Milestones and Hurdles

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Thursday, May 1, 2008

Hayden's Home Away from Home... Ford's Progressing!



One of the days we've been waiting for since we became parents finally arrived Wednesday, April 30th. Our little son, Hayden was finally released from the NICU and the hospital. Of course, it was a bittersweet day because we were not able to take our sweet Ford home as well. He is working hard though to join his brother!


For the prior 2 nights, we roomed in at the hospital to make sure we had his schedule down... feeding him, caring for him and giving him his medicine.


He still fights us at times taking all of his feeds, but we are working on it and just praying he continues to gain weight. We have a doctor's appointment on Friday with the pediatrician so hopefully he still will be looking good. Feeding is his major issue. He is also home on a wiff of oxygen, but hopefully that will be only a month long since we have an appointment with the pulmonologist in a month.


Our first trip in the car with Hayden leaving Cook Children's hosptial was wonderful. He enjoyed his trip in his car seat. I rode with him in the back while Trey drove us back to our apartment in Fort Worth. Hayden's Big Daddy and Big Honey (Trey's parents) came to see Hayden's big day leaving the hospital. Hayden has already napped in his pack and play, swung in his swing... and napped extinsively in his mommy's, daddy's and big honey's arms.

Of course we are a bit sleep deprived, but it is all worth it!!!
Doesn't Hayden look handsome in his going home outfit from the hospital. He saw the outside world for the first time and I think he loved it! We really are so thankful to the Lord for blessing us with this huge milestone in our lives. There were times when the light at the end of the tunnel seemed so far away, so dark... but we are now benefitting from our faith that the boys would make it through their dark days.


There was another big milestone yesterday and this was Mr. Ford's! He was taken off the bubble c-pap and placed on high flow oxygen again. So far... he is doing really good. That is so huge for him and for us because his lungs have been so so sick. Our pulmonologist reminds me all of the time just how far he has come! I don't have pictures of this yet because we were so busy bringin Hayden home yesterday... but I can't wait to show him off! I do have pics of his days on the bubble c-pap! Please keep him in your prayers that this time it WILL work. He is such an amazing little boy... overcoming kidney stones and coping with lung disease. I am amazed by him!

Please keep both of the boys in your thoughts and prayers because we really want to come home soon and back to our family and friends! We pray Hayden gets better eating and comes off his oxygen and that Ford learns to eat and get lower on his oxygen.

Thank you for loving and caring about us.

Dana, Trey, Ford and Hayden

37 comments:

Anonymous said...

trey and dana, you continue to be in our thoughts and prayers, soo glad to hear the great news of HADEN COMING HOME. He will soon have a brother to grow with. Love,
The Harrisons

Anonymous said...

All I can say is WOW - Isn't God so GOOD? Tears of joy. I am so happy for ya'll. What a mighty God we serve. I am so happy Hayden is 'home away from home' and pray it won't be too long before Ford joins the rest of his family. Dana, you and Trey look so happy and are so blessed. Thanks so much for sharing your family with us. I will continue to pray and with each of you and wait upon the Lord. love and prayers, Mary Curry Broaddus, TX

Anonymous said...

Trey and Dana,

We are so happy to hear Hayden is coming home and that Ford is doing great! We will continue our many prayers for you all to be home in Tyler soon! You have a beautiful family and we are so excited for you! Give the boys a big hug for us!

Lots of Love! Abby and Sam

Steven Seligman M.D. said...

A true Miracle!!!!

Look forward to telling the boys about their adventure someday. P>S> They would look better in maroon and white pajamas.

Anonymous said...

OMG! Tears of joy, pure joy!! We are all so excited for you and continue to pray for Ford. Breathe and enjoy this great event!! We love you, Nanie and Grumpy

Anonymous said...

Trey & Dana,
God be praised for your miracles at His hands! I read your blog with tears of gratitude and a prayer for Ford's joining Hayden really soon.
From a loving GABC "family" member

Unknown said...

WOW!!! God is so faithful and listens to our prayers! I am so happy for you four! Ford will not be long behind! I can only imagine what you are going through as you have one "home" with you! YEAH!!!!Thanks for the update!

Anonymous said...

