Logan Update

I haven't disappeared. As anyone who's had a child knows, the first few months are exhausting, even when he or she is healthy--and I'm not even the one who has to wake up in the middle of the night to nurse (though my time will come, once we introduce the bottle).

Logan's doing pretty well. He's still small, but the doctors don't want him gaining weight very fast. He's wearing an apnea monitor, but it's only gone off once, and we think maybe it wasn't on right, so we hope that will go away soon. And he's on a half-dozen medications that have to be administered around the clock, but there again, we're hoping those will be reduced soon. Shannon has it tougher than I do, and not just with the nursing; because of the risk of infection, we've been instructed to keep him away from stores and crowds as much as possible, so she basically has to stay home all day long with a non-speaking, ravenous little human as her only human contact until Evan and I come home.

Evan's been a good little guy. He's handled the introduction of the baby as well as could be expected. He's very fond of Logan--maybe a little too fond at times, because he gets right up in Logan's face, and I can almost see the daycare germs coming out of his mouth onto the baby. But he's very gentle, more gentle than anyone could expect a three-year-old boy to be.

When I look at Logan, who, but for the scar and the medicines and the monitor and doctor and nurse visits and all the precautions we have to take, otherwise looks and acts like a normal baby, I'm nothing short of amazed at what the doctors have been able to accomplish. It's not so much a miracle as decades and decades of research and hard work, plus the skill and handiwork or particular medical professionals here in Columbia--not a miracle, but the result is the same.

During the three-plus weeks Logan was in the hospital, both the surgeon and cardiologist saw him every day (with a few exceptions when one was out of town), often multiple times, and they were constantly in touch by phone with the nurses. They always ask if we have any questions, and the surgeon is available by e-mail (he even offered to field questions from Shannon's sister, who's a doctor). And the nurses were very attentive and friendly. From what I've read, one might receive excellent care at a large city hospital, but not the same level of personal care.

We're already looking ahead to Logan's next surgery. The cardiologist said that we'll have to make decisions around Logan's third month, with the surgery likely occurring no later than six months of age. I very much respect these doctors, but I'm already seeking out additional opinions; I'm not going to make permanent decisions about Logan's heart (decisions that will affect him the rest of his life) without consulting with as many experts as I can find. When I have some more spare moments I will explain in more details Logan's condition and the possible surgeries and consequences.