Oh thank goodness

See my tongue?

Chatting with Momma

Chatting with Daddy

The past 3 days have been a trial for me. We have had WONDERFUL nurses so far. Until our most recent day nurse. She rubbed me the wrong way from the first morning. Fortunately, she's now gone & we'll have a new nurse tomorrow. Considering we've been there for 19 days and have had one nurse we didn't like, it's not been too bad. Rant over, thanks for reading.

Now on to the Duncan stuff! He's maintaining very well. Which is okay for now. The doctor recommended I cut back on the time spent breastfeeding so Duncan doesn't expend so much energy. I will pump for the next year & bottle feed him if it means getting him home!!!! We're still hopeful he'll get to come home soon. If not, we have a room with a window & can watch the fireworks from it :)

Today when we got back after the ward re-opened at 7:30 we discovered our son was still awake. He hadn't gone to sleep after his 6 o'clock feeding and still wasn't asleep when we left at 9:30. He was terribly cute. Chattering, showing us his tongue, trying to eat his hands. It was great! He's acting like a "regular" baby!!!

Hopefully Duncan "wakes" up soon. Both Aaron & I are bone-weary of the hospital routine. I appreciate that we have a great NICU close and that Duncan is getting fantastic medical care but I want my baby home.

Tonight's video is from during the awake time.

Monday

Yes, the title is boring. but I'm tired and need to get to bed because it's back to the hospital tomorrow...

Duncan's doing okay. He had another doctor look at him today (it's vacation season & he's had 4 different doctors). She upped his calories because his weight gain has stagnated. Which apparently means gaining weight isn't enough (even though most "regular" newborns lose at least a pound during the first few weeks of life). Duncan is up to 5 pounds, 11.4 ounces. Hopefully his growth takes off which will result in fewer brady attacks and more energy.

I had my 2 week check-up today. My scar is healing well and I've lost 20 pounds. I fit in my skinny jeans which is hilarious :) I don't recommend the NICU diet but apparently it works...My doctor also reassured me that one day Duncan will just wake up and we'll get to go home. She went through the same thing with her youngest so I feel a bit more assured. (I totally love my doctor, by the way.)

Did I mention I was tired?

So I forgot a couple of key things while writing last night's post.

Duncan is now 18.5 inches long and weighs 5 pounds, 9.4 ounces.

He's within a couple of days of gaining a full pound since birth!

I just need to hunt up a Moby wrap or something so we can cart him around once he's home. I have a Baby Bjorn but it's for 8 pounds & up. We probably won't be there for a bit.

Now, I'm off to play with my boy!!

Sunday Sunday...

Today we tried 2 feedings in a row, then a feeding through the tube. The 9 am feeding went well. The noon started out with a frustrated baby because he's not used to having to work for two feedings in a row. But once he realized what was up & calmed down he was fine. And then the feeding went well.

The 6 & 9 o'clock feedings also started out with an angry boy. But once he calmed down and realized it was food time he got right to business.

So it was a great day for the boy. Tomorrow we're going to do the same thing. If he isn't too tired we may go to trying all the feedings then he can come home!!!

But I'll try not to put the cart before the horse. But I'm very hopeful :)

And now to bed because we are two exhausted parents.

We moved!!!

This is how I look in sunlight

I refuse to keep my hat on

I gained another .4 ounce!

RAWR! I'm a mighty dinosaur. When I'm awake.

Duncan was moved today. But not to the dreaded 8th floor - to a window room!!!
Now he can survey his future domain :) It's also nice for his parents who spend lots of time at the hospital with him. Apparently sunlight is good for you!

His doctor was very pleased with his blood work today. His biliruben (jaundice) levels were unchanged from yesterday which is good. Living by the window will also help keep his bili levels down.

The doctor said we're looking at about a week or so & then he'll probably be home! We're going to start 2 feedings in a row tomorrow & will see how that goes. If he has enough energy we'll increase that again to all his feedings then after 48 hours of feedings from the bottle or me he'll get to come home!!!!!!!!

But we'll cross that bridge when we get to it.

He had great feeds again today. Hopefully tomorrow we'll be able to increase his active feedings to 2 in a row. Then even closer to home.

And all you mom's out there who ever had to use a breast pump will understand my excitement about creating a hands-free pumping bra. Sooo much easier!!! Now I can read or type or read or read :) Very important for someone who is really bad at sitting there and doing nothing.

