No longer a child...

mmmmm....good! (I promise his eyes don't usually cross...the milk must be that good!)

sound asleep in mommie's arms with a yummt paci!

I love this picture because Grayson looks sooo tiny in the big ole bouncy seat!

So proud and excited to be wearing mommie's new Nikes...now Mommie needs to wear them to the gym! 

7.31.10
As time goes on, I see this blog turning into more of a blog about my sweet little family instead of just about Grayson. There are just so many things to write about when it comes to all of my boys!!!

Jai and I are still trying to figure out our new routine with having Grayson home. We are trying to keep Jones in his same routine as much as we can. The good thing is, Grayson sleeps a lot and so I feel like I am able to spend some quality time with Jones in the afternoon before he goes to bed, keeping him in his established routine. Jones loves to feed the kitties Fancy Feast (can you believe Jai Bell's son LOVES kitties???!), so every night after dinner we go and feed the kitties. This usually turns into playing with the water hose and both of us getting soaked so then it is bath time. I rock Jones to sleep after his bath and then it is time to give Grayson a bottle. So Jones' routine is about the same as it always has been.

Grayson's schedule is to eat, sleep, and poop around the clock, tough life huh? He eats at 9, 12, 3, 6, etc. He is taking iron at 9 am and 9 pm, and caffeine at 3 pm, so he takes a bottle with his medicines. All other times, he nurses. He is getting much better at nursing and not requiring a bottle afterwards, which is great!!! I am still pumping milk, and goodness gracious, just call me Elsie! I may need two deep freezes when this is all over with! I meant to get Grayson weighed yesterday but instead we snuggled and slept until just about 1:30pm, when he had an apnea episode, but that was the first in about 2 days...not too bad!

Having "two under two" is certainly as difficult as everyone says that it will be, but looking into my sweet children's eyes makes me forget just how tired I am or how hard it is. Speaking of the word "children" I said Grayson's prayers last night, then went and said Jones' prayers, and as I was saying mine, I thanked God for my children and then it dawned on me...I can no longer say that I have one child, nor can I say that I am a child. Using the word "children" has made me realize just how much I have grown up! It is a bitter sweet feeling, but certainly a good one.

5 weeks old!

7.29.10
It is so hard to believe that Grayson was born 5 weeks ago today. When you look at him, he still looks just like a newborn and I treat him like a newborn (I wonder when, if ever, that will wear off?). Our days have been fairly  calm. It begins with a feeding, followed by a long morning snuggle together until the next feeding, then Grayson naps while I do house work, then Jai and Jones are home. The days fly by!

Jones now has the cold that has been going around. I feel so bad for the little fella. He has been wonderful with Grayson. He always tries to help with diaper changes and he is always saying "baby" when he hears Grayson cry, or even make the slightest noise. We just have to be extremely careful that Jones' hands are empty when he is near Grayson because Jones loves to throw things! Tonight while Jones was with Mya (my mom, for those that don't know) upstairs, he threw his little plastic dinosaur over the knee wall upstairs. Luckily Grayson was safe in my arms and let's just say that Jones has gotten very familiar with time-out these days!

I have remained scared to death of germs. Especially now that Jones has a cold. I am still limiting visitors and people that can love on him. I know that he can not live in a bubble forever, but I sure can try my best for right now.

The heart monitor has not gone off in 2 days, well except for annoying alarms when the leads come lose, and let me tell you, that happens often. Especially at 5am when I am walking up the stairs and I step on the wire and the lead comes off and then the alarm (that sounds like a smoke alarm, mind you!) wakes up everyone that is sleeping in the house, including Jones....this just happened last night. But I am thrilled that we haven't had any baby alarms in a few days.

I'll see if I can get some pictures posted pretty soon...it truly is amazing how little time I have these days!

