, as well as make more sounds.  It's awesome.

Rainy day...gloomy moods.

Stella is becoming photogenic like her dad!!  There were no big changes with Trey today.  He had a nice time out with both mom and dad.  They are trying to figure out all of his medications while giving him a chance to adjust to the CPAP.  We continue to "hang" in there, although somedays wear on us.  As we watched a movie tonight, we could only think about how nice it would have been for the four of us to be watching it in our living room with our cat cole.  That day will come soon, or later, we will wait for our boy for as long as he needs.

The weather is gloomy, so maybe that isn't helping our moods.  But we love for people to visit and express their support.  Today was no different as two of Beth's ladies from SUNY potsdam, Christa and Laura visited and stayed for lunch.  It was nice for Beth to get her "girl" talk in and lunch wasn't bad either.

Finding the balance...

As the days pass, it has become increasingly more difficult to find the right balance.  When do we eat?  Spend time with Stella?  Sleep?  Go to the hospital?  Not to mention doctors appointments, pumping, etc.  I'm sure it is something all parents go through, there is just an adjustment period, and I think we are going through that period now.

The really tough balance is trying to figure out exactly what Trey needs at the moment.  After a bad blood gas and a respirtory rate much lower than his norm, some things needed to be adjusted to try and make our boy more comfortable and happy.  His sedation meds were reduced, and his CPAP settings played with.  He continued to work hard most of the evening, although he did wake up for about two straight hours.  As mom and dad left for the night, they were going to increase his meds again to try and get him to rest.  He is a "rare" case, and finding a balance for him will not be the easiest thing, but everyone involved wants what is best for him.  He will tell us what he needs, and we will do the best to accomodate him.

We continue to realize how lucky we are for the generousity and goodness that people have shown us during our journey here.  Thanks again!

Day 100

Today marks the one-hundred day mark.  And Trey decided he was going to celebrate on his own terms...

At 3 o'clock in the morning, Trey removed his breathing tube.  He is a strong little guy, so this didn't totally shock us.  Since the docs only want to re-intubate if totally necessary, Trey was put on nasal CPAP.  Pulling a tube out of your throat, and tape off of your face can be irratating so he has needed to be on a drug to calm him down for most of the day.  Although we are nervous that he is not ready, we also know that the ventilator is not the best for his lung tissue, and we believe in him, so we know he is going to do fine.  It just continues to be a nervous time.  The next few days will tell the story about which direction we go in next.  "Go Trey Go!"

Stella got to meet her uncle Ryan for the first time, as he and Grandma Todd came to visit for the day.  We ate lunch and spent some quality time at the RMH together.  We can not wait to go home so Stella can meet everyone who is important to us.

Super Sized...

To start things off, here is a picture of Stelle-Belle with one of her favorite nurses...Aleksah.  Alexa was there during the early days, and made the twins beautiful name tags.  Thanks Alexa!


There are many things that have grown since we began this journey.

First, obviously....Bethann. (Although now she's back to her normal size)  We finally got around to ordering maternity pictures for our home, so this reminded us how big Beth used to be.

Next, the babies.  They have both doubled their size since birth.  To give an example of this...Stella began her doctor's appointments measuring in the 3rd percentile for length and weight.  Now she has "caught up" and is in the 50th percentile, right where she needs to be.  Even more amazingly, even with the rough road Trey has had, he is only slightly behind his sister.

Thirdly, the amount of "stuff" we have.  If you have children, you realize how much extra stuff they bring to the equation.  I am definitely astonished!

Finally, our family.  Our family has grown...by numbers it has only merely doubled.  But, we have learned so much, and met so many wonderful people on this journey.  These people have become part of our extended family.  There are too many to name, but we are positive that we will continue to stay in touch with them in the future.  The warmth and generosity of the people around us, remind us that our network is just simply.....amazing!!

Now to the sad stuff...we lost a key member of our "family" who had been with us for almost 7 years.  My Honda is no longer big enough to handle two car seats and all of their stuff.  So, we traded it in and picked out a used SUV.  There were alot of great memories with the Honda, it will be missed. (I'm tearing up!)  It is nice to know that we will have enough room to travel comfortably with our new vehicle.

Tomorrow's preview:  "Triple Digits"...

New Neighbors

A set of triplets joined the NICU yesterday making things a bit noisy in the unit - Trey doesn't always like this.  He ended up requiring some extra oxygen through the evening and early morning hours due to his agitation but he has settled into his norm of the 50's as the day progressed.  This is awesome news because a different vent setting was weaned today.  If he wasn't tolerating this particular type of wean his oxygen requirement would increase so we are very happy that he is maintaining his typical requirements.  If he continues to do well with the decreases in the ventillator settings he will be well on his way to extubation!