Progress!

Friday Duncan did AWESOME! (can you tell how unbiased his Mom is?)

He was still on the lights which helped get all the nasty biliruben out of his system. The level was down to 6.9 from 11.8. So the doctor took him off the lights around 6 pm and now he can see again! Babies under the lights have to wear special goggle things and they really cheesed off Duncan because he couldn't see what was going on around him.

Duncan's feedings throughout the day were great - he took at least 30 ml from the bottle overnight and had 2 full feedings from me & the bottle for the 2 I was there for. The therapist thinks we'll be able to ramp it up to 2 feedings in a row with one through his nose tube on Sunday or Monday. Then we'll be so much closer to home!!!

He's made great progress developmentally, too. He has mastered putting his hands to his mouth for soothing and rooting. His muscle tone in his arms has also improved. He's much more aware of his surroundings and is very curious about different noises and voices. He also knows when someone who isn't Mom or Dad touches him.

Today, we have to fight Hoopfest to get to Duncan. Hoopfest is a huge 3-on-3 basketball tournament that takes place every year in downtown Spokane. Generally, most people love it or hate it. I was of the latter camp previously. Now the tournament is between my baby & I...I hate it even more. But hopefully we'll be able to miss most of the chaos because we leave pretty early to get to the hospital. But we'll see. I just hope none of them realize how convenient it could be to park at Sacred Heart...

2 Weeks Old!!!

My little guy is 2 weeks old today!! He has grown so much. Tonight he weighed 5 pounds, 8 ounces :) He's growing!!!


We had 2 great feedings today. He took an entire feeding from me at noon!!! Awesome progress. He also took about 30 ml from the bottle at 6 from Aaron. We're very proud of our little man!


Aaron's first day back to work was okay. I made it through the day without even getting weepy! (big deal for the hormonal girl). He made it for the 6 o'clock feeding so it all worked out. Tomorrow he'll be there for the 9 & noon feedings and back for the 9 o'clock. Sacred Heart offers a free infant/child CPR class on Friday's so I'll be taking that tomorrow at 2:30. I'll have to mix up my schedule a bit and will probably miss the 9 o'clock snuggle but Aaron will go instead. It's all working out.

There's a possibility Duncan will get moved to a different floor - the 8th floor of the Children's Hospital. It's the overflow area for the NICU. Since he doesn't have an IV or anything extraordinary he's a candidate for moving. He's at the low end of the list, though. Granted, I don't know how long the list is. I'm hoping he doesn't get moved. The 8th floor is apparently open and doesn't really have comfy sitting areas like our room does now. Right now, it's us & another baby's family. Nice & quiet. No one in our business and we don't have to socialize with other families. We're there to focus on our son and that's our entire reason. With the open floor, things are significantly less private and I'm worried Duncan will lose his quiet time. He's starting to be awake more and I don't want him distracted by the negative vibes from other families (trust me. There are lots of very bitter people in the NICU. Aaron and I are not bitter. We know our little man is getting the best care available and are grateful.)

But we'll see. The doctor did say that if he gets moved he'll only have nurses that are permanent to the NICU, not floaters from other departments. That made me feel a bit better. And if we end up moving, it won't be for long. I have a feeling Mighty D will turn a corner soon. I've read that a lot of babies "wake up" on their due date. The 28th is Monday so I have my fingers crossed my little man will realize coming home will be much more fun than the hospital.

And now, to bed. :)

Back to Club NICU

So darn cute!

Duncan wakes up like his mom - slowly and grumpily

Well, Duncan's back at Club NICU. His jaundice is back so he's now under the lights again. Which is good because the elevated biliruben levels cause him to be very lethargic.

New arrangement - privacy curtains :)

We're on a new feeding schedule. Every other feed for the next 2 days will be through his nose tube. This is so he can rest and get energy. Then we'll proceed from there. I think it will help. Plus getting all the jaundice out of his system. Hopefully this is the last bout.

Tomorrow is my first day on my own - Aaron returns to work. But Thursday is the only day he works "regular" hours. He'll be able to be there for the 6 & 9 o'clock feeds. On Friday, Saturday & Tuesday he'll only miss the 6 o'clock feed so it won't be much of a change. I'll miss him but also know he needs to focus on something other than the NICU. Plus he's owed at least 2 massages which he really, really needs. So hopefully he'll be able to get one tomorrow :)

I'm doing pretty well. I still have my "Mommy moments" when I am so overwhelmed by the fact that this beautiful little boy is all mine. I am a very lucky girl to have a wonderful husband who gave me this child. Worth every moment.

