June 13, 2012- Yard Time

Today, well last night, brought my first disappointment that I had to harness and remember how much progress Will has really made.  Brandon called the NICU last night to see how Will was doing and to see how much weight he had gained.  We found out that he had lost 20 grams and was back down to 3 pounds 2.5 ounces.  Brandon and I were hoping for a nice weight gain since the nurses were fortifying his milk to give him more calories.  So needless to say, I was a little bummed when I went in to the NICU this morning.

When I arrived to the NICU, I was able to speak to the neonatal nurse practitioner and she assured me that the weight loss was okay as long as he has weight gain over the entire week.  She also told me that Will's oxygen had been weaned down to 2.5 Liters high flow nasal cannula and that she wrote an order to wean him further to 2 Liters.  When Will is stable on 2 Liters, he will be able to attempt to try oral feedings!  What an accomplishment!  The weight loss was now out of my mind! 

While we were visiting Will, he stayed on his 2.5 Liters, but the nurse said that she would try and wean him later in the day and tonight.  Will came out of his incubator for his Yard Time during his 3pm feeding.  The past few days, Will has lasted 45 minutes or so and today he lasted about 90 minutes, if not longer!  He had no vital sign changes and he was so content laying on me and then on Brandon.  I was SO proud of him!  All I want to do is snuggle him and kiss him all the time!

 Brandon and I are getting really comfortable doing all of Will's cares without the nurses around, and we are getting much better at diaper changes while he is in the incubator.  We are also getting more comfortable taking Will out of the incubator without the nurses' help.  The nurses are really great at letting us take over when we are there. I am so proud of Brandon and how he has embraced holding Will, moving him in and out of the incubator and even changing his diapers.  Who knew that a 3 pound baby could be so intimidating, but Brandon is not letting it get to him! 

Let's hope for a positive weight gain tonight!