Dr. Hammel just stopped by, and everything is on schedule. Normally they put and eco probe down the esophagus and take images of the heart. It is believed the aneurysm in pushing on his esophagus and therefore he will not perform this step. He believes the ecos and MRI done of Friday will be suffecient enough.

Around 9:30 this morning, about 1/2 hour ago, the nurses came to bring Grair down to surgery. The anesthesiologist has taken him in and has begun the process of putting him under. Dr. Hammel had a chance to review the MRI and feels it is in a better place than originally thought. He has less concern of opening up Griar and experiencing issues (accidentally slicing the aneurysm). While in Grair, he will replace his valve and review the results of...

As many of you know, Grair has had a difficult time recovering from RSV. His oral intake of breast milk was barely at half his needed amount, and his requirement for oxygen has not dissipated, in fact it has increased. Three weeks removed from St. Elizabeth’s, and those issues typically should be gone. After ruling everything else out, Dr. David was convinced Grair’s heart had another issue. So on Friday afternoon, we took Grair to...

Since he had the positive RSV test, Grair has stepped up the fighting. A mucus build-up in his right lung caused what is considered a partial collapse, and he is slowly rebuilding. Many coughs and hacking fits have helped to break up the build-up and remove much of the mucus. He still has a way to go, however this is typical for RSV. Since Tuesday, Grair has taken very little breast milk orally. He has been getting most of his nutrients through...

As many you have heard, Grair is unfortunately back in the hospital. This time it is for something different than his heart: RSV. We are at Saint Elizabeth’s in Lincoln, and have been here since Tuesday night. Dr. David came to our house on Tuesday night after concerns with Grair not eating well, and vomiting. His initial diagnosis was a respiratory viral infection, most likely RSV. So we checked into the hospital, and Grair has been up...

Grair has been home almost three weeks and is doing awesome. Due to his heart complications, his immune system is expected to be weak, therefore the doctors have encouraged us to keep him home as much as possible, and we have done just that. Much to Melissa’s dismay, he didn’t even get his photo taken with Santa! 🙂 Grair has been eating, sleeping and pooping just as expected of any newborn. His weight gain is great; averaging...

Grair Connor Meranda was born last night at 8:24 PM! Melissa started feeling contractions early Saturday morning, and we came to the hospital around 2:00 in the afternoon. At 5:15, the doctor broke Melissa’s water in order to speed up the process. It worked, and Melissa had to only push twice! Grair is a small baby, but the doctors are not concerned about his weight. A few small side effects of his weight are starting to show (lack of body...