Thankful for Tennyson

Where in the world are those stinking Myers'...

2010-09-07T17:12:00.000-07:00

I am wondering if anyone ever even checks this anymore, however, I loved posting on it while Tennyson was in the NICU and following and used it as such a time to pour out my heart. I am thinking entering this season that I need that once again. This school year is already underway and not quite what I was expecting honelsely. I thought iw as going to be so much easier than last year since this is my second year, however, that I have found is not necessarily the case.

Travis is entering his second semester at Missouri Western State University studying something undecided at this time, though I think he's leaning towards Nursing...yeah!! I think he loves orthopedics and would do wonderfully with that. He is still working for Kenny Wells with Wells Farms full time which is going to be quite taxing for him I believe considering that he is doing that while he's also taking Spanish, Chemistry and Biology, YIKES!!

I am starting my second year of teaching business at Union Star R-II School. The schedule and things have changed greatly from one year to the next. The softball season is still off and running, and we're getting into the full swing of things. Yearbook sales are underway and the FBLA chapter is ramping up for their first big event of the year, the Union Star Fall Festival, where they entertain with a dunk tank, pie in the face booth,a ndd face painting booth. I am also taking eight hour of graduate credit throught NWMSU, actually I am sitting in class now, so if parts of this don't make sense, there's my excuse.

Tennyson is growing like a weed. Loving his life, spending as much time as possible with his nana and papa and granny and poppie. He spends his days with Lisa Guyer and the kiddos she watches, and they are teaching and learning tons from each other. We're working on opposites, days of the week, and of course the numbers and letters. He is also preparing for his third birthday and has decided he wants to have a Monster Truck party featuring "Grave Digger." I can't wait until it's all here and we're able to really celebrate! He's also doing great with potty training, he's been such a big boy in terms of the "potty" portion, have been for months, but we're still working on the other though he's getting better.

Ryan's football season is underway, and he's loving being a part of the team even though they haven't been overly successful thus far this year, but he sure loves the game. He hopes one day to attend NWMSU and study history education and coach football when he's older. I think that's such a great aspiration.

Stephanie is working as an Accountant for a firm in St. Joseph, and they love her and know they wouldn't be able to succeed without her. She and Chase and the boys are doing great. Brazon started Kindergarten at East Buchanan this school year and he's having a great time with the kiddos, though we're sad his Homecoming and ours are the same day so he'll miss our parade, we were going to have them participate on the FBLA float for the parade. I will post pictures when I have them.

Kelsey has started back to college at North Central Missouri College in Trenton, working on her gerneal studies and she hopes to take that to Missouri Western to study education later. Paxton is coming upon his first birthday party and everyone is so excited for his party this weekend. I hate that the US Softball tournament will be taking place at that time so I won't be able to attend. I will again post pictures when I have them.

Tyler and Jenny were back this past weekend for vacation, they had a whirlwind trip and Journey was totally off schedule, but as cute as a button. We had such a great time celebrating with them over this holiday weekend. We spent time out at the Savannah Lake Club at Grandma and Grandpa Newkirk's camper and Tennyson, Tyler and Ted were able to take in a turn in the kyaks on the water.

Trudy is a RA at Central Christian College of the Bible, having a blast hanging with the girls. She spent the summer traveling all over the country leading camps or trips for youth. She had a great time and built fabulous relationships.

We're so very, very blessed in all that the Lord has blessed us with, however, recently we were able to "adopt" a World Vision child Banji who was born September 3, 2007. He is from Zambia and is a Hope Child meaning his parents both suffer with AIDS. So please pray for us as we learn more about him and their family, and help us to know how and what to provide for their family.

So all in all everyone is great, we're keeping on...keeping on.

Love you all,
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson

What's going on these days...

2010-06-11T12:14:00.000-07:00

Sorry guys, I know it's been like a year, but things just keep getting away from me. I have finished my first year of teaching at Union Star R-II business/computer technology. I am the assistant softball coach, junior high girls basketball coach, FBLA advisor, yearbook editor and junior class sponsor. I will also be newspaper editor next year and the senior class sponsor. I truly loved it and have enjoyed it thoroughly. I am completing coursework though NorthWest Missouri State University in a graduate program in Educational Leadership.

Travis is still working for Wells Farms but is also attending Missouri Western State University full time. His major at this time is still undecided.

Tennyson is growing like a weed and we're loving this stage. He's talking so much, doing so many things and just so stinking cute, he's so fun. I will try and get new pictures posted out here and will again try and make my posts more frequent. We are playing with our new cousing Journey as Tyler and Jenny are in town just tonight and tomorrw and I will try and post pictures of both kiddos.

Love you guys-
Lindsay

Two weeks, whoo-hoo, I'm getting better...

2009-06-11T11:10:00.000-07:00

It's amazing how many things have happened since the last post, and I have 238 photographs and twelve videos to prove it. No I didn't count them all I just downloaded and organized them onto our computer and deleted them from my memory stick which is why I can tell you how many...

So many things have happened since the last post and I had to re-read it to let you know where I left off...So Friday after posting Tennyson and I headed to Krug park and met up with Annie Paxton who we love, and had a picnic (thank you Subway) before playing in the park and feeding the geese. We had a fabulous time, you will notice the play equipment is not from the little children's park, because well I didn't know there was equipment for the younger children until Travis was reviewing the pictures and asked why we didn't take him there...

Annie brought bread to feed the geese/ducks, which was a lifesaver becasuse I didn't think of that and Tennyson had a great time tearing his bread into itty-bitty pieces and throwing them into the water. It was also great because he couldn't sit still long enough to eat lunch with me much and he munched on the bread quite a bit (he probably ate three or four pieces) he loved that stuff.

He is really getting into doing things himself and as you can see, he can swing in a big swing, and pump his legs all by his lonesome. He doesn't need any help from me any longer, dang I thought I would get to hold onto that one a little longer.

As you can see from the last picture from the lake, you're probably wondering what that is...well around the lake they have these sink-hole type things and well as you can guess Lindsay found one, and happened to snap a picture of Annie on the way down. Needless to say I was covered in mud to my thighs and my tennis shoes were lost. I then waded into the lake to wash off and Tennyson ran down to see what had happened, and also fell into the lake. After getting him out and walking for a bit to dry off, we parted ways and Tenny and I headed home, wet, without stopping at Wal-mart.

We had such a great time, and Annie thought of everything. We are planning to do it again soon, so hopefully there will be more photos in the future.

That evening in celebration of Tyler and Jenny's fourth anniversary (no they weren't with us) Ted, Connie, Trudy, Travis, Tennyson and I headed down to Cafe Italia on North Oak Trafficway. It is one of Connie & Ted's favorite places and since we hadn't ever been we thought this would be the perfect time. We had a wonderful evening of fellowship and the food is fantastic. Their homemade bread and they dip it in a cheese, oil, cracked pepper mix that is phenomenal. We have tried to recreate it at home to no avail.

Saturday morning found us waking bright and early and getting ready to party with Stephanie (my older, younger sister) whose boyfriends little boy was turning three. Blake's party had a spiderman theme and the little boys had a great time. We took down spinach salad, ice cream, chips, etc. and two lawn mowers from mom and dad's house which were a huge hit. The little boys were so enamored with the park and the dogs (they were having an obedience seminar in the city park in Gower the same day) that we played for a couple of hours before heading back home. The highlighted gift of the day was from Chase's (Blake's dad) sister Chancey. Blake had asked her for a pink baby doll, and not to deprive the boy, she got him one. He didn't put that down all afternoon, and if he did some other little boy would pick it up and carry it around. Who ever said little boys weren't nurturers???

Saturday evening we went to the home of Steve and Lisa Humphrey here in Union Star for a bbq/bonfire. We roasted hotdogs and had a great time. There were tons of people to catch up with and the little boys had such a time just playing together. They admired Lisa's horses, from a far of course and were all about trying to blow out the bonfire. When we were ready to leave, Kelsey and Gary took the boys home with them for a sleepover. They had such a great time, stayed up a little later than normal in the diapers, watching cartoons with Aunt Kelsey.

That Sunday I worked at the cafe in Fairport. We fried up twenty chickens, served with mashed potatoes, gravy, rolls, green beans, a full salad bar with fifteen options and ten pie options. It was a busy day, but I had a really good time.

I left there at one to run home and shower before picking mom up and driving to Paradise Park in Oregon, MO. My cousin Sydney Cameron was getting married to Clayton Silber and us girls were manning the reception tables, where they were bbqing. So mom and I went up early to get things organized and Kelsey joined us later with the little boys, both Parker and Tennyson were there. It made things intersting to be watching the little boys while serving the food, but all worked out. The guys (excluding Travis who was working) headed back early for Ryan's baseball game. We joined them later and watched the game before all heading home, exhausted.

The next week flew by however I have a few highlights in pictures.

Thursday night Trudy came over and hung out with us and spent the night to watch Tennyson on Friday while I worked at the cafe. They seemed to have a great time, playing outside, driving tractors and just hanging out. JJ was heading back into town that evening and drives right by the house so he stopped in to see how we were doing. JJ is a friend of Trudy's from school who is doing an intership in OH over the summer. He is back this week for high school camp at Flaming Spirit.

Friday night, Ted and Connie took Tennyson, Trudy, JJ and I out to dinner and we brought home all the leftovers for Travis (as it was our anniversary but he had to work). We went to Cheddars and Tennyson had a great time flirting with the little girls in the booth one over. He was seated on the inside of our booth as they were in theirs and they were so precious. After dinner we came home and watched Con-Air. Trudy then headed out and Tennyson and I tried to wait up for Travis but it was a late night for him. He had committed to working our anniversary late so that Saturday would be a partial day and Sunday he would have off.

Saturday morning we headed to Aunt Dixie and Uncle Gary's house to meet their new colt (who is not yet named), it sure is beautiful. Gentle Ben was onsite to offer himself to the children, he was the horse we all learned to ride on and Tennyson had no qualms learning to ride on Ben. He had a great time feeding the horse, riding them and walking underneath their tall bellies. He then proceeded on to chase the wild cats around the barn and ride the rocking horse. Aunt Dixie was so gracious and let them explore whatever they desired and those little boys had such a great time and were so brave. We were very proud of them.

After the horse riding we headed to mom and dad's for a lunch bbq and then went swimming. The water was 82 degrees, so plenty warm for the boys and Ryan however not so much for Kelsey or I though she was braver, I never actually committed to putting on my suit.

Saturday night Tennyson went the campground and stayed the night with granny and poppie, while mom and dad went out for their anniversary. It is sure hard to believe that we've been married five years, but we have...we went to dinner at Boudreaux and we're so lame, we couldn't even figure out what to do after that so we ended up coming home and watching some movies we had borrowed from mom (who really has every movie to ever come out). Two thumbs up for Taken...

Sunday we headed back to the campground and had a great time enjoying food and fellowship with Travis extended family. Connie, Ted, Grandma and Grandpa Newkirk were there along with Trudy (who was there briefly before heading to camp), Tim, Marilyn, Chelsea (and Bright), Hillary (and Kyle) Whelri and Keith, Jane, Hannah (and McKenna) McClurg. We had a great time and Ted learned tons of canoeing stuff from the neighbor. All and all it was a great weekend.

So that's about it, this week we haven't done much except try and get caught up from the weekend, Tennyson and I were down with a stomach bug a couple days, we worked at the high school boys basketball shoot out at the school one day and otherwise had been living a life of leisure.

Thanks for checking in, know you're loved-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Tennyson's First Haircut

2009-05-28T18:59:00.000-07:00

Let's just say, Aunt Kelsey did a great job, but Tennyson hated it. Someone had to hold him down, someone had to hold his head still and someone had to cut. Here are some photos for you to enjoy. He had fabulous curls however one night after picking four ticks out of it mama decided it was haircut time...

Daddy's Fun Equipment

2009-05-28T17:58:00.000-07:00

Here are photos of some of the equipment Travis gets to work with. First is the sprayer which is kind of his baby...then the planter, harrah and discavater as well as the Peterbuilt Travis gets to drive.

Campground Fun

2009-05-28T17:07:00.000-07:00

Here is a video showing you the camper and Granny and Tenny's newest game as well as a picture I just thought was super cute...

I can Dance...

2009-05-28T13:55:00.001-07:00

Anytime there is music playing, Tennyson becomes a dancing machine, it's super precious.

Just learning to walk...

2009-05-28T13:35:00.000-07:00

Of course Tennyson walks wonderfully now, however this video was one of the first times he took many steps in a row, thought you would enjoy it.

Every Six months..

2009-05-28T12:13:00.000-07:00

I am going to give you the cliffs notes version of what's been happening in our lives the last six months. If I leave something out, I greatly apologize. Well we had our 15 month checkup as I alluded to in the last update in December, however in April had our 18 month also, so I will give you the stats from the most recent. We are 28lbs. 10oz and 34 inches long. So we're very tall, our pediatrician told Travis that Tennyson would at this rate be at least as tall as he is if not taller. We seem so heavy at times however are only in the 80th percentile for weight so nothing to worry about there (our head is also in the 80th, however our height is the 95th). Tennyson is doing so many new things, I will post some funny videos in another post however will do it today as well so you can see how animated he has become, he is just cracking us up all the time. We are also in the testing and tantrum stage however things are slowly getting better in that area as well.

Travis is still working for Wells Farms and in the post to follow please check out some of the equipment that he runs/maintains. As it is the middle of planting season (they have 2000 acres of soybeans remaining between Lock Springs, Jamesport and Union Star), we don't see him much however with school being out Tennyson and I are learning to be night owls.

I am out of school for the summer and this first week has been great, Tennyson and I have been able to do so many things, and our house is looking so clean, if I do say so myself, with the laundry and dishes done (most days more than once). There is a small cafe in Fairport that a coworker of Travis' wife is opening up this Sunday and I am going to help her out some, so Sunday I will let you know how it goes (sounds like we're having fried chicken). Otherwise we're just hanging out and enjoying ourselves for the most part.

As you can see from the photographs, we recently purchased Travis' first tractor, a John Deere of course. The yard here is rather large and while I told the guys I would push mow it this summer apparently dad (he used his rider on it twice already) and Travis didn't think that was in my best interest. So Travis visited with Mike Huffaker at Wells' Implement in Maysville and he got this one in on trade and it's wonderful. It only takes me about 2 hours to mow the yard now so it's great. I still have some weedeating to do afterwards but the decreased mowing time is great. From the moment it arrived Tennyson has thought it was his, and you can't mow without at least giving him a ride. We don't allow him on it while the blades are running. As soon as they got it off the trailer he crawled right up on it and sat there "steering" it for over an hour, it's great.

We also celebrated Poppie's (Ted) 50th birthday in March, with a surprise dinner for him at our house. Tyler and Jenny were able to come in from Quincy for a quick trip so it was great. As you can see from the photograph, we kids got he and Connie a canoe for their birthday's (Connie's is in September). It has been wonderful and we have already used it several times. Tennyson loves riding in it, he got a wonderful red lifejacket from Granny and Poppie for Easter and has got to wear it on the lake twice. Sorry I will post pictures of this later but I took them with cameras that were not my own and will get copies soon to post.

Speaking of the lake, the pictures of him in the truck going down the embankment (a video will follow, because well it's stinking hilarious) are from the Lake Club in Savannah. I didn't realize it but there's an entire lake surrounded by campsites (most are permanent, meaning you set your trailer up and don't have to move it and can use the area around it however you would like. The sites come with electricity and there is water and a shower house available on the premises.) It's wonderful and grandma and grandpa Newkirk were granted a spot for one year. They moved in the Saturday before mothers day, and Ted and Travis built them a great deck the weekend following and we've had so much fun out there every weekend since. I will post more pictures of course however again, not taken with my camera.

We celebrated with Grandma and Grandpa Newkirk their 60th wedding anniversary earlier this year (March). The photograph above of Ted, Connie and Tyler is with the pork loins that we served for the meal. The meal was wonderful but the fellowship with all those who were able to attend, family and friends was so sweet. It just makes you realize what an amazing couple they are and stand in awe of the number of lives God has used them to impact. It was breathtaking...

There is also a photograph of my beloved little brother, Ryan. He attends school at Union Star however they have begun co-oping some sports programs with King City, giving the Star kids more opportunities and he was on the Junior High track team this year. The photo is of him throwing the discus, however he also threw the shot put and ran in the four by four hundred relay. I hear he's pretty fast for a big guy, I never got to see him running, participating in the first and last event makes for a long evening, just ask my dad :)

And now for our biggest news....Babies, babies, and more babies!!

My sister Kelsey and her boyfriend Gary are expecting their first little boy September 10 and Tyler and Jenny are expecting their first little girl October 3. We can't wait a baby right before and right after Tennyson's birthday, he better get used to not being the center of attention (right do kids every really get over that).

Anyways that's what I know for now. I really am going to try this summer to update more often but who knows...if you see me out and about and I haven't updated, please harass me relentlessly. I really do want to keep you guys updated on our amazing miracle. The Lord hasn't just blessed us once, it's a daily blessing to have this perfect and precious little one with us. He teaches us and tries us, but above all loves us...we can't imagine our lives without him, or without you.

Thanks for hanging in there with me, all our love-
Lindsay

Did they fall off the face of the planet...

2008-12-21T14:04:00.000-08:00

Just a quick line to let you know that we're still alive and doing well if anyone seriously still checks this puppy...

We have just recently moved into a charming little rental house, that we're coming to love in the country just outside of Union Star. It's amazing how many things you forget you have when your belongings are in storage for six months but we're realizing and re-living many memories with the unpacking process. Though we've been in our house a couple of weeks now, we're not entirely unpacked however we're getting close. Tennyson is loving having all his toys and learning to love his own bed (don't even get me started :)).

We have our fifteen month (yes, he's fifteen months Christmas Eve) checkup and second dosage of the flu shot on Tuesday so I will try and update again then to let you know how truly "large" we have become. I can't believe it was only a year ago we were just bringing him home, at times it seems eons ago however we've had so many changes and been so blessed this past year, I can't even believe it.

Travis is still working for Wells Farms and though harvest is finally over, we haven't seen his mug for weeks and he's around more, we're going to be taking some much needed "family" time this Christmas season to just enjoy one another. I am still working for the Union Star school district and loving the kids and working with Thelma. I couldn't imagine being anywhere else right now. Tennyson and I are so spoiled with our afternoon play time, we love it.

I will add more pictures in days to come, but wanted to let you know how we're looking these days. We're supposed to be getting internet service at our home this next week or so and I fully intend to update more often...I know, I know I said that last time didn't I??

Know we love you all and are praying that this season, Jesus' birth is as real to you as ever. We also pray you are able to take some time, relax, and enjoy His presence.

Love you all -
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson

I know I'm a slacker but life comes at you fast...

2008-05-29T18:07:00.000-07:00

So we're officially moved into my parents house in Union Star awaiting the sell of our beautiful home in Joplin. We will miss it immensely but there are things more important to us than that home...we're enjoying being together again, Tennyson and I spent the first two weeks up here surrounded by family while Travis spent a lonely two weeks packing and getting things at the house finalized. But all is well, our homes contents is in my parents house, Ted and Connie's home and Grandma and Grandpa Hutchcraft's basement (wonder what that will cost me later :)).

We're sure glad to be back around family though we're missing our friends in Joplin very much. I am working for oral surgeons doing some marketing/pr and working in the front office and Travis is working for a local farmer, doing lots of spraying for the planting season. He's so ahead of many of the farmers because the equipment is so technologically advanced that he is catching on very quickly. He's doing so great that his employer has contracted his services beginning next week to MFA so he will be traveling and spraying fields for them. I think he is missing his "bankers hours" though because he's at work before sunrise and home after sunset most nights. The life of a farmer, I tell you what.

Tennyson has had a great time adjusting though we've had our fair share of ups and down. Travis' first week here, the last week of April, thank the Lord we found an insurance company willing to pick us up (we had struggled with many and some like CHP were willing to cover us for a monthly premium of $2884.00 it was ridiculous). We are insured with State Farm, who knew they supplied health insurance, but they've been great and we paid our premiums Monday and ended up at Urgent Care on Saturday...couldn't have found them soon enough, I tell you. So that was our first ear infection since coming home, it was a rough night but he soon passed that and the next week we had spots appear all over his hands and feet that appeared to be chicken pox at first glance which would be terrible as Ryan, my little brother (he's 12) hasn't had them or the vaccine yet. Anyways after a trip to our pediatrician who we aren't scheduled to see until June 30 found us to have hand, foot and mouth. I had to ask if he got that because he chews on his toes however she assured me it was not contracted through those means. He was contagious and not allowed to head back to Kelsey's (my sister who watches him) as she watches three other kids. So he and I spent a great few days just the two of us chilling, it was great if I do say so myself. Then the next weekend (graduation weekend) he got a fever and a terrible cough so we found ourself in the ER with an upper respiratory infection, which of course is viral and therefore untreatable with medications...so we're still battling that. This week found us with another ear infection, this is our third in three months so the word "tubes" was mentioned however we will be reassessed next Friday and I will let you know more at that time.

All that to say we really are doing great, if you are so inclined please pray for Travis and his long hours and just the stress of learning something new. Our house in Joplin is wonderful and still for sale, pray and amazing family will come forward and love it as we did. And please lift up little Tennyson and all he's dealing with during this time.

Know that I promise to try and be more faithful in updating and that we love all of you so very much, thanks for sticking with us even though we've been MIA for two months. It means the world to us.

Love you all-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Sponsor Me at March for Babies!

2008-04-01T11:13:00.001-07:00

We were planning on walking at MSSU in Joplin May 3 in the March for Babies, however now that we're moving I will be entering us into the St Joseph walk on Saturday, April 18 at 10am (do I seriously think I can get us moved, start a new job and organize a team in just two weeks, I must be nuts). The event takes place in St. Joseph at Hyde Park on Mason Rd. & 4th St. Maybe we will get to a chance to compete with Team Ari & Raina McDowell though I know they're quite ahead of us on the fundraising portion. Also if you would like to walk with us in honor of Mr. Tennyson, please let us know, we would love to have you join us raising funds for such an amazing organization.

Here is an excerpt from our Team Tennyson page with a few updates...
As many of you know, Tennyson John joined us three months before his anticipated arrival. We were so lost and thankful for those surrounding us who provided strength and hope for us during that time. Without organizations like March of Dimes, Children’s Miracle Network and the Ronald McDonald House who knows how different our outcome may have been. We had never been in a NICU or exposed to the miracles that occur there everyday, over and over in the lives of these precious little babies. Our lives will forever be changed because of them.

Tennyson is doing so great now, you would never know this six month old eighteen pound little boy was ever a preemie. All the advancements he made were in part to the dedication, support and resources of organization such as those listed above. We will forever be indebted to them. We are so thankful to the people who were there for us to make such an impact and lasting difference in our lives, to love on us, support us, encourage us and give us hope even though some days seemed hopeless.

“I will praise you in this storm
And I will lift my hands
You are who You are
No matter where I am
Every tear I’ve cried
You hold in your hands
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise you in this storm.”
-Praise you in this Storm, Casting Crowns

These words became our theme during our two-month NICU stay and many of the days (even still) since we’ve been home however we know that our God is the God of miracles and he has proved that over and over to us through Tennyson. Though I would never wish for a baby to be born early, it is a reality we all have to face, over half a million babies are born prematurely (seven or more weeks early) each year. Who is there for them? Some babies do not survive the birthing process, some do not survive their NICU stays, some struggle even once they’re home, and some like Tennyson thrive and grow more rapidly than full-term babies, who are we to stand in the way of these babies chances. Please join us in being a miracle to others and allowing light and hope to be seen in the lives of babies all across the nation.

Please join us in raising funds for this amazing organization and sponsoring Tennyson in such a special way. We have been so blessed and would like to pass that on to others who are in need of some hope.

All our love-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson

We're Coming Home

2008-03-31T07:39:00.000-07:00

It's official...we're going to be returning to the St. Joseph area. I have taken a position with an oral surgeons office and Travis is working with an agency in St. Joseph who handle all the hiring for a couple different companies that he's interested in. We are so excited...

