Update

Hi All,

Just an update to let you know that Caden now weighs 1.77kg!!! Can you believe how "big" he's getting! He's also been upgraded to the closed incubator, so he's in his baby-grows now. He's so peaceful, just sleeping to preserve his energy! We're very proud.

On Saturday I was surprized with a stork-tea at Cafe Decor. It was so amazing having so many people I care for in one room. Caden got spoiled rotten with plenty of beautiful gifts! He's such a lucky boy to have so many wonderful people in his life! Thank you, thank you, thank you to everybody for giving my boy such amazing presents. We appreciate it from the bottom of our hearts! Also a big big thank you to Anja for organizing the entire thing. You did an amazing job and I think everybody had a good time, I know I definitely did!

I am on maternity leave now, yay! Going to spend the week getting Caden's room ready for when he finally comes home. There's still so much to do!!!

Have a good week!
Elriza

1.69kg!

Hi All,

Just an update to let you know that Caden now weighs 1.69kg, a whole 85 grams more in two days! Sister Nel said usually they move the babies to open cribs at 1.7kg, that means he'll have to maintain his own temperature. I'm not sure when Caden will move, but it will probably be over the weekend. His oxygen is on 28% now, but it went down to 23% when we were there yesterday, so he's trying! Seeing as he'll probably be working harder now with less oxygen and trying to maintain his temperature, he probably won't be picking up so quickly, but that's okay, we'll wait patiently for our beautiful boy to grow stronger day by day! I must say the excitement is definitely getting to us. The days seem longer now that the time for him to come home is getting closer. Almost there baby boy, just grow, grow, grow.

Have a good weekend!
Elriza & Wes

Reply to Annonesley

I just had to reply to Annonesley's comment left on the 26th. Unfortunately that ruggedly handsome fellow aka "The Weasel" doesn't have a beach pant modelling contract yet, but he does like to prance around in the living room in some tight pant and a vest to show off his well-known pecs. Regarding the photos for your "stalker-room", I can do you one better and maybe arrange a surprize meeting between the two of you. But be warned, if you plan on kidnapping him, you must be quick cause he's quite a bright character, built for speed. And make sure his wife doesn't see you cause the saying "Hell hath no fury like a woman's scorn" will surely ring true in this case! Good luck on your stalking journey Annonesley, may it bring you lots of happiness and peace?

Hie-hie, on a more realistic note, Caden's feeds have been increased to 36 mls and they are aggresively trying to get him off the oxygen because they also think he's coming home soon. He's still on 30%, and like the doctor said, it seems like he's addicted to Gin (Oxy-gin).

I also just want to take this opportunity to give thanks to a very special woman, Ouma Rina. Thank you for helping with the transport to the hospital everytime we got stuck, and thank you for going out to get everything that we need everytime we ask you, especially because I still can't drive. But most of all, thank you for always doing it with a smile on your face! We also want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for Caden's room "make-over". For the curtains, bed-lamp, baskets etc. His room is going to look beautiful and a big part of that is because of you. So thank you for all the amazing things you've done for us and for always being there!

Almost weekend!

Love
Elriza

Fattiboomstix!

Hi All,

Just a quick note to let you know that Caden now weighs 1.605kg! He's on 33mls milk and still on 30% oxygen, but he's doing very well! He's growing like a machine now, as you can see on the pics he looks like a real baby boy now. Still very small in comparison with normal babies, but getting there quickly! Oh, and happy 5 weeks baby boy! Hope everybody had a fantastic weekend with lots of rest. Enjoy the short week, almost weekend again!!!

Love
Elriza & Wes

Some photos

It just gets better!

Hi All,

Just a quick update to let you know that Caden now weighs 1.49kg!!! He has picked up 50grams a day in the last to days! All else is good and he's looking very healthy! Thank you to our Father for making this possible!

Happy Easter everyone, may the love of God fill your hearts!

Love
Wes and Elriza!

Happy 1 month birthday!

Happy one month birthday beautiful warrior. I can't believe it's been so long already! Thank you for making this journey so easy on your parents, you are an amazing little boy! Love you plenty and plenty!!!

Mom & Dad

Happy 4 weeks!!

vodacom4me MMS retrieval page

Hi everyone!

This morning we were OVERJOYED to hear that our little warrior now weighs...
A FULL 1.36kg!!! That means he has picked up 40 grams per day the last couple of days! Can you believe it! We are so incredibly proud of our baby boy, at this rate he'll be home in no time! Thank you my precious miracle, you have made our day and we love you with all our hearts. You have touched so many people already and I know we are going to learn so many amazing lessons from you.

