NG Tube Removed, Started on Pedialyte

Hi all,

- Dustin's NG tube was removed today; PRAISE
- He started eating today, pedialyte; PRAISE

The next step will be gradual increase of pedialyte, then move on to mom's milk.

We praise Him for the progress so far and continued prayer for Dustin and Lisa's recovery; also for as smooth a transition as possible to our blessed new child, particularly for Zach.

Thanks again for all of your emails, calls, support and prayers.

Rob and Lisa

Inaugural Sunday Edition: Johnny the Bagger

No significant update today on Dustin...we are waiting for the next milestone which is for him to start eating mom's milk vs getting fed intravenously.

We're going to devote's today's post to starting an inaugural Sunday edition for our blog - each Sunday post will be devoted to hope for those with Down. Sometimes it will be about Dustin, other times it will be about other folks with Down. Either way, we want people to understand that God has a purpose for us all and we need to be intentional about listening to God for His plans for us and being obedient to Him for what He wants us to do.

With what we have learned about Down Syndrome, the mantra with Dustin will be "no limits". The other day we learned of a young man with Down that was awarded a college degree. We are constantly learning about what is possible and we know that "we can do all things through Him who strengthens [us]. (Philippians 4:13)".

Today, our pastor's sermon was on gossip and how words are a gift from God and how they can also be destructive. Scott went on to tell a story about a young man named Johnny, who had Down, transformed his workplace through the use of words. This is a great story - thanks to God and for using Scott to deliver this message to us.

Checkout video of Johnny's story.

God bless all of you and thank you for your prayers, calls, emails, etc.

We sincerely do love you all.

Rob, Lisa, and Zach.

More Progress to Report

I worked a full day today but Lisa went to visit Dustin during the day. Here is the report from Lisa:

• Dustin has been off of ventilator for nearly two days; PRAISE
• Dustin has been been completely weaned from morphine (post surgery); he is on a lesser pain killer as needed (which the nurses say is hardly at all); PRAISE
• The nasalgastric (NG) tube is no longer used to suction out excretion but is instead used for drainage and he is pooping more and more often (meaning the digestive system is starting to kick in); PRAISE (although at some point we will cease PRAISE for poop...)
• Another family in the ICN who was there last night (when we went home) said that Dustin was really active between 7-9p (we have not seen this yet but we'll PRAISE Him for it anyway)
• Dustin has moved on from a sugar solution to more nutrient rich fluids for feeding; he is working his way up to mom's milk PRAISE
• Dustin will likely have at least one more week in the hospital as he learns how to eat and digest on his own.
• Zach is doing great as and he continues to ask about when Dustin is coming home
• We will all visit Dustin tomorrow

We ask for praise for the progress so far and continued prayer for Dustin and Lisa's recovery; also for as smooth a transition as possible to our blessed new child, particularly for Zach.

Thanks again for all of your emails, calls, support and prayers.

Rob and Lisa

p.s. check out pictures at http://picasaweb.google.com/rwald3766/DustinJoshua

More Pictures

We continue to add pictures here.

Lisa Discharged...Dustin Off of Ventilator

Brief update. Lisa was discharged today and Dustin is off the ventilator and breathing on his own following surgery yesterday. Progress with both....more in coming days. Praise.

Dustin out of Surgery - Went Well

Dustin's surgery went well - Praise!

He is heading back to the NICU (where he has been since birth). He will continue to have a feeding tube and the tube in his stomach to suction everything out. He will have both of these tubes until likely this coming weekend when he is expected to start eating on his own and his digestive system should start to kick in. For the next day or so he will also have a ventilator tube as he weans himself from the anesthesia.

For now we won't be taking any more pictures because we don't want any with all of those tubes!

We continue to pray for Dustin's recovery, Lisa's, and our transition (particularly Zach's) with our blessed new child!

Thanks for all of your calls, emails, and prayers!

Rob and Lisa

Surgery 21JUL: A Father's Prayer

We spoke with the surgical team today and Dustin will likely head into surgery tomorrow around 12noon EDT to fix the duodenal atresia. I am praying not only for Him (God) to provide the medical team with the necessary skills to achieve success, but I am also praying for Dustin to know that God loves him more than his mommy and daddy ever can. Lisa and I of course love Dustin and we gain strength and peace from Christ our Lord and Savior. I pray that Dustin knows how God is with him just as He was with his namesake in the Old Testament:

"No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will never leave you nor forsake you."

Joshua 1:5

Pix Link

See the "Our Favorite Links" panel on the lower right column of this blog for a new link "Slideshow of Dustin Joshua" - this is where we will continue to add new pictures.

The Eagle Has Landed

OK....so we were off by only approximately 308 hrs. Lisa's water broke at approximately 0130 EDT last night, but she did not really get me up until 0330 EDT when she really felt her water break. All of us, Zach included, immediately set off for Duke University Hospital where a series of tests confirmed that indeed, Lisa was in labor (we were never in doubt!).

The team gave Lisa some drugs to dampen the contractions but this soon wore off and by 0640 EDT we were in the OR for a C-Section.

Dustin was born at approximately 0700 EDT this morning, and to borrow from another military theme, a "day that will live in infamy". Dustin Joshua Wald is 4lbs, 8oz and he is currently in the NICU. He is breathing on his own, but due to the aforementioned duodenal atreisa is getting sugar solution intravenously and has tube in his stomach with suction serving as his digestive system (in place his own malfunctioning one).

He is likely to have a one time surgery for this Monday and have an approximately 2 week recovery period where he needs to learn how to eat and digest on his own before he can discharged from the hospital. Lisa is likely to be discharged this coming Monday.

All in all, Lisa and Dustin are doing great - PRAISE THE LORD!

We are needless to say - very tired. Signing off for now.

444 Hours and Counting

We're back from the beach (only went for long weekend) and all is OK with Lisa and Dustin. We had fun and Lisa and Zach really liked the lazy river at the hotel where we stayed. The pool of course makes Lisa feel less burden on her back.

For those inclined, you can now subscribe to this blog as an RSS feed. Simply find the Subscribe To "DJ Is On The Way" menu on the right lower panel, and choose whether to subscribe to posts (and which RSS reader you want to use) and comments (also can choose RSS reader).

Talk to you soon....

Headin' to the Beach

Lisa's procedure went OK - although they kept her in hospital overnight for 2 nights for monitoring....just precautionary. Mom and Dustin doing fine. Doctors have indicated it's OK to go to Myrtle Beach...so we are heading on our way.

Thanks for your prayers!

Tues 08JUL @3:00PM EDT: Lisa to Have Excess Amniotic Fluid Drained

Because little Dustin has been found to have Duodenal atresia, Lisa has been retaining an excessive amount of amniotic fluid, a condition called Polyhydramnios. This of course (as we have indicated in previous posts) is causing a great amount of discomfort. To address this, we have an appointment at Duke Hospital where the doctors will drain the excess fluid. This must be done in the hospital because there is some risk the procedure may cause early labor.

We certainly ask for prayers that this procedure go smoothly and that no complications (such as early labor) arise. We also ask for prayers that the recovery go well and that we can head to Myrtle Beach as planned this Thursday evening (about 3.5 hr drive from Raleigh).

Thanks again for all of your prayers.
Rob and Lisa