May 24 & 25, 2008
Saturday and Sunday
Well a lot of things have happened in the past 2 days. Tami became stable enough to be moved out of her delivery room. So we got moved into a “regular” room. That was good. She is doing pretty well and feels better. Still pretty weak, but able to move around and actually take a shower and a walk down to the NICU in today.
So that part was good. Aleia is still doing pretty well from what they tell us. She has some moments where she forgets to breathe (apnea) and they happen off and on. But that is to be expected for a baby her age. But is does not happen all that often. Also they began to feed her today. She has only been on IV based nutrition until now. Tami was able to get some milk pumped and they are feeding that to Aleia through her tiny little feeding tube. They are doing that on regular intervals, about every 3 hours. She is taking in about 6cc per “meal” which is good for her but really about a teaspoon. She is also developed some jaundice. This is apparently very normal for preemies. This began on Sunday so they put her under a sunning lamp. Basically some light to help work out the jaundice. Later in the day her levels rose a bit and they had to put her on a biliblanket (or disco blanket as I like to call it). So now she is getting light from both sides. Her levels went down a bit last night and we had not seen the results this morning. (Monday) With the lights on she has to wear her “sunglasses” to keep out the bright lights as that is too much stimulation. She is extremely sensitive right now to everything, even our touch.
We got to hold Aleia on Sunday for the first time. Tami and I got to hold her for a bit in the morning and then Tami was able to get some skin on skin time later in the afternoon. This is basically an early effort to get Aleia used to Tami and the idea of breastfeeding. Aleia mainly slept during that time, but it was still good for both of them. So things are moving but slowly. The staff keeps stressing how slowly everything will be from this point forward. Not that she is going too slowly, just that it all takes time. As they keep stressing, she was not supposed to be doing ANY of this for about 8 more weeks.
It’s now Monday around noon and Tami actually got out of the hospital today. We both slept a little in today. Well I know that I did because Tami gave me a hard time about it as the “bed” I have been sleeping on is barely enough to call it a bed. So it’s good that she is feeling well enough to harass me as usual. So once I woke up. We went into the NICU and got to see Aleia this morning. We got to hold her again this morning for about an hour. Tami was able to do some “kangaroo” time as they call it, the skin to skin contact to help encourage the breastfeeding. But no one expects any real feeding to be going on, Aleia is just too young and small. Tami held her for the majority of time but I did get a little time in with her. So that was good. Her bilirubin levels had decreased a bit since last night but she is still tanning and will be for at least a few more days they say.
I must admit that it’s very hard to keep track of the timelines. As I write this I am trying to remember the order in which things occurred and on what day. It all goes so fast and yet seems like an eternity.
Later today, after some napping at home in her own bed, Tami and I are going to view the NICU at St Joseph’s in Bryan. It’s a longer story, but basically the Med in College Station is not part of the Scott & White Insurance Network and there may be some issues with Aleia being able to stay there without some excessive out of pocket expenses on our part. But we like the staff and Neonatal Doc there, so we are going to “interview” the folks at St Jo’s. But they have basically the same ability to care for Aleia, it’s just there are a few differences we have been told about by the staff at the Med. Granted I am sure they are a little biased, but they have attempted not to be I think. The basic issues boil down to a few things as far as we are concerned for Aleia. They apparently have more limited hours for us to be with our daughter. We do not know what those are, but they are less than The Med. Second, they have a different set of rules for Aleia getting to come home. Basically this is just the philosophy of one Dr versus that of another. Nothing to worry about, just a different approach and we like the current approach right now. But the other may be fine also. And then lastly it’s the distance from our home. Not that there is much of a commute anywhere her in the BCS, but 2 minutes versus 20 is something to assess. So we will know more about the issue after our interview and after I get to talk with the insurance company tomorrow after the holiday. It may be a big deal and it may not be, but I think it is going to be a deal either way. All we want to do is what is best for our new daughter. Insurance companies…..don’t get me started……
Saturday and Sunday
Well a lot of things have happened in the past 2 days. Tami became stable enough to be moved out of her delivery room. So we got moved into a “regular” room. That was good. She is doing pretty well and feels better. Still pretty weak, but able to move around and actually take a shower and a walk down to the NICU in today.
