Avery was all smiles tonight! Last picture is what technically a "milk coma" looks like : )
Today was a momentous day in our little world! God is so faithful and awesome!! Our baby girl is doing so good. We're getting a schedule down of sorts and it's allowing Mom to get a little more rest than anticipated. I am going to her 8:30, 11:30 and 2:30 touch times- skipping the 5:30- and coming back to either kangaroo or watch Dad kangaroo with her at 8:30. After I pump at 4:30, I've been laying down till about 7:30, getting up to pump again and then going to the hospital. It's been a nice reprieve and a chance, albeit a small one to get some much needed sleep somewhere in between Avery and I's schedule. Her are Baby Girls stats for today by touch time:
8:30 AM: was fed 6 cc's of breastmilk and only gave back trace amounts. Mom and Dad both visited her this morning and got a kick out of her facial expressions... she is smiling and grunting, frowning and almost laughing it seems like. I love the times we see her together and hope more often than not she is able to associate Mommy and Daddy with our voices, smells, and faces.
11:30 AM: Mommy came alone this time so Dad could finish his homework. I was told at this time that the doctor was pleased with her feeding progress and decided to up her amount to 9 cc's. I'm prone to think at this time that if she doesn't give back any residuals or just a small amount and it is purely breastmilk, they will raise her feeding level every 24 hours. While this makes me nervous that we are pushing her too hard, or asking her to take too much in a small amount of time, I have to have faith that she can do it and that God is watching over her and continually working in her favor to have no steps backward in her progress. Also her nurse told me that her platelet count is somewhere around 180-190, and the "normal" range is just over 150! Avery's body is gettin the hang of this! So thankful!
2:30 PM: Grandma came with Mom this time and was so happy to see Gracie... she was very much awake at the previous touch time and I think wore herself out a little so was a sleepy girl this afternoon. But she did open her eyes for some great pictures and Grandma got a few that she will really enjoy as well. Grandma was able to touch her feet and talk to her, and the best part was that she was there when Mommy changed her diaper and found poop!!!!!! I've never been more excited. Literally. I had tears of joy over a bowel movement. Welcome to motherhood? As I wiped her hiney, I congratulated my daughter on a stool well done. The nurse said her tummy sounded up and at em' with the stethescope, which is great news. She gave back only .2 of her 9 cc's as well!! SuperBaby!! This was such a great visit and Mom left reinvigorated about Avery's health and thanking the Lord a million times over.
5:30 PM: We did not go to this touch time, however Dad called the NICU for progress while Mom got some shut eye. Avery gave back 2.5 cc's of milk this time, however the nurse said she was laying on her left side and that this amount was still "acceptable". (She digests much better on her stomach or right side, as her intestines run in such a way that when gravity is in charge, her food flows to the right first and for some reason, the best) She also pooped again!! This is fantastic news and we are so blessed by it.
8:30 PM: No poopy diaper this time (one can hope right??) but we did get her weighed again, and her official total is: 3 lbs 4.5 oz Holy. Moly. My kid is growing so fast and I LOVE IT. Keep that weight coming, Lord! She only needs to gain about another 20 grams to get special privledges in the NICU. (I say this without knowing fully what said priveledges are beyond that she gets a bath 3 times a week instead of 2. There are other things that are associated with weighing 1500 grams or more, and I will get the scoop when she hits that marker. Which hopefully is tomorrow night!!) It was Dad's turn to kangaroo, and at first she was a fussball, but quickly calmed down after Mom fed her her dinner. See: immediately fell into milk coma. She is the sweetest baby and I could watch her sleep the rest of my life and be in total heaven. This time she only gave back 1 cc of breastmilk so that was much better news for her digestion. I thought she is even looking less red... I cannot WAIT till she fattens up a little bit more and we can put a onesie on her and see her face/body fill out. Not that she doesn't look like a "real baby" right now, but she's got old man wrinkles that I'm excited to turn into fat baby rolls. Kangaroo care is never long enough, and eventually we had to put her back : ( Dad obliged Mom on the way home and stopped for some Oreos and milk (thank you Honey for allowing my sweet tooth to continue after pregnancy! I promise my hormones are still raging and this is in your best interest! Love you!) We went went straight to bed as we were both pretty exhausted.
11:30 PM: Mom was up at 1:30 to pump so I called the NICU just to check on her. She only gave back .8 of this feeding with no poopy diaper. She was still fast asleep and doing great.
If today is not a testament to the power of God and prayer, I truly don't know what is. God is continuing to work on our child's health and everytime I pray over her, I feel more and more the strength that He is giving her. I don't know what else to say except all glory goes to Him for this miraculous turn of events. He is listening and we are blessed. It seems like I am praying every moment I'm not talking to someone else, and I actually feel a lot of peace about this. I do it without realizing that I'm talking to God, and now it's more of a conversation than a formal petition for intervention. What a cool evolution, for my spiritual growth at least.
We continue to pray that Avery poops and pees on her own.
That she tolerates and digests fully the breastmilk that is being given to her, no matter what the amount.
Pray that her jaundice levels continue to go down (they will retest her in a few days)
That she continues to gain weight and her health is strong and steady with no steps back in her progress.
That her Brady episodes are few and far between. (She had about 3-4 today and one where her HR dipped into the 50's-60's for just a moment. The nurse explained that this generally happened when a baby was pushing/straining to go to the bathroom, and it happens to adults as well. It alllll is related to her being too young to do two things at once. Sucking/breathing, straining/breathing, being mad/breathing. She will grow out of this by week 34-36)
I had two special friends tell me today that this blog had a) strengthened their faith in God and b) made her rethink her decision to not have children. THANK YOU to my friends for sharing this with me. It has filled my heart with so much happiness, you will never know. While that was not my plan initially when starting this blog, I am even more encouraged to share how God is moving in our lives and the immense amount of love I have for my daughter now, and both are honestly easy to do. I love you both and hope this blog continues to bless you in those directions.
5:14 AM and wide awake with gratitude and a little bit of an Oreo craving....pray and snack? I think so!!
See you folks tomorrow! Love to all!!
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