thank you

Thank you everyone for your beautiful, inspiring words. You all have touched my heart and Landon's too. When he is old enough I will share this journal and your comments with Landon so that he can understand the strength of God, the power of prayers and the true beauty and spirit of people.

Now that my mom is finally home from the hospital things are beginning to settle down and I can catch up with some journal updates of Landon.

Thank you Lord for carrying us through this difficult time.

~Vicki

first bath

Landon after first bath given by mommy! :)

~Vicki

Growing

Hi Everyone,

Sorry for the delay in writing updates, my mom has been in ICU in another hospital and so my time lately has been split between my Mom and Landon. My mom is improving, but still in ICU and has a long recovery ahead of her. I am so thankful for the continuous support of so many people including each of you who take time out of your busy schedules for us.

Landon has grown so much since the last update on April 26th! They moved him to the Graduate NICU, which is where he will stay until coming home. He is breathing on his own with a little help from some oxygen and they have taken him completely off the big, bulky CPAP Oxygen Mask, which is a another huge step in him coming home.
Recently, we began doing Kangaroo care on a daily basis, which means Bobby and I get skin to skin contact with Landon. They place Landon directly on our chest, skin to skin. This is very beneficial to preemies and their parents. The first time I felt Landon move against my skin was incredible-words can't describe what it felt like.

Landon is much more alert than he was a few weeks ago and becoming more aware of his surroundings. Sometimes, when its time to leave him for the day, I cry because it hurts to separate from him. Soon though, he will be under our roof and in our arms at any time him and I desire.

~Vicki

Update

We received some very exciting news! On April 20th, Landon was taken off his respirator and is breathing on his very own! This is very good news for a preemie, showing that his lungs are maturing, enabling Landon to breath on his very own.

In this picture...
Landon is wearing what they call a CPAP mask which delivers oxygen to Landon's lungs. The CPAP mask is similar to what an adult with sleep apnea would wear. Preemies are very apt to apnea so this mask helps prevent it but at the same time allows Landon's lungs to do the breathing work, making his little lungs stronger and stronger.

Thank you for sharing your preemie stories of encouragement, we sure enjoy them.

~Vicki

Our Journey

On March 27th, I became ill with swelling, severe headaches and sickness. As the weekend progressed, I was very concerned with the decrease in movement from our baby boy in my womb. On March 28th I went to the ER to make sure the baby was ok because things just didn't seem right. Up until this point I had a normal, healthy pregnancy. After running numerous tests, my doctor kept me overnight for observation and would follow up in the morning with an ultrasound. During the night they hooked me up to a fetal heart monitor to keep track of baby Landon's heartbeat and movement. He was showing signs of distress and an unstable heartbeat. After completing the ultrasound they discovered my placenta was no longer functioning as it should, not delivering the necessary oxygen and nutrients for Landon to continue to thrive. They also discovered that Landon's growth was not that of a 28 week old, instead it was that of a 25 week old.

My doctor told us the alarming news and apologized but that she needed to turn her care over to one of the best hospitals in the state that is designed and equipped with staff for high risk situations like this. In a matter of 1 hour, me and Landon-still inside my tummy, were boarding a helicopter and flown by flight for life to Presbyterian St. Lukes Hospital. Bobby, Landon's father, watched as we took off in the helicopter. The next 2 days seemed endless. I did not sleep one minute. Landon and I were becoming sicker by the hour. They started me on steroid shots to help stimulate Landon's little lungs for the outside world in case they would have to take him early. The goal was to leave him in me as long as they could without compromising either of us. Landon's little heartbeat was having more and more difficulty staying stable. I was on complete bed rest and couldn't even lay in certain positions or else Landon's heartrate would decrease. At one point his heart rate fell and wasn't climbing back up. In a matter of seconds I had 6 people working on us about to whisk us off to the OR. Luckily, Landon's little heartrate climbed back up; however, by Wednesday, the doctors felt it was too risky for both of us to continue on like this. As they were wheeling me into the OR and prepping me, I remembered all of the prayers and support from everyone and I wasn't even scared. It was an amazing moment because I knew I was feeling the power of prayers and God. At 4:34 pm Landon John Netherland-DeMoss was born weighing 1 lb 9 oz and 12 inches long.The first time I laid eyes on him I cried in disbelief that I was staring at my son. I whispered to him that I had been waiting for this moment my entire life.
After Landon was born, I became sick with severe Preeclampsia and HELLP syndrome. On April 7th, I was discharged from the hospital and am on the mend. It's going to take several more weeks to overcome these pregnancy related illnesses but each day I am feeling stronger and healthier. I am so thankful to have Landon here with us and for me to still be here to raise him. Despite being born at a very early 28 weeks, Landon continues to grow and build strength at Presbyterian St. Lukes Hospital in Denver. Doctors are very optimistic and pleased with Landon’s progress and if he continues according to plan, we expect our son home from the hospital in late June. Both of us visit Landon in the NICU daily to monitor his progress and participate in his care. Landon is our first child and as I watch Bobby participate in Landon's care, I am so proud of him and what a great Daddy he is.Landon is hooked up to many tubes, one of which is a breathing ventilator and a feeding tube through which they give him my milk. When babies are born this early, the NICU creates a womb-like environment out of an incubator. Its very important for preemies this young to get lots of sleep and quiet time because that's when they do the most growing and developing. Landon's brain is still developing and when we touch him, we have been instructed not to stroke him, instead we place a firm touch on him. Because his sensory system is still developing, stroking him actually makes him feel uncomfortable and a strong firm touch makes him feel secure and warm like he did when he was in the womb. On a daily basis, Landon firmly grips our finger with his tiny hand. At times he holds on so strongly that his knuckles turn white. We've only been able to hold him twice so far-two very incredible moments for us.

The impact of your support and prayers has been incredible for us.

As we continue on this journey we will post Landon's updates and progress.

~Vicki

prayer