I spoke to sister Sheila yesterday to try and get a better idea of what we are waiting for now and she said it really is just a matter of him putting on weight and not getting sick. Caden is still dependent on the oxygen, but she says that doesn't matter because they are discharging a baby today who only went off the oxygen yesterday. Sometimes they even send them home with oxygen. So as his lungs get bigger so he'll need less and less O2. She also said they seem to pick up quicker from about 1.5kg, so only 140 grams to go!!! At about 1.9kg (depending on his stability) they'll try and let him feed on his own and if all those things are fine (weight, temperature, breathing and feeding) then he'll be home!

Thanks so much again for the overwhelming support we have received from everyone! To every person who has offered a lift, a service, a kind word, bits of information, and those who are keeping our little boy in their prayers, thank you, thank you, thank you! We couldn't have done this without you!

I added another video, so hopefully you can see how much bigger he is getting.

Lots of love
Elriza & Wes

Video - Caden 3

vodacom4me MMS retrieval page

Video - Caden 2

vodacom4me MMS retrieval page

Okay, I think I've got it now. Please click on the links and if the video is only 2 or 3 seconds long, just click on it, to activate the control, right click and click "play/pause". It should work then. If it works the first time, then yay! There are 3 different videos, but all the links are name vodacom4me. Hope you get to see it!

Video - Caden

vodacom4me MMS retrieval page

Let's try this link, I don't think the previous one was right.

Experiment - video

Hi Everybody,

I'm trying to see if this video is able to play on the blog. Please click on the links and hopefully it should work.
Baby Caden is still doing very well, weighing in at 1.235kg and on 27 mls of milk. The doctor says his liver is a bit bigger, but he'll just watch it incase it's an infection again. Thanx so much for all the messages and prayers still pouring in. We are blown away by them!
We were at baby Keaton's christianing yesterday and he was just so well behaved, didn't cry or anything. Afterwards we had snacks at Megan and Conrad's house. Thanks so much guys, you really put a lot of effort into the day and it showed! Also, happy birthday to big pappa C (Conrad) for today, hope you have an awesome year ahead!
Sorry if we haven't been posting so much lately, it's basically just playing the waiting (or should I say weight-ing) game now and hoping all else goes smoothly.

Hope everybody had a great weekend and good luck with the week. For those of us in Gauteng, good luck with this weather as well, try to get out of bed in time!

Lots of love
Elriza

Another week down!

Wow, I can't believe it's been three weeks already! If time flies by like this then we're gonna wipe our eyes and our little boy's gonna be home! Caden is becoming really cute now, showing us his personality, stretching, kicking, sucking his hands, and making baby noises. We're in awe everytime we see him because he's really acting like a little person now! He hasn't picked up a lot of weight yet, he is now 1.16kg and on 26mls milk. This might be because he was using a lot of energy getting use to breathing on his own, but as this improves, so his weight-gain should improve as well. Other than that he's doing very well and very stable. We know this wouldn't have been possible without your prayers so thank you very much for everyone who spared a minute at night for our warrior!

On Tuesday my aunt Daleen dropped off a package at my work all the way from America. It was filled with the most adorable prem-baby clothes! Thank you so much Debbie, Ria and aunt Bernadine, we really appreciate it and I can't wait to "play dress-up" with Caden! Thanks aunt Daleen as well for dropping the package off seeing as I still can't drive. Thank you Jolandi for the cute "little boy clothes" that Caden should be able to wear in the summer. His little army-outfit is very suited (I think) for our little warrior! Thanks so much!

Hope everybody has a fantastic weekend!

Oh, and happy birthday Justin for tomorrow! Have a good one!

Lots of Love
Elriza & Wes

For you my Boy

Hey bud

Just a quick note from your Dad here to let you know that today you did very well and the Doctors are still very happy right now, all you need to do is chugg back on the Mommy juice and gain some weight lad, then we can start climbing trees and swimming in rivers.

Got a thing or two I want you to read one day, perhaps you will learn them early or perhaps late, but make what you learn your own. The world will change between now and then and you'll become big and lekker 'windgat' but just remember these:

Always live your life honestly, important, for like the river flows genlty to the ocean, so honesty will guide you through the valleys and take you over the falls, it breeds ethics, which create morals and these will be your fibre. Keep them safe for you will be nothing without them.

Listen to life, she plays a gentle rythm against which you can fight and you will feel tired and wasted each day or listen closely, hear her beat and dance lightly then she will carry you to your place in her plan, always be energised by her beauty, allow the power of being to flow through you and make you great. This will give you the enjoyment of living to the fullest.

Never drink orange juice after brushing your teeth and when your shaving never rush. Never allow a beautiful sunset to pass you by, those 5 seconds are for free and they are magical, in this life most things that are free are worth way more than those that cost you currency. Your family and friends - you have been blessed already to have so many wonderful people around you, just read the blog, but your time with these will become many and fast, I warn you to take each second into your heart, for without these friends and family, life is only an empty can kicked down a long road. Ask your elders many many many questions for their wealth in experience is something so great you could only become more of a man with their knowledge.

