Miles Charles Rae
Miles was born at 1:36 am April 20th 2009 at 32.5 weeks gestation. He weighs in at 5lbs 4oz and is 19.5 inches long!! Quite the size for a preemie! The group of NICU doctors and nurses took him immediately away to assess him. Even though he is such a big boy, his scores still told the nurses he was around 32.5 weeks. He then took his first trip to the NICU while Mike stayed with me to help me recouperate. We were able to see Miles in the NICU after he was settled in around 5 am. The NICU is an amazing place. There are 170 nurses there and each nurse takes care of 2 babies. Miles has the best nurses I have ever met. They all love their job so much and develop such a close bond with the babies they take care of. Miles’ nurses have been holding our hands every step of the way and trying to make this transition to life in the NICU an easy one for us.
Miles has quite an ordeal ahead of him now. He has a very high respiratory rate and is needing some oxygen, but his blood pressure and heart rate are normal. His chest x-ray shows some signs that he either has Respiratory Distress Syndrome or Pneumonia. He is in an incubator that controls his temperature and has a CPAP aparatus attached to him which blows air into his lungs with some additional oxygen to help control his breathing and keep his lungs open. He really really dislikes the CPAP as you can see from the picture he cant really move his head around. He is already getting a reputation in the NICU for being very cranky!! He hates having his diaper changed:) He has a feeding tube into his stomach to get the extra air out and has an IV line in his arm to give him additional nutrition and fluids.
The first night Miles struggled and the doctors decided it was time to intubate him and put more surfactant into his lungs. This should have helped him breathe easier, but really it did not do much for him. So by the next morning, one of his blood tests started showing signs of increasing inflammation which is now leading them down the pneumonia path.
He also has an incompatability with my blood type that is causing his bilirubin to break down and create Jaundice. He is beginning to look pretty yellow. They are confident that they can control this by putting him under the lights for a few days and assure me it is a routine thing to do, however Miles seems to like to be swaddled tightly, and under the lights he will not be able to be wrapped up which could make him even more cranky:)
So, that is Miles’ story up until now. I will continue to try and update and take pictures as we can so everyone can stay updated on his status and send prayers his way. He is a tough little guy with a lot of miles to walk right now.
April 21st, 2009 at 5:45 pm
Hi Lindsay,
You have had quite an ordeal sweetie!! Congratulations on Miles arrival, my best wishes to you and for the growth and health of your sweet boy. Kim
April 22nd, 2009 at 12:03 am
Lindsay: congratulations to You, Mike, Nolan and Miles – these are special moments which will be treasured for a lifetime – I admire your inner strength – stay strong. Love Dad
April 22nd, 2009 at 4:46 am
Congratulations on Miles! He is adorable and we are happy to hear both mom and baby are doing well. One of my best friends had her twins at Strong at 31 weeks and they just celebrated their first birthday! She told me the drs and nurses there are great so I know you will be in good hands! All our best from the Easthams and we hope to see you all soon!
April 22nd, 2009 at 5:38 am
OMG Lins he is soooooo cute! What a strapping preemie! He is half an inch longer than Natalie was and she was full term. BIG BOY! The NICU is scary and overwhelming but you guys sound like you are hanging in there. Please call if you need anything or just need to talk.
April 22nd, 2009 at 6:09 am
Congratulations! He is beautiful.
My twins were born at 32 weeks 2 days, They spent 2 weeks in the nicu. They are now 2 1/2 and you would never know they were premies.
Take care of yourselves during this time. It can be very emotional and scary leaving your little one at the hospital. One of the worst days of my life was leaving the hospital without my babies. My advice to you is to always remember he is safe and well cared for even when you are not there.
We will keep your family in our thoughts and prayers.
April 22nd, 2009 at 9:15 am
Big congrats! You guys are so amazing and we’re so happy for you. Please come down to NC sometime… No races, no kidney stones… we’ll just relax. I swear!
thinking of you… katherine, brian & elisabeth
April 22nd, 2009 at 10:42 am
“Congratulations from Virginia” to you Lindsay, Mike, and Nolan with such an adorable new member to the Rae Family! Miles Charles is so cute and thanks for letting us become acquainted with him with his photo! Lindsay, kudos to your strength with the delivery– I know that Miles Charles will pull through with the same tenacity as his Mom!!
Thank you to both you and Mike for making me a Great-Aunt AGAIN!! Can’t wait to see all these little ones playing together–
Love from,
Aunt Carole and Uncle Todd!
April 23rd, 2009 at 9:20 am
Hi Lindsay, Mike, Nolan and Miles:
We are following your posts and sending strong energy vibs to Miles from the South. He sure sounds like a fighter and we pray he gets through all this quickly. Thank you for creating this site so we can feel like we’re there to lend support.
Love,
Uncle Bill and Aunt Pat
April 23rd, 2009 at 2:11 pm
Congratulations and Best Wishes. We re thinking of you
April 24th, 2009 at 5:17 am
WOW, what a treat for me to go visit Miles!!!! I’ve been smiling all night long. He is so beautiful and I enjoyed seeing Lindsay light up when she looked at him. We feel very blessed to have another beautiful addition to the family!!! Lindsay and Mike, keep up the good work, we know this is hard!
Love you lots
Ali