Update : 4:22 PM CST, 05-Jan-2007

Coen is slowly progressing but is still very sick. He had an MRI scan last night and everything has tested normal (except that his jaw is a little small -- thank his father). There are no further immediate concerns about any damage to his brain due to delivery trauma. Of course, as with all babies, we will not know for sure until he hits his baby milestones and progresses over the next year. We're hopeful that his brain has survived the journey. Of course, his head is still very sensitive and he is receiving a small dose of pain medication for the headaches. Regardless of this, he is still extremely alert and reactive. His eyes track very well and his body shows all normal behavioral signs. He likes to look at his mom and suck vigorgously on this soother (Canadian for pacifier).

We are currently praying that his body will start to produce more red blood cells. He's receiving some medication to help jumpstart this process and we hope his own body will take over soon. The doctor is not terribly concerned at this point and mentioned only a 10% chance of a blood transfusion. If the blood type matches, I may be able to give him blood, depending on the necessary lead-time.

He has an IV running into the vein exposed by his umbilical cord. This IV runs straight to his heart. The doctor is fearful that a small infection has developed around this area (he bleeds a little when he cries), so Coen has been started on a week-long antibiotic to fight this infection. The poor guy's body is just still so weak from the delivery trauma that he is needing some assistance to stave off some things.

He is now almost 42 hours old and is looking so much better than he was when he made his entry into this world. We feel confident (and our doctors reassure us) that he will be a normal little boy, he just needs some assistance pushing through this first phase. He may have to be in the NICU another 7-14 days. We don't know. Discharge planning is not our top concern at this point. We just want to get him healthy.

Fortunately, although Tauni is technically discharging from the hospital tomorrow (Saturday, 1/6/07), we are able to stay in our same room, just without any nursing or dietary attention for her ("nesting"). This is such a blessing. This is an incredible offering at this hospital (as is the free high-speed wireless connection, thank you Austin!) and we are lucky that the hospital census is currently a little low.

We do not know what our full plan is yet, but we will definitely be here for another couple of days. It's great to be close to Coen. Seeing him keeps our batteries charged. Our life is a slight variation of the typical newborn parents routine -- we sleep a little, Tauni breast pumps, we take the colostrum up to Coen and hang out with him for awhile (until the NICU boots us for change of shift or any other number of reasons) and then we repeat the same process. Fortunately, I'm a sleeper and my perfection of the Thomas Edison cat-nap (and ability to sleep anywhere) have come in extremely handy (as have the hooded sweatshirt and red snow sleigh flannel pajama bottoms I got for Christmas). Tauni is finally starting to get a little more sleep and is feeling better. She has stayed in very high spirits and loves her little man. Again, being able to see him every few hours keeps her recharged, even though she is unable to hold him at this point. She is able to touch him and talk to him. It is obvious that he recognizes her voice. It's such a good thing that she always spoke with him while he was in the belly. They've always been tight like that. I think Coen is going to be a mama's boy.

On a different note, I just want to say how grateful I am for the incredible health insurance that we have to take all of the potential financial stress out of this situation. More importantly, I'm so grateful for the medical know-how and technology that we have access to nowadays. After witnessing what I witnessed through Tauni's long hours of labor, there is no doubt in my mind that had this happened 100 years ago, I would have lost not only my child, but also my wife. I am grateful to a loving Heavenly Father for preserving Tauni & Coen until this day so that they have the support they need. They are going to be a great team. I love them more than I can say.