Evicted!

Austin has been evicted from the isolette! He is now in an open crib.

Let me rewind a bit.

Yesterday Austin ate like a horse! He ate more than 2 ounces every feeding and gained 50 grams! He now weighs 2070 grams, or 4 pounds, 9 ounces. He's been keeping his temp up just fine, actually getting too hot. All day they lowered the temp in the isolette and finally after his last feeding they said we could leave him out! He's bundled up so so tight. His face is all scrunched up hes wrapped so tight!

He has been very awake and smiley! I just love him so much!

Please pray he continues to gain weight AND maintain his temperature at the same time. THAT is what is keeping him in the hospital. Like I said before (and a million times it seems! lol) he does NOT have to weigh a certain number. He just has to consistently gain weight whilst keeping a 98 body temperature.

I've been doing okay. I have had some fleeting chest tightness separation anxiety moments here and there. It's hard to believe that Austin is almost 2 weeks old and it feels like he isn't really MINE. I can't wait to take him home! What will I do with him!?

Your daily Austin fix!

Ups & Downs

Sorry I skipped yesterday! I was so incredibly exhausted... I'm waiting now for midnight for A's next feeding and then I'm going to bed!

I'll start with the Downs since the Ups are so much more fun

• Yesterday I was told I couldn't hold A for more than 30 minutes to eat.
• Then it was shortened to 15 minutes
• Then I was told I couldn't even open the isolette and touch him
• I had a major meltdown in the nursery with tons of other parents in there. Ooops.
• I forgot to put the bottle on one of my pumps and pumped into my towel in my lap for 20 minutes
• I have a major migraine. I didn't have any while I was pregnant. Makes me miss being pregnant just for that reason... And no, hydrocodone doesn't touch it. Blah
• A patient on this floor screams all night.
• I accidentally pushed the bottle too far in A's mouth today and he threw up. A lot. Mom of the Year.
• Christopher worked Monday through today and still has to work tomorrow.
  

UPS!

• A has gained a total of 80 grams since my last post. He's now 4lbs 7ozs!
• A is eating so much better! He's had over 2 ounces all day!
• Yesterday was a much better day with that nurse
• Today we had our FAVORITE nurse, and she let me hold him all I wanted
• After I held him for 3 hours his temp was up almost a whole degree from 98.0 to 98.8
  
• Pumping is getting so much easier and I can go a little longer if needed and its not painful
• A's bilirubin is staying down
• A isn't getting as tired during his feedings
• Christopher only has to work for a couple hours tomorrow so he'll get to spend more time with A.
• Christopher HAS a job!
• I still have this awesome courtesy room and I'm so thankful to be close to my little man.
  
• I've had a lot of really sweet visitors and am really feeling the love from my friends and family.
  
• I had the cafeteria's chicken tenders today! Yum!
• I look thin ;) LOL
• We watched Home Alone on the TV
• The neonatologist is really confident about me being able to breastfeed before we go home! I hope she's right!
• God is great and is answering my prayers!
  
• I have the most beautiful baby and sweetest baby ever!

I've gotten the question When Can A Come Home? or How Much Does A Have To Weigh To Go Home? A LOT!
There is no set weight that has to weigh. He just needs to have enough fat to maintain his own temperature and not lose weight. He needs to stay in the 98s by himself without the help of the isolette. When we start weaning him out of it he can't lose any weight. Maintaining temperature uses his energy and calories so he needs fat.

Keep the prayers coming. They are doing amazing work! I am so happy to see my little man growing and thriving! Tomorrow I may venture outside of these hospital walls and hit up Target for some things I need! Wish me luck! LOL

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My Fat Baby Loves To Eat

Bumble B's bilirubin was 5 this morning! Praise the Lord! Thank y'all so much for all your prayers yesterday. Knowing so many people are praying for my little man is so incredibly amazing and humbling. It makes me so happy. And thanks for those spare prayers for myself. I have been much less emotional today. I could blame the hydrocodone, but I'm sure it was y'all ;)

So he is off of the light today. He did lose 2 more ounces however, which puts him at 4 pounds 3 ounces. Almost ALL newborns lose weight after birth, but for an 8 pound baby to lose 5 ounces is not as big as a 4 pounder. Baby is teetering toward 3 pounds, and we definitely don't want that. So today he was still in his isolette with the heat up. The temperature inside is 88.7 degrees F (thanks to a Twitter friend for that conversion! The isolette is in Celsius!).

He's also eating like CRAZY. So now we are just feeding him what he wants and not restricting it. Through some experimenting today we see that little B eats about 2 ounces! That's how much he lost last night, so I jokingly suggested to weigh him after he ate LOL. So we are feeding him lots so he gets some fat to keep his little body warm.

