English Translation
Zwarte Piet went out for a bike ride,
when his tire burst.
He then walked to the VU,
holding a beautifull, soft mouse in his hand.
The song is not quite how it is supposed to go, papa should teach you correctly later. Anyway, on a more serious note. Yesterday you were taken of the ventilator. Until now you are doing great. You are now on the infant flow, a sort of snorkel that blows air into your nose. You are breathing totally on your own. It does give you a little to much air in your tummy, which makes you throw up a bit. But besides that you are doing well. I am proud of you!
Yesterday you kangarood with mama for the first time. Tonight it’s papa’s turn. Isn’t that exciting?
Ok love, see you tomorrow.
Love, Kim.
PS: I’m quite curious about your passport.
English Tranlation
Hi Sweetie,
This is the first time that papa writes something in your diary. Today you are already 13 days old and you are doing better every day. Last weekend is the first time papa and mama slept well. That was about time, because we were completely exhausted.
I’m taking a few pictures of you every day such that we can see how you are growing. Tonight I’m going to try and turn one of these nice photos into a picture to go into your very first passport. I believe that you must be the youngest person ever to have his own passport. In a few months you will already be making a very big trip. We will then be moving to Malysia. There you can play with monkeys. These are the cute animals mama has based your nickname on. So when we call you little monkey, you will know what we are talking about.
If everything goes well and you have a peacefull night, tomorrow you will be allowed to rest on mama or papa’s chest. We will dream about that all night.
So, love, sleep tight. papa and mama love you very, very much and we will come and visit you as often as we can.
Big kiss,
papa
English Translation
Hi Sebastian!
Well cutie….Today you are 10 days old, but you’re still not doing so well! You are on the High Frequency Respirator and still have a lot of tubes and medication. A few days ago you were retaining a lot of fluid and you had a purple, bronze color. Luckily you have lost most of that fluid and are returning to a beautiful baby pink! mama and papa come and visit you a few times every day. They bring you little blankets that smell like mama such that you can get used to her scent. When you are ready to go on the normal respirator (or even without the breathing tube) then you can lie on top of mama and papa. I’m sure that they are looking forward to that.
A few days ago I made a print of your little foot. I have put it right here in your diary. Isn’t that small? papa and mama are totally in love with your feet.
Ok sweetie, sleep well because that makes you big and strong. And dream about nice things such as eating ice cream, playing basketbal or putting your feet in the sea.
Big Hug,
Mechelien
From this day we (Sebastian’s nurses and his family) started entering little stories in Sebastian’s diary. The first entry is by nurse Danielle.
English translation
Dear Sebastian,
Already 5 days old today! You were born on the 15th in Rotterdam after a pregnancy of 28 weeks and 3 days. Because your mama was very sick you were delivered by a C-section. You are still a very small man weighing only 875 grams (so less than a pack of sugar). Because your longs are not quite ripe yet you are being assisted by a mechanical ventilator. To keep you at a steady temperature you are lying in an incubator. You are getting tiny amounts of food (6 x 1ml). Currently this is artificial feeding, but in a little while you will be getting mama milk (She’ll be your personal milk factory). For now this will be administered through a feeding tube, however as soon as you get big and strong enough you can try to do it yourself.
I understood from papa and mama that they always call you “little monkey”, but I like Sebastian a whole lot more. At the moment you are sunbathing under a phototherapy lamp because your skin looks a little yellow. Most of the day you are sleeping soundly which is great because it helps you grow. But sometimes….you open your little eyes and try to get an impression of what is happening around you. You have a beautifull purple pacifier on which you can suck with great enthusiasm (good exercise for later). Yesterday papa and mama brought you a stuffed “hugging” giraffe. It smells like mama and is lying right next to you in the incubator (your first best friend).
Well, little man, keep on sleeping for a little longer, and later you papa and mama will come and visit you again.
Love, Danielle
Today is the happiest day of our lives so far. At 9:02pm Laura gave birth to our son Sebastian Alexander Josephus Hos.
As some of you are aware, this is way too early. Let me explain:
Last Tuesday November 8th, Laura and I went to see the doctor for her 6 month checkup. The doctor was a little surprised at her bloodpressure reading and told us to go to the hospital to get a proper reading with more advanced equipment. Once there, she was diagnosed with pre-eclemsia. They did not tell us how bad things were, but told us that they were not qualified to treat her there.
She was transferred by ambulance to the Academic Medical Center in Rotterdam. There she was admitted into the intensive care unit of the prenatal care department. They told me that she had a bloodpressure reading of 210 over 180. If we had waited another day she would more then likely have suffered a stroke. She was immediately heavily medicated and continuously monitored around the clock. She responded very well and her blood pressure started dropping to more normal levels. The doctors told us that Laura would probably have to undergo a C-section within the next couple of days in order to keep her save. They did say that they would wait as long as possible, because the baby was only 27 weeks and 2 days at that time.
Over the next couple of days Laura started feeling better and she managed to pull through without too much pain, however last Sunday night her blood pressure started rising again and her liver and kidneys started acting up. This was causing her severe pain, which even the codine they were giving her would not touch. Last night the doctors decided that they could not wait any longer without jeopardizing Laura’s safety. At 8:30pm Laura was put under general anestesia and at 9:02pm our son was born after a term of 28 weeks and 2 days. His weight is 875 grams, which is less than 2 pounds. His birth was nothing short of a miracle since he apparently managed to start breathing without the aid of a resparator. This is the best any of us could have hoped for.
Laura is now recovering in the intensive care unit, were they are keeping a close watch on her bloodpressure and vital organs. I am extremely proud of my wife, and am amazed at how selfless and tough she handled herself. Sebastian is now slowly being prepped such that his vital organs will function on their own as soon as possible. The battle of the lungs is going very well, so he has had no shortage of oxygen to the brain. Next up is his digestive system. Hopefully he will be able to start feeding on breast milk as fast as possible.
More Later