Momma loves her Duncan

I am getting SO big!

Lucky 13

Today Duncan is 13 days old :)
I was way too tired to post anything last night. Duncan did well - he at 40 ml of his 47 ml feeding twice overnight which is awesome!
He was pretty tuckered out for his 9 & noon feedings, though. So we snuggled and let him sleep.
His jaundice levels are slowly climbing. The doctor isn't worried but I think he may go back under the lights if they go up again. We'll see. Perhaps the little guy will get a second visit to Club NICU.
I have a couple videos that I'll post later because they take a bit of time to upload & I need to finish getting ready.
Overall, we're doing well. Aaron has to go back to work tomorrow and is not happy about it. Duncan & I appreciate that he's going, though. But it sucks because he won't be with us. But that just means Duncan will grow faster & learn to eat better because he wants to come home so he can spend more time with Daddy. We both love the Daddy very much.

11 Days Old!

Today Duncan is 11 days old! It's been an entertaining ride, my son.

He did very well today. Well, he was good for the parents. He got a bit too much to eat and spit up all over himself so he got a bath...again. He just had one yesterday. But Aaron & I got to bathe him so it was good experience for us. Duncan was not impressed. But he's a boy so it's not surprising he doesn't like a good bath.

There is no milk here. Why is there no milk???

His feedings went well. We're now doing a feed from mom or the bottle then have the next feed through the nose tube. This is so he can build up some strength. You may have noticed he's gotten a second chin. This is a good sign he's gaining weight and growing!

He also woke himself up this morning around 10:30 or so. Normally we end up waking him for his care times but the past couple days he has been waking himself up and chatting with himself. I read him a story to try & get him to go back to sleep but to no avail. At 11:30 we went ahead and fed him because he was rooting around and ready for some food :)

Since we decided to feed him through his nose tube at 9 pm, Aaron & I headed home to get caught up on a few household things and get to bed at a reasonable time. Well, it'll still be after 10:30 since I'm scheduled to pump at 10 but it will still be a more restful night. And I'm going to try sleeping in my bed tonight. I've been in the recliner since my discharge because it was easier for me to get in & out of. I hated waking Aaron up when I needed out of bed. But I was able to get in & out of bed without pain during my rest this afternoon so hopefully I can transition. Plus my back is not happy & actually sleeping properly might help.

Thanks again to all for the kind wishes and prayers for my little family. We truly see the results every day when we look into the eyes of our little man. Duncan is such a miracle for us and we can't wait until everyone can meet him!!!

Ahhh...sleep

Momma and her Duncan

Father's Day

Daddy talking with Duncan

Snuggles

Almost feeding time

Yay!! Feeding time!

Father's Day card from Duncan (and the nurses)

Happy Father's Day!!! Aaron & Duncan had a great day. Duncan had 3 excellent feedings and slept through 2. It was a wonderful step forward. He's gaining strength every day and growing and that's what he needs to do so we can bring him home :)

Otherwise, we're doing well :)

And this is short because I need to go to bed.

Hiccups & Grandparents

Grandma Tinsley

Grandpa Tinsley

See how big I am? Over 5 pounds!!!

Today was a promising day. Duncan managed to pull out his nose tube this morning so we had to get it put back in. He was NOT happy about it. But I think it gave him an adrenaline rush that allowed him to have a good feeding - 34 ml from the bottle! A new record :)

The little guy also keeps getting the hiccups. His parents find them hilarious, he doesn't. Hopefully the video will load.


Duncan's Grandma & Grandpa Tinsley came to visit today for the first time. There was a lot of love in his room! They were very excited to meet him. We were pretty happy to see them, too. They kidnapped Aaron during my afternoon nap & took him to lunch which was great for him. He needed some Mom & Dad time, too :)

He also fed really well from me at the 9 pm feeding and ate 20 ml from the bottle. It was a great day!

And the parents have much better spirits, too...

This is the look I get when Momma burps me.

