NICU Reunion

Well Thursday marked Bryce's one year anniversary of when he finally came back to the place he was born - home.

Man, time flies.

The NICU seems all at once a lifetime ago and just yesterday. And we've come a long way in that time. Bryce was on oxygen, a pulse oximeter to monitor is oxygen levels and a nasal gastric feeding tube to supplement breast feedings with tube feedings. We were on strict lock down - no visits out unless absolutely necessary and few visits in but no children (aka little germy people) inside our home, period.

All of that is a thing of the past and although we have many struggles and hurdles yet to face we can look back and see that whatever it is, we'll figure it out. I'm one proud Momma of one amazing baby boy.

And what a better way to celebrate all of this than to attend the Dell NICU reunion yesterday? Bryce commemorated the event with his first tattoo - a "Proud to be a NICU graduate" tat on his bicep, of course.


It was a beautiful day and we had a great time visiting with all of our old nurses, respiratory therapists, neonatologists and friends of the NICU. It was really awesome to see some of Bryce's old NICU-mates too. Jaden has gotten so big that I thought at first he was someone else's kiddo - way to go Joanna! And Luke was sans helmet and as cute as ever! The Whitakers are one amazing family!

I also finished up my training to be the Dell NICU's March of Dimes parent-to-parent volunteer. I need a TB test, shot record and badge to finish up preparation for this exciting new role. I'm planning to make weekly visits to the NICU where I'll visit with any family on the unit and offer an "I've been there" ear. I just know that this would have been a priceless asset while Bryce was in the NICU and I'm so looking forward to the opportunity to do that for someone else!

There are only three more daily opportunities to vote for Bryce and spread the word about prematurity. Then we'll find out if the celebrity judges also agree that Bryce is the super hero we think he is at the Preemie Power Family Celebration on Saturday.

Please take a moment to click here & vote for Bryce.

Preemie Power

Hand to Hold is a new non-profit doing something few have done here before, offering parents of preemies other parents of preemies to connect with. It's a simple idea with a profound possible effect.

My mentor is a woman named Stephanie with a tiny miracle of her own who has now grown into a charming and handsome little boy. They've encountered many of the same hardships as we have and are living proof that you can make it through. It's funny because although Stephanie and I have still not had the chance to meet face to face I know she's there for me in a way my oldest and truest friends simply can't be.

Of course those old friends are cherished and invaluable in helping us to normalize after the trauma of a premature birth and the ensuing emotional roller coast ride that is the NICU. They remind us who we were before and help us find our way back to that center, in whatever way that we can.

November is National Prematurity Awareness Month and many organizations across the country are doing hard, valuable and never-ending work to help more babies be born at term and healthy. And to help the parents of the children who aren't to cope and to navigate the world of having our tiniest, most fragile and helpless people depend entirely on us.

My wonderful friend Mary and I are looking forward to putting together our first fundraiser to raise money for Bryce's March for Babies team, team BAM!. Funds raised will help further the groundbreaking research that the March of Dimes continues to do and has done since FDR founded it in 1938 to find a vaccination for Polio. You'll be hearing much more about that in the coming months.

And then there's the Graham's Foundation, who sends out NICU care packages to parents whose babies are in the NICU. We received one completely by surprise while Bryce was in the NICU. It had some activity books, hand sanitizer, snacks, a Target gift card. More importantly though it contained a personal letter from the founders who had walked in our footsteps and taken the time to prove to us that we weren't alone in a world that felt so distant.

So in honor of National Prematurity Awareness Month Hand to Hold is hosting a Preemie Power Photo Contest. The idea is that we can help raise awareness about prematurity, the number one killer of infants in the U.S., by celebrating the astounding stories of some of our local preemies, our "preemie superheros." We've entered Bryce and coined him "The Amazing Bryce-anator!" His super powers include his inexplicable ability to overcome adversity and his use of slobber as a weapon against the evil tickle monsters of the world!

