My apologies again for the postings not always being in order.  I would blame it on a glitch in the system, but it's most likely a "glitch in the author" instead.  In any case, please continue to scroll up and down to see where the latest post is. 

The latest from the NICU this morning is that he had a good night's rest, and his flow (bypass) and ventilator settings are still the same as last night.  Also, his swelling seems to have come down even more, so that is also a positive sign.  His urination is less bloody than it was just 2 days ago, so that is a huge praise!  And the abdominal x-ray that was performed yesterday showed nothing abnormal, so that is also a good sign.  These are all good things, so we're very thankful for this.  They are very "small" good things, but in the NICU these small steps can seem like huge leaps!

As before, Bennett will have another chest x-ray and brain ultrasound performed this morning, so as soon as we know the results I will let you know. 

Thank you all for praying for our boy, and I ask that you please continue praying for his lungs and the infection, for bleeding to be prevented, and for the Lord to stretch out His mighty hand over our boy and heal him. 

Have a great day.

Love,

Travis, Kelly, and Bennett

Greetings from Georgetown Hospital NICU- we are coming to know this place very well.  Thank you SO incredibly much for all your words of encouragement, strength, love, and prayers- they continue to sustain us and carry us and we cannot thank you enough.  We are humbled and truly strengthened by the outpouring of love and concern being shown to Bennett and our family; both from those of you that we know and love, and from those of you whom we have never met....thank you.

Bennett is having a good day, so we thank God for that.  Trav's mom and I just got to spend some time with our angel boy and also got to talk to his nursing staff a bit.  We have these things to praise God for:

 - Bennett's lung x-ray came back slightly better today (with increased signs of air flow), so we are so incredibly thankful to have baby steps in the right direction.  We continue to pray that the antibiotics kill that bacteria in a major way so that his lungs are freed from infection and pneumonia.

- Bennett's head scans from yesterday came back fine, which means that there has been no bleeding detected in his brain- praise God for that!

- Bennett's blood gases today are looking better than they have since he got to the Georgetown NICU, which gives us hope that his body is helping to contribute to produce oxygen in his blood and not solely relying on the ECMO to do this. 

- The nurses measure the circumference of his abdomen daily and today they were able to report that the circumference had decreased by a few cm, which is a good thing; the fluid they are pumping into him continues to decrease as he pees more and more, so we are so thankful for that.

- I don't have an update regarding the blood in his urine, but please continue to be praying that NO MORE BLEEDING will occur as a result of the blood thinner that he is currently on for ECMO.

We will try to get some more pictures tonight because I know you guys want to see how precious our little man is.....he is such a fighter and we are in constant amazement of Bennett's strength.  We know that God is holding our baby boy in the shadow of his wings, and for that we are thankful.

Travis is with Bennett right now, so Bennett is enjoying his nightly "man to man chat" and sweet lullabies sung by daddy.

We did just talk to the nurse a bit and learned that the coagulation levels in Bennett's blood are causing some concern and they are monitoring possible clotting (both in the bypass machine and Bennett) very closely, so PLEASE PRAY FOR NO CLOTS.  She said that it is sometimes common for clots to appear when the bypass machine has been going for a longer period of time (and we are finishing up day nine), so obviously this is something they are taking very serious.  Like I said earlier, they have not seen any clots in Bennett's body as they have done x-rays of his head, abdomen, lung, heart, etc. but we want to pray that the coagulation levels STABILIZE and that no clots are found in him nor the bypass machine. 

Bennett has an IV line in his right heel that monitors his blood pressure continuously and unfortunately this line has started to bleed this afternoon/evening and they are having issues stopping the bleeding due to the blood thinner that is necessary for the bypass machine.  PLEASE PRAY FOR BENNETT's BLEEDING IN HIS HEEL TO CEASE.  We need his heel to clot to stop the bleeding, but we don't want a clot to occur in the bypass machine- these requests seem contridictory, but it is the fine line of the blood treatments/monitoring that we knew was going to be needed for this serious procedure (ECMO).

