It has been crazy busy here the last several weeks! I feel like we have a Dr appointment every other day and meet ourselves coming and going. Steve had the week off work after Elijah came home, the next week my mom came and spent the night every night so last week was our first week of "normal," whatever that is with a 5 week old!
Really we are doing pretty well, Elijah is a great baby, he doesn't fuss unless he is hungry or getting his diaper changed and even then he calms down quickly. We are starting to settle into a pretty nice routine, the mornings are still a little crazy but evening and night time are nice. We have had a lot of Dr appts the last several weeks, weight checks, circumcision, more weight checks, Sleep disorder doctor and an appt for Reflux. Then Steve and I each had a Dr appointment in there as well, so we stay busy, thank god for good insurance!
Elijah was up to 6lbs 6 oz at his appt on Wednesday August 8th, I am sure by this weekend he will be over the 7lb mark. All of his preemie clothes have been packed away and he is on to newborn sizes. Its really hard to find preemie clothes so his wardrobe quadrupled when he went to newborn size! He is battling a reflux issue, the Dr says this is very common in preemies between 4 and 8 weeks when they hit a big growth spurt. We have some medicine we give him before bed and it seems to be helping a ton, he seems so much more comfortable and sleeps better at night after his feedings.
He is doing good on his breathing monitor, it has went off a hand full of times but they have all been false alarms according to the Dr. I have been next to or holding him for several of them and knew he was fine. We are hoping that this continues for the next two weeks and when we go back on August 27th they take him off the monitor but we shall see. Even with the false alarms its kind of a security blanket to have it.
Monday, August 13, 2012
Saturday, July 28, 2012
While I have some free time...
Hello! Who knew having a newborn in the house would keep someone so busy! So I last left off we were headed to the Care by parent room for two nights. Steve unfortunately had to work Friday night so he didn't get to stay with us for very long before he had to go home and get some sleep. While I wish Steve could have stayed with us this meant I got Elijah all to myself and I wasn't complaining about this! He did really good that first night, woke up every 2 hours to eat in the evening and then every 3-4 at night so I was able to get some sleep.
Elijah's day nurse came in first thing Saturday morning to see how we were and how the night went. I told her the night went great, no apnea alarms, feedings were great, he was having regular dirty diapers and I was in love! She asked how comfortable I felt, my response "I guess as comfortable as any first time parent can be!" She then broke the good news, she was almost certain we would be going home that day and not have to stay another night. I immediately called Steve and told him the good news, though I waited until after the Dr examined him to call and tell anyone else. We met with Dr. Edwards about 1 o'clock and he gave us the green light to take our little man home!
The car ride home was everything I had ever pictured it would be. I think Steve and I both had grins glued on our face from start to finish. We got out and quickly got Elijah inside because it was so hot outside, Steve would go back and get our bags in a minute. We brought the dogs inside one by one to meet our new family member, they couldn't have cared less, they just went and laid down. Now since things had been so crazy Steve hadn't had time to put Elijah's pack n play together, so he decided he would do that really quick while I got some stuff cleaned up. Before I knew it I had to pump, hmm where is my pump though? Oh yes its still in the car, that's when it dawned on us! The car was still running, we had forgot and never went back to turn it off! Good thing we remembered an hour later!
Our first night home went good, Elijah followed almost the exact same routine and timeline as he did at the hospital. I was able to get a good nights sleep in between feedings and pumping. Sunday my parents came over to visit for a few minutes and bring some pictures of me as a baby. I don't know but Elijah might look a little like me after all! I made my first solo trip out of the house and left Steve and Elijah alone Sunday afternoon so I could get the grocery shopping done. I came back to a sleeping baby in daddy's arms. Looks like they made it just fine without me!
Next... Elijah's first and second Dr appts, a late night trip to walmart and surviving the first week!
Elijah's day nurse came in first thing Saturday morning to see how we were and how the night went. I told her the night went great, no apnea alarms, feedings were great, he was having regular dirty diapers and I was in love! She asked how comfortable I felt, my response "I guess as comfortable as any first time parent can be!" She then broke the good news, she was almost certain we would be going home that day and not have to stay another night. I immediately called Steve and told him the good news, though I waited until after the Dr examined him to call and tell anyone else. We met with Dr. Edwards about 1 o'clock and he gave us the green light to take our little man home!
