Cheyenne’s World

Time for another update.

Some big things happened over the weekend for Cheyenne. First, grandma and grandpa Thomas came to visit. Also, great-grandpa and great-grandma came to visit (Nikki’s grandparents). Pictures will be posted later.

Then, great Aunt Susie and Uncle Ray, cousin Becky and John visited. Also, great Aunt Evelyn and Uncle Gary came. Yes, that was a lot of visitors for one day, but the aunts and uncles have been anxious to meet Cheyenne.

Saturday night, Aunt Laura and Uncle Justin came. They were able to spend the night and visit again on Sunday after church services.

As for Cheyenne’s health update: The doctors took her off the oxygen, and took out her feeding tube. Unfortunately, the feeding tube had to be put back in because she was having trouble eating.

Aaron called a little while ago and said the oxygen also had to be started again. Cheyenne is having a little trouble with the eating / swallowing / breathing thing. She was working too hard at it, so the doctors decided to start her on oxygen again to help her out. Also, a smaller feeding tube was exchanged for the one she had. This really is not a “step backward”, just something to help Cheyenne get better, and ease some problems.

David and I have not held Cheyenne for 2 days, because so many others wanted to hold her. We decided that was enough handling, but today we hope to be able to hold and rock her again! We did get several more pictures, and even a video clip or two. Kris will post pictures later

Edit:  Kris here…I’m adding a couple of the pictures to this post so you can see them!

Cheyenne has been moved to a “step-down” unit at Children’s Hospital. It is still part of the NICU, but is not really considered “intensive care” anymore. She has her own room now, and the unit is much quieter and less hectic than the main NICU.

She is doing well in her new room. The respiratory issues all seem to be resolved at this point. She is doing extremely well with breathing on her own, and has not had to be placed back on any sort of supplemental oxygen thus far. We are thankful for this progress and pray that it continues.

The only issue that little Cheyenne seems to be having now is with feeding. The doctors and nurses have reassured us that this is entirely normal for premature babies who have had respiratory problems. They are trying to avoid using IV fluids for any kind of nutrition. However, she has been losing a little bit of weight because she has not been able to eat enough to provide the amount of calories she needs to maintain and gain weight. The doctor has decided to leave the feeding tube through her nose for now to make up the difference in what she is eating, and what she needs. Unfortunately, twice today, she “spit-up” the extra food she was given through her feeding tube, so she is still not keeping down what the doctor thinks she needs. The nurse tonight said she would leave notes for the doctor to see if he wants to change his strategy. Cheyenne is supposed to be eating 40 CCs every three hours, but she usually varies between 25 and 35 CCs. The doctor may let her stick with that for the time being, or he may choose to re-insert an IV line to give her the additional calories. Whatever they choose, I’m sure they’ll make the right decision for her.

Thank you all for your continuing prayers. God has certainly been answering them, and I have faith He will continue to do so!

My dad called a little while ago to tell me that Cheyenne got moved from the main floor NICU to a smaller NICU on an upper floor of the hospital.  He said that they don’t view the cases that get moved up there as being as critical as those on the lower floor, so that seems to be a really good sign.

They took Cheyenne off of the oxygen today, and let her breathe the air only for the first time since she was born.  I had heard earlier today from Aaron that they had taken the tubes from her nose, but that they were still connected, in case she needed them.  Dad told me she struggled a bit at first, but that she was doing better by this evening.  I don’t know if they will put her back on the oxygen to give her a bit of a break tonight or not…I will have to wait for word from the others “on the scene”.

They wanted to take out her feeding tube, but decided to leave it in for a bit longer because they were not convinced that she is eating enough without it yet.  They are hoping that she will get to start nursing soon. Aaron and Nikki have been getting to feed her a bottle for now.  Hopefully, she will continue to improve, so that they can get the feeding tube out, and she will be able to nurse healthily.  The nurses warned Aaron and Nikki that Cheyenne may have difficulty with the whole suck, swallow, breathe cycle because she is premature.  I am sure, at the rate she is going, that it won’t take her long to figure it out.  That girl just might be a genius

I have gotten several pictures over the last couple of days, but it is taking me a bit of time to get them to the website. Here are a few from Cheyenne’s Aunt Suzy:

Click on the picture to see a larger size…

If you haven’t seen the videos I added earlier, please be sure to scroll down to the previous post!

