Car Seat Test

So peaceful. She has NO idea what she is in for.

Addison passed her car seat test with flying colors. Mommy got extremely nervous when they put her in this GIGANTIC seat. Despite her still only weighing 4 lbs 8 oz they are able to roll blankets (like we did w/ the boys) and make it work. No car bed for us! She had to sit in the car seat with no desats for 30 minutes before she can go home. Did I say "go home"???? :) Hate to leave you with a cliffhanger but that is our lives right now. The bottom line is it could be soon. As our Neonatologist says "Never trust a preemie". She could "change her mind" about coming home at any time.

"I don't know what Mom is worried about this test is SO easy I am bored."

What's different?

NO TUBES!!!

Our prayer is that she stays this way. This means she HAS to take her feeding from a bottle. She has been doing this successfully since Friday (I think) and the tube came out yesterday morning. She is 7 weeks old and weighed 4 lbs 7 oz. last night. I can't wait to take more pictures of her WHOLE face! :)

Praying and Growing

Addison is saying her prayers. The nurses said she had had her hands clasped like this througout the night and they said she was praying for her Mommy and Daddy to come visit again. What I noticed in looking at this picture was that this little girl is growing into her pacifier.

(a few days old)

The green pacifier above is actually smaller than the orange one.

(4 weeks old)

She did all but one of her feedings from a bottle in the past 24 hours. I am hoping the ng tube will be coming out soon! She hasn't had any more brady's except while eating which is "normal" in the preemie world. Hoping she will be home by mid next week.

I added this one because I just love the way she is holding her hands. I really cannot wait until the tape is off of her face and I can see all of the cuteness.

Stretchhhhh!

Ahhhhh.....

Addison is getting comfy because, unfortunately, she just bought herself 5 more days in the NICU. She is doing well and is taking huge strides with her feeding. They have advanced her to trying every feeding from a bottle. She did however have a brady (drop in heart rate) this morning which means an automatic 5 more days there. I am pretty sure it would have been that long anyways but initially I was a little bummed. She really is doing well and is as cute as can be. She weighs 4 lbs 3 oz. and continues to gain weight even though they have stopped spiking my milk with extra calories. She really should be home soon. (This is me convincing myself that it WILL actually happen.)

She's doing great

People ask "How's Addison?" and I reply "She is doing great. She just needs to take all of her bottles and she's outta there!"

This is the truth. She is, in fact, doing really well and for that we are so thankful, but she is not home and I miss her a little more each day.

The older and more alert she gets the harder it is to say goodbye to her promising that Daddy will be back later and that I will see her again tomorrow.

Ugh. I'm tired of it.

I am thankful that it is a dreary day and therefore good for napping because that is where I am headed.

We continue to pray for bottle success because we are 44 days into the NICU portion of this journey and almost 4 months into this entire ordeal and we are drained.

I mentioned to Addison that if she comes home Mommy can hold her way more often and she gets to sleep in a beautiful, custom made for her, nursery. I am hoping this is the motivation that she needed. :)

6 weeks old

Addison was 6 weeks old yesterday and she weighs 4 lbs. 2 oz. She has turned a corner as of Friday and is taking her bottles better. She still has a way to go but Jared and I are hopeful that she may be home by the weekend.

The boys visited her on Saturday and I am surprised by how much they have warmed up to her, especially Eli. Alex is our lovey boy and he generously gives out hugs and kisses but Eli is a little more reserved. He, however is very generous with Addison. Last night he told me that she needs to come home and she needs that bandaid off of her "mouf". He also said that she needed some chocolate rabbit, Eli's first true love, which, is actually milk with Nesquick in it. :)

We continue to get things in place for her homecoming and pray that her feedings continue to go well.

