Look ma, no tube!

Yay! Today Davis was extubated! He no longer has a breathing tube and is breathing on his own. (The tube you can see in the first photo is not a breathing tube, but a replogel, which removes air, bile, etc. from his stomach until his intestines can process things on his own). His nitric oxide (minimal dose) is delivered through nasal cannulas. I have never seen the bottom half of his face until tonight, and Michael only saw it for a couple of minutes right after he was born. He is so freaking cute! 

The plan is to remove the replogel in the next few days, which is great, because he hates it and constantly tries to spit it out. Then we'll start feeds. His surgeon thinks he'll be eating cheeseburgers by the end of the week... not really, but we hope he continues to make the kind of progress he's shown so far. Feeding can be a big challenge for CDH kids (check out Carter's blog for proof of this), so we are constantly being told to have patience. 

We feel so lucky to have Davis. Tonight in the hallway outside the NICU a family was gathered, crying together. Everyday we feel so much gratitude for Davis' life and strength.