Jack Winfield Montgomery

 

Friday

August 28th

On the road with Jack! The doctors have cleared us to travel with Jack. He is up to a hefty 7lbs 15oz. and growing every day. We have to come back every month for his check ups, but so far everything looks healthy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wednesday

July 22nd

Back to the Doctor today. Jack is growing and doing well! He is up to 5lbs 9oz. We still have to wake him up every 3 hours, but if all goes well, that should only be for the first few weeks.

 

Wednesday

July 15th

We are going home! Jack hit his weight requirement, And the doctors gave us the all clear! He is up to 5lbs 5oz. Thank you so much for your prayers and support!

 

Monday

July 13th

We had a bit of a setback this weekend. Jack was not able to gain any weight. He lost a few ounces. We are going to have to stay for a few more days as we try to build his weight up. Please pray that he can gain some weight over the next couple days. We are hopeful to go home on Wednesday, but it is up to Jack.

 

Friday

July 10th

Jack surprised us again! He did very well with eating yesterday. The doctors are hoping he can leave on Monday! We are starting our discharge process and making sure Jack keeps eating. He has been gaining weight steadily. He is up to a hefty 5lbs 7oz. Please pray that he does not get tired out and can keep eating at a steady pace.

 

Thursday

July 9th

The feeding tube is out! Jack surprised us by suddenly taking an interest in eating. As long as he will keep eating, and can gain some weight, the feeding tube can stay out. He is up to 5lbs 6oz. Please pray that Jack can maintain his energy to eat all by himself, he is not used to having to work for food. 

 

Wednesday

July 8th

We are out of the NICU! Praise the Lord, we were able to be moved to the transitional room. Jack is eating 2/3 of his food by mouth. He is considered to be in stable condition and just needs to be able to eat all his food. We are praying he can be off the feeding tube entirely in the next few days. Also Physical Therapy came by and evaluated him. He ranked perfect for his age. He is now weighing in at 5lbs 5oz.

 

Monday

July 6th

Jack took his whole bottle today! This was encouraging. If he can keep eating on his own, we should be able to leave the NICU and go to a transitional room where Bernadette and I can stay with him. He also needs to gain some weight. He is weighing in at 5lbs 2oz.

 

Saturday

July 4th

Jack got his last IV taken out! Now he is just connected to the monitors and his feeding tube. We are still working on getting Jack to eat more by mouth. Because of his stroke when he was first born, the doctors are running tests on his blood to make sure he does not have any clotting issues. Please pray the results come back clean.

 

Thursday

July 2nd

Jack was able to come off oxygen entirely! He is breathing all by himself and loving it! We got this picture when they first took out the oxygen tube.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wednesday

July 1st

We were able to start feeding Jack by mouth today! He is still catching on to the idea, but it is a big step in the right direction. As soon as he is able to eat by himself and has gained some weight, we will be able to leave the NICU and go to a regular room.

 

Tuesday

June 30th

Jack had a very good day today! He was able to come of the Cpap and go to the Force Air Cannula. He is much more comfortable. Today is our 3rd Anniversary. Bernadette's mom was able to spend the day with Jack so we could get some "time off". Jack enjoyed a good day with Grandma.

 

Monday

June 29th

Good news! We got to talk with the Neurologist today. She said that the spots on Jack's brain are very minor. They have already started shrinking and should be gone entirely within six months. We will probably not be able to tell if there will be any effects until Jack is in grade school. If there is a problem, it will probably be a minor learning disability that will not affect him after grade school. Considering how the news could have been, we feel very blessed. Thank you so much for your prayers!

 

Sunday

June 28th

As the doctors warned us in the very beginning, his healing process will be "two steps forward, one step back". Jack had a rough night last night. This morning, he had to go back to a high flow Cpap. He was stuggling through the night, and the doctor feared he could damage his lungs. He is breathing better this morning, but does not like the new tubes in his nose. Thank you for your prayers!

 

Saturday

June 27th

We got the preliminary results for the MRI back from the doctor. It is verified that Jack has "two mild spots" on his brain. They are hard masses (which is apparently good) in the connections of his brain. We do not know if they will have any affects on him. We are supposed to meet with the neurologist tomorrow to find out more. On a much brighter note, Jack seems to be feeling much better today! He has been resting quietly and enjoying being held by us. They have doubled how much he has been eating, and are hoping to be able to feed him by mouth in the next few days.