Drs appointments

7.26.10
Today was my post-partum check up. Since Jai is still sick with either heat exhaustion or a stomach virus, Grayson and I went on our first outing together. I was doing fine until we were in the doctor's office waiting room...OMG the germs! I was freaking out and almost had a panic attack at all the coughing! I swear everyone that I sat near had to cough. At first it was this small pregnant girl that looked like she was going to vomit every where. She started coughing and so I moved to where no one was. Then another preggo lady came and sat two chairs down from us and started really coughing. The type of cough that you can't get rid of. I know that she felt bad, but I was seriously about to die. I held the car seat in my lap and pulled the blanket over Grayson's face so he hopefully couldn't get any germs. Ugh, I have never been so happy to get called into the exam room! I had a good visit with Dr. Davis and received the green flag for exercise! Now, if I can only get over this cold!

Then we went to see Dr. Head for Grayson's check up. He weighed in at 6 pounds and 0.8 ounces...gotta give him credit for those 0.8, now!!! Dr. Head thought that he looked great! She said that he does have a heart murmur. I was so exhausted and sick from this cold that it didn't even occur to me to ask her about it! I'm hoping that it is something he will just grow out of. I'm sure if it was bad enough to warrant follow up, she would have ordered it. I'm not the best at hearing murmurs, but even I can hear it when I count his heart beat to give caffeine. Will definitely ask her about this on Aug 9th at our next appointment.

Jai is still sick and thankfully Judy is here with us. I really don't know what we would do without our family....now if we could only move closer to them!!! Judy has been wonderful and has enjoyed snuggles with Grayson!

Home sweet home

7.25.10
My goal starting the blog was to write something every day until Grayson came home...I was doing well until we had two days left! Sorry for not having any updates lately!

Grayson came home on Saturday, July 24th. It was his one month birthday! Dr. Coates had estimated that Grayson would be in the hospital 4-5 weeks and he was right on it! It was an exciting day but we were both very nervous. It is a different kind of nervous. We know how to care for a newborn, especially with having an 18 month old its not like it was that long ago for us, but now we have a preemie with a heart/apnea monitor to care for. 

The first day at home was nice. Jones saw Grayson and was sweet, he would look at him and say "baby?" I allowed Jones to sit next to us (after we made sure that he didnt have anything to throw in his hands!) as I fed Grayson. Jones just stared at him in amazement. Then when I had to change Grayson's diaper, I let Jones help. He helped by holding a wipe for me and then I used the wipe (well, pretended!). Jones seemed to like helping mommie change the babies diaper. I thought that Jones would be jealous of Grayson getting more attention from a parent, but he really hasnt shown that too much. He did scream for Daddy when Jai was burping Grayson today, but Jones quickly got over it when Aunt Gigi offered him a french fry! 

It has been wonderful having my sister here to help us. She has washed clothes, folded clothes, took care of Jones, cleaned, bought dinners, rocked Jones at 1am, bought groceries, helped to organize, played with Jones more, cleaned more, etc. I don't know what I would have done without her this weekend...We love you Aunt Gigi!!!

I am trying to nurse Grayson but it is getting frustrating. I plan on talking with the pediatrician tomorrow. He nurses well but then is too tired to take the supplemental milk, but then gets really hungry in about 2 hours because he doesn't take the supplemental milk. I am very anxious to get a weight check tomorrow to make sure he isn't loosing. Giving him a bottle is just too easy, but I love nursing him, so we will see what happens. I also HATE pumping, so I am ready for him to just nurse. 

Sleeping...let's see....there really isn't any. Well, Grayson sleeps! Jones has been waking up at 1am screaming for us...I think that before Grayson came home he could sense that something was different. Now, maybe he just wants to know that we are still here. Last night after Aunt Gigi rocked him for probably 30 minutes, Jai ended up having a sleep over in Jones' room on a feather bed. I felt helpless because I couldn't help, but I am up every 2-3 hours with Grayson, so I really couldn't do anything. 

