"Once upon a time there was this sad hippo thing...."

So we actually have some stuff to report back for Eli. First up, Eli has an inguinal hernia. So that means basically some of his intestines are in his scrotum. Kinda cool, I got to feel it. If you push on them it goes right back into the right spot. It doesn't hurt him at all. The only problem is that they fall back down where they aren't supposed to go. So we resolve this with hernia repair surgery, which he will have done after he is discharged. They don't do surgery on little guys at Danbury Hospital. So we will probably go to Children's in Hartford. As long as it doesn't give him any trouble its something we can wait a little while to do.
Next, the results of the echo came in. He doesn't have an infection in his heart. They are a little concerned with his PDA that still hasn't closed. So the doctor recommended using medication to close it. If you remember I blogged about this before. The optimal treatment is just letting the PDA close on its own, because the meds have some side effects that we don't like, especially on the kidneys. The doctor feels that we need to use the meds because he's starting to get some fluid buildup in his lungs. So to decrease the workload on his kidneys, they are stopping the feedings for the time being. As soon as the meds work he will go right back up to the 15cc's he was up to.
But besides that, he's doing great. Really snuggly and cuddly today, it was awesome. His nurses got him a little Halloween outfit to wear seeing as I didn't get him one because I didn't think he would be wearing clothes yet. His nurse tonight likes to make sure that his bedding and his outfit match. So she has him hooked up for the next two days. It's the little things! Thanks to Jesse Catty n Norah coming to visit yesterday and bringing us some tasty meatloaf!
Jon's grandmother went to be with Jesus yesterday. He's heading down to Florida for the services tomorrow. Pray for him and his family. Thanks for all your prayers. Please pray that this medication works on his heart and he does not suffer and side effects.

"this is the first time I've held a baby standing up"

Eli was a baby apple for Halloween according to his nurse. I think he was an angry apple....