The car ride home was everything I had ever pictured it would be. I think Steve and I both had grins glued on our face from start to finish. We got out and quickly got Elijah inside because it was so hot outside, Steve would go back and get our bags in a minute. We brought the dogs inside one by one to meet our new family member, they couldn't have cared less, they just went and laid down. Now since things had been so crazy Steve hadn't had time to put Elijah's pack n play together, so he decided he would do that really quick while I got some stuff cleaned up. Before I knew it I had to pump, hmm where is my pump though? Oh yes its still in the car, that's when it dawned on us! The car was still running, we had forgot and never went back to turn it off! Good thing we remembered an hour later!
Our first night home went good, Elijah followed almost the exact same routine and timeline as he did at the hospital. I was able to get a good nights sleep in between feedings and pumping. Sunday my parents came over to visit for a few minutes and bring some pictures of me as a baby. I don't know but Elijah might look a little like me after all! I made my first solo trip out of the house and left Steve and Elijah alone Sunday afternoon so I could get the grocery shopping done. I came back to a sleeping baby in daddy's arms. Looks like they made it just fine without me!
Next... Elijah's first and second Dr appts, a late night trip to walmart and surviving the first week!
Sunday, July 22, 2012
It has been a crazy couple of days!
Whew! Sorry its been so long since I have posted, I feel like things went from crazy to insane in the last couple of days! On Tuesday Elijah started doing about 30-35 mils of out his bottle each feeding, I was thinking another few days and he would be work up to full feedings. To my surprise when I called to check on him after his 10pm feeding Tuesday night he had taken the whole bottle, that's a good start. I was expecting them to say he slept through his 1am feeding when I called, nope took the whole bottle!
When my mom and I went to see him Wednesday morning they told us he had also taken the whole bottle at his 4am feeding. As the day went on he kept taking his feedings all from the bottle, I was so excited but tried to keep calm in case he had a set back. By Thursday morning he hadn't had a bottle since 7pm Tuesday night and the Dr came by to see him and switch him to on demand feeds. She also told me we should go ahead and take the preemie CPR class, this is a class you have to take within a week of your baby going home. The Dr said she felt certain we were safe in taking the class now. The on demand feeding would hopefully transition him from being woke up to eat to waking himself up every 2-4 hours when he went home.
They had a kind of crazy day in the NICU with several new admits and we got our nurses switched for awhile. Our new nurse told me that I needed to plan on staying at the hospital all day since he was doing the on demand, just sit in the NICU and be there to feed him. Now mind you since I wasn't expecting this I had not ate anything all day, was wearing uncomfy clothes, my phone was dead and I had no charger, just generally unprepared. She was asking us about our pediatrician, car seat, monitor training, just a million questions coming at me and my head was swirling. Luckily we had to leave for CPR class and when we got back we had our nurse back! She told me I didn't have to stay there and could leave to eat lunch and just come back if I wanted to feed him and hold him since she couldn't guarantee his touch time every three hours. I went up to the hospital 6 times that day, thank goodness we live close!
Thursday night I was so tired I laid down as soon as Steve left, I set my alarm to wake up and pump but slept straight threw. I woke up at 8 o'clock, I never woke up to use the bathroom, call about Elijah, pump, I don't even know that I moved all night! When I called to check on him the nurse asked me how I felt about going to care by parent Friday night. I said yes of course! CBP is a transition room they have for families directly across from the NICU. They are like little hotel rooms, they give the parents a chance to take care of baby on their own but have a nurse close by if needed. I packed a bag and we headed off to monitor training for Elijah's breathing monitor he would be coming home with. After training I sat down to feed Elijah, they said we were set up in the room and we could take him over after this feeding. I was thrilled, excited and nervous all at the same time! We finished the feeding and headed over to get settled in!
To be continued, going to snuggle my baby now!
