Timothy James
"Precious to God"
I was admitted to the hospital on Dec. 8th because my amniotic sac was leaking and I had begun to dilate. I was ordered to lie flat on my back until the baby came ( I was due April 2nd!). Well, on Dec. 17th my water broke at 7:15pm and Timothy James decided to come early. He was breech and already on his way out, so the doctor did an emergency C-section and at 10:20 pm he was delivered. He went straight to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and has been there ever since. Timothy was only 25 weeks along in his development (a "normal" pregnancy lasts 40 weeks) so he still has a lot of growing to do.
posted by Sheri
Stats at Birth
Date: December 17, 2003Time: 10:20 p.m.
Weight: 1 lb., 10 oz.
Length: 13 3/4 in.
Saturday, May 22, 2004
Psalm 20:7 "Some trust in chariots and some in horses [some trust in doctors and nurses, some trust in medical technology :)] but we will trust in the name of the LORD our God."
Actual Age: 5 months
Adjusted Age: 1 month
Weight: 5 lbs. 12 oz.
Yesterday, before and after Timothy's eye surgery, there were several circumstances which made us very uncomfortable about what was happening with regard to the surgery and it gave us lots of opportunities to practice the above verse. We had to trust in the Lord for what was going to happen. In spite of our initial fears, God brought Timothy through the surgery with flying colors! He was put back on the ventilator for surgery, but last night they were able to wean him off very quickly. At 8:00 pm he was breathing on his own again. They also stopped the feedings for the day but started them up again last night at 11:00 pm and he is tolerating them very well.
We will need to continue to trust the Lord for the outcome of the surgery as well. It will be a week or two before they know if they were successful in stopping the abnormal growth of blood vessels in the retina. It is also possible that they did stop or slow down the growth, but it could begin again at a later time. Right now he has a lot of bleeding inside his eyeballs because the new, abnormal blood vessels are very delicate and can burst at any time. There was excess bleeding before the surgery even started. It is also hard to say how much of his vision has been or will be affected. According to medical science, he is at a high risk for serious vision complications and additional surgeries. More opportunities to trust God with Timothy's life!
Praise - Timothy is recovering well
- off the ventilator and tolerating feedings
- catching on to breastfeeding; we get to have 2-4 sessions a day!
- gaining weight and growing and developing
- he is fearfully and wonderfully made!
Prayer - that his eyes would develop normally from this point on
- that the bleeding in the eyes would clear quickly
- that he would be weaned off the extra oxygen that he still requires
- peace for mommy & daddy as we continue to trust God with Timothy's life
Actual Age: 5 months
Adjusted Age: 1 month
Weight: 5 lbs. 12 oz.
Yesterday, before and after Timothy's eye surgery, there were several circumstances which made us very uncomfortable about what was happening with regard to the surgery and it gave us lots of opportunities to practice the above verse. We had to trust in the Lord for what was going to happen. In spite of our initial fears, God brought Timothy through the surgery with flying colors! He was put back on the ventilator for surgery, but last night they were able to wean him off very quickly. At 8:00 pm he was breathing on his own again. They also stopped the feedings for the day but started them up again last night at 11:00 pm and he is tolerating them very well.
We will need to continue to trust the Lord for the outcome of the surgery as well. It will be a week or two before they know if they were successful in stopping the abnormal growth of blood vessels in the retina. It is also possible that they did stop or slow down the growth, but it could begin again at a later time. Right now he has a lot of bleeding inside his eyeballs because the new, abnormal blood vessels are very delicate and can burst at any time. There was excess bleeding before the surgery even started. It is also hard to say how much of his vision has been or will be affected. According to medical science, he is at a high risk for serious vision complications and additional surgeries. More opportunities to trust God with Timothy's life!
Praise - Timothy is recovering well
- off the ventilator and tolerating feedings
- catching on to breastfeeding; we get to have 2-4 sessions a day!
- gaining weight and growing and developing
- he is fearfully and wonderfully made!
Prayer - that his eyes would develop normally from this point on
- that the bleeding in the eyes would clear quickly
- that he would be weaned off the extra oxygen that he still requires
- peace for mommy & daddy as we continue to trust God with Timothy's life
posted by Sheri at 7:30 AM
Thursday, May 20, 2004
posted by Cara at 12:30 PM
Isaiah 25:1 "O Lord, You are my God; I will exalt You, I will give thanks to Your name; for You have worked wonders, plans formed long ago, with perfect faithfulness."
God has definitely worked wonders in Timothy's life and what a peace to know that He continues to work His plan out in perfect faithfulness!
Actual Age: 5 months
Adjusted Age: 1 month
Weight: 5 lbs. 10 oz.
Timothy continues to have very good days of growth, development, and healing.
