Fun in Florida!

We were blessed to spend 4 days in beautiful Destin, FL relaxing and having fun! The drive was long, but not terrible. Coy slept some and didn't get upset until the last few hours. We were aware of Tropical Storm Fay that was supposedly hitting the Florida panhandle, however, we saw little, if none of it's wrath. It did rain off and on for two of the days, however, nothing severe or tropical storm-like. I know some of you were probably thinking, "Geez, they wont bring him to the store, but they'll bring him into a Tropical storm?" Haha.

Coy was indifferent to the beach. He didn't seem to love it, however, didn't mind it either. He took naps under the large umbrella we had set up for him. Of course, I lathered him with sunscreen and kept him covered with a hat and sunglasses while he was in the sun (which was not long, mostly to take pictures).

While Florida was a nice getaway, it was nice to return home as well. Coy slept through Florida, Alabama, and Mississippi, before waking up during a stop in Covington, LA. He was quite tired from all the fun! We arrived home Tuesday night and have been unpacking ever since!

On the way to Florida, I received a call from Coy's pulmonologist in regards to his sleep study results. They were not as expected and quite upsetting to Chris & I. She said that he had 8 apnec episodes per hour (all while off 02) and that she must restart him on 1/16 L while he sleeps at night. I was really shocked at this news because I do monitor him at night with a pulse ox and it hardly ever alarms that he's desating. She is also referring us to a Neurologist, which is really the upsetting part to me. She said his apnec episodes were caused from immaturity of his brain which needs to be evaluated further by a Neurologist. She also said she thinks this is just part of him being premature and that as he matures, so will this part of his brain. So, pray for Coy and total healing of any abnormality in his lungs/brain. I was crushed thinking I had been starving my boy of oxygen for the past few months. I immediately began to panic because I did put so much trust into our pulse ox machine, however, I had no and still have no reason to believe it's reading inaccurately (he plays all day long, eats great, sleeps good, and is growing like a weed at 15 lbs)! The plan of care going forward is to meet with the Neurologist (first available appt is Oct 22nd) and repeat a sleep study at that time. In the mean time, I will fight tooth and nail to keep the O2 in his nose at night. Trust me when I say, it's much easier said than done!

Here are lots of pictures (as promised) from Florida....

The view from our condo..

family photo at the beach...
with daddy's sunglasses on...
smiling at Grandma Kolkhorst..



First time in the sand...

sleeping sweetly under his umbrella...

prop sitting!

having fun at the pool...

having a great time with a bag...
staying dry through a rainstorm...
playing with Aunt Mandy...


Coy playing with Grandpa Kolkhorst...
in the water!

road trip

Chris, Coy, & I are taking a little vacation to Destin, FL for some fun and relaxation on the beach. Please pray for us as we make the 9-10 hour drive! I promise to post lots of pics when we get back sometime next week.

Please also keep Joseph in your thoughts and prayers. You can check on him here. I was heartbroken when I read their blog this morning. I can't imagine what they are going through.

Coy's New Language

Coy started making new noises on Saturday. He did this all day long and it was quite comical to Chris & I. Please excuse our silly commentary throughout the video. =)

sweet angel

Coy is just a delight. I love playing with him all day. Every time I wake up and see his sweet face, I just melt. I really can't wrap my brain around how amazing he is. His laugh and smile are the cutest thing ever. He's my everything.

(He is looking so mature these days! Where did my baby go?)This week has been harder than most for me. I think because I'm a little tired and when I'm tired, I don't deal with life that well. I'm that girl who needs AT LEAST 8 hours of sleep. In college, I would come home between classes and nap. I love naps and I can sleep at anytime. Love it.

On Tuesday, Coy had his 3 month Cardiology visit. I really like his Cardiologist, she is very approachable and caring. He needed a routine EKG, Echocardiogram, and Holter (which we still to need to do). The EKG took no time at all to complete and looks the same (which is good). The Echo (which is basically an ultrasound of the heart) was a bit more complex. It seems that they give babies a "sedative" when they have an Echo that "relaxes them a bit." Hmmm. I didn't like the sound of that. My sweet boy did not respond well to anesthesia before, and although this wouldn't even compare, I was not comfortable with him getting a medication to "help him relax." There was something in my gut that just said "NO, don't do it!" The Echo tech and nurses were getting kinda frustrated with me when Coy wasn't cooperating, and I really hate to be "one of those parents," but I just couldn't shake my bad feeling. So, after about 10 minutes, Coy finally fell asleep in Grams Cook's arm and the tech completed his Echo without any problems. The doctor looked at the results and said everything looked good. His pulmonary pressures were good (preemies have high risk at developing Pulmonary Hypertension). He will not need another Echo until he's 4 years old! Yeah!