King Lear

Today was day 8 in the NICU. I don't know how many of you have been blessed to take a vacation that was over a week, but I've noticed with Aaron & I that day 8 is when we hit a wall. It's usually the day we do something that involves riding buses or stereotypical touristy things.

Today was that day on Duncan's trek home. We both hit serious walls and had to simply leave the hospital. It was getting too hard to watch our little man. He's doing really well, by the way. His doctor calls him King Lear since you can't say the actual name of the Scottish play...I think that's adorable. He's getting stronger and his reflexes in his upper body are improving. Unfortunately, he had 3 brady episodes while he was sleeping. He converted himself but if there are any serious episodes he has to stay in the NICU for 5 days without one before he can come home. Breathing is pretty important...But he hasn't had a serious episode so we're still good there.

His parents are holding up. We're both pretty much exhausted and weary and overwhelmed. We both know Duncan is fine and in the best hands. Wrapping our hearts around seeing him every day in the hospital is much more difficult to do. But we're trying. That's why we're home this afternoon. We need to take a break from all the emotions at the hospital from ourselves and from everyone around us. Leaving our little guy in the good hands of the nurses will give us a break and allow us to recoup some of our energy reserves and emotional barriers. Not emotional barriers to each other but to everyone else. When we start getting wrapped in the other stories at the NICU we lose energy and focus on Duncan. So we need to rebuild walls so we can take better care of each other and Duncan.

No pictures today - I need to post this & get to bed so maybe Aaron will let me go to the hospital at 9...

NICU habits

You know a new habit has been created when you go into the bedroom to wake up your husband, say "Good morning, honey" then put a hand on his butt and one on the top of his head, then kiss him so he doesn't get startled...

This is what we did with Duncan when he was under the bili-lights and had on eye protectors so we wouldn't scare him. And now, apparently, I need to do it to Aaron :)

Fast post

Daddy feeding Duncan

Duncan had an awesome day! But first...yesterday, his umbilical cord fell off :) Aaron was seriously icked out by it. Quite amusing.

See - my umbilical is gone!

Today the Mighty D had 3 great feedings. He only had a tiny bit through his nose tube. However, since he did so well at the 9 am & noon feedings, he was completely wiped out for the 3 and 6. Which was fine. He needs to build his strength. The 9 pm feeding also went well - we estimated he took somewhere between 30 & 50 ml by weight. Such a good boy!

Duncan now weighs over 5 pounds!!! He's gaining weight really well so that's a great sign. He also didn't have any reflux episodes today which we all appreciated. The child can ruin a bed in 30 seconds flat if he wants to.

His jaundice levels were down to 7.4 so he was taken off the bili-lights! He now has to wear clothes and isn't at Club NICU anymore. But that's okay. He's another step closer to coming home with us!!!!

And now..Pictures!

See how big I am???

My beautiful eyes

too tired to come up with a creative title...

Life is so rough at Club NICU




It was a good day. Duncan ate pretty well at his 9 am feeding. Aaron & I went home after that because we had an appointment with his occupational therapist at 2:45 and needed to rest. He ate about 15 ml from the bottle at his noon feeding. A very good start.

Because he expended so much energy on those 2 feedings, he was totally wiped out for the occupational therapist & his 3 o'clock feeding. Which actually worked out because Jo (the occupational therapist) was able to show us what was best to do when he's wiped out. She also explained that he can't be treated like a "normal" baby. Small, early babies don't have the neck muscles a full-term baby does. We were trying to feed him on his back and he kept going into bradycardia (slow heart rate). Trust me. You NEVER want to see your child go into that. I went through it several times when I was still in the hospital so I knew what to do. Poor Aaron didn't. But now we both know that he needs fed on his side. That is so the milk pools in his cheek instead of the back of his throat. Very good to know.

Jo also gave us a plan for what we need to do to help Duncan be the best baby ever. (we already think so but the medical community needs to agree) We'll start working with his arms to his torso & his mouth. We also need to make sure he's awake and wanting to eat. If he doesn't we need to let him sleep so he can continue getting healthier.

Duncan's jaundice levels dropped to 9.3 (down from 10.3 yesterday). He's spending another full day at Club NICU but hopefully he can get off the lights tomorrow.