He will have a second eye surgery (Surgery #9!) today, Thursday, at 12:00 noon. Please be in prayer that the preparations for surgery will go smoothly. He will be sedated and have to go back on the ventilator for a little while. Hopefully no more than a couple of days. This time will be easier because they can just "hook up" to the trach and don't need to insert the tube down his throat. Yea!
Praise - potassium/electrolyte levels are beginning to balance
- wisdom of doctors making the decision for eye surgery
- breastfeeding is going great
- God is still in control!
Prayer - eye surgery today
- steady weight gain
God has definitely worked wonders in Timothy's life and what a peace to know that He continues to work His plan out in perfect faithfulness!
Actual Age: 5 months
Adjusted Age: 1 month
Weight: 5 lbs. 10 oz.
Timothy continues to have very good days of growth, development, and healing.
He will have a second eye surgery (Surgery #9!) today, Thursday, at 12:00 noon. Please be in prayer that the preparations for surgery will go smoothly. He will be sedated and have to go back on the ventilator for a little while. Hopefully no more than a couple of days. This time will be easier because they can just "hook up" to the trach and don't need to insert the tube down his throat. Yea!
Praise - potassium/electrolyte levels are beginning to balance
- wisdom of doctors making the decision for eye surgery
- breastfeeding is going great
- God is still in control!
Prayer - eye surgery today
- steady weight gain
posted by Sheri at 12:11 AM
Monday, May 17, 2004
Psalm 136:3-4 "Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for His lovingkindness is everlasting. To Him who alone does great wonders, for His lovingkindness is everlasting."
We are definitely giving thanks to God for all that He has done in Timothy's life (and ours) during these last 5 months!
Actual Age: 5 months
Adjusted Age: 1 month
Weight: 5 lbs. 12 oz.
Today was a very big day. Timothy had his MRI on his brain today and it went well. We are waiting for the results. It will probably be a few days. No word yet on the eyes, but one of the eye doctors will probably examine Timothy's eyes again this Wednesday.
His potassium was critically low this morning so they had to give him 3 extra IV doses to try to raise the level. It was still not high enough after the 2nd dose. They'll check the level in the morning after the 3rd dose.
Timothy and mommy had our first official breastfeeding session/practice tonight! He did great! It's going to take A LOT of practice for him to be able to take all his feedings from the breast, but we will keep working on it. Right now, we are just trying to give him some positive oral experiences. He doesn't get much milk because he gets very tired (it's a lot of work!), but he's doing great!
Praise - permission to begin breastfeeding
- MRI went well
- arm is beginning to heal, according to recent x-ray
- Timothy is beginning to make progress toward coming home
- God is cradling Timothy in His loving arms
Prayer - potassium level needs to come up
- all electrolytes need to balance out
- daily opportunities to breastfeed 2 times a day and that he would tolerate it
- wisdom for all the doctors involved in Timothy's care - neonatologist, neurologist, endocrinologist, opthamalogists, and others
We are definitely giving thanks to God for all that He has done in Timothy's life (and ours) during these last 5 months!
Actual Age: 5 months
Adjusted Age: 1 month
Weight: 5 lbs. 12 oz.
Today was a very big day. Timothy had his MRI on his brain today and it went well. We are waiting for the results. It will probably be a few days. No word yet on the eyes, but one of the eye doctors will probably examine Timothy's eyes again this Wednesday.
His potassium was critically low this morning so they had to give him 3 extra IV doses to try to raise the level. It was still not high enough after the 2nd dose. They'll check the level in the morning after the 3rd dose.
Timothy and mommy had our first official breastfeeding session/practice tonight! He did great! It's going to take A LOT of practice for him to be able to take all his feedings from the breast, but we will keep working on it. Right now, we are just trying to give him some positive oral experiences. He doesn't get much milk because he gets very tired (it's a lot of work!), but he's doing great!
Praise - permission to begin breastfeeding
- MRI went well
- arm is beginning to heal, according to recent x-ray
- Timothy is beginning to make progress toward coming home
- God is cradling Timothy in His loving arms
Prayer - potassium level needs to come up
- all electrolytes need to balance out
- daily opportunities to breastfeed 2 times a day and that he would tolerate it
- wisdom for all the doctors involved in Timothy's care - neonatologist, neurologist, endocrinologist, opthamalogists, and others
posted by Sheri at 11:28 PM
Actual Age: 5 months
Adjusted Age: 1 month
Weight: 5 lbs. 11 oz.
As I write today, Timothy is officially 5 months old! God has brought him such a long way! Jon gave me permission to share with you some of his thoughts in a prayer he wrote for Timothy when he was about a month old. . .
