World Prematurity Day

The March of Dimes World Prematurity Day is November 17th. 

Before Flynn was born I did not know this day existed. Now I just wish I could do more to help the cause.

Flynn is my miracle baby. He always will be and I know that we were lucky. If we lived somewhere else or did not have the health care we did when I was pregnant things could have been so different.

"Knowledge is Power"

That takes on a new meaning when it comes to not only your health but the health of a little one who hasn't even had a chance to see the world yet. It isn't just about the health care but the education required to keep you and your little one happy and healthy. That is what World Prematurity Day is for awareness and support to get those who need help the help they need.

My Doodlebug and I were lucky. Both of us could have turned out a lot worse than we did. I could still be on dialsys. He could have stayed in the NICU longer than 6 weeks, his eyes could have not developed right, same with his lungs, he could have required a lot my physical therapy.. the list goes on and on.

My husband and brother-in-law (they are fraternal twins) were preemies. My husband had to have surgery because his body wasn't able to drain the fluids off his brain. He still has part of that experimental surgery they gave him in his head (kinda crazy but it isn't hurting anything). My brother-in-law had multiple surgeries after he was born and I think was clinically dead for a bit when he was born. They are both okay now but this was 30 years ago so they are miracle babies too.

I know every child is a miracle but I'd like to see more happy and healthy ones and less tragedies. While Flynn was in the NICU I saw at least 2 others who were not as lucky and did get to take a bundle of joy home.

If you can please support them!

March of Dimes

The New Adventures of Flynn

'Ello!

I took Flynn to the mall on Sunday with my mom. Chris and I are going to a wedding in October (yay!) and I needed a dress. So My mom and I met up at the Flatirons Mall and spent the morning shopping and had lunch. While I was getting a muffin my mom was visiting with Flynn and someone came up to her and mentioned he must be a new one and she told him he had been a preemie. The man pointed to one of his daughters and said she was too and that it didn't mean a thing. Haha!

For the most part the day was a success. I was able to buy a dress and some jewelry and Flynn only got upset once and that was when it was time for his bottle so he had his first trip to the ladies room where he was fed and changed. He does really well in restaurants too. The night before we'd gone to dinner with Chris's mom and step-dad and Flynn slept through the whole service. He did the same at lunch on Sunday with my Mom.

I was really proud of myself because I got him ready to go and the car packed up including the stroller all by myself. ^_^

Flynn has been sleeping in his own room now since Saturday night. He slept from 8:30pm to 4am that first night I was in shock. We checked on him at 3am because he'd been quiet all night. The next night he woke up at 1am and the next night at 2am and last nigh at 3am ahaha. If that trend continues I'd say 4am again tomorrow morning. We shall see.

When we go to the wedding my parents are going to baby sit Flynn. I hope they know what they are getting themselves into. The ceremony is at noon and the reception is at 4. Luckily since its all closer to our house they are just going to come here that will help them out since all his stuff is here. My dad can watch our big screen tv. Last time they babysat that is what he did haha.

So Flynn started smiling the other day too. I can't recall if I mentioned that? It takes coaxing but as long as he isn't upset he is smiling and yesterday I woke him up and he smiled at me like "Hello Momma!" It was a good start to a rough day yesterday. He spit up his first bottle that morning and just never felt right after that ended up in my arms most of the day. I'm glad he has slept so well last night. We shall see how today goes.

I have new photos to share with all of you!

A new way of holding Flynn - apparently good for his tummy

Daddy and Son

Go Buffs! - College Football Kick-off weekend

Tummy Time!

Now for an extra treat a video of Flynn smiling!

Happy Unbirthday

Just about 2 months old now!

August 15th.. that was my due date. So today is a big deal. Today is the day that Flynn could have been born. I can't believe he is already going to be 2 months old tomorrow. He is such a champ. I haven't fully wrapped my head around the how I feel about today. I have my last post OB visit this afternoon. It seems fitting its today. Since I'm not sure how I feel yet I'm going to share the "Unbirthday Song" with everyone:

Unbirthday Song from Alice and Wonderland:

A very merry 
Unbirthday to you, 
To you, A very merry 
Unbirthday to you, 
To you, 
It's great to 
Drink to someone , 
And I guess that 
You will do,
A very merry 
Unbirthday to you!

statistics prove that you've
one birthday
one birthday every year
but there are 364 un birthdays
that is why we are all gathered here

a very merry unbirthday to all
to all
a very merry unbirthday to all
to all
thats how we sing the day away
a verry merry unbirthday 
to all

Nothing like coffee and a sleeping baby..

