There's no place like home

We finally made it home from the hospital Wednesday afternoon.  What was supposed to be just an overnight stay, turned into five nights.  Luke's surgery last Friday made for a long day.  He started at 12:30pm and we didn't get to see him in recovery until 5:30pm.  (Extra special thanks to Trac for sitting with us all afternoon...love you!)  

The G-tube placement went well, and it has definitely been easier on him so far than the NG tube, though he managed to find it on his tummy and loves to play with it and pull on it!  Thankfully, a tube in his tummy is much easier to protect than the tube in his nose.  The ENT procedures showed no structural issues that would have been causing the aspiration, though he was diagnosed as having a "floppy" airway throughout (bronchomalacia, tracheomalacia, laryngomalacia).  The hope and expectation would be that as he grows bigger and stronger, the airway would also get stronger.  The worst case scenario, though rare, would require some type of intervention (i.e. tracheotomy) to assist with his breathing. The sedated ABR showed exactly what we suspected: that he has mild hearing loss and will likely need hearing aids.  

Overall, all of the procedures went well, but Luke had some complications in the days following surgery.  He spiked a very high fever (over 103) and heart rate (over 200), which led them to believe he had some type of infection.  Thankfully, by Wednesday both were back to normal and we were finally able to go home.  After being stuck in the hospital again for six days, I was clicking my heels together saying, there's no place like home!  Jackson and Olivia handled things so well, but they sure did miss their little Lukey.  Thanks to everyone who helped out with them while we were gone.  We couldn't do this without you.  There certainly is no place like home...and wonderful family and friends!

Luke is doing fairly well since we got home, all things considered.  Of course there's never a dull moment in the Gabrione household, so Luke is dealing with this again for the entire weekend (due to possible relapse of the opsoclonus myoclonus syndrome - neurological disorder)...

His "fortress" (or "baby jail" as Daddy calls it) to keep him protected from curious brother and sister!

How sweet is he?!

Thank you again to everyone for your thoughts, prayers, and concerns for sweet Luke.  As we prepare for Luke and Olivia's first birthday (wow!), we are hopeful that the next year will bring a fresh, uneventful new start for him.