I have had a bad cold since Thursday. I am scared to death that Grayson will get sick. I have been wearing a mask when I hold him and I HATE the mask! I have been psychotic about washing my hands to the point that my knuckles are cracking like it is the middle of winter. I feel like I might be on the upswing, and now Jai has a stomach virus. WONDERFUL! Luckily Judy came to stay with us tonight. It was like an answered prayer when we heard her knock at the door. It is so wonderful to have such loving and helpful family and friends. Hopefully Jai will get to feeling better and will keep the germs to himself...I will be following him around the house with lysol for a few days! 

Almost forgot to talk about the heart/apnea monitor. Well, it is serves a wonderful purpose and I would have it no other way then for Grayson to wear one...but dern, it is a pain. The battery life is 12-14 hours, if the battery goes dead, you lose ALL memory, so you basically have to have it plugged up as much as you can. Well, let me tell you just how much fun it is to carry a 5 pound baby with a wobbly head and a montior with TWO cables dangling in between your legs! Not only that, but there is no just gettin' up real quick and grabbin something in the kitchen. As much as I can complain about it, I do like having it. It actually went off last night as Aunt Gigi was holding Grayson. He dropped his heart beat below 80, so the machine beeped. I've never seen Aunt Gigi jump so high! But Grayson immediately fixed it himself and everything was fine. So far there haven't been any alarms today....but the one last night was at 11:30pm, so there is still time!

Day 28 - 2 nights left!

7.22.10
Today marks 4 weeks since Grayson was born. It is so hard to believe that it has been a month but at the same time, it feels like it has been 3! We hopefully only have 2 more nights at Baptist to go!

I decided to stay home last night because I have the beginning of a cold...what a bummer! I was able to get a good nights sleep and Jones even slept all night also! I am going back to the hospital tonight to stay with Grayson. I have just been wearing a mask when I hold or nurse him.

Grayson did very well nursing today. At one point around the 3pm feeding, I thought that he was done eating because he had taken 10mL of milk with the caffeine and then nursed for 17 minutes, so I put him back in the crib. Well, he fussed, and grunted, rooted, and made all kinds of baby noises, I could tell that he wasn't happy, so I decided to nurse him again...well that little booger saw the goods and went right for it! He nursed for probably 5 minutes then was out, sound asleep! He has really done well with nursing and I am so happy about that! I told the nurse how much he ate and she called him "piglet" that he is!

Tomorrow will be a busy day. We have CPR, monitor training, the car seat test and a few other things. Ginger is coming in town and we can't wait to see her!

Off to the hospital...for real this time!

Day 27 - Making the plans...

7.21.10
Sounds like Saturday is still the big day for Grayson's discharge. Although I don't want to rush things, I am ready for the lil guy to get home. I am extremely nervous about germs, the monitor, meds, etc...I hope that things turn out ok.

Not too much happened today. Phyllis has been his nurse for the past two days and she has been great about getting things lined up and checked off for discharge. We have signed papers, she has shown me the meds and how to draw them up (as if I don't know, but I'm sure they have to document "caregiver education completed"), the doctors have ordered tests that have to be done, etc. There is a lot to do!

Grayson will have a car seat test tomorrow, I believe. At first I thought they were actually going to just check the car seat and make sure it was safe, he fit well, that kind of thing. Apparently that isn't it at all! They are going to put him in the seat about 1 hour after he eats and watch the monitor while in the seat to make sure that he doesn't drop his sats, heart rate, or whatever else. I'm not sure why they do this...maybe because if his head falls forward that will occlude his airway...? That is the only thing I can think of.

Jai and I will take CPR for Infants on Friday and then we have the monitor check-off. Then we are supposed to stay Friday night and respond to the alarms with nurses back up, if needed. Should be interesting!

Grayson nursed extremely well today. I nursed him at 9, 12, and 3. He did about 15-20 minutes depending on if he had a bottle with meds before. I am surprised at how well he has done with it. I plan on spending the night at the hospital to nurse him all night, all day tomorrow, and all night Thursday. My personal goal with that is to make sure he is gaining weight while being mostly nursed. I'll have to miss at least 2 feeds a day to spend time with my other lil man. Speaking of...he is having horrible separation anxiety! WOW. He has slept with us the past 3 nights and is constantly looking for "ma-ne" and "da daddy." This certainly is not the best time to be going through this but Jai and I are doing our best. God doesn't give you what you can't handle!