Yesterday was an adventure to say the least. Flynn did not want to sleep Tuesday night. He went the first 4 hour block great. He woke up like clock work at midnight. He did not finish his bottle though and was up again at 2 then he woke up again at 3am! By then it was just a matter of saying screw it and staying up. Chris had to get ready for work so I stayed up as well. It meant I was able to shower while he was still here.

Flynn and I both had Doctor appointments yesterday in Denver. I packed up both his diaper bags with formula, clothes, burp cloths, diapers, wipes, blankets, bottles, his baby monitor and a book for me haha. We headed to Children's Hospital around 6:30 to account for traffic and go down there at about a quarter to 8. We were needless to say about 45 minutes early when I parked the Jeep and that is when I realized I forgot his stroller. It wasn't that big a deal but I'm still building up my strength and his car seat gets heavy!

We made it inside fine. I found a family bathroom and Flynn had his first ever public building diaper change. Haha. So many silly firsts out there for us to experience together.

They took us at the Eye Clinic pretty quickly. I felt so bad for him. Preemies are prone to a condition called Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) which is caused due to the blood vessels to the retina developing abnormally. Anyway, in the NICU Flynn was cleared but had to have a follow-up because his retina blood vessels had not fully matured yet. I was not there when they did that initial exam. Yesterday I found it out they were really close to being mature at that point. Which had I known would have made me worry much less. He saw the same doctor at Children's as he did at UCH. Mainly because they are right next to each other they share a lot of physicians. The UCH NICU is a level 3 and Children's is a lvl 4. He could have gone over to Children's had he been in worse shape when he was born, that is where all the babies requiring extra care/surgeries go.

I know the eye exam didn't hurt him but it wasn't pleasant to watch. He cried his eyes out while the nurse put the eye drops in his eyes. First numbing ones and then dilation ones. I got to hold him for a while after that while the dilation ones set in. The whole exam felt like a normal eye visit. I've worn glasses since I was 8. I know what its like to go through dilation and all of that. I didn't think about how babies don't know how to look left and right on command this young or to keep their eyes open with the bright light in their face. I stayed for the whole thing, I wanted him to know I was there but I had trouble watching as they clamped his eyes open and she manually turned his eyes. I'm grateful the nurse held him while she did the exam. It was over quick and he was back in my arms. He was also cleared as she announced his retina vessels were fully mature! No more eye visits until next year. They said to come back between 6-12 months so I picked April as a good 8 month range. Preemies are more prone to need corrective lenses or have other eye issues as they get older. Not all preemies will, my husband Chris has fine eye sight, his twin brother wears glasses though, and as I mentioned I do too although I'm not a preemie.

After our visit to Children's and the great news we headed to my parents house and I fed Flynn and put him down for a nap. I tried to nap too but I realized I was starving at about 10 and Flynn woke up and wasn't happy (new place and eyes still dilated) not long after that so he hung out with me on their couch for a few hours before we had to go to my own doctors appointment.

My dad came with us so he could watch Flynn in the waiting room. I think he also wanted to hear what the doctors had to say. He was always very worried about me in the hospital. He's made it clear via my mom that he doesn't want Chris and I to risk having another baby, but that is another story. This visit was a great one. They said all my stats were fine and it was great how quickly I recovered. My appointment was a follow-up with the Renal Clinic. They said they would check my proteins because it had been awhile but with my blood pressure being okay again and all my other blood work normal they didn't think their be an issue. My creatinine was only a 0.8! I remember when it was a 9! I have one more OB Post visit next week and I'm finally done with doctors for awhile. Flynn has just begun his visits but the rest should all be routine every baby visits. On Monday he gets his 2 month immunizations. I'm so glad Chris will be there with me for that one.