Congratulations on such a BIG milestone, most people think of bringing their baby home as just another part of having a child but as parent's of premature babies it means so much more. I too had a premature baby (28wks)and was overwhelmed with emotion when I heard Hayden was going home. All the emotions I had when my little girl was able to come home came flooding back. We are extremely blessed as we have witnessed and been touched by one of God's most amazing miracles.
Pam Flint,TX

Anonymous said...

WOW!! Our God is an amazing God! What a blessing to see and hear of all our prayers being answered. I know your heart is over joyed & split at the same time. It will only be alittle while longer until it will be whole again. The pictures of you three are precious. Ford is a little Champ too. I know that you all have missed many hours of sleep, you couldn't tell it by looking at the pictures. You both look so fresh and alert. Dana I was sent this website & wanted to share it with you. www.birthverse.com
Ford & Hayden's birth verse says, He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 1:8 NIV.
You all, will always be in my prayers. Sorry this is so long.
KLTV veiwer

Anonymous said...

I have been keeping up with you guys story since day one. I have been a KLTV viewer since childhood and have grew to be family like to you all. I want to say our prayers continue to flow towards you guys every single day and we are so excited for you all. I know this has to be wearing mom and dad out, but as wonderful parents you guys have done an awesome job and have not missed a beat.
God Bless you guys,
The Williams
Mount Pleasant, Texas

Anonymous said...

Hughey Family--

So glad to see and hear the good news. Before you know it you all will be home in East Texas in no time!

Take care,
-Cody Lillich
clillich@kltv.com

Anonymous said...

I love y'all!

Aunt Gigs :)

Anonymous said...

I have been by the blog over the months keeping track of Ford and Hayden's progress. I am alway encouraged by the small but dramatic steps that these two courageous boys of yours experience. As a friend and classmate of Trey's, and as a fan of Dana's, I wish you all nothing but the best as the days and months continue.

Daren Hanson

Anonymous said...

Tray and Dana,

We are celebrating with you at your bringing Hayden home! And, continue to pray for a quick progression for Ford so that he can join his family and you can all head back to Tyler. I know it has been a long road and I pray for God's continued strength as you await Ford's release from the NICU.

With Love,
Sunny Agness

Glenda, saved by grace said...

I am so happy for ya'll. Those little guys are troopers. Praise the wonderful living God we serve!
The big picture coming into view,Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to [his] purpose.
Much Love and Many blessings!
Glenda

Anonymous said...

I will keep this short and sweet. I am thrilled to see most of you out and about! You all have been blessed. Cannot wait until Ford can join the rest of the clan in Tyler.

Pam J.

Anonymous said...

Congratulations on having one of your sons home with you. Hopefully it won't be too long before you have them both at home with you.

One note I wanted to make. Your carseat picture your son was adorable. I loved his outfit. I did notice that the chest clip was very low though. The chest clip needs to be positioned at the shoulder/nipple area of the child, not down by the buckle. This will ensure that the straps stay correctly positioned in the event of a car crash. If the chest clip is down by the buckle, there is a chance the child could be ejected due to the straps not being positioned correctly.

Anonymous said...

Mr. and Mrs. Hughey,

I can't tell you how overjoyed I am to hear that you fighting your way through all of this. And even though I don't know you all that well, I know that you are deserving and thats what I prayed for, to make sure that you never forgot that you were deserving parents. Good luck and many congradulations on the progress!Alyx Pace

Anonymous said...

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!!!!! We are so happy for your little family, hopefully you'll all be home soon.


Lots of Love,
A GMET Viewer.

Jean said...

Happy Mothers Day! We have waited a long time to tell you that...yeah! We love you, Nanie and Grumpie

Anonymous said...

Happy Mothers Day! Hope you have a great weekend with your boys and Trey!
Cant wait to see you back on the early morning news with Clint, but Ford and Hayden come First. We, your devoted KLTV viewers can wait for that wonderful day when we wake up, turn TV on and see you back in your seat, next to Clint...
your baby boys are so adorable..my baby boy is 20,almost 21..they grow up so,so fast! again, have a great 1st Mother's Day!!!
A KLTV fan!
Tracey Miles

Anonymous said...

HAPPY BLESSED MOTHER'S DAY!!!

Anonymous said...