Our days in Joplin have been wonderful and we know the Lord had us here for this season of our lives, for Tennyson's birth and everything that was associated with that. For the learning and the relationships we've built that will be life long. We are however also so excited to be moving closer to our families who we've missed dearly during this time.

It's amazing how much missing a birthday party, graduation, wedding or baseball game hurt when you're used to being there for all of them.

Know that we will miss all of you in Joplin however are looking forward to this newest chapter in our lives. I will begin working on April 14 in St Joseph and therefore Tennyson and I at least will be returning to St Joseph the weekend of April 11. So if anyone knows someone looking for a home in the Joplin area, give them our info...

See you all soon-

Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson

Four Generations, Easter Trip and Double Ear Infections

2008-03-31T07:38:00.001-07:00

Okay so for the Easter weekend we headed back up north on Thursday evening, stayed with Ted and Connie Thursday and Friday night, had a great time hanging out with everyone. Saturday we took in Racheal Mead & Nakia Stumps wedding. It was so great to see Racheal I hadn’t seen her in ages and she sure looked beautiful. Then Sunday we went to Oak and listened to Tanya Mitchell sing (music to my ears) and Joel preach, it was so great to introduce Tennyson to so many who had been praying for him. Then we headed to my aunt Bonnie’s for lunch which was great because we hadn’t seen most of them since Easter of last year because we weren’t able to come home for Christmas. So they were introduced to Tennyson and then we had to head back south.

On the way back home Tennyson woke up hungry twice and so we stopped and fed him. However got back at a decent hour, around 7pm or so. We got the car unloaded and I fed Tennyson a jar of carrots, he scarfed them down like he was starving and then proceeded to scream and vomit them up an hour later. This began our long journey to find out what was wrong with Tennyson. Sunday night he threw up multiple times on into Monday and so I was home with him. I called the physicians office and after discussing everything thought we must have over-stimulated him over the weekend. So we went through the day and he had a fever off and on however then on Monday night started screaming uncontrollably and was inconsolable. This went on for hours so Tuesday morning I took him to the physicians office and they thought he looked fine from their end but recommended I take him to see Dr. Rosenschein (the hernia surgeon) because the blood sac was still there. So Wednesday morning we made the trek to Dr. Rosenschein’s office, he said yes the sac was still there however it was softer and shouldn’t be causing the fussing, etc. that he was displaying so he called Holmes’ office and we got in to see Julia the nurse practitioner. She gave him a look over and stated his throat was really raw, his nasal passages were congested and that his ears looked a little red. She then proceeded to stick a tube in his ears to pull out wax and he cried harder than I’d ever seen him cry before, we had to stop numerous times and blow on him to get him to breathe he was crying so hard. When she got the build up out of his ears she said they were really red, especially the right one and so we got some antibiotics. Also while we were there we developed a rash, between the bath and the physician’s office. So now he’s on amoxicillin, CPhen Drops for congestion, Tylenol every six hours for pain and a cream for the rash. It’s nice, really nice.

So all that to say after six days of antibiotics and the whole regimine he’s getting back to his normal self. This weekend we had a couple outings, (he’s on antibiotics so I guess now’s the time). Saturday morning we headed to JCPenney’s to have his first professional portraits taken. When I scheduled the appointment the lady was really excited because these were his firsts and said to bring multiple outfits and props and such so I did however she must not have been the lady taking the photos. In her defense however we had to drive twenty minutes to the mall so he was asleep when we got there, and he’s one of the smiliest little boys however didn’t give a single smile though many of them are cute. I will post them when I’m able. From there we headed to Target because at the appointment on Wednesday clothed, he weighed 18lbs. 12 ounces so he’s almost to the limit on his infant carrier. So we needed to get a convertible car seat. All the reviews I’d read said you should take the child in and make sure the seat fits the child so we ran in and got a seat and a new DVD player (Trudy came down one weekend and both the DVD players we had died!! Coincidence??).

Then Sunday we headed to church again which was great, he didn’t sleep through any of it and every time it would get quiet he would talk but not too loud or distracting for those around us so that was alright. Afterwards we went to lunch at Ruby Tuesday’s he was so tired so I knew he would fall asleep on the way however he woke up once we got into the restaurant but he didn’t fuss at all and sat on our laps while we visited like such a big boy. The waitress was so taken with him she messed up our orders several times, but what do you do.

Anyways that is our lives in a nutshell…

Love you all-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson

Photos & Video of More Firsts...

2008-03-17T19:38:00.000-07:00

A week of Firsts...

2008-03-17T18:35:00.000-07:00

This has sure been a week of firsts...

The weather was so lovely on Wednesday evening (over 70 with little wind) that I went outside for the first time to visit the Girls (Rastus our Rotweiller and Katherine our Dalmatian/Beagle/Jack Russell, don't ask??). It was great and he thought they were hilarious and they weren't quite sure what to think of him.

After that I got another treat. I tried baby food for the first time. Note in the photos I use my hands a lot, especially to put them in my mouth so I am in a diaper with a plastic bib which seems to be working for us. I tend to get it on my knees and on my arms and so forth so this was smart thinking by daddy. I tried sweet potatoes first and just ate them up. In the mornings I've been having plain rice cereal but Saturday momma surprised me with a treat, rice cereal with apples she accidentally bought instead of the plain stuff, I sure loved it. Then Saturday I tried carrots and didn't really like them as well as the sweet potatoes but I did alright with them.

On Saturday I had my very first play date which was wonderful. Willis, Kandi and Jai Potter came over for dinner and we had a great time. You will see us with our daddies in the photos. I didn't want to sleep at all on Saturday I was so excited for Jai to come over however finally gave in around 4:30 (I'd been up since around 7am). When Jai got here she was asleep too but we both woke up around 6 and were smiling and chatting with each other for a bit but from then on we just couldn't get it together, when I was awake she was snoozing and vice versa. Next time I'm sure we'll do better.

On Sunday though I got the biggest shock yet, mom, dad and I went to church at CCO. It was great. When Brandon first hit the drums I jumped and wasn't really sure what to think but after I got over the inital shock I loved it and fell asleep during worship. From there I snoozed really good until Mr. Lynn's third point in his sermon. I woke up and was sitting on daddy's lap chatting with him, he kept shooshing me and everytime he did I just thought it was so funny and I would laugh, causing more shoosing and more laughing, mamma was cracking up too. After the service we saw Mark & Rachel Bond (and their precious ones, Moriah was too cute, she was so proud Javan can say baby and tried and tried to get him too until finally he gave in). It was funny Mark was teasing Lynn that Tennyson work up and was telling him to hurry up, he was running over his time and Lynn was arguing he was amening him, saying "preach it brother Lynn." It was precious and so good to have him out, though it was brief and no one can believe how big he is. His feet are starting to hang off the car seat end, it's crazy.

Anyways that was our crazy week, it was fun, but exhausting and much too quick (the weekends sure are). This next weekend we're heading up north and mama can't wait until Sunday when she will be able to congratulate Scotti who's having twins, due right before my first birthday, it'll be great!!

All our love,
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson

The pictures from yesterday that wouldn't post...

2008-03-10T15:00:00.000-07:00

Last Home Health Visit, Poppie's Birthday and a Mild Explosion

2008-03-09T20:23:00.000-07:00

Friday Lisa, our home health nurse visited us for the last time since we've received the Synagist shot. We weighed in at 16 lbs. and 2.5 ounces. Lisa has been wonderful, we are truly blessed to have her.

Friday night, Granny, Poppie and Trudy made their way from the cold north weather down here where it's nice and high 50s, low 60s. Granny had a surprise for Poppie and I, you will see the pictures above. She thought in order to be sure Poppie's birthday pie and all those candles were under control a firefighter needed to be on site. I was lucky enough to get to play that part.

We had a great weekend, it was so fun to hang out with everyone and to see Aunt Trudy again. Please be praying for her, she has another appointment with her physician at Children's Mercy and then they will be scheduling some more tests and procedures. We hope they are able to figure out what's ailing her and get it cleared up quickly.

This morning they headed back up north and mom, dad and I hung out this afternoon. I've been doing so good a holding my head up and I'm wanting to stand all the time that they thought it might be a good time to get out my jumperoo. I've never been in anything like it but once they put the pillow underneath me, my legs didn't quite reach the ground, I was off and jumping. It was great I had the best time.

Mom was starting to get nervous though because she would have to give glycerin tonight if I didn't produce and low and behold, that jumping must have gotten things moving because she knew when it happened and grabbed me up and ran to the bathroom. Daddy was right behind us to get the bath water started. It took mom and dad back to the NICU days, this was worse than the last time. They're so thankful the surgery helped, but I think they wish I would keep it under better control.

Anyways, enjoy the photos and video of all our fun. Know that we miss you all and love you tons. We're praying the Lord blesses you all as we're moving into the Resurrection season, a wonderful time of remembrance and celebration for our Lord's sacrifice and miracles.

Love you all-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson

March of Dimes, March for Babies

2008-03-05T18:36:00.000-08:00

As many of you know, Tennyson John joined us three months before his anticipated arrival. We were so lost and thankful for those surrounding us who provided strength and hope for us during that time. Without organizations like March of Dimes, Children’s Miracle Network and the Ronald McDonald House who knows how different our outcome may have been. We had never been in a NICU or exposed to the miracles that occur there everyday, over and over in the lives of these precious little babies. Our lives will forever be changed because of them.

Tennyson is doing so great now, you would never know this five month old sixteen pound little boy was ever a preemie. All the advancements he made were in part to the dedication, support and resources of organization such as those listed above. We will forever be indebted to them. We are so thankful to the people who were there for us to make such an impact and lasting difference in our lives, to love on us, support us, encourage us and give us hope even though some days seemed hopeless.

“I will praise you in this storm
And I will lift my hands
You are who You are
No matter where I am
Every tear I’ve cried
You hold in your hands
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise you in this storm.”
-Praise you in this Storm, Casting Crowns

These words became our theme during our two-month NICU stay and many of the days (even still) since we’ve been home, however we know that our God is the God of miracles and he has proved that over and over to us through Tennyson. Though I would never wish for a baby to be born early, it is a reality we all have to face. Over half a million babies are born prematurely (seven or more weeks early) each year. Who is there for them? Some babies do not survive the birthing process, some do not survive their NICU stays, some struggle even once they’re home, and some like Tennyson thrive and grow more rapidly than full-term babies, who are we to stand in the way of these babies chances. Please join us in being a miracle to others and allowing light and hope to be seen in the lives of babies all across the nation.

Please be sure to check out our Team Tennyson page on the March of Dimes site, the URL is http://www.marchforbabies.org/508825.

Team: Team Tennyson
Walksite: MSSU Stadium, 3950 E. Newman Rd., Joplin
Date: 5/3/2008
Time: 10:00 AM

Please feel free to join us during the walk or to sponsor us in this walk or just to view our posts. We are striving for a $1000 goal to help fight prematurity across the nation. We know that Tennyson is doing so well because so many have reached out and helped us with their time, talents, prayers and finances. We want to be able to provide the same for other babies and families experiencing prematurity as we did.

Thanks guys-
Lindsay

What's been happening...

2008-03-05T18:07:00.001-08:00

Okay so we came home Thursday morning and got all settled in. He was doing so much better on Thursday, we were at least able to get some sounds and a smile out of him. He was completely inconsolable on Wednesday night. So we came home and were visited on Friday by a home health nurse. She checked his incisions and weighed him (15lbs. 11 ounces). So that was all good news. Nana Jo gave me my first bath after surgery while mommy worked and got some things caught up there.

Nana Jo headed back up north on Saturday morning and I was left to fend for myself with mom and dad. He is doing so great and on Sunday even blessed us with four explosions on his own. We were so proud, mom didn't have to give glycerine...yeah!!

Monday and Tuesday I hung out with Jesse and then Tuesday afternoon Lisa from home health came to give me my final Synagist dosage (YEAH for my poor thighs and for mom and dad's wallets). Since he is weighing in so heavily (He was 16lbs 1 ounce on Tuesday) he had to have two injections as only 1ml of the vaccine can be given in a thigh. She also checked his incisions and thought they didn't look any different and the right side was hardening again like it was before the surgery (Oh great!). She tested him for head lag which means she laid him down flat and she picked him up by his hands to see if he was able to keep his head up or not, he was and she was tremendously impressed with his strength.

This morning was our follow up with Dr. Rosenschein, who surprised mommy by stating I had a third testi. He was kidding (to go from one to three, seriously) but there is a sack of blood down there that he though was absorbing abnormally slowly so we will see him in a month and he will determine whether he needs to redo the right side of the surgery (though he said if he had to guess we will be having surgery again in another month). I am not sure this mom can handle that.

So all that to say, that's where we all. Working away and enjoying our little one. Please not the photos, we were again trying the rice cereal, in one of them I have found my thumb (mom and dad were overjoyed as maybe I can console myself as typically I try and eat the entire fist however I only did it that one time...Trav & I are still holding out hope though), one of my raccoon eyes, where they taped them shut for surgery, and one where we think we can sit up, kinda. Tennyson is constantly wanting us to hold him in the sitting position and he's so good about holding his head up that we do it all the time. However, don't you dare block that television, he's completely enamored with it and gets really cranky when he's not able to see it. It's hilarious and sad all in the same breath.

Things we would ask prayer for would be for the entire healing process following the surgery and for that absorpsion to take place so that we won't have to repeat the surgery and also that Tennyson would start sleeping better at night. For a while he was doing so great and then this surgery has us messed up again. We're only up twice but the second time is for an hour and a half or two hours (usually around 4:30) because he's ready to play and chat.

Thanks for everything, we love you guys!

Blessed Beyond-

Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

New Cousins...

2008-03-05T18:00:00.000-08:00

Robert Graham Medsker IV, was born to Tommy & Ashley Medsker of King City MO in February (I believe it was the 9th however I could be wrong). I don't have any vital statistics though I know his sisters Kori and Emberlynn were excited to meet him.

Dustin & April Beauford also welcomed a new baby in February into our family. I don't have any photos of Lily though I am sure she's beautiful and Corbin is loving on her like crazy.

My Really Big Day...

2008-02-27T19:26:00.000-08:00

Okay so the day started off as planned, Nana Jo got into town around noon and we headed to Freeman to get all registered. From there they took me back into the Pre-op area and weighed me, measured me, and took my head circumference. All was the same as last week except fully clothed I weighed 16lbs. 6 ounces. From there I had to take off my clothes and put on a dress, can you believe it. It was open backed and I had fun showing off some leg for my pictures...

My surgery was scheduled for 3pm however they were running behind and I went back to the room around 4:20. My mom and dad got a pager and headed to the cafeteria to get something to drink. Around 5:05 the pager went off to alert them to head to a consultation room to visit with Dr. Rosenshein. He stated that the left hernia was quickly and easily repaired however the right hernia was much more difficult than anticipated. He questioned that the right side might have been incarcerated (which in many cases requires emergency surgery) due to the difficulty of its repair. The right one contained much more fluid than expected as well. The right testicle was also undescended and he moved it into proper placement.

There was quite a lapse in time between our visit with Dr. Rosenshein and being able to see him in recovery. It was explained to us later he had some difficulty waking up and was very sleepy however they were able to easily extabate him and he was only on a nasal canula, satting 100 when we arrived. They allowed us to feed him Pedialyte unflavored water basically to be sure that he had no trouble with it however he was very, very fussy which is unusual for Tennyson. We found out later he did not receive the local the anesthesiologist had anticipated giving him though we're not sure why. So basically he received no pain medication during the procedure so he was hurting and uncomfortable. Dr. Rosenshein stated Tennyson would be very tender and swollen for a while though because of the difficulty of the repair. They were able around 6:15 to give him some Tylenol to help with the pain and he fell asleep not too long after that.

Freeman is full, so we had to wait around 3 hours in the recovery before being assigned a room on the peds unit. We headed over here and got all set up with our apnea monitor for the night and they removed the oxygen because he was satting so well. We were finally able to feed him some formula though he slugged it down (keep in mind he hasn't ate anything since before noon) however we had to follow that with water because they didn't want him having too much too quickly.

That's where we are now, he again cried himself to sleep and he's resting in Nana's arms. At this point in time, please pray for his recovery, that his pain would be mild and that he would be back to his old self in no time.

Love you all-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson

P.S. Congratulations to Chris & Carol DeWelt & Phil & Susan Casey on receiving Ozark Alumni of the Year honors!!!

RSV, Valentine's Day, Answered Prayers, 5 months old, and the Last Three Weeks

2008-02-26T06:54:00.000-08:00

It has been a crazy three weeks but I have to say it has flown by. Sorry I haven't updated sooner but I will try and recap some of the highlights.

Tennyson woke up one morning really congested and so we called Dr. Holmes' office and Travis ran him down there. He prescribed some medication for decongestion and thought that would take care of it. On Monday when the home health nurse came by to give his Synagist shot for RSV, the congestion had moved and could be heard in his throat area. She called Dr. Holmes' office describing the symptoms and they determined to start him immediately on Amoxocillin. The symptoms all pointed to RSV however it hadn't spread to his lungs yet so we were all hopeful with the quick treatment it wouldn't be as severe as it could be. Also with the Synagist shots he's been getting hopefully we would be able to beat this quickly and stay out of the hospital.

For the next two weeks we gave him medication three times a day and watched him closely for any signs of change for the worse however he did great with the Amox and is now back up and normal, hospital free.

So that was one hump to overcome and Tennyson did so greatly. During this three week stent Valentine's Day came around and Travis had praise team practice so we ordered pizza and hung out for about an hour between work and praise team and then Tennyson and I played the rest of the evening.

That same week a huge prayer was answered, Jesse Pavlik (I work with her husband Jace), who is expecting their first baby late April, Hazel, quit working at the daycare she'd been employed with while completing her classes at Ozark and was interested in watching Tennyson. She watched him four days last week, will watch him two this week, and from them on will watch him until Hazel's much anticipated arrival. So that's a huge answered prayer and a huge weight lifted off our shoulders. Jesse and Tenny get along great and they're both just all smiles when they're together. I'm so thankful someone who loves him to pieces is with him though I do wish it could be me.

The reason she only had him four days last week is Thursday, the 21st was a day with mommy filled with Dr's appointments. We started the day in the sleet and freezing rain heading to Neosho to visit Dr. Holmes. I always have things that I want to ask him however once I am there never seem to be able to remember them so this time I made a list. So we got there and he was weighed, measured and his head circumference taken. He weighed 15lbs. 7 ounces, was 25 1/4 inches long with a head circumference of 16 1/4. This was great news as we made it on the chart, his length and head circumference were at 3% and his weight was at 5% so we officially made it in all three categories so that was exciting. From there he was given four immunizations which he was really excited about however he's had so many shots they don't even faze him any longer.

Dr. Holmes and I discussed quite a few things, but first Dr. Holmes assessed him as if he were a four month old developmentally. Tennyson was able to smile, laugh, talk, roll over and focus on things. The one thing he isn't doing yet is grasping toys, he really has no desire to hold onto anything other than others fingers or handfuls of hair so they are going to start treating him as if he's a four month old rather than a two month old so that's exciting. We discussed his cradle cap which is clearing up nicely now that we're using the recommended head and shoulders shampoo, we discussed his constipation and will increase his juice intake though we're still giving glycerin three times a week, and we talked about eating. He recommended we start him on orange vegetables, if you start them on the green vegetables or fruit first many times they won't eat their orange vegetables because they taste the worst apparently. We're still trying to get the rice cereal down (I will post pictures) so we will start baby food though it will probably be a few days or so.

So that was all great news but the best news was yet to come...we can start attending church with Tennyson the last weekend in March if he stays in the sanctuary and isn't around many other children. We will also get to take him home the weekend of easter however have to keep him away from all the other children but we're stoked to be able to head back for Racheal's wedding, even though he can't attend that.

So after that we headed to College Press where I worked for about an hour before we had to go see Dr. Jordan for what we hoped would be our last appointment with him for a while. He released Tennyson for the next six months as his retina has fully healed itself (praise the Lord), we will see him again in six months because many preemies have other complications such as intro/extroverted eyes, one of Tenny's appears to be lazy, he will turn it in towards his nose and it seems to get stuck for a lack of better terminiology and he gets frustrated until it pops loose (note this all happens in a matter of seconds) and sometimes one of their eyes will be near and one far sighted which causes trouble with balance when they're learning to stand, pull up, etc.

Then we headed back to the office for a couple more hours where he slept and I worked, he's such a great baby.

This week Jesse has him only two days because tomorrow is the big surgery. Please remember to be praying for us. Dr. Rosenshine will be performing his bilateral inguinal hernia surgery at Freeman at 3pm. We will be there at least overnight as they have to intubate him. If he is easily extubated following the surgery we will have to stay on the Peds unit at least one night, if he isn't we will return to the NICU so keep that in your prayers as well. Mom is coming down and will be here for the surgery and through Friday. If things go really well and we head home on Thursday she is going to be babysitting him on Friday...I'm glad she's going to be here, she knows all about this surgery stuff and I'm just really nervous about it.

Anyways so he's officially five months old now and growing like a weed, he's doing so many things and just talking up a storm now. I will have to post some new videos later today of him eating rice cereal...he's starting to figure out when the camera's out and he won't look or smile at us anymore. Once you power it off and the lights go off he's back to talking, kicking, and smiling. What a little punk we have?? So cute though...

Anyways all that to say sorry it's been so long, praise the Lord for all He's continuing to do through Tennyson and those around us and we love you guys!!

Blessed and Beloved-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

P.S. A funny from last night...Tennyson was given glycerin Sunday night to no avail which has happened once before but we were trying a new kind, so last night on my way home I stopped and got more of the kind we usually use and gave that to him. Needless to say about 15 minutes later it had taken it's affect. Travis laid him down and I went to change him about five minutes later once we knew he was done and when I picked him up, my hands were all wet. He pooped through his diaper, his onesie and his sweats. It was literally everywhere. We ran into our bathroom and I laid him down on a towel to get him all cleaned up while Travis drew him some bath water. Needless to say it was a 20 minute bath of scrubbing and soaking in the tub which he enjoyed. The washer was started up immediately with the clothes, towels, blankets, etc. We've had some doosies, but this one beat them all I have to say. Just thought I'd leave you with a funny!!

Babysitting

2008-02-06T08:26:00.000-08:00

If you live in the Joplin, Webb City, Diamond, Oronogo area and would be interested in watching Tennyson, even if you can only do it one time or one day a week, please don't hesitate to contact me at carryinthecross@hotmail.com. Sorry we're having a terrible time finding someone to watch him. If you have one or two children and they are not sick and you would consider watching him, please contact me as well.

Sorry to make this sound like a plea but at some level it is...

Thanks!

I can blow bubbles with my nose...

2008-02-03T07:42:00.000-08:00

Be sure to watch closely...my parents are very proud!

Tennyson's Love Letter to You

2008-02-03T07:21:00.000-08:00

I know this isn't the most flattering angle but we wanted you to be sure and catch his articulation.

Huge Praise

2008-02-02T18:27:00.001-08:00

Travis just ran out and got the mail and we received a huge packet from the insurance company. It had Tennyson's total bill in it as well as our portion. We have really been sweating the uncertainty but at least we know now. We still haven't received anything around my labor and delivery however at least we know how to arrange things for his NICU stay.

Thanks for all the prayers around this.

Recent Milestones

2008-02-02T18:13:00.001-08:00

Tennyson has recently made some friends. He has always loved the fans, not while they're on mind you but he has always enjoyed staring at them and such. Recently however he has begun to have conversations with them. He seems to always know when the camera is there so its difficult to get him having a conversation on film.

Even more recently however he's decided he likes the mobile that's connected to his pack and play. It's a rainforest theme and from the video I hope you can sort of see them. During the filming of course he got the hiccups and please excuse the end of the video I wasn't expecting that however here's our little man...

Also last Sunday for the first time we tried rice cereal, as cereal, not in our bottle before bed which we've been doing for a couple weeks now. He didn't really know what to do with it so for every spoonful I gave him we'd do three or four chin sweeps because he'd spit it out however he seemed to sorta grasp the hang of it toward the end. We will try it again tomorrow and I will post a video of the event then.