Last night Flynn didn't want to sleep in the bassinet upstairs so I ended up sleeping on the couch so that Chris could sleep since he has to get up so early for work. Flynn had another similar night where he woke up at midnight and then 2am and 3am. This time he fell back to sleep though and is still sleeping so I didn't get up till 5 and can enjoy my coffee. Here is to hoping today is smoother. I plan on doing some much needed house work today and just relaxing otherwise.

Easy like Sunday Morning.

This weekend has been going really well so far. My parents came up yesterday to see us and visit with Flynn. They so graciously allowed Chris and I to go shopping without having to worry about bringing Flynn into the store. I'm determined to limit his exposure to the outside world until he is older and his immune system is stronger. Today we have to take him to Babies'R'Us with us to pick up somethings.

My Mother-in-Law and her husband were over for dinner last night as well. In honor of all the visits we dressed up Flynn a bit. I'm proud to announce that he no longer requires the Preemie clothes as he finally fits more appropriately in his New Born sizes. I cannot wait to see how much he has gained when we go in on the 13th for his 2month visit at the pediatrician!

Such a handsome boy!

Flynn is rocking the bottle so I'm so excited. He is taking more and more each day and he seems to be on about a 3-4 hour sleep stage. He is nearly two months so soon we will increase his feedings and hopefully he will start sleeping a little longer.

We also recently found out that Flynn likes the song "Let's Go Fly a Kite" from Mary Poppins. I think its the tempo because it works wonders at calming him down.

The ring from Flynn's circumcision is finally off. I think it was really bothering him at the end as it was partially fallen off. Last night it came off fully and he stopped crying as much when being changed.

Today he may get to meet more of his family! His Aunt and Uncle and cousins have been up in the mountains at our Bi-yearly family vacation. Chris and I were unable to attend this year for obvious reasons. Two of his Uncles did not want to visit Flynn in the hospital so I'm excited for them to meet him.

Lately I've been thinking, "What about me? How am I really doing now?"

There are some things that still make it difficult for me to accept that what happened did but I've been adjusting and being able to hold Flynn now all the time really helps. Sometimes though I remember the things we missed out on and how different things are from the way they would have been if he was full term. Today we received a package from Similac. When I first found out I was pregnant I signed up for free coupons and information from Similac and Enfamil and never really thought about it. The 15th is my due date and they sent us free samples of formula I'm not really sure what to do with them. Flynn is on a very specific formula although it is Similac so we can use the coupons they gave us at least.

This kind of stuff as well has hearing what people did with their kids when they were babies is hard for me. Hard because I feel like I'm going to miss out on certain aspects of having a baby. Although I treasure every moment of his life and and look forward to getting to know my little man I can't help but wonder.

I'm also nervous because Chris goes back to work on Tuesday at which point I'm on my own and truly a stay at home mom. We shall see how things go. I may have more adventures by then to share with all of you.

Doctors appointments and just life in general. Coming up in full force this week.

So much to remember..

I love my son and I want to share him with the world. If not I wouldn't be doing this right? Well people do not realize that as a preemie he isn't like a regular 7 week old baby. I have to remember my patience when dealing with family and friends.

I want them to see him but he just came home. In my opinion trying to limit how much we go out for now is completely acceptable. In fact the nurses at the NICU indicated we should try and keep him home more. I'm really nervous about his party on the 18th. I am prepared to have lots of hand sanitizer and make sure people are washing their hands and I am not afraid to tell people no but I do feel some guilt, I'm not ready to take our son to a lot of public places. Maybe in a few weeks but he is still so small and young. So for now no unnecessary trips.

I have to remember that not everyone is familiar with preemies. How at this point its not about how many ounces he eats but how many milliliters. Which is is doing better every day. Yesterday he took 210mLs (7oz) and last night about 165mL(5.5oz). We track in 12 hour chunks. The pediatrician told us to just slowly increase his feedings as he feels ready for them. He is only taking the 60mL (2oz) some of the time and we are dealing with that every so common spit up. His reflux is very mild which makes me happy and we've been burping him several times a feeding. The NICU nurses always said he was a good burper and he was even known for it in the NICU! The paperwork we were given by the Pediatrician also mentioned to help ease reflux and spit up to have him sit up for up to 30 minutes after feedings and to be honest its really working!