So that part was good. Aleia is still doing pretty well from what they tell us. She has some moments where she forgets to breathe (apnea) and they happen off and on. But that is to be expected for a baby her age. But is does not happen all that often. Also they began to feed her today. She has only been on IV based nutrition until now. Tami was able to get some milk pumped and they are feeding that to Aleia through her tiny little feeding tube. They are doing that on regular intervals, about every 3 hours. She is taking in about 6cc per “meal” which is good for her but really about a teaspoon. She is also developed some jaundice. This is apparently very normal for preemies. This began on Sunday so they put her under a sunning lamp. Basically some light to help work out the jaundice. Later in the day her levels rose a bit and they had to put her on a biliblanket (or disco blanket as I like to call it). So now she is getting light from both sides. Her levels went down a bit last night and we had not seen the results this morning. (Monday) With the lights on she has to wear her “sunglasses” to keep out the bright lights as that is too much stimulation. She is extremely sensitive right now to everything, even our touch.
We got to hold Aleia on Sunday for the first time. Tami and I got to hold her for a bit in the morning and then Tami was able to get some skin on skin time later in the afternoon. This is basically an early effort to get Aleia used to Tami and the idea of breastfeeding. Aleia mainly slept during that time, but it was still good for both of them. So things are moving but slowly. The staff keeps stressing how slowly everything will be from this point forward. Not that she is going too slowly, just that it all takes time. As they keep stressing, she was not supposed to be doing ANY of this for about 8 more weeks.
It’s now Monday around noon and Tami actually got out of the hospital today. We both slept a little in today. Well I know that I did because Tami gave me a hard time about it as the “bed” I have been sleeping on is barely enough to call it a bed. So it’s good that she is feeling well enough to harass me as usual. So once I woke up. We went into the NICU and got to see Aleia this morning. We got to hold her again this morning for about an hour. Tami was able to do some “kangaroo” time as they call it, the skin to skin contact to help encourage the breastfeeding. But no one expects any real feeding to be going on, Aleia is just too young and small. Tami held her for the majority of time but I did get a little time in with her. So that was good. Her bilirubin levels had decreased a bit since last night but she is still tanning and will be for at least a few more days they say.
I must admit that it’s very hard to keep track of the timelines. As I write this I am trying to remember the order in which things occurred and on what day. It all goes so fast and yet seems like an eternity.
Later today, after some napping at home in her own bed, Tami and I are going to view the NICU at St Joseph’s in Bryan. It’s a longer story, but basically the Med in College Station is not part of the Scott & White Insurance Network and there may be some issues with Aleia being able to stay there without some excessive out of pocket expenses on our part. But we like the staff and Neonatal Doc there, so we are going to “interview” the folks at St Jo’s. But they have basically the same ability to care for Aleia, it’s just there are a few differences we have been told about by the staff at the Med. Granted I am sure they are a little biased, but they have attempted not to be I think. The basic issues boil down to a few things as far as we are concerned for Aleia. They apparently have more limited hours for us to be with our daughter. We do not know what those are, but they are less than The Med. Second, they have a different set of rules for Aleia getting to come home. Basically this is just the philosophy of one Dr versus that of another. Nothing to worry about, just a different approach and we like the current approach right now. But the other may be fine also. And then lastly it’s the distance from our home. Not that there is much of a commute anywhere her in the BCS, but 2 minutes versus 20 is something to assess. So we will know more about the issue after our interview and after I get to talk with the insurance company tomorrow after the holiday. It may be a big deal and it may not be, but I think it is going to be a deal either way. All we want to do is what is best for our new daughter. Insurance companies…..don’t get me started……
Several photos today. Many are from over the past few days. They are oldest to newest.
--Andrew
2 comments:
Great pictures! Love the "disco" blanket. :) Glad you guys are getting to hold her. Thanks for the updates. Reese
I am LOVING the picture that Ashlynn made. She is one smart cookie. I'm impressed with your upkeep of the blog. Keep em coming! I read it every morning!!
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