Also at Dr. Holmes' office on Friday he weighed 14lbs. 5 ounces fully clothed so we're guessing naked he's in the high 13s though we'll find out Monday when he gets his synagist shot. Home health aways weighs him while they're here.

All our love-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson

More pictures from recent days...

2008-02-02T18:06:00.000-08:00

You can tell in the photo of him in the onesie (its from this morning) that he's not feeling well, see the lack of smiling...

Last Couple of Weeks

2008-02-02T16:59:00.000-08:00

First of all Tennyson was released from the hospital as many of you know however the CBC was never redrawn. Our home health nurse wasn't pleased with that considering his white blood cell counts were so high so recently that was redrawn and praise the Lord the results were within normal ranges.

We headed up north (also referred to as home) the weekend of January 18 for the first time since Tennyson was born. He did so great on the four hour trip home. He woke up right before Harrisonville so we exited there and Travis grabbed dinner for us while I fed Tennyson. He really didn't want to be put back in his car seat however and cried from Harrisonville to Camden Point before he finally gave in and slept to Savannah.

Sorry we were unable to see everyone but Tennyson isn't allowed to be out and about yet so we only saw immediate family. We spent Friday night at Ted and Connie's house and were joined by Tyler and Jenny which was so fun. Saturday evening we had dinner with Grandma and Grandpa Newkirk and Grandma and Grandpa Myers which was great considering neither of them had seen Tennyson before. It was wonderful to surprise them and to see their reaction to this precious one.

Saturday night we headed to Union Star where we spent Sunday with mom, dad, Steph, Kelsey, Ryan and Grandpa and Grandma Hutchcraft. It was so fun for everyone to see him and see how much he'd grown since their visit at Christmas. Tennyson again did great, he didn't get hungry and wake up until Nevada where we quickly fed him before he fell asleep and he slept all the way home. Once we got back we unpacked the car and headed to bed as it was late and I had to work the next day.

We returned from the weekend, trying to catch up on our sleep. Thursday we had a going away party for a lady at work, Louise who retired. While we were at Ryan's eating, Travis called me. In front of Ozark Christian College a lady had veered into his lane and taken her car all the way down the drivers side of the truck. Neither of them were injured and she was issued a ticket, but we were thinking honestly what more can go wrong...I tell you when it rains, it pours. We're so thankful the truck is still driveable and they were not injured. The Lord was really watching out for us, it could have been so much worse.

Since then not too much has happened other than us taking turns watching him. A girl I work with is going to watch him two days a week but there is a bug going around down here and she was sick one week and her son the next so we're hoping to be able to have her watch him a few days this coming week. So I worked last weekend to make up hours and have worked evenings from home to try and make up hours, so far we're on track but it's draining us.

This past week Travis had him Wednesday through Friday and poor Tennyson had doctors appointments each day. On Wednesday we met Dr. Rosenshine who is a pediatric urologist from Springdale AR. He's only in Joplin on Wednesdays and is going to do a binguinal hernia surgery on Wednesday, February 27th. This entails us checking into Freeman on Wednesday and we will be there at least one evening. During the procedure they will put Tennyson to sleep with a mask and then they will have to intubate him or put him back on the ventilator. From there it's a routine procedure. After he wakes in recovery if he's able to breathe on his own and they can extubate he will head to the pedicatric unit for at least one night (due to his small size) and once he can breathe well and eat on his own we'll head home. If however in recovery he is not extubated we will again head to the NICU. So please keep that in your prayers.

On Thursday we had a check up with Dr. Jordan around his ROP and Dr. Jordan stated this was the first time his retinal detatchment was showing signs of reversing or healing itself. He thinks we will only have to see him once more and it will be healed. We're so thankful and this is such wonderful news that we're elated. He will see Dr. Jordan on the morning of his surgery.

Tennyson was having some trouble Thursday night breathing so I was up most of the night making sure he was alright, they removed our oxygen from the house last week. His nose was really rattley (like a child's chest sounds when they're sick) only it was all in his nose. I called Dr. Holmes' office and he prescribed some medication for decongestion and said if he's not better in the morning to give him a call.

Friday morning he was still really congested and we'd had another long night and poor Travis had to drive him to Neosho in all the snow. Dr. Holmes said that Tennyson's lungs and everything sounded really clear and he was pleased with that as they've had several RSV cases this year. He wanted to be sure we were still getting our Synagist vaccines monthly (our next one is Monday). He said however that Tennyson's nasal cavity was abnormally small therefore causing all the problems. He is very congested and it's creating trouble for him breathing because he breathes primarily through his nose. He told us to keep with the decongestant and to use saline drops and suction his nose every time he wakes and eats (which is around every three hours) to try and keep some of the mucus from backing up. Tennyson has started coughing frequently on the drainage and his eyes are really watery so we know he's not feeling well but he's hanging in there. Dr. Holmes prescribed an antibiotic we're to fill if the drainage turns from clear to yellow or green which thus far hasn't occurred. Please pray for his little nose and his breathing please.

Other than this, we're doing alright. We miss seeing everyone and have been asked several times what we're doing for the superbowl. Since Tennyson can't have guests or go anywhere I guess Trav, Tenny and I will just be hanging out here. I doubt we even watch the game, but that's just me.

Anyways know that we love you all and are so very thankful that you're in our lives and care enough to keep checking, especially since I've been so bad about keeping you updated.

Resting in the Redeemer-

Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson

On Friday

Broken...long time, no update...

2008-02-02T16:42:00.000-08:00

"Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away. And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. Now when evening came, He was alone there. But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary. Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea. And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, 'It is a ghost!' And they cried out for fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, 'Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.' And Peter answered Him and said, 'Lord if it is You command me to come to You on the water.' So He said, 'Come.' And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, 'Lord, save me!' And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, 'O you of little faith, why did you doubt?' And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. Then those who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, 'Truly You are the Son of God.'" - Matthew 14:22-33 (NKJV)

It has been an interesting couple of weeks for us. I have not posted in that there has been much frustration from our end around not finding someone able to babysit Tennyson. Travis and I have been taking turns but any business cannot function without a manager 1/2 of every week as ours have lately. We're indebted that they have allowed this for now but know they can't long term. So along with the confusion of why no babysitter is working out is also the financial implications of working each week (between the two of us) unpaid and worrying about our positions in the future. This is all to say I am sorry I haven't updated but was afraid if I did I would go on a two day rant about how this hasn't worked out for us and that wouldn't be a blessing to anyone therefore I decided if I couldn't say something nice, not to say anything at all.

This Friday at work, Linda reminded me however of the passage above, she pointed out that in verse 23 where it says, "And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray." Jesus had sent the disciples away to keep them from enduring the crowd, after He sent the crowd away He headed up the moutainside. He needed to be alone with His Father praying for the disciples, the five thousand He had just fed and Himself. In doing so He never left His disciples, the mountainside overlooked the sea and during the calm and the storm He witnessed and never left them. They were always within His will, even though they didn't know it. Just because they didn't see Him, didn't mean He was no longer there. It's the same with us, just because I don't see Him moving or "feel" His presence in the situation doesn't mean He's not overseeing and interceding to the Father for us every moment of each day. He knows our needs and provides for them. Even though we don't know or understand what is happening right now, doesn't mean He doesn't.

Too often I am upset with myself for asking why, but I think He expects us to. Peter asked Him to show them a sign through Him that He was in fact who He says He is. Though I don't need a sign to know that He's watching and working through us, sometimes I need a nod, a wink or a smile from Him to remind me He's going to see us through, no matter what.

He has shown Himself to us in so many ways through little Tennyson's life that I hate when my head and heart aren't in sync however know that I'm human and He is always with and will always be interceding for me.

Please pray for us and this situation as at this time nothing has materialized by way of a babysitter for Tennyson. Know that we love you all, and I will now post what's been happening in our lives.

Love you all-
Travis, Lindsay and Tennyson

Eli Andrew Cameron, newest member of our family...

2008-01-12T16:01:00.000-08:00

Enjoy the journey of Drew and Melissa Cameron as they welcome their first son into the world... I know this is kind of long but wanted you to see the amazing work God did in their family, it's just reminds me He's in the details and holding us in His arms even when we question His will for our lives.

Drew is the son of Tracy & Diane Cameron (Tracy is Mary Jo's younger brother, sorry mom couldn't help myself).

This information is from an email from Aunti Diane, affectionately known as Granny Di.

Friday, December 21 at approximately 11:10 pm, we welcomed Eli Andrew Cameron into the world at Heartland Regional Medical Center in St. Joseph, weighing in at a whopping 5 lbs. 9 ozs., measuring 18 ½” long. Tiny little guy!

After Eli had tried nursing shortly after birth, he was taken to the nursery by Nurse Mary for a much-needed bath. While he was there, his blood sugar count dropped dangerously low (in the 20s when it should have been above 60), resulting in him being immediately hooked up to an IV of sugar water and being bottle-fed formula twice. Throughout the day, Eli remained hooked up to the sugar water IV and was not allowed out of the hospital nursery (he never returned to Melissa’s room).

When Melissa tried nursing him, it was found that Eli was not born with the sucking reflex. The nurses said he was so tiny, he thought he was a preemie, so he had a preemie’s tendencies. He had to be taught to suck, feeding him by a bottle wore him out, and he only had a slight squeak (never crying).

Merry Christmas! Upon our daily visit to the nursery to see Eli, Melissa and I found staph infection (“MSSA” – Methicillin-sensitive staph aureus) around the umbilical cord to be in full swing! It was an area 6” wide by 2 ½” tall with his belly button right in the middle of it. It looked like his skin had been scalded with boiling water, a layer of skin had already begun to peel back and you could see the new raw skin underneath. It was not pretty!

Dr. Mark Puglisi (Eli’s pediatrician) told us he would treat the infection with Vancomyacin – the best drug he could put him on, but that if it wasn’t better in 24 hours, he would ship him to Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City.

On Wednesday, December 26, Melissa arrived at Heartland and was informed that Eli was being transferred to CMH, and a nurse an ambulance from there would be arriving to pick him up in 30 minutes. Eli had “lost” his IV during the night (it had been in each of his boney little ankles at different times, and one of his ankles was also infected), and Dr. Puglisi was not comfortable sticking additional needles into Eli’s ankle. He said it was essential to send Eli to CMH because they had the means to insert a port into Eli’s head that would allow for meds to be administered without the necessity of having to stick him every time.

When we arrived at CMH Eli was already on the 3rd Floor in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). He looked so tiny in his little bassinet, but not nearly as tiny as some of the other babies in the same unit (one was 1 lb. 14 ozs). They had inserted a “port” into the top of Eli’s head. It had a tiny tube (10 cm) that went down his neck, and the end of the tube hung out of the top of his head. This is where they would administer his meds (oxycillen). He was also hooked up to a heart monitor his entire stay. His first ultra-sound of his head was done today.

We spent the night at the Ronald McDonald House (our new favorite charity!). Travis and I would have to second this one. It and Children's Miracle Network.

Friday, 12/28/07 (5 lb 12.4 oz):
Eli had his first spinal tap (“LP”) done to check for spinal staph meningitis, however, they were unable to draw enough spinal fluid. Will try again in a few days.

Saturday, 12/29/07 (5 lb 14.7 oz):
Eli’s condition was improving daily! He had now become a little pig (couldn’t eat fast enough), his blood sugar had stabilized in the 80s, and the staph infection was looking better each day. That evening, he was moved from the isolated NICU to a room of his own on the other side of the unit.

Monday, 12/31/07:
Eli had his second spinal tap today. It was a success this time and we were hoping for a good result.

Tuesday, 01/01/08 (6 lb 2.6 oz):
Happy New Year!! We received the results of Eli’s second spinal tap, and it was negative for spinal staph meningitis. We were told we could take Eli home on Saturday after his last dose of meds.

Friday, 01/04/08:
They did another ultrasound of Eli’s head and it came back fine. That was the last test they were going to run.

Saturday, 01/05/08:
He had his last dose of meds at 3:30 am, but still had the port in his head when we arrived. Eli’s nurse, Eric was working. When we went downstairs to the cafeteria for lunch, I mentioned to Eric that it would be great if the port was removed while we were at lunch, and he said he would see to it. Indeed, it was taken out by the time we got back to Eli’s room and his hair was washed. His heart monitor cords were also gone. Yippee! He was finally FREE! How nice it was, too! We could change his diaper and get him dressed and swaddled in a blanket without any cords going every which way.

We were on our way home by 12:30 pm . . . and we were taking Eli WITH us!! Also a very good feeling!

We would like to thank everyone for their prayers and support for Eli and our family during the last three weeks! Although spending days at CMH has made us realize that Eli’s ordeal was not the most serious of situations (like that of his new cousin, baby Tennyson), it was still a very scary time for us and our little man. I thank God each day for healing him and bringing him home to us.

May God’s countless blessings be also on you and your loved ones!

Please continue to pray for them as they begin this new page in their journey as a family of three...we know God is going to do great and mighty things in this little man.

Thanks for your prayers-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Thanks, Thanks and More Thanks

2008-01-12T15:18:00.000-08:00

All our thanks to Aunt Jenny for spending 10 days with us, loving on us so very much. You are greatly appreciated. See the photos of our time with Aunt Jenny. You'd think we'd have gotten her face in some of these photos. Also be sure to ask her to share her pooping story...lets just say it led to a bath for Tennyson.

Thanks Uncle Tyler for letting us have her.

Also thanks to Aunt Kelsey who will be heading down here Monday night after completing her boards (please pray for these, she just graduated Cosmetology school) to spend the week with us. Gary thanks for letting us borrow her.

Please also be praying for a dear friend of ours, Heidi, that she would feel the arms of our loving Father around her always. Know our hearts are yours.

Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Home at last...

2008-01-12T14:40:00.000-08:00

It has been a crazy couple of days but I'll try and recap as best I can.

Thursday morning I called the physician's office as Tennyson hadn't been acting like himself and had been running a fever off and on the past few days (also just an FYI you shouldn't give motrin to babies under 6 months of age, it eats their stomachs, someone should tell a girl this or post it on the box...) anyways so we saw Dr. Hamby a partner of Dr. Holmes in his Neosho office. Dr. Hamby looked over Tennyson, who weighed 11lbs. 12 ounces and was 24 inches long and ordered some lab work to be done. We came back into Joplin and headed to Freeman West to have his lab work done.

It was horrible they had to stick his heel and take three tubes of blood, he wasn't overly cooperative because they pull from his thigh down his leg to try and get good blood drops however after one pull he pulls his legs back and fights them. So 45 minutes and both heels being stuck later (the first one clotted), we had enough blood. He had screamed the entire time, I had cried rather hysterically when we had to do the second stick and were so close to being done, so it was pretty bad. The lab is at the far end of the ER and they can only do one at a time so by the time we left there was a line outside and tons of people standing there watching all of this unfold, it was awful. As we were leaving so many people said they were sorry to me.

Since we were at Freeman and no one had seen him in six pounds we stopped by and visited some of the NICU personnel and saw Candy, Karen, Dr. Porte, Tammy, Heather and Jeannie who loved on him a bit which was wonderful. It was so good to see everyone, it's amazing how much we miss them.

From there we headed home to visit with Aunt Jenny and wait for the lab results, he said it should only take an hour. About an hour and a half later, I called the Children's Clinic in Neosho and they took my number to say the nurse would call me right back. She called back a bit later and said Dr. Holmes wanted us to head to his office in Joplin where he was going to give us his papers to have him admitted as it will be cheaper and quicker than heading to the ER. This is not something I was expecting so I called Travis and Jenny and I took Tennyson and headed to Dr. Holmes' office.

We were add on patients so we waited in our room until Dr. Holmes was finished seeing patients and he saw us. He said his test results came back and his CRP (which tests for infection) was an 8 and it should be less than 1 and his white blood cell count was 19,000 and it should be around 12,000. So he obviously had an infection of some kind. So we got our paperwork and headed over to Freeman.

We were admitted and it was right before shift change so the day nurse got us comfortable and the night nurses were left to do the admitting (20 questions). So we waited until after they got us admitted and they were going to get an IV put in so they could get is antibiotic started, take a blood draw for a culture and give him some sugar water with potassium. So they said one family member could go but I was tramatized enough from earlier that day so Travis and I walked over to visit the NICU staff (he got his coffee from Vanessa like we'd never left) while Aunt Jenny held him during the IV.

They tried putting the IV in his little hands twice however were unable to it was in the right side of his scalp and apparently bled quite a bit because his hair was matted with blood and such. But at least he was able to get his antibiotics.

Travis, Jenny, Tennyson and I hung out until late Thursday night and Jenny and Trav headed back to our house so Tennyson and I were left to try and get through the night with the IV. We did alright as he was up every other hour and rather fussy because he wasn't feeling well but we managed. Dr. Holmes came in around 7am on Friday morning and stated the blood culture thus far was negative and if it remains that way and his fever stays under control, he would discharge us Saturday morning as there were three other patients on peds and they all had RSV which is something we definatley do not want. They had taken another heel stick that morning and the CRP came back at 3.9 which was much lower but not as low as he'd like.

So we went through the day getting our antibiotic dosages, our prevacid, our polyvisol and just hanging out. It was good to be able to be with him but during the afternoon he was up and fussing (crying) for around four hours so Jenny and I kept taking turns passing him back and forth. She headed back to Union Star around 4:45 by way of Springfield and Bolivar (sorry) and Travis got there around 5:15 so he and I passed him around in the evening because again he wasn't feeling the best.

Around 8:30 his IV pump alarmed that it was occluded however there were no kinks in the hosing so they said they were going to flush the IV. It wouldn't flush so they were going to have to do some work on the IV so again Travis and I headed over to the NICU to visit. We visited with Dana and Heather for a bit and then headed back. The IV was blown and they thought it had clotted so they tried and tried to pull the clot out however never found it so our room was a bit of a mess as he'd bled all over the bedding and his outfit. The pediatrician on call decided since we were looking at going home in the morning that there was no need to restart the IV and they would just give his antibiotic dosage via injections in his thighs.

So Ted and Connie got here around 9:30 and we were all able to visit a bit before they came in to give his injection. It ended up being such a large dosage they had to give injections in both thighs which we were really excited about so both nurses took a thigh each and gave them simultaneously. Tennyson did so great, he cried for a bit but then was done. So after that we visited and Ted, Connie and Travis headed back to our house in Oronogo and Tennyson and I settled in again.

We did a bit better but it seemed the nurse would come in to weigh him or take vital signs right after I got him to sleep over and over so we had a rough night but we made it through again. Dr. Holmes came in this morning around 8am and stated the urine analysis and blood culture were both negative and since his fever hadn't returned he would fill out the discharge paperwork and we could head home. We will be visiting his Joplin office on Wednesday afternoon for a check up. When he was assessing Tennyson this morning I asked again about his hernias, he said Tennyson would let us know when they were hurting badly by either screaming or spitting up tons when you touched the hernia. When Dr. Holmes touched it during his assessment, Tennyson puked and it was terrible. So Dr. Holmes said Wednesday they will send us on to another physician in town and get his hernia surgery scheduled so we can get that taken care of.

So Tennyson and I packed up our room and headed out to our house in Oronogo, Ted welcomed us around 9:30 this morning and we got settled back in at home and boy are we glad to be here. I ran to the store this morning as Tennyson is having trouble having bowel movements and Dr. Holmes said to give him 2 oz of apple juice each day and that should help. Thus far it hasn't so please keep praying for that.

Basically from my understanding, they determined whatever he has is viral and therefore must run it's own course. He's obviously feeling better and has been sleeping this afternoon so that is great. Thank you all so very much for all your prayers and please continue praying for his health as hopefully he will be 100% back to himself soon.

Also in the pictures notice the pack n' play. Hillyards had a granny shower for Connie and this was one of the gifts, we have already been enjoying it.

Know that we love you all and we're so very thankful for all you do and have done for us. We couldn't make it without you.

Amazed by the Almighty-

Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Please Pray

2008-01-10T14:12:00.000-08:00

Please pray for Tennyson. After several days of fever, the doctor did a test to determine if there was infection in his little body. The test monitors infection on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest) and Tennyson was an 8. The doctor is admitting Tennyson directly to the hospital. We'll update the site as we learn more.

2008, Aunt Jenny the life saver, a home health visit, an eye checkup and mommy returning to work...

2008-01-08T17:01:00.000-08:00

So much has happened I barely know where to start...

Our most pressing prayer need is as good a place as any I guess. We have not found a baby-sitter for Tennyson at this time and as you can tell from the title I returned to work on Wednesday, January 2. Aunt Jenny has been a life saver and spent Wednesday-Friday with Tennyson last week and is here with us this week as well, we don't know what we would do without her. Monday however she's doing her college thing (you'd think she'd give up her last semester to stay here and love on Tennyson wouldn't you) and we're not sure what we're going to do. So if you know anyone in the Oronogo/Joplin area who would love to spend their days, Monday-Friday 7:30-5 with Tennyson at our home, please give us a call or email. Please be praying about this as well as I don't know what we're going to do.

2008 was very eventful for us, we had little smokies and nachos and I had such a migraine that Tennyson and I went to bed around 10:30, we're total party animals. Travis was still up at midnight but he was watching some daredevil jump a motorcycle over a bunch of buses or something. Tennyson was awake at midnight because some in our neighborhood were shooting of fireworks, and we're not just talking little bottle rockets, but hey I guess the first minutes of 2008 are only with us once.

Tennyson has been doing so great, when Lisa visited he and Aunt Jenny on Friday, our last home health visit (we're sure going to miss Lisa) as they've moved him to monthly visits only for his Synagist shot, he weighed in at a whopping 10lbs. 15.5 ounces and was 23.5 inches long. I can't believe it, we're nearly four months old and such a big boy. He's outgrowing or outgrown all of his newborn things. I can't believe it. He also got his vaccine that day however has tolerated those very well. When Lisa called me she mentioned we should consider trying to put rice cereal into his bottle before bed so he will sleep longer (he's doing three hours at a time occassionally so we're doing better). Be praying for this as we started last night and had a few choking bits but I think they were because the hole in the nipple had to be so large for the cereal to get through and he wasn't used to the flow.

She also mentioned she thought he was beginning to teethe. I don't think that is funny and can't believe that he's growing up so fast. They always tell you it's a blink of an eye, and Hollie always said when we looked back on our NICU adventures it would seem like so long ago but I didn't realize it would happen so quickly. She also mentioned that his hernia has spread (if that's possible) and he now has them on both sides, poor little baby. So we're monitoring that closely as well as his ROP (we also think his right eye is a bit lazy) but life wouldn't be such an adventure if we didn't have these minor obstacles would it.

We saw Dr. Jordan on January 3 and though he still is showing the ROP, stage 1, it has stabalized itself which he said is great news. Many times once they stabilize they will begin to heal themselves, so we're praying for that. The best part of the trip however was when we got there guess who was coming out, Willis, Kandi and Jai Potter, our old NICU roommates. They are doing great, and Jai is still the beautiful little princess she always was, though she's pushing 7 lbs now. Also please be praying for Kandi she had to head back to work this week, and for Willis, a stay a home daddy.

Now the huge prayer request for me is that I returned to work as you read previously. I definately wasn't ready, our time had gone too quickly however you have to do what you have to do. I had sure missed the people I worked with but have to say this past week I have sure missed my little one. I am doing better now, but each morning it's hard to leave him, even though I know I couldn't care for him or love him better than Aunt Jenny does (thanks Uncle Tyler for letting us steal your wife for two weeks). Getting back into the swing of things has taken some time but my dept. had a luncheon for me (mexican :)) on Friday which was fun. It was also good to catch up on everyones holidays.

Anyways that's the brief version of our lives the past two weeks, let us know what's happening in your neck of the woods.

Love you all-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Part Duex

2007-12-28T18:30:00.001-08:00

Myers' Family Christmas Photos

2007-12-28T18:25:00.000-08:00

Rastus & Katherine on Christmas Morning

2007-12-28T18:22:00.001-08:00

Part 2

2007-12-28T18:17:00.001-08:00

Pictures, Pictures, Pictures...

