Thanks be to GOD!

"Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift." 2 Corinthians 9:15

When people ask me how I am doing these days, my response is usually "good..." The truth is, each day my mood starts the same, ANXIOUS! After our morning call to check on Coy, I usually settle down, thank GOD for another day, and try to get chores done around the house. His good days are AWESOME, his bad days are TERRIBLE. Let me tell you, this week has been AMAZING! Coy and I had the best time today! One of his favorite primary nurses (who loves him almost as much as me) swaddled him up and handed him to me like he was any other newborn! He slept in my arms for an hour before he woke up, he got a little fussy (and cried!) because he had a dirty diaper, he smiled at me a few times, he took his pacifier before his feeding...all the usual newborn stuff! My heart is still singing; to see my baby boy with his eyes wide open looking at me while he was swaddled in my arms; it was priceless. It was a dream come true today; I couldn't take my eyes off him; I studied every dimension and detail of his beautiful face; I talked with a baby voice and told him how much everyone loves him...he smiled. The entire time I was just thinking, "THANK YOU JESUS! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!" How do I get to be so lucky to spend 4 hours holding my beautiful baby who has and still is defying the odds?

So here we are, 8 WEEKS later!! Can you believe it? Coy is already 2 months old! Already time for his immunizations! Time is flying by....(yes, they get immunizied in the NICU...)
Coy is still CPAPin' it right along...even his nurse practioner & doctor (another new one...she'll be with us for the next month) said this morning, and I quote "We think he is looking very good..." What?? Did they really say that?! Okay, for most of you who don't know, THOSE WORDS ARE NOT USED IN THE NICU very often. If they're not telling you worst case senario, then usually they tell you statistics; or sometimes they don't have any statisitics because they simply do not know...and trust me that is not music to our ears...
So back to Coy, he has been doing amazingly well on CPAP. His oxygen requirement was down to 35% last night...today he was around 40-50%...he is a very smart boy and knows exactly how to get the prongs out of his nose...

He continues to urinate adequately and his kidney function has normalized...of course they are always watching this closely due to his history of renal issues...
Coy has 6 days remaining on antibiotics for the suspected then not suspected endocarditis...they will then pull his central line out after...Please please pray for Coy to stay free of infection after he's done with this course of anitbiotics!
Coy will have his first eye exam soon; please pray against a disease called ROP that affects many preemies; there is a world renowned eye surgeon at Memorial Hermann who will examine him; from what I hear, she is amazing and saves the vision of babies who would otherwise be blind...

Please continue to pray for complete and total healing of Coy! Pray for him to remain infection free, to digest/ tolerate all feedings, for a healthy heart, for no eye disease (ROP), for normal kidney function, for the strength of his lungs, for him to stay strong on CPAP, that we can wean the CPAP soon, that Coy is comfortable and content...

Thanks to all for the continued love and support. Chris and I are just amazed at the kindness and warmth of all of you. We have received cards and gifts from people all over the country; people we do not even know. We are so grateful...