Rachel had a busy day today. She got a blood transfusion because her blood count was low and that really helped her so it was a good thing. SHe had her second eye exam and she is better then where she was 2 weeks ago. Her blood vessels are growing and grew a little from 2 weeks ago. It's a step in the right direction but they are still a to immature to really see if there is an issue.
The doctor is not concerned so she will be looked at again in 2 weeks. If there was a cause for concern it would have been in a week.
She will be weighed again tonight so hopefully there is another weight gain.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Monday, September 28, 2009
Sunday, September 27, 2009
9/27/09
Rachel is 3 pounds! 3 Pounds!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Woo hoo!!!! She has also been able to test the nasel canulas...O2 up her nose where she does the breathing.....she is able to test that everyday for 2 hours......we can hold during that time or she can stay in the bed.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
9/23/09
Well today was a wonderful day for Rachel. She is almost 3 pounds and is eating 25cc's at each feeding. She is also allowed to be off the cpap for 2 hours at a time right now. They watch her to make sure that she does not destat too much and that her O2 isn't too high.
Yesterday was the first day she was able to do it and it was only while I was holding her, not while in her bed. She only lasted about an hour. Today I held for an hour and they were allowing her to stay on it while just laying in her bed.
Heres to a nice restful evening and another wonderful day!!
Yesterday was the first day she was able to do it and it was only while I was holding her, not while in her bed. She only lasted about an hour. Today I held for an hour and they were allowing her to stay on it while just laying in her bed.
Heres to a nice restful evening and another wonderful day!!
Monday, September 21, 2009
Thank you all!!
Sunday was amazing, the amount of presents that you all gave us at the shower for Rachel really left me speechless. And special thanks to both Mom and Dad, Leah, Chrissy and Busia for all the work and time you put in to make it so special. We are truly blessed to have such loving parents and siblings and wonderful caring friends!!
It ended up being 2 car loads and Dad's van load bringing everything back to our house. Everything is in the 'baby staging area' in the basement, waiting for us to finish her room and move upstairs (and for daddy to assemble the furniture). I think she now has more clothes than I do...I have a feeling I'll be fighting to keep my closet in that room!
My dad was the designated photographer so when he sends me pictures, I will upload them to the site. Thanks Dad!
God bless you all,
Rob, Jenny and Rachel
PS - Stopped in to see her today after work, she was doing well, 30.5 C in her incubator and 28 % O2 on the Cpap. She had tongued out her feeding tube when I got there, I told the nurse and she said that was the second time today she'd done that! She gave me 4 big stretches and yawns while I was there and peeked her eyes open for a minute. She was weighed last night and is 2lbs 9.5oz, they're going to up her feedings a bit and change the mixture of powder and add some oil to try and fatten her up a bit. The nurse says they go through about 6oz of milk a day with her.
Jenny will post more tomorrow!
It ended up being 2 car loads and Dad's van load bringing everything back to our house. Everything is in the 'baby staging area' in the basement, waiting for us to finish her room and move upstairs (and for daddy to assemble the furniture). I think she now has more clothes than I do...I have a feeling I'll be fighting to keep my closet in that room!
My dad was the designated photographer so when he sends me pictures, I will upload them to the site. Thanks Dad!
God bless you all,
Rob, Jenny and Rachel
PS - Stopped in to see her today after work, she was doing well, 30.5 C in her incubator and 28 % O2 on the Cpap. She had tongued out her feeding tube when I got there, I told the nurse and she said that was the second time today she'd done that! She gave me 4 big stretches and yawns while I was there and peeked her eyes open for a minute. She was weighed last night and is 2lbs 9.5oz, they're going to up her feedings a bit and change the mixture of powder and add some oil to try and fatten her up a bit. The nurse says they go through about 6oz of milk a day with her.
Jenny will post more tomorrow!
Sunday, September 20, 2009
9/20/09
What a great day for Rachel and a busy one for Mommy and Daddy! It was her shower today and boy is she one loved little girl! We have clothes for her until she goes to high school!!!
We love all presents! We can't wait to read all your wishes and hopes for her as well as the bedtimes books we received as well. All the handmade blankets are beautiful and I can't wait to wrap her up in the beautiful quilt that cousin Jamie made her. It's so soft!! We loved the wish book from Aunt Chrissy and Grandma Lou. And alhough Aunt Leah is a State fan she bought Rachel a Michigan sleeper....just for Daddy and a tailgate! And so Rob did not feel left out my mom made a bassinet skirt that is UofM but is pink! I hope she like pink, purple and green!!!
Rachel did have a good day today too. Her cpap level was moved down from 6 to 5. Hopefully she likes the change this time, she was not happy when they tried it last week. She will be weighed tonight so hopefully she gained more!!
