I am just getting ready to go visit Sarah tonight but wanted to post the update for today.
Weight: 580 grams- an increase of 30 grams from Friday
Feedings: Increased to 5mL every 3 hours, tolerating well with no residuals. Sarah continues to yank out her feeding tube a few times a day, but it shows she has pretty amazing coordination and it is simple to put it right back in.
They removed the derm shmutzy tape from her cheeks. That stuff was there to protect her fragile skin fom the tape that held the respirator in place (in case anyone was wondering what all the discoloration was on her cheeks). She is looking good.
I will update more in the morning, I just wantd to post something up for those of you who check often and have to have your Sarah fix for the day:)
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Friday, November 9, 2007
Friday Afternoon Report
I was staring at Sarah today, like I do every day, and I just can't get over this little girls strong will and determination. Watching her accomplishments and milestones, I remind myself often that we are so lucky to be witnessing this. Watching a baby that is supposed to be in my belly grow right before my eyes is something I will cherish forever. Every challenge we give her, she rises to the occasion. Good work Sarah!
She is tolerating her feedings well and they are going to increase to 4 mL's starting with the 8pm feeding tonight. Sarah was a bit fussy and upon some clever detective work we found a poopy diaper to be the culprit. After Sarah got cleaned up she returned to normal sats and went back to sleep. After I washed up, I put my finger up to her little mouth and she began to suck on my finger. The feeling of my little girl sucking on my finger and her little tongue rubbing against my skin was something amazing. It made my heart flutter. I look forward to the day I can hold her and feel her skin against mine.
She is tolerating her feedings well and they are going to increase to 4 mL's starting with the 8pm feeding tonight. Sarah was a bit fussy and upon some clever detective work we found a poopy diaper to be the culprit. After Sarah got cleaned up she returned to normal sats and went back to sleep. After I washed up, I put my finger up to her little mouth and she began to suck on my finger. The feeling of my little girl sucking on my finger and her little tongue rubbing against my skin was something amazing. It made my heart flutter. I look forward to the day I can hold her and feel her skin against mine.
Week 30 morning report
Sarah got her first pacifier today. She hasn't had a chance to work on her sucking, what with the breathing tube down her throat and all. So she's got some catching up to do. These pics show just how happy she is with her tiny sucker.
Sarah turns 30 weeks (gestational age) today. Happy gestational birthday, baby!
She continues to do well off the ventilator, and is breathing on her own with just a little oxygen help through the nasal prongs. Despite all this success over the past 20 or so hours, Sarah may need to go back on the ventilator at some point. If she does, don't worry too much - it's something that often happens with micro-preemies this small.
Sarah was weighed last night at 550 grams, which, according to google, is 1.21254244 pounds, or 19.4006791 ounces, or, for the benefit of you Pittsburgh Steelers fans, 0.55 kilograms.
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Update
More than six hours and she's still off the ventilator. Yahoo! She's breathing with just 30% oxygen through the nose hoses.
Sent from my iPhone
More pics of Sarah
What's over there?!
My hat is so warm!
I'm thinking of a number between 1 and 10!
Boo!
Lunch report
They removed Sarah's breathing tube today at 11:40 am, because she was moving around too much and the tube was coming out. Since then, Sarah has been on the nasal breathing apparatus (what's it called??) seen in the picture. Sarah doesn't like it too much, so mom is helping to keep her calm to prevent Sarah from removing this, too. The nurses took some more great pictures, which I'll post as soon as they e-mail them to me.
Good morning, 4 weeks
Sarah is four weeks old today; Happy birthday, girl!
Sarah is still recovering from her time off the ventilator last night. It was quite the ordeal for her, but she has become stable again and her feedings are increasing. She is now up to 2.0 mL again and hopefully she will be back up to where she was in just a few days.
Erika and I have settled into a routine with Sarah. Beginning this week, I have been getting up early to go see Sarah from 6:00 am to 6:15 am. Then, at lunch, I spend about a half hour with her. Erika comes to the hospital between 2 and 2:30, and stays with Sarah for about three hours. When I get off work, I go back to the hospital for about fifteen minutes to half an hour; then Erika and I come home. Depending on how tired we are, we sometimes go back for another hour after the evening shift change. It's all quite exhausting, but we love every minute we get to spend with her.
Sarah is still recovering from her time off the ventilator last night. It was quite the ordeal for her, but she has become stable again and her feedings are increasing. She is now up to 2.0 mL again and hopefully she will be back up to where she was in just a few days.
