Caleb's first [not so fun] field trip

Wednesday night, after giving him only 2 ounces of formula, he threw it all up when we put him down in his pack-n-play. I just sat down and cried while Matt took care of him. I was exhausted and scared. No way was this a stomach bug. Once he was clean we gave him 2 ounces of Pedialyte and held him upright for almost an hour and a half. We put him down around 11:30pm (I think) and we both went to bed too. He started fussing around 3:30, so we both got up with him. While Matt was preparing a bottle of pedialyte for him, I was changing his diaper. His pee was a very dark yellow and there wasn't much of it (not even enough to make a blue line on the diaper). As I was putting on the new diaper, he projectile vomited again, and this time it was brown vomit. I cried out for Matt's help and we got him all cleaned up.

We then did our routine: gave him 2 ounces of pedialyte, held him upright for an hour, put him down in his pack-n-play. He spit up some of it, but no vomit. He slept till 6:30 and I got up with him alone this time since Matt was getting up at 7 to get ready for work. I checked his diaper and he didn't have much in his diaper, but it was dark yellow pee again. I think I decided not to change his diaper at that time because there was a routine he was following: he would vomit during every diaper change. I gave him 2 ounces of pedialyte, and when Matt was just about to walk out the door he threw up all of the pedialyte. Now I was REALLY worried. If he can't hold down pedialyte then we have a serious problem. I cried the ugly cry and Matt called his parents for them to come over and watch Caleb so I could have a break from all the vomit. The plan was his mom was going to come over in the morning and stay till lunch and then his dad was going to take over in the afternoon.

His mom came over at 8:30 and took Caleb for me. At 9am I called his nurse and she said to give him half an ounce of pedialyte every half hour till he was holding it down. So at 9 we did that, and he did good till 9:30, so we gave him another half ounce. 10 minutes later very dark brown, acidic smelling vomit came up. Cindy got him cleaned and changed and I called his doctor again. They said to bring him in ASAP and bring anything that has the vomit on it, which was his blanket.

We were in the car at 10am and they got him right in. They weighed him and my heart sunk. He was now 9 pounds 14 ounces. He lost 3 ounces in a single day. Babies are supposed to gain an ounce a day. While his doctor was taking samples of his vomit, he started gagging on spit up and his doctor said to take him to the ER. She was going over possibilities of what might be wrong when the nurse came in and whispered to the doctor that his vomit tested positive for blood. I began crying and I have no clue what his doctor said after that point. I'm SO thankful my mother-in-law was with me because I wouldn't have gotten through that morning without her.

I called Matt and told him to meet us at Children's Medical Hospital. (side note: Later Matt told me all I said on the phone was "they found blood, going to the Childrens ER now in Plano. Meet us there." oops.) I cried the whole way to the hospital. Once we were pulling up to the hospital I really lost it. The last time we were there was to have the big ultrasound to check on Caleb's cysts. The memories were flooding back so vividly. Then I saw Matt standing outside the ER, I didn't ask how fast he was speeding haha.

They got Caleb right in to check his vitals and then we waited for a doctor. The doctor checked him out and said they will be doing x-rays, an ultrasound, and an upper GI.

The ER doctor checking him out.

They first did the x-rays. Only 2 people could go back with him, so it was me and my mother-in-law (Matt gets queasy around medical stuff). I thought we were just going to be in there to stand beside him and calm him down, didn't know we were going to be the ones to hold him down! Matt's mom held his arms to his head and I held his legs down. I'm sure he hated us to the nth degree at that moment! He screamed like I've never heard before! I told the nurse she would have to hold him down for the second imaging, I couldn't stand doing that to him. The next image position was awful. They had him on his side and stretching him out like those Stretch Armstrong dolls. I started crying when I saw him looking at me with his little helpless face.

The next thing was the ultrasound. He did amazing during that! I kept telling him it was going to feel funny and gooey, but won't hurt at all. I also told him he is getting to feel what mommy felt every time they wanted to see him inside me.