Please take a moment to vote for Bryce. You can vote up to once per day until November 10th when local celebrity judges will choose the final winners in three different age categories. We'll find out if they agree that Bryce is the super hero we think he is at the Preemie Power Family Celebration on Nov. 14 at Covenant Presbyterian Church on 3003 Northland Dr. in Austin. We can hardly wait!

Weekend Update

So much to tell! First of all, Bryce slept last night from 10 p.m. to this morning at 6 a.m.!!!! Holy, wonderful sleep filled night!!

Again, it has to be because he ate, ate and ate some more yesterday. Ending the eating fest with a huge bottle with rice cereal in it too.

And then this morning he had some more rice cereal:

And then this afternoon he had some sweet potato - his first real food:

As you can see, Bryce thoroughly enjoys eating. We are unusually grateful for this because we know from our experience in the NICU that many, if not most, preemies who spend months intubated have feeding issues well beyond the poor sucking muscles. Many have oral aversions, they don't like anything in or near their mouths - which makes eating, even from a bottle, a huge undertaking for them and their amazing parents. And the problem only gets worse as the varied textures of food are introduced.

So we are so proud of our baby Bryce - we may not know what the future holds for our precious boy, but we can certainly relish in the present!

And don't forget to sign up to walk with us in the March for Babies!

March with Us...PLEASE!

**You missed it! There was a silly e-card here with my face on a cartoon walking in the March for Babies but I had to take it down for technical reasons so if you didn't get a chance to see it you'll have to keep an eye out for similar new posts...sorry!

But you can still donate or sign up to walk...

Click here to help me reach my goal!

Business Time

Okay, so this is something near and dear to my heart.

I'll first begin though with an update on my baby boy.

Bryce is such a strong little boy. He still has a fever but it remains at or below 100. He does have a cough that is getting worse but the doctor told us to expect this. I hate that I know he doesn't feel well. He coughs and then looks up at me with the saddest little, tired eyes. It breaks my heart, as I'm sure most of you are all too familiar with. I can only hope and pray that it will get better instead of worse as I'm seriously beginning to worry that he needs more oxygen due to this more and more frequent hacking.

All in all though I feel that Bryce is on the mend and continuning to once again prove his fierce toughness.

So to the business. A couple of things:

I tried unsuccessfully to find a link to this great story we saw on ABC news tonight. It featured Dr. Lee (the neurosurgeon who originally placed Bryce's VP shunt) doing a groundbreaking procedure to separate the two sides of a 16 month old Austin girl's brain, Aahlaya. The poor baby had "hundreds" of seizures per day. She's now home with her mom and thriving.

The doctors at Dell never cease to amaze me.

But I digress.

Which brings me to my other point.

The March of Dimes.

Do you know that before Bryce was born I literally had no idea what purpose the March of Dimes nor the Ronald McDonald house served? It's sadly true.

And now that I have first hand knowledge I am compelled to give back.

Premature birth is the #1 cause of newborn death in our country.

Though my doctors strongly suspect an infection caused Bryce's premature birth they have say nothing for sure. They insist that should I ever attempt to have another baby my pregnancy and care would be drastically different.

I believe it is imperative that we find out why premature births happen and how we can prevent them.

I have created a March of Dimes team, in honor of Bryce, that will be raising money for this cause. My goal is to raise $1,000. It is a meager goal but one I feel is only the beginning of a life long cause.

By supporting Bryce's team you can show that you care about this cause too. That you believe that although Bryce may be a preemie he is a lucky one that decades of medical breakthroughs made possible. That you want to be a part of the generation that saved millions of babies lives. That there is hope for future generations.

Bryce's team, BAM, will be walking in the March of Dimes on May 8th at Auditorium Shores here in Austin. We'd love it if you'd show your support by walking with us. And if you can't walk please donate. The money raised will support research and programs that will help moms like me have full-term pregnancies. What a thought! As well as bring comfort and much needed information to families with babies born too early.

Please, please, please help us by visiting Bryce's team website and contributing anything you can.