5/7/00 5:00 PM

Last night Brad and I spent the evening at the hospital with Arran.  We were allowed to spend the night with him in order to learn how to feed him and to basically get comfortable with him.  We really didn't get any sleep at all because he has to eat every three hours.  It looks like he will be going home on monday or tuesday of this week.  We are really excited.  His room is all ready for him.

I spoke with the nurse earlier this evening.  She told me that Arran had again gained weight.  This is very good, since he has been eating more.  Also she said that the two of them were playing a game and that he was flirting with everyone after he ate at 6 pm.  This is usual behavior for him, he likes to flirt and make faces at people.  Arran most definitely has his own personality and his own way of doing things.  He is very opinionated and likes to share what he's feeling verbally.  His expressions are priceless.  Anyway, I just wanted to again take this opportunity to thank everyone who has been following his progress and praying for him.  God is definitely working in his life and for this we are thankful.

Today wasn't as good a day as we had hoped for.  We were hoping that the doctors would tell us that Arran was going home today or tomorrow.  It now looks like the earliest that he would go home would be Wednesday.  During a routine blood work check they found that his kidneys weren't working as well as they would like.  So they have ordered him a test for tomorrow that will determine just how well they are working.  This could possibly be a set back.  We are hoping that things go well.  Today he also had new splints made and we were told that he could see a physical therapist up here instead of going to Baltimore.  His at-home monitor came today along with his suction machine.  The representative brought them over and told me how to take care of everything and how to set everything up.  Tomorrow his feeding tubes and some other accessories will be delivered.  We set him up with a pediatrician here at home. He will also be visited by a nurse and Occupational Therapist every week.  He has a doctor's appointment on Thursday and I told his neonatologist that he needs to be home by then to make the appointment.  His feeding has now been increased to 60 ml per feeding and he has discontinued the Human milk fortifier.  He ate almost all 60 through the bottle at 12 and we tube fed him at 3.  He spit up a little but not much.  His weight has increased since yesterday.  So other than him failing a blood test he had a busy and good day.

 Based on the events of the day, we are not going to write a full report. Things are not going as we had hoped and we are getting frustrated with the lack of communication that we are witnessing. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day.

 Today Arran finally had his kidney scan.  The test basically looked to see if any urine refluxed back up from his bladder to his kidneys.  If there is a reflux then he will need an antibiotic to prevent infection.  He is now due to come home on Friday at noon.  He has a blood test in the morning and then we will start the discharge procedures.  Last night the orthopedic doctor came in and casted his legs.  He will need to be in this set of casts for a week and then next week he will get a new set.  This series of castings may last for a long time (ie months).  He looks so sad with his casts, his whole legs are in this cast and they are so heavy.  He has taken a bottle for 9 feeds in a row.  At 6 pm this evening we had to tube feed him because he was just absolutely worn out.  He seems to have gotten this whole eating thing down.  We cannot be happier about that.

Arran had a relaxing day.  Nothing really happened. He found time to eat, sleep, bathe, cry (a little) and go to the bathroom.  It really is a rough life.  He also has all of the nurses wrapped around his little finger.  They all rush into his room if he so much as makes a peep.  Anyway, he comes home tomorrow and he will be introduced to life with his big brother.

Arran came home today. He went through is first drive through Wendy's.  He slept through the whole thing though.  We are so happy.