Time is up

Well we have come to a close on Nicklaus' time at home.  With bated breath he will be going to daycare this Monday.  Being that it is still RSV season and the fact that he is a preemie, we are concerned and praying that with all the fighting to survive this little one has done so far that he continues on this path of health.  It has been extremely difficult living life with a preemie, one that was as sick as him when he was born.  People do not realize and really can never understand what we have endured not only over the past few years, but the last few months. 

Preemie's are know to have a host of issues, but born sick like Nicklaus, there are a whole host other issues that no one tells you about.  Nothing that we can not get through and nothing that should last forever.  The neurological development in my experience is the hardest.  The developmental stuff is common and they almost always catch up.  What is scary is not knowing what triggers him, what stresses he has, how long it will take to overcome.  We have come a long way.  He has come a long way.

He had his debut today with the Daycare.  He loved all the teachers and overall did very well.  Until he was just done.  Screamed the whole way home and is having screaming bits throughout the day.  Very strange.  I will be so happy when he is over this stage- and have no more worries about how he is going to handle things. 

In the interim we day it one day at a time, and pray for the best!  Everyday is a marked improvement and we are so proud of all his little accomplishments. 

The Story of Nicklaus- by my hubby

This Thanksgiving we have a lot to be thankful for. As you all know, over the past couple of years, Thanksgiving has been a rather rough road traveled. Through the losses we have all had to endure over the past 2 years and the health issues we have all had to deal with, this year marks one of the happiest occasions in recent memory.

Nicklaus Paul Porter has been cleared for release by all the doctors in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. As of today, it appears Nicklaus will be released at some point Tuesday, November 23, 2010 barring any apnea related issues or other potential road block.So how about a little history on Nicklaus:Nicklaus entered this world at exactly 11:04 AM on Saturday, October 30, 2010. Present in the delivery room was his Oma Gedrich as well as myself. Nathalie went into labor at approximately 0400 on October 30th.

Although she once again heard the term “Irritable Uterus” from the doctor, she knew better and called me right away. Upon arriving at the hospital and after roughly one hour, it was decided to move Nathalie into the Labor and Delivery Area. As you all know, Nathalie was admitted to the hospital on the evening hours of October 15, 2010 due to her ruptured membranes at which point she lost most of her amniotic fluid.

The doctors worked quickly to stop the immediate onset of labor as they felt the results would be disasterous for both Nathalie and the baby. The doctors were successful and Nathalie was admitted to the hospital on strict bed rest.

It can not be understated the direct and serious nature of pre-term labor at 31 weeks. Yes, I know. Modern medicine has come a long way, but the reality of the situation was there were many questions as to the viability of Nicklaus had he been born at 31 weeks. Nathalie’s health was also in question if she had to give birth at 31 weeks gestation.

Nathalie adhered to the doctors’ plans and maintained constant bed rest for 2 weeks and 2 days….until she went into labor. The one constant from the doctors’ was that if Nathalie did in fact go into labor before her 34th week, it would be indicative of an infection as a result of little to no amniotic fluid.

While in labor, there were signs Nicklaus was in severe distress during contractions. Dr. Wasserman never once hesitated and looked at Nathalie and told her that if he saw 2 more stress indicators, he would have to conduct an emergency C-Section. I am not even sure that the doctor really got the words out of his mouth before he sprung into action and we were told to put on our gowns. Within minutes, Nathalie was whisked away to the operating room with Eva and I in tow. Within minutes, Nicklaus Paul entered this world. The Neonatal Unit was on hand as were many nurses and doctors. Nicklaus made a brief stop to see mom before being whisked to his new home for the past 24 days.

While Nathalie was able to see Nicklaus briefly on October 30th, she also had to rest and recover from the C-Section. There was an issue that occurred during the C-Section that caused the doctor to go back in and suture an area that was still bleeding. This added additional strain to an already stressful situation.

