One things for sure...

the little man's hair appears to have a reddish hue to it. And if anyone has seen my "beard" before you'll know he gets it from his old man. So we'll see if this auburn shade sticks with him and if so we'll stock up the SPF 100 for our fair-skinned little dude. Anyway, this Sunday was a fairly busy day with visitors and such. It appears his loyal fan base is local and he has several guests everyday to admire him. Today, however was the first day where I felt really "trapped" in our space on the third floor. All 8 of Greyson's roomates parents were in to visit and it just made things cramped and gave me an uneasy feeling. Leigh and I are both so ready to leave and make Grey comfortable in his own room. But we learn patience, and know when we finally get to take him home it'll be even more meaningful.

It seems like Grey's been making some friends here among the nurses as well, we've just heard that three nurses have requested to care for him on monday and tuesday. Either they really love this little guy or they are just interested in an easy work day because he's the easiest to care for in the room. Either way, he's pretty popular. :)

So tomorrow he'll have his tests and we'll know for sure about the shunt surgery. It seems likely he will indeed have it. Man, it'll be hard to see him go thru another surgery. But we are pretty confident this little one has the right attitude going in, he'll be cool, calm and relaxed. That's just how he rolls!

love to all,

Leigh, Andy, Greyson

The Weekend at the NICU

So Leigh and I have determined that the hospital is getting a little old, Sure we know exactly where to park, what hours the cafeteria are open, and how to get up to the third floor the quickest. But we are ready to take greyson home!!! But we go one day at a time and enjoy ever second we get to hang with our little buddy! And lately things have been pretty exciting!!! Yesterday marked the first day that Greyson didn't have to be on his belly! And basically they Ok'd him to be in any position he's comfortable with. WE still are leaning on the side of precaution and not setting him on his back for too long, it's just a little scary. But the Docs say he's fine and his attitude wouldn't prove anything different. He's very content. So now that he's up off his belly he we can hold him!!! Yes an amazing feeling that we've been not so patiently waiting for, for over a week! Yesterday afternoon Leigh was able to hold Grey for the first time like a little baby should be held. Obviously the love for our little guy was overwhelming as she held him. I'm pretty sure she didnt let go or share him with anyone else for 4-5 hours. I don't blame her! After some convincing I was able to peal greyson away from Leigh so that i could hold my buddy. Wow, finally. It was incredible!

This morning as we walked in, Greyson had what looked like earmuffs on, but earmuffs that were from Star wars or something. Turns out he was having his hearing screening done...and he passed. So that cools, the little guy can hear. IT must be from when i set my ipod next to his head those first couple days. Gotta get him started early on learning what good music is all about! :)

Today has been great, We've held him, washed him, squeezed him, and pretty much gaze at him and are perfectly happy. I loose track of time because im so focused on him. So he hope to just enjoy the rest of the weekend hangin with our new best friend. We know what Monday/Tuesday will hold and dont want to get caught up on that. Monday he'll have another head ultrasound and his shunt surgery is in the books tentatively for tuesday. So all please continue to pray for Greyson has he's gonna have to put his game face on again and get tough for another surgery. We pray that the Surgeon will perform his finest surgery and that all will go smoothly. WE love this little guy soooo much and its clear he's loved by so many others just from those following his journey on our blog. Thank you all, it touches us deeply that people that have never met us or greyson can be so connected in the effort to love and bring this boy home as soon as possible.

love to all of you out there,

Leigh,Andy,Grey


enjoy the pics...i've got hundreds more :) hehehe

Not this weekend :(

Well, it looks like the little one will be hanging out at the NICU this weekend. We had just a slight bit of hope when a doctor said we might be able to take him home this weekend, but they will keep him over the weekend because it looks like he'll have his shunt surgery on Monday or Tuesday. Probably more like Tuesday. It was tough for Leigh and I just because earlier this morning Leigh was surprised by the fact that a doctor said he might come home Friday, it would almost be better if they didn't say that unless they were for certain, ya know?

Anyway, Greyson's doing well and he'll be able to get up off his belly tomorrow. Finally a change of scenery for the little man. Gotta be kinda sick of lounging on his belly for a week. Although I think I'd be content with eating, sleeping and lounging on my belly all week. Tomorrow also marks the day that We can hold him! I'm not sure if it will be full-on "hold a little baby" holding, but nevertheless we can hold Greyson without having him lying flat on a pillow.

Today also marked the day Leigh nursed Grey for the first time. An interesting predicament when he has to remain feet higher than his head and belly-down. But the incredible nurses here got creative and it worked out better than expected!

So we prepare for another surgery...wait didn't we already do this? Yeah it'll be tough, maybe even tougher than his first becasue we've gotten to know our sweet baby and love him more than we thought we ever could. We hate that he will have to go through this once again, but know that it is what is best for him. As always, we put him in God's hands and know that He is in complete control. Please say a prayer for our little guy and for us, as we know that it will be a difficult few days but hopefully our family will be home within the week!

love to you all,
Leigh, Andy, and baby Grey

One Week Ago...

Leigh had little greyson!!! Say what!!! its already been a week. It's hard to believe that he's been part of the family for a week, but he sure seems to fit in pretty well :)
Today was the first day i had to go back to work. That was a little tough to get back in the swing-of-things and re-focus on something other than my little guy. And yes, one of the first things i did was set my background image to a great shot of greyson!!!

I was able to jet out for lunch and see him and when i got there I was surprised to hear that Leigh spoke with the doctors and they said it was likely he would be released this weekend!!! This is pretty exciting! I asked "even with his head ultrasound set for monday, and a possible shunt surgery tuesday, we can still bring him home?" They said Yes, if the Neurosurgeon and Plastic Surgeon OK him to come home then, Yes he's ready. So that news helped out today. And life for us remains to be lived Day-to-Day!

