April 29

We took Becca to our family doctor this morning.  He wanted to see her as soon as possible after getting her home so he is  familiar with her case.  At the visit Becca weighed in at 7 lbs 3 oz and was 19.5 inches long.  In one week she has gained 1/2 pound and grown 1/4 inch which is right where she should be.  It also explains why she can sleep so much.

After getting home from the doctor's office Karen went to pick James up from my sister's.  When she got back she was shivering uncontrollably.  We took her temp and found she was running a fever of 103.  That is a little scary since the oncologist warned us about sudden fevers and that it could be a sign of infection or complications from the cancer treatments.  After a call to the oncologist's office we headed back to our family doctor's office.  Right now they think it is a sinus infection and have prescribed some antibiotics.

After we got home from the second visit the oncologist called and wanted to draw some blood for a CBC test to make sure nothing else is going on.  So we made another trip, this time to the hospital.  I'm glad our niece was there to babysit otherwise it could have gotten really interesting.  I'm also glad my boss and coworkers are so easy to work with on all of this.

I had thought the adrenalin filled days were behind me.  Today made me realize there are probably many more scares ahead and I will just have to deal with them as the come.

Braden

April 28

Becca made it through her first night at home fairly well.  She is a little irregular on her feeding times but our son, James, was the same way when he first came home.

My sister has offered to babysit James in the mornings.  In the afternoons I bring him home where Karen is able to care for him the rest of the day.  Her energy level still isn't where is used to be but it's getting there.  Karen walked to the mailbox and back today.  After getting back her comment was that she sure had made a lot of progress.  A few months ago just walking to the bathroom would leave her exhausted.

I did a little shopping in the evening and when I came in the door the first thing I heard was, "I'm glad you're home.  Now you can get James out of my way so I can finally get down."  I looked up and Karen was on the second step of a stool and James was on the bottom step blocking Karen from getting down.  Apparently he wanted to help mom out getting the recipe book down from above the fridge.  As soon as Karen got off of the stool James immediately climbed back on and up to the top.

Braden

April 27

We made it home.  It took us a while to get the car all packed up and we still left things behind.  Guess it's only fitting that it will take us a while to get all of our stuff out of there and to the house.  After all it only took us two months to get everything there.

One of the Maternal Fetal Medicine doctors that Karen saw in the hospital gave her a puzzle.  She saw a puzzle Karen and I were working once during rounds.  After Karen was moved to a different floor of the hospital (and was no longer pregnant) the doctor stopped by and gave Karen this puzzle.  Both Karen and I thought it was very thoughtful and went far beyond what doctors normally do for patients.

Karen wasn't able to concentrate during the last two weeks of her hospital stay.  Once she was discharged she was able to concentrate better and started working on it.  A little over a month later she finished the puzzle and then had to take it apart to pack.

Once we got home I hurried and unpacked the back seat of the car so there was enough room to pick James up from my sister's house.  This will be the first time we will all spend the night under the same roof.  For the first time our little family is together.  I pray it will be many, many years before it is separated again.

Watching Karen go through chemo and visiting Becca in the hospital has not been easy.  I believe that her ability to persevere and fight is due in large part to her desire to see her children grow up.  She wants so badly to be there for them and be a part of their lives.  I want the same thing and will do everything in my power to make that her reality.

Braden

April 26

Karen and I packed and cleaned up today.  We are getting ready to head home on Sunday and hope everything works out.  In the middle of all this Becca decided to pretend to be an archer in her sleep.  Robert and Annika, you might have an apprentice in a few years.  Just look at that form.

Braden

April 25

Things are just starting to get into a rhythm for me and Karen.  Just in time for us to pack up.  We are planning/hoping to be back at the house on Sunday but depending on how well the house airs out after painting we may change things up.

I spoke with the home health office near our house and they are ready to stop by whenever we end up there.  Becca is eating and sleeping very well.  She is on a fairly regular schedule of feeding every three to four hours.  Sometimes she will fuss/squawk for a while after finishing a bottle.