So wonderful to read that Hayden is home and doing well. I feel sure that your Dr. and nurses have told you that the feeding concerns will soon be a non issue. Learning to breath, swallow and suck all at the same time takes practice and that is true especially with a premie.
We will continue to pray with boldness for Ford and that God will continue to strengthen and heal his medical issues. Hayden as well as his dear Mom and Dad will also continue to be in our prayers.
May you, Dana, have a wonderful first Mother's Day.
To God be the Glory!!!

Anonymous said...

Dearest Dana,

HAPPY FIRST MOTHER'S DAY!!!!

PRAISE GOD Hayden is home. I pray that Ford is not to far behind him.

Diane Longview, TX

Anonymous said...

Happy First Mother's Day! I'm so excited to hear the boys are progressing! Hope you are getting some sleep! Can't wait to see another update on your precious boys. They are getting so big...it is just amazing how much they have changed since they arrived. Precious miracles from heaven...you continue to be in my prayers!

Anonymous said...

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Anonymous said...

Happy Mother's Day - Dana - May God bless you. Pray all is well with Hayden and Ford. Please keep us posted as to their progress. love & prayers
Mary Curry - Broaddus, TX

Anonymous said...

Happy Mother's Day - Dana - May God bless you. Pray all is well with Hayden and Ford. Please keep us posted as to their progress. love & prayers
Mary Curry - Broaddus, TX

Anonymous said...

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!
I hope that you and Trey and the boys have a blessed day. All of you continue to be in our prayers. Love, Trey J, Sara & Randall

Anonymous said...

Happy Mother's Day Dana!

-Cody Lillich
clillich@kltv.com

Kathy said...

I'm so happy that Hayden has come home... how wonderful. I'm sure in no time Ford will be w/you all three of you. You're in my thoughts and prayers.

Kathy Vitale

Anonymous said...

Hope everything is going well. Glad to here you are all almost home. My prayers are with you to all be together in your home soon.

Anonymous said...

Dear Dana and Trey,
Our son Matthew was in the NICU at Cooks from February to early April. We’ve been thinking about you, and I found your blog. We saw you almost every day, and my wife and I really wanted to say goodbye to you when we left. Matthew made a dramatic recovery, and our clearance to go home happened very fast. We stayed a night at one of their rooms in the back of the progressive unit. The bed was a little small, but it allowed us to gain confidence in taking care of Matthew with the nurses nearby. Going home with him was one of the best days of our lives. We're happy to hear that Hayden is home. It sounds like Ford will go home soon too.
We will definitely be praying for you. In your blog, you described many of the experiences that we felt, and it’s obvious that you are fellow believers. Our faith gave us strength, and Matthew’s recovery was a miracle. I am sure you remember the days when his noisy breathing could be heard throughout the NICU. There were some dark times when we though he would never regain vocal cord function. We were looking at long term tracheotomy and g-tube. The Lord restored his vocal cords, and this experience has strengthened our faith. It’s inspiring to read about the healing He is doing for Ford and Hayden.
Matthew has been home for over a month now. He is doing well, and he is gaining weight (definitely a good thing). It’s still feels a little weird not driving to Cooks every day (we spent so much time there!). We saw his pulmonologist and his surgeon for a check-up, but we won’t see Dr. Nedrolo again. He was great, and I wish we had another chance to thank him.

You’re in our thoughts and prayers, and I look forward to updates on your blog.

Sincerely,

Rob and Erin
rekiv@sbcglobal.net

Anonymous said...

I am so glad you have one baby home.. I felt the same way when I got to bring one home and the other had to stay at the hosptial.. But the one good thing from it all was I got use to one little guy being home and by the time the other came home. i was use to the sleepless nights and than Lord and behold, they both slept through the night...
God bless,
Michelle Hunt County, Texas

Anonymous said...

Still praying for you in Sunny South Florida


----- Yvette Freeman Rowland

Anonymous said...

Hughey family, I am praying that all is well. Hoping that you all are just to busy playing, loving & enjoying your boys to post an update! I am so proud that you all have Lil Hayden at home and pray that by now you may also have Ford at home.
God Bless you all :)

Anonymous said...

Seven years ago my niece gave birth to very premature quads: 2 boys and 2 girls. There was never a doubt that they would be early. The largest weighed in at 2lbs 8 ozs. They came with all the problems feeding and breathing your babies have plus some. They are now normal healthy 7 year olds. If you did not know their history you would not know they ever had any problems. Hang on. If our babies made it yours can too.

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