The team will most likely be giving him more blood platelets and fluids tonight (he got some more this afternoon as well), so we are expecting that his swelling will be increasing as a result.  Since his swelling was just starting to go down, this is a bit of a step back; but it is obviously needed since his bleeding and blood clotting are serious concerns.  Travis and I will meet with the doctors tomorrow to get a better understanding of what the situation is, so we should have more details then.

We know God can answer these prayers so we will boldly ask Him to protect Bennett from both clotting and excessive bleeding as a result of the blood thinner........the tight rope walk continues, but we are holding strong to our faith, knowing that God is present and working.  Please also keep praying for his lungs to clear from infection and that the antibiotics will keep working hard.

Have a good night and enjoy the latest pics of our baby boy.

All our love,

Trav, Kell & Bennett

I just got off the phone with Kell, and she had just spoken with the attending Physician about Bennett.  When she first came into the room, the bypass machine had been turned down to .34, which means his lungs are beginning to work a little better.  The Doctors felt that his lungs may be trying to work too hard a little too soon, so they turned the bypass machine up to .40 and turned the ventilator down a bit to give his lungs a little rest.  They will see how he responds to this and make any adjustments they feel necessary as time goes on.  And so the balancing act on the tightrope continues, but so far our boy is still standing.

The most recent brain ultrasounds have come back negative for bleeding, and a recent x-ray of the kidney also came back negative.  The bleeding in the urine continues, so they are going to take an x-ray of his bladder later this afternoon.  The most recent chest x-ray showed a "slight" improvement from the "slight" improvement the day before.  They continue to remind us that he remains very, very sick, but even slight improvements, though very small, are so encouraging to hear.  He remains swollen, especially in the chest and head/neck areas, but overall the swelling has gone down from where it was over the weekend. 

Bennett also received his second visit from the CDC (Centers for Disease Control) earlier today, and they are almost certain the bacteria he is fighting is "E. coli."  As bad as that sounds, it is actually quite common (normally found in adult UTI's etc) it's not nearly as bad as some of the other infections he could have had.  The CDC was brought in to "rule out" certain infections/viruses as much as to diagnose the actual infection.  It's pretty neat knowing that CDC personnel are just "down the street" in case the Doctors and nurses need them.

Please continue your prayers for our boy, specifically for the infection, for his lungs to heal, and for the bleeding to be controlled.  We can't thank you enough for your love and concern for our family.  It has encouraged and strengthened us more than you will ever know.

Love,

Travis, Kelly, and Bennett

The report from the NICU this morning is that Bennett is hanging in there, and his status is essentially unchanged from last night.  The bypass machine is on the same "lower" level as last night, which is good, and his oxygen levels are improving.  The nurse also said that he's much more alert this morning.  These are all good things, and we're so very thankful for this. 

The main concerns remain the infection and the blood in his urine.  Evidently, his urine output is fairly bloody right now, but there is not much that can be done for this, and in fact is kind of expected because of the heparin and invasive nature of the ECMO procedure.  Please pray that this bleeding stop or at least slow, giving his little lungs more time to improve and strengthen. 

More chest x-rays and brain ultrasounds are being performed this morning, so we will try to give you updates on those later in the day. 

Thank you all for your prayers for our son, for the other precious children in the NICU, and for the amazing medical staff caring for them all. 

Love,

Travis, Kelly, and Bennett 

Well, there actually isn't much of an update from this afternoon.  The bypass machine is still around the same level (.42), but that's much lower than it was just 2 days ago, and that's a good thing.  The ventilator setting is still higher, but so far the staff thinks this combo (higher ventilator setting and lower bypass setting) is working a little better.  His heart rate is a little high, but they think it will come down eventually. 

We had a good time together tonight.  We sang several songs, and he was even awake for most of them.  It's so hard not to just reach down and pick him up and tell him everything is going to be ok.  He's fighting so hard, so please continue your prayers for his healing and his strength.  I know he hears them.

