Day 7 - June 5

After a tough battle over the weekend, I am very sad to inform you that our little miracle baby passed away this morning around 4 a.m.

Isaiah 40:11 says: "He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms, and carries them close to his heart"

Although we know that He holds Olivia with Him, close to His heart, our hearts still ache for her and for the family she leaves behind.

I'll pass along the details of the arrangements once they are made.

Day 5 - June 2

After talking with Lu, I have found out the Olivia has had a pretty good day. She seems to get a little frustrated when the nurses turn her on to her left side. They are not sure if it is that her tube get blocked or that she just doesn't like that side, but her oxygenation levels seem to decrease when they turn her that way. So they have two options: 1) try to rotate her breathing tube and see if that helps or 2) try another type of ventilator that would breathe somewhere around 100 breaths per minute (which is more like panting than breathing). Obviously, they're going to try rotating the tube first but the other ventilator is an option if it is needed.

Also, no progression in the hemorrhage - so again, great news!

They are now going to do the brain scans every other day because the stimulation is tough on her little body - the same goes for weighing her.

Lurenda did say that Olivia gets excited when she hears Ben and Lu's voices. I thought this was a good thing, but Lu says that they do not really want her to get excited because then she gets agitated and her oxygen levels fall and heart rate speeds up. That we actually want her to stay as calm as possible, so they are not touching her as much but are still talking (whispering) to her which she seems to be handling okay.

Ben's Mom and brother went home today and had an accident on the way. Everyone is okay - but when it rains, it pours. I'll update you when I get an update.

Day 4 - June 1

As of 9:33 am

We have reached the first hurdle - 72 hours have passed with no major complications.

Her blood pressure is holding steady - they did have to give her some dopamine yesterday but that is normal

Her body temperature is climbing - she's baking at a nice 98.9 degrees and they want her to be at 97.9 or above.

Her potassium level is good and reported at 5.7 this morning.

They are going to remove 2 of the bilirubin lights today

They have already done the ultrasound of her brain this morning but we will not get those results until the afternoon. The doctor said that Olivia has shown no clinical signs of hemorrhage progression and that this is a positive sign.

They did find that she has a hole in one the heart ventricles (again, not abnormal in micro-premies) and they can treat it without surgery to start with. They use a drug that is in the same family as blood thinners to do this. The problem here is that with the brain bleed, a blood thinner can cause it to worsen. If after today's ultrasound results there has been no progression of the brain hemorrhage, then they can begin to administer this medication. If the medicine doesn't improve the condition in her heart or causes problems with the brain bleed, then surgery is an option. The neonatal staff assured Lu and Ben that this is a "standard" surgery for micro-premies and that the main concern would be anestesia on such a little person.

She gained 2 grams yesterday on top of all of that!

Lurenda asked that we all pray specifically for her heart and her brain and she will let us know the results of the morning tests in an update later today.

Keep praying - there are many hurdles still to come - but God has seen her through hurdle number 1 and we KNOW he is listening and answering our prayers.

As of 3:15 pm

Just talked with Ben for a few minutes and Olivia is having another good day. He said "things are 1,000 times better than 72 hours ago". We do not have the results from the brain scan for today - it will be later this afternoon before the doctor reads the results. But they were able to remove 2 bili-lights so there is only 1 left.

His only need today is that we all continue to pray.

I'll let you know more when I hear back from them.

As of 8:00 pm

Got a call from Lu and she had WONDERFUL news - there has been NO progression of the brain hemorrhage! Praise God! The neonatologist said they still wanted to wait a few days before they start administering the medication for Olivia's heart just to make sure everything is going to stay stable. I asked if Olivia had gained any more weight and Lu said that they are only going to weigh her every other day since the stimulation is tough for her little bitty body. They are still talking to her in sweet, soft voices and they are able to put their hands in and give her the opportunity to hold their fingers if she wants to. Lu said she already is decisive about whether or not she wants to hold hands or not - just like a little woman.

Olivia's nurse told Lurenda that, in her opinion, today has been Olivia's best day yet. Keep prayers going - God is listening and answering them moment by moment.

Day 3 - May 31

As of 9:01 am

Olivia had a good night last night. They have done a blood transfusion (which is normal) and her potassium is coming back down (which is fantastic - if your potassium is too high it can cause a heart attack). They are giving her fatty lipids since she has no fat of her own and her oxygen is at 28% this morning.

The results of the ultrasound and brain scan from yesterday show that she does have a Grade 2 brain hemorrhage but this is really ok and very normal in micro-premies like Olivia. It can improve and a large percentage of babies with grade 2 hemorrhages recover with no significant disabilities. A Grade 3 hemorrhage can cause more developmental delays and more severe disabilities and at Grade 4 it becomes serious and decisions have to be made as to whether or not to continue with treatment. So Lurenda and Ben are praising God that it's just a Grade 2.

Lurenda's minister came to the hospital last night and the family was able to go back together (her sister was finally allowed to see the baby) and they christened Olivia and have a wonderful time of prayer for her. Lurenda and Ben are truly amazing and at peace with the situation.

As of 2:31 pm

I've just talked with Lurenda and she is at home. She thought she would be okay leaving the hospital but it was tougher than she had expected. She was going to have some lunch, take a nap and then go back to see Olivia. Ben's mother and some of the brothers (I'm not sure which ones - there are way too many to count but praise God for big, supportive families) have come in and are with them now.

This morning's ultrasound showed NO progression of the hemorrhage which is wonderful news! Her potassium level has come down even more and her lungs continue to get stronger. Keep those prayers going that the hemorrhage does not progress and that Olivia makes and complete recovery.

Day 2 - May 30 (9:38 am)

I just talked to Ben and Lurenda and, as of this morning, Little Miss Olivia has lost 2.8 ounces - but this is good for her lungs to dry out. Her color is good and really coming in to the "normal" area. They just came from NICU from a visit and she is very active and moving around. Her body temperature has increased to 97.9 degrees which is exactly where they want it to be and her kidneys are working great.

Lurenda and Ben got a good night's sleep and both sound much better this morning. So keep those prayers going - they are being heard and being answered.

Day One - May 29 - What a Memorial Day!

Her name is Olivia Nichole Avery and her official numbers are that she was born on May 29, 2006 at 3:11 a.m. weighing in at 1 pound 8.4 ounces and is 13 inches long. She arrived at 23.5 weeks gestation (17 weeks early).

I didn't get to see Olivia but Ben (Lu's hubby) took my camera back and got a couple of pics for me. Things looked much better this evening than they did earlier today. She is still on the ventilator but it is set at 22% oxygen (which is pretty awesome considering we breathe an average of 20% oxygen) and they will do several more treatments to cause her lungs to start creating there own surfactant (so they will inflate properly and not stick together). Obviously, Olivia is in a new/improved incubator so that she can "grow" some more. I told Lurenda to just think of it as an early start in the tanning bed industry - I can see the scrapbook page already - "Olivia's First Electric Beach". She is sooooo little and soooooo early that her eyes are still fused closed. But her kidneys have started functioning and she is tee-teeing so they've put a little (itty bitty) diaper on her. She is literally the size of a Barbie doll.

Lurenda looked good considering what kind of weekend she has had, but continue to pray for her and Ben and baby Olivia. Miracles happen every day! Ben is hanging in there and is much more at peace tonight then this time last night but they both need some sleep.

I will keep you up to date as things progress.