Milk monster
This kid loves nursing. The nurses and doctors have commented that he seems to like nursing way more than the bottle. Woo!
Parenting
Big sister
For the most part Lorelei is doing remarkably well with all of these transitions.
My time in the hospital was difficult for her. She was happy during the days when things were “normal”, but broke down each night when she had to leave the hospital. The longer I stayed the more comfortable she became there, which was not necessarily a good thing. She got restless and a little too comfortable.
Eyes and ears
Rowan passed his hearing test yesterday. He also tentatively passed the eye exam. The vessels are still immature, but there was no evidence of ROP at this point. He will have to have a follow up exam in a few weeks.
Lorelei sings to Rowan – Video
This is one of those moments where Zach and I just looked at each other and realized we have two very awesome kids. TWO!
Getting bigger and closer to home
Rowan is continuing to grow and learn to eat. He has taken a few full feeds by mouth at this point! This afternoon he had some big bradycardias. They weren’t long, but his heart rate dropped pretty low. But for most of those he was eating, so I don’t know if they will hold them against him or not. But he is getting to nurse a couple of times per day. For days he was transferring 4ml each time. But the last two days he’s had one session where he has transferred 10! Happy birthday to me!!!! His total every three hours is 36mls, so it’s still not a huge amount, but it is a start. I think oral feeding is finally starting to click for him. Big news is that he is now over 1800 grams! That’s the 4 pound threshold that is so important. One more criteria checked off of his to-do list! There haven’t been any other major changes over the last few days. Slight increases in feeds, but otherwise just learning to eat by mouth. He is awake more and more, and his eyes are getting a little more focused each day. Tomorrow I should get to meet with lactation again to work on feedings. Right now with the nipple shield he stays latched on really well, but doesn’t transfer as much milk. Without the shield he gets more milk, but has to work a lot harder to stay latched on. And we want him to not have to work hard, because that burns calories that he needs. I am also frustrated because I am having to work harder and harder to pump 2oz of milk. This is still more than he eats, but I do not want my supply to go down. So I will talk to the LC about that as well. I was happy today when the nurse told me to freeze milk at home for a while, because they have plenty. Today during rounds they mentioned that his eye exam is scheduled for next Friday. The doctor wanted to move it to this Friday, in case he has gone home by next Friday. Now, that in no way means he WILL go home next week, but it’s the first time I’ve heard any discussion about the actual timing of discharge. Here are some pictures from the last few days!
Life in the SCN
I thought some of you might appreciate a little bit of a description of what it is like in the Special Care Nursery.
Rowan and growin’
Rowan is off the caffeine! Baby steps.
He has gained half a pound since birth (more if you look at his lowest weight)!