Slice of Heaven

Today got off to a late start. Tired and exhausted, we woke up and got ready to go see Ryan. We arrived at the NICU at 10:30a and we were hopeful that the biopsy and doctor's visits had already taken place, but they hadn't. The pediatric surgeon came in around 11:30 and explained today's procedure and also some background for us.

1.) Ryan has anal stenosis - a narrowing of the anal opening, which makes it difficult for stool contents to pass through easily. Over the weekend procedures were done to clear the blockage and to dilate the opening. This has so far proved to be very effective and Ryan has been having regular bowel movements.

2.) Ryan's x-ray this morning looked great. He had the right amount of gas in his stomach and the distention in his stomach continued to go down.

3.) A biopsy was taken from Ryan today to rule out an underlying issue - Hirschsprung's Disease - which would be a greater issue. If the biopsy comes back from the hospital as negative - we are in the clear. We will know the results within 2 days. If the biopsy comes back positive or inconclusive, then the results will be sent out for further evaluation at Children's Hospital. These results can take an additional week.

For now, all is looking great. The doctor's have ordered the suction from Ryan's orogastric tube be stopped. He still has the tube in his mouth for now, but now his fluids (saliva, stomach acid, etc) are being re-introduced. Tomorrow Ryan will be allowed to SLOWLY introduce milk into his system. Each of these steps along with his ability to have bowel movements will determine when Ryan can come home.

If there is no indication of Hirschsprung's, then we may be able to bring him home as early as late this week. Of course our fingers are crossed that Ryan's condition is not that severe.

Ryan was alert this morning for our morning visit. He was pretty wiped out for our afternoon and evening visits. He slept most of the time that we were there with him. It's still nice to hold him even though he is sleeping.

We arrived home tired and exhausted (the same way we woke up). To our surprise, Randi and Jessica - Dylan's best friends - had brought us a banana merengue pie. Inside the pie box was written "Since your little slice of heaven isn't home, I hope you can enjoy a little slice of pie". It was a great end to our long day.

THANK YOU RANDI & JESSICA!!!!