The Journey of James Weston

First - We are overwhelmed with gratitude with how many of our friends and family sent their love and support. It’s been remarkable and we are truly blessed with having so many great people surrounding us. ❤️  Second - Lindsay and I started a daily log with what’s happening with Baby James. We love having people text us asking how things are, truly, and we are also getting slightly overwhelmed having to explain the situation repeatedly. This daily log/blog, will be the best place to visit first. Lindsay very much appreciates all of the ladies who have reached out to her with pumping tips and suggestions as well as those who have shared their personal and positive NICU stories. It’s so important to be able to relate right now. Sometimes talking to a stranger who has gone through the same situation means more than anything to her. Please keep that up! 👏  The most meaningful texts to us will be something like - “I saw on the blog that James winked, so cute!” - this shows us that...

1/8/21 - Friday   9a - Belly looks good today. Gas patterns in intestines look normal shows he can tolerate more milk. He’s at 5 ML and will increase 1 ML every 12 hours. Will increase from 24 calories to 26 calories per ounce (30 ML) of milk since his progress is so good.  Next brain ultrasound will be in 5 weeks to ensure things are still healthy. Still a risk for PVL for us to monitor (holes in brain tissues to reduce blood flow. Not likely, but possible). Two months post due date is when baby can see images and features, for now, the eye is just opening since the tissue is breaking down. Eye exams will happen around 31 weeks with ophthalmologist to ensure the retina development.  There’s a chance that he won’t need the PICC line since his feedings are going well. The alternative would be adding a little sedation for oral feeding and not through the umbilical catheter or PICC - this will be a big win for this week. Things to look that would call for extra atte...

1/7/21 - Thursday Morning: Just got an update from the doctor that everything is looking good. His brain scan looked good - they are going to do that again in 1 month around 30-32 weeks. They removed him from the dopamine for his blood pressure. The only concern now is his abdominal girth is a little larger so they are going to hold on increasing his feed. Xray looked okay though. They were going to increase 1 ml every 12 hours, but now that will be on hold until tomorrow.  Has exams and X-rays tomorrow. His blood gas is stable for breathing.   Mom is supposed to stay on bed rest, but due to going to NICU, we will accommodate best we can. She must stay on blood thinners and blood pressure medicine for a few weeks due to still having higher than desirable blood pressure. Preeclampsia doesn't immediately go away after delivery and in some cases gets even worse. We must monitor the totals twice daily and meet with her doctor weekly on Thursday’s.  James got to ...

1/6/21 - Wednesday Mom got 8 pumps done yesterday and had her best yet this morning with 51 ML in one sit. Woo hoo!  She’s rocking the pump.  Baby James had his first “bath” this morning. They use little cotton balls and wiped him down. He had a busy night getting all of his lines updated and adjusted, so he deserved a little TLC.  He’s now nestled up on his left side and resting. The nursing staff has been outstanding so we are buying them all egg sandwiches from The West Tampa Sandwich Shop (#ShopLocal #SHOLO) - best in town!   Baby James also peaked out through his right eye today! Our baby boy is already flirting with the ladies, says Nurse Julie.  10a - James is peeing well. He’s stopping dopamine since blood pressure mean is approx 40 vs his age of 26/27 weeks, which is excellent. Bowel movement twice in a day, so increasing food. Getting info today on PICC line instead of the bellybutton IV to get more TPN nutrition for the next several mon...

1/5/21 - Tuesday Our first morning not pumping in a hospital room was a success. Using our own pump was simple (after a few YouTube videos) and Lindsay produced 110 ML since her discharge in 5 rounds of pumping (avg of 22 ML per pump). James is taking in 24 ML per day right now, so mom is doing excellent!!  James’ blood pressure is a mean of 33 (which is great for being 26 weeks) and his FIO2 is down to 30% with the settings lowered. He’s that much closer to breathing on his own. They’re giving him small doses of morphine and caffeine - For comfort and for preventing apnea and can help improve oxygenation.   Lindsay changed his diaper for the first time and did amazing!!  Little James kept peeing during the change.  That’s my boy!  The diaper is so tiny (adorable) and we kept one for his baby book. At some point, there will be a photo shoot with Big Jim and his Tiny Diapy 😂 10a update with Doctor: Kidney and lungs look good. Coming down on dopamin...

1/4/21 - Monday  4am check in A great night for James. He gained weight. Now up to 626g from 530g - water weight so it will decrease.  CO2 levels are good FIO2 is good 52%  25 ML diaper shows good urine output  And they removed his hat - why?  Jimmy has not moved his bowel yet. But he’s been urinating well. Last night he had 25 ML in is diaper.  Right now, his oscillator for FIO2 is set to 47%, which is down from 80%. Lots of progress here.  He’s gained 100 grams in weight since birth. Which is also progress. Weighing in at 626g now.  10a with Dr P:  blood pressure is good - ready to go down on dopamine Up on food to 3 ML every 3 hours (24 ML daily) Urine output improved Urine protein study is inconclusive at the moment Ultrasounds looked good around head Ultrasound of heart showed PPHN - normal for his age - PDA and PFO - nothing to be concerned with  Updated Results from BMP: kidney function is improving with u...

