October 25, 2008

Pumpkin Patch here we come!

This morning Adam, Riley, Mama and myself are going to venture out to Schnepfs Farm to go pumpkin hunting. We will take our time to make sure we all find the right one, and to have lots of fun with Riley! She has gotten to more and more fun the more she grows up...she has got the cutest little laugh and the most adorable smile. She is repeating and learning words like crazy...in the past few days she has learned (and knows how to use) the words "Thank you" (ak-oo), "Cheese" (chee!), and "Good Girl" (guh-guh). These combined with her usual "Uh-oh" (uh-uh), Mama (Mama), Dada (Dada or Da-DEE), Tipsy (ti-ti), and Jet Jet (je-je). Both of our girls amaze us daily with ther growth and development.

Speaking of our girls and growing...Bree is going up to 18 cc's of formula this morning. As of tomorrow at this time she will be at a full feeding for her body weight. Exciting stuff! Adam had gotten the day off yesterday and we went down to see Miss Bree. He got to hold her and I got some marvelous pictures! I hope you all enjoy them....

Hope this finds you all happy healthy and in love with life!

October 24, 2008

Mornin mornin!!

Bree is off her CPAP!! She switched off of it yesterday morning right before I showed up for the day. I got to hold her for a good two hours, and it seemed as if she had the best nap she has had while layin on me. The nurses had gotten me set up in a giant lay-z-boy chair, so I was all laid back and comfy with Bree on my chest. Once she had settled down and was completely zonked out and not moving, I broke out "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" to reread. I think I got through 150 pages or so before I had to leave for the day because of a previously made engagement.

She is up to 16 cc's of breastmilk as of this morning...and doing great with it! A full feeding for her is 20 cc's and that is based upon her weight right now. So, as she grows she will get more breastmilk, and soon (hopefully) they will start to let her try the bottle. Exciting stuff!

She is on 30-35% oxygen with her nasal cannula...which I am so glad that she is on the nasal cannula. Adam got the day off of work for finding a 'golden tool' (It's a gold piece of paper with a drawing of a tool on it and if you find it you get a day off). I am really hoping that he'll get to hold her because it has been almost a month since he held her. She has grown a lot since then! Hopefully I'll get some good pictures to share with all of you tomorrow!

Hope this finds you happy, healthy and in love with life!

October 23, 2008

Good morning!

Bree is doing well this morning...she rested comfortably most of the night last night. She is still having troubles with maintaining her oxygen rate, so I am just guessing here but they might do some tests to make sure she doesn't have any infections brewing or anything of that manner. She did have a bradycardic episode last night (when her heartrate drops low) around 2am. That also makes me worried. She is now a whopping 2 lbs, 8 oz!! As of 8am this morning she will be going up to 14 cc's every three hours for feeds. She is still sitting at 35% oxygen and a pressure of 5 on her CPAP, but other than that we have no other new news!

Riley is playing in her crib right now...I can hear her over the monitor. However, I need to pump before I go get her up. She has learned that when 'Mama is pumping, Mama can't do anything'...yeah, it's real fun! So, in the mornings she stays in bed until I am ready for her to get up.

Hope this finds everyone happy, healthy, and in love with life!

October 22, 2008

Good afternoon everyone!

Bree has reached two milestones today! One, she now wears clothes...little tiny clothes, but they are cutsie little dresses. Two, she in now well enough that she can be stolen! Most parents would not think that is a milestone, but as you all know we are a bit on the odd side. Actually, she is really well enough she can be stolen, so they have put the "baby lo-jack" onto her right leg. It looks like a little black box strapped to her leg. This contraption causes all doors to lock if she is taken too close to them. It is a great safety device that helps to set our minds at ease just a little bit more.

Mama went with me to the hospital this morning, while our good friend Cheri watched Riley for us. Mama was hoping to be able to hold Bree, but was unable to because Bree had just gotten a bath, and a new bed change. She had already had a lot of movement and change for the day, and was having a hard time keeping her oxygen saturations at a steady rate. We will try again for another day! Bree is up to 12 cc's of breastmilk every three hours and she is doing great with it! She did have to go back on her CPAP yesterday because she was having a hard time breathing and was using too much energy. They are also giving her a drug that will help to draw some extra fluid out of her lungs that they found evidence of yesterday with an x-ray.

We did find out some good information regarding her brain bleeds however. They are at a stage three, but in the report it is noted that the ventricles are only "mildly enlarged". The ventricles being enlarged is what classifies her brain bleeds as a stage three so to hear that they are only mildly enlarged is a relief. It means that she is on the mild end of the spectrum of stage three brain bleeds! Praise God!

I hope this finds everyone, happy, healthy and in love with life!

October 21, 2008

Grow Bree Grow!! She is for sure growing and getting bigger by the day. About every two days she gains one ounce, so as of right now she is 2 lbs, and 4 ounces. Her official length (as of two days ago) is 14 and 1/4 inches long! You go girl! So she has gained almost a whole pound and grown an inch and a quarter in 5 1/2 weeks....

Isn't the picture on here the cutest (and saddest) little cry face ever?? I might be just a slight bit biased, but I sure think so!

Last night, Riley woke up three times! We are not sure if it is teething or growing, but we realized we are out of tylenol for her. (Why does it always happen when you need it!?) Even this morning, she has been crabby and just not herself. She will be fine and happy for a while and then out of nowhere become a fit throwing, toy throwing, crying, screaming child. So, she is down for an early nap this morning. I am hoping that it will change her attitude a bit because we have some errand running and grocery shopping to do...

Hope this finds everyone happy, healthy, and in love with life!

October 20, 2008

Woo hoo!! As you can see, I got to hold Bree this morning. It is so nice to hold her without the ventilator tubes. Hearing her little squeaks and grunts just melts my heart. It is so great to hear all of her noises, the fact that she can make noise now just reinforces the point of how well she is doing. She is now just on the nasal cannula, and is requiring about 35% oxygen when she is resting comfortably.

She is now up to 8 cc's of breastmilk every three hours, and I got to "feed" her again this morning while I was holding her. I held her for about 1.5 hours, until I had to get up to pump, eat and use the restroom. I wish I could sit and hold her all day long!

Our biggest monster (Riley) has had a super fun morning with her Grandma Gonce. I was informed that she ate a BIG lunch, played peek a boo, sang songs, and even got to play outside!

Hope this finds everyone happy, healthy, and in love with life!

October 19, 2008

Okay, Okay..I am posting this WAY late, but it is still the 19th. We've had a crazy, busy friend filled day today! Bree also had another eventful day...she was switched off of her CPAP today to a regular nasal cannula with humidified oxygen support. This means that she does not have the positive pressure in her airway. Bree is doing it all on her own now! She is breathing a little harder than they would like, but they are keeping a close eye on her. If they think it is taking too much toll on her they will switch her back to the CPAP.

She is a hungry little girl as of lately! They have been uping her feeds one cc every twelve hours, and she is up to seven cc's every three hours. She weighs a hefty 2 lbs, 4 ounces now!

We had a great day with friends....we had church this morning, lunch with Joel and Kristina at Red Robin (mmm..banzai burger!), and then had Jim, Iliyah, and Nathan over for dinner. I learned someting new today too....how to make spanish rice from scratch. It is rather tasty!

Hope this finds everyone happy, healthy, and in love with life...