Fever and skin buds

Last night you spiked a fever. You'd been riding on the high side all day yesterday, but you pushed up to 39.5 degrees Celsius, which is 103.1 degrees Farenheit. I have now entered that number in a few different converters because I think, somewhere along the line, one of the nurses misspoke and told me that 39 degrees was equal to 104 (it's actually 102.2), so I kind of freaked when I heard you were at 39.5. I don't think 103.1 is great, but holy moly, it's better than over 104 degrees! In any case, the fever could be some kind of infection, or it could just be your body's massive effort to recover from the trauma. They already had you on an antibiotic, the course of which you completed last night, so they must now wait 24 hours to begin another cycle. They've sent all kinds of fluids of yours off to the labs (as they do every three days) but it takes three days to culture. So, they'll likely put you on antibiotics tomorrow, just as a safety play. While I was there this morning, your temperature dropped from 39.4 to 39.2. Were you trying to calm me down? It worked.

On to better news: You're growing skin buds on your back! Your new nurse Jennifer took me on a verbal tour of the topography of your burns this morning, after she'd seen them for the first time during the change of your dressings. Skin buds = new skin = good news! (Here's a glossary of commonly used Burn ICU terms.) Whether or not you'll need skin grafts, we still don't know, but it's great to know that your body is rejuvenating where it can. You are so strong, Daddy. So is the specialized medicine you're getting: from your Burn ICU team, and from the prayers of all your family and friends.

Also: They upped your oxygen mix on the ventilator from 50 to 60 percent which has, in turn, improved your blood gasses and helped you breathe alot easier. 60 percent is a common mix to need at this stage, we're told. Your pulse ox was at 95 and 96 percent yesterday, and today, when I left, it was at 97 percent. Come on, lungs.