  1/3/21 - Sunday Morning - Dopamine drip on lower dose to stimulate kidney to help release urine.  FIO2 - oxygen concentration giving James was down to 35 and is now back up to 80.  Still some trouble ridding of the waste of carbon dioxide.  Blood pressure looks great: 42 today vs 25 yesterday  PDA - heart vessel might need to get closed - will check today  Results from BMP: Electrolytes are okay.   Markers for kidney function is worsening.  Increased to 2 ML every 3 hours. No bowel movement yet.  Weekly measurements on Monday:    we are looking for 0.5-1 cm growth weekly in head circumference and length Focus now: lungs and kidneys functioning properly.  AFP (alphafetoprotein) level from amniotic fluid was over 10, but the level would be much higher for Finnish nephrotic syndrome (FNS) diagnosis from MFM, so might not be it.  Kidney ultrasound was normal Brain ultrasound had no bleeding. Will check next week again....

  1/2/20 - Saturday Lindsay is still pumping like a champion. Every 3 hours or so. Getting her body accustomed to creating milk is a new experience for both of us. We set it up so she can get a full 4 hours of sleep last night by pumping before 11p and then again 3am.    She’s been incredible with her calmness and curiosity. Always in the know and looking to what’s next.  The doctor came in to let us know that Lindsay meets the criteria to get discharged today, which is a surprise due to being only 18 hours since the operation. We aren’t ready yet, so we opted to stay an extra day to help with transitioning physically and emotionally. There’s some uncertainty around what will happen next. How do we pump and bring the milk to NICU? How long do we stay with James? Do we both spend the night? Do we only come during daytime hours? Do I go back and forth so Lindsay can rest at home? What is the best direction? Is there a mix of everything? - time will tell and we will nav...

1/1/21 - Friday James is a perfect 26 week old baby according the NICU Doctor who just came into our room. He likes to move his feet and stretch his arms. His oxygen levels are great and could be off the oscillator sooner than anticipated. His blood pressure and blood sugar levels are great. His his urine will get tested in a few days for protein, but urinating is a great sign that the kidneys are functioning properly.   Due to James being born on Dec 31, the Medicaid and insurance more than likely won’t cover his medical expenses for that day, but will retro and cover the remaining stay for 2021. It will be interesting to see what that bill will look like for his procedure and stay for just one day out of pocket. Since he is born under 1190 grams, we will qualify for Medicaid and need to make those arrangements next week.  Our social worker is very helpful. Along with the woman from birth records. We will register the birth certificate with the desk next week and call Ci...

12/31/20 - Thursday James Weston Abramowitz was born 4:37p on December 31, 2020.  22.5 cm head size 1 lb 4 ounces  28.5 cm Length No broken bones. Femur looks good. Humerus is slightly small. Breathed on own, but on lung assist until not needed. Putting in IV in belly button now for nutrition and for blood work. Blood sugar is 38.  40 is perfect so getting a D10 bag of 1.2 ML of dextrose to help.  Overall - baby is heathy and Lindsay is healthy. Both are in recovery right now. I’m a dad!  👶 I officially did my first ever breast pump and Lindsay produced 25+ ML of colostrum within her first 18 hours of delivery, which is fantastic! James is starting with 1 ML every 6 hours, but since he’s doing great, they might move that to every 3 hours.  We decided on a few songs last night that we liked that will create a bond with James, but are looking for a few others.  So far we like: Blackbird by The Beatles Forever Young by Bob Dylan We started a playlist on ...

What a way to wrap up 2020!     It’s been a quiet, private journey that we are finally ready to share publicly...here we go!   James Weston Abramowitz was born early at 26 weeks on December 31st, 2020! #WeHaveABaby  👶   Due to last year’s stillbirth, we wanted to be 100% sure everything was okay with baby before we announced so we can avoid the awful experience of explaining the bad news repeatedly. So, we chose not to announce our pregnancy until it felt like the right time.  Unfortunately, Lindsay developed severe preeclampsia early in the 2nd Trimester and the only way to prevent her kidneys from failing was to deliver our baby early. After holding out for as long as possible, her health was started to be at risk and the doctors decided that the best option for Mom and Baby would be to deliver our micro premie immediately!    So, at her 26 week mark, Lindsay had a classic c-section done.    She’s recovering like a champ!  💪 ...

Written by Lindsay- The last week of December 2020 was a blur. In an attempt to make sense of and cope with what happened this is my journal of notes and a handful of texts I had sent out. In summary, I went in for a regularly scheduled appointment on Monday, was transferred to a high-risk Hospital on Tuesday, my kidneys started to fail on Wednesday, and Thursday we asked our baby boy if it was okay if he could try and live on the outside of Mommy at 26 weeks in order to save her. Google Everything: My first symptoms of preeclampsia were swelling in my hands around 21 weeks. This is super early as Preeclampsia normally occurs at the end of the pregnancy. After a few Google searches and ordering a blood pressure cuff off Amazon... I let my doctor know at my December 10th appointment of my self diagnosis.  They ran some blood tests and confirmed it with finding extremely high amounts of protein in my urine. My OB and MFM team decided it would be best if I saw them every Monday at Mea...