He is having some heart complications. He will need surgery and I am asking for prayers from you all. This child has the most amazing parents and they are believers that Owen will be OK with your prayers from God.
We are thinking of you three. Many Prayers!! Please sign guest book so they can see your thinking of them.
Betty
Yesterday our mothers arrived here in Cincinnati. They both cried when they saw Owen! Last night he was moved from the Cardiac ICU to a new room. He will stay there until he gains more weight to prepare for surgery. He was very alert after the move and the grandmas couldn't take their eyes off him. Owen is doing well. They are allowing him to bottle feed for fifteen minutes and whatever he doesn't eat goes down the feeding tube. We are able to stay the night with him in his current room. At this point, the doctors are thinking it might take two weeks or so before he is over six pounds. They said they'd feel much better operating when he is a bit larger. Please pray that a spot will open up for us at the RMH- as we are on the waiting list there. It's right next to the hospital and would make life easier. The nurses tell me that Owen knows my voice and is aware that I am his momma. That makes my heart melt! Thanks to everyone for the support and prayers. :) Witten By Owen's Mommy
Yesterday Scott and I were able to move into the RMH of Cincinnati. Scott and I have been pretty overwhelmed lately, but God has met us at every turn. Thursday we were told that we weren't anywhere near the top of the list. Then one day later- there is a room available for us. Praise God! We're feeling more calm today knowing that we can stay right across the street from Owie Blumenthal. No kidding- we can look out our window and see the building where he is staying. The RMH is really nice and has an exercise room- which we are going to start using to help alleviate stress. We can play pool and stuff like that. There is a quiet room and library. Free meals are available daily. Sweet Owen continues to do well. He's still slowly gaining weight. We're about to give him a bath in a few minutes and then Scott's going to feed him at 2:30. During his last two feedings, he took the whole bottle. That's great and encouraging. They want him to have a good memory of bottle feeding so that he remembers after his heart surgery. Yesterday we put a little sleeper on him that has aliens all over it. My mom told Owen last night that there were pictures of his daddy all over it! That made us all laugh and Owie even smiled. Grandma Sarah bought him a musical thing that plays classical, lullabies, and nature music. He seems to enjoy the classical music. We lay it next to his head and he seems very relaxed while listening to it. Grandma Linda bought him a cute, little bear and it's sitting by his head. Tomorrow we will increase his feedings by 5 cc's. Time for bath. Keep the messages coming. :)
Hello from Cincinnati! Yesterday we drove over to Florence, KY to do some shopping. We went to another Children's Resale store called Once Upon A Child. Scotty picked out a little Cincinnati Reds outfit. We had a nice day yesterday with our son. Scott and I are a good team and we are learning how to take care of Owen's needs. At each feeding, he has fifteen minutes to eat and then we feed the rest to him through his tube. We are able to do all these things on our own now. The nurses have been really nice to us. They've been explaining how things will go after surgery. The doctors will round at 8 today due to the holiday. I'll write more later. Thanks for the messages. Keep them coming, please! :)
Owen had a difficult day. He was very unsettled and seemed to have trouble sleeping. I guess I would, too, if people were constantly coming in and poking all over me. Right now they have decided to do his feedings via the feeding tube. They are closely monitoring his oxygen levels during feeds. Right now they want to be sure that he doesn't get formula in his lungs. This can happen when premature babies haven't developed the suck, swallow, breathe pattern. Owen is having to work harder to eat. After dinner tonight (not a big fan of jambalaya)- I headed back to the hospital. He did very well during his 9 feeding. However, he was pretty fussy during his midnight feed. The doctors compared the chest x-rays and say that he is still stable. His condition is called Total Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Return. With TAPVR the vessels that bring oxygen-rich (red) blood back to the heart from the lungs are improperly connected. Owen's four pulmonary veins are not connected to the right place. Besides the TAPVR, he also has the VSD and ASD. However, the ASD (Atrial Septal Defect)- the hole between the upper two chambers of the heart- has actually helped him. It probably kept him alive- because this is the way that the left side of the heart is getting blood. Normally, all babies have an ASD- but it closes shortly after birth. His has remained open- which is good in this case. During surgery, they will reroute the pulmonary veins and get them connected to the proper place- the left atrium. They will also fix the holes between the upper and lower chambers of the heart. WOW- sorry- I haven't meant to give you information overload. I know it sounds very complicated. Owen is a fighter, though. We pray every night that God would watch over our son. I am very thankful for medical advancements. Praise God that the doctors know how to run the right tests on Owen. If he had been born many years ago- they wouldn't have been able to do as much for him as they can now. However, such a time is this- that our son would be alive. Please continue to pray for Owen's strength and well being. Pray for us as we learn more each day about how to care for his needs. Pray for our safety as we are in the inner city of Cincinnati. Pray for our finances. Pray for peaceful sleep for all three of us. Thanks again for your support. Shan
