It’s Friday
10/11, Jon
It’s Friday.
Breen comes home on Friday.
Still a couple things to work out, but we’re looking to get trained on the oxygen and feeding medical gear on Thursday, and spend Friday getting that little guy out of the NICU.
Out. Of. The. NICU.
Home.
The other complication is that just before we pulled Nora from preschool last week, she caught another bug! This one is still lingering in her and Erin, so we haven’t been to the NICU in nearly a week to keep it from Breen.
If we can’t kick the germ, then this might get postponed to Monday. But the end is very much in sight. My goodness this has been a long time coming.
They performed a chest x-ray this morning, and both Dr. O and Breen’s pulmonologist in SLC think it looked better! He’s also now down to .4 liters per minute!!! .4!?!?!?! This dude is ready to bust out.
So while us Armstrong take all the vitamin C we can get our hands on to get well, the nurses at Portneuf are soaking up some final snuggles with our wee brave boy. Our incredible tiny warrior.
When Erin’s water broke in late December, at only 19 weeks 6 days gestation, I remember telling family members that it felt like we had a 50 mile tight rope walk ahead of us. I’ve written that analogy a few times on this blog.
It’s unbelievable that we got to the other side of that tight rope. Such a long and brutal journey. Perilous. Frightening. It was often hell. It was awful.
And it was joyful. So many incredible people who saved Breen’s life, who cultivated his life, who built his life. Day in, day out. It’s been an absolutely incredible, and traumatic ordeal.
So we now move into the woods with our family. There will be oxygen tanks and G-Tubes. O2 saturation monitors, and anxious nights. There will be hugs, naps on the couch, laughs, music, and a family of four.
Nonna is still in town, ready to meet her grandson. Grandpa comes in this week for a change of shift, ready to meet his grandson. We are so grateful for their help throughout this insanity. So grateful for all of our family who came to help: aunties, grandmas, friends, pet sitters, and all of the love and support and prayer that we received. It took a village to get us to this moment. This transition.
We’ll keep up the blog from time to time, pictures of Breen at home, perhaps some more jewels from Nora.
With love,
The Armstrongs
Nora Poetry Corner:
*Holds up a puzzle piece*
Nora: What is this?
Dad: It’s a puzzle piece
Nora: No, what is this?
Dad: It’s part of the neck to the Giraffe
Nora: No! What is this?
Dad: It’s orange?
Nora: No! What is this?
Dad: It’s kind of a rectangle
Nora: No! What is this?
Dad: I don’t know, what is that?
Nora: I think it wants to go to the playground, but it got there too late