2007-12-28T18:04:00.000-08:00

A Doctor's Appointment, A Television Debut & the Hutchcraft Family Christmas

2007-12-27T19:36:00.001-08:00

Thursday evening Tennyson made his television debut, please visit http://fourstateshomepage.com/media_player.php?media_id=10583 to view the December Buddy check segment. If you are unable to view it via this link, please visit http://www.fourstateshomepage.com/. On the right hand side, near the bottom there is a box labeled Buddy Check, click on that and then watch the December segment.

Friday morning we went to see Dr. Holmes in Neosho. He thought Tennyson looked great and he weighed in at 9 lbs. 4 ounces. They measured Tennyson in retrospect to where he should be compared to other children his age and their lowest measurement is less than 3%. For our weight and length we were in the less than 3% percentile and for our head circumference we were at 3%. We also discussed how much Tennyson eats, how well he's digesting and how his stomach does following eating. Dr. Holmes recommended we go to part breastfeeding, partial formula, and the formula is to be soy formula as he's guessing his digestive issues are related to an inability to digest milk as well as he should.

He also found a hernia which we are watching closely and will monitor changes in, we pray it will take care of itself and resolve however it's possible surgery will take place at a later date. Dr. Holmes also discussed introducing cereal into Tennyson's diet and we are to begin that on January 21. If he just spits it out, we will give him another couple weeks and try again however Dr. Holmes thinks he'll be ready for it at that time.

Friday evening my parents, Ryan, Stephanie and Chase made their way to Joplin to begin our Christmas celebrations. Kelsey and Gary joined us Saturday morning and we spent the weekend, enjoying each others company and congratulating Kelsey, who graduated from Vaterott's cosmetology program last Wednesday. She also received high recommendations from her professors and was offered a position in a new salon in downtown St. Joseph that the campus director at Vaterott is opening.

We had a great time hanging out as a family, enjoying each others company and catching up on one anothers lives. Sorry I can't find the camera cable however when I do I will add pictures, they're precious. They all headed home on Sunday afternoon.

Monday morning the home health nurse came and did her check-up on Tennyson, he weighed 9lbs. 7.5 ounces and is doing great, he was satting 100% and has been without his oxygen for over a week.

Travis, Tennyson and I spent Monday and Tuesday together just laughing and reflecting on the year and all that's happened, I can't believe how far we've come and how much we've experienced, God has sure blessed us beyond what we deserve. The Christmas debacle that I have to tell you about is Tennyson bought Travis a set of golf clubs, they are really introductory and I got a great deal on them. I couldn't believe how inexpensive they were. I found out why however on Christmas Eve when Travis opened them and they were for a left handed individual. Silly me, who would have known you had to think about that sort of thing...

Christmas morning around 3:30 am the doorbell rang, granted we were awake as Tennyson had just woke up and guess who Santa had delivered, Ted, Connie and Trudy. They had come to drop Trudy off until Thursday when everyone else would join us for the Myers' Christmas.

Please be in prayer for my cousin Drew and his wife Melissa, they delivered their first born son, Eli Andrew Cameron Friday evening, Dec. 21 and there were some complications, including Eli experiencing a staff infection around his umbilical cord. He was transferred to Children's Mercy in Kansas City on Tuesday, Dec. 26 and is doing better but still fighting at this point. They are doing a spinal tap tomorrow to test for miningitis. I will post more as I know it.

We pray you all had a great Christmas and were able not only to reflect upon but to celebrate the reason we praise.

Love you all-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Unbelievable Morning

2007-12-18T11:12:00.000-08:00

I can't believe this but this morning Lisa, our nurse called and asked if I would mind if some people came with her this morning. One of the local television stations is doing a story on her as she's a breast cancer survivor (10 years this Dec) and wanted to film her working with one of her babies. She chose us and they graciously said they would drive to Oronogo. They spent probably an hour with us though I think the segment is only two minutes long but nonetheless Tennyson will make his television debut on Thursday evening (this time I was assured he would be on, I didn't want to say anything if he wasn't). So as it's posted on fourstateshomepage.com for your viewing pleasure I'll let you know.

Otherwise he's doing great, he weighed 8 lbs. 12.5 ounces and was satting 100, without his oxygen since Sunday morning around 10 am. He is struggling with horrible belly aches that are keeping him from using the restroom because well, he's a pig, eating all the time and I can't quite keep up. So he's received a four ounce bottle each evening for the last three or four and is having a horrible time with it, so please pray for him.

Otherwise all is well, I got our Christmas cards ordered yesterday so my hope is you'll receive them by New Years :)...

I have to run, the lion is stirring.

All Our Love-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson

Fighting Sleep

2007-12-17T10:57:00.000-08:00

A short video of Tennyson fighting sleep, with no tears mind you, there usually are lots of tears...

Nothing too new has occurred lately other than the usual everyday occurrences. He is oxygen free however Saturday night he had several apnea episodes and we're not sure why so we put the oxygen back on him for the night. He usually pulls it off and we were going to use that as our cue to remove it so he wore it until around 10am Sunday morning. He has however been oxygen free since then.

Something that was rather funny, or is now happened in the middle of the night last night...Tennyson had a blow out a couple weeks ago, through his onesie and blanket right after his bath. Last night without thinking after his bath I dressed him in the same onesie with the same blanket, I should have known at that point what I was in for. About 3am I was changing his diaper, pulling the dirty one off when he exploded, all over his blanket, the sweats he was wearing, my hands, arms and legs but somehow we didn't get any on the bed, I don't know how but it was amazing. So after I got him all cleaned up, mind you the onesie was untouched at this time and back to sleep, all seemed well. This morning when we woke up around 8, he had peed through the onesie, and not just a bit like up his back and around his arms, it was crazy. So I think from now on I will know better than to pair that onesie with that blanket. So we went in only our diaper for a while this morning then our my first Christmas outfit which you can see in the pictures. Also posted are pictures from our hotel stay...

The home health nurse hasn't come yet today so I don't have any new news but will pass it along when I do. I can't wait for Christmas, I know he won't know what's going on, but we're so excited...

Love you all-

Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Photo Shoot...these didn't make the Christmas Card

2007-12-13T10:27:00.001-08:00

Home at last...

2007-12-13T09:44:00.000-08:00

We heard Tuesday evening that our power had been restored however remained at the hotel until Wednesday morning to be sure it would stay on. We headed out here around 10:30 during Travis' lunch break (he went in at 6 for a load of generators). After we got out here Tennyson and I started getting things done that needed to be put back in order (sorry that's why I didn't post). I managed to get the dishes done yesterday afternoon and the refrigerator/freezer cleaned out as we lost everything, it smelled so bad when we got in here.

Tennyson has had a ton of trouble since we headed to the hotel with sleeping more than one hour at a time. He will not stay sleeping unless someone is holding him and patting his back...it's a hassle and sometimes annoying however I realize I will never get these moments back so I am treasuring them now. So yesterday he was up around 6:30 am and stayed that way until Travis held him when he got home around 6pm. He would doze between times but I couldn't hold him, there was too much to be done so he wouldn't sleep ten minutes once I put him down.

So we wrapped all the Christmas presents, did the laundry up, washed dishes, cleaned out the fridge and unpacked with him staring at me the entire time. He is so good, and doesn't cry much unless he's hungry or agitated however I knew he was so tired. Don't get me wrong the kid can wail, Travis has affectionately nicknamed him, "my little angry man."

So needless to say by the time we got everything done, and him bathed last night it was midnight when we were going to sleep. He woke up at 2am and I fed and changed him and then he slept until 6:30, I couldn't believe it. I am thinking maybe keeping him up all day helps...at 6:30 I did some patting to his back and he was back to sleep until almost 8 when the home health nurse called.

Lisa came by around 9:45 and he weighed in at 8lbs. 5 ounces and was 21 inches long. He's growing so fast, right before our eyes. He had a bit of a fit with his oxygen last night and they told us not to fight him any more so he didn't have it in his nose between 2 and 8 when I took it off. He was satting 100 this morning so Lisa said to try him off it at night and see how he does. If his monitors alarm we will put it back on but he is obviously showing us he can do it.

So now we're just hanging out, I'm hoping to catch a nap with him this afternoon, please pray for me as yesterday I began coming down with a cold. I talked to his pediatrician to see what was safe to take so will start that this evening. As for now that's all she wrote..

Love you all.

Blessed by the Blesser-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

D-Day

2007-12-11T14:15:00.000-08:00

Today is the official day he was due...I can't believe we're 11 weeks and 1 day already.

Alright a lot has happened since we left you yesterday...the power as I said yesterday was back on however that only lasted about an hour. So from around 2:30 until 8pm we were without power. I received an emergency back up battery for Tennyson's monitor however didn't need to use it though we were getting close, during the first outage the battery had depleted a bit however didn't get fully recharged while the power was on for that short bit.

So what to do, what to do...it was like a cave in our room however Tennyson and I were able to hang out, eat, sleep and do his business though he was dressed in layers and covered in blankets which didn't make him too happy. I must say this morning I was so glad the power was back on because he was beginning to show smells of being unable to bathe...I am sure while he was screaming in the tub everyone thought that I was beating the boy but he sure looks and smells better.

After that we headed out to Dr. Jordan's office as we had another check-up. There has been no change at this time so we don't have to go back for three weeks and will continue to watch it closely...then we returned to the hotel, took a short nap, cleaned up and Lisa our home health nurse arrived. She thought he looked so cute in his little puppy outfit and he weighed in at 8lbs. 2.5 ounces, I can't believe that's how big he would have been had we made it to today.

Please be in prayer for our families as we heard this afternoon our house now has power at it however we will stay at the hotel tonight and head home in the am. Our families however are without power. My mother has been called into the hospital as they're short-staffed so she will be working the next 48 hours probably from there. Just pray our parents, grandparents and siblings will be able to stay warm.

Love you all, sorry he's waking up and wanting to be fed...gotta run, duty calls.

Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Another Day in Paradise

2007-12-10T11:27:00.000-08:00

I have to say I don't know what happened to this week, it just got away from me. After his home health visit on Monday we spent the rest of the week trying to get our days and nights figured out to no avail thus far.

Nothing too exciting happened until Thursday when the home health nurse came back to check on him. He satted so well on 50ccs he's allowed to be off the oxygen for 12 hours at a time though Monday she told me to move him to only at night. He also received his Synagist shot which is the RSV monthly vaccine. I tell you I was almost angry because we pay a small (or large in my opinion) fortune for each dosage, approximately $1800 and they sent us a 100MG vial and he only needed 50, so I had to throw away half of the $1800 medication...I tell you what.

When she weighed him he was 7lbs. 8oz. so he sure made up for that small gain over the weekend.

Thursday some of the guys from the church and Joe Flynn (who also attends CCO) a local mechanic came over and picked up Travis' truck as the water pump went out right before we had Tennyson and in lieu of everything we hadn't made time to get it fixed. It was amazing, and such a blessing and they took it Thursday evening and returned it Friday night. We are so indebted and thankful for each of them and for the blessings they are in our lives.

Please be in prayer for Senior, one of the guys Travis works with, he had a stroke at the end of the week and was still being tested this weekend, I haven't heard an update today but will let you know when I do.

Anyways, mom came down and stayed with us Friday and she and I did some Christmas shopping on Saturday, I am all finished except for one gift though they aren't all wrapped yet. I was starting to stress about it because typically I have all my shopping done and all the gifts wrapped by Thanksgiving, so as soon as the tree goes up the gifts are underneath it. I do believe however I will have to create a new method because Travis shook his and was taking guesses that were pretty dead on though I wouldn't tell him so.

Saturday night/Sunday morning brought us into our current predicament as we received tons of ice down here. It's estimated that 50,000 people/homes are without power still now. We lost power at 3am and again at 5am on Sunday morning so we tried keeping Tenny as warm as possible until after church when Mark called. He had spoke with Travis earlier and some of the guys at the church were reserving rooms in a local hotel and they got one for us as well, so Tennyson had his first official hotel stay, it was amazing. I sure hadn't thought that far ahead and by the time we got here at 2pm to check in they were booked solid and turning people away.

Last year when we lost power like this, Travis and I spent a couple days at home freezing but decided you can't do that with Tennyson. We probably could have kept him warm (though when we left the temperature was below 60 in our home) however his oxygen concentrator and apnea monitor run on electricity so we were using portable oxygen tanks and praying the battery on the monitor would make it.

We checked into the hotel and had a good night though Tennyson is waking up every hour, I think it's new sights, sounds and smells but he's sure keeping me on my toes. Then this morning Travis headed to work (with both sets of keys as he gave Ted his house key while we were in the NICU and wanted to head home and turn off our water tonight) where they were without power however they sent him and Gail to KC and Concordia to get parts for the electricians to hopefully get some electricity back on here.

While he was away however a transformer nearby (we're at Rangeline and I-44) went down and we were without power here at the hotel from around 10:45 to 1 when it just came back on. I was a bit panicked as it was getting chilly and I wasn't sure I would be able to keep Tenny warm enough for very long. We made it however there is discussion as my dad and Ted have both heard we're supposed to get more tonight of taking Tennyson and I up north this evening.

As for the rest of the family...Connie got a new car, a purple Chevy HHR and I am sure she's stoked about it, I haven't got to visit with her though Travis did.

AND OUR BIG NEWS...Trudy is home, she got into Omaha yesterday so she's in KC seeing her physicians today for check ups and will be around for the next month. We're stoked she's back and can't wait until we get to see her though we're not sure when that will be. She is giving a presentation about her journeys at Grace this Friday night and I was hoping that Travis would be able to make it though I believe they are going to tape it for us. It will sure be good to see her, we've missed her tons, though God has truly blessed her and us in our time apart.

Thanks for checking in, I apologize its been so long however if I head north tonight it may be longer as my parents internet service, Cooks has been down since October...until I am able to write again, I tried uploading photos but the hotel server said no, my apologies.

Love you all.

Living Out Loud-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Monday...Monday...Monday

2007-12-03T11:24:00.000-08:00

Alright, nothing too exciting happened this weekend. Travis said things went well at CCO as he was the "soundmaster" this weekend. Friday night I had the board dinner and the board meeting was Saturday morning but other than that, we hung out with Tennyson, watched Christmas movies on the Hallmark channel and relaxed.

Tennyson has started crying uncontrollably at times for no reason, I thought he was just fighting sleep but he has a clean diaper, a full belly and still cries, especially at night. The home health nurse came this morning and colic was discussed as that would be the only explanation she can think of. We discussed some possible things to try that could help ease his discomfort, though there is no cure for colic we will try a few things to help hopefully.

Tennyson weighed 7 lbs. 1.8 ounces so he didn't gain much over the weekend however otherwise looks perfect she said. She monitored his sat levels the entire time he was here and he never dropped below 100 so she turned him down to 50ccs and he now receives holidays for up to 6 hours daily so we're really excited about that. She said next week he will be at 25ccs which is room air and will only need to wear the oxygen during long naps and while sleeping so again we're thrilled.

I received a call from Freeman this afternoon because our insurance company hasn't given the pharmacy approval for his second Synagist shot (for the RSV) which is due Thursday so I called and had our case worker call so hopefully we'll receive it in the mail by Wednesday. I think its so strange that they send his vaccine to our home in the mail but what do I know.

Otherwise things here are going great, we're so blessed with his progress and he's starting to be awake for longer periods of time so we have some 'play' time in each day which is so fun.

I will update you again soon hopefully with some pictures...but for now be sure to visit Freeman's website as they've uploaded his photos now. I don't think they look like him any longer but be sure to look under his birthdate which was Sept. 24. Here's the link...http://www.our365.com/WebNursery/WebNursery/BabyFinder/BabyResultsByHospital.aspx?id=0. If however this doesn't work visit freemanhealth.com then look under babies online.

Love you all-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

This week...

2007-11-29T07:59:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas Tree and Tenny in his precious outfits.

Alright, Tuesday started off with us heading to Neosho to see Dr. Holmes. After Tennyson was weighed, measured and checked all over Dr. Holmes stated he looked perfect, which of course we already knew. He is scheduled for a follow up with Dr. Holmes on Dec. 21 and will receive his next hep B shot along with his two month immunizations (maybe I can talk dad into taking that appointment).

Tennyson has been spitting up quite a bit, almost back to where we were before we got the prevacid so Dr. Holmes increased his dosage to 2ML/day and if that doesn't work we will try something else next month. Dr. Holmes did comment on Tennyson being very active and not one you'll be able to take your eye off of. Hope the attached video shows that well though he does tend to wear himself out at times.

From there we headed back home and got lunch ready and then headed back out to see Dr. Jordan. Dr. Jordan examined his eyes and stated he's still showing the ROP however it isn't any worse than it was last week so that's a good sign. That it's not continually progressing is good. We will see him again Dec. 11, our due date.

From there we had about an hour and a half before we had to pick Travis up from work (the water pump in the truck is out so we're using the Pacifica for our transportation) and by the time we would drive home, we would have to turn right around and head back that direction so I had brought a bunch of extra blankets because I thought this may happen so Tennyson and I hung out in the car cuddled up until he got off work. It was really a great time to nap (praise the Lord for tinted windows, no one even saw us).

Rachel Bond brought over dinner for us, we had vegetable soup and croissants and cookies, it was wonderful and really hit the spot. God sure has blessed us with wonderful friends.

Wednesday, Tennyson and I spent the day catching up on sleep, he sleeps so well during the day and since I was apparently exhausted (Travis said Tuesday night I slept through Tennyson's cries so he got up and fed him, isn't my husband wonderful). We basically napped off and on all day. I was a bit nervous last night that he wouldn't be able to sleep however after his bath we were only up three or four times, it was great. I have noticed however that he's starting to fight sleep, if you're not holding him you have to be sure he's really out or he will wake himself back up and cry and cry because he doesn't want to go to sleep. Isn't it amazing how as children we fight sleep because we don't want to miss a thing and as adults we crave sleep because we never get enough??

Travis and I were visiting this morning before he headed to work and decided it's a good thing we don't rely heavily on the oxygen because when we woke up this morning Tennyson had it down on his top lip. I can't imagine how much oxygen we've pumped into our home without it actually going anywhere, you know? He doesn't really like to wear his cannula, I can't say that I blame him.

This morning the home health nurse came for a visit and we weighed in at 7lbs. 1 ounce. I can hardly believe it, he's doing so well. She did a full exam and said he still looked great.

I can't thank you all enough for taking the time to visit this blog, my apologies that I haven't been keeping up with it as well since he came home. I am hoping we will establish a routine and then I will be able to. However each time I think I've got a routine figured out, Tennyson goes and changes it. I knew I never should have asked the Lord to teach me patience. :)

Love you all, but I have to run, Tenny's waking up.

Amazed by the Almighty-

Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Funnies from our precious one...

2007-11-26T10:43:00.000-08:00

I just have to tell this, it was so hilarious. If it hadn't been the middle of the night I am sure I would have gotten a picture. As you all know from the pictures Tennyson is on oxygen which daily following his bath we have to tape to his cheeks to ensure it remains in his nose. We usually double reinforce it during the night however haven't had any problems with it thus far. Saturday night however he was making some noise in his cradle so I walked over to it and he had not only gotten the tape loose and pulled the cannula away from the piece at the back that holds it snuggly into place but he had wiggled the cannula down his body and had his arms hanging through it. It was the funniest thing I had ever seen and since we weren't having any episodes makes me wonder how much he's needing the oxygen, but that's another story for another day.

This has been a great weekend, everyone but my sisters and Trudy (who's traveling the world) were able to come down and see Tennyson, it was great. We had such great food, and so much fun together. No one can believe how big he's getting, don't get me wrong, we're still too small for most of our newborn clothing but compared to where we started, we're huge. Double our size actually. He's really filled out as well as I'm sure you can see by the pictures which makes a huge difference.

Last night was another long one as he woke up every hour, almost exactly on the hour and just wanted to play, we're definately going to start doing baths before bed because once those are done and he's ate, he's usually out a good three hours. I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow. We'd had two good nights in a row so I guess I was like, we're over this hump, little did I know.

Then this morning the home health nurse came by a bit after eight and I had to wake him up, it was the first time since midnight he hadn't woken up on the hour, of course, of course.

He weighed in at 6lbs. 12.5 ounces so he's growing like a weed. She turned his oxygen off so we could monitor how much he's relying on it. In the NICU he needed it primarily during feedings however this morning since I had woken him up he was throwing a fit needing to eat about 8:20 so I fed him without his Os and the lowest we dropped was 95%. She turned him down to 75ccs from 100 and stated if he continues this well then next week, they will turn him down to 50ccs with holidays. Holidays are a few hour stretches where he doesn't have to wear it, she said we would probably start with 3-4 hours and see how he handles that.

So all the news from that front is good, we then tried to take a nap however everytime I would get laid down Tenny would cry until I would reposition him. He would then fall back to sleep until I tried to lay down, it was a vicious game so I decided to do laundry instead. When he woke up I bathed him, changed his leads, fed him and he's sleeping soundly now. He is wearing a very precious outfit so I am hoping to get some good pictures of him later today along with the finished Christmas tree and will post them when I have them.

Hope you all had a great weekend, and the Lord refreshed you in ways you couldn't imagine, He sure did me. Worship at CCO was so great, and the message was on "Whatever Happened to Gratitude??" Chad Ragsdale did a great job. The Lord really is blessing us beyond what we could have ever imagined.

When discussing Tennyson's age we were told to go by his adjusted age, so currently we're -3 weeks, isn't that hilarious, but in all actuality he's been with us 9 weeks today.

Know we love you all more than we can say and once I get the perfect picture I will get his birth announcements out.

Made for these Moments-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

A Beautiful Baby, a good night and our Christmas Tree...

2007-11-24T11:01:00.000-08:00

We had another good night last night and after a bath this morning he has slept the last four hours though he's stirring now. We have spent part of last night and this morning getting our Christmas tree put up (there will be pictures once it's perfected). I have included some pictures from being home and just hanging out this past week.

Know you all are loved so very much and we're so thankful for each of you. We couldn't have made it this far, nor could we continue on without you. God has blessed us beyond words with you being in our lives. Thank you for allowing Him to use you for His glory not only in our lives but we pray you will always.

All our love-

Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

So many moments, so little time...

2007-11-23T17:35:00.000-08:00

Okay I barely even know where to begin. Monday morning my mom headed back to Union Star and Tyler and Jenny came down. It was great to see them as it had been so long since we'd been with them. We learned two new card games and had a blast. They headed back to St Joseph late Tuesday night and my parents and Ryan came down Wednesday evening, they had Thanksgiving with us, chicken and noodles, it was wonderful and headed back home today. Ted and Connie came down today and everyone is loving on Mr. Tennyson.

He's doing so great, the home health nurses are raving. Monday he weighed 6 lbs. 3 ounces which was a 4 ounce gain after being dismissed and this morning he weighed 6 lbs. 7 ounces so again with a four ounce gain. It's been so great having him here and being able to cuddle with him and watch all his facial expressions and his little quirks.

We decided that the NICU night nurses sure must have spoiled him because last night was the first night we weren't up every hour. The previous nights were so hard to get through as he was up every hour on the hour and just wanted to be held, I think maybe he was used to being held all night :). We tried everything, he has been put in the bouncer, the swing, his cradle, his carseat however the only thing that worked was mom sleeping in a corner on a quilt holding him which I know I'm not supposed to do because of the monitors but I couldn't think of anything else, we'd tried it all. He is however hopefully starting to get this figured out as last night he slept four hours the first stent and then two and two.

He has no problems however sleeping during the day. He'll be up to eat and be changed, cuddle till he's back asleep and then you can put him anywhere but laying flat on the floor and he'll sleep many times his four hours. So we're trying to be patient in this but pray for us, it's sure frustrating in the night when you don't know what to do for him.

