Chillin with Dad

Pierce had his first encounter with raw, unadulterated manliness tonight. Since Pierce did really well at his 9 o'clock cares his primary night nurse, Laura, said that we could get our kangaroo care on tonight. And it was Dad's turn to hold the little guy.

Laura said it wasn't necessary, but I went ahead and sanitized my chest with some hand sanitizer before we got started. Once it dried, the furry-chested kangarooing could begin. This was my first time holding Pierce close and it was a really good time. I held him for about an hour and a half total. It was cool to feel him breathing and wiggling around. I prayed for him as I held him, lifting him up to the Lord. By faith, I see Pierce doing great things in his life to bring God glory and to build His Kingdom.

Toward the end, Pierce's breathing tube kept acting up and his stats kept dropping. By that time, I knew this experience had done us both some good and it was time to send him back to his plastic, make-shift womb. I have to admit though, holding him proved my notion of his newborn sweet smell (what I had imagined in my mind), wrong. Hanging around his isolette, there is this distinct, but aromatic, smell that my brain came to identify with Pierce. Tonight I realized that Pierce actually has a, shall we say, more robust smell to him. Laura had talked about "stinky preemies" but I didn't believe Pierce was one until tonight. Anyway, that can't and didn't change my love for him one bit. Looking back, Pierce's smell really wasn't that bad and I just thank God that he is alive. When we left he was on 24% oxygen and was saturating high. The air we breathe is 21% oxygen, so he is not that far away! Tomorrow they may try and possibly move him to a CPAP machine because he has been doing so well on his breathing.

Please continue to pray that the Lord would fully heal Pierce and that he will leave the hospital in a few months with no major complications. Especially right now, be praying for his brain, lungs, and bowels. You can also start praying for his eyes and ears as they will start to develop over the next couple of months. Also pray that Pierce will catch up fully developmentally within the first few years of his life and that he will not have cerebral palsy, which preemies are at higher risk of developing.



Grace and peace,



Nik