Paxton Update

As Mondays seems to go, we made the trip to St. Pete again. So, before I go into the details of Paxton, let me start by saying that I am exhausted.  The nights are very short around here. Mr. Man gets up every 3 hours to eat and by the time he is actually done eating, diaper changed and meds given it winds up only allowing me about 2, sometimes 2 1/2, hours between feeds.  Add to this a pulse ox monitor that loves to alarm just about the time I doze off into a deep sleep, which then causes me to shoot straight out of bed, feet never touching the floor to his side to make sure that he is ok.  To date, he has been perfectly fine at night every gazillionth time the darn thing alarms, but you never know when he might not be ok, so I continue to bolt out of bed as if the world were coming to an end. This doesn't allow for a lot of rest and to be honest I am running on fumes I tell you. FUMES! = )

So tonight, this will be short and sweet because it has been a long day. Tomorrow I will update with unbelievably cute pictures and my giveaway!!! So be sure to check back! 

As far as our St. Pete visit is concerned, I will start by saying that it was unexpected. Yesterday we were all sitting around being lazy on a Sunday. Paxton and I had just gotten up from a much needed nap and I had just started feeding him. As I was doing so, I noticed his heart rate, that normally reside around 140, rising pretty quickly. Within a minute or so, he shot up to 195.  Understandably I panicked and took the advice a wonderful nurse once told me and checked with a stethoscope because you can't always trust those monitors (hence, the night time ridiculousness from a simple stretch).  His heart was in fact beating so fast that I could not keep count.  So, I called his cardiologist and being that it was a Sunday, had to wait just a few minutes for the answering service to pass along the message. I was moments from calling 9-1-1, I mean I could not believe how insanely fast his heart was beating. He has never been a beat above 170, which in and of itself is high. About 4 minutes after it started, it stopped.  It was weird and pretty scary. I talked to his cardiologist and we determined it would be best for us to make the trip up there today. Of course, I was willing to do whatever he needed and quite frankly needed some confirmation that he was in fact alright. I was worried that his heart function was waning.  So off we were again for the trip I can take with my eyes closed. We stopped only once, even though the once winds up being an hour by the time I feed him. Change his diaper. Pee in my older sons potty in the van and dump it in the bushes because I can't leave him in the car and I refuse to take him into some road side bathroom.  Lord, knows I would never be able to hold it, I mean the massive amounts of caffeine I am consuming to stay awake at this point, are bound to have an effect.  Then, no sooner do I buckle him up and get on the road that I smell the smell. There's no mistaking newborn poopy and so I pull over againnnnn and change him againnnn and finally we are off. Once we get there, he went through a slew of test. Echos, EKG's and what nots, all handled like a champ of course and all of which came back good. His doctor has him on a holter monitor which will record his cardiac function for 24 hours and then she will evaluate it and get back to me.  He had a minor little episode tonight when we got home so hopefully that will give some insight into what's going on.  We were also given another monitor to keep on hand that we will use when he has an actual episode.  We put the recorder on his bare chest during any sort of de stress and it records it somehow with a series of weird loud noises and then can be transmitted to the doctors instantly via phone.  I mean seriously, the technology these days!  We adjusted a med or two and we are back home. I was truly worried he might be admitted for evaluation or that his heart was struggling, but it seems he is doing pretty darn good for his anatomy.  

As it turns out, that overnight bag I am always told to pack, remains in my car!  I have had no use for it to date and am so beyond grateful to be here at my kitchen table able to tell you that we are home!  Paxton is so strong.  He continues to thrive here at home and we are over the moon having him here. We have had the chance to snuggle in bed together. He naps on my chest and I doze off too.  He calms almost instantly when I hold him. He loves to smile and coo at Mommy when she talks to him in baby talk and is ever so patient when his gangly brothers want to hold "their" baby!  

For now I must sign off. My husband is shooing me to bed, he knows my exhaustion.  

Laying my head to rest tonight giving thanks for having our family together. Also, continuing to pray for Baby Asher and his parents, won't you join me...