We visited with Dr. Jordan, the optamolgist on Wednesday (it was a follow up exam) and he was diagnosed with stage one ROP (Retinopathy of prematurity). "ROP is a potentially blinding eye disorder that primarily affects premature infants weighing about 2¾ pounds (1250 grams) or less that are born before 31 weeks of gestation. The smaller a baby is at birth, the more likely that baby is to develop ROP. This disorder—which usually develops in both eyes—is one of the most common causes of visual loss in childhood and can lead to lifelong vision impairment and blindness."-Quoted from the National Eye Institute.

What this means to us at this time is that we will visit with Dr Jordan weekly to monitor and if we progress to stage three will then have eye surgery to alleviate it before reaching full detatchment and causing blindness. We will visit with him next Tuesday again as well as visiting Dr. Holmes the pediatrician on Tuesday.

With our monitors we have had several apnea episodes, so I am so glad that we have it. They occur almost always while he's sleeping and being held so there is question as to their validity however nonetheless I have to chart them and turn the chart into the pediatrician next week. I will let you know if any changes are made though I doubt they will be as during his home health checks he's been satting 100%.

So for us, that's really all that's happening, I apologize that I haven't updated more frequently and promise I will try to. If we can get our routine down, we'll have no trouble I pray. Know that we love you all and can't wait until June to show off our precious one.

Leaning on the Lifegiver-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

I Don't Want to Miss A Thing...

2007-11-19T19:12:00.000-08:00

of course however Tennyson missed everything on his first car ride...

That's right, we're home!!!

Saturday morning while I was working the nurse asked Travis if we wanted to room in that evening. Of course he called me and we discussed it however decided that would be wonderful, I think we were a bit scared and nervous.

When I got off work, we met at Ronald McDonald and cleaned out our room however didn't check out as many times parents are kicked out of their rooms early in the morning and then have no where to go. So we did that, headed over for his 4pm feeding and then grabbed some dinner with mom and unloaded the car at home before heading back at 8 to room in.

We spent the night in the pediatric wing (which in Travis' opinion was heaven), there were two twin beds with the bassinette inbetween and two televisions (we hadn't seen TV in so long) and a kitchen down the hall we were able to use at any time. Each room on the unit has it's own decorating theme and ours was a jungle (pictures will be attached later) so it was neat.

Around 11pm we gave Tennyson a bath and got him dressed to have his picture taken to be posted on Freeman's website (I'll let you know when it's online) however the cute outfit I had picked out was a newborn and you could have put three of him into it. So we resorted to an old standby and had his picture taken in a navy blue pair of sweats and a hoodie. After that we were up a few times but nothing major.

Around 10am we returned him to the NICU to check out of our room at Ronald. After doing this we returned for his noon feeding and Dr. Topper visited with us around his care, how perfect he is, his medications, etc. and dismissed us. Needless to say by 1:30 we were heading home.

We got home and unloaded everything from the car, and ordered pizza (thank goodness Papa John's now delivers) and ate, while admiring Tennyson who was sleeping peacefully in his car seat.

The night went well with his monitor only alarming a few times because one of his leads had gotten loose, otherwise all was well.

This morning around 9:30 Buddy from Health Essentials came by and put in our new buddy, a large oxygen humidifying machine, dropped off five 12 hour tanks and a 42 hour option in case we lose power. He also brought a new kind of lead for us to try that he believes will work better and alarm less.

Then the home health nurse came around 1:30 to check him out and see how things were going. Saturday evening he weighed 5lbs. 15.1 ounces and today he weighed 6lbs. 3 ounces so we must be doing something right. He was satting 100% so the plan of care at this time is to weane him down to 75ccs (from the 100 we're on right now) next week, then 50 ccs the next week, then 25 ccs the following week, then we will only have the oxygen at night for a month or so as he tolerates.

It was great to get a routine started and home health will visit every Monday and Friday. We have an appointment with the eye doctor Wednesday morning and our pediatrician next Tuesday morning. We will find out then if we need to see a pediatric neurologist because apparently on his MRI the radiologist found an artifact on his cortex. They were not testing for this and it was only found in some of the pictures so there is discussion that it may not need to be checked at this time however we will know more after visiting with Dr. Holmes.

So sorry this post is late, I wanted to get the laundry caught up and the house cleaned up today before we get started with everything that will be happening in the next few weeks. Don't worry, I will continue to post and let you know how things are going.

We love you all and thank you for your prayers.

Praising our Father for His Goodness-

Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

An apology for my poor attitude and Praises out the Wazoo

2007-11-16T08:28:00.000-08:00

is wazoo really a word anyways??

First a bit of an explanation for yesterday's post...

I was feeding him between four and five Wednesday afternoon and the nurse practitioner came by and said that we would be rooming in Wednesday night and going home Thursday night. I was so excited, we ran home and got the car seat, clothing for him to have his picture taken in, etc. I just couldn’t believe our journey in the NICU had finally come to a close and to boot one of the nurses we love was on duty on Thursday so she would be able to see us off. We were so stoked.

When we came in at 8 to feed him again I peeked in his room and they were bagging him, I just stopped, I couldn’t function. It’s scary when you’re child is bagged however that coupled with the immense disappointment I had when I realized we weren’t going home…just led to immense tears. I cried the entire time I nursed him at 8 and then went back to feed him at midnight.

I just wish they’d never said we would room in Thursday night and go home Friday, it just sorta knocked the wind out of my sails. Apparently they’re finding that he’s desatting with bottle feeds which we haven’t done but twice a day the last little bit because we’ve been nursing and he’s been doing great. So in discussion yesterday with Jeanne (as she's back) it was decided that Tennyson would be put back on oxygen and we would be taking home the oxygen and monitors (which we expected all along).

Now that I've had some time to reflect on the entire situation and to get over the emotions I am so glad we're still in the NICU, had we been at home, the stimulation techniques did not work and we would not have had the oxygen and therefore would not have been able to assist him in that way. That being said we would have had to call 911 and we don't live near an ambulance bay so it is hard to say how much irreprible damage would have been done to our little boy had we gone home. I can't thank the Lord enough that we were still in the NICU and that we will have the oxygen and monitors along with home health visits frequently that first month.

So now for how he's doing...since that episode he's been doing great, they were only putting the oxygen on him for feeds however it's hard when you get them home to only use it in that fashion as it's so upsetting to the little ones to have to tape it on and then take it off, etc. so it's a permanent fixture for us for a while.

So my apologies for having such a poor and emotionally overdriven post yesterday, I was having a rough day but that's not fair to make it sound like my world is ending...it was just crashing down a bit!! :)

He weighed in last night at 5lbs. 12.5 ounces, again an increase (we're almost back to where we were a few days ago) and he hasn't had an episode since he went to the oxygen at 3pm yesterday afternoon.

Travis and I will be receiving our oxygen and monitor training this evening and then we will be waiting until he gets to come home, there is discussion that if he remains episode free it will be sometime next week. What a great Thanksgiving this will be...

Anyways sorry for such a poor attitude yesterday, the emotions at time wear you out, but above all the emotions I am so thankful to the Lord that Tennyson is ours, is perfect and is beautiful.

Thank you for all your prayers and the time you give us, you don't know how much it means to us and how thankful we are for each of you.

Love you all...

Praising our Protector-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Pray for me...

2007-11-15T08:31:00.000-08:00

This will be a short post as I have few words...

There were talks of us going home in the near future however we had a horrible desat episode last night that has set us back at this point indefinately as the discussions have ceased. I am so anxious to bring him home though don't want to prematurely however didn't realize I would have all the emotions I do with that one episode.

He is doing great since then and is again oxygen free however he's kind of hovering so I am unsure how much longer that will last. The circumcision site looks great and they're talking of no longer needing vaseline or gauze at noon today it looks so good. He weighed in at 5lbs. 11.9 ounces last night so he's down some but that was expected following the MRI, sedation and circumcision.

Anyways that's all we know. We are clinging to the Father and know we're being lifted up.

All our love-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

How Great is our God...

2007-11-14T07:29:00.000-08:00

Tennyson is doing so wonderful, even better than we could have hoped or imagined after last week. In the last twelve hours he's really been worked over but is doing great.

Yesterday morning around 10:15 a.m. they removed him from his oxygen (they do this with every baby because for insurance purposes they have to fail thriving on their own to be allowed to take the equipment - oxygen and monitors - home with them). Needless to say, Tennyson has thrived on his own since then, which was highly unexpected. He has even made it through numerous breast and bottle feedings, so praise the Lord for that.

All day yesterday he was scheduled for an MRI that was pushed back and rescheduled and such. He finally had it around midnight last night so while they sedated him, through the MRI and then the bath he was given while sedated after the MRI he had oxygen on because they were afraid with him being out he would not remember to breathe. Once he was bathed it was taken off and he was fed by bottle so he's doing great. He weighed in last night at 5lbs. 12.7 ounces and growing like a weed.

Early this morning he had his circumcision done. The nurses said Tennyson did great, as did Dr. Holmes. There was no bleeding however as a thank you Tennyson had a blow out as Dr. Holmes did his work, bet he doesn't forget this kid for awhile.

So that brings us up to now, he's doing great, holding his own, the circumcision site is red but otherwise looks great, he ate right after the circumcision for a bit and will be hungry again soon I'm sure. Just wanted to let you all know how great our God is in that He's carrying our little one through all of this. I'm just thankful Tennyson won't be able to remember any of it.

There is mild speculation we'll be heading home in the near future from the nursing staff however Dr. Porte would like us to be 37-371/2 weeks and we were 36 yesterday so we'll see. We're not getting our hopes up because we've heard their speculation before. We will however let you know when we know. We will also post MRI results when we have them.

Again thanks for the prayers, we know we would be nowhere near going home if it weren't for all of you interceding for us. Know you are loved.

Excited in the Everlasting-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Our beautiful baby portion...

2007-11-13T11:23:00.000-08:00

An MRI, a fight and our beautiful baby...

2007-11-13T08:06:00.001-08:00

First Tennyson has an MRI scheduled for this morning in which he will have to be sedated, so the rest of today he will be rather lathargic, at least we got in one good feeding at 8am. The MRI is to look for clusters in his brain that are indicators of developmental abnormalities. Doesn't mean he won't have any developmental disturbances but if there aren't any its a good indicator. I will post results from that when I have them. They have to sedate the babies for two reasons, one because they need them to lay still and second because it's very noisy in there. Once Tennyson is sedated, they will put ear plugs into his ear canals and wrap his head with ear muff looking things to be sure and not damage his hearing during this procedure.

I bet you're wondering about the fight...have you ever been manipulated and not realized it. I sure have and I hate that. Needless to say I received a call yesterday from Tennyson's case worker (just so you all know if you are ever contacted by a case worker who is contracted by the insurance company to be your babies advocate during their stay and assure you they're receiving the best and proper treatments, beware). She was so nice and wonderful at first calling once or twice a week to see how things are going, yesterday however I felt she was being rather pushy, pumping me for information on Tennyson like she hasn't before though his medical files are right in front of her. I mentioned that to Travis while we were on our way to the hospital as she encouraged me to ask the nurse practitioner if we could room in last night. For those of you who don't know (you're blessed) what rooming in is, it means we stay overnight in a postpartum room with Tennyson, just as we would have had he been full term and take him home the following day. Needless to say, we all know he's not quite ready for that yet.

I was outraged by this and of course it's another thing to worry about, but we discussed it and decided to let it go, she must have been having some mental lapse and confusing us with another patient. Little did we know...when we arrived at the NICU and were scrubbing in Dr. Porte stopped us and mentioned she had contacted him questioning why Tennyson was still here, he felt he needed to defend the reasoning to Travis and I. We were completely aware of why he was still here and knew he wasn't ready to go home, we assured Dr. Porte that we were very pleased with the care Tennyson was receiving and didn't want to be discharged early, which causes readmittance on pediatrics many times.

So by that time I was a bit angrier, then Jeanne, the nurse practitioner came into our room and reviewed with us the same information Dr. Porte just had as the case worker had contacted her as well, wanting her reasoning and rationale. We discussed with Jeanne what I was told by the case worker and all the pieces were falling into place.

They are trying to push our precious baby out of the NICU, sending him home on oxygen (which isn't a problem) but he has so many desat issues still that they don't at this time trust him on portable monitors which is what we would be taking home. We discussed the plan of care with both Dr. Porte and Jeanne and with the MRI today that will at least buy us a few more days however both they and Mara (the speech therapist who I found out today was also contacted) are going to be fighting those battles for us. When the insurance company begins denying our stay which will be soon (possibly today or tomorrow) they will be appealing it as he's not stable enough at this time.

Anyways all that to say, please be praying for us. It's just one more thing to have to deal with and somedays it's hard enough just to get through.

Okay enough about me...Tennyson gained again last night and broke the 5lb. 12 ounce barrier. In the middle of the night feedings he ate 70MLs and 90MLs (OINK, OINK)respectively so I would wager to say there will probably be another gain tonight.

He's looking wonderful and so grown up now, I can't believe he was seven weeks old yesterday and we're 36 weeks gestationally today. Amazing!!

Specific prayer needs for him right now are the MRI and his response to the sedation following the MRI, his circumcision which is scheduled for tomorrow morning, his respiratory systems continued development, allowing him to keep his breathing up while being sedated especially (when he gets really comfortable or into a deep sleep many times we forget to keep breathing), and that infection will stay away.

Sorry this was a tyrade and a tangent I just have to vent about what's happening before I allow it to consume me. Needless to say I won't be so naive the next time.

Love you all and thank you so much for your prayers, we're only making it because the Lord hears our (yours and mine) cries and is lifting us up.

Loved by the Lord-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Okay so the beautiful baby part was to be more photos but blogger is down...I will upload them as soon as I can.

Pictures from 10/30/07

2007-11-12T12:52:00.001-08:00

Sorry I've had trouble getting them to upload!!

Best News of All...

2007-11-12T11:25:00.000-08:00

The crazy woman that I am forgot to post two of the biggest praises of them all...Tennyson's stool on Saturday night came back negative so apparently we're worked whatever it was through our system. Also they moved him from the liter of oxygen mixed with room air to a low flow cannula which gives him only 100 ccs of force but it's pure oxygen and he seems to tolerate that well. This morning until I left at 12:30 we hadn't had a single desat episode so praise the Lord for doing more than we could have asked or imagined in such a short time.

Love you all-

Proclaiming His Praises-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Flu shots, a blood transfusion and a broken toe

2007-11-12T08:56:00.000-08:00

First the weekend...

Ted and Connie (affectionately referred to as Granny and Poppie) came down Friday night to see Mr. Tennyson and brought us a beautiful dresser and cradle that was Tyler's when he was little for Tennyson to sleep in when we get home from Freeman.

I think they were both surprised with how much he'd grown and changed in the last three weeks. He's not much longer but he's sure filling out which is great.

Saturday morning mom (Mary Jo) and Ryan came down to see Mr. Tennyson and Ryan told dad he'd sure grown since he'd last seen him. Dad asked me last night when we were going to bring Tennyson up to see him as he's been harvesting the past few weekends and hasn't been able to get down here.

Saturday afternoon after his feeding and a lunch at the IHOP, the six of us headed to Target...here's my soapbox, take it as you'd like. Just in case you're considering registering for anything at Target here's a word of caution for you. You are allowed two returns per year (which is tracked by your drivers license) so be sure you are sure you have everything you want to return together before you go. This wasn't so bad, I had expected this, however, your return can only equal up to twenty dollars if you do not have the receipt. Mind you at the baby shower we received many gift receipts however there were a few of the gifts that did not have the receipts on them. We were able to contact people who had given us things and got receipts from them and were able to return some of our duplicate items but just be warned.

So anyways off the soapbox now, with the returns and the money that was collected for us by the Stanberry Christian Church (they adopted us for the month of November) we were able to get Tennyson's room completed and purchase necessities like a stoller and carseat. So I think now we're all set and I have to say this little guy and Trav and I are so blessed, more than we ever could have imagined. So we put the room all together, I got all his little blankets, clothing, etc. all washed up, sorted and put away yesterday so now all we're needing is Tennyson..

Anyway, as for the stats, last week we started the nursing portion which is impossible to track in comparison to the bottled version however he was always following with a bottle so we thought all was going well. On Friday night however he had lost an ounce and Saturday night lost .2 ounces which I know doesn't sound like much but to these kids it is...Jeanne the nurse practitioner said if he wasn't able to maintain his own weight or increase his urine output they may have to put his NG tube back in and gavage feed him as maybe he's telling us this is too hard and we're wearing him out.

Sunday we headed to CCO for the 9:45 service which as always was wonderful. Lynn spoke on Whatever happened to...(the series name) INTEGRITY! It was great and very convicting. From there we headed in for Tennyson's 11am feeding, went to lunch with mom and Ryan and picked up some photos for Ryan at Walgreens. They then headed home and Travis and I got to work on some things at the house.

We loaded some boxes and a table we had set out up into the attic, I washed, folded, hung and sorted all of Tennyson's clothing, blankets, bibs, etc. and we loaded up three huge trash sacks of things for Goodwill which we dropped off this morning so things at our house are starting to come together. After we got everything up into the attic, we noticed we forgot Travis' sound system which is sitting behind the couch and in the way...as I was unloading and reloading the washer and dryer I headed to our bedroom where I had sorted Tenny's things on our bed and smashed right into it with the last two toes on my left foot, breaking the one next to the pinky. So that was wonderful...it's still hurting horribly, is deformed and very bruised today but what are you going to do. Hopefully I'll get it straightened back out tonight so I can one day again wear flip flops.

Tennyson did wonderfully with his feeding last night and all through the night with no desats and eating well. He weighed in last night at 5lbs. 11.7 ounces so we gained some last night. They were also concerned this morning as when they ran his CBC last night his hematocrit levels were lower than they want so there's talk of another blood transfusion in the near future but we'll see what happens.

This morning after dropping everything off at Goodwill I headed to Health Essentials as they were giving flu shots there today to get mine (on top of the broken toe) and Travis got his on his lunch break as we were ordered to by Dr. Porte, the neonatologist.

This morning Tennyson nursed at 8 and 11:30 with no bottle follow up and he did great both times so that's another plus.

So all in all, things here are going well...with a few minor mishaps along the way but it wouldn't be life without them.

Other than that is was a wonderful weekend and we're so blessed you're joining us, know that you're loved and appreciated more than we can say.

Our hearts are yours...

Rejoicing in the Risen-
Travis, Lindsay and Tennyson Myers

I will give you all my worship, I will give you all my praise...

2007-11-09T07:49:00.000-08:00

You alone I long to worship, you alone are worthy of my praise.
- You are Worthy of My Praise, David Ruis

It has been a whirlwind of a day, I tell you what. Alright first major praises, all his tests have come back negative for infection. There is only one that is a culture that won't be read until Monday as they are trying to see if there's something growing in his intestines, though the nurse practitioner said it's rare there's something there that is undetected in all these other tests.

They have stopped his Iron and Vitamins and the human milk fortifier that was in his milk to try and alleviate any possible aggervations. So at this point the only foreign substance in his little body is the prevacid which is necessary to keep from desatting during refluxing. The nurses can't believe how drastically reduced his number of episodes are since he's received his second dosage of Prevacid.

At this point the nurse practitioner is elated and they are thinking it must be a stomach aggervation (which apparently we all have from time to time) with everything he's been encountering lately, he is being monitored closely and all his stools are being tested for blood. A proud moment for daddy though was a little after midnight last night we broke our record, we had a 75 gram blowout!!!

So anyways his plan of care right now is for them to continually watch him very closely, he does better with his sats while breastfeeding than when taking a feeding from a bottle so we've been instructed to breastfeed every feeding, which is a 8, 12, and 4 (thanks Hollie for making me think to ask about that). Breastfeeding is more work for Tennyson, but he's better able to regulate the flow and therefore is better able to remember to pause for breathing.

He weighed in last night at 5lbs. 12.6 ounces which was a small gain but a gain nonetheless. It was a very important gain because yesterday was the first day they allowed him to determine when and how much to eat. He was moved from an every three hour schedule to a schedule of every three-four hours as he determines. So it was great that there was a gain as if there hadn't been we would have to create a new plan of care and it would prolong our stay.

At this time they're hinting at the possibility of going home late next week still, we will be working on weaning him off the oxygen next week however he will probably for sure need it during feeds. If he goes home with oxygen he also goes home with monitors so we will have home health visits three days a week once we're home if we take those with us. Travis and I would love to not have them but if we do, it's not a big deal to us. He's doing so great, we wouldn't really see that as a setback as our caseworker (through our insurance company) said most preemies that take oxygen home with them tend to lose it faster when they're home than they do in the NICU because of the decreased stimuli they experience.

I think the plan of care for mommy and daddy is much more strenuous as now there's kind of a deadline on getting that room put back together, mom destroyed it after the baby shower, which we will be doing this weekend. We will also be purchasing a car seat, which is the one thing required to take them home.

Anyways all praises to our GOD and King for again blessing us more than we could have hoped for or imagined. Know that we are just basking in His presence during all of this, awed by how He humbles us and lifts us up in all things. Connie and I were talking this morning about how now that Tennyson is doing so well, God is giving us subtle reminders to not think we can do this on our own and forget how much He's done in this since Tennyson is doing so much better. I pray Travis and I never see a day we forget to pause and thank the Lord for this experience, I can testify I would not have the relationship with Him I do now had it not been for these last seven weeks and the weeks to continue.

All our love to all of you, please continue praying for our little one. Thanks for all you've done so far.

Known by the King-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Frustration and Waiting...

2007-11-08T09:10:00.000-08:00

Okay so apparently our nurse sent his specimen in the diaper and it needs to be in a cup so the lab couldn't process it. I asked her what she did with his second diaper and she said she threw it away as she thought she had sent the specimen. So we are again waiting for Mr. Tennyson to do his business so I won't be posting results soon I'd say.

Pray I don't lose my head.

They say it better than I can...

2007-11-08T08:02:00.000-08:00

"Praise You In This Storm" - Casting Crowns

I'll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
Every tear I've cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I was sure by now
That You would have reached down
And wiped our tears away
Stepped in and saved the day
But once again, I say "Amen", and it's still raining

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear Your whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

I'll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
Every tear I've cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I remember when
I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry
You raised me up again
My strength is almost gone
How can I carry on
If I can't find You

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

I'll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
Every tear I've cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I lift my eyes unto the hills
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord
The Maker of Heaven and Earth

Homeward Bound, or so we thought...

2007-11-08T07:35:00.000-08:00

Tennyson is doing great, really. He's weighing in at 5 lbs. 12.2. ounces and seems to be growing like a weed. Last night when I went in for his 5pm feeding, one of the day nurses stated, "I don't work again until Tuesday, and you'll be home before then"...I was like I doubt it, maybe next weekend or something. Jeanne the nurse practitioner was there and said, "next weekend is a long time." I said, "not really"...she said, "I'd be surprised if you're not home by this time next week, unless there's a setback or he has some major episodes."

So needless to say I was elated (we both were but Travis got so sick yesterday he was sleeping at Ronald from noon-the whole night with a fever, however he's feeling a bit better now). Jeanne stated the changes they made for Mr. Tennyson were quite a few, he was put on Prevacid, given Iron with Vitamins (which will both go home with us) and he can nurse once a shift. I said, "I was told last week that he wouldn't be strong enough to nurse for quite a while." She said, "I don't know who told you that but he's a big boy, let him show us whether he can do it or not." So again I was elated...

Huge praises that Tennyson did great with the nursing at 8pm and then they follow with a bottle of which he took 27 ounces (he's been eating around 50-60MLs so that was pretty good for the first time). After I left there, I headed out to Oronogo to put the trash out as it's been there for seven weeks now and pretty ripe...it was already out when I got there so I am assuming the Bonds' took care of that, thanks guys.

So anyways I had some things to leave at the house as I cleaned out everything unnecessary from the Ronald house because we were talking about going home and that only made logical sense to me so I went ahead and unloaded it and played briefly with the puppies.