The poor night nurse discovered last night that he doesn't tolerate formula well. Duncan went through 5 diapers during a change. You can imagine. Or don't. Because trust me. Those are some smelly diapers. He also has reflux so we're trying a new additive to the breast milk. They're thickening it and adding calories so hopefully he can keep it down and grow. Plus I was able to pump more so hopefully there is enough milk for all his feedings.

He grew 3 grams yesterday. That's about 3 small paperclips. But when you're only 4 pounds, 14.1 ounces, 3 grams is a lot!

Aaron & I are holding it together. We never imagined our little guy would be in the NICU, let alone for a week. And more. But we are so blessed that we have wonderful friends & family praying for our little family. Your strength gives us strength so we can keep going to the hospital day after day. Mighty Duncan (as one of his aunties calls him) is a lucky baby. I can't wait for everyone to be able to meet him!

We are also so grateful we have such a wonderful NICU at Sacred Heart here in Spokane. They are 100% family focused and there are only 2 times a day we can't be there (during shift change). We can spend the entire day there if we want/need to. It's very comforting. The nurses are beyond fantastic. They take the time to answer our questions and help us when we have questions. We got to give Duncan a sponge bath and the nurse walked us through it. Granted, it's because he pooped & peed all over so we didn't really have a choice but we did learn from it. I cannot say enough good things about them. They love our little guy and we can tell they do. It makes leaving him there a bit easier. We know without a doubt he's in the best hands.

And now, what everyone really tunes in for...Pictures!!!

Big yawn

Pinkies!
loves

Whew...

I don't like this much. PUT ME BACK!!!

Well. I should start that I'm a numbers person. Not into all this word stuff. But I'm thinking it will be easier to update everyone on my little miracle this way.

It's been an entertaining week. Last week at this time I knew I would have my son the 15th (today, ironically). This was because he was so tiny & when you have gestational diabetes your baby is rarely tiny.

Then on Wednesday we discovered some of my blood work was off so we bumped up the induction to Saturday.

Duncan had other plans. My water broke around 7 on the 9th. So we were off to the hospital :) By 1 am, I decided that while I could totally handle the labor pain, I knew it would exhaust me by the time I needed to push. Enter the wonderful anesthesiologist. He got me all numbed up & Aaron & I tried to rest.

Around 3 am, the nurse came in to tell us Duncan wasn't tolerating labor. With every contraction his breathing slowed. Not to critical levels but we needed to get him out as soon as possible. So I had an emergency C-section & my little miracle was born at 3:50 am :)

Unfortunately, he was sort of stuck & had to pretty much be yanked out. So he was purple when he came out (which made the NICU staff very nervous). But he started breathing and Aaron got a few pictures. Then I got to give him a kiss & he was rushed to the NICU with his daddy. I didn't get to see him until around 9 am. Needless to say I was NOT a happy momma.

But he's now doing pretty good, all things considered. He's super tiny - only 14 pounds, 14.1 ounces (he's gained .1 ounces!!!!). But he was born at 37 weeks, 2 days so he's technically not a preemie. But close. He has to make several milestones before we get to bring him home: Maintain his body temperature. Gain weight. Feed from me or a bottle for 48 hours.

They took him off the temperature regulator bed today. He's doing well so far. He's gaining weight. We're working on feeding. Side note: it's hysterical to both Aaron & I that a child of ours has feeding issues...

Today Duncan did really well at his 9 am feeding. He successfully latched on both sides and seemed to eat well. He also finished most of his bottle. Which completely tuckered him out & he was fast asleep for his noon feeding. So he got that through his nose tube & I got to snuggle him. We take the afternoon off to get some rest between 1 & 4:3O or so. Then back for the 6 & 9 o'clock feedings, unless we're completely wiped out then we only stay for the 6. He did pretty well at tonight's 6 o'clock feeding. Not as good as this morning but there was still positive progress forward. He's also jaundiced so he's chillin' at Club NICU. Hopefully we'll find out on Wednesday if his levels are down enough to get off the lights.

We met with the occupational therapist this evening. His foot & leg reactions are great. We need to work on his arms. This is totally normal for early babies. He also has a good sucking reflex. Oh and he passed his hearing test in 2:43 - the fastest the tester had ever seen a NICU baby pass :) My little overachiever!!!

I'm going to try & update this as often as possible. I'll also try & figure out how to post some pictures so you can all see how much better he looks. He's a very handsome guy! :)
First family photo

Momma & Duncan

Daddy & Duncan