Weighing in at...

Luke is chunking up! He weighed in yesterday at a whopping 5 lbs 15 ozs (up 4 ounces from Tues). It may not seem like much, but this is definitely an answer to prayer. We are just going to keep working hard to keep his feedings going well and his weight gain going up. He is still having some pain with eating, so we have an upper GI today at Valley Childrens Hospital. Please pray that the test goes well and proves to be helpful.

Meanwhile... As I was taking this picture of Luke sleeping like an angel, Isaiah took advantage of the alone time to "water the plants" (aka flood the yard). This kid sure keeps us laughing. He is such a wild and crazy guy.

Update on Luke

Well, our little Luke has been home for a week now. Its good to be at home, although we are definitely exhausted from all the work that comes from caring for a newborn, trying to entertain a toddler, healing mom's c-section war wound, and dad going back to work.

Luke did well for the first few days and even started gaining weight. However, we are having some challenges now with getting him fed and he is losing weight again. We were at the doctor's today, and it looks like Luke may be having some reflux issues. Isaiah has similiar feeding issues when he was a newborn. Luke hasn't been able to keep any food down, and keeps throwing everything up. After everything the poor little guy has been through, you can imagine how it breaks our hearts to see him in pain. The doctor is scheduling an upper GI exam for Luke at Valley Childrens so we can find out exactly what is going on.

Please continue to keep Luke in your prayers. We are praying that he will be able to keep food down and start gaining weight again. Feeding him well is pretty much our main focus in life right now. As a parent, you want your child to be strong and healthy and know how critical being well fed is. As I started worrying about this, God gave me the thought about how He must be the same way with us. God wants the best for us and wants us to be well fed; praying and being in the Word. It feels so good as parents when you have a baby who is happy and has a nice full belly. I think God must feel the same way when we get a nice full spiritual belly. We just need to keep looking to Him. That is where we are right now. Thanks again for all of your continued thoughts and prayers. We are confident that each person praying makes a big difference.

Luke's Homecoming

WE ARE HOME!!!!!!!!!!

As of last night, we are finally a complete family. Yesterday morning, Luke was discharged from UCSF (thank you for all the prayers) and we were able to bring him home. It was a nice long drive back to Fresno (especially for Luke being so tiny in his carseat), but he was a champ. He isn't even two weeks old, and he has already been flown in his own private jet and picked up some extra miles on his first road trip.

It is great to be home, and especially to have both our boys together. We missed Isaiah a ton. He is being such a wonderful big brother, full of kisses for Luke. I think he is already counting down the days until Luke is big enough to play with him. Thank you again to everyone who has been praying for Luke and our family. We cannot express enough how much we appreciate your thoughtfulness.

We are just going to be taking it easy at home now, finally getting into that normal newborn craziness of sleepness nights and loads of diapers. What a joy! We are actually really enjoying every moment of having a healthy, happy family. We'll keep everyone updated with more adorable pics as they come.

"Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.

Worship the LORD with gladness;

come before him with joyful songs.

Know that the LORD is God.

It is he who made us, and we are his we are his people,

the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise;

give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;

his faithfulness continues through all generations."

-Psalm 100

Good News

"So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." Luke 11:9

Sunday mornings at the hospital are very peaceful and quiet. I guess that is why the doctors choose this time to do their rotations (we always seem to miss them). This morning, lucky us and lucky doctors, we all happen to be in the same place at the same time. The great joy from this is that we got to create a dispatch plan with the head doctor this morning. He is very impressed by Luke's progress (especially since mom showed up). He said that eventhough he said a week, he thinks we could be out of here as early as Tuesday at Luke's rate. This was obviously both exciting and a bit scary for us (but mostly exciting). As long as Luke continues to eat well and gain weight, we could be looking at a Fresno homecoming a few days before my birthday goal date (what an overachiever Luke is already turning out to be).

I'll be moving back to the hospital tomorrow morning and staying near Luke to test out a 24 hour breastfeeding-only cycle. Josh will continue to stay at Ronald McDonald House. Then hopefully from there its homeward bound to be together as a family with big brother Isaiah finally. Please pray that Luke keeps up the good work and that our transition home will be smooth. Everyone's prayers have been so productive, and we could definitely use them once we get home and try to parent without a team of doctors and nurses on standby. Although we still have some long term concerns with Luke and his development because of this whole experience, we definitely feel good about God getting us to this point. Since the doctors can't give us any clear answers about Luke's future at this point, we will just do our best to love for and pray for Luke everyday (pretty much all parenting in a nutshell). For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

Thank You

Friends and Family - Thank you so much for your continued prayers and kind messages. We just want you to know how much we enjoy reading your notes and thoughts posted on the blog. It really makes our day.