I guess you can probably tell by the title that things have changed since then a bit. On my way back to Joplin from Oronogo I got a phone call from Jeanne, the nurse practitioner. She said he'd had a diaper that was suspicious looking so they tested it and it came back positive for blood. They ran stat labs and a chest x-ray. The chest x-ray showed air all over in his stomach and his bowels were distended however he'd just ate so that wasn't so alarming but they are watching it closely. Also the CBC came back within normal ranges and the CRP (which shows if infection is present) came back negative. This kid is like the poop master (with 8 dirty ones yesterday) and they waited all night last night for another dirty one to send to the lab to test for C.Diff, rotovirus (in both of these cases Tennyson will have to be isolated and will receive nutrition only through IV meaning his vitamins and minerals but no food, they say it usually lasts between 7-14 days) and lactose intolerance (meaning we would have to switch to soy formula).

There is apparently something about me, because we nursed this morning around 8am and then he had two right in a row. So we're currently awaiting the results from the lab, I will post them when I know something.

The nurses and nurse practitioner find it so strange that there was blood in his stool as he's not acting sick or no vitals are showing that he's feeling ill at all. We're praying that his bowels were just irritated with all the diapers yesterday but I will let you know when I do.

Needless to say it was a short and exhausting night, so please pray for Tennyson, that he would be healed from whatever's going on, that his feedings would continue to go well and that his Prevacid would take effect (it doesn't until after it's been in his system 24 hours, so by 6pm tonight). Pray for Travis and I as I was so ready to be going home next week so I'm a bit spent with all the emotions and we're exhausted.

Know that we know the Lord can do immeasurably more than we ask or imagine and are trusting Him at His word on this. He knows what's best for our little one and how to care for him better than we do. Thank you for interceeding on our behalf, know that we're indebted to you.

All our love.

Looking to our Lord-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

NUK nipples, who'd a thought...

2007-11-07T07:55:00.000-08:00

Tennyson is doing so great, they switched him over to what is referred to as a NUK nipple. Apparently it's a slower flow so he's able to regulate his breathing better with that. Yesterday he did great during his 8am feed, then during 11 and 2 he took the vast majority of the bottle however was gavage fed 7ML and 10MLs.

At the 8pm we got to have some extra fun with him as he was finally given his Synergist vaccine (which is a vaccine given for RSV. It does not prevent RSV however with the vaccine if he gets RSV it will be like a terrible case of the flu however he should be able to tolerate it. Without the vaccine he will end up back in the hospital in peds on a ventilator and we will begin our entire NICU stay over with him having ashtma and respiratory distress for most his childhood years as a result). Needless to say the Synergist is something we've been anxious to see him get, though it's a painful shot. He will have to get another one every 28-30 days, if we miss one or are late on one it makes the entire process nul in void in it's ability to fight RSV. It costs between $1500-$1800/shot depending on your childs weight and we will receive one monthly through May however, praise the Lord since he was so early our insurance company will cover it, had he been a month later at 32 weeks they would not.

After Jenny gave him the shot, we did our first tub bath (and no there are no pictures as I didn't know we were going to be able to do that). Travis and I were in there holding him and Trav was washing his face and I his body (as you can't get soap on his face yet) and the monitor was alarming, so we turned around to grab it each thinking the other still had a hold of him and in the split second we turned around and looked back he was blowing bubbles in the water as part of his mouth was under. We grabbed him up and felt terrible though it didn't seem to bother him much, thank the Lord for Johnson's & Johnson's being so gentle. Many other soaps would have been disasterous to his little belly. Can you believe they're going to send Tennyson home with us??

Anyways after the shower and getting him dressed Travis fed him another bottle and he took the entire thing. He's doing so great with his feedings, and this nipple is really helping him regulate his breathing. It's amazing how one little thing can make sure a difference. Jenny took his 11pm, 2am and 5am feeds and snuggled with him each time, she really loves our little boy as her own, it's precious. You should have seen her trying to talk all the other nurses into giving him the shot as she didn't know if she could cause she didn't want to hurt "her" baby.

So this morning at 8am I was there to feed him, after two diaper changes we were all snuggled in ready to get started and Dr. Jordan walked in. So we let Dr. Jordan examine him which Tennyson didn't enjoy. He wasn't fussy or anything but every time Dr. Jordan would open his eye Tennyson would roll them back into his head, so it took longer than usual. Dr. Jordan said most preemies didn't do that as they weren't so quickly responsive. It was hillarious and frustrating for the Dr. Needless to say there was no sign of ROP (praise the LORD) and on the tear duct issue, his lowest membrane before his nasal duct is closed. He said 90% of them open before 6 months of age which is the amount of time we have to wait anyways because they have to give them a general anesthetic. So we discussed some techniques in which we can encourage the duct to open, but if it hasn't in six months he will have surgery on those ducts.

Also the nurses' are now charting every little change in his oxygen levels as Dr. Topper likes specific documentation before prescribing Zantac or Prevacid to the preemies. Usually if Tennyson self recovers and doesn't set off the alarms then it's not documented because it's not a true desat, anything can cause this, hiccups, bowel movements, any level of reflux, etc. He sometimes has many of these during the feeding due to his reflux so they're probably going to put him on something later today unless he miraculously heals.

This morning he then after the eye exam took 40MLs however got to refluxing horribly and gagging worse than I'd seen so he was gavage fed the other 10, yes they increased his feedings yesterday to 50ML/1/2 hour.

He weighed in last night at 5lbs. 11.2 ounces, so he's looking rather like a full term baby. He's so cute though. Jeanne stated last night that his plan of care now is to do full feedings (every 3 hours if he's alert he receives a bottle, if not they'll gavage it) with him taking at least 75% of his 50 MLs. Once that's attained, they will take him to full feeds, every 3-4 hours where when he wakes if he's hungry he's fed (which will be nice because he can set his own pace and we can start to see how things will be once we're home) and he can eat as much or as little as he likes as long as at the end of the day he's still gaining.

After that they will work on weaning him off the oxygen and taking care of a few other minor things so hopefully if he doesn't have any major episodes, we'll be home in the next few weeks, Thank you Lord.

So all in all, he's had a wonderful 24 hours at this point so maybe we're getting this all figured out.

Thanks for all the prayers and for remembering us. Love you all.

Exalting the Excellent-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

I will walk by faith, even when I cannot see..

2007-11-06T07:30:00.000-08:00

we know God did not bring us this far (especially Tennyson) to leave us now, though it seems like lately we're taking one step forward and three steps back...please pray for me to trust Him with all things.

Okay so last night Tennyson desatted again quite a few times and between 11-11 he didn't finish a single bottle. So we were a bit disheartened last night. The nurses have been trying various things with him as some of them think he's still struggling with the reflux issue (as he's 35 weeks gestationally today they can officially start him on Zantac or Prevacid. They are thinking Zantac because it's less invasive but we'll see) or if he's just not pacing (by pacing we mean not pausing to take a breath between sucks) himself. Many think it's a combination of the two. So we started trying to do the pacing for him as they thought he wasn't doing it himself so after every 3-5 sucks we would take the bottle out of his mouth. That worked great until he figured out what was happening (even when they're so young and small, they're so quick to figure things out) and he started latching on harder and then when we would take it his sats would drop.

This morning however Debbie turned him to 28% oxygen up from 21% which we made it back down to last night (along with being turned back down to 1 liter of flow) and he took the entire bottle without a single episode. I kept trying to burp him about every 10 MLs however he would have none of it. During his last stretch I put the bottle back into his mouth and on the first big gulp he let out a huge burp and I thought for sure we were done for however he didn't even drop, I think he knew it was coming.

So all that to say, we're praying he's starting to figure this out and with the help of the Zantac hopefully he will be able to do this more consistently. They also say many times with the acid reflux medication (which isn't typically permanent as many preemies will grow out of it with time) it will help the preemies with their breathing and there will be less need for the oxygen so in my selfishness we're praying for that as well.

Tomorrow morning sometime Tennyson will be evaluated by Dr. E.L. Jordan an optamologist here in Joplin who volunteers his Wednesday mornings to evaluate the preemies for ROP. So Tennyson will have that done. The nurses aren't sure if Dr. Jordan will also do the evaluation for his tear ducts as they're still really oozing and matting his eyes closed as it's been so long since they've seen a case like this they can't remember if he does them. If he doesn't we will have to see a specialist in Springfield and probably have some surgical work done on his ducts as they're not improving with the measures that have been taken. All that to say please pray for his test(s) tomorrow.

He weighed in last night at 5lbs. 10.6 ounces so he's gaining still though not at the rates he was. One of our roommates Jai was the same age we were gestationally when she was born but was only 1lb. 15.5 ounces and now that we've slowed down with our gaining she's picking it up for us. The nurses keep teasing her and calling her Tennyson Jr. because she's got her pipes working and it's apparently pretty messy. Needless to say, we've made a name for ourself and Travis and I are thinking the four sets of bedding we got we may need the way this kid is.

Also last night it was discovered he has some congestion in his sinus cavities they believe, this could be the viral infection working it's way out, it could be a side effect of the acid reflux or it could be a regular cold though it hasn't masticized into his lungs at this time they're monitoring it closely. So please be praying for this as well.

On a note for Travis and I please pray for strength and that we would find opportunities to rest as we're terribly exhausted, everything is really starting to take its toll this week. Also I have been very hesitatnt to feed him lately as he's been desatting so much and I'm scared so please pray I will not let the fears overtake me so I can be there for our little boy.

Anyways thanks for the prayers, please keep his feeding, breathing, his congestion, his eye check and keeping infection at bay in your prayers. We know we have and are asking a lot but he's so close to getting to the next level that I'm selfishly asking for anyone to pray for him, not that you haven't been already. It's not that we think God isn't with him and could do immeasurably more than we ask or imagine, because we know He is and can but that we know Tennyson wouldn't be as far as he is today without your intercession. We will be indebted to you always.

Again thanks for riding this roller coaster with us, we would never make it without you. All our love.

Patient in the Great Physician-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Wonderful & Wacky Weekend

2007-11-05T08:13:00.000-08:00

This weekend has been so crazy...

Saturday I headed up home for a baby shower which was wonderful and as soon as I (do you like how I use I though I'm going to make Travis do it...)figure out how to post pictures sent to me online I'll upload those for your viewing pleasure, it was wonderful. We have to be the most spoiled people on the planet. Thank you all for your generosity and being such a blessing to us. It is not unappreciated and you will have thank yous coming, I promise though when I'm not sure...

Rachel, Ruthy, Moriah Bond and myself headed up to Union Star around 8:30 Saturday morning to spend the day being blessed by so many (with Travis calling in the intermitent to rub in how much fun he's having spending the whole day with Tenny :)). It was wonderful and we returned to Oronogo and had the truck unloaded around 10pm. Travis and I then headed to the NICU to spend the 11pm feeding with Mr. Tennyson. I had missed him so much however I think he and dad were rather content without me for the day. Travis let me feed Tennyson his bottle as he had a few times already that day. They had increased his feeds from four bottles per day to five while I was gone however had some satting issues so they had gone back to four. I started the bottle with him but he was satting so poorly I couldn't finish so Travis finished it with him. It was good to be home and be able to sleep in our own bed but we were so worried about Tennyson that we didn't sleep as well as we'd hoped. They refer to it as "Weak White Boy Syndrome" which means that while in the NICU, white males seem to be the weakest, they have less fight in them typically than all females and males of other races.

Sunday morning we attended the 9:45 service at CCO which was great, Mark Bond was leading worship with Martin and I don't know why but I love it when Mark leads, I think probably because of our days at Central but it just seems to me that's how it should be. Anyways we then came in for his 11am feeding and were told they were moving him to three bottles per shift which is six total for the day. So we fed him at 11am, ran to Panera bread and Target and then back for his 2pm feeding. We had decided to skip the 5pm and let Patti cover it as I had so much laundry to do if we were going to have any clean clothes this week but it ended up working out great.

Tennyson struggled through the feedings again and we weren't sure if it was the way we were holding him or what but he kept desatting and they had to keep turning his oxygen up higher and higher. Patti took the five and tried several different techniques however it's just him. I don't know if he's worn out or what. At 8pm we headed back and Jenny was our nurse (YEAH!) and we did his feeding, he didn't just desat he turned gray several times with numbers in the low 40s rather than 100. So he was turned to 100% oxygen (though he's been weaned down since them to 28%)and 1.5 liters of flow. It was heartbreaking and we were so flustered. She decided to NG tube or gavage feed him at 11pm and then try again at 2am. When I called her she said he was having the same problems then and again at 5am and 8am when I was here.

So needless to say the nurse practitioner hasn't seen him yet, but the nurse today said his order is as tolerated and she and Trav and I think we're pushing him to far too quickly so she's going to gavage feed at 11am and I'll kangaroo and then we'll see about doing bottles every other feeding or something which would be four total for the day.

He weighed in Saturday night at 5lbs. 10.3 ounces and then Sunday evening weighed it an 5 lbs. 10.4 ounces. So that was a tiny gain but a gain nonetheless...more praises...

He also had routine labs as it was Monday morning however all his results came back within normal range though his hematocrit was down some from last week, when it gets low that's when we get transfusions. So that's another praise that is above the transfusion level but please be praying that the levels would increase.

So if during your prayers, you think of it, please be praying for our breathing and eating as well as warding off infection. Know that we appreciate you more than we can say. Thanks for always being with us through this journey, though it seems uphill right now I know the Lord will sustain us and carry us until we're over this hump and always.

All our love.

Rejoicing in the Redeemer-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Pumping, and pumping, and pumping...

2007-11-02T13:55:00.000-07:00

...and then they tell me he's not going to be strong enough to nurse for at least 3-6 months after we go home because it requires so much energy that I'll have to continue it then as well. Apparently bottle feeding is much easier (in that it requires much less energy) so we'll have to continue that so he can maintain all his calories. For crying out loud, the things about being a mom no one mentions...I would do it forever for him if I had to, I say that now.

Today when I headed in to cuddle with our precious little boy, Tammy his nurse for today greeted me wondering if I would be interested in feeding him from a bottle. Of course I wanted to however didn't want to spoil Travis' time with him either so declined stating we would like to keep his scheduled feedings at 5pm and 11pm if possible so Travis can attend. Tammy said that would be fine however Joyce moved his feedings up to 3 times a day...so I partook of my moments with him.

I was able to do a little more of his care today as I typically change his sat probe, wash his face and change his diaper (I know they leave the dirty work to the moms). Today I was able to take his temperature, change his bed (more on this later) and change his facial tape so that was a bit exciting.

Anyways needless to say from the (more on this later) from above that while changing his diaper there was a blowout...all over the place. At least we're no longer in the isolette because those days were gross. So that's why I was able to change the bedding and everything, the nurse sure didn't want to do it.

Once I got him all settled down again (he doesn't really like diaper changes), we started to eat. Remember he gets 47 ML/Hr unless Harla's the nurse then it's 60MLs but that's besides the point. After about 16 MLs that little stinker went to sleep and we couldn't get him to wake back up to eat. Tammy said if I don't hold him against me (as many preemies get nuzzled in with mama and they smell mom and think it's time to sleep) so I have to hold him facing me which is a challenge if he's throwing a fit but he wasn't today, no he slept right through that. So then we unwrapped him as sometimes they get so warm they get to sleeping and all but to no avail he still wouldn't wake up. So with Tammy tickling his feet and me his face, we finally got him to wake up and in the next stretch took 20MLs. After a little burp he finished the bottle completely so that was another great feeding.

After his feeding I noticed he was acting funny so checked his pants and changed him again, I tell you there must be something about me that just makes this little guy perform. No sooner than I got the new one on he'd dirtied it again. In less that 40 minutes I'd changed 3 dirty diapers. After changing the last one I picked him up to get his new blanket situated to wrap him in (we always need new ones after feedings because we reflux so much) and he burped and it was wet and all down the front of my shirt, so needless to say, it was a great morning. I wouldn't have traded it, though the second shower was quick as I thought I would be late to work.

Anyways all of that to say he's doing great (praises, praises, praises), Tammy when I called her said they'd done his hearing test this afternoon and he passed with flying colors. We should have our eye examination sometime next week and they mentioned the "c" word yesterday (circumcision) which they usually only mention in the weeks before going home. I'm trying not to get myself too excited though we're stoked about the possibility. Now if we can only get our breathing down without the oxygen (I know I'm so demanding aren't I??).

Thanks again for all the prayers, know without your intercession he wouldn't be even close to this point. We love you all so very much.

Being loved on by the Lord-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Alive, Alert, Awake, Enthusiastic

2007-11-02T06:48:00.000-07:00

This is a moment made for worshipping,
Cause this is a moment I'm alive.
And this is a moment I was made to sing,
A song of living sacrifice.
For every moment that I live and breathe,
This is a moment made for worshipping.
-Moment Made for Worshipping, Steven Curtis Chapman

Okay, since we last met...

Many changes have taken place for Mr. Tennyson as he's doing so great. Jeanne took him off his caffeine (he was give an oral dosage via his NG tube once a day to keep his heart a going, just like many times we need a caffeine jolt aka Pepsi or cup of coffee to keep going, with these preemies many of them do as well) as caffeine can be a stomach irritant and she believes his desatting episodes are a direct result of him refluxing.

Also she discountinued his eye drops. She said if it was an infection in his eye it should be cleared up by now and if it's not the infection that's causing all the goop, we need to know. Last night his eyes looked much better and he wasn't taking the drops. The next alternative for the eyes would be a tear duct problem so they are using warm compresses and massaging his tear ducts to see if that helps, if not we will see a specialist who will do some surgery on his little ducts.

She said since he did so well with his feeding Wednesday night he could have a bottle once a shift so at 5pm yesterday (Thursday) I was able to feed him a bottle and him drink it for the first time which I have to say was awesome. It's kinda funny but you can feel (literally) their feeding running clear through them as they're not very big and their fat (padding) isn't very thick so you can feel the milk travel down into his stomach. It was wild!! Harla, was his day nurse and when we finished the bottle she said, "Oh goodness, that was all that was left in the bottle I had mixed up (they mix my milk with human milk fortifier to add calories) and I wasn't sure if he'd take all 47 MLs so I put the bottles remainder in there to be sure I could draw up additional in the syringe for his gavage (NG tube) feeding (if the preemies don't take their entire bottle the rest is drawn up and given via his NG tube as before). He drank all 60 MLs, Jeanne is going to kill me when she finds out." At this point in time, Jeanne isn't aware but out little guy is kinda a pig...he's getting fat and happy though so we don't mind.

When I came back in at 11pm (we were at our house working on a video Travis is creating about Tennyson with some computer glitches but that's another story for another day...) to feed him his second bottle, he was just a wailing, he was hungry and of course I was around 5 minutes late. I am never on time now, I can't imagine how late I'm going to be now that there are two of us. So I fed him then and he scarfed down 55 MLs. He did so great though and even acted hungry afterwards...we gave him his pacifier (he's doing so well with the non-nutrative) and he calmed down and fell asleep so I just held him sleeping until around 1:30 and then decided to head back to Oronogo to get Travis. Needless to say, we're running on fumes but it's wonderful.

We just can't believe how big he's getting, he weighed in last night at 5lbs. 7.1 ounces, he's just growing like a weed and filling out so much. He looks much more like a baby now, rather than just skin and bones as he did earlier. His skin isn't so wrinkly as there is now some fat behind it to make him look beefier. He is almost out of all his preemie clothing, everything is getting so hard to button because he's so long, so we're going to be adding some new items to his wardrobe probably next week.

Travis and I again can't say to you enough times how greatly we appreciate not only that you've been on this journey with us each step of the way and that you've been lifting us up but that you continue to remember us. We know when things go on for weeks and weeks it can be hard to be continually renewed and excited about them, so again thanks for continuing to lift us up, we know how easy it would be for you to not remember us as often as you obviously are or we wouldn't be doing so well. So thank you and Praise the Lord. Our hearts are yours...

Worshipping the Wonderful-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Good to the Last Drop...

2007-10-31T20:23:00.000-07:00

...and drink to the last drop we did.

All we can say is, "Thank you Lord, Thank you Lord, Thank you Lord..." Tonight during our 8pm feeding we were allowed (Travis actually) to try and bottle feed Tennyson again. Needless to say, 35 minutes and no desats later, he had downed the entire 50 MLs so it was wonderful. Okay so there's a video we wanted you to partake of for snipets of the event (it's very quick, the longer one wouldn't upload). Please note that I'm an amateur who didn't realize it took the audio as well. I guess we all learn something new everyday. However me and technology...I will try again tomorrow, for now enjoy the photos.

He weighed in at 5lbs. 6.1 ounces and did so great with the feeding. He kept falling asleep so we had to keep waking him up to finish which is why it took a while. Also he did great burping for dad, I so wish I'd caught the first one on film because it was wet, loud and well awesome if I do say so myself.

Again all praises to our God and King for all He has done and continues to do in our little mans life. Thanks for taking the time to pray for us and for Tennyson, you make all the difference in the world.

Praising the Potter -

Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Reminder when feeling helpless...

2007-10-31T08:29:00.000-07:00

Thanks Hollie for reminding me again...

Jesus is visiting with the father of a demon-possess boy...stay with me here, no I do not believe Tennyson is demon possessed however this reminded me that when we as parents, are feeling helpless and unable to do anything in our own strength which too often I find myself trying to do, all we have to do is cry out to Him and He will hear our cries. The answers that we receive are not always those we wanted however He is good and faithful and just and will not leave or forsake us regardless of our circumstances.

I keep crying out to God though He knows my heart, assuring Him that I'm not doubting His sovereignty but that I'm just overwhelmed with everything. Then I wonder to myself if I have to assure Him I'm trusting in Him, am I really??

Mark 9:21-24, 29 (The Message)
21-22He asked the boy's father, "How long has this been going on?"
"Ever since he was a little boy. Many times it pitches him into fire or the river to do away with him. If you can do anything, do it. Have a heart and help us!"

23Jesus said, "If? There are no 'ifs' among believers. Anything can happen."

24No sooner were the words out of his mouth than the father cried, "Then I believe. Help me with my doubts!"

Too often in my requests I am asking if He sees fit to or if it's His will, to cure our little one of all his ailments. When I am praying my 'ifs,' what am I saying to God?? I pray I would be like the child's father (ultimately I would love to never doubt His will however know better than that, though I know His ways are better than mine) and instantaneously, before the words are finished leaving Jesus' mouth cry out for His help.

When the disciples questioned Jesus as to why they were unable to cast the demon out of the child, they too were reminded that they cannot do in their own strength that which only God can do.

29He answered, "There is no way to get rid of this kind of demon except by prayer."

Thanks for listening and for praying...love you guys!

A thing of the past...

2007-10-31T07:48:00.000-07:00

Preemie clothes that is. Tennyson is growing so quickly that we're outgrowing the preemie clothing. They have even discussed putting him in newborn sized diapers in the near future because he's so long and getting rather rotund.

So we will have a few (very few) days left that we're able to wear preemies and after that it's officially onto big boy clothes. Tennyson weighed in last night at 5 lbs. 5.7 ounces. He is doing better though there are still no answers at this time around why he's spitting up so much and why he's so cranky as he's not feeling well.

He is looking rather swollen as well but that's to be expected I guess, he's retaining water around his eyes and his feet so he will probably receive another lasik today.

He's keeping his sats rather high, since 7am has only had one episode and recovered himself though we're on 1 liter of oxygen at 21% so if he can maintain that the rest of the day this afternoon he may get moved down to 1/2 liter. His coloring this morning is better, he's looking less orange and splotchy so that's another plus.

There was discussion last night around trying to feed by bottle again today if he continues to improve though I haven't at this time heard a final decision around whether that will happen and if so when.

He is in a new outfit this morning from when we left last night as he had another bad vomitting bit last night and then this morning had two mouthfuls however I caught it during our non-nutrative time and so saved the outfit he's in now.

A praise in the midst of all these complications is that in the new big boy bed, he's able to maintain his temperature much better than most (I think he gets that hot-blooded nature from his daddy though I'm sure he's warm because God is holding him in His hands).

Please continue praying for his breathing, his digestion and infection to stay away...you know the same ole, same ole, things I ask prayer for each day and will probably continue to request until long after we're home.