We will talk much of love through life, but all I can say to you now is be young have fun be responsible in your search for your love and when you think you have found it - start saving! only kidding, when your sure bring her home so your Mom can give her the once over and be sure, that even though you may be 2 different people, deep in her eyes you need to find some of yourself, then you will have found it.

Okay my boy, there is so much more I want to tell you of the wonders of life and the chaos through which you must inevitabily travel, but right now I gotta go cook some chow for you Mamma so she can make you some more mamaroni sauce.

Sleep tight my fighter, I expect you to expect good things for yourself.

DAD

Off the c-pap again!

Hi All,

Hoooray! Caden is off the c-pap again, and this time he's doing really well! His oxygen is stable and he's breathing nicely. But the biggest event of the day was defintely dad getting to hold his boy for the very first time!!! He is such a natural! Caden was so calm in his arms, it was really a sight to see! I also got to change his nappy today, but his little legs are so tiny that it was quite a stressful event! He didn't moan though and kept quite still throughout the process. Thanx baby boy! He also opened his eyes quite a bit today, especially when dad was holding him. Both doctors (Dr. Vermaak and Dr. van der Vyver) came to see him and Dr. van der Vyver said we can expect our little warrior home around mid-April! Can you believe that's only a month away! Thank you so much Morne and Nicky for the stunning embroided towel (which is now a beach towel until Caden gets bigger), it's really special and we appreciate it lots. Thank you also to Anja, Arno, Mark and Louise for our prem-clothes. It is sooo incredibly cute and they're definitely gonna come in handy! I started work today, have to get use to the early mornings again! Anyway, hope no one had a blue Monday.

Lots of love
Elriza & Wes

Update

Hi All,

Caden is still doingvery well. His feeds are up to 24 mls and it seems that the valve in his heart is closed. This means that he might get off the c-pap tomorrow! Yay! Anyway, hope everybody enjoys the last bit off their weekend!

Love
Elriza

Still Good!

Hi All,

Our little warrior is still doing well. His feeds have been increased to 22mls and his oxygen is down to 25%, which is great. He was sleeping when we were there, only stretching every now and again and making sucking movements, which is too cute for words. The nurses say that the infection seems to be gone so we're so relieved about that!!! He was very happy today because his two favourite nurses were working, sister Sheila and sister Hester. Usually they work in opposite shifts, but today they were together and Caden got lots of attention. We were also so happy to hear that even the night staff reads to him out of his little prayer book and they play his F.R.O.G's prayer for him every night. Isn't it wonderful to have our boy surrounded with so many believers? We were blown away to hear how many people know about and are praying for little Caden. No wonder he is doing so incredibly well. With all these prayers there just can't be any doubt about our warrior's safety and health. I fully believe that our little boy's first "task" on this earth was to bring people closer to God and to remind us about the power of prayer! Thanks so much again for all the inspiring messages we receive on a daily basis! They mean the world to us!

Poor Wes had to work this morning while I had a nice day today attending Anja's stork tea. (Looks like I'm becoming a lady of luxury!). Her little girl Ane is due on the 23rd of April and we already decided that our two "golden eggs" should get married! She received so many beautiful gifts and the setting was just wonderful, very peaceful! When I got home Wes was so tired and had a nice snooze on the couch. Thanks for working so hard for us dad, we really really appreciate it!!! You have been absolutely amazing through-out this journey, just always staying calm and being my rock to lean on. I can see how calm Caden gets when you put your hands on him, he also senses your complete love for him. We are truly blessed to have you in our lives.

Anyway, hope everyone has had a relaxing weekend so far and enjoy the last bit of it!

Lots of Love

Elriza

Two steps forward, one step back...