On the way to the hospital to stay with my sweet love while hopefully my other sweet love will sleep well.

Grayson weighed in at 5 pounds and 13 ounces tonight!!!

Day 26 - Thank goodness for insurance!

(Grayson looks SO much like Jones in the close up picture here!)

7.20.10
The nurses and case manager are getting everything ready for our discharge on Saturday. Dr. Coates has said if everything continues to go smoothly until then, we can plan on Sat discharge, but if something comes up we'll have to push it til next week. I told him that we are in NO hurry and Grayson needs as much time as he can get to get stronger.

Since Grayson is going home on the caffeine, the Case manager came into see me to verify my insurance plan. I guess she thought I didn't have insurance or something because she told me that the medication cafcit costs $700/month without insurance and she was trying to find ways to help us out...well, she took all of my insurance information and verified it and thankfully, the medication is covered. I can not believe that if we didn't have insurance it would cost that much...what in the world do people do that don't have insurance? Crazy. Thank goodness for insurance coverage!

Grayson nursed well today. He nursed for 10 minutes this morning, then took a 20cc bottle, then he nursed for 17 minutes at lunch and refused a bottle, and then nursed for 11 minutes and took part of a bottle, really only because it had the caffeine in it and he needed to take it. So that is encouraging. Right now my plan is to go see him tomorrow, feed him at 9, 12, 3, and then come home to see Jones, put him to bed, and then head back to the hosp so that I can nurse Grayson tomorrow night. We'll see how that plan turns out...

Grayson weighs 5 pounds and 11.4 ounces tonight! He really will be 6 pounds before he comes home, unreal!!! That is SOOO Great!

Day 25 - Making discharge plans!

7.19.10
Today was an exciting day. Jennifer came down to spend the day with us and we had a ball as usual!

It sounds like the plan is for Grayson to be discharged on Saturday. I found out that Grayson is definitely being sent home on a monitor (thank GOODNESS!), so we have to do monitor training and then "room in" afterwards, basically spend the night and respond to the alarms as if we are home, then we go home the next day. So we will have CPR on Friday, then monitor training, spend the night and be home Saturday!

But there are somethings to do before he can come home. He has to be taking the breast or bottle at every feeding...right not we are at every other feeding (bascially every 6 hours), but tomorrow I will be able to nurse him while I am there, so he will nurse at 9, 12, and 3. Today he nursed for 30 minutes total!!! He did 15 minutes on each side, which is more than excellent! The nurse also said that at the 6pm feed, he took 48mL in 20 minutes, which the nurses call "good." We found out that Grayson will be sent home taking iron and caffeine, which is fine with me! And I think that is just about everything that needs to be figured out.

I am very relieved that Ginger had already planned to be here this weekend to help with my teething toddler, so we won't have to worry about that. Jai and I put together Grayson's crib tonight (pics to come later). I moved my bedside table and put his crib right beside me! I love the crib and bedding.

Tonight Grayson weighed in at 5 pounds and 10 ounces! He really has gotten so big, it is unreal. Dr. Yajnick thinks that he has the most beautiful head and doesn't look like a preemie at all, which thrills me. She thought that he looks great and she also thinks that Saturday seems like a good day for discharge!

Wow, it is so hard to believe that he may be coming home soon. I am scared, nervous, and excited all at the same time. It will be weird having a newborn again, but we are ready for it (although my house isn't!).

Day 24 - Ughhh the frustration!