We did take out for our date night.  Becca woke up about the time we finished dinner, ate, took a bath and then went back to sleep.  After Becca went to bed Karen and I sat down together, popped in a DVD and relaxed for a bit.  I remember when 11:00 PM or midnight was late now it's 10:00 PM.

Braden

April 24

Karen's parents went home in the evening while mine stopped by for a few minutes on the way down to our house to work on painting.

It seems like both Rebecca and Karen are getting stronger every day.  Karen laughs and jokes around a lot more.  She isn't taking as many pain killers either and is on over the counter ibuprofen and acetaminophen at nights or when it gets really bad.

The apnea alarm isn't going off nearly as often since we put some coband around the sensors on Becca.  The tech who delivered the equipment said the sensor adhesive was good for three days.  It's more like eight hours before they start falling off or moving whenever Becca stretches.  I am glad Karen thought of the coband.

Braden

April 23

Today was a long day with Karen getting her pump taken off in the afternoon.  She was able to take it fairly easy but the pins and needles feeling in her hands and when she swallows is back.  It is one of the expected side effects of the chemo medications she is taking.  We are supposed to keep an eye on it and let the doctor know if the sensation doesn't go away after a few days.

In the evening I made a trip with Karen's dad back to our house to do some prep work for my parents to paint.  We worked for about 3.5 hours and got most everything prepped then headed back to Provo.  We are planning to be in the house this weekend but that may change depending on how well the painting goes and how strong the smell is.

Karen and I had been planning to paint this past fall.  Paint had already been bought but with Karen's health and the pregnancy we never found the time to get it done.  It's amazing how quickly priorities change in life.  When I look back through the pictures I have taken of Karen I can't believe how far she has come in the last two months.  Here is a picture of her the day before Becca was born.  Keep in mind she was 7 months pregnant at this point.

Braden

April 22

Becca had her two month appointment today.  It was weird to have that after she has only been out of the hospital for two days.  We hooked her up to the portable oxygen tank and put her in the car seat for the trip.  Gratefully the apnea monitor only alarmed once when we were at the appointment.

In the evening Karen gave Becca her first bath since the hospital.  With the fleece blanket trick they showed us it was a lot easier than bathing James at that age.  The first kid is always a bit of a guinea pig.

Braden

April 21

After a night of about 3 hours sleep I'm feeling a little worn out.  To think that is how Karen feels all the time but manages to keep going.  Becca is getting used to a new place with all of its sounds, sights and smells.

Karen had her follow up appointment with the oncologist today.  They gave her the results of Friday's scan (drum roll).  The tumors in her liver and the one in her lung had been reduced in size by half.  The doctor said he would have been happy with less than that.  In 3 months they will do another scan to see how things are at that point.  After Karen mentioned not liking the oral contrast the doctor said it probably would be okay to go without it next time.

After getting the results Karen got to sit in the chemo chair for an extra ninety minutes to start on a new drug called Avastin.  While Karen was having all this fun I was taking care of Becca all by myself today while putting time in at work on the phones.  It's a good thing she slept most of the day otherwise what little hair I have left would be all over the floor.

In the evening a member of our home ward stopped by for a visit.  She is a respiratory therapist so she looked over the oxygen setup a bit.  She then finished feeding Becca so Karen and I could eat dinner together.

Braden

April 20

After a lack of sleep we started the discharge process.  In the middle of this we found some volunteers were doing church services in the NICU waiting room.  Karen and I took turns and went to church for a bit (about 15 minutes).  By about 12:30 we were finally on our way out the door with our little girl in her car seat.

I worked on arranging the crib while Karen got to hold Becca for a bit.  At discharge she was 19 inches and 6 lbs 9 oz.  Not bad for where she started at 15.5 inches and 3 lbs 6 oz.  The home health care delivered an oxygen concentrator and two more portable tanks.  I don't think we'll need the tanks but it's nice to know we have them.

In the evening George and Leslie invited Karen and me to Easter dinner with their family.  Karen and I alternated attending so one of us was always with Becca.  I ate dinner, Karen watched the egg hunt and I ate dessert (I volunteered for the hard jobs).

Growing up the only thing I ever got for Easter was candy.  The gift for this year beat all of that candy without breaking a sweat.