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. 1 Chronicles 16:34

Time with Mama

I got to come up to San Fran on Friday and am now staying with Josh at the Ronald McDonald House. We are spending the day at the hospitals and then heading over to the house to get some rest at night. I am so happy to be here with Luke and with Josh. Isaiah is having a blast at home in Fresno hanging out with my mom, spending tons of time with his cousins. It will be so great when we all get to be together as a family, but we are each hanging in there in the meantime. Again, it is so good to finally have mama and baby together. That is how it is meant to be. It just feels so right. I love this kid!

Feeding Progress

Now you see it.... Now you don't. Luke has been doing such a good job feeding through bottle and breast that they took out his feeding tube this morning. Praise the Lord. This is such an awesome step in his progress. At this rate, he may be out of here in a week. I've told Josh that all I want for my birthday (the 24th) is to bring home Luke. What a great present that would be.

Here are some of the latest and greatest pictures of our little darling Luke...

New Home

So here are some pictures from my closet/room on the highest floor in UCSF Long Hospital. It's 6 feet by 8 feet with a window. Just outside my window are some other room windows and the 2nd one is Luke's. I am 10 seconds away from his bedside. Kind of nice, even though I will have to move into a room in a Ronald McDonald home about 15 minutes from the hospital. (I knew all those Big Mac's would pay off somehow). This will be a little different as once I leave the hospital, I won't be able to just peek in and say hi and spend some time when I want. It will have to begin and end in a one stretch. We will see how that goes, but what is nice, is that mom is coming and will be better off in the new room. I don't know if I will have internet there, so this could be the last post for a while. Luke also had his MRI done today and we will not get results for a couple of days. He also had his IV taken out, so now it's all about the feeding. I fed him after his MRI and he had his eyes open the whole time. They must have done something because he normally wants to sleep. Pretty cool though for dad. A full feed is 50 cc's and he has taken one or two full feeds through a bottle, but mostly he takes about half and then is fed the rest through his tube. He needs to start taking all of it through the bottle before he is ready to come home. Hope for this and keep thinking of us. I know HE hears you. GO LUKE!!!!!!

Today's Prayer Request

Today's Specific Prayer Request

Please pray today for Luke's MRI. It is scheduled for 1pm. Specifically, we are praying that Luke stays still and calm on his own so that we don't have to have him sedated. Also, please pray for wisdom and insight for the doctors and technicicans that will be performing and reading the MRI. Finally, please pray that we will be able to get results communicated back to us before the weekend. Most of all, we are praying that the MRI comes back clear and normal.

Thank you for all your prayers and support.

"Do not worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need, always giving thanks." Philippians 4:6

More Pic's From Mom's 1st Visit

It truly doesn't get much better than this. Holding Luke for the first time really made time stand still and everything crazy going on around us just stop. I was full of joy to see how sweet and serene he looked, even in the midst of tubes and plugs. He was also such a pleasure to hold compared to the 25lb monster that we carry around at home. Just kidding. Isaiah is the cutest sweetest monster in the world. He got to meet his little brother for the first time yesterday and he definitely was curious. Isaiah has been such a trooper through all of the changes and chaos going on. God has definitely blessed him with a spirit of joy and tenderness. Having to be away from Luke has been bearable only with the comfort of having my other baby near me to make me laugh and smile all the time. I thank God for both these boys. What blessings.

One of the doctor's main goals with Luke right now is to get him eating well. He has already shown he is not afraid of any challenge, and is working hard to meet that goal. I got to actually feed him his first "mama's milk" feeding while I was there yesterday through the feeding tube. You can see in the picture where I am holding up the container that is draining straight into his stomach. He took the whole thing.

Thank you again to everyone for your continued prayers and support. Its a tough situation, but we are being blessed with patience and peace through everything. We are praying that Luke continues to eat well and gains some weight. Once he has completed his MRI (one of the last big test they still need to perform) and has demonstrated good eating and weight gain, we are hoping to bring him home. We are not sure what that timeframe may be, but trust that the timing is God's. This was a great visit, and I am counting down the minutes until I go back after my own follow up dr appt tomorrow to see my little darling (and my big darling) again.

Family Dining in SF

I got to see the family and have a quick dinner down the street from the hospital. It was nice. A little mexican restaurant well known by the locals "L'Aventeria". I think. Isaiah and mom were good to see. It's been since Saturday and they left to go back to Fresno right after dinner. It might be some more days before I see them again, so these pictures are great for me. Thanks to all for thinking of us and praying for us. We are feeling very blessed by all the people sending us messages, emails, phone calls, etc. Hope to see you soon. GO LUKE!!!!!!