This kid loves eating. He eats so fast he forgets to breathe and we have to stop and make him catch his breath! I told him that this food isn't going anywhere, so slow down. He's done a little better about it the last 2 feedings. He's a great burper too, and poops as soon as he's done eating! Such an EASY baby so far. Hopefully he'll keep it up, but I'll try not to count on it ;)

We'll start breastfeeding later when he gets his weight on and he's about to come home. Breastfeeding will take more energy and burn calories and I want him to conserve all the energy he can for making fat. Some people have also asked me about his pacifier. This baby is still 34 weeks gestation. I am making him happy right now and keeping his vitals as high as possible so that he will finish growing and be able to come home to me. When he's home and stable, we'll talk, but for now, what makes Bumble B happy is exactly what we'll do. And if a pacifier while we're changing him waiting to feed him keeps him from burning 20 calories crying is what we need to do, that is exactly what we're going to do. If me pumping every hour because all those babies in the nursery make me absolutely miserable (if you know what I mean) is what it takes, then I'll do it. I don't have to breastfeed yet. He needs fat and if drinking it out of an easy bottle nipple is easier and cause less burnt calories, that's what I'll do! I want my man home.

I've gotten along great with all the nurses in the nursery. They are really great people and I really like them all. They really care about the babies and they call Bumble B by his first name, which they don't on any other babies. Christopher made him a name card with his name, some bumble bees, and a palmetto tree. The neonatologist even called him by his first name! At shift change they were talking about what babies they wanted and they called them each by their last name except mine ;). I've had a good time with them all and I feel so confident with his care.

Thanks again for all of the prayers, thoughts, support, comments, tweets, visits, presents, and well wishes. I am getting them all and LOVE them all. I'm sorry if I don't respond or respond really fast. There is so much going on and I'm rarely sitting still. I can't BELIEVE I got this post done at all!

Daily Bumble B fix ;)

Bumble B's Life Thus Far & Our Prayer Requests

I hope you enjoyed the arrival story. I really haven't even read it yet because I've been so tired and busy!

Things are going well with little Bumble B. He was measured and weighed last night and unfortunately it looks like they mismeasured his length at birth. He is 17 inches long instead of 18 1/2. Not that anything is wrong with that, I just wish it had been accurate from the start. He weighed 4lbs, 5oz! He has only lost 5 ounces! I think that's fabulous.

The first couple of days in the Level 2 nursery he was on IV fluids and not eating yet. He's now eating, and eating more than any of them can keep up with! He was at 12 ccs every 5 hours and 2 hours after one feeding he was begging for more and downed 19ccs! He is now on over an ounce every 3 hours! Which means he's pooping A LOT which is GREAT because it shows he's handling the milk fine and he has high bilirubin, so the more he poops the faster it'll get out of his system.

2 days ago his bilirubin was 8, yesterday it was 10, and today it is 15. So he's under a light and top of a blanket. I KNEW this would happen. It's SO common in even term babies, not even mentioning preemies. But of course when I saw him in the isolette with the lights and his little glasses I was so sad. I can't hold him today because he needs to be under the light, which is absolutely understandable. I did get to feed him. He was so so cute. He's had those glasses on his poor little eyes all day so when he got out he was looking around all over the place and SMILING so much. I don't think it's gas. I think it's real smiles :)

Right now we are so happy he's breathing fine on his own, he doesn't need any oxygen or IV fluids. Now we are just battling the jaundice and his temperature maintaining. He's staying in the high 97s, and we want him to keep his temp at 98.6. So that is the current prayers I'm BEGGING for. My little skinny man to keep his temps up and get this icky bilirubin OUT!

Also, if you have some spare prayers, please say a little one for me (and may be poor Christopher who is having to deal with me!). I am so incredibly blessed and thrilled to have my little man thriving in the nursery, but sometimes I have a really really rough time leaving him down there. If he's crying I can't leave him and sometimes when I leave him because he looks so happy I get upset as well. It's not natural to leave my baby anywhere. It's the most awful feeling I've ever had in my life. Plus the post-pregnancy hormones aren't helping a bit. I just need a little extra strength and peace in knowing that I am doing the right thing. Thankfully I am still in a courtesy room at the hospital, but as soon as they need the room, we will be kicked out. And if I have a hard time leaving him in the nursery to walk down the hall, can you imagine how hard it will be to pull away from this hospital? I'm not sure how NICU mommies do this for months, and I don't even want to imagine it.