July 19th, 127,000 strong!

The journey has continued over the past month without much news. About a month ago the doctor said that we did not need to check each week because he didn't see a need in drawing blood so often. I think Karsten was happy about that. A month has passed and we went today to have the platelets checked, hoping for good news. That is what we received. Today Karsten's platelet count increased to 127,000, and though he wasn't happy to have his foot stabbed for blood, we were happy to get the results. Dr Cohen, who we will be forever grateful for, said that is the last time he needs to see Karsten. He said the antibodies should be gone soon and the increase is exactly what they expected. We are so thankful for everyone that has supported our little boy, and thankful for the diagnosis and prognosis from all the medical staff, that has been so consistent and accurate since that first morning of uncertainty. We don't know where Karsten's journey will take him from here but we are so thankful to be a part of it! We can't wait for more of you to meet him and see how beautiful he is. He will capture your heart and you'll be glad you have the opportunity to be a part of his story. Journey on...

Latest Update from June 21st- 29,000 and increasing!

Again as I write, I am completely overwhelmed with the support of family and friends over the past 3 weeks. Karsten is now 3 weeks old and doing very well. On Tuesday the 21st (now that I am back to work, it is harder to keep this updated and I apologize), we had Karsten's platelets checked and he is up to 29.000. The Doctor again said he is not concerned and very happy with Karsten's progress. 3 weeks ago, we could have hardly imagined that we would be so far through the process at this time. And we are so thankful to be moving closer to being 100% out of the water. The next appointment is not going to be until July 20th. We'll update both on our Facebook pages and here if anything updates prior to that, but for now, life is going along pretty normally.

I also wanted to thank everyone who has brought us food in this time. Our friends and family are amazing and we are very fortunate to have each of you in our life. And for those of you who haven't met Karsten yet, we look forward to introducing him to you.

Monday June 13th "Treat him like a normal kid, just don't drop him on his head"

... those were our hematologists words as he smiled to us. I replied asking "would you recommend dropping a normal child on his head." He just smiled. Of course not, but what his message was to us is that Karsten is doing fantastic and he is not worried about him we should just exercise a little extra caution. The platelet count was up to 20,000 today. When we got the news, Julie and I just looked at each other and smiled with so much joy that there were not real words to be said. The Doctor explained the condition again, which is what we had been told by the Neonatal Doctor, and he said, it may take up to 6 weeks still to be back up to the 150,000 count (that is the minimum number that a normal healthy person has), but that he is not worried about him at this point. Now we are just waiting for the antibodies from Julie's system to die off in him. This was much needed news for us. What seemed it could take months has, seemed to come to pass quickly over the past week. Julie said today that a week ago she couldn't have imagined having this good news so soon. What we can say is that we are simply grateful for all the support, prayers, thoughts, medical knowledge, kind words and actions of all the caring people around us, both the ones we knew and the ones we met during this process. From the bottom of our hearts and from the depths of Karsten's little blood/platelet count we want to say Thank You! We have a follow up next Tuesday for another platelet check but for today it was just a great day of being a family with a lighter load to carry. We had a great day today and look forward to many more and hopefully a day soon that the Doctor says to us "150,000 platelets today, and remember to not drop him on his head."

June 12th- A Day of Firsts

It was a nice day here in the Godwin home; kind of a day of firsts. Karsten got his first bath and also his first family walk in the stroller. It is kind of strange but it is easy to forget that he is not a perfectly healthy little boy. He looks strong, has good vital signs and acts very normal (he also has that nice baby smell). But we remember that tomorrow morning we have 2 doctor appointments at 10.30 with the Hematologist and 12.14 with the Pediatrician. We are really looking forward the day that he gets his clean bill of health and things are really normal. Until then, we wait and hope, and are doing everything that we cannot to not miss the small moments in his first days of life that could easily be missed as we look to rush forward 6 weeks to the hopeful end of this blood disorder. Enjoy the pictures, thanks for reading and thanks again for all the support!

June 11th- 1 Week old today!

Just under a half of an hour ago, Karsten turned 1 week old. In many ways it seems to have been longer as I have previously said, but when I look at that tiny little guy, it is clear he is only a week old. I am so thankful to be home and hanging out with him, today. Here is a picture of his new favorite spot. He sleeps here and eats and then repeats as often as he can until he goes to his bassinet for the night! Hopefully within the next 5 weeks his body will get back in control of the platelets and he can get on to a normal life, but for now we are enjoying the home life with him. We hope to know more as we meet with doctors next week.

Friday June 10th- the Original Due date...

Today is June 10th. This was Karsten's original due date. Wow, we couldn't have imagined that it would feel like he has been with us for weeks on the day he was scheduled to be born. For only being 6 days old, we certainly have a lot of history and memories already built. Today's memory was a very quiet day at home, with just one trip to the pediatrician. They say, "no news is good news", and that would be his story today. We did not do much except hold him, change diapers and he ate like a little crazy guy. He is now at 7 lbs (probably because of all the eating and he is filling out his little legs). Monday will be the appointment with the hematologist and until then continued quiet (as much as we can with a 4 1/2 year old who is trying so hard to be quiet for his brother, in the midst of his jealousy for attention). Daddy spent as much time playing with Kaleb and drawing star wars pictures today as he could to keep Kaleb's life normal and we look forward to the weekend as a family. Thanks again for all of your support. We continue to be grateful! I will try to post more pictures tomorrow after they are imported from the phone.

Homeward Bound Thursday June 9th - the journey takes a good turn with caution

This morning we got the first news that was not as positive. Karsten's count is down to 9000. However the doctor quickly advised us that this is still okay because Karsten's body is now adapting and it will likely take 6 weeks to get through this (again better news than 6 months). They also told us that all his other vital signs look great, and for this reason, it is time to change our focus to the transition home. They also did a head ultra sound to make sure his head was safe and that came back that he was good. So I am sitting here typing this entry on my phone, waiting to go to an infant cpr class and then begin Karsten's first trip outside, into a car and home to be with big brother. They cautioned us that we will live quiet and low key for around 6 weeks and we need to limit visitors for now, but we are closer to being out of the water and relaxing on the beach than we have been since he was born. We will keep you posted on his progress and keep the pictures and updates daily. We do have quite a number of Doctor follow ups already set and as we learn more, we will let you know. The first appointment is tomorrow morning with the pediatrician, and that is followed by a Monday appointment with the hematologist, who has provided us with his cell number in case we need him (how awesome is that?). Karsten's is now needle/IV free and happy as ever. We can't wait to introduce you in about 6 weeks.or when he gets a clean bill of health.

Update: As I post, I am sitting on my bed in our home with the whole family around me. All 4 of us sitting together as the baby is cooing to mama singing to him.

The journey continues ...->