7.18.10
Today was frustrating because Grayson didn't do so hot with the bottle. He nursed for about 10 minutes, then I offered him the bottle because I wasn't sure if he got enough milk. Well, he didn't want the bottle. He either is getting used to nursing or was full from nursing or just plain of didn't want the stinkin bottle. I'm hoping that he just got full from nursing. It was frustrating because he did so well yesterday nursing for 16 minutes, I'm not sure that 10 minutes is enough for him. We'll see how tomorrow goes!

Grayson has really filled out, his legs and arms have more fat on them and he has this huge budda belly, it is so cute! I am amazed at how much he has grown. Tonight he weighed in at 5 pounds and 8.2 ounces, so he is really packing on the lbs! The nurse said on Sunday nights is when they measure head circumference and length...she didn't tell me the head measurement, but that he had gained 5cm (I think), and is right on track. For length, he was 45.5 cm, or 17.9 inches, so he has gotten longer for sure.

He will be 35 weeks tomorrow. It is so hard to believe. We are both so ready for him to come home. Going back and forth to the hospital is wearing me out. It is so hard to split time between Jones and Grayson with Gray at the hospital. I feel so guilty leaving him there, but I know that I can't stay there all the time. Maybe I will be able to speak to a doctor tomorrow and determine when they think he'll be ready to come home.

Pictures will come soon. Good night.

Day 23 - And we finally have a crib!

7.17.10
Once again I am behind in posts, however this time it was the computer's fault because it lost everything that I wrote yesterday! Here it goes...

Yesterday we finally bought Grayson a crib and bedding. The nurses at the hospital laughed at me because I told them I didnt have a crib for Grayson yet....not that we weren't going to get one, just that, I mean come on, I have a baby in the NICU that came at 31 weeks...yeah and we totally weren't ready because I was on bedrest for 11 weeks...but they were laughing in good fun. Most nurses had the response, "momma, you better get on it, this baby will be home before you know it!"

We got Grayson a beautiful Munire crib called Chloe, and the Lambs and Ivy bedding called "Bubbles," it is adorable!

Grayson nursed very well yesterday, so well that he didn't take the bottle afterwards! He nursed for a total of 16 minutes and then was out, all wrapped up in his mommie's chest. The nurse got an order from the doctor that we can now breast or bottle feed him 2 times per day!

Last night, he weighed 5 pounds and 7.1 ounces! YAY buddy!!!

Day 22 - Did we snuggle or did we snuggle???

7.16.10
Not too much has changed today except Grayson's location...he was I guess "down graded" to stepdown, NICU 2, on the 3rd floor at Baptist. This is the old pediatrics floor and so it is very colorful, but definitely not a recently built, new sterile appearing room. It is clean, but still the old Baptist, just with new head boards for the babies and new furniture. At least they are still private rooms with a pull out bed, so that I am able to snuggle with Grayson. Oh and did we snuggle..after I attempted to nurse him and gave him a bottle (which he once again chugged down), I pulled out the bed and filled it with pillows and laid down with him. I laid his head down on my chest and he went right to sleep. We snuggled for over an hour and it was wonderful! Then I laid him down in the crib and he fussed and fussed! He wanted to get back with his momma! Then I swaddled him well and gave him the paci and he went right back to sleep. He is just the softest, sweetest thing in the entire world!

I am so ready for him to come home...well, I still dont have a crib or his room ready, but I want him home! I am going to ask the nurse tomorrow if we can move up to two bottles a day because I really think that Grayson is ready for that...and that is one step closer to coming home!

Tonight Grayson weighed in at 5 pounds and 6 ounces! I noticed today that the nurses dressed him in newborn clothes instead of preemie! Big boy!!!

Day 21 - 3 weeks already?

 

    

     

7.15.10

I find it hard to believe that Grayson is 3 weeks old! Time sure has flown by, going back and forth to the hospital every day. Today I was able to nurse Grayson again. The lactation nurse came and helped this time and it went much better. Grayson is able to latch, but then doesn't do too much else. However, after he nursed, we gave him a bottle and he took 30mLs like a CHAMP! He really sucked it down and did a great job!!! It made me feel SO good to see that! He will be 35 weeks on Monday and they say that between 34 and 35 weeks is when babies learn to suck, swallow, and breathe, so he is right on track. He also did not have any desats or heart rate drops while eating. 