When my mom and I went to see him Wednesday morning they told us he had also taken the whole bottle at his 4am feeding. As the day went on he kept taking his feedings all from the bottle, I was so excited but tried to keep calm in case he had a set back. By Thursday morning he hadn't had a bottle since 7pm Tuesday night and the Dr came by to see him and switch him to on demand feeds. She also told me we should go ahead and take the preemie CPR class, this is a class you have to take within a week of your baby going home. The Dr said she felt certain we were safe in taking the class now. The on demand feeding would hopefully transition him from being woke up to eat to waking himself up every 2-4 hours when he went home.
They had a kind of crazy day in the NICU with several new admits and we got our nurses switched for awhile. Our new nurse told me that I needed to plan on staying at the hospital all day since he was doing the on demand, just sit in the NICU and be there to feed him. Now mind you since I wasn't expecting this I had not ate anything all day, was wearing uncomfy clothes, my phone was dead and I had no charger, just generally unprepared. She was asking us about our pediatrician, car seat, monitor training, just a million questions coming at me and my head was swirling. Luckily we had to leave for CPR class and when we got back we had our nurse back! She told me I didn't have to stay there and could leave to eat lunch and just come back if I wanted to feed him and hold him since she couldn't guarantee his touch time every three hours. I went up to the hospital 6 times that day, thank goodness we live close!
Thursday night I was so tired I laid down as soon as Steve left, I set my alarm to wake up and pump but slept straight threw. I woke up at 8 o'clock, I never woke up to use the bathroom, call about Elijah, pump, I don't even know that I moved all night! When I called to check on him the nurse asked me how I felt about going to care by parent Friday night. I said yes of course! CBP is a transition room they have for families directly across from the NICU. They are like little hotel rooms, they give the parents a chance to take care of baby on their own but have a nurse close by if needed. I packed a bag and we headed off to monitor training for Elijah's breathing monitor he would be coming home with. After training I sat down to feed Elijah, they said we were set up in the room and we could take him over after this feeding. I was thrilled, excited and nervous all at the same time! We finished the feeding and headed over to get settled in!
To be continued, going to snuggle my baby now!
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Thursday... a quick update
Sorry I haven't posted in two days! Elijah has been doing great and taking his feedings all by bottle since Tuesday night at 10pm. I didn't sleep well Tuesday night so I slept all day yesterday. Today they moved Elijah from feeding every 3 hours to on demand feeding, so when he wakes up and is hungry they feed him. Unless it has been 4 hours, then they wake him up, they don't want him going more than 4 hours without eating. So I will be making crazy random trips up to the hospital for the next 12 hours so that I can be there to feed him. We will also try breast feeding today and see how that goes.
I will update more this evening when we see how the on demand goes!
I will update more this evening when we see how the on demand goes!
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Monday July 16th
Steve is off on Sunday nights, since we had been going non stop this weekend we got a little extra sleep this morning and went to see Elijah at 10am. I called to see how he did at 7am and was very excited to hear he took his entire feeding via bottle! At his 10am feeding he was dressed in the most adorable pajamas, I can't get enough of him in clothes! He took about half of his feeding through his bottle, we still mark this in the plus column! Steve snuggled him while he took the rest of his feeding through the tube, he sure does like when daddy holds him! Elijah's bilirubin numbers went up again but so far they aren't putting him back under the lights. The nurse did say not to be surprised or discouraged if he was under them in the morning.
Steve and I are both drained today so we didn't go to his 1pm or 4 pm feedings, We actually planned on going home and watching a movie but made it about 10 minutes into the movie before we were both falling asleep. So we turned off the movie and took a little nap, I have never napped so much in my life but I wake up every few hours to pump and it usually takes me awhile to fall back asleep. So while I was used to getting up 6 times a night to use the restroom while pregnant it wasn't a 30 minutes trip every time! I did call to check and they said Elijah had taken 22mils and 27mils at his afternoon feedings, good news!
We went to see him at his 7pm feeding and he was pretty wide awake, he is much more alert than he was just a week ago. He did well at his feeding and took about 25mils through his bottle. He is holding steady at this half bottle so hopefully we can build on it little by little each day.
I called to check on him before his 10pm feeding, I thought since he had such a big day he would be tuckered out and I was right. Nurse said he was out, didn't move during the assessment so they just tubed his feeding. I went to sleep as soon as Steve left for work and only woke up to pump and check on Elijah. When I called they said he had taken 28mils and 35mils 1am and 4am feedings, so he has moved up on how much he is taking! My mom is going to come get me and take me to his 7am feeding so I will have much more to report later!