Braden

April 19

Another long day.  I worked on painting, more prep work and cleaning up after my parents finished painting the bathrooms.  I was able to see James in the afternoon and then had to run back to Provo for our rooming in night with Becca.

Before we could start that we had to hook Becca up to a portable oxygen tank and apnea monitor.  After we got settled in the room the apnea monitor kept beeping, loudly, but we could see Becca was breathing normally.  Turns out the leads were bad so we replaced them.  Then the alarm started going off less often until we realized the TV was too close to the monitor and was causing feedback and the monitor didn't know what to do so it decided to scream at us.

After the TV was gone we still didn't sleep much.  I know I was a little excited to actually be able to feed Becca during the night (that will wear off, probably).

Braden

April 18

Karen went in for her follow up scan to see how well the chemo is progressing.  She had to drink some contrast which she said tasted like vanilla flavored glue.  She managed to keep down all of the stuff she drank the night before but the morning of the scan she couldn't keep any of it down.  If that wasn't enough, once in for the scan they also gave her an IV contrast.  After that we went over to visit Becca for a bit.

In the evening I went with Karen's dad back to the house to work on getting some things ready for Karen.  My parents were already there and had done most of the painting on the bathrooms that had been previously prepped.

Braden

April 17

Karen wasn't able to make it to the afternoon visit today.  Instead she went to our house and worked with her parents on some more painting prep work for our bathrooms.  The nurse said Becca had been eating very well and they had removed her feeding tube.  She ate 55 and 50 milliliters for her first feedings in the morning.

Karen and I, along with her parents, made the evening visit.  Becca ate a little over half of her bottle and then paused for a bit and finished it off.  Afterwards Karen held and cuddled with her for a bit.  Karen says she was trying to help her get air bubbles out but I know the truth.

Now we have to take her car seat in so they can do a 90 minute test while she sits in it.  They want to make sure she can breath properly while she is in it.  On Saturday we will be staying overnight at the hospital to get used to the equipment (oxygen and monitors) that will be sent home with us.  We won't go home for about a week after Becca is released.  That way we will have help nearby to answer any questions that come up while we take care of her.

Braden

April 16

Our afternoon visit with Becca started with some good news from the doctor.  He let us know that if Becca keeps progressing with her bottle feedings through the weekend that she may be able to go home next week.  Just to prove she has a mind of her own Becca only ate about 20 milliliters.  It took her a while to wake up and a lot of coxing but even after all that effort she fell asleep before she was half done with the bottle and would not wake up.

The evening visit went very well.  Karen fed Becca an entire bottle, 50 milliliters, without much trouble at all.  She was very awake for the visit and was even trying to eat her blanket at one point.  Once Becca is released from the NICU we will stay near the hospital for about a week before heading home.

Braden

April 15

Our afternoon visit with Becca went well.  She stopped eating from the bottle a few times but she started back up again after being burped twice.  Karen and I thought she was done so we put her back in her crib.  The nurse practitioner was rounding and while getting her vitals Becca started 'asking' for food again.  Into Karen's arms she went and proceeded to eat twice as much in half the time.  When she wants to eat she can really put it away.

Karen and I made dinner for George and Leslie (we are staying in their basement) and Karen's parents.  It was the first time in months that Karen has had enough energy to cook a large meal.  She kept it simple by using a crock pot and prepping bits and pieces throughout the day.  By the end of the day Karen still had enough energy to visit Becca.

Karen fed Becca and once again Becca didn't hit her stride until we were almost done.  She is now over 6lbs 4oz.  That may not sound like much but if you add 8 ounces to that she will have doubled her birth weight.

Braden

April 14

It's a good thing I remembered to do our taxes an entire day before they were due.  For some reason I have been a little distracted and kept forgetting to finish them.

When we went to visit Becca in the afternoon she woke up enough for us to feed her from the bottle.  She is doing a little better at that.  While I get impatient to have her with us at home I know the best place for her right now is where she is.

In the evening we were able to feed Becca from the bottle again.  She has a habit of stopping for a bit and then starting up again.  Sometimes she will even fall asleep on us and then wake up very hungry a few minutes later.