I cannot thank each of you enough for taking this journey with us. I know it must be hard to remember and to follow our changes as we're in our sixth week here. I know I'm constantly asking for prayers for the same things over and over and that you're probably tired of hearing my belly achin' but thanks for staying with us. We know and I hope you know that he's only doing so well because you're lifting us up and interceding on our behalf. You don't know how much that means and how greatful we are for each of you.

Philippians 1: 3-6 (The Message)
Every time you cross my mind, I break out in exclamations of thanks to God. Each exclamation is a trigger to prayer. I find myself praying for you with a glad heart. I am so pleased that you have continued on in this with us, believing and proclaiming God's Message, from the day you heard it right up to the present. There has never been the slightest doubt in my mind that the God who started this great work in you would keep at it and bring it to a flourishing finish on the very day Christ Jesus appears.

All our love and prayers.

Yearning for more of Yahweh-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

I will praise you in the storm...

2007-10-30T14:57:00.000-07:00

This was passed onto me by a dear from Lisa Smith from St. Joseph and really speaks more than I can today...

"'Learning to trust God with a life as fragile as a baby born so early is one of the hardest trials one can face. Seems silly when I think about it. The God who cut a dry path through a raging sea; the God who took a lowly shepherd boy, five stones and a sling shot and made him a warrior; the God who delivered Peter out of a guarded cell; is the same God who cupped his massive hands gently around a frail body and breathed life. The same God who laid his hands upon the lepers, the outcasts, the lame placed his hands upon my heart and said "Fear not, only believe.'

Every time I look at my precious son I remember the past, yet I can't help but think of the future. He was the best teacher I ever had. He taught me to have faith, he taught me that God cares, he taught me that we are not here by mistake or chance, but by the grace and love of God. Most importantly, he taught me humility. For apart from God I can do nothing, but with him nothing will be impossible. We are not in control, but when we loosen the grip from those things we cling so tightly to, his tender voice will cut through the icy sting of disappointment and give us the courage, strength and faith to face the trials of life head on.

One day someone asked me if I believed in miracles. I thought for a moment. 'No.' I answered to the surprise of the one who asked. Then, I continued, 'I believe in the God of miracles.'

Aren't we so very blessed to know the God of miracles, up close and personal!"

This has been a very hard day for us and for Tennyson most of all. Last night around 4am when I called to check on him I was informed that he had been returned to his oxygen, this morning we were at 1 liter and 23%. He had quite a few desats last night and just couldn't get his breathing under control. He also had an episode last night of major vomitting and this morning was having a terrible time keeping everything down. He also dropped weight last night though not much, just to 5lbs. 3.2 ounces.

All these things combined lead them to believe he has an infection somewhere however they are unable to find the infection. His CBC and CRT have come back fine so they're unable at this time to locate what's the matter. He has also been crying quite a bit, and we never cry.

We are just broken, not knowing what to do for this precious one. Please pray for Tennyson as he's struggling now with breathing and digestion and just feeling terrible, hence the crying. We also found out the antibiotic they were using to treat his eye infection treats staph E, not staph A which is what we have so hopefully we'll have something changed up tonight.

We were moved to the big boy bed yesterday which means we get to hold him as often as we want however those priviledges as well as non-nutrative and attempts to feed him with anything but the NG tube were removed from us today. Please pray for us as this is really hard for me because it was not what I had planned. I was sure we were going to be eating soon and on our way home in the next week or so...so much for my plans, Tennyson and God have others that will be far better than mine anyways.

We love you guys and today can't thank you enough for your prayers, he needs them now. Know God is holding Tennyson, us and you in His loving hands.

Thankful to the Teacher-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

The Incredible Hulk

2007-10-29T08:10:00.000-07:00

that's how big he seems to be...he's growing like a weed still.

Sunday morning we went to the 9:45 service at CCO which was great however we snuck in late and had to leave a bit early as Tennyson's schedule is at 8 and 11. He is doing great, he's hovering a bit with his oxygen saturation however they haven't put him back on the oxygen at this time.

Travis and I finished up his nursery and got his book shelf with all his books (which consist of many of my old titles) set up, along with his swing, Air Jordans and Chuck Taylors but otherwise the room looks pretty empty. The nurses here at Freeman keep teasing us about how laid back we are about these things because they think he'll be coming home in the next few weeks (praise the Lord).

Last night we had the weekly weight (which is done daily), length measured and head circumference which is always fun for him...I don't know why but Tennyson doesn't really like to be all sprawled out in the cold air, naked on a scale, can't honestly say I blame him. He weighed in at 5lbs. 3.5 ounces, was 19 1/4 inches long and his head was 12 3/4 inches around. So he's grown quite a bit since we started this trip five weeks ago. I can hardly believe he's five weeks old today, doesn't seem like it's been that long to me (though I'm sure Travis would disagree, we couldn't believe how wonderful our bed felt this weekend. We truly appreciate the Ronald McDonald house and all they do, but there's just something about being at home).

Travis and I also found that our puppies in our absence have degressed back into some old habits that we had broken them of (by we I mean Travis) when we first moved down here, such as digging, running the fence lines and barking. They are so starved for attention and we feel terrible for them and now for the poor neighbors. This may seem like a silly thing to some but please pray for our puppies and for the transition this has been for them as well as us.

Anyways to today...Tennyson is officially 5 weeks old and looks so great.

This morning again they tried him on a bottle and he did great with the non-nutrative or sucking portion however just doesn't have that swallowing part down yet. He would spit some back out, swallow some and then choke a bit. He did that a couple times and then I think got the hang of it but began to desat as he wasn't doing the breathing portion. So we stopped that and Maura (the speech therapist) will return tomorrow and we will try again. She was going to write an order for him to be bottle fed (as much as he would tolerate, which today was 2MLs) once daily however he's getting a lot of other changes today so she will return at 11am tomorrow and we will try again. They will also be putting the oxygen back on him for his feeding attempt tomorrow to help with the desatting until he gets everything figured out. Once we finished however they fed him through the NG tube and we gave him his pacifier however that wasn't what he wanted he wanted that bottle back so I'm hoping that's a good sign.

The nurses really thought he would take off with this and so did I so I was a bit disheartened as we're so close to getting to go home once he gets the feedings down so I know this isn't a setback by any means, he's still doing wonderfully but for some reason it feels to me as if it is. Please pray for me.

(Again thank you Hollie and Paul)
Satan's angel did his best to get me down,
what he in fact did was push me to my knees.
No danger then of walking around high and mighty!

At first I didn't think of it as a gift, and begged God to remove it.
Three times I did that and then he told me,
My grace is enough, it's all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness.

Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen.
I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift.
It was a case of Christ's strength moving in on my weakness.
Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer,
these limitations that cut me down to size -
abuse, accidents, opposition, Bad breaks.

I JUST LET CHRIST TAKEOVER!
And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become.

2 Corinthians 12:8-10

Joyce the nurse practitioner on duty today made a few changes for our little man that I'm stoked about. She increased his feedings to 45ML/1/2 HR which is pretty routine however he's graduating from an isolette today to an open bassinette which means he can pretty much be held everytime we come over rather than just four times a day and for limited amounts of time. He's been really hovering with his satting so we haven't been getting him out the past few days anyways (I don't know if Friday really wore him out or what) but we've been doing minimal things with him however now it won't be such a change from his bed as he will have to begin regulating his own temperature. The isolettes are heated however now it won't be. This will be a major culture shock to this little boy but his mama will hold him to keep him warm (and so will many of the nurses) if I have to...please be praying for him during this transition as it's going to take quite a bit more of his energy to keep his body warm and with how he's been doing with the oxygen saturation they're not sure how much extra energy he has to give as it appears to be taking all of it to breathe.

His eyes are still oozing quite a bit and they're wondering if the virus like many other viruses (it's stapholocaccus arius (mispelled I'm sure) that's in his eyes which is staph off our skin) laid dormant for the few days when his eyes looked so good and is now rearing it's ugly head again so they're watching it closely but please continue to pray for this infection specifically and that infection will stay at bay.

Another praise however is that I talked to Dr. Holmes office in Neosho and they will take us as a new patient so we got the physician we were wanting and even though it's a bit farther many people have reaffirmed to us that this is the right decision as a good pediatrician can make all the difference in the world.

So after all the updates and my belly-achin' thanks for making it to the end of the post. Know that we're so indebted to you for all your time and prayers...we love you all so dearly and know we wouldn't be making it through this time without you.

Blessed by the Beautiful ONE-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

As big as a sack of potatoes...

2007-10-27T20:35:00.000-07:00

Eating My IV...crazy little bugger!!

...as heavy at least.

After the exhausting day of pictures, Tennyson was weighed, measured and definately not found wanting (reference to A Knights Tale in case you're wondering). He weighed in at 5 lbs. 0.04 ounces so we broke the five pound mark and then today weighed 5 lbs. 1.1 ounces. It's incredible how quickly he's growing. Many of his preemie outfits are still large enough around however are not going to be long enough much longer. We measured him and he was 18 inches long, so he's grown roughly 7/8 of an inch in the last week which is amazing.

He's got such a great personality and he's so funny. He's started this week communicating with us in a brand new way. He's grunting...and not the I have to or am using the restroom at this moment grunting but just different grunts now and again. He's so precious, but hilarious as well.

As you can tell from the pictures he was really wide eyed last night and exhausted at the same time. We did our non-nutrative but after that he was so tired he even slept through a large portion of his kangaroo time with daddy.

Jeanne the nurse practitioner visited with us this morning and stated after his blood transfusion, his hematicrit was registering at 39.6 and they want it to be 40 but she thought he'd be able to make that up on his own. Also some of the tests for infection came back negative so they believe the viral infection to be rather mild and hopefully contained mostly to his eyes, though his right eye has again started oozing, so we'll see. Please continue praying for the infection to stay at bay and his body to continue fighting...

He's also looking so good she believes they'll begin bottle feeding him next week on Monday or Tuesday (since that's officially when we become 34 weeks gestationally) and then once he can take a bottle for one feeding a shift he will move into his BIG boy bed, meaning an open bassinette so we're praying for that transition as well.

Tonight he kangarooed with Travis for a bit though he was moving back and forth quite a bit with his saturation so we put him back early. He seems to be really exhausted and we and the nurses are not sure if that's because he's had so much happening lately or if he's having to work rather hard because he's still off the oxygen so they're monitoring that really closely. Please be praying for his little lungs to continue developing and working hard.

To leave you with...a funny story from last night. Our favorite night nurses, Dana and Jenny were finally working the same night and since Jenny worked Thursday night, she had him last night and boy at the end of the night was she wishing she'd have let Dana have him...

When I got there this morning I was handed a gallon ziploc bag containing three of Tennyson's outfits with the following note attached from Jenny stating, "Lindsay and Travis - Sorry that Tennyson went through 3 outfits tonight, but I have officially (reluctantly) been initiated into Tennyson's poop hall of fame (SMILE)...I got pictures. Jenny P.S. Dana just watched and laughed hysterically."

Needless to say, he's now gotten just about everyone and earning himself quite a reputation. They said this morning the night nurses were talking about how it just kept coming (that's what they get for taking him off of the iron and giving him a transfusion).

Thank you for taking the time again to pray for our little man (we can't say this enough), you all mean the world to us. Thank you for taking an active part in the care and life our Tennyson.

We love you all-

Joining you in Jehovah-

Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Farmer John

2007-10-26T13:23:00.001-07:00

Here are the photos of our littler farmer, he sure looked precious (but he always does, doesn't he). As you may notice he has grown rather rapidly in the past week and apparently his legs are a bit shorter than Kits however his torso is longer (note the hairholders holding his suspenders up, yes I know hairholders fix everything).

As for an update for today...this morning all was well, we were told yesterday that his hematocrit numbers were still low and were to be retested last night. If the number was 25 or lower he would be getting a blood transfusion today (normal is 40 in preemies), ours tested 26.5. Our nurse stated that many times in preemies when they're right on the line, once they receive a transfusion they perk up and do so much better with things like their breathing, etc. The nurse practitioner, Jeanne stated that his heartrates have been rather high which leads her to believe he's having to work too hard to get his blood flowing all over so a blood transfusion is inevitable at this point.

This afternoon before heading to lunch Jeanne called my cell phone (telephone calls from the nurse practitioner or physician are usually not something you want to receive). Jeanne stated after reviewing his chart that he will be receiving another blood transfusion today (actually he's probably receiving it right now and we're just praying they were able to put the IV in his hand and not in his head), and they will be discontinuing his iron injections (to help the hematocrit production) for at least a week, she was also writing orders to discontinue his oxygen as she believes he's able to do without it, and they will be giving him a lasik following his blood transfusion to help him get rid of any additional water he may be carrying.

Then came the news we were unprepared for...

Jeanne stated that his CBC (complete blood count) from this morning showed that he had a viral infection (which of course is the kind that they are unable to treat with antibiotics, we just have to watch it run its course, which will hopefully be very swift). She stated she wasn't super concerned with it right now and it could very possibly be in conjunction with the eye infection that he has had recently. This however is not something they will be taking lightly, he will be monitored more closely and will have more blood tests done tomorrow.

I know this isn't the end of the world, and this has been a great day however it's hard to hear when he's appearing to do so well that he has an infection which in the NICU is a major setback. This type of infection is something that a term baby would be able to handle very easily however with underdeveloped lungs and systems in general it will be more of a struggle for us.

Please be praying for all these changes for our little boy (the lungs with them taking his oxygen away, the additional blood transfusion (and the possible infection that could come from the IV site), his retaining water and his poor little body fighting this infection. These will be harder days ahead of us as we've not experienced an infection at this time.

Thanks for taking the time to share in this journey with us, we love you guys and thank the Lord for you...

All our love.

Leaning on the Lifegiver-

Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

AND THE WINNER IS.............

2007-10-26T13:06:00.000-07:00

The Neonatal Intensive Care unit at Freeman Medical Center has a Halloween costume contest annually for the children staying in the NICU. There is no theme for the parents and the only limitations are that the childrens' beds and monitors must still be functional and accessible to the nursing staff. You are also not allowed to put make up or stickers on the children.

Needless to say, Travis and I were excited when we were first told about the contest and decided of course that Tennyson should be a little farmer. We carried this idea over to the grandparents and Granny had a great time creating the basic layout for the tractor as well as coming up with the perfect costume out of Kit's American Girl railroad outfit so we wouldn't have to purchase additional pieces.

So alas, the attached pictures are of the contest which took place this morning in the NICU. Tennyson was named the first prize winner by administration at Freeman. It was great to see so many administrators and staff members at Freeman as they do the annual parade through the NICU observing the costumes. We can't comment much on what the other children were dressed up as because we're not really allowed to just roam around so all I can say is two of our roommates were dressed up, one as a boxer and one as a pumpkin.

Tennyson did so great, he was wide awake during the entire parade and everyone just kept commenting on how precious and beautiful he was (though we already knew that). He was photographed by many including Children's Miracle Network, Angie (who is the photographer that takes the photos of the babies in the NICU, you've seen tons of her wonderful work and will see more once we receive them) and was filmed by KSN (channel 16 in Joplin) for tonights news broadcase so if you're in the Joplin area, be sure to check it out.

Travis and I had a great time as everyone was praising our little guy for the isolette decorations but even more for how precious he was, it was amazing!!

Anyways this is just the first post...there will follow some of him in his outfit.

You take the good with the bad...

2007-10-25T07:57:00.000-07:00

Tennyson is doing wonderfully, don't take that wrong from the title. I am just trying to find him a pediatrician as we'll have weekly visits with them for a while after being discharged and none of the Freeman physicians (except for three I was told not to call and one who doesn't have hospital priviledges) are taking new patients...even though we have insurance. It's crazy I am not sure what to do. One of the physicians who was highly recommended sees patients in Neosho but that's almost 45 minutes-an hour from our house. I am not sure what to do...any advice anyone???

Anyways Jeanne, the nurse practitioner said yesterday during her assessment of Tennyson that she thought he was looking a bit puffy (like he was retaining some water) however today he's looking much better. Last night he weighed in at 4lbs. 12.4 ounces so we're guessing he was retaining quite a bit of water which is why he gained only 0.01 ounces rather than the 2 or so he'd been gaining (makes me wonder how long he'd been retaining). Otherwise however he's doing great.

They started the eye drops and his eyes are looking great. Before they had a glazed or glossy look to them but that's even gone away now, along with the discharge he was having (makes us wonder how long the infection had been building unbeknownst (is that a word) to us).

Last night he did really well during his time with Travis and I however Travis didn't kangaroo as they were doing an admit (another new roommate, however she was term so she won't be there long) so we were behind the curtain with lots of commotion and they warned us we could be asked to leave at any time so we didn't get him all riled up, just held him but he did so great and it was wonderful.

They didn't change his feeding yesterday but reduced the amount of human milk fortifier they were giving him so they're weaning him off the additional calories so that's another great thing, closer to going home...in a couple weeks...

Today we have Candy and she's such a great nurse, she's always teaching us something new about their development or things to observe and what the babies signals are telling us. She was with us during non-nutrative and this was by far the best one, he did so great for like 1/2 an hour. Before we were lucky to get five minutes of his time, she was impressed and if I had known some of the things she had taught me she figures we would have been soaring along before now. Either way he's doing great and he and I are both starting to get this all figured out.

One thing that I guess he's had for awhile but no one ever mentioned to Travis and I is that he has a heart murmur. During Jeanne's assessment yesterday she mentioned she could still hear his murmur and I think I kinda freaked. She was surprised we were unaware as I guess he's had it for quite a while, since the PDA closed I believe. She said they're very common in preemies and his is very small but still it's there so we will especially be praying for that and if you'd join us that'd be great.

Tennyson of course is still perfect and beautiful, Travis and I are running home tonight to get some things ready for tomorrow's big TODO so hopefully we'll post some new pictures tonight, we'll see if we get everything done in our allotted time constraints. We have Jenny as our nurse tonight so that's awesome!!

Yesterday was the weekly Ronald McDonald house meeting and it's so great to get to know some of the other families in the house. When I first got there, Sarah was there for help to guide me and let me know when I didn't understand things what they were really saying or to give me pointers on things when I had questions. She was just there, with me, experiencing all of this and I don't know early on what I would have done without her. Now there's another new family there and I think the Lord put me there (just as He did Sarah for me) to be His light to them and help them though this difficult time. I also found out yesterday that in July they're having the tenth anniversary of the Ronald McDonald house so it will be great to get together with everyone and see at that time how much the kiddos have changed.

Please pray for them as their little boy was 24 weeks, an entire month earlier than ours. They are so precious so please upon remembering them lift them up.

Thanks again for joining us on this journey, you don't know what it means to us to know you're there interceding for us. Words cannot express our gratitude. Someday when we get home and I have more time (haha!) I will try and get birth announcements and thank yous out to you all. Please make sure we have your address, you can email me at carryinthecross@hotmail.com for birth announcements.

We love you all and thank you for the prayers.

Safe in the arms of the Savior-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Praises to our God and King...

2007-10-24T07:24:00.000-07:00

It has been a crazy couple of days in the NICU with so many new babies being born and so many that have been there leaving. Our little roommate Darcy was able to room in with her parents last night and though they were moved around quite a bit and kicked out of their room early this morning they are so excited about going home and so precious to us. We're going to miss them just as we miss Klayton who was our buddy and whose mom was my saving grace until last week when that little scoot headed home (he's doing great still by the way). It's amazing to me how attached you can become to people in such a short amount of time and the friendships that you make and will continue to build long after we've left the hospital.

Anyways as to the praises...thank you all for praying for little Matthew. Division of Family Services brought him a family in last night, I can't believe it but God didn't tarry on that prayer request at all and we're so thankful. Continue praying for them if you remember.

As for Mr. Tennyson, I thought he was a heavyweight yesterday but he weighed in last night at 4lbs. 12.3 ounces (we're almost five pounds) and he's receiving feeds of 40ML/1/2 HR so they moved up the timing on those as well.

He seems to be really tolerating everything well and he's down to 1/4 liter of Oxygen and satting very highly right now so praises there as well.

I mentioned his possible eye infection yesterday and last night his left eye (which was the healthy one) was looking rather icky and all last night. Jenny our nurse took the issue to Dr. Porte because even though they'd cultured one, it was highly likely that the infection, if there was one had spread to the other eye. Dr. Porte wanted to be proactive rather than waiting for the 72 hour culture so they started him on eye drops in both eyes and they're looking much better this morning.

It's amazing how much he's changed lately, he's getting his own personality, he's growing and everything is taking shape...he finally has a tooshie, rather than just bones covered in skin with a crack. The nurse practitioner, Jeanie who was there the night he was born has been off for the past week and she couldn't believe how much larger he is. She said yesterday he was too big for an isolette and she would bet that next Tuesday he will be in an open bassinette so that's huge. An open bassinette means I can walk in and pick him up to hold him anytime I want...the nurses can't wait either as they love the 2am feeding when we're not here and they are able to hold him. It's also another step towards heading home.

He hasn't been given another bottle yet however I think if Mara is here today it will probably happen, that makes me rather nervous because he's doing so well with non-nutrative and with his pacifier so I know he can do the suck portion but if he ever gets anything he chokes while swallowing. Those bottle they don't really have to suck on, the milk just runs out so I am worried he will choke so I am hoping maybe that they wait until he's the recommended age which is 34 weeks (which will be next Tuesday) before trying again, but we'll see.

They are saying Tennyson is doing better than they could have expected and now they're just waiting developmentally for him to get to the point where a full term baby would be so probably a couple more weeks!! It's hard to think that way because it's so exciting but there is still so much to be done. The nurses keep asking us what we have for him and we say, a swing, a pair of Chuck Taylors, a pair of Air Jordans and his preemie clothes that are under his isolette. They just laugh and say we may want to be thinking about that.

The thought is both exciting and nerve-wracking. I can't imagine taking him home as I know we will be total nervous wrecks however we also can't wait for him to be home and with us so we can hold him whenever we want, and start to develop our own routines. It will be bittersweet to leave the NICU though we're still a few weeks away but something I find myself often thinking about.

We are hoping that we will be able to get Tennyson's room all cleaned out and disinfected tonight and this weekend, so that we will be able to start putting things in there as we acquire them.

Please continue to keep us in your prayers, and continue praying that infection will stay at bay and he will just continue developing. Pray for his little lungs and for his suck, swallow, breathe reflex as those are our next big obstacles.

Again we're indebted to and love you all.

Living in the Light-
Travis, Lindsay and Tennyson Myers

We're a Heavyweight

2007-10-23T07:52:00.000-07:00

so many premies are sent home weighing less than we do already...

I can hardly believe it but Tennyson weighed in last night at 4lbs. 10.6 ounces??!! Can you believe how big he's gotten, we sure can't.

Things are holding steady here on the NICU front...Tennyson is doing great with his Kangaroo times and they think he can tolerate them closer together so we're non-nutritive at 8am and 8pm and kangarooing at 11am and 11pm...YEAH!! No more 4am mornings for at least a while, when he gets to feeding every time by bottle or breast we (or at least I) will be there every three hours to feed him so we have a few more days/weeks of normalcy if you can call it that (it's as normal as we get right now)...

Yesterday he had a lot of drainage from his right eye so last night they cultured it. It could be one of two things, either a clogged tear duct or infection. Many times infections will look to escape from the easiest venue and that many times in premies is their eyes. We are praying it's only a tear duct however it was cultured and initially showed no growth. They will review the growth at 24, 48 and 72 hours to see what develops so please keep that in your prayers.

He is up to 40ML/HR on his feedings and seems to be tolerating those well. He is still on 1/2 liter of oxygen at 23%. He's really doing great, he just doesn't seem to want them to turn that oxygen down to 1/4 liter (which is as low as it goes so I can't really complain that he's at 1/2 a liter, he's really tolerated everything so well and doing so great). I can only be thankful for the provision and protection the Lord has provided our little guy through everything so far. We know He's holding him in the palms of His hands.

We want to again thank you for taking the time to visit this blog and remembering us in your thoughts and prayers. The Lord has truly blessed us with friends and family who are holding us together, so again thank you.

