Friday, October 31, 2008
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Coming Home.
Carter seeing Owen for the first time. Sat. 10/25.
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Good Day.
Thursday 10/23- We went in early and were able to hold him and talk to him with him wide awake and alert for the first time. I was also able to nurse him for the first time and he took to it very well. They upped his feedings to nipple three times a day.
Friday 10/24- Owen was taken off of nasal cannula and was doing great at holding his oxygen levels at room air. Yesterday he also figured out the feeding thing, and began to take his bottles in 15 minutes instead of 30 and even drank an extra 20 cc in the morning. I knew he would turn out to be an eater like Carter. :) During the doctor rounds they told me the good news that we would be able to take him home tomorrow as long as everything continued to go well overnight.
Saturday 10/25- Called this morning and he is still doing great and they are planning to release him this afternoon. So I'm packing his bag and we're off to bring our baby home.
Thank you everyone for your kind wishes and prayers. We love you all and are grateful to have such wonderful friends and family who care about us!
Friday, No tubes. We can actually see his beautiful face!
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Level Two.
Yesterday Owen was moved down to the level two NICU. This is a good thing because level two means he's getting better. The bad part about this move, from my perspective, is that he no longer receives as much attention. Before in level three, it was one nurse to two babies, now there are four babies to one nurse. He still has the same team of doctors following him and luckily his new location is closer to the main entrance and he still has a spot in the corner making it easier for us to get to him and gives us more space while we're there to sit by him.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
First Week.
What is it?
One of the most common and immediate problems facing premature infants is difficulty breathing. Although there are many causes of breathing difficulties in premature babies, the most common is called respiratory distress syndrome (RDS).
What causes it?
In RDS, the infant's immature lungs don't produce enough of an important substance called surfactant. Surfactant allows the inner surface of the lungs to expand properly when the infant makes the change from the womb to breathing air after birth.
10/15 Owen trying to find his fingers.
10-15 Snuggling with mom after Owens first bath.
10/16 Eyes Open. Unfortunatly something happened with the flash and Mike's finger so the picture didn't turn out, but I still love it. Maybe I need to have Lynette fix it for me. :)10-15 Owen back on the CPAP. 10/15 Owen with the IV in his head and his new bald spot, or better yet one sided Dille peak. 10/17 Fake Baking at an early age under the jaundice light. This is the real color, no digital editing. 10/16 Spending time with mom.
10/19 After a not so successful attempt at bottle feeding. Enjoying the freedom of the nasal cannula. 10/19 A little more time under the light today. 10/18 War wounds and cute little feet.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Early Arrival.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Daddy Time.
We love it when daddy comes home each day. Carter especially likes it when Mike gives him rides on his shoulders. He thinks it's hilarious and when Mike starts to bounce or run, Carter immediately grabs onto Mike's dille bumps (on his forehead, just above his eyebrows- all of the dille boys have these bumps, so we call them dille bumps) or sometimes he just grabs onto Mikes ears. Here are a few fun pictures from the other night. Each photo made me laugh, I really like Mikes facial expressions as Carter holds on for dear life. I liked them so much I decided to post all four and the video. I thought the video was adorable and gives you a great taste of Carter's personality these days.
Two Weeks.
Friday, October 3, 2008
Scheduled.
So, as of right now I have been scheduled to be induced on Oct. 26, at about 38.5 weeks, but my doctor scheduled this and then told me he really doesn't want to wait that long and he wants me to go into labor sooner. So I'm thinking that he will push up the induction to the 23, which is just fine by me... I think. :) I'm feeling a little panicked right now thinking about how little time we have left. But being induced is what I wanted. We live in the suburbs of Houston and our hospital is in the medical center. I have this fear of going into labor during rush hour traffic with Mike at work. Having everything scheduled allows me to relax and not worry as much.
He also told me to walk more and hopefully that will put me into labor. Granted I am still working out at least 4 days a week. Walking more to me, means that I can go back to some of the gym classes I've been skipping. I'm really glad I've been able to keep working out. I feel so much healthier this pregnancy and have been able to keep my weight in much better control than last time. I actually feel like I still have some muscle tone left where as last pregnancy all I did was work and sitting at a cubicle all day did nothing for that. I'm still not dilated at all, which was a total shocker, because I have had so many Braxton hicks this last week, I thought for sure I would have started to dilate.
So now we're in the last three weeks. There's so much to do and the more I think about it, the more nervous and excited I get. It's hard to imagine there is another little person that will be joining our family. As I left the hospital yesterday I stopped by the nursery and just looking at the little babies swaddled in the generic white, pink and blue stripped blankets warmed my soul. It's hard to believe that in just three weeks he'll be here in our arms. Carter will be a big brother and Mike and I will be parents once again. We can't wait to meet you baby!