Pierce is growing up!

Pierce is one day shy of 10 weeks old. He weighed in at 3lbs 10oz tonight (some of that may be due to fluid retention) and was 15 inches long at last night's length check. It's really quite incredible how quickly he is packing on the pounds.

This morning, during a diaper change, we discovered that lil' man has developed a hernia. Even though I had been warned that most preemie boys develop hernias at some point, it was still scary to discover such a change in appearance. We knew that hernia repair surgery was likely on the "list" of things Pierce would have to do before coming home, so now it is just more of a confirmed task rather than some possibility hanging over our heads. However, hernias are not medical emergencies and the staff will simply monitor it and request a consult with the surgeons sometime next week. And then, just before Pierce comes home, they will perform a simple corrective surgery to fix the hernia.

They were unable to do the cranial ultrasound today as they had a few things that ran late. Pierce will be having one done tomorrow morning, along with his follow-up eye exam. Please be praying that both of these will yield miraculous results. We haven't had much time to update the blog these past few days, but these 2 tests are something that Nik and I have spent much time in prayer over. Please join us in praying that God would heal Pierce's eyes and that laser surgery would not be required. Also, pray that God would heal Pierce's brain and that a permanent shunt would not need to be placed.

On another note, I can't tell you how grateful I am to be at this place tonight. Pierce is resting easy in his big boy crib (That's right, because he was regulating his temperature so well, his nurse moved him into an actual crib tonight. Pictures to follow.), taking one full bottle a day (today and yesterday, he downed his entire 31mL's in 15 minutes flat!), and requiring very little support (still on 21% o2 and 2 liters). Over the past few days, I've spent a lot of time reflecting on how far we've come in the past 10 weeks. It's still so hard for me to think back on the early days- there's still so much pain, grief and fear that arises in me when I think back. But I've started to let my mind go back to that place, not wanting to forget the many things God has done in Pierce's life.

Thank you all for your continued prayers. So many of you have sent money, notes/cards and even gifts for Pierce. I'm hoping to get some pictures of him with his many outfits/hats that so many of you have sent. Maybe one day we can have a fashion show in pictures on the blog?!

We will update tomorrow after we know the results of the tests.

Love,
Lindsay