Brayton is Home :-D 26 November 2006

My nephew got to go home on Wednesday night.  Rachel said the first night was terrible, but after that he’s slept at least five hours straight which is awesome considering he’s not even two weeks old

The doctors say that he has a heart murmur, and he also has a problem with his digestive tract.  His epiglottis doesn’t close properly, and so he is more prone to spitting up than most babies.  He also has to sleep on an incline to help him keep his food down.  Both of these are fairly common, and they often repair themselves over time.

I’d just like to thank all of you for your prayers – they were much appreciated!

Newest Update 19 November 2006

Well, we found out yesterday that Brayton has pneumonia.  It developed because his body didn’t absorb the excess amniotic fluid properly.  He is back in the ICN an is on a seven-day course of antibiotics.  The doctors say the earliest he will be able to go home is Thanksgiving day (what a thing to be thankful for!).  Anyway…  Rachel is having a hard time with this because Brayton was full-term, and there were no complications, etc.  Its’ really hard for her to have to see him in the ICN, knowing that there wasn’t anything she could have done differently, etc., so be sure to keep her in your prayers, too.  Thanks!

UPDATE: My Nephew 16 November 2006

I talked to my sister Rachel on Tuesday night and found out that my mom had told me wrong.  Brayton was in the ICN for six HOURS, not six DAYS.  He’s doing fine, now.  He apparently had a little bit of trouble adjusting to having to breathe on his own, but it’s a fairly common occurrance.  They only put him in the ICN because they could monitor him more closely there.  Hopefully I’ll have pictures to post in a few days.  Thanks for your prayers!

Prayer Request 14 November 2006

My newest nephew – Brayton Thomas – was born this afternoon (Tues, 11/14) at 1pm.  He was 8lbs and 5oz (I think), and mom forgot to tell me how long he was…

My sister Rachel is doing fine, but Brayton’s breathing was very shallow, so he wasn’t getting enough oxygen.  The doctors have admitted him to the ICN for monitoring, and they expect he will stay there for about six days.  Please keep him in your prayers, and also pray for Rachel, Luke, Colton and Triston, as I know this will be hard on them. Thanks   I’ll post an update when I can. 

Nerd Alert! 11 November 2006

So…  I discovered today that there are two different systems for naming large numbers.  The American system, and the English system.  How this math major never learned about the two different systems in five years of studing math is beyond me, however, I suppose I shouldn’t be too surprised.  After all, we Americans refuse to standardize and use the metric system like the rest of the world. 

Anyway…  Without further ado, I present the data table for the two numbering systems for your learning pleasure.    

                                                                         Scientific
American:                           Number                  Notation

Thousand                                             1,000       10^3
Million                                           1,000,000       10^6
Billion                                     1,000,000,000       10^9
Trillion                            1,000,000,000,000       10^12
Quadrillion               1,000,000,000,000,000       10^15
Quintillion          1,000,000,000,000,000,000       10^18

English:

Thousand                                             1,000       10^3           
Million                                           1,000,000       10^6            
Thousand Million                     1,000,000,000       10^9  
Billion                              1,000,000,000,000       10^12
Thousand Billion        1,000,000,000,000,000       10^15  
Trillion               1,000,000,000,000,000,000       10^18 

Brewster’s Millions, revisited… 11 November 2006

I betcha the dude didn’t put a return address on his envelope b/c he has to keep his quest a secret…

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061110/us_nm/life_stamp_dc

Random Search Terms, Volume 1 8 November 2006

Someone I know occasionally posts the search terms that folks used to find his website so I thought I’d share mine as well…

So far this week folks have found my blog using the following search terms:

• laura boring
• slip knot for balloons

Hodge Podge… 8 November 2006

Just a few random things that I’ve been meaning to post here… 

I came home from my mini-vacation to find one my first “and guest” invitation of the season…  blarg…  When one doesn’t have a permanant “and guest” to drag along, it can be rather annoying.  Luckily, I convinced a friend to come with me (the words “free food” and “fancy Italian restaurant” work magic), so I’m looking forward to it now

They are doing a lot of road construction on my way to work, and the construction guys park their trucks off to the side of the road…  Z71s, F150s, Rams, and a lone silver PT Cruiser with red airbrush graphic detail on the side…  It makes me laugh.

 On Sunday morning, I went to church with some friends in Denver.  While Adam and I were waiting for the others to be ready to head to lunch, some guy who Adam is friends with came over and said “so, this must be your girlfriend?”  Adam chuckled a bit and told him that we’re old college friends.

Monday I found out that I can get a corporate-rate YMCA membership, AND, that my company will reimburse me for half of my dues.  Nifty, eh?  Especially b/c Vickie and I were already planning to join together so we can play racquetball.  I’m really excited because I *love* racquetball, and no one who I know here in town plays… 

Mini-vacation… 7 November 2006

Spent the weekend at Copper Mountain with five other gals.  We hung out in the condo, did some exploring in the village, went snowshoeing and watched the entire six hour A&E Pride & Prejudice miniseries in one sitting.  I watched the entire thing over the course of a weekend, once, but I’d never watched it all in just one day.  Snowshoeing is incredibly fun and I think everyone should try it at least once!  Hopefully I’ll have a couple pictures from Julie to share before too long…

And one other thing…  We could see the ski slopes from our condo, and I really enjoyed sitting around and watching the skiiers and boarders.  I especially enjoyed watching people fall – does that make me a bad person?

Unanswered Prayers? 3 November 2006

I ran across this article and thought it was interesting…

 http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061102/ap_on_re_us/unanswered_prayers

Thoughts, anyone?