I am always amazed at how small he is, although he has really filled out. He has plump cheeks and a big round tummy. His legs and arms have a little more meat on them too. He will soon grow out of preemie outfits, that is for sure! Tonight Grayson gained even more weight...he is 5 pounds and 4 ounces! 

My mom visited with Grayson today too. I still won't let anyone but Jai and me hold him, but she was ok with that. I'm not sure when I'll be comfortable with people holding him, maybe when he is 2....? No, just kidding, kinda...

Day 20 - Trying to latch

7.14.10
Dr. Ellis was the doctor on today and to my surprise, she said it was ok for me to try and nurse Grayson! I won't get into too much detail, but let's just say it went much better than I was expecting!!! After he nursed for a little while, he took 20mL from the bottle! He did get choked up towards the end, dropped his sats and started to get a little dusky...so we quit and he recovered. I didn't like that at all though! They were using a bottle that helps preemies get more milk, so maybe that one isn't the best for him...just a thought!

Grayson does have an eye infection and has been on eye drops for a few days now. The nurse said that many of the babies get them, but it still bothers me that he has it. I just want to get outta that NICU before any other infections come along!!! 


I did put a bug in the doctor's ear that we would like Grayson to go home on an apnea monitor...I really hope that he does. I know that Jai and I will both be SO scared without one! The nurse thinks that the increase in caffeine did help Grayson...he has not had as many bradycardia episodes that have required stimulation and I don't think that he had one today around 11am either...which is great. He has continued to have some episodes where he will drop his sats but he quickly fixes it on his own, so they are not overly concerned with those episodes (like his momma!).


Tonight, Grayson weighed in at 5 pounds and 2.6 ounces!!! Holy Cow!!! He
might be 6 pounds before he comes home!!


He is just precious. I have gotten sooo much more comfortable holding him
and loving on him. He is just a cuddle bug. He loves to lay on my chest! I love to rub his 
little head...it feels just as soft as a little kitten! Too cute!!!

Day 19 - 5 pounds!

7.13.10

Today Dr. Bendeck decided to wait and not try any bottle feeds for now. I guess they think he isnt quite ready and there is no need to rush him...and that is fine with me. I would have like to have tried, but I understand their thinking and there is always tomorrow.

Grayson's eye looks better today but is still draining. Dr. B decided to go ahead and order the eye drops although the culture had not come back yet. This makes momma happy, it just looks infected. Now why in the world he would have an eye infection....?????

Grayson had one large heart rate drop with a sat drop too around 10:30am. He required stimulation and kinda turned a little blue! It was scary and Rhonda and I agreed that this happens every day around the same time. So she asked Dr. B about the dosing of the Cafcit and they ended up increasing it. I hope it doesn't happen again tomorrow. Rhonda and I talked about Grayson going home on a monitor and she feels sure that he will...Jai and I both want him to. I would feel much better and safer if he were attached to a monitor, although I can see myself getting really use to it and not wanting to get rid of it until he is at least a year old, lol!

Today is Aunt Gigi's birthday and what would be a better birthday present for her than to hear that Grayson is 5 pounds and 1 ounce!!!??? I am just so thrilled by this! He will definitely be out of preemie clothes before we know it! He still looks really really small but he has filled out a lot. 5 pounds...WOW!

Happy birthday Aunt Gigi!

Let's see, I think that is it from today. Grayson and I snuggled a lot today and I loved it! He is such a cuddle bug!!!

Day 18 - I heard that...Grayson is a BIG BOY!

Taking the hearing test!

7.12.10

Today Grayson passed his hearing test! I wasn't really worried that he wouldn't because when we talk to him, he squirms or opens his eyes, but it is SC Law to test newborns. I am very happy that he passed!