From the Heart of Dad - My Prayer for You
1 Timothy 1:18 ". . . fight the good fight"
My son, Timothy, you've had a rough start - being born at only 25 weeks (almost 4 months early), weighing 1 pound 10 ounces , measuring 13 3/4" long, having three abdominal surgeries, being hooked up to a ventilator, having several blood transfusions, having several bouts with jaundice, and so much more - but God has been sustaining you all along. The NICU staff has taken excellent care of you. As rough as your beginning has been, I know you still have a long way to go.
You'll have several ups and downs in the NICU and beyond. You'll have good and bad days. You may face more challenges that the other guy, but God has a plan that He is perfecting in you. He has kept you alive when even the doctor wasn't sure you'd make it through the night becasue He's not finished with you yet. Your mom's and my prayer from the beginning has been that God would be glorified in and through yourlife.
There have been countless others who have joined your mom and me in bringing you before the throne of grace and interceding on your behalf, praying for yet another day for you to live, that your lungs would mature, that your platelet count would stabilze, that the jaundice would break up, that your swelling would be reduced, that your heart would be strong, and ultimately that God would be exalted. Your life has been a testimony of God's power and grace, and one of the doctors even commented that the only reason you are still alive is because people have been praying for you.
By God's grace, you've come along way , but you've only just begun. For each challenge you face - whether it's coming off the ventilator, going without your pain medication, maintaining your weight, opening your eyes, breathing regularly, keeping food down, sleeping through the night, sitting up, crawling, learning to walk, coordinating fine muscle movement, writing your name, remembering your spelling words and Bible verses, enduring ridicule and stares from others, telling your story over and over again, keeping a tender heart toward God and others, choosing your friends carefully (and saying "goodbye" to some others)returning the candy that doesn't belong to you, putting aside your frustrations and failures, resisting temmptation, doing what's right even when it's not popular, standing up for Christ, living with integrity, praying in faith, overcoming doubt or being assured that God is working all things for your good and His glory - I pray that you will fight the good fight. Don't give up because God is working His perfect plan in and through you. He has a plan for your future. He is in the process of conforming you to His precious Son, Jesus.
Praise - Timothy is very content where he is at now
- mommy is beginning to teach daddy how to suction the trach and give feedings through the G-tube
Prayer - concerns about seizures; MRI on Monday
- still waiting for doctors thoughts regarding possible lasar eye surgery
Adjusted Age: 1 month
Weight: 5 lbs. 11 oz.
As I write today, Timothy is officially 5 months old! God has brought him such a long way! Jon gave me permission to share with you some of his thoughts in a prayer he wrote for Timothy when he was about a month old. . .
From the Heart of Dad - My Prayer for You
1 Timothy 1:18 ". . . fight the good fight"
My son, Timothy, you've had a rough start - being born at only 25 weeks (almost 4 months early), weighing 1 pound 10 ounces , measuring 13 3/4" long, having three abdominal surgeries, being hooked up to a ventilator, having several blood transfusions, having several bouts with jaundice, and so much more - but God has been sustaining you all along. The NICU staff has taken excellent care of you. As rough as your beginning has been, I know you still have a long way to go.
You'll have several ups and downs in the NICU and beyond. You'll have good and bad days. You may face more challenges that the other guy, but God has a plan that He is perfecting in you. He has kept you alive when even the doctor wasn't sure you'd make it through the night becasue He's not finished with you yet. Your mom's and my prayer from the beginning has been that God would be glorified in and through yourlife.
There have been countless others who have joined your mom and me in bringing you before the throne of grace and interceding on your behalf, praying for yet another day for you to live, that your lungs would mature, that your platelet count would stabilze, that the jaundice would break up, that your swelling would be reduced, that your heart would be strong, and ultimately that God would be exalted. Your life has been a testimony of God's power and grace, and one of the doctors even commented that the only reason you are still alive is because people have been praying for you.
By God's grace, you've come along way , but you've only just begun. For each challenge you face - whether it's coming off the ventilator, going without your pain medication, maintaining your weight, opening your eyes, breathing regularly, keeping food down, sleeping through the night, sitting up, crawling, learning to walk, coordinating fine muscle movement, writing your name, remembering your spelling words and Bible verses, enduring ridicule and stares from others, telling your story over and over again, keeping a tender heart toward God and others, choosing your friends carefully (and saying "goodbye" to some others)returning the candy that doesn't belong to you, putting aside your frustrations and failures, resisting temmptation, doing what's right even when it's not popular, standing up for Christ, living with integrity, praying in faith, overcoming doubt or being assured that God is working all things for your good and His glory - I pray that you will fight the good fight. Don't give up because God is working His perfect plan in and through you. He has a plan for your future. He is in the process of conforming you to His precious Son, Jesus.
Praise - Timothy is very content where he is at now
- mommy is beginning to teach daddy how to suction the trach and give feedings through the G-tube
Prayer - concerns about seizures; MRI on Monday
- still waiting for doctors thoughts regarding possible lasar eye surgery
posted by Sheri at 12:05 AM