The last thing they wanted to do was an upper GI. Once Matt and I saw what they were going to do to him we decided to not be in the room while they did the test. Matt's parents stayed in the room with him instead. We could hear him screaming all the way down the hall, it was awful! They had to stick a tube down his nose to get the barium in him. We were told they tried and tried to get the tube through his stomach but it was being blocked and wouldn't go anymore.

That's when they were confident in what was wrong. Caleb was diagnosed with Pyloric Stenosis which is a narrowing of the pylorus, the opening from the stomach into the small intestine.

After all the tests they hooked him up to an IV. This is what I have been wanting ever since Wednesday evening. He was so dehydrated by Thursday morning that his soft spot was sunken in, his skin was dry and wrinkly, his tongue wasn't pink anymore, his pee was a dark yellow and his eyes were starting to sink in. Within 30 minutes of having the IV in, his little cheeks were starting to plump out! It was SUCH a good site to see.

After getting his IV

Not much longer we were meeting with a nurse about what all was going to happen. We signed some paper work and we walked down to the pre-op room where we waited for a long time (in my opinion). We met the anesthesiologist and the surgeon. Both were very nice guys and described in detail what they were going to do. I handed Caleb to a nurse and began crying. She told me she was going to walk him down to the OR instead of putting him in the "prison baby cage" (that's what it looked like to me) so that made me feel good knowing he will be held all the way up until the surgery. 

Matt walking Caleb down to the pre-op room

Right before handing him off to the nurse

We went out into the waiting room and circled up to pray. About 45 minutes later (it might have been longer...but it didn't feel like we waited very long) a nurse walked out saying the surgery is just about done and we can wait in this room where the surgeon would meet with us. That little closet they put us in was SO hot, especially with 5 people crammed into it! That wait felt like forever, but finally the surgeon came in with pictures of Caleb's stomach showing what they fixed and how he will be able to hold food down now! 

We were then escorted to Caleb in his recovery room. When we were approaching the room we heard a bunch of women giggling and fighting over Caleb! They just loved him so much. (who wouldn't?!) Matt was still holding his favorite paci from when we had to take it away before surgery and we finally got to give it back to him. Happy Caleb again!

Caleb got a special bear and card from the nurses for doing so good! 

From here we were taken to his hospital room where he would stay overnight. He had a pretty rough night, and threw up most of what he was given (pedialyte and 1 ounce of formula) but by 5am he was keeping an ounce of formula down for 2 hours, so we bumped it up to 2 ounces and eventually was giving him 2 ounces every 3 hours. 

He is now back to his normal 3 ounces every 3 hours schedule and keeping it all down with no spit ups!!! We are so proud of him and can't wait to see him pack on the ounces now! 

Thank you everyone for praying for our sweet boy. God heard every single one of your prayers and He answered them all! 

Here are pictures from the hospital. It was the hardest thing ever to see my baby in a hospital crib hooked up to so many wires. To be honest I felt bad for taking these pictures at first, but he is 100% better now and I am so glad we have these pictures to show him later when he is older how much of a trooper and strong boy he was!

Bear, Giraffe, and Special Bear keeping him company in his crib.

He loves bear!

My mom flew in from Houston the day of his surgery. SO glad she was able to come!

Matt's mom has been helping me ever since Tuesday, every day,  and there is no way I
would've been able to do this without her help!

Matt's dad has also been a huge help this week. Taking us to the doctor when I was scared to
drive alone, for fear Caleb would throw up on the way there and choke. 

The put a diaper on his arm to cover up his IV "cast" because it kept scratching his belly.
I think he looks like he's ready for a boxing match!

Thew view from his hospital room. There were lots of horses in that field, wish he could've seen them!

All smiles!!! It was SO good seeing him smile again!!

Keeping his food down!! YAY!!!