Steve and I are both drained today so we didn't go to his 1pm or 4 pm feedings, We actually planned on going home and watching a movie but made it about 10 minutes into the movie before we were both falling asleep. So we turned off the movie and took a little nap, I have never napped so much in my life but I wake up every few hours to pump and it usually takes me awhile to fall back asleep. So while I was used to getting up 6 times a night to use the restroom while pregnant it wasn't a 30 minutes trip every time! I did call to check and they said Elijah had taken 22mils and 27mils at his afternoon feedings, good news!
We went to see him at his 7pm feeding and he was pretty wide awake, he is much more alert than he was just a week ago. He did well at his feeding and took about 25mils through his bottle. He is holding steady at this half bottle so hopefully we can build on it little by little each day.
I called to check on him before his 10pm feeding, I thought since he had such a big day he would be tuckered out and I was right. Nurse said he was out, didn't move during the assessment so they just tubed his feeding. I went to sleep as soon as Steve left for work and only woke up to pump and check on Elijah. When I called they said he had taken 28mils and 35mils 1am and 4am feedings, so he has moved up on how much he is taking! My mom is going to come get me and take me to his 7am feeding so I will have much more to report later!
Sunday, July 15, 2012
Sunday July 15th
Today was a day with several firsts for the little man! Steve and I went to see Elijah at his 10am feeding this morning. He was awake and ready when we got there, he is really starting to know what his routine is! Elijah took half of his feeding through his bottle, when I was done feeding him Steve held him while he got his tube feeding. Never in my life have I seen anything more precious than my husband holding our son, its amazing to stare at the two most important people in my life and know how blessed I am.
My parents decided they would go see Elijah today and to help us out they went to Elijah's 4pm feeding. My dad hadn't seen Elijah up close so they finally got to have a proper meeting! The occupational therapist was there and fed Elijah, afterwards my mom held him. She said he let out a single squeal that was so loud and unexpected it startled her! Elijah also got dressed for the first time today! He is no longer a little naked baby, I take this as a good sign because it means he is holding his own temperature and hopefully will get moved to an open bed soon! These are all little steps on the road to home!
Steve and I made it to Elijah's 7pm feeding, again he took about 22 mils out of his bottle. At least he is staying steady, maybe tomorrow his numbers will go up little by little until he is taking the whole thing on his own! He looked so dang cute in his outfit! He is a handsome little man and daddy got lots of pictures! We really love the night nurse he has had the past 3 nights, she is the sweetest, most gentle and kind nurse I have ever seen. She talks to him like she would her own child and you can tell she really likes Elijah!
At his 10pm feeding it was kind of crazy in the NICU. Normally its very quiet and dark in there, not a lot of people moving around or talking and if they are its very hushed. I am not sure 100% what was going on but from what I could gather a pretty sick little baby had been brought in on the row behind us, there were lots of alarms going off and nurses, Dr's and EMTs talking. The baby next to Elijah had surgery on Friday and the nurses have to monitor him pretty closely too. Elijah wasn't super awake when we got there, add that to all the noise and he was pretty unhappy and restless. He didn't take a lot of his feeding so we gave most of it to him via NG tube. I called about 30 minutes after we left and his nurse said he had fussed for a few minutes but was sleeping quietly now. I am sure I will be calling to check on him after his 1am feeding!
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My parents decided they would go see Elijah today and to help us out they went to Elijah's 4pm feeding. My dad hadn't seen Elijah up close so they finally got to have a proper meeting! The occupational therapist was there and fed Elijah, afterwards my mom held him. She said he let out a single squeal that was so loud and unexpected it startled her! Elijah also got dressed for the first time today! He is no longer a little naked baby, I take this as a good sign because it means he is holding his own temperature and hopefully will get moved to an open bed soon! These are all little steps on the road to home!
Steve and I made it to Elijah's 7pm feeding, again he took about 22 mils out of his bottle. At least he is staying steady, maybe tomorrow his numbers will go up little by little until he is taking the whole thing on his own! He looked so dang cute in his outfit! He is a handsome little man and daddy got lots of pictures! We really love the night nurse he has had the past 3 nights, she is the sweetest, most gentle and kind nurse I have ever seen. She talks to him like she would her own child and you can tell she really likes Elijah!
