look ma, no cannula

seriously--this is the boy who had a ventilator breathing for him 4 days ago and 50% of his bowel removed 2 weeks ago.  what a rockstar. 

(this was after the oral-gastric tube was pulled, but before the n-g tube was placed--also before I cleaned up his chin--so I got this rare tube-less picture)

a few minutes later...

Ryan's been changed to elecare---a fancy schmancy formula and he is up to 3 mL/hr and doing well.  I finally got to kangaroo him today--exactly 2 weeks after the last time I held him (the day before he got so sick).  There were too many days in the past 2 weeks when I truly thought I'd never get the opportunity to hold him again--I'm so grateful to see him acting like he used to--quietly alert, content, sucking his hands or his pacifier, just being a sweetheart.  The neonatal doctors have signed off on him and now he is just being taken care of by the pediatric surgeons who are monitoring his digestion.

And of course Nora, who, by the way, was also on a ventilator 4 days ago is now healing nicely and just practicing being cute: 

Thanks, Elizabeth, for the sweet hats--they fit beautifully.