Erika and I have settled into a routine with Sarah. Beginning this week, I have been getting up early to go see Sarah from 6:00 am to 6:15 am. Then, at lunch, I spend about a half hour with her. Erika comes to the hospital between 2 and 2:30, and stays with Sarah for about three hours. When I get off work, I go back to the hospital for about fifteen minutes to half an hour; then Erika and I come home. Depending on how tired we are, we sometimes go back for another hour after the evening shift change. It's all quite exhausting, but we love every minute we get to spend with her.
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Evening Report
I just got back from a fun filled afternoon with my baby girl. She is recovering well from her slighty traumatic night last night. They wanted to give her a rest today, so they reduced her feedings back to 1 mL for today and 2 mL's over tonight (every 3 hours as usual). I got to change her diaper a few times today, and was even surprised with her as she basically pee'd with me watching:) Milestone to report- As Nurse Sharon and I were chit chatting, Sarah picked up her little keppie (yiddish for head) right up off the pillow and turned to face the other direction, even with her tube back in! When she knows what she wants, she is determined to get it her way! And we wouldn't have it any other way. We also got to see the amazing picture of her without her tubes in. The hospital staff have yet to email it to us, but as soon as we have it in the right format we will post it on here. I know you are anxiously awaiting!
Morning report
Sarah was off the ventilator for about two hours last night. As she continues to grow, her breathing tube has more room to more around, and it got to the point that they needed to pull it out and reposition it. They wanted to see how she could breathe on her own, which she managed to do for quite a while. However, at her size, it just takes too much energy to keep the chest rising and falling, and she's not getting enough calories for all the exercise. So, they put her back on the ventilator.
The nurses, thankfully, were able to take some pictures of Sarah without the tube. We'll post them as soon as they process the pictures. I can't wait! We're going to ask them if they can call us next time Sarah's tube is removed, so we can have some time with our baby without any machines, even if it is at 1:30 in the morning.
The nurses, thankfully, were able to take some pictures of Sarah without the tube. We'll post them as soon as they process the pictures. I can't wait! We're going to ask them if they can call us next time Sarah's tube is removed, so we can have some time with our baby without any machines, even if it is at 1:30 in the morning.
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Nothing to report morning report
She's doing great. Nothing new to report. Her weight dipped a little, down to 480. They attribute the loss to the TWO big poopoos she had yesterday.
Sent from my iPhone
Monday, November 5, 2007
OMG OMG OMG Lunch report
Okay, the bad news. Sarah was not able to breathe without the ventilator.
Now, the good news. They tried to let Sarah breathe without the ventilator! This is absolutely huge, and brings us one step closer to having our little girl home.
Dr. Banks thought Sarah was doing well enough to try taking her off the ventilator and see how she reacted to the nasal CPAP. All of Sarah's ventilator settings were reduced to the minimum, and they put the nasal CPAP on her. Unfortunately, it didn't take and Sarah wasn't able to get off the ventilator. But, Nurse Jane said that Sarah may be able to come off the ventilator completely in as few as two or three days.
Once Sarah is off the ventilator, mommy and I will be able to hold her and begin the Kangaroo care, putting Sarah on our chest so she can feel skin-to-skin contact and hear our heartbeats. I CAN'T WAIT!!!
Now, the good news. They tried to let Sarah breathe without the ventilator! This is absolutely huge, and brings us one step closer to having our little girl home.
Dr. Banks thought Sarah was doing well enough to try taking her off the ventilator and see how she reacted to the nasal CPAP. All of Sarah's ventilator settings were reduced to the minimum, and they put the nasal CPAP on her. Unfortunately, it didn't take and Sarah wasn't able to get off the ventilator. But, Nurse Jane said that Sarah may be able to come off the ventilator completely in as few as two or three days.
Once Sarah is off the ventilator, mommy and I will be able to hold her and begin the Kangaroo care, putting Sarah on our chest so she can feel skin-to-skin contact and hear our heartbeats. I CAN'T WAIT!!!
Monday morning report
Sarah lost a little weight over the weekend, which is not unusual for a baby her size. Each nurse weighs her a little differently, and the slightest change affects what the scale reads. She's still over half a kilo, though, and that's not too shabby!
Sarah had an x-ray and her chest and tummy both look good. Everything seems in place, I guess.
She's eating 4.5 mL every three hours, and Sarah is really starting to grow. 4.5 mL is just under one teaspoon, just to give you an idea of how much she is eating. Gestationally, she is now 29 weeks, 3 days, and this is about the time that babies really start to grow (or so I'm told).
And, she made a BIG poo poo last night!
Sarah had an x-ray and her chest and tummy both look good. Everything seems in place, I guess.
She's eating 4.5 mL every three hours, and Sarah is really starting to grow. 4.5 mL is just under one teaspoon, just to give you an idea of how much she is eating. Gestationally, she is now 29 weeks, 3 days, and this is about the time that babies really start to grow (or so I'm told).
And, she made a BIG poo poo last night!
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