Grayson is still having some apnea even though he is on caffeine. He had one big episode around 11am this morning that required stimulation. I remember that he has had them before around 11am, and I am curious to know if his caffeine wears off around that time. He usually gets caffeine at 2 every day. I will be sure to pay attention to see if it happens around 11am tomorrow.

Today Grayson had some blood work. Everything was normal except his hematocrit (part of the red blood cell that helps to carry oxygen to the cells) is 31.1, which makes him anemic. They want it above 35 so they are starting him on iron to help with the anemia. I have read today that anemia is very common in preemies and it is easy to fix, so that is good.

We attempted another bottle feed, but Grayson wasn't having it today! He was just too sleepy and I wasnt able to give him enough time to try either. We started around 9:30 and by 9:48, he only had about 5mLs down. The nurse didnt help me too much because I had fed him yesterday...I am wondering if maybe they helped me more and I had more time, we may have had a different outcome. Oh well, it may have just been Grayson. They are telling me that some days are better than others and we will definitely try tomorrow.

Grayson may have an eye infection. He has some drainage coming from his left eye. I'm not sure how or why he would have one, but the nurses cultured his eye to see if it is infected. I really hope it isn't! The culture will be back Wednesday, so we'll see.

Tonight Grayson weighs 4 pounds and 15.5 ounces!!!!!!!!!!!! YAY! What a big boy! He has gained an entire pound and one ounce and is almost 5 pounds! Unreal! The child gains about 2 ounces per day, I am sooo proud!!!!

Day 17 - One pound gained!

7.11.10

It seems like I can't find the time (or the internet service) to update the blog every night anymore...I promise to get better!

Yesterday I was able to give Grayson a bottle. He did excellent! He drank 42mLs in 20-25 minutes! The nurse and I were both impressed. It was very special being able to give him a bottle but different than I thought it would be. I guess I was expecting it to come more natural to Grayson, insert bottle, suck, swallow...but it is a big deal to him! You have to remind him to suck and he was a mess by the end because the milk would leak out...but he still did GREAT!

And last night, Grayson weighed in at....4 pounds 13.4 ounces! WOW. He has gained an entire pound back! He was 3 14 when born and lost one ounce, so he is back to that weight! I bet by tonight he will be 4 pounds and 14 ounces! I am excited to find out!!!

Day 16 - Bottle time!

7.11.10

Dr. Coates was the doctor today and he decided to let the nurses try a bottle with Grayson. The nurse said that Grayson was rooting and trying to suck on his fingers, etc, and she thought it was the perfect time. The nurse said that Grayson did ok, considering that it was his first time with a bottle, but that he has a way to go. She said it took him about 30 minutes to take 30 cc (he is now on 42 per feed). I'm not discouraged though...he is only 34 weeks on Monday and that is when they usually start attempting bottle feeds.

They did take the OG out to bottle feed him. It was SO nice to see Grayson without that tube in his mouth. I got some great pictures of him and he looks a LOT like his brother without it! They have the same chin and upper lip.

Jai and I snuggled with Grayson a bunch today. He is so cuddly. The nurse came in to weigh him as we were leaving and so I was able to undress him and put him on the scale. It's when he is in his birthday suit that he appears the smallest. It always amazes me, especially when I compare him to Jones. Grayson weighed in at 4 pounds, 11.8 ounces! WOW!!!! I just couldn't believe it! He will be 5 pounds before we know it!

Jai and I had a ball with Jones at Eli's party today. We went to Saluda Shoals Splash Park. Jones was just too cute and enjoyed playing with Eli. It was fun to watch them play.

Day 15 - Keep growing lil man

Let's see, I'm writing this one day behind...

Yesterday I didn't spend a lot of time with Grayson. I felt like I was getting a cold and was scared to be around him too much. I figured out that I needed some rest and felt much better after sleeping until 11am! Judy and Alison came to see Jones today. That was a lot of fun.

Grayson weighed in a 4 pounds and 10.2 ounces yesterday! Go little buddy!!! I am so proud of him!!!