I know there are many things we've asked you to pray for however please keep in your prayers, our roommate Matthew. He was born three weeks before Tennyson and is doing pretty well however has no family. Please pray that the Lord will lift up a family that will love him wholeheartedly, as the nurses are doing all they can but premies do so much better with affection from their parents, there are many things nurses just can't provide for these kiddos. The entire situation is so heart-wrenching and it just breaks Travis and I every time we're here. We are dying just to hold him in our arms however that of course is not allowed. So please pray that a family will rise up for this little precious one that will love him and raise him up in the Lord.

Thanks for all your prayers, and for sharing your hearts with us.

Praising the Perfector-
Travis, Lindsay and Tennyson Myers

Totally Forgot

2007-10-22T13:21:00.000-07:00

His test results from this morning were to show his blood cell counts and how well he's producing red blood cells. All tests came back very positively except for his hemoglobin levels which were low, therefore he's anemic. So they are giving his doses of iron during his feedings via NG tube and this is a sign we will pretty much definately have another blood transfusion however if they can keep him producing as he is until we get ready to head home they will probably do it the day before he's discharged to be sure he's as healthy as he can be before leaving the NICU. They don't want to do too many transfusions as each one is an increased risk for infection.

Please be praying for his blood cell development and counts, and know we're indebted to you for everything.

Love you guys-
Travis, Lindsay and Tennyson Myers

One Month Today

2007-10-22T12:35:00.000-07:00

Tennyson is now a month old, can you believe it, we sure can't. Everyone said while in the NICU it would feel like an eternity however when you look back later it will seem like a blink of an eye. I know it's been hectic and crazy for us but I truly don't feel as if Tennyson has been gracing us with his presence for an entire month. It must sound strange but the time sure has flown.

He is doing wonderfully, he's weighing in at 4lbs. 8.3 ounces and is now 17 1/4 inches long so he is growing quite quickly. He's on 1/2 liter of oxygen at 23% and satting wonderfully. This morning during kangaroo care, we didn't get below 98 so that was wonderful therefore maybe he will be turned down again soon. They are not however going to remove the oxygen again until after his feedings are up and running. He needs to be receiving feeds by mouth (not NG tube) his eight times per day. Many times in preemies with learning to suck, swallow and breathe many struggle with the breathing portion and in desatting so they are planning on leaving it on until his feeds are successful all day so basically until right before we go home.

He's so precious and such a good boy, we are truly so blessed to be his parents. He hasn't made hardly any noise in this first month however is starting to find his voice which the nurses attribute to increasing lung function so it's strange to say it but hearing him cry is so wonderful, it's almost like music to your ears. They say fussing means getting ready to go home. Though we have a couple weeks left, we're really excited to see how he grows these next few weeks.

Hollie McDowell reminded me or informed me the other day of the following... "In a sense, it's easier to deal with the NICU when you're baby is really sick and needing machines to do most of the work for them. When they're really sick, the thought of bringing your baby home doesn't even cross your mind. The only thing on your mind is Thank you Jesus, Thank you Jesus, Thank you for keeping my baby alive. Then as your baby starts to get better you start thinking about how good they're doing. You start dreaming about taking them home. You start wondering how long it will be. The huge gains their making don't seem to be coming quick enough and the tiny set backs seem to linger on as you wait and wait and wait."

Travis and I were discussing these thoughts from her email as Friday night I was crying as we left the hospital and headed back to Oronogo (ironically called our vacation home since we're only there two nights a week)...Tennyson is now doing so well and his progress is now measured in the ounces he gains, the bowel movements he has and the amount of oxygen he's on. These may sound like many things to many of you however when we were intially worried about all his body systems being unable to function this doesn't seem like so many worries and I just want to be able to hold him so badly, all day long and can't wait until that's a reality. Now that he's doing so much better it is becoming so much harder to leave him there. Many parents it seems find it easier when they're babies get to this point to stay away from the NICU because it's so hard to leave and leave him now...strange how the tables have turned.

Don't get me wrong, I don't mean to sound whiney, we're just so blessed and so thankful for all the progress he has and continues to make, it is amazing to watch the reactions of the hospital staff as they are calling Tennyson as we do so often a miracle. No one expected him to do nearly as well as he has and he just keeps progressing and we know it's only because the Lord has our precious one (who is actually His precious one, given to us for a short period of time) in His arms, holding Him constantly to His chest in comfort that he continues to do so well.

Again our hearts are yours in thanks for your time and commitment to prayer for our family.

Justified by Jehovah-
Traivs, Lindsay and Tennyson Myers

Our Little Farmer Boy

2007-10-21T05:39:00.001-07:00

Sorry in posting the other photos ran across these and couldn't resist...

Happy Grandparents Day!!

2007-10-21T05:29:00.000-07:00

Here are some photos of the first time Granny, Poppie and Nana Jo were able to hold Tennyson. My dad (Papa) was in the field, harvesting beans and unable to be with us this weekend but I'm sure he'll partake next time he's down here.

Also they worked (with Travis) on a project for Tennyson...be sure to check the blog Friday afternoon for it's unveiling.

He's doing great, down to 0.5 liters of Oxygen and satting well. He's such a miracle.

Love you all, thanks for the prayers and the time...can't say thanks enough.

God is Good, all the time!!

Travis, Lindsay and Tennyson Myers

And for our adoring fans...

2007-10-19T12:32:00.001-07:00

Isn't he beautiful???

Some would call it a setback,

2007-10-19T11:28:00.000-07:00

we call it a miracle...

Tennyson as you may know from yesterday's blog was taken off his oxygen much earlier than expected with the caution he may have to go back on it. He was without oxygen from 8:30 to 3:15 yesterday but then they returned the cannula to his nose. The respiratory therapist said he wasn't desatting however was hovering around the low level of where they want him to be. Seven hours though, that's a tremendous blessing that was so unexpected.

Needless to say however he was exhausted from all the hard work the rest of the day. At 5pm during our non-nutrative he was unable to keep his eyes open so we wrapped him in blankets, gave him his pacifier (they're trying to get him to take it during all feeding to associate sucking with food) and I rocked him for the hour. It was a slice of Heaven I'm sure...I decided today when I'm able to hold him, those are the moments made for worshipping, there is nothing greater.

During his 8pm feeding while Travis was at praise team practice, I was able to give him a bath and weigh him all by myself (with no nurses assistance) which was frightening and wonderful at the same time. Jenny said they're going to try and let us start doing as much as we can so we'll be prepared when we go home. It was also rather convenient that we bathe him on the scale as he's so little there's no where else really to bathe him well. Anyways after the bath and him smelling so wonderful (thank you Johnson & Johnson), I was able again to swaddle and rock him before Travis' kangaroo time.

Around 9:30 I headed back to Ronald McDonald and got things ready for this morning and headed to bed. Travis got back around 10 and headed to the hospital for 'daddy time' while I caught some shut eye. He got back around 12:30 as I was finishing my pumping so we visited for a bit and he said Tenny was a bit squirmy at first however did wonderful through the hour once he found a comfortable position. That was a great time for them... Mr. Josh if you're reading this know that Travis tells Tennyson each evening about fishing so make sure that boats ready when he's able to go out...maybe in a couple years right??

Also dad (like he reads these but mom pass the message along) they talk each evening about riding in the combine next year during harvest so be sure to save some combine time for the weekends...:)

Anyways he's weighing in at 4 lbs. 5.5 ounces (so he gained 2.1 ounces yesterday) and is just growing like a weed. A coworker Quiauna brought in her three month old baby, Gabriel today and boy Tennyson is still very little however looks so grown up to us.

Again and as always thanks and we're indebted to you for all the prayers, cards and thoughts of us. You don't know how much you mean and how influencial you are in his progress. Can't wait until next summer when we can show him off...

Love you all!

Amazed by the Amazing-
Travis, Lindsay and Tennyson Myers

1 Chronicles 16:8-12 (The Message) Thanks again Hollie...
Thank God! Call out his Name!
Tell the whole world who he is and what he's done!
Sing to him! Play songs for him!
Broadcast all his wonders!
Revel in his holy Name, God-seekers, be jubilant!
Study God and his strength, seek his presence day and night;
Remember all the wonders he performed,
the miracles and judgments that came out of his mouth.

He is the air we breathe,

2007-10-18T10:15:00.000-07:00

and many times I think he's doing the breathing for us.

Tennyson weighed in at 4lbs. 3.4 oz. last night so we gained another ounce and he had a great time kangarooing with daddy. He kept ripping his cannula out of his nose and putting it into his mouth so his nurse last night turned him down to 1.5 liters of flow.

He did great all night and got to see mom bright and early this morning and he sure was wide eyed at 5am I must say, he sure is precious...

When I went back at 11am his nurse, Ms. Harla, was so excited to let me know he was missing one of his buddies (that's what we call all his pumps, probes and tubes...so we're down to one)...anyways when Harla was receiving report from 7-8am and then got into assess him at 8 his cannula wasn't even in his nose so she thought he could do it on his own since he was satting 95-100 without it. So we are now breathing the same air as everyone else and so far we seem to be holding our own, though they left the cannula in his isolette and told us not to freak if he is put back on it at a low flow because this is quite a change for his little lungs.

His feedings were also increased to 37ML/HR and he seems to be handling those well. He and I kangarooed this morning for around 30-40 minutes which was great considering we didn't have the oxygen and we'd just been out and held from 5am to 6am.

We couldn't be more blessed with the progress he's made, we're continuing to pray for the development of some of his systems and for infection to stay at bay however the Lord has already done miraculous things in this little mans life that we couldn't have asked Him for anything more (though we will continue to do so).

Thanks to all of you who are praying for us and for Tennyson as we know he wouldn't be doing so well were you not interceding for us. We can't thank you enough for your time and your commitment to this little one. Know that you are as instrumental in how well he's doing and how well he will continue to do as we and the nurses are. Again our hearts are yours...

Exalting the Everlasting-

Travis, Lindsay and Tennyson Myers

P.S. I know there haven't been any pictures in a while but here are some and know we will download the cameras this weekend so there will be more I can assure you...

They keep pushing, and pushing, and pushing

2007-10-17T11:35:00.000-07:00

and he's handling everything so well so far.

Last night before Travis' kangaroo time we weighed him but first we had to clean up another blow out (64 grams to be exact) and clean up everything, another new isolette and bed...

He weighed in at 4lbs. 2.4 oz (minus the blowout) and is doing so great. They changed his oxygen to 2 liters yesterday and he's holding his own as they're reducing the percentage and received order this morning to try weaning him off of it as much as he will tolerate.

He did great kangarooing with Travis last night and Dana couldn't believe how awake and alert he was the entire time. Travis probably held him at least an hour and a half, maybe even close to two hours so that was awesome!

This morning (with Travis' permission :)) I slept in a bit and didn't attend his 8am feeding as I was exhausted (and we received word at Ronald McDonald last night one of the mom's we ate dinner with the night before has shingles) and we don't want to be getting sick but it was so amazing because I got over here before 11 am and Mara (the speech therapist) was at his bedside talking to Ginny, his nurse. I wasn't sure what they were doing with Tenny but when I got in there they explained they were going to try and feed him his first bottle. Keep in mind they don't develop their suck, swallow and breathe reflex until 34 weeks so we were not expecting this at all however Mara explained the insurance companies are pushing them to start them at 32 weeks because generally once kids can bottle feed, they are able to go home much more quickly.

I was a little precarious at first as we've just started getting the hang of the pacifier however said I'd try it (I would have been mad if they'd bottle fed him without me and am really sad Travis missed it). We tried it and he liked the taste but didn't know what to do so needless to say, we didn't do much sucking and even less swallowing however we kept breathing (praise the Lord) so Mara said we'd try it in another week.

She said however he was doing a great job with his mouth positioning so she wrote orders for us to do non-nutrative nursing (sorry guys) which basically means after I pump twice a day he can suck as he's being fed to try associating the two. Then following that we/I will be kangarooing him as long as he will tolerate. They asked that we try and not do kangarooing back to back so basically I will do non-nutrative at 5am and 5pm and kangaroo at 11am and Travis will kangaroo at 11pm so pray for us as we're stoked but also will be exhausted.

We tried the non-nutrative today and he did well for a few sucks but then was rather exhausted, considering he's never had to work for his food before. But after a bit we started kangarooing and we kangarooed for two hours and fifteen minutes, it was amazing. Definately the highlight of this mom's day.

His test results all came back this morning within the normal limits and they're expecting another feeding increase today however haven't received those orders at this time. Otherwise, we're doing great, just hanging in there, sleeping and growing...can't beat that.

The Father has sure blessed us beyond what we ever could have imagined...Tennyson is our little miracle from Him, the Lord's using him so as he's a miracle to the physicians and nurses as they and other parents can't believe he's doing so well. It truly has been an amazing witnessing tool and to know so many of the nurses and Dr. Porte are praying over this guy as well as each of you is mind blowing to us. We're so thankful and indebted to all of you for the time and the encouragement you are to us, we pray someday (though under different circumstances) we can be a Barnabas to you. Thanks for being ours...

Embraced by the Everlasting-
Travis, Lindsay and Tennyson Myers

Quick Update

2007-10-16T09:07:00.000-07:00

Hebrews 12:2 - NIV
"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

We know our little one is a gift from the Father but all too often it seems as he's doing better it becomes harder and harder to remember to thank Him for everything and as often as we were before. Even though we are so thankful, that doesn't change just our inability to keep Him at the forefront of our minds does, I guess...

Just wanted to let you know I went back for his 11am feeding and Harla said he woke up around 10:30 and was fussing (which we never do) so she changed him and started his feed early. He had 2ML of residual which is much less than this morning and 8ML of air so as it's decreasing it could have been anything earlier including his positioning so they're monitoring him but not making any changes at this time.

Just wanted to let everyone know as much as we do. Love you guys...

Standing in the Savior-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Our Funny Boy

2007-10-16T07:47:00.000-07:00

Okay first the statistics and an update and then two funnies, we're so proud he's ours...

He weighed in last night at 4lbs. 1.5 ounces and is just doing great. We had a rough morning yesterday but Jeanie the nurse practitioner was in to see him and made a few changes...

She thought he might be getting a bit lazy and letting the oxygen do the work for him so they turned him down to 2 liters and 23% and he hasn't had a desat since (this was at 1:30 yesterday) so needless to say he did great kangarooing with Travis last night and me this morning (granted he was awake for Travis and asleep for mine). His retic (lab testing if they're producing red blood cells) came back at 3.8 (the normal range is 0.5 to 2.5) so that was great news though his hematocrit numbers are still low.

Also Jeanie increased his feeds to 34ML/1HR so we're back to the one hour but he hasn't had too bad of a time yet as he's still satting well. He seems to be tolerating all the changes really well and they reintroduced him to a pacifier (it's very small and shaped like his thumb) yesterday morning and try to get him to take it while being fed as he will be better able (when we reach 34 weeks) to take a bottle because he's worked on the suck reflex.

This morning he had his first bit of residual though they're not concerned unless he continues to have them. He had 8 ML of residual and 10ML of air in his little tummy this morning, Harla's worried she's in for an afternoon like yesterdays (read on).

Okay now for the funnies which are rather hilarious if I do say so myself...

He had a desat yesterday right before the changes and Harla, his nurse wanted to know what was going on...well she soon found out. When she went to do his assessment at 2pm, boy did she get a surprise. I guess she had taken his diaper off and found that he was a little dirty so Amy, one of our respiratory therapists (who had been dying to hold him but since he's not yet in an open crib she hasn't been able to) walked in and Harla asked her to watch him for a moment. She left him undiapered and he just let her know his thoughts on that. He ended up with poop everywhere but on him and his outfit. It was all over the bedding, it his leads box, underneath the bed and all over the isolette. Harla grabbed his snuggle up out of the isolette and put it on top of the bed however that then smeared it on the outside of the isolette and then she threw it on the floor as she was trying to get everything cleaned up and got it on her pants and shoes. During all this Amy was holding Tennyson and he let a little more go down her pant leg. Apparently it was hilarious, our roommate Darcy's mom I guess laughed through the entire thing. When we got back at 5 however he was happy as a clam.

The other funny occured during Travis' kangaroo time last night. While snuggling, Dana started his feeding and we have been working on sucking on a pacifier while feeding well we forgot to put the pacifier in his mouth and pretty soon he was licking Travis' chest all over. Travis hollered at Dana that our baby was defective, then he latched on and was sucking on his chest and Travis was like Dana, he's broken. She peeked her head around the curtain because she wasn't sure what he was talking about and just started laughing and I was laughing really hard. She explained he was just a baby and we found the pacifier quickly needless to say.

So all in all it was a great and funny day, we couldn't be more blessed by God as our little one is growing like a weed and thus far his body is tolerating all the changes well.

Thanks for all the prayers and time you all give us. We love you guys more than we can say.

Walking in Wonder-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Residual

2007-10-15T10:08:00.000-07:00

Sorry I forgot in the last post to mention that he had at his 11pm feeding 4ML of residual and at his 2AM feeding 7.4 ML of residual. What that means, I had to ask this morning is that that was the amount of undigested milk in his stomach left after his feeding. They stated they're not overly concerned at this time as this morning his residual was only 1ML however if it elevates again and continues they will run additional testing as those are signs of digestional distress meaning we'll have a kink or clog somewhere which of course can lead to once again, infection.

We were also told last night by the nursing staff these next five weeks (at least) will be a real roller coaster as he's done so great up till recently and he's still doing well, just not as well as he was that he will begin having more issues. He will be showing more of what's not quite working properly and the neonatologists will continue pushing his little body as far as they can to determine his limits and see where additional developments are needed. This means according to them that there will be many more downs with some ups but not as many as we've had thus far. Please keep us in your prayers as it's been hard enough to experience the reflux and desats as they scare us out of our minds however these are minor compared to what we could have experienced (we know the Lord is continuing to hold His little one in His hands and providing for his development through all of this).

Anyways again all our love and thanks.

Amazed by Grace-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Member of the Four Pound Club!!

2007-10-15T09:40:00.000-07:00

This weekend has been wonderful but a whirlwind as I believe they all are, anymore honestly I have no idea what day it is only know that if Travis isn't at work it's the weekend...

Tennyson is doing great, we're still dealing with the reflux issue and the desat issue however he's holding his own. We visited with Dr. Porte around reflux medications because he is sometimes in such pain and squeaking (those are his cries) that it's heartbreaking but he stated they don't like to give reflux medication before 35 weeks of age (we'll be 32 tomorrow) and the reflux medication kills the acid in the stomach which allows bacteria and yeast to grow which is not something our little guy could tolerate at this point so it's not something Dr. Porte is willing to do.

Saturday night he weighed in at 3 lbs. 14.7 oz. and last night weighed 4lbs. 0.04oz. So we've hit the four pound mark. Granted they say he's been gaining so rapidly that he will probably again lose some however currently we're there. I'm sure it has nothing to do with him eating 33ML/2HR with a 24 calorie fortifier added to it, having an hour break and doing it all over again, could it??

He did so great with visits from both sets of grandparents, as Granny and Poppie (Ted & Connie) were here Friday night and Saturday and then Nana Jo and Papa (Robert & Mary Jo) were here Saturday night and Sunday. We feel so terrible because it seems like we don't get to spend much time with everyone while they're here but we're so thankful they think enough of our little one and us to make the sacrifice and make the trips. He is so precious and I think so much bigger than before however none of them think he looks "big" by any means :)

Today he had tons of labs drawn and everything came back great, including a test showing he is in fact producing red blood cells so that's great. There will be another transfusion however at this time he's holding his own so they aren't going to do the transfusion now.

They test a bunch of 'cytes' like monocytes, leukocytes, etc. The nurse stated if all of these are high that's an indicator that there is an infection present however currently his monocytes are the only thing that is elevated (he gets that from his mother as she's had mono before, I'm sure). The nurse practitioner is reviewing his chart and will make a decision on what to do from the labs however at this time we haven't heard anything.

He and I kangarooed this morning and he did great, his oxygen has been turned up to 23% however he didn't desat once so they are claiming he gets a gold star for today if he keeps it up.

The nurse practitioner Jeanie who was there when he was born has been away teaching a course and couldn't believe how much he'd grown and how great he looked and sounded today as she's been gone for five days. She thinks he's pretty handsome and I have to agree...

Yesterday Travis was the soundmaster at CCO and let me just tell you, it was loud but sounded great. It's amazing how refreshing those moments are. Though I haven't made it through a service, especially the song portion without having a breakdown as the words are just so true, it's beautiful.

Again many thanks to all of you for taking the time to visit this site and lift us up, we know without you interceding for us at this time we wouldn't be doing so well, so again thank you.

Continue lifting up our little guy, can you believe it's already been three weeks??!!

Crying out to the Creator-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers

Face of God

2007-10-12T08:17:00.000-07:00

Hollie McDowell (a constant encouragement to us) who has experience having preemies of her own sent me this yesterday or the day before as a reminder of how Good God is...

Psalm 34: 1-8 (The Message)

I bless God every chance I get; my lungs expand with his praise. I live and breathe God; if things aren't going well, hear this and be happy: Join me in spreading the news; together let's get the word out. God met me more than halfway, he freed me from my anxious fears. Look at him; give him your warmest smile. Never hide your feelings from him. When I was desperate, I called out, and God got me out of a tight spot. God's angel sets up a circle of protection around us while we pray. Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see— how good God is. Blessed are you who run to him.

There haven't been many changes in the past day...last night I got to hold (not kangaroo as evenings are Travis' kangaroo time) him for about half an hour as Travis was at praise team practice during his 8pm feeding and it was wonderful. Travis got back to the hospital around 10 and had his kangaroo time then, which is so precious.

Tennyson had quite a day getting those bowels cleaned out and wore four new outfits total during the day, I think he was just trying to see which ones fit the best. The precious outfit he's wearing in the pictures we put on him last night however he's so long that he won't be wearing it much longer I'm rather certain.

He's growing like a weed and weighing in at 3 lbs. 12.3 ounces at this time. Dr. Porte came in and visited with me last night. He said Tennyson's doing so great, his progress is much better than Dr. Porte expected (he is a miracle of the Lord for sure) however cautioned again how important this first month is and reminded me that our chances of infection are around 30% considering he was so early so please continue praying for that. With the dissention in his bowels showing on the X-ray yesterday (meaning they were full), Dr. Porte cautioned us around his concern for Tennyson acquiring NEC (necrotizing enterocolitis, an intestinal infection unique to preemies, the nurses have warned us that NEC usually appears with no signs or symptoms. Once you realize there is a symptom NEC has already taken over their little intestines so please keep this in your prayers specifically).

Otherwise he's doing so much better with his reflux (thanks for all the prayers, God is really using each of you to bless us beyond words, we are forever indebted to you for your generosity in this), he didn't have many if any desats yesterday. We were able to maintain pretty much our typical 95-100% range. Yesterday he was on 30% Oxygen however today he's maintaining at 25% and they increased his feedings again (don't ask me why) to 30ML/2hr. Don't get me wrong he's still struggling greatly with reflux and has episodes of spit up, burping and horrible pain (you can tell by his squirming and the look on his little face) however his body apparently is better able to tolerate them at this point. Please continue to pray that this will get better as seeing his precious face in pain is enough to break your heart, it sure does mine.

His CBC came back yesterday good, the only numbers that were low were his hematocrit and hemoglobin however they're riding right on the line and he isn't showing any signs of distress so they're going to try and hold off and see if he can't regenerate these on his own. If not we will be having another blood transfusion which isn't the end of the world, just another risk for infection.

Anyways all in all we're doing rather well (Trav and I are exhausted but otherwise all is well). Tennyson seems to be thriving and the nurses can't believe how big he's getting between their shifts. He had Jenny last night who is one of our favorites and she got to bathe him twice, he is so spoiled.

Please continue to keep us in your prayers as he's a tough little guy (gets that from his daddy) and praise the Lord got his daddy's immune system, along with everything else honestly but continue lifting him (and us) up as he's doing great but there is still a long road ahead of him.

Thanks again for all the love, prayers and generosity of time and finances, we've been blessed beyond words by each of you.

Clinging to the Carpenter-
Travis, Lindsay & Tennyson Myers