Braden

April 13

Karen made it through all three hours of church today.  Afterwards she also had enough energy to help me make some tilapia alfredo.  The sauce didn't turn out the way I had hoped since we improvised using whole milk instead of cream.  It tasted okay but the texture was off.

Visiting Becca in the early evening was nice.  She is doing well though they did put the oxygen tube back in.  It is just barely on and is the way they would send her home on oxygen.  The nurse did say she had 3 or 4 feedings from the bottle today which is a big improvement from yesterday.  She slept through our visit, though she was stirring a little bit as we left.

We went back over to the hospital in the evening and Karen was able to feed Becca a bit from the bottle.  In the pictures she looks chubby but in person she is still tiny.

Braden

April 12

Got up early (for a Saturday) and did some work on the house.  Karen did some working patching walls while I taped two bathrooms in preparation for painting next week (hopefull).  I thought it would take longer to get everything prepped but I guess we have done this enough that it goes quick.

Karen was shaking some sheets outside and lost her wedding ring the in the grass (that I had just mowed).  While I started ranking the grass trying to find the ring I had Karen run over to a neighbor's and grab a metal detector.  She got back just as I was finishing up the raking and having come up empty in my search.  In about 30 seconds she had found the ring.

After making the trip back to Provo we went to visit Becca for a bit.  She is still working on learning to eat consistently.  They had her completely off of oxygen for most of the day and had been doing well.  We did mention the difference in elevation of about 1500 feet from Provo to our home and the doctor said he would want to send Becca home on oxygen to be safe.

Braden

April 11

We stayed at home and slept in our own bed.  In the morning I took James to my sister's where he will be staying again.  It was hard for me and Karen to not be around him.  He is such a great, happy little kid.  He is dealing with everything so well, we couldn't ask for a better little boy.

I went to work out of the office I haven't been to in almost two months.  It was a little strange to hear other people talking while I was working.  It was nice to be around other people for a change.

In the evening Karen and I had a bit of a date night and went to bed early.  We were both tired by 9:00PM.  Neither of us are night owls any more.  It's amazing what changes you make when life throws you a curve ball.

Braden

April 10

Karen's sister, Diana, stopped by for a visit today.  Diana hadn't seen Karen for a few weeks and noticed a big difference.  Before she left we went to the hospital for a visit with Rebecca.  We used a wheelchair for Karen and she held James in her lap on the way up.  Since I had been getting a tickle in the back of my throat I decided not to chance it and stayed near a window.

Karen arranged for a nurse to bring Becca near the window so Diana, James and I could see the little girl.  After the visit we grabbed Karen some dinner and headed home.  We are going to try and stay there for a few days and do some work on the house.  We don't want to be away from Becca for very long and may decide to head back sooner.

Braden

April 9

James wasn't feeling well last night and woke up several times in the early morning.  By mid morning he was feeling much better though he did seem a little more tired than usual.  He has adapted so well to all of the changes and both Karen and I enjoy the time we get with him.  We decided to keep him for an extra day or two before taking him back to my sister's.

Karen had the pump that does a chemo dose over 46 hours removed today.  Right after that we hopped over to the NICU for a quick visit with Becca.  She was sleeping and it was a bit before her feeding time so we sat in the chairs by her crib for a few minutes.

Our evening visit was almost the same though she did wake up long enough for me to take a couple of pictures with her eyes open.  I think she is trying to tell me to take it easy with the pictures.  

She is over 6 lbs now.  At the rate she is going she may end up heavier than James when we brought him home from the hospital.

Braden

April 8

It ended up being a long day today.  Karen and I went to pick James up from Karen's brother in Midvale.  We spent a little extra time there to give an accident on the freeway time to clear up.  Better to wait in a house than a car with a tired baby.  Besides, James was having fun playing with his cousin.

After we got back to the apartment and put James to bed for the night we went for a short visit with Becca.

Braden

April 7

Karen's chemo treatment went well though she has a lot more sensitivity to cold this time.  The doctor let us know they will add the other drug on the next round in two weeks.  The Friday before that Karen will get a CT scan to see how well the tumors are responding to treatment.  Right after she was done with chemo we went to visit Becca for a bit where Karen fell asleep in the chair.

