January 9th, 2007 10:15 a.m.

I just returned from our morning visit to the hospital to see Lauren, and to find out the results of the tests we have been so anxiously awaiting. Today, is a good day.

The IVH unltrasound (which is scan of her brain to see if there has been any bleeding) came back NORMAL, so we feel like a huge weight has been lifted from our shoulders. Typically, preemies experience brain bleeds in the first two weeks of life, and after that the chances of bleeding decline. So, we are not out of the woods yet, but feel encouraged by this great news. We've been so worried about this potentially serious complication because the outcomes are rather grim and there is virtually no treatment. We remain confident that her neurologic system is maturing normally and is in fact intact. They will do another IVH ultrasound before she is discharged just to make sure there has not been any changes.

We are also encouraged by her continued weight gain. She now tips the scales at 970 grams or 2.165 lbs (from a low of 810 grams). So, she surpassed her birth weight in about a week. Her feedings will continue at the current rate and volume until we get past the PDA issue. Her vitals were normal this morning, and we noticed that her heart rate was down into the 170's. Her lung congestion seems to have cleared, and no more chest x-rays... All good news.

We remain concerned about her heart condition, aka the "PDA." The valve has not closed yet, and it was louder this morning. We hope that the louder the flow through the valve means that it is closing, as turbulent blood flow being pushed through a smaller opening tends to produce a much louder sound than a much larger and less turbulent flow. So, they will do two more rounds of medication to see if they can close it. If they can't close it with these two rounds, we will begin the process of considering heart surgery, unfortunately. She also had several more A/B spells last night - still normal, but concerning nonetheless.

Kaia remains with Lauren this morning at the hospital. She is very much looking forward to holding her this morning, as Lauren seems to really respond to Kaia's touch. Kaia will probably update the blog tonight after we get home.

Thanks for all of your support. We feel very lucky at this point to have such wonderful family and friends. Your notes and comments are an encouraging lifeline.

Keep the faith,

Grant