I felt so bad when I was there today because he didnt want his paci, so as I went to remove it, his hand came up and the paci tugged on his tube in his mouth, so the nurse had to take it out :( I hated that, but oh well. I think it's pretty easy to put back down. Poor lil thing! I'm ready for that tube to be out for good!

Day 14 - Hello Mello Yello

Ahhh yes, the words I love to hear, "it is ok to drink caffeine and breast feed." Today the doctors decided to treat Grayson for his apnea/bradycardia with caffeine...I think they call it cafcit. Dr. Edelson was explaining to me about the treatment and said that it was ok for me to drink caffeine and provide Grayson with breastmilk, so down to the cafeteria I went and got a Mello Yello! It was perfect!!!! Enough about me...They will give Grayson cafcit until right before discharge, at which time they will stop it to determine if he is still experiencing the apnea and bradycardia. If he is then he will go home on cafcit and a monitor. This is something that he should out grow and this is perfectly normal for preemies...after all, they aren't supposed to be doing everything on their own at this point.

Tonight the nurse said that Grayson gained one ounce! He is now 4 pounds and 9 ounces (9.2 to be exact!). I can really tell that he has filled out some in his face...mom even noticed it too! He has the best color now too.

The nurses are still feeding him in the bouncy seat. He looks sooo cozy in that seat! The nurses position him just right and stuff blankets all around him to help position him, it is so cute.

I am so exhausted it isn't funny. I can't tell if I am getting a cold or just plain worn out. I think that I am so scared and worried that I will get a cold that I'm going to convince myself that I have one...but let's hope that doesn't happen. So off to bed I go...big day tomorrow, Judy, Alison, and Kennedy are coming in town!

Day 13 - Daddy Time!

Today was a good day. I held Grayson with every feeding like yesterday, although today he did have one or two heart rate drops. I'm not sure what they are going to do at this point. They say that babies should out grow this by 34-35 weeks, so maybe he'll just do that!

He is still tolerating his tube feeds at 40mL every 3 hours. The nurse said that maybe, just maybe, they'll try a bottle next week. She said that they start out with one bottle at 9am just to see how the baby will tolerate it. The NICU nurses say that white males are whimpy and usually take longer to learn to suck, swallow, and breathe, so it may take a while for him to learn it. As usual, I'm hoping he proves them wrong!

Grayson's bilirubin was 8 today and you can definitely tell a difference in his skin color. Also, he weighed in at 4 pounds and 8 ounces! It seriously won't be long before he grows out of the t-tiny preemie clothes!!!

I can't wait to see the lil Trooper in the morning!

Day 12 - Every Little Bit Counts!

7.6.10

Today I spent all day with Grayson. Jai dropped me off on his way to work and picked me up on the way home. It was amazing how fast time went. The doctors and nurses are still trying to figure out what is causing the bradycardia, so today I held him every time that he was fed...and there were NO episodes! Well, there was one tiny, quick one where his heart rate dropped to 97, but the nurse said that 97 is ok, 47 on the other hand isn't, so we didn't count that one. And she had just started his feeding, so that may have caused it. The nurses at night are sitting him in a bouncey seat so he can sit up higher and eat. I guess if we don't see anymore heart rate drops then we can say that it is reflux...? Not sure. The nurse tonight said that she had not seen any heart rate drops and there were none after I left today! YAY!

Tomorrow morning he will have a bilirubin level drawn. He didn't seem as jaundiced to me today, so hopefully it will be lower than 10.2, which is what it was on the 5th.

The nurses also increased his feeds to 40mL every 3 hours today and he tolerated it well!

His little cheeks appear to be chunkier to me today. He has gained a total of 9 ounces since birth. I am thrilled with that! The nurse tonight was funny on the phone, she told me that Grayson had gained some weight, but only in grams, not ounces. So I asked her how many grams so that I can keep track of it and she said 4! Sweet little guy gained 4 grams! Oh well, at least we aren't going backwards...Every little bit counts!