So Greyson will be my favorite photo subject until he says, "Geez Dad, another picture, thats so lame." but until then, I will continue to snap shots. Heres a few more. Hope you enjoy!

love the Gibbs crew.

Scrub-A-Dub-Dub

So today Greyson finally got all that lingering "gunk" out of his hair. Yup Leigh got to play hair stylist and do-up his hair. I kept pushing for the rat tail look, but Leigh was against it. For those of you that have seen him in person you know he's working on a pretty sweet baby mullet, that if twisted up correctly would make for a great 80's rat tail. hehe Anyway, his "bath" went well and he seemed to be even more kissable than before. Greyson also got to put on his first real oufit, I was asked my opinion but it really didn't matter, Leigh had it planned well in advance im sure.

Greyson did have his head ultra this morning and although the measurement around his head stayed the same, it appears that his ventricles are larger than normal. (we knew this while he was in utero) The DR said this could be his heads ventricle size, but was honest and said he thought he would need a shunt. They will do an ultrasound again next Monday and based on that we could have his surgery next tuesday. So as much as we were preparing for this it was still hard to swallow. Especially after loving on him so much today, and seeing how peaceful and content he is right now. Another surgery and not even 2 weeks old. I've been around almost 28 years and have had 2 surgeries total. One of which was for warts on my feet (yes I had surgery for warts on my feet, no need to laugh) Anyway, for what this little guy has had to endure already, he is far tougher than I'll ever be. So the tough part is just the idea of having to go through another surgery. Shunts are pretty common, in people of all ages, but with any surgery theres risks and we just don't like the idea risks being associate with our precious, perfect baby. So for all of you following and praying say a prayer for all 3 of us as he gear up for some more combat.

With love,

Andy, Leigh, and Grey

Leigh and Andy are back home...

But we are missing one key member of the family :( Yesterday LEigh was discharged from the hospital which was very bittersweet. Yes I could sleep in my own, soft bed, with soft sheets, and with a pillow that doesnt have a some weird "plasticy" stuff on it. But we had to leave our little guy on the third floor. It was tough, especially for Leigh. You kinda feel like horrible people and parents for leaving him while you go home and are comfy, but we realize this is where he's got to be.

So this morning we got up to make it here by his 9 o'clock feeding, and to our surprise he didnt have his feeding tube in anymore! Apparently he ripped it out over night, that a way Greyson, you tell them, you don't need no stinking feeding tube. And since then he's been sucking it down long neck style. He may have gotten that from his old man. :) A little off the topic, but somewhat related... I cracked open the beer I had brewed in honor of Greyson and WOW!!! Some of the tastiest brew i've made to date! I've got plenty so those who want to sample it we'll set a time when the big guys home.

Greyson seems to be doing good, and his back is healing well. We've noticed theres been limited movement in his legs, which is very understandable given the opening in his back. This was something I would seem to get hung up on prior to his birth. I just wanted my boy to be able to walk/run. It's funny how that really doesn't matter anymore to either Leigh or I. Yes it would be amazing if someday he could walk independently, but honestly my attitude has completely changed since i've met him. So what if needs some help getting around, he's PERFECT anyway!!!

Greyson has a head ultra sound tuesday morning, (this is typical) to measure his ventricles and see if the fluid around his brain is building up. They've been measuring his head the last couple days and the size of his head has increased slightly. Nothing out of the ordinary, but nevertheless an increase. Leigh and I are pretty much counting on the fact he'll need a shunt, and actually it might be easier to deal with if he has it while hes still in the hospital rather than taking him him and then having to come back. We pray that he'll continue to be a tough, brave little guy and handle it has well as he did his other surgery. But, I shouldnt get ahead of myself, it hasn't happen yet and Lord-willing it may not.

Greyson has also had a ton of visitors that we've all enjoyed. Thanks to everyone who has come and said hi, it means a lot!

It still blows me away that this little guy is ours. I honestly just start crying when i think about him, and I'm not even at risk for post-pardeum!!! haha But these are good tears my friends, great tears of JOY!!!

Love to all,

Leigh, Andy, Grey

Our Perfect Valentine

That's right, we have the most perfect valentine...and his name is Greyson. Today was a GREAT day for the three of us! It started off with Andy and I going down to see him bright and early. We happened to be there at the same time his plastic surgeons were there. They were checking out his incision (which they say looks good) and were pressing on his back. Greyson DID NOT like this, seeing him cry and not being able to comfort him was very hard on his mommy and his nurse Kristen decided that today would be a good day to hold him!! That's right, today I got to "hold" my baby! They put a pillow on my lap and then placed him on top. It was the absolute best! Not only was it a good thing for me, but it also helped him. He was awake and content for quite awhile, looking at Andy and checking out the rest of the place.
He also got fed with a bottle today, that is a BIG step! If he can continue to eat just from a bottle, he can soon have his feeding tube and the IV that is in his belly button removed. We are hoping that this will be in a few days.
Andy and I have gotten pretty good at Greyson's "care time." This takes place every three hours and consists of changing his diaper, taking his temperature, and feeding him. We look forward to these times and have started to scheduled our day around them. Tomorrow I will be discharged and am not looking forward to it. Physically, I'm feeling much better but the thought of having to pack up and leave without our baby is not easy. We know that Greyson still has several more days to heal, and that this is where he needs to be. Please continue to keep us in your prayers and we will continue to update on how he is doing.

Love you all,
Leigh, Andy, and Greyson :)