April 1st - April fools day!

Today had a little bit of everything…stress, laughter, and small wins that we’re holding onto tightly.

Colton has been pretty backed up since Friday, and the team was preparing to do a pretty uncomfortable “clean-out” that we were all dreading. We knew he wouldn’t like it one bit, and honestly, neither would we. It’s so hard watching him go through these things.

But in true Colton fashion… he pulled an April Fools’ Day trick on all of us. Right before they started, he pooped!!! 🙌🏼 A moment of relief (and a little laughter we desperately needed). Because of that, they were able to hold off, and we even got to increase his feeds a bit. Such a small but big win for our little boy.

Declan is taking some early steps forward with feeds, just 1ml at noon and midnight, but it’s a start. He also passed about 6g of stool, which is encouraging. He’s still facing some challenges, though. He continues to have bleeding from his stoma/abdominal area and has needed daily platelet transfusions along with a blood transfusion.Through it all, he’s still having good urine output, which is something we’re grateful for. We are just awaiting the surgery team to tell us when they are ready for his big surgery… sooner than later.

Both boys will also be transitioning to a new care team, the Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia (BPD) Program. This team specializes in supporting babies like ours with complex lung needs, and we’re hopeful this next step will continue to guide them forward.

And today brought a moment that truly stopped us in our tracks. We realized that the doctor who will now be leading their care is the very same doctor who admitted them into the hospital. He’s the one who made the call to have both boys transferred to Lurie’s on the same day coordinating everything, even arranging for two ambulances so they could be together.

When we all connected the dots today, it felt like a full circle moment we couldn’t ignore. He even said himself that there must be a higher power connecting all of this. Without hesitation, I said, “Yes, my mother.” And in that moment, we all got goosebumps.

As always, we’re taking it hour by hour, holding onto the small victories, and trusting that these tiny steps are leading somewhere bigger. Los

Thank you for continuing to love, pray, and walk this with us 💙💙