We took Flynn on his first walk yesterday. It went well. He is still so small that he slept the whole time. We plan on taking him again this evening. On the walk we stopped at a bakery in town. We live in a very small town. I'm talking one restaurant and now this bakery kind of small town. It was really nice and we had yummy gelato. ^_^ Still Flynn slept and I wasn't so worried being there because we were the only ones there aside from the girl working.

Chris doing PT with Flynn

Doing his physical therapy and getting him to take his vitamins gets easier with time. We even did a little tummy time yesterday. He lifted his head twice for me! I plan on doing it everyday. Hopefully he will like it better each day. 

Flynn after a feeding but not yet sleepy

So far this morning he seems to be up every two hours. Although he did let us relax for a good 4 hours from about 4am to 8am. I know he isn't even two months old yet but I'm going to be happy when he sleeps later. We've been told for now to not let him sleep over 4 hours. 

I can't help but pick him up as well as photograph him. I love his expressions!

Baby, I'm coming home..

On Friday when I went to the NICU Flynn no longer had his NG tube. He had pulled it out that morning and the Doctors decided to see what happened. He was put on on-demand feeding finally. He had not gained weight in a few days but he took what he needed to for the on-demand minumum that day. The next day I was at my cousin Emily's for her daughter's fourth birthday. While there I received a call from the hospital asking for consent to do the circumcision for Flynn. They do this when the baby is within a few days from coming home! I was so excited.

My poor boy was not happy when I got to the hospital later that night. I found out he had lost weight the night before as well which was not good. They upped his calorie intake to 24 cal per bottle and they told me he could be coming home by Monday if he gained weight.

Sunday I called the NICU for an update. My mom and I were trying to plan our day. We wanted to come to my home and do some cleaning to get ready for Flynn's homecoming if he was coming home. The nurse said he had gained and so it still looked possible and she asked if Chris and I would like to do the "rooming in" where we would stay in room with Flynn for the night at the hospital. Flynn would still be hooked up to all his monitors and we would be in charge of his care. Chris and I went for it. So that night we stayed with our boy for the first time. It was interesting staying. We did really well with his care and didn't really get much sleep though because it was in the hospital.

It took most of the morning on Monday but they finally discharged Flynn!! Our little boy finally came home! He did really well in the car which made me so happy. They told us it will take about a week for him to adjust to his new home and last night was a lot harder to feed him. He wouldn't take much of his bottles so he kept waking up a lot. Today we have to go to the store to pick up things we need like food and a hamper for Flynn, a diaper genie, and we may get a microwave bottle sterilizer. We were really funny to watch yesterday. We have no covered trash cans and we were not sure what to do with the diapers!

The only other concern I had before he came home was how our cat Higgins and dog Achilles were going to react but they have been great so far. Achilles is concerned every time Flynn fusses or cries, and Higgins hasn't made up his mind yet I think but neither is hostile. They both seem to know he is an infant and therefore need to be gentle.

Will post photos when I can. ^_^

Now that Flynn is home let the next chapter begin!

Articles

Here are some articles I found on The Bump about Preemies:

The Worst Things to Say to Moms of Preemies
NICU Cheat Sheet
Advice for Surviving the NICU

The first one has a lot of things I've heard.. and I have to agree with how they felt when they heard them. Like when my son was first born, when I saw how many people on facebook were saying how happy they were for us and congratulating us it felt like a double edged sword. I mean my son was 2 months early and in the NICU and I nearly died. It didn't feel very celebratory to me. Unless you've gone through it yourself I think its hard to understand. We've been one of the lucky ones though. The baby that had our area before us was born at 17 weeks and did not make it. We've had a pretty easy go of it although he is taking his dear sweet time with the bottle feeding.

Going to head to the hospital soon. I'll update you all on how is doing. I am hoping he will be home before Football season starts.. which for us is on August 9th with the Broncos playing the Bears.

Care Times and Physical Therapy..

Yesterday I spent the longest I've ever spent in the NICU. After having spent 3 weeks as a patient and going through hell and back I honestly had problems staying for more than about 2-3 hours for a care time with Flynn. Yesterday though that all finally changed. I was there from 3pm to 7pm.