Addison Update

I thought I would do a quick update. Addison, as of last night @ weigh-in, weighs 3 lbs. 10 oz. She has chubby cheeks AND butt cheeks. Non-preemie parents are probably not aware of this because I wasn't pre-NICU but small babies with little to no fat on their bodies have NO butt cheeks. It looks like they have a hole in their lower back until they gain enough fat to get cheeks. So we happily declare that the child has her some cheeks! :)

We continue to wait for her to take all of her feeds from a bottle and we are pretty much out of there. She is still trying to coordinate the suck, breathe and swallow thing which means in the mean time she forgets to breathe while eating. This is a fun experience for a parent, let me tell you. She is much more alert due to her gestational age and leaving her is getting more and more difficult. I hope to have her home VERY soon. Her nursery is almost completely ready and waiting for her. Jared did a great job painting it and putting together the crib (thanks Nani and Papa) last night and I did a bit more today. We just need a baby to put in it! :)

Home with the boys

I am enjoying a morning home with the boys. I let them "help" me with the dishes which I am pretty sure must be every 3 year old's dream. I love this time with them and yet I am being reminded how difficult motherhood is. When I was on bedrest and in the hospital I thought I would treasure each moment with the boys even if they were at each other's throats and acting crazy I would be the utmost in "calm". Since then reality has hit and I have moments of pure frustration however I am determined to be thankful for this blessing that comes in the form of 2 little 3 year old boys. And to think I am going to add a newborn to the mix. Were we insane? (Don't answer that!):)

Alex actually uttered the words "I love helping with dishes". Oh if I could only bottle that enthusiasm and release it when he is about 7 years older!

Change is good, right?

A lot of changes have been happening for our Addie girl. She changed pods, sleeping arrangements and her bottle feedings all in the last few days. She isn't sure if she likes all this change and has been telling us by being REALLY lazy about her bottle feedings. This of course worries Mom and I have spent the past few days feeling pretty anxious. I try to remind myself who is in control (God..not Addie) and that Addison will do what she needs to do when it is right.

As for the changes she has graduated from an isolette to a "crib". I mentioned a while ago that she would be graduating however they waited until this past Tuesday to take her out of the isolette. They didn't see the need to take her out until she got closer to leaving. Preemies burn calories when moving to a crib and dealing with the change and that is not something you want a 2 lb (now 3 lb. 3 oz.) baby to do. We agreed with them and didn't want to rush the process.

Here are her new digs. Please pray that she will take all her feeds from a bottle soon because we miss her when she is not in our arms but knowing she still needs to be there and that she is in good hands is also a great comfort that we are thankful for.

Addie in her big girl crib.

Addie in her isolette (before she graduated to a crib) with a little NICU lesson. :)

Score 1 for Mom!

I surprised the boys this morning and told them we were going to the yellow park (as they call it). I scored big when we got there and it was fire safety day. This means there was a big fire truck and fire hoses. I saw the fireman putting kids in the truck but they all had on matching t-shirts and were from a city daycare program so I wasn't sure if we would be able to swing it. I happened to have my camera (shocking, I know) so I apologized for crashing and asked if the boys could hop in. He said that this was a fire safety program open to the city and the boys were welcome to "drive". They were thrilled and this is where I scored big, unfortunately it does not end there.

I was on a roll so I took them over to where the kids were driving motorized red cars. I built it up big and assumed it was also part of the fire safety. I am sure you know where this is going. In the midst of our euphoria I hear "Mam, you need to watch your kids around these cars. This part of the park is closed except to the daycare kids." AHHHH! This led to a bit of a meltdown. This is where mommy lost any points she had gained with the fire truck. Fortunately, we hadn't even begun to play at the park yet so I still had that under my sleeve. It worked and we had a great day.

I also gained a Mom point when I let them splash in the puddles that the fire hoses were making. I am hoping I evened things out by days end. :)

I discovered today that when you spend most of the summer in bed your kids grow up quite a bit, as shown here.

They both tackled the big slide. Eli actually did it first (although Alex is pictured) which was a REALLY big step.

and they both climbed this like pros.

Such a great day with my boys. We even squeezed in a visit to Daddy. I am off to visit Addison this afternoon and she is doing well. She didn't hit 3 lbs last night but should tonight and she is taking a bottle every other feed. Her head ultrasound was clear also. We continue to work on her nursery in all of our spare time *wink, wink.