Stella had a doctors visit today and she now weighs 9lbs. 2 oz. and measures 20 3/4 inches!  She is a big girl now and developmentally she is doing great!

Family Matters

Stella met her Aunt Mary Jane today!  It was great to have family visit as we hope to raise Stella and Trey in an environment where family comes first.  It was another beautiful spring day in Burlington so we took the opportunity to get a photo with Ronald at the house playground.  Trey had a great day today - they lowered the ventillator pressure support and it was as if no changes had been made - his oxygen requirement and respiratory rate so far have not been impacted by the wean!  This is great news because if he can tolerate lower levels of pressure support we can rule out the tracheostomy option.

Spring has Sprung!

It was another beautiful day in Burlington - a sunny cool day.  The flowers in front of Fletcher Allen are budding and the signs of winter are beginning to fade away.  Just like the spring flowers our little Trey is growing and growing.  Although he lost nearly four ounces yesterday due to diuretic therapy, his average weight gain over the past seven days has been 16 grams per day (15-20 is the goal).  Although the vent settings haven't changed this week his positive growth has certainly felt like progress.

Thank you to Mike and Linda Mason who visited today.  We enjoyed visiting and appreciated them treating us to lunch at Longhorn.

The Masters

It's the weekend of The Masters - another one of our 'let's be home by...' goals has come and gone.  Our new goal is Memorial Day Weekend.  The doctors here can't say whether the end of May is a realistic goal or not, Trey's condition remains puzzling to them.  He had a pretty good day and gained more weight again.  He now weighs 7 lbs.!  Hopefully his lungs are growing along with the rest of him.

Yesterday I made a new nametag for Trey (his original nametag had snowflakes on it, and it's April so we needed some sunshine!) with a golf theme - which is fitting for this weekend because it will become a household tradition at our house for years to come - Go Tiger Woods!  Thank you to nurse Heidi for allowing me to play with the units nametag supplies, it brightened up my day and Trey's bedside.

P.S. Thank you to Paula and Aaron Jones for giving the twins their first set of kiddie clubs!

Sweat Test

Heidi and Karen are shown here gathering sweat for Trey's Cystic Fibrosis screening.  Trey is always warm, just like his daddy, so they didn't have any trouble collecting sweat.  Karen said she had never seen the collection pad so absorbed - it even ripped in half because it was so wet!  The test results came back negative so we can check this off the list of 'maybes'.

The focus over the past few days has been to transition Trey from a pain medication administered through IV to a oral pain medication.  Trey is having some trouble with the transition so he didn't feel so well today.  By evening he had settled down though and he seems to finally be comfortable.  Once he is comfortable on the oral medication the doctors plan to lower the vent settings again - they are hoping for Monday.

Stella is getting to be such a big girl!  We spend a lot of time at the hospital with Trey but we do as much playing as we can when we are at our room at the Ronald McDonald House!

P.S. Trey gained another ounce yesterday!

Star Fish

Since Trey is an older baby the risk of self-extubation is greater so NICU staff are really cautious about taking care of him.  This photo shows some star fish shaped bean bags that are used as boundaries for premies, and in this case as restraints so Trey can't grab onto his tube!

Yesterday Trey gained almost one ounce - two consecutive days of weight gain is great news!  Today a test for Cystic Fibrosis was ordered, and another wean on his medication was attempted.

We miss Randy/Daddy

and can't wait for him to be back!

Eye Health

Trey gained nearly 2.5 ounces yesterday which is really good growth for him.  He gained barely any Sunday so this was welcomed news!  Today the eye doctor visited the unit and Trey had his final exam - his eyes have matured!  We are so happy to check this off his list of things to accomplish before he can be discharged.  Both babies will still need to have a different type of eye exam in six months to check for strabismus (commonly known as lazy eye).  They are at risk from both their prematurity and from heredity since Mom struggled with this as a child.  As long as Trey continues to grow his lungs will eventually heal so seeing progress in other growth areas is encouraging.

Today the parents of one of Trey's neighbors (Owen) who has been having an equally difficult tour through the NICU gave Trey a guardian angel with a prayer for health.  This awesome gesture is just one example of how connected families going through this nightmare become.  Nobody could ever understand what each of us goes through, but we can certainly relate to one another in small ways.

Stella is an amazing little girl.  She continues to be such a good baby - its almost as if she somehow knows that Trey is sick, Daddy has to be back at work, and Mom needs her to be good.  Many thanks to our volunteer Caroline for offering extra hours to be with Stella since Trey is intubated.  This extra attention is good for Stella and helps ensure Trey receives much needed attention too.