Nicklaus was in the NICU while mom rested comfortably in her room. Little did we know at first how serious Nicklaus’s situation was. We did not find out until the next morning that Nicklaus had a serious bacterial infection which was causing intestinal bleeding. The bleeding was of an unknown nature and he was not stable enough for surgical intervention. The doctors had to wait it out and see what lab results produced. While the lab was working rapidly, Nicklaus was very ill, and the doctors’ continued to work on Nick through preventive measures.

I remember the phone call from the Neonatologist very well. I was heading to TJ Maxx when she called to let me know Nicklaus was having some major issues, one of which was a major infection and the other was an unknown cause for intestinal bleeding.

After many tests were conducted, X-Rays taken, medication being administered, it was determined Nicklaus had contracted E-Coli. While this was a reason for the bacterial infection, the doctors were still stumped as to his intestinal bleeding. After consultation with outside medical staff, it was decided a PICC line would be introduced to Nicklaus in an effort to evenly distribute the antibiotics and provide other life protecting measures.

After 2 attempts to introduce the PICC Line to Nicklaus failed, we were faced with the ever looming need for invasive surgery. Mind you, Nicklaus was only days old at this point. We agreed to allow the doctors to do whatever they had to in order to ensure Nicklaus would be ok.
After some discussion, it was decided to have a 3rd attempt at a PICC Line as the medical staff did not want to wait 2 days for surgical intervention. At 2:00 AM November 6th, you would have thought Nathalie and I won the lottery. It was a phone call to let us know the PICC Line was successfully inserted and the antibiotics were flowing freely. This was a major mile stone and major hurdle for us.

During this time period, Nicklaus had issues with his breathing in which he would pause for 15-20 seconds, sometimes longer. All the while surgery was looming which would have required an even greater pause in his breathing…in essence….being put under anesthesia could have been fatal for him. The doctors and nurses worked on him and never gave up. By inserting the PICC Line when they did, the doctors and nurses saved his life.

From that day forward, Nicklaus continued to make marked improvement. Unfortunately, the same day his PICC Line was inserted, Nathalie had developed a massive infection…..or so we thought it was one. In the end, Nathalie was battling dual infections. One for major cellulites…and the other….E-Coli. This resulted in an additional 5 day hospital stay for Nathalie.

Today, November 22, 2010, is one of the best days we have had to endure in over 1 month. Today is the day we received news that our family would be together for the first time in over a month. We could not be happier.

A LITTLE HITSTORY OF THE NAME:So, how did we choose the unique name of N-I-C-K-L-A-U-S P-A-U-L?

Well, Nick was supposed to be born near Christmas…so we thought….oooh…St. Nick.

Then, in honor of Nathalie’s uncle Klaus who passed away, we thought this would be a way to honor our German heritage.

As for his middle name of Paul…we derived this from my father. So, we came up with Nicklaus Paul Porter. Very simple.

We are so happy that we can finally begin living as a family once again. In light of the fact Nicklaus is coming home, we ask everybody to have some patience and understanding while we try to re-acclimate to our home and our family.

We ask that you understand our need to continue to NICU rules when it comes to visitation, hand washing, noise level, handling Nicklaus and all the other rules we had to endure during our 24 day stay.

We ask the following:Please no surprise visits. While the thought is nice, we will not always be ready for visitors.

We ask that you call before you come and let us make the decision based on how Nicklaus and mom are doing.

We ask that when you come in, please wash your hands. While this is more common sense, it has been drilled into us at the NICU.We may ask you to wear a mask which the doctors heavily recommend for the first few weeks.

This goes a long way in preventing RSV in premature children.We ask that you understand that Nicklaus will not always be able to be held. Generally speaking, he tends to be held while eating and then he returns to his comfort zone…..his bed.

We would ask that if you have a cold or other illness that you refrain from visiting. While this is the holiday season, we ask that you understand if we do not bring Nicklaus to events that will have a large group of people. This is because he is still very sensitive to noise issues and stresses very quickly. When he stresses, this causes him to virtually shut down, not eat, and sleep a great deal. This causes weight loss and potential immediate problems.In closing, we ask that people do not make snide remarks about us being overprotective parents, or that we are being ridiculous, or that we can’t live in a cocoon etc.