Yesterday, Coy had his monthly evaluation with his PT (physical therapist). She is amazing and full of tons of knowledge. She has lots of experience working with preemies and is just a blessing in our lives. The last two evaluations have brought lots of positive findings and encouragement. Yesterday, however, there was some concern coming from our sweet PT. She said he's still doing "very, very well" for a baby born so premature, however, there are a few things we need to be working on. His muscle tone was tighter than it had been previously. She said this is something to "watch." He also didn't roll well yesterday and was very grumpy. He never really cries while playing with her, but yesterday, he wasn't really feeling it. So, I left kinda discouraged. He is still in the 50% skill level for his corrected age, which is good news. We are going to work really hard, and hopefully, we'll get a better evaluation next month!

Coy is now taking two meals of cereal and 5 bottles (4-6 oz) of formula a day. We do breakfast and then a mid-afternoon meal of cereal. He is eating like a champ and we have a good time. I am thanking God for this daily!

(His morning stretch...)
That is all I can think of for now....thanks for all your love and support!

Guess who decided to eat rice cereal today??

Today I decided to be brave and attempt the rice cereal again. I took the advice of my mom and mixed in alittle applesauce. The boy ate 1 tbsp of cereal (mixed with 3 tbsp of formula) and quickly! I couldn't get it in his mouth quick enough! He loved it! He even grabbed the spoon several times and tried to get it into his mouth. After that, he took a 5 oz bottle and sucked down every drop! Of course, he was a mess, but it was so much fun, I didn't even care! And he weighed in at 14 lbs 1 oz this morning!

I am so relieved that he took his cereal so well. Thanks for all your encouragement and support; I love getting all your advice!

eyes/sleep study

I'm happy to report that Coy's eyes were examined by Dr. Hittner and she said they look "great." That's always a relief for me to hear! She wants to follow him monthly until he's a year old and then check on him every couple months after that. She also told me he is not nearsighted and his eyes look "normal." Whoo hoo! We are so grateful for her and so thankful God placed her in Houston. She really is the best of the best.

We had Coy's sleep study one week ago tonight. Let me say, it was a miserable experience for the both of us. I was not expecting it to be fun, but it was way worse than I prepared for. Coy was hooked up with all kinds of wires and it was not fun for him or I. He cried for 4 hours straight (seriously, no exaggeration there) and it took everything I had to not just take him and head home. He finally settled down and fell asleep around 1130 and I dozed off too. It was kinda creepy because they put you in a room and video tape it while they monitor you in another room. Once Coy was asleep, he rested until about 5 am. We were gone at about 630 and I was so thankful it was over. We don't have any results yet, but I'm not expecting them for about another week or so.

(This was only some of the stuff that was hooked to him during the sleep study).

On the feeding front, the cereal is not going to well. I am giving it a break. He doesn't seem interested, so I'm hoping he's just a bit young still. He's just now 4 months adjusted age. In a few weeks, I'm gonna give it a go again and if that still doesn't work, I'll definitely be calling for a Speech Therapy/ OT eval. Please pray that he does not/ has not developed any oral aversions!

Here are some recent pics...

Coy is supporting himself much better these days...

Grabbing his feet (well, I actually put his foot in his hand, but he likes to hang on)...

Sweet Dixie loves to sleep by her brother...

Coy has also recently found his voice! He loves to "talk" these days. I love to hear him squeal, giggle, and chat up a storm.

Please continue to keep Baby Rhys in your thoughts and prayers. His mommy & daddy are feeling a bit defeated (understandably so). Pray for complete healing of Rhys and strength for Candice and Cody.

Thanks so much for all your continued love and encouragement.

pictures from the weekend

I was so excited when I discovered this onesie at Baby Gap recently. Not necessarily because it's that cute, but because it says "minor Leaguer" and Chris played in the Minor leagues for two years. On Friday night, we were blessed with amazing tickets to see Mercy Me in concert! We were also able to personally meet them (hence the picture below). The concert was amazing and we really enjoyed it. We were also stoked to see Kelly & John (Baby Kyle's parents), who we met while our boys were in the NICU together. Here is Coy in another adorable onesie I found recently at Cater's. It says "I'm the Boss around here." I bought the boots he's wearing back when we found out he was going to be a he; they looked so huge for the longest time! =)

Baby Sully

15 month old Sully Farrar passed away this morning after losing his battle with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. This absolutely breaks my heart. Please keep his family in your thoughts and prayers.