Prayers for Baby J

I wanted to take a minute to update you on baby J and ask for prayers on his behalf.  J was born at 8lbs 11 oz and right after birth we noticed that he had a poor suck.  He wasn't able to nurse well and therefore wasn't eating much.  After a couple of days of not improving I made the decision to pump and give him his milk through a bottle so that I could see how much he was taking. Over the next couple of weeks his weight continued to decline and this past Tuesday he was down to 7 lbs 5 oz.  At 3 weeks old he should be at least back up to his birth weight by now (if not well past it).  We called a local pediatrician who only works pediatrics one day a week at Partners in Hope....the day we called "happened" to be the day he worked. Of course I don't believe in luck or coincidences.  God was showing me immediately that HE was all over this!

We took J to see the pediatrician and we found out that he has a partial cleft palate.  No wonder he was having a hard time eating and learning to suck.  The first and most immediate concern is to get his weight back up and his eating under control.  We inserted an NG tube and went to work!  After 3 days of ample nourishment he looks and acts like a new baby.  He takes his bottle on his own now and can finish a bottle in 15 minutes (as opposed to 2 hours previously).  Poor baby just needed to gain his strength back.  We will check his weight this weekend and if he's still eating on his own and gaining weight we can pull the NG tube.  Yay!

As for the cleft palate, the instant that the Dr. mentioned the words my friend and nurse, Becky, who went with us to the Dr. said that we have a plastic surgeon visiting in August from So. Cal and she's coming primarily to do cleft palate repairs.  J needs to be at least 6 months old before we can have anything done to correct his cleft palate.  In August he'll be 8 months.  Do you see God all over this?? We are still full of questions and have little answers but that's ok because we trust fully in the Lord and we know that He has got everything all planned out.  God is good all the time!!!  I will keep you posted on baby J's progress and prayer needs. Thank you for your support and prayers and encouragement.

The Kyser Family