Sweet Dreams

Since Trey was requiring significantly more oxygen over night and didn't have a great blood gas early this morning they opted to turn his vent settings back up slightly.  We don't want to push him too hard so while we are a little disappointed we feel it is the best thing to do right now.  Trey was a sleepy boy today due to some over-medicating.  He seemed back to his normal self again by the time we left around 8:15 tonight though.

We had a nice visit from Sabrina today - thanks for spending your day off with us!  We sent dad back around 5 tonight for four long days of work.  Then he'll have a nice chunk of time with us during his spring recess.  We can't wait for Friday night to come!

Sunday, April 4

Happy Easter!

The Todd's had a nice Easter away from home thanks to the Ronald McDonald House.  A volunteer made a lovely ham dinner and gave each of the twins a stuffed bunny rabbit and mom some Mary Kay products. Trey's ventillator settings were adjusted down a bit more too.  The weather in Burlington continues to be unseasonable warm and beautiful.  All in all it was a good day.

Sunny Days

Today was another beautiful day in Burlington.  We spent some time downtown with Grandma and Grandpa Goolden, enjoying lunch outside and wandering around Church Street a bit.  This morning was exciting for us because Trey's ventilator settings were adjusted down slightly.  His oxygen requirement has been pretty steady the past few days, he's had good blood gas readings, and the doctor showed a graph of his decreasing respiratory rate over the past week, making us hopeful that he is ready for this wean although it came a bit earlier than planned.  With any luck we'll be able to make another wean in a few days.  Stella's been enjoying cuddle time with Grandma and Grandpa and is getting lots of good rest (Mommy is jealous!). 

Warm weather...small gains

With today's unseasonable warmth, 3/4 of the Todd family was able to enjoy downtown Burlington.  We were able to find stella a cute hat and spent time in the city hall park, and got ice cream on church street.  We were also pleasantly surprised to hear from the McCarthys and the Mills.  Gina, Missy, Kendra and Micheala (sp?) called us up and we went out to lunch.  Thanks for taking time out of your shopping trip!  It is always great to see friendly faces from home.

Trey had a steadfast day.  He continues to try and relax and grow.  He loves to be out of bed, and is very interested in what is happening around him.  We cannot wait for the day when the four of us can enjoy such a beautiful day in downtown Burlington. 

Today reminded us of many things about this entire experience.  We would never want anyone to go through this, it is not fun.    So this seems like a good time to talk about what we have disliked the most:
1) Not having a "normal" pregnancy experience.
2) Witnessing the horrors of the NICU.
3) Spending more time in the Ronald McDonald House than in our new house.
4) Missing everyone from home. (there are countless names)
5) Pumping...and pumping...and pumping...and pumping...
6) Not knowing when the end is...

Today also reminded us of many things that make us very lucky, even during this tough experience.  This is just the beginning of the list, but without these things our endless days here would be unbearable:
1) We have the greatest friends and family in the world.
2) This is a great NICU. 
3) We love our Nurses!!! 
4) Our renewed faith in the goodness of people inspires us.  Everyone has been so generous and caring.
5) We have two of the cutest kids in the world. (we're biased)
6) ESPN is the best channel ever!
7) Eating out continues to be comforting...although fattening.
8) If we can make it through this, the rest of this parenting thing will be cake.

As you can see, 8 is better than 6.  There are many more positive things that keep us going, and these remind us that we can't wait to raise Stella and Trey in the enviroment and surroundings we are lucky enough to be in.

Ronald McDonald House Charities

The NICU was loud today so Trey was a little agitated.  He fought going to sleep for hours and hours, until he finally had some medicine to help him relax and rest.  His oxygen requirements have been very steady and his blood gas readings are acceptable for weaning, athough the plan continues to be to allow him to grow and not turn down the ventilator settings until sometime next week.  All in all he had a pretty good day.  Stella is becoming a big girl and is changing every day.  Today she wanted to play while Trey was being held so she was a fussy girl.  We are seeking more help from hospital volunteers now to get us through this period of intubation.

Ronald McDonald House Charities of Burlington, VT

On another note, we just stumbled across a yahoo news feed about an activist group pushing for the retirement of Ronald McDonald.  He is being blamed for the childhood obesity problems in the U.S.  Seriously?  Is this an April Fools joke?  He is an iconic image for youth but to blame this lovable clown for children being overweight is just ridiculous.  For the record, our family will be forever grateful for Ronald McDonald House Charities - this devastating situation would seem unmanageable without the generous services they have provided us.   Thank you to all of the employees, volunteers, and individuals who donate to the Ronald McDonald House of Burlington, VT!

P.S.  McDonald's does have some healthy food options for kids such as apple slices and yogurt - it is parents who opt to feed their children greasy french fries and Big Macs!