At his 10pm feeding it was kind of crazy in the NICU. Normally its very quiet and dark in there, not a lot of people moving around or talking and if they are its very hushed. I am not sure 100% what was going on but from what I could gather a pretty sick little baby had been brought in on the row behind us, there were lots of alarms going off and nurses, Dr's and EMTs talking. The baby next to Elijah had surgery on Friday and the nurses have to monitor him pretty closely too. Elijah wasn't super awake when we got there, add that to all the noise and he was pretty unhappy and restless. He didn't take a lot of his feeding so we gave most of it to him via NG tube. I called about 30 minutes after we left and his nurse said he had fussed for a few minutes but was sleeping quietly now. I am sure I will be calling to check on him after his 1am feeding!
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Saturday July 14th
After a very long and stressful Friday, Saturday was a much better day in the Adkins world! I didn't go see Elijah after his 7pm feeding on Friday, he had been pretty cranky and hungry so I called before his touch time and they said he was sleeping so I let him be. Saturday morning I got up and went to his 7am feeding with my mom and my Aunt. My aunt had been worried and praying for Elijah and hadn't got to see him yet so I was happy she got to go with us and see him.
When we got there he still wasn't able to eat, they had to wait for the Dr's to do their rounds, he was sleeping so the nurse asked if we wanted to wake him. I told her yes because 12 hours was a long time to go without being held for a little guy and I thought he needed some love. He was kind of cranky at first but he settled quickly and looked around wide eyed and checking things out. The nurse said all of his blood work was looking good and his bilirubin numbers had went from 9.4 to an 8! Yay!! We snuggled him for about an hour and then put him back to bed when he went to sleep. I told her we would be back late this afternoon and would call to check in between.
I called after his 10 o'clock feeding time and she said the Dr's had decided to feed him again so she gave him his feeding at 9am and he took 8mils, she tubed the rest at 10 o'clock. At 1 o'clock I called back and she said he had taken 11 mils of his 30mil goal, so he is going up little by little.
We went to see him at his 4 o'clock feeding and he took his entire feeding through his bottle. Tummy is looking good and best thing yet he is no longer under the bilirubin lights. They said not to be discouraged if he has to go back under them for a day or two as its not uncommon. It was nice to see him just hanging out in the bed without his super hero shades!
We didn't go to his 7pm feeding but we did make his 10pm feeding and he was pretty wide awake for it. They had turned off the heat lamp and he was just wrapped up in a blanket. They said they would take his IV out in the morning, this makes us so happy, its hard moving around with the IVs. Looks like we are back on the road to progress though!
When we got there he still wasn't able to eat, they had to wait for the Dr's to do their rounds, he was sleeping so the nurse asked if we wanted to wake him. I told her yes because 12 hours was a long time to go without being held for a little guy and I thought he needed some love. He was kind of cranky at first but he settled quickly and looked around wide eyed and checking things out. The nurse said all of his blood work was looking good and his bilirubin numbers had went from 9.4 to an 8! Yay!! We snuggled him for about an hour and then put him back to bed when he went to sleep. I told her we would be back late this afternoon and would call to check in between.
I called after his 10 o'clock feeding time and she said the Dr's had decided to feed him again so she gave him his feeding at 9am and he took 8mils, she tubed the rest at 10 o'clock. At 1 o'clock I called back and she said he had taken 11 mils of his 30mil goal, so he is going up little by little.
We went to see him at his 4 o'clock feeding and he took his entire feeding through his bottle. Tummy is looking good and best thing yet he is no longer under the bilirubin lights. They said not to be discouraged if he has to go back under them for a day or two as its not uncommon. It was nice to see him just hanging out in the bed without his super hero shades!
We didn't go to his 7pm feeding but we did make his 10pm feeding and he was pretty wide awake for it. They had turned off the heat lamp and he was just wrapped up in a blanket. They said they would take his IV out in the morning, this makes us so happy, its hard moving around with the IVs. Looks like we are back on the road to progress though!
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