 

Friday Night

June 26th

What an amazing day! Jack made some huge steps in the right direction. He was taken off the ventilator around noon. He took off breathing on his own right away. He went down a step to a Cpap. They were able to take him off of his pain medicine and blood pressure medicine by 7 o'clock. By 8 o'clock, he did not even need the Cpap, and he moved down another step to a "high flow cannula". We were also able feed him through his feeding tube. At 9 o'clock, Bernadette got to hold him for the first time! What an amazing time for us. We still have not been able to hear back from the results of the MRI. We are praying for the results by tomorrow morning. Thank you so much for your prayers!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Friday Morning

June 26th

We still have not heard back from the MRI. Jack is on schedule to have the ventilator taken out today! They have changed his medicine to accomodate him breathing on his own. If he can remain stable off the ventilator, we should be able to hold him and feed him through his feeding tube tonight.

 

Thursday Night

June 25th

The MRI did not happen until about six o'clock. We were not able to make any real progress today, as we spent the whole day waiting. We should be able to find out the results of the MRI tomorrow. If it is good news,  we should be abe to work on taking Jack off the ventilator, feed him through his feeding tube, and hold him.

 

Thursday Morning

June 25th

Jack's appointment for his MRI is scheduled for noon. If all goes well, they are planning on taking him off the ventilator tonight. Also, they are planning on taking him off of his blood pressure medicine. This will allow us to hold him and feed him! Bernadette has never been able to hold him. Please pray that all goes well with the MRI, and he can maintain his numbers.

 

Wednesday Night

June 24th

Jack had a great day! We were very encouraged again tonight. Jack was able to come down on his blood pressure medicine to what is considered a "stable" amount. Also, the appointment for his MRI was moved up to tomorrow morning. We should know the results by tomorrow afternoon. If all goes well, they plan on taking him off the ventilator tomorrow night.

 

Wednesday Morning

June 24th

Today we got some much welcomed good news! Jack had a very good night. We will be trying to wean him off some of his medicines as well as the ventilator. The doctors are hopeful that we will be able to feed him by the tube to his stomach by tonight. This would be a very big step in his healing process.

 

Tuesday Night

June 23rd

Today, during an ultrasound of Jack's brain, the doctor found a "dark spot". It is not bleeding in the brain, but it could be an issue.  We want to get him in for an MRI on Friday. He has to be in stable condition before the doctors can perform the MRI. Please pray that he will be able to stabilize by then. There is a chance that this could just be Jack's brain growing into his head, but it could also be the "underlying problem".

 

Tuesday Morning

June 23rd

Jack Winfield Montgomery’s due date was July 24, 2015. During Bernadette’s 32nd week of pregnancy, she started to show signs of pre-eclampsia. She was put on total bedrest in week 33. Since she is a Type I diabetic and she had pre-eclampsia, the doctors monitored her very closely.  On Thursday, June 18th, the doctor decided that Bernadette should deliver Jack by C-section that evening. Jack was born at the gestational age of 34 weeks and 6 days. He weighed exactly 5 pounds and was 17 3/4 inches long. He was just over 5 weeks early.

 

By Friday morning, it was apparent to the doctors that Jack was struggling too much in his breathing. He also had a very high hemoglobin count, making his blood extremely thick and fast-clotting. Jack needed to be in a hospital that specializes in high-risk premature newborns. At noon, he was flown via helicoptor to the University of Chicago Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Bernadette had to stay in the hospital until Sunday in order to recover from Thursday’s C-section.

 

Jack is receiving excellent care at UofC; they quickly corrected his hemoglobin problem. Since his breathing was not improving, the doctors suspected that Jack had an undiagnosed underlying medical issue in addition to his underdeveloped lungs. The doctors are currently trying to diagnose Jack’s problem. They have already ruled out several conditions. 

 

Jack is on a breathing tube and ventilator and his breathing has improved. He is sedated, but opens his eyes and responds when he knows his mom and dad are at his crib. Jack can see and hear and he can grasp your finger in his little hand. Jack has many tubes and machines connected to him and he does not like when a machine starts beeping! Jack is on Dopamine for his low blood pressure. Dopamine slows down digestion, so he must be on less Dopamine before they can feed through a feeding tube. Jack will have to be on less Dopamine before he can be considered in stable condition. He must be in stable condition before Bernadette or Jerrod can hold him.