I was almost late for his 3pm care time! When I arrived he was finishing up his physical therapy. She was doing some tummy time with him and I was so proud of him. When he heard my voice he started lifting his head and of course grunting more. His little grunts amuse me.

I was only able to get him to take 20ccs from his bottle at 3pm but and about 27cc at 6pm. The nurse said he took that at 9am and slept through the noon. I was told it really is up to him. That one day he will just suddenly be strong enough to feed out of the bottle all the time. I'm just waiting patiently for that to happen.

It is getting better all the time..

Tomorrow officially marks Flynn's gestational age at 37 weeks. The nurses are confident he will not be there past his due date. He is up to taking a bottle at nearly all feedings but its the amount he takes from the bottle that is the issue now. He needs to get a little stronger so he can start taking more of his bottles. He weighed in at 6lbs 6oz the other day so he is still growing.

When I saw him yesterday the had said he took 3 out of 4 bottles the night before. Not the whole bottle but something. He took his whole bottle at 9am yesterday and was awake when we got in at 10:15. It was so nice to spend time with him awake like that.

Flynn gets visited by physical therapy 3-4 times a week. We met with them yesterday at 11:30. The woman who came was the one that had gone over his Morgan test results last week for me. He for his age range had to get a 66 on the test and he scored just over a 67. So I was really happy for him. Yesterday she basically just reviewed the abdomen curls, and the hand exercises on his face with us as well as taught us an exercise to do on his feet. I learned that you don't want to poke them on the bottoms of their feet as this can result in making their feet too sensitive when they are trying to learn to walk. There are so many things I feel like I still need to learn. I guess that comes with the territory. The other exercises she taught us have to do with strengthening his neck. One has him sitting up in my lap and I support his head by holding onto his cheeks and then sliding him backwards, forwards, and side to side just a small amount and just for a minute or so so he can slowly build up his neck muscles. Then there is one where he is laying in my lap and I have to get him to follow my voice and face from side to side to help again with his neck but I think that also works on other senses too since he has to follow you.

I know I'm probably biased but everyone agrees he is adorable. Can you blame them?

5 Weeks Old!

Hello!

 

Proud Momma

Well I better get going so I can go see my little man today.

Big Boy Diapers

When I went to see my son Flynn yesterday in the NICU he was off the oxygen. I was so thrilled to see that. It also appears his neighbor may be leaving soon because they were giving him a circumcision. They told us that happens a few days before they leave. The nurse was also talking about formula with them.

Flynn has a new nurse everyday. They rotate so he has the same one more than once but typically it is a different one everyday. The nurse he had yesterday was very informative. She covered a lot of care tips for me for when he comes home. She went over signs of dehydration, and other problems. Also told me to clean his mouth twice a day which isn't just for cleaning but also to help with prepping him for a toothbrush when he has teeth.

The most interesting thing she taught me was that it is important to rock with him twice a day for 30 minutes. As a preemie he needs help with his brain development and apparently its been found to help with left and right brain function if you rock them. This should not be hard for Chris and I. Chris loves to rock. Just have to make sure he doesn't rock him while he eats or just after. 

I spent part of yesterday working on the happier bits of his baby book. I really can't wait to bring my son home. I hate that I can only see him for short times.

Today when I went in he was still off oxygen which is great. They had told me yesterday he has mild lung disease which is actually the better end of what to expect with a preemie and the only way to fix it is for him to be off assisted oxygen for at least 30 consecutive days so it seems like today marked day 2. We shall see if he can stay like this.

The other big news today was that he is no longer in preemie sized diapers. The nurse he had today went ahead and moved him over to newborn size. He weighed in the other day at 5lbs 14oz so he is so close to 6lbs I can understand the move. Diapers go by weight after all. My son is almost 5 weeks old and finally fits in newborn diapers. He isn't long enough yet to fit in new born clothes but by the time he comes home he should be.

Before I go. Here are some of the photos from when he was little. This was after he had been there for over a week. I don't have any from earlier. Not available to share here. You can see how much he has grown in these.

 

I'm hoping the next time I share photos they wont be from the hospital. ^_^