Vennard Graduation & Thanksgiving

It's been a long time since my last update, so I thought I should write one today. 

Last weekend Derrick & I went to Vennard for the final graduation. It was one of those bittersweet moments in life. It was a lot of fun to see all my friends & see some very special people graduate, but knowing that it was the last graduation was hard. I know that God has big plans for this situation, whether it is to reopen the school or if it is to spread the Vennard family to touch lives in other ways. I had a great time down at Vennard, but I was glad to get back to my little guy in Iowa City.

This past week we celebrated our first Thanksgiving as a family instead of just a couple. Dylan is still in the hospital, but Derrick & I spent the morning with him, ate Thanksgiving lunch at the RMH, & then went back to the hospital for the evening. It was a little sad to be away from our extended family, but we knew that we really wanted to celebrate Dylan's first Thanksgiving with him. We have much to be thankful for this year. Dylan could have not been here. I could have not been here. We are thankful to God everyday for taking care of us. How blessed we are!

My mom & step-dad came to visit us on Friday. They brought us Thanksgiving leftovers! Wayne (my step-dad) also brought his Santa suit & dressed up so we could take Dylan's picture with Santa. Even if Dylan is home before Christmas, we aren't supposed to take him out into crowds because it is cold & flu season & he can get RSV if he catches a cold. It could land him right back in the hospital & we don't want that. So, back to Santa. We don't really know if we are going to do Santa because I don't want to lie to my kids about it, even if it is for the magic of the season. I have no problem with other people doing Santa, but I don't know that I want to. But my mom thought it would be nice to have Dylan's picture taken with Santa, so we volunteered Wayne. It was a lot of fun. Wayne had never held Dylan before, so it was really cute! Wayne just kept saying. “I'm not moving, not moving.” Too funny! We got some really good ones & I will be posting them soon. We also took family pictures.

After we took pictures, my mom, Santa Wayne & I went up to my friend Julie's daughter's room in the NICU. Julie has triplets who were born at the same gestational age as Dylan, but a few weeks earlier. They are getting ready to go home, but there is one here at the hospital. The other 2 were already discharged & stay here at the RMH with Julie. They go back every day to visit though. They also have a 6 year old brother. So Santa Wayne told Julie's son that his sled had broken down, so he thought he'd come in & visit for a while. It was so cute. So Julie's son told Santa Wayne what he wanted for Christmas & then we took pictures of Santa Wayne holding the triplets! That was too funny! He did great though.

On Saturday, some of Derrick's family came to visit. His mom & 2 sisters came up, & brought our niece & nephew. It was nice to see them. We went dinner with them (& finally found the Pizza Hut we have been looking for here in Iowa City.) They are a lot of fun. My little nephew is almost 9 & he made me a card. It was so cute. He said something like – "Thank you for letting me have a new cousin. I hope you get to have him at home with you soon." It was so precious! He is our first nephew & he was born on my birthday, so he has always been special to me. 

Today it snowed. We did not go to church because we didn't want to drive to Cedar Rapids in the snow & because I am fighting a cold & needed some rest. Derrick is at the hospital with Dylan now, but he'll come back & get me this afternoon. We'll probably eat some dinner & then go back to the hospital. I'm feeling better now, but I will still have to wear a mask in the NICU. 

Dylan is doing well. He is 4 lbs. 2 oz. He is getting to be a big guy! His breathing is getting better & he is doing good with his feeds, so hopefully we'll be able to try bottle feeding soon. He is also working on getting into a crib. He has to be over 1800 grams (which he is) & he has to be continually gaining weight. That is where the trouble is. He'll gain one night, then lose the next, then gain, then lose. In the long run he is still gaining, but it is not very consistent. 

It has been interesting with the holiday because we have not had our normal nurses, but we made it through. Hopefully we get one of the regulars tomorrow. We are missing the nurses who know Dylan & don't panic about everything. Plus, a lot of the nurses we have had recently are older ladies & I don't relate to them as well as I do to the younger nurses. We have 3 nurses that we really like & they are all around mine or Derrick's age & they are just really energetic. They are a lot of fun & they don't panic about everything. It makes us feel more comfortable & less like we are intruding on their space. Some of the nurses (whether they mean to or not) make me feel like my being there is an inconvenience to them. They all take wonderful care of Dylan though. In the almost 8 weeks he has been in the hospital, we have had 2 nurses that I didn't care for. That's pretty good! 

Anyway, I just wanted to give you all an update. Things are going well. They are not moving as quickly as I want them to, but God is in control. I'm glad He is because I trust Him more than anyone else. He is taking great care of us. 

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! Thank you for all your love & support!!!