The fact of the matter is, until we and the doctors are satisfied that Nicklaus will not have any setbacks, we will be protective of his health.We look forward to sharing this wonderful experience with everybody once Nicklaus and Nathalie are well on their way to optimum health. Until then, we thank you all for your support and prayers. Without them, we do not know where we would be….but we know one thing…it is with love and support that we made it through this very trying and stressful time.

Love,Mike, Nathalie, Abby, Kylie, and Nicklaus, and our little angel above, Justin.

Mom's Birthday, Christmas and time for reflection

So it was mom's birthday, and although I am still not feeling well. Terrible case of viral meningitis, and Kylie has pneumonia- we went down for a couple hours to say hello and acknowledge that this is her day. My mom does so much for my family it is impossible for me to thank her enough. I really couldn't ask for a better mother. Not to discount my dad he does a lot for us as well.

Anyway, we got her the Wii system, my brothers chipped in with my dad to get it for her. She was so excited, she loves the bowling. So after we set it up for her we were on our way. I called to check in on them and to see how they were doing and she was still playing. That is great news I hope she really uses it. It is hard to make my mother as happy as she makes us so if this little gesture can make her smile then it is all worth it.



This time of year is for reflection ... well this year like many hasn't had too much to be happy about. I will start with present time- as the past man I could write a novel.



In January we learned I was pregnant and I couldn't of been more excited to share the news with Mike (hubby) and of course the rest of my family, as this has been my dream for as long as I could remember. To finally meet the man of my dreams and have a ton of children together and live happily ever after. I did in fact find the man of my dreams and married him in 2005. In 2006 we bought our first house together, and in 2007 we had our beautiful baby girl Kylie.

Well the reality of a "ton" of children has turned into two. (after the delivery of Kylie- without drugs). Well this could not have been a more proud moment for us.. everything was going well until we went to have the ultrasound in March. Our world came crumbling down that day as we learned that there was no baby and my body never recognized the loss. So in the hospital I go for a D&E delivery.



Meanwhile I am recovering- Mike is getting ready to graduate the top of his class with his BA from Franklin Pierce. An amazing fete in and of itself. He is living a dream while my step daughter Abby is off to Keene State College and Kylie (my first angel) is in daycare.



Well with several visits back to the Dr. we found this was a terrible fluke- nothing we could of done could of prevented this from happening.



So in May we have the party at our house to celebrate Mike's amazing accomplishment and he sets his plan in motion to fulfill his dream to go to Law school. He wasn't going to take no for an answer from admissions. And so it goes .. no one would say no to Mike either. He did not take a break between his bachelors and going to law school even though his very wise wife told him he really should take a break.... ha ha



So as fathers day rolls around I wanted to really surprise My hubby with some wonderful news...you guessed it -we were again expecting. My dreams are coming true. We are both living out our dreams together?! How amazing. So with nervous excitement the pregnancy goes on. I am so scared and happy that I can't wait to get the ultrasound. Everyone is so happy for us, and for me- knowing that I am having a baby will just fill my heart.



A few months go by, everything is going well and the heartbeat is Strong. My appointment to find out the sex was coming up... I had a later appointment to avoid taking so much time off at work.

Mike, Kylie and I head off for the Dr's. Kylie wants find out if she is going to have a baby brother or sister, she is so excited. She is a little mother herself. As they call my name in the office we go with tremendous excitement and with bated breath. As the baby comes up on the monitor I see that there is no heartbeat, no movement, and again I look to the technician with disbelieve and a heavy heart. Our nightmare has been confirmed, our baby has died. We immediately get whisked away by another Dr. and go through our options. Which I can tell you is so far the most difficult set of decisions I think I have ever had to make. The next day I go back to the hospital to deliver my baby. I chose to be unconscious during the delivery as this was the most humane thing I could do for my baby. I wanted him to come out in one piece and the moment I was told that the force of pushing and delivery could in fact dismember the baby. We had a boy, Justin Michael.

to be continued...