more progress

Lincoln is coming along. The swelling is pretty much completely gone. They took him off of the ventilator after feeling it was hindering more than helping him. He did so well that by 7pm they took of the nasal cannula and he was completely on room air. He has had a few issues with not digesting all of his feeds so they're moving slowly with that. His full feeds were up to 50 ml's before the infection/surgery. Now they're at 17 ml's. Scott and I went in for our visit last night and he was very anxious. He was sucking on a binky VERY eagerly. His heart-rate was a bit high too. When we got in there, we held his hands and sang him some songs. He settled right down and his heart-rate lowered also. He may either be in a bit of pain from the infection still....or I'm thinking he is STARVING.
I guess if I had to think about it and say there was anything good that came from this infection it would have to be that he has his own room. They put him in isolation because the staph infection is highly contagious. It's definitely a lot quieter in our own little room though. When we enter his room we have to put on a robe and gloves.
I get a little frustrated at times. I know that it wasn't intentional that he got the infection, but if he wasn't in the hospital...chances are he wouldn't have contracted it. There are some big repercussion that come from this infection and the antibiotic used to treat it. There is possible hearing loss, neurological issues, and other side effects.I haven't held him since Thursday morning right before transport. That was a short but sweet time for us.
But for now we'll try to concentrate on the positive. We'll try to focus on what we're dealing with now. I must admit, it's a little difficult at times. Right now my biggest concern is that he is so uncomfortable and I'm an hour away. It makes me sad to think how agitated he is and there's only a small window of time through out the day to feel like I'm making him feel at ease. I thought this NICU roller coaster ride was pretty much over..... I want off! Of course, I want Lincoln to not have to be on the ride anymore either.
So, it's up to me to now cast away my fears, pain, anguish, worries and on and on and on. I'll cry to Jesus, sing to Jesus....Fall on Jesus and live! Afterall, faith is the big key here.