4 weeks old

Update: Jared just got home and said that Addison is now going to be taking every other feed from a bottle and that she gained another ounce which makes her 2lbs 15 oz. Tomorrow night she may tip the scales @ 3 lbs! So excited!!!!!

Addison has been outside the womb for 4 entire weeks now and she continues to kick NICU butt! :) She is gaining about an ounce a day and took 4 bottles today! YAY! We visited her with the boys and they are more interested in her which is really sweet. Eli just kept saying "awww, she's so cute!" and Alex remarked on her little eyes and hands. I think they will like having her home and so far they are super gentle around her but that could be because Jared and I are hovering very closely.

The big news of the day on the homefront is that they boys are back in the same room. We aren't getting many (or any) bites on selling our home so we bit the bullet and put them back together. Naptime was a bust but so far tonight it is quiet. It is kind of weird because they just seem so grown up now. I just let them have their lamp on for 10 minutes so that they could "read" and when I went back in they were actually just laying there looking at books. Weird?!?

Back to the NICU world: Addison has a head ultrasound tomorrow and we are hoping that there are still no bleeds or cause for concern. This is a standard test done at 7 and 28 days. The Nurse Practicioner thought Addie could be headed home in a couple of weeks if she keeps gaining and takes her bottles well. We are thrilled and praying for her continued NICU success.

A Good Day

It is only 9 a.m. but I am going to declare this a good day or should I say a "well" day. I just spoke with Addison's nurse and she had a great night and took her full 25 cc bottle "well". They NEVER say "well". It is always "poor" to "fair". As a parent it is a bummer to hear anything but "YOUR CHILD IS AMAZING!" and I already hate "fair to poor". :) Silly, I know. Anyways, little miss thing has been taking a full bottle "well" for Mommy for weeks but she has been refusing to do that for the nurses other than periodically. I've been a bit discouraged about it that past few days and wishing that I could be there for more feedings.

Addie's "performance" depends on whether or not she takes the full feeding from a bottle without them having to gavage part of it. It also depends on how well she does with her a's and b's and breathing. This is one time in her life I DON'T want her to get a's and b's because that stands for apneas and bradys. It also depends on her taking it within 30 minutes. If it takes her much more time than that it wears her out too much.

I credit Addie's bottle success for me to my stubborness. I am determined to keep her awake until she swallows every last bit. Jared and family remind me that it has a lot to do with the fact that I am her Mommy and I love that perspective also. I love being this girl's Mommy. She has definitely stolen my heart. This is why I want her home and in order to get here she has to take all 8 feedings from a bottle. We are still working on doing 3 "well". I know she will do it when she is physically ready but the sooner the better.

On a side note: she is 2 lbs 12 ounces and her little cheeks are filling out nicely.

As far as the rest of this "good day", it is supposed to be 78 and sunny AND Jared doesn't have to work late. Sounds like a perfect forecast to me.

A Visit With My Girl

I had such a nice visit with my Addie girl today. It is always a nice visit actually. It was hard to leave her. I miss her and want her home although I know she is better off there for now. Little miss weighs a whopping 2 lbs. 8 oz. now. She is taking 24 cc's and as of this morning is maintaining her body temperature without assitance from the isolette. She should be in a "crib" tomorrow if her temps continue to be normal. It really feels like it is going fast and I predict that she will be home in a few weeks as long as the weight gain and feeding keep going in the direction that they are.

3 weeks old & a visit from my brothers!

Yesterday, Addison was 3 weeks old and it was the 2nd time that she got a visit from her big brothers. Jared and I were brave this time and had her out of her isolette. It was funny because I was sitting there with her in my lap when Jared came in with the boys. Eli kept looking in her isolette and couldn't find her. He finally realized that I was holding her and they both wanted to touch her. They used one finger and touched her head. We then let them kiss her head. They asked to hold her but I wasn't having it. I am not that brave yet.

Such sweet moments mixed in to this time of our lives. :)