I have a love/hate relationship with the shield. I also have a love/hate relationship with the scale in the NICU. I was
happy thrilled with what the scale told us on Thursday night and Friday night. I was feeling very sad and stressed out when the nurse told me at 9pm last night that he had lost 12 grams (4/10 of an ounce). It didn't help that he totally slept through the midnight feeding. It was the first time I requested that he have a full tube feeding. The previous 3 days he had half tube feedings. I felt like crying, but I didn't until I talked with the nurse at 9am this morning. She assured me she didn't think the doctors would be too upset since he had gained 1.5 ounces over the previous two days.
When the doctors did the rounds this morning, they didn't make much of his weight loss except they said we couldn't do a day without any tube feedings until he gained weight again. They did give me permission to feed him "ad lib" in the demo room, which means I can feed him on whatever schedule as long as we don't go more than 3 hours between feedings. If tonight's weigh-in shows that he gained weight, they will allow him to discontinue the tube feedings after they do rounds tomorrow. I am REALLY praying he gained weight today. I can't tell you how stressful this is. If it wasn't that I really enjoy nursing, I would definitely opt for bottle feeding as it would make the NICU experience MUCH less stressful because we'd know exactly how much he was consuming. I am trying to look at the big picture and remind myself that the extra stress (and potentially extra days in the NICU) are worth it in the long run. When Ian was in the NICU I ordered a good scale for us to use at home. It measures to the 1/2 ounce. I'm sure we'll be using that for Oliver once we get home.
Last night we were supposed to have our CPR class. It's a requirement if your child is going home on oxygen. We took one when I was pregnant with Nadia, but that was too long ago for them to accept that as meeting the requirement. The class was supposed to start at 8pm last night, but at 7:15pm I was told it was cancelled. I quickly called Paul. The babysitter had already arrived at our house, but thankfully I caught Paul before he left the house. The next scheduled class wasn't until Tuesday at 8pm, and I have been told there is a chance he could be discharged as early as Tuesday. I told the nurse that last night, and so they scheduled a private class for us, which we did at 7pm tonight. Paul's parents picked up the kids here at the hospital at 6pm. We also had to watch 3 dvd's (on SIDS, shaken baby syndrome, and car seat safety) prior to the class. The kids had a great time at the Please Touch Museum in Philadelphia last week; Paul's parents are taking them back there again tomorrow!
Paul and the kids arrived at the RMH around 1pm today. I played with the kids until 2:45 when it was time for me to go to the NICU to nurse and pump. Then I came back and played with the kids some more while also packing up and cleaning my room. When I arrived at the NICU at 3pm, I found that Oliver had been moved from bed #25 to bed #38 - which is in one of the two demo rooms. Both Nadia and Ian spent time in this room. There are two demo rooms in the NICU, but each time (2008, 2009, 2012) I was always assigned to room #38. My mom stayed with me in this room with Nadia. They have reserved the room for me tonight and tomorrow night. If Oliver isn't discharged on Tuesday, I'll be checking back into the RMH. I will be able to get more sleep while in the demo room since we'll be sharing a room. My feet and legs will also be very grateful for the reprieve. My feet have become a bit swollen again from the extra walking between the hospital and RMH. After eating dinner at the RMH, we all came over to the NICU so Nadia and Ian could spend a little time with Oliver again. Paul brought me clean clothes today just in case the discharge is delayed by several days.
I have a love/hate relationship with the shield. I also have a love/hate relationship with the scale in the NICU. I was 
When the doctors did the rounds this morning, they didn't make much of his weight loss except they said we couldn't do a day without any tube feedings until he gained weight again. They did give me permission to feed him "ad lib" in the demo room, which means I can feed him on whatever schedule as long as we don't go more than 3 hours between feedings. If tonight's weigh-in shows that he gained weight, they will allow him to discontinue the tube feedings after they do rounds tomorrow. I am REALLY praying he gained weight today. I can't tell you how stressful this is. If it wasn't that I really enjoy nursing, I would definitely opt for bottle feeding as it would make the NICU experience MUCH less stressful because we'd know exactly how much he was consuming. I am trying to look at the big picture and remind myself that the extra stress (and potentially extra days in the NICU) are worth it in the long run. When Ian was in the NICU I ordered a good scale for us to use at home. It measures to the 1/2 ounce. I'm sure we'll be using that for Oliver once we get home.
Last night we were supposed to have our CPR class. It's a requirement if your child is going home on oxygen. We took one when I was pregnant with Nadia, but that was too long ago for them to accept that as meeting the requirement. The class was supposed to start at 8pm last night, but at 7:15pm I was told it was cancelled. I quickly called Paul. The babysitter had already arrived at our house, but thankfully I caught Paul before he left the house. The next scheduled class wasn't until Tuesday at 8pm, and I have been told there is a chance he could be discharged as early as Tuesday. I told the nurse that last night, and so they scheduled a private class for us, which we did at 7pm tonight. Paul's parents picked up the kids here at the hospital at 6pm. We also had to watch 3 dvd's (on SIDS, shaken baby syndrome, and car seat safety) prior to the class. The kids had a great time at the Please Touch Museum in Philadelphia last week; Paul's parents are taking them back there again tomorrow!
Paul and the kids arrived at the RMH around 1pm today. I played with the kids until 2:45 when it was time for me to go to the NICU to nurse and pump. Then I came back and played with the kids some more while also packing up and cleaning my room. When I arrived at the NICU at 3pm, I found that Oliver had been moved from bed #25 to bed #38 - which is in one of the two demo rooms. Both Nadia and Ian spent time in this room. There are two demo rooms in the NICU, but each time (2008, 2009, 2012) I was always assigned to room #38. My mom stayed with me in this room with Nadia. They have reserved the room for me tonight and tomorrow night. If Oliver isn't discharged on Tuesday, I'll be checking back into the RMH. I will be able to get more sleep while in the demo room since we'll be sharing a room. My feet and legs will also be very grateful for the reprieve. My feet have become a bit swollen again from the extra walking between the hospital and RMH. After eating dinner at the RMH, we all came over to the NICU so Nadia and Ian could spend a little time with Oliver again. Paul brought me clean clothes today just in case the discharge is delayed by several days.
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