Onward and Forward!

Pictures!!!! Rebekah had a really great day today. After having the ventilator removed this morning, she held her stats all day (oxygen, heartrate, blood pressure) exactly where the doctors hoped to see them. Based on that progress, Dr. Hsia feels confident that he applied the correct amount of pressure to the band around Rebekah's left pulmonary artery.

Rebekah tried out the pacifier again today.

One of the things Rebekah will be working on now that the ventilator is out is learning to eat by mouth. To help with that, we are encouraging Rebekah to suck on the pacifier. She gets tired easily, but she kept it in for about 10 minutes this afternoon.

One of my favorites!! :)

It was so much fun to see Rebekah's face today! She has this cute little habit of sucking on her bottom lip just like her brother Caleb did when he was little. You can really see the dimple in her chin when she does it.

Yesterday Rebekah had quite a bit of fluid still making her puffy and swollen, especially her face and hands. Today we were pleased that almost all of it is gone. The doctors even decreased the amount of lasix that she is receiving each day (the medication given to help decrease her fluid).

According to Rebekah's lab work today, her calcium levels are dropping off. We have been expecting this to happen as it is commonly seen with DiGeorge syndrome. Rebekah has received some calcium supplements off and on over the last week, and the doctors are waiting to see what she will do when she is receiving full feeds. Right now she has just been receiving IV fluids, but she was started back on a little milk this evening right before we left. As long as her body tolerates the milk, they will be increasing it in small amounts. Once she has proven that she can tolerate the feeding, the doctors will remove more of her lines and IV's.

Hopefully tomorrow will bring more positive steps toward home!

Nancy