I end this post on a good note.  Another couple who we've met, and whose son is also in the NICU, received the "discharge" word tonight.  They've been here over six weeks and will probably be here another two, but they see the light at the end of the tunnel.  The look on their faces was priceless - such joy and happiness.  It's such an encouragement to see this, and provides even more motivation to press on.

Thank you all for your incredible words of strength, peace, comfort, and love.  We read all of your posts, and they keep us going.  Thank you for showing such love and compassion to our family. 

Love,

Travis, Kelly, and Bennett

I actually wrote an update late last night, but I accidentally deleted it before I posted it, so let's just say I went to bed a little hacked off!  Most of this entry is a repeat from last night.  Also, it seems I have little control as to where the journal updates are posted, so please scroll up and down to see if the newest update is at the top or the bottom of a particular day.

I just called the NICU, and Bennett's status is essentially unchanged.  They gave him his final dose of Infasurf last night in hopes of helping his lungs open and function properly.  The Infasurf doesn't really have anything to do with the actual work of the antibiotics, as my earlier posting yesterday had suggested.  The Doctors think that the antibiotics will eventually help clear the infection.  The Infasurf is just another tool to assist in the opening/functioning of his lungs.  Another chest x-ray this morning will be able to show if the infection has been reduced, so please continue your prayers for his lungs and for the bleeding to be controlled. 

According to the nurses, Bennett remains very, very sick.  But he continues to fight and refuses to quit.  It was not easy to leave him last night.  He just looks so healthy, at least on the outside (minus all the swelling).  It's almost like he's going to just role over soon and start screaming like mad!  It's funny, before this whole episode began the thing we dreaded most was all the crying and screaming.  Now, it's the one thing we look forward to most (I know, I know, see how we feel in 3 months, right?) 

One good bit of information is an update on Bennett's roomate, Peter.  It seems that he is doing somewhat better, and that the ECMO option at this point looks a little less likely.  This is awesome news, so please continue your prayers for Peter and his continued health. 

Unfortunately, I end this post on a sad note with more requests for prayers.  We met a mother and father of a baby girl in the NICU last week.  She is just 2 beds down from Bennett, and she has also been struggling continuously.  Last night I met her father in the washroom just outside the NICU (everyone has to wash their hands before they enter) and asked how she was.  At other times, he would smile gently and say she was hanging in there.  But when I asked last night, he couldn't control himself any longer and simply broke down on the spot.  Evidently, there is nothing more that can be done for their precious daughter.  I'd rather not provide their names, but please pray for God to be with this young family and to provide them with the strength and peace that only He can provide.

Thank you all for your continued love and support. 

Love,

Travis, Kelly, and Bennett  

Well, Bennett's lungs are still jammed full with the infection, and there's a little blood showing in his urine.  These are the things that haven't really changed, but the Doctors and nurses are not terribly concerned at this point.  They do still feel that the antibiotics will eventually cause the infection to decrease, so please continue your prayers for our son's lungs and for the infection to GO AWAY!

Some good news to share is that they've turned down the level of assistance on the bypass machine (from .58 to .43), and his breathing appears to be improving a little.  They turned the ventilator setting a little higher, and so far he's responded well to this.  As a result, his oxygen levels in his blood have increased, and therefore it's allowed them to turn down the level of assistance on the bypass machine.  This is a good thing - we want the bypass machine at the lowest level possible.  His "urination" remains steady, he had a good "poop" today, his heart rate is good, and his blood pressure, though a bit high, is not too bad.  These are all positive signs, and we are very thankful for this news.  His eyes were open some, and it seemed as if he was even trying to play with us some.  We even took a few more pictures of Bennett as well as our first "family photo" which we will try to post by tomorrow morning.

The medical staff here at Georgetown continues to amaze us, and they are also quick to remind us that things in the NICU can change quickly.  There are good days, and there are bad days.  This is the nature of the NICU.  Today, overall, was a good day, and we are so thankful for this.  But Bennett remains a very sick baby boy who has undergone an extremely serious procedure (ECMO) whose risks are many.  Please continue your loving prayers for our precious boy.

With more love and appreciation than we can express,

Travis, Kelly, and Bennett