Hi All,

Wednesday evening Caden went back onto the c-pap because he was getting a bit tired breathing all on his own. He's also back in the open incubator because they can't put the c-pap on in the closed one. I must admit, it was actually a relief because we could see he was really fighting hard, and now he can relax a bit. A cardiologist came to see him yesterday to check out the hole in his heart valve, and luckily he said that the hole is very tiny, 1mm to be exact, so they are going to try and close it with neurofen again. He also said that it is not necessary to restrict his diet anymore (yay), so now they are increasing little Caden's feeds. He's already back up to 18mls from the 16mls that they kept him on. Dr. Vermaak said that the restricted diet is probably why Caden wasn't coping so well on his own, because of the restricted energy. He also said that the infection seems to be gone because they can't pick anything up in his blood. They'll finish the anti-biotics, but so far he seems out of the woods (yay again!). Dr. Vermaak also said that once we've conquered this heart thing and his feeds are increasing, we'll basically just be waiting for him to grow, so unless something jumps up, like another infection or kidneys or something, we should have lighter days ahead! We are so extremely grateful to our Heavenly Father for making this such a smooth ride so far. We know that without Him, nothing is possible and that He has our little boy safe in His hands. Thank you so much for all the comments, from the regular ones, to the new ones, from our friends, family and even strangers (friends we haven't met yet). Everyday it gives us inspiration when we read them. Please know that each and every message carries a very special place in our hearts, and that every day you guys give us hope, faith and strength! I also want to thank Samm for the beautiful Kiddy Bible and journal. We will read to Caden every day! I have received a couple of e-mails "demanding daily updates", and I promise we will do our best to do so as often as possible, even if it's just to say: "Caden is still fighting hard". It brings such joy to our hearts knowing that we have so many people caring enough to check the blog everyday, or every other day, or every week for that matter. Once again thank you, thank you, thank you! But before I start sounding like a broken record, let me go and register our warrior at internal affairs (I know, it's a bit late).

Hope everybody has a fantastic weekend, and please, try to behave!!!

Lots of Love,
Elriza and Wes

Happy 2 week birthday!

Hi everybody!

I can't believe it's been 2 weeks already! I thought the first week would never end, but the 2nd one just flew right buy! I hope the time goes this quickly until little Caden comes home! Yesterday he was "upgraded" to a closed incubator. I call this an upgrade because that was the next step in the process. As soon as they are relatively stable and can breathe pretty well without help they put them in the closed incubator until they can hold their own temperature. He also got to wear his first baby-grow! I can't believe they have clothes that fit him! He looked too cute for words, just like a proper little boy! Today is day5 of the anti-biotics, so they'll probably order more blood tests to check if it worked. I'm sure he already beat this infection!

Hope everybody has a fantastic week and I can't wait to post more good news for everyone!

Lots of Love

Elriza & Wes

I got to hold our warrior!

Hi All,

What an amazing two days! Besides the infection lingering over our heads, Caden is doing really well. I got to hold him for the first time yesterday while dad was by our side all the way. And today sister Nel put him on my chest so that he could incubate kangaroo style. It was the most amazing feeling and Wes and I will treasure this for the rest of our lives! While he was lying on my chest he pulled his face in so many expressions, it looked like he was telling us incredible stories! I think he's going to open his eyes in the next couple of days, he's almost there! Caden is also now weighing in at 1.035kg after dropping to 870g. We are so proud of him! Oh, and he is off the c-pap and breathing on his own! It was so amazing seeing our little warrior's face fully for the first time! He looks exactly like a certain weasel!! The nurse said we shouldn't get discouraged if he goes back onto the c-pap though because they are just testing his progress now. Our friend Megan gave us a praying F.R.O.G (forever reliant on God) that we put in Caden's crib and the nurses are nice enough to play it to him every night when we're not there. Around the froggie's neck is a rosary that Megan had blessed by their Monsignour (excuse spelling) and it is now working miracles in our little prince's crib! Thanks so much to Bev (Megan's mom) for the Gaurdian Angel/St. Michael, I keep it around my neck all the time! We are so incredibly lucky to have so much support and love from everyone. The prayers are truly working and we know Caden will beat this infection very soon!

Have a good week!!!

Love
Elriza & Wes

Update

Hi All,

Just a short update and I suppose a request for extra prayers. After our visit yesterday we were so relieved to see our beautiful boy very relaxed and stable. Today however, he was a bit unstable with his oxygen going up and down. This might have been due to him lying on his right side, which is apparently his least favourite side to lie on. They also picked up that he has an infection of some sort. He doesn't have any symptoms though, they just picked it up in his blood. This is very dangerous in prem babies because they don't have immune systems yet. They are testing for everything from septisemia (excuse spelling) to menigitus (again excuse spelling). Our beautiful fighter also had a lumber punch today, which broke our hearts, but the nurse says he was very peaceful. He is on anti-biotics already, but they'll wait for the test results to come back, which takes about 48 hours, to identify a specific culture. I phoned the nurse just now and she says he stabilized nicely after all the tests and now he is very peaceful. Please pray extra hard for our little angel, especially that the tests come back showing just minor infection and not one of the big ones like I mentioned. So far we have been very lucky. Like the nurse said, usually it's 2 steps forward and one step back, and this is our first step back. Thank you for all the support so far, we appreciate every comment, sms and e-mail. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the grand parents on both sides. Your support has meant the world to Wes and myself and we couldn't have walked this road without you. Caden is very very lucky to have so many people who love him!

Have a good weekend!

Love
Elriza & Wes