We arrived at the hospital a little bit earlier than we usually do, but still thought we missed Emerson's 2pm feeding. The
nurse actually bottle fed him at 10am so the time of his feedings were delayed a bit. He did take 10cc at the 10am feeding, but was pretty tired afterwards so the 2pm was going to be a gavage feeding. That means I got to hold Emerson through his feeding :)
He seemed a little fuzzy through his feeding, and I thought it might be gas. I have started to recognize his pooping face. LOL Yep, a few minutes later I felt and smelled that big poopie of his! He started to fall into a deep sleep after that, so had to interrupt his disco nap once the feeding was done to get him in a clean diaper. Never seems to phase him, he just snoozes while you change his diaper. LOL I was happy to see that his butt looked better than the night before. The creme Louise put on the night before definitely helped! Note to self: write down the name of that creme!
Joi, the daytime nurse, did mention that his eye seems to be draining. She was keeping an eye on it to see if it continues to drain. If so, it may be an infection. I did notice the drainage when I was holding him through his feeding. He did seem a little fussier today than usual, so wonder if that was because his eye was bothering him. I left Emerson in his isolette to rest up for the next feeding, a bottle feeding at 5pm.
Dr. Boxwalla, Neonatologist, spotted us and came to talk to us about Emerson's feedings. He said Emerson was still doing good, but he was a little concerned how his bottle feedings have slowed down, and haven't moved past 10cc in a few days. He said it could just be that he is premature. But with his heart defect he wanted to make sure that it wasn't something else. If Emerson doesn't increase his bottle feeds by the end of the week he would like to take an x-ray and see if there is fluid building up in his lungs. This would be a result of the heart defect. If so, we would need to start the medication the cardiologist recommended sooner than later. He reassured us that he feels Emerson is doing great, and that it was just a precaution. I appreciated that!
Emerson was wide awake for his 5pm feeding. He seemed more alert today than usual. Maybe its just that hes growing and getting stronger, but love seeing his big brown eyes! We tried out the tips Louise showed me the night before and soon realized that my hand is small even for a preemie! LOL But I was able to manage some of the techniques (using both hands) and it did seem to help. I could feel him sucking more, it was a tight grip. That was good to see! We got about 10cc before he started to fall asleep. So we snuggled while the remaining formula was gavage'd.
Shortly after the feeding Aunt Cyndi and Uncle Doug came for a visit. Emerson woke up a few times while they were there. They got a few peeks from him and he even stuck out his tongue at them. To cute. So nice of them to come visit baby boy!
After they left, Emerson was wide awake again. He was kicking his legs and even let out a few cries. We soon realized that these were hungry cues. This is a GOOD thing. He is waking up and crying when feeding time is coming up. This was one of the signs that the nurses and Dr. Boxwalla said we should look for :) We were going to do a gavage feeding, but with his alertness, Nicole suggested we try a bottle feed. He started off strong, really sucking away. But after 8cc, he started to fall asleep. Some is better than none! So I got some more cuddle time while we gavage'd the rest. He was so cute and cuddly - I didn't want to let him go!
Emerson's other neighbor got to go home today. Another bittersweet moment as I watched the dad bring in the car seat. Sad that our baby can not go home yet, but happy for their family. Our day will come. Right now our little 33 week'er is still got a little ways to go till he's big and strong! Look forward to the day we bring in that car seat to take him home :)
Note from MyPreemieApp:
September 17, 2013 – Today Emerson Robert Goulet is 1 week and 3 days old and weighs 3 lbs 5 ozs. The nurses taking care of Emerson Robert Goulet are Joi, Kelly and Nicole.
We made progress. Feedings: Up to 25cc
Another big event. Visitor: Cyndi and Doug
Melissa is feeling Strong.
Melissa is looking forward to: More cuddle time with Emerson!
Melissa is grateful for: How alert Emerson was today. Loved seeing his big eyes! And it appears that he is responsive to his name :)
nurse actually bottle fed him at 10am so the time of his feedings were delayed a bit. He did take 10cc at the 10am feeding, but was pretty tired afterwards so the 2pm was going to be a gavage feeding. That means I got to hold Emerson through his feeding :)
He seemed a little fuzzy through his feeding, and I thought it might be gas. I have started to recognize his pooping face. LOL Yep, a few minutes later I felt and smelled that big poopie of his! He started to fall into a deep sleep after that, so had to interrupt his disco nap once the feeding was done to get him in a clean diaper. Never seems to phase him, he just snoozes while you change his diaper. LOL I was happy to see that his butt looked better than the night before. The creme Louise put on the night before definitely helped! Note to self: write down the name of that creme!
Joi, the daytime nurse, did mention that his eye seems to be draining. She was keeping an eye on it to see if it continues to drain. If so, it may be an infection. I did notice the drainage when I was holding him through his feeding. He did seem a little fussier today than usual, so wonder if that was because his eye was bothering him. I left Emerson in his isolette to rest up for the next feeding, a bottle feeding at 5pm.
Dr. Boxwalla, Neonatologist, spotted us and came to talk to us about Emerson's feedings. He said Emerson was still doing good, but he was a little concerned how his bottle feedings have slowed down, and haven't moved past 10cc in a few days. He said it could just be that he is premature. But with his heart defect he wanted to make sure that it wasn't something else. If Emerson doesn't increase his bottle feeds by the end of the week he would like to take an x-ray and see if there is fluid building up in his lungs. This would be a result of the heart defect. If so, we would need to start the medication the cardiologist recommended sooner than later. He reassured us that he feels Emerson is doing great, and that it was just a precaution. I appreciated that!
Emerson was wide awake for his 5pm feeding. He seemed more alert today than usual. Maybe its just that hes growing and getting stronger, but love seeing his big brown eyes! We tried out the tips Louise showed me the night before and soon realized that my hand is small even for a preemie! LOL But I was able to manage some of the techniques (using both hands) and it did seem to help. I could feel him sucking more, it was a tight grip. That was good to see! We got about 10cc before he started to fall asleep. So we snuggled while the remaining formula was gavage'd.
Shortly after the feeding Aunt Cyndi and Uncle Doug came for a visit. Emerson woke up a few times while they were there. They got a few peeks from him and he even stuck out his tongue at them. To cute. So nice of them to come visit baby boy!
After they left, Emerson was wide awake again. He was kicking his legs and even let out a few cries. We soon realized that these were hungry cues. This is a GOOD thing. He is waking up and crying when feeding time is coming up. This was one of the signs that the nurses and Dr. Boxwalla said we should look for :) We were going to do a gavage feeding, but with his alertness, Nicole suggested we try a bottle feed. He started off strong, really sucking away. But after 8cc, he started to fall asleep. Some is better than none! So I got some more cuddle time while we gavage'd the rest. He was so cute and cuddly - I didn't want to let him go!
Emerson's other neighbor got to go home today. Another bittersweet moment as I watched the dad bring in the car seat. Sad that our baby can not go home yet, but happy for their family. Our day will come. Right now our little 33 week'er is still got a little ways to go till he's big and strong! Look forward to the day we bring in that car seat to take him home :)
Note from MyPreemieApp:
September 17, 2013 – Today Emerson Robert Goulet is 1 week and 3 days old and weighs 3 lbs 5 ozs. The nurses taking care of Emerson Robert Goulet are Joi, Kelly and Nicole.
We made progress. Feedings: Up to 25cc
Another big event. Visitor: Cyndi and Doug
Melissa is feeling Strong.
Melissa is looking forward to: More cuddle time with Emerson!
Melissa is grateful for: How alert Emerson was today. Loved seeing his big eyes! And it appears that he is responsive to his name :)
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