Mom's First Day with Luke

This was special. Mom left Fresno with a little pain, but a big heart to come and see her second son. As you might imagine, "special". Nothing like seeing your wife hold your son like that. She basically held him until her body could do no more. She brought him some food (Cholesterin????). You know what I mean. He did take some food today. Hooray! It looked as if he started digesting it which is good news and I think they gave him 12 cc's. Hopefully tomorrow, I will be talking to the neurologist to piece together some things they are seeing and some timeframes for him. It looks like we might do an MRI on Thursday. As of now, we are just watching how he does with some food and checking in on him. He is still being given calcium, I believe, but that might be all he is getting through his IV. Isaiah got to see his brother as well, and there seems to be some resemblance. Luke opened his eyes and saw his mom too when she was holding him. He doesn't do that too much. God is good! GO LUKE!!!!

It's getting ready for chow time

Well, here he is breathing the same air as us. He has been doing that for a few hours today. That is pretty good. The nice looking tube in his nose is a new piercing he wanted to get for his mama. No, its a feeding tube and they put it there because they won't be pulling it out and putting it in, blah, blah, blah, medicine talk stuff reasons. But that means, he might be able to start taking in food, like milk or formula. That is a good sign. Here is some more updates: his heart rate is a little low for a baby, it's like an adults right now, but not in the worrysome category because his other numbers are ok. If the other numbers decline, then they will worry about the heart rate. The neurologist has done an EEG and an ultrasound on his brain and has not made any longterm assessments yet. Yes, there is evidence that the brain was not receiving oxygen and there could be or could not be effects from that. Some babies will recover fully from that they have said. They basically will just respond to Luke's behavior. They will monitor him and go from there. So right now, Luke is in the fighting mode or healing mode, so keep thinking of him. This picture is ok, because he is very cute in person. His little blonde peach fuzz hair and his daddy lips. Also, he is off of antibiotics and the something barnal? This is what stops what could have been siezures and makes him tired. Off of it could mean a good thing. Thanks everyone and hope to see you soon. GO LUKE!!!!!!!

Thoughts from Mom

Joshua 1:9
"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."

Last week, I was searching through the Bible looking for the perfect verse to use for Luke. I just finished painting a picture of a cute little pirate boy looking out towards the ocean for Luke. Isaiah had his own verse and pictures, so I thought it would be great for Luke to have his. When I came across Joshua 1:9, I knew immediately this was Luke's verse. Little did I know how God would also use this verse to encourage me in the days to follow.

Most of you have heard that our little one Luke was born Saturday morning at 10:30 am. It was a whirlwind of a morning that ended in a surprise and emergency c-section. I was actually put out completely, and Luke was taken away before I had a chance to see him. They brought him by my room in his traveling incubator right before he left so I could see him and touch his little hand. It wasn't easy to see Luke leave me right after he was born and fly away to San Fran. My comfort was in knowing that he was not going alone. Although I couldn't go with him, I know the LORD our God is with him wherever he goes. It was also my saving grace that Josh was able to go to San Fran to be with Luke. His earthly and heavenly fathers both watching over him. What could give a mother more comfort?

Thank you everyone for your prayers and thoughts. They are keeping us strong and at peace. I am healing well, and looking forward to our family being together soon. I am still at Clovis Community Hospital. Isaiah is hanging out with grandmas and grandpas and cousins and getting spoiled with lots of love. Josh and Luke are in Pediatric ICU at UCSF. We are taking everything in stride as we continue to wait for tests and updates on Luke. The amazing thing about the Word of God is that you can truly cling to it with the little bit left that you have, and that truth will prevail.

Love in Christ,
Amy

Good Times

I did this for about a half an hour. He is small, but doesn't seem to be too small. I watched his throat the entire half an hour to watch for breathing, and he did. A couple of times it looked as if he yawned and had a couple of little spastic reaction (kind of like a nightmare reaction), but other than that, he chilled with me.

Older Photo;

This was before he had the tube removed for breathing. As you can see, his face is pretty covered up, but a cute hat on.

Sour Patch Kid

He got a little grumpy being moved around a little, but as you can see it's a face only a mother could love; and daddy too :) Kind of funny look huh?

Looks like a basketball head!

Perfectly shaped noggin. Must be a mommy thing. Isaiah is going to have some competition for symmetry.

Posing Luke

There he is getting ready to go into daddy's arms. Does he seem relaxed or what?

Little tiger

Here he is after his bath in some homemade attire. The nurse cleaned him up good, washed the hair (maybe some red), and cleaned his face up. He is just chillin right now.

Luke Tosland

My first time holding him. And not breathing tube. We miss you MAMA! He is AWESOME. Perfectly shaped little head and will be putting more up in a sec.