Here are two more very short videos that my dad took of Aaron and Nikki getting to hold, and rock, Cheyenne. The third is from a couple of days ago after they removed the ventilator, and put Cheyenne on her belly for the first time.  They are all  available on Shawn’s YouTube account. My apologies to anyone trying to log in through a dial-up account

This is what I have been waiting to see for the last 9 days! I must admit…I cried

Click Here to See These Pictures Individually

Edit: I just found this video of Cheyenne on Shawn’s YouTube Page, so I thought I would share it. This is a video of Cheyenne crying, which is quite significant, since she hadnt been able to do it since she was in the delivery room. It is so good to hear it!

I thought I would take a minute to post my own update. Nikki and I have been amazed at the incredible response that this website that Kristin (thank you, Kris) created has received. It is so encouraging to us to know that so many people are interested and concerned about our family. We also wish to thank everyone for their unselfish generosity in providing for us while I am not working.

Cheyenne continued her phenomenal improvement today. Nikki and I got to hold her, bathe her, change diapers (ok, Nikki did that), feed her with a bottle, and burp her. I’m sure every new parent takes great joy in doing these things, but we doubly enjoyed doing them because Cheyenne was 9 days old before we got to do most of those things. The feeling of joy and peace that came with holding our own little daughter is indescribable.

We are so thankful for the prayers lifted up by so many saints around the world on our behalf. We have been moved to tears on multiple occasions by the outpouring of prayers, cards, gifts and financial support that we have received from our dear brethren, many of whom we have never met. Thank you.

It would also be neglectful for me to fail to mention the great help that our immediate families have been. They have been through so much in helping us financially, securing hotel accommodations and a way to pay for them, traveling back and forth to provide support for us, doing our laundry, buying us food, etc., etc. Thank you all. We love you.

And we thank God for answering the prayers of the saints. To Him be the glory.

Aaron called a little while ago, and said that the big news of the day was that they let them hold Cheyenne! They were finally able to take her from the crib for about 1/2 hour, taking turns holding her. They were going to let them hold her again later this evening (though I figure they have already done that some this afternoon). Unfortunately, there was no one at the hospital with them who had a camera. i am hoping that they are able to get some pictures this afternoon of the proud parents holding little Cheyenne. I can’t wait to see how small she looks in the arms of her daddy!

In case you missed it, go back and look at the post that Mamaw wrote this morning about Cheyenne kicking out the IV from her leg…she is one feisty little girl!

I just found this video that my brother (Shawn) loaded onto his YouTube Account:

I thought I would share some of the pictures, and a video that I took on Tuesday. I know a lot has changed since these were taken, but at least you can get an idea of some of the improvements she has been making. In this video, you can see her sucking vigorously on her pacifier:

Here are some more pictures from Tuesday as well. The blue tint is because Cheyenne is still under the Billiruben light. Aaron said last night that she was still under the light at least part of the time, but that they would probably take that off soon. I hope to have some more updated pictures soon. I know that my dad, and sister-in-law (that’s Aunt Suzy to Cheyenne) are taking lots of pictures, so maybe they will send them to me soon (hint…hint…hint…) Remember to click on the pictures to see bigger versions, if you would like to!

In this picture, you can see she is still wearing her sunglasses. You can also see the pacifier that fell from her mouth when she went to sleep.

Here is a picture of Cheyenne’s foot. You can see just how small her feet are. That is Mamaw holding her foot up so that we could get a good picture. For those related to us, you may notice that “Daines’ Toe” there on the left.

This may be my favorite picture so far. Aaron asked me to take a picture of Cheyenne holding on to his finger. She has a great grip, and loves to hold on to any finger that will stay there and let her do it. She held my finger for about 30 minutes, until I had to leave the other day! This shows just how small her hands are. Her fingers are not long enough to reach around Aaron’s finger!

Here are a few more pictures. I hope you enjoy them. Lord willing, we will have some more pictures and videos to share with you later on today!

Cheyenne had a “temper tantrum” - that’s her daddy’s words - last night and kicked the IV out of her foot! I just wish I could have been there to hear that cry They decided she was doing so well, they would not try and put it back in. She still has an IV in her hand, so they can give her whatever she needs through that.

Aaron was able to leave the hospital and attend services last night. Nikki stayed with Cheyenne.

On the agenda for today: Try feeding Cheyenne a little milk through a feeding tube and see how she tolerates that. Also, Aaron and Nikki may get to hold Cheyenne for the first time later today. We are hoping to get pictures of that. We will share pictures if we do.

I just talked with Aaron on the phone and he said Cheyenne had a good night last night.

Thanks to all who have continued to keep Cheyenne, Nikki, and Aaron in their prayers. God has heard and answered favorably! Please, keep it up:-)