When we went back in the evening they had moved Becca to a place next to some outside windows.  While good for her it makes it harder for anyone else besides those on the visitor's list to see her even through a window.  Both Karen and Becca slept during the evening visit though Becca did stir and stretch a little when her diaper was changed.

Due to the move they are going to change her feeding times from 2, 5, 8 and 11 to 1, 4, 7 and 10.  That will work out better for lunch hour visits for me and Karen.  We'll see how it goes for evening visits.

Braden

April 6

James was able to stay at our house Saturday night.  He is still a very happy little boy.  Nothing seems to really phase him.  Sunday morning when I went to get him out of bed around 7:30 he just looked up at me and smiled.  When I went to get him after his morning nap he was standing in the crib and grinned and laughed at me the moment I opened the door.

Sunday we went to visit Becca in the evening.  We gave her a bath and fed her a little from the bottle.  The only thing she really needs to do is take all of her meals through the bottle and she can go home with us.

Monday Karen goes in for another chemo treatment.  This past week she has had a lot more energy and has been to be up and around a lot.  She still gets tired easily but it isn't nearly as bad as it was.  She recovers well and can walk between 100-150 yards at a stretch.  That may not sound like much but she was having a hard time walking down the hallway or getting up from a chair.

Braden

April 5

Saturday we only visited Becca in the morning before we left to go home to work on the house and visit James for the weekend.  With help from mine and Karen's parents along with some ward members we did a little prep work two bathrooms (finished stripping wallpaper) and some baby proofing.

Braden

April 4

Friday during the day visit Becca slept through having her diaper changed and us holding her.

In the evening she was wide awake and ready for her bottle about a half hour earlier than normal.  We decided not to disappoint her.

Braden

April 3

We managed two visits again today.  Karen was able to hold Becca during the afternoon visit.  In the evening Karen changed Becca's diaper and let me try to feed her from the bottle.  Rebecca started slowly and seemed to stop completely for a few minutes.  I even took the bottle away and let the nurse know we were done feeding here.

After which she started turning her head at the slightest touch to her cheek and opening her mouth.  I tried the bottle again and in 5 minutes she ate as much as she had in the previous 15.  She is still working on coordinating the swallowing with sucking.  She will get so much in her mouth in dribbles out the side.  Then the light goes on and she remembers to swallow for a bit and then promptly forgets.

Braden

April 2

Karen's parents are here again for the next couple of days.  My sister in law and her two daughters stopped by for a visit in the early afternoon.  We went to visit Becca and they were able to see her through the window.  They had me take the camera in so they could get a bunch of pictures of Becca.  Until there have been no RSV cases on the pediatrics floor for two weeks the NICU is very strict on allowing people to enter.

In the late afternoon one of Karen's sisters stopped by with all 6 of her kids.  It was nice to catch up a bit with them.  We managed to get a second visit to Becca in the evening.  She is still doing well and we were able to feed her a bit from a bottle.

Karen has been walking into the NICU on her own since the feeding tube was removed.  Now that she doesn't have to carry the bag she says she feels about 10 lbs lighter.

Braden

April 1

We were able to visit Becca twice again today.  I took a late lunch and we went in the afternoon.  Despite, or maybe because of, Becca sleeping through our visit we had a good time.  She is super cute almost no matter what she does.  On our way out we ran into a co-worker of mine who just had a baby yesterday.  In the past week I think there have been 3 babies born there and if we go back a little over a month the number goes up to 5 or 6.

Karen and I went to dinner with the cousins whose apartment we are staying in.  It was nice for Karen to get out for an evening and see how life without a leash is.  She did very well and even managed to eat some dessert.  Her appetite still isn't what it used to be so she ended up with more leftovers than normal.

After dinner we went for our evening visit with Becca.  She woke up enough for Karen to feed her quite a bit from the bottle.  We found out we need more patience when feeding her since shortly after we thought she was done she kept rooting and cueing for more.  Apparently she and her brother have a few things in common.

Braden