Love to all from Rob, Jenny and Rachel
We love all presents! We can't wait to read all your wishes and hopes for her as well as the bedtimes books we received as well. All the handmade blankets are beautiful and I can't wait to wrap her up in the beautiful quilt that cousin Jamie made her. It's so soft!! We loved the wish book from Aunt Chrissy and Grandma Lou. And alhough Aunt Leah is a State fan she bought Rachel a Michigan sleeper....just for Daddy and a tailgate! And so Rob did not feel left out my mom made a bassinet skirt that is UofM but is pink! I hope she like pink, purple and green!!!
Rachel did have a good day today too. Her cpap level was moved down from 6 to 5. Hopefully she likes the change this time, she was not happy when they tried it last week. She will be weighed tonight so hopefully she gained more!!
Love to all from Rob, Jenny and Rachel
Thursday, September 17, 2009
9/17/09
Rachel is doing well.....she is now 2.8 pounds and is still doing well with her feedings. They will be checking her blood count, sodium and calcium levels tomorrow morning.
She had both eyes open today while I was there so that was fun to see. Her eye check yesterday was good. The doctor said that since her eyes are so immature that her next check is in 2 weeks. If it was any sooner then we would have reason to worry. Her blood vessels have a little more growning to do.
Here's to another good night for Miss. Rachel
Jenny
She had both eyes open today while I was there so that was fun to see. Her eye check yesterday was good. The doctor said that since her eyes are so immature that her next check is in 2 weeks. If it was any sooner then we would have reason to worry. Her blood vessels have a little more growning to do.
Here's to another good night for Miss. Rachel
Jenny
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
9/14/09
Rachel is doing well. She is no longer the youngest or smallest in the NICU!
She is now 2.7 pounds, but the nurse thinks part of that weight gain could be because they use a new scale.....the babies are on the other side of the NICU for the time being....they started construction on the floor above and the noise would be too much for them.
She is still on cpap, they did try to move her down to level 5 (not as much pressure going into the nose), but she did not like the change so she is back up to 6. It's not a bad thing that she couldn't handle the 5...she just doesn't like change!
She is also the fashionista of the NICU....the nurses love to look through her drawer to see what outfit they are going to put on her....she loves her little cotton sleepers....although they are still way too big on her she fills out the length it's the width we have to work on.
She is now 2.7 pounds, but the nurse thinks part of that weight gain could be because they use a new scale.....the babies are on the other side of the NICU for the time being....they started construction on the floor above and the noise would be too much for them.
She is still on cpap, they did try to move her down to level 5 (not as much pressure going into the nose), but she did not like the change so she is back up to 6. It's not a bad thing that she couldn't handle the 5...she just doesn't like change!
She is also the fashionista of the NICU....the nurses love to look through her drawer to see what outfit they are going to put on her....she loves her little cotton sleepers....although they are still way too big on her she fills out the length it's the width we have to work on.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Pictures from 9-11 visit
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| 9-11-2009 |
Jenny got to hold Rachel today for about 35 minutes or so. Sorry some of the pictures are fuzzy they had the lights turned low so it doesn't hurt her eyes.
Rob
Thursday, September 10, 2009
9/10/09
Good Day for Rachel! She rested comfortably all day and did well during her labs. Sodium was low so she will get sodium at each feeding. Her direct bili levels dropped from 4.3 (9/3) to 1.8 today. Blood and platelet counts are good. They were still waiting for her caffeine level when I left tonight.
She will have her eye check next week. And she is getting weighed tonight. If they find that she is not gaining like she should they will move her from 24 calories to 27 calories in her milk.
More updates tomorrow.
She will have her eye check next week. And she is getting weighed tonight. If they find that she is not gaining like she should they will move her from 24 calories to 27 calories in her milk.
More updates tomorrow.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
9/9/09
Well another good day for Rachel.....Her O2 was between 21%-23% all day. So that's good. Nothing has grown yet for her blood cultures so that is another good thing. She has labs tomorrow morning....they are going to check her sodium, electrolytes and caffeine. If those are good there won't be any changes, if they are low the doctors will talk about changing the levels.
When I left tonight I was able to help change her diaper and put her on her tummy....of course that was after we had mommy/daughter time. I got to hold her today and while I was she opened both eyes and looked towards me when I talked to her. She still can't focus on anything, but knowing she knows my voice makes those big eyes worth looking at!!
hopefully her night is a good one!!
When I left tonight I was able to help change her diaper and put her on her tummy....of course that was after we had mommy/daughter time. I got to hold her today and while I was she opened both eyes and looked towards me when I talked to her. She still can't focus on anything, but knowing she knows my voice makes those big eyes worth looking at!!
hopefully her night is a good one!!
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
9/8/09
Well Rachel had a good day today. She behaved until I got there and then she started to set off her alarms! They had to change her nose things for cpap and she did not like that one bit!!! So when I got there she was sleeping because she used so much energy kicking and moving her arms and legs while the resperatory therapist was changing....
The doctor did up her caffeine dose again....which is normal. She is just processing it faster as she grows. They will check her sodium, electrolytes and caffeine levels again on Thursday to see how they are.
She is also getting a bath and weighed tonight...so that will be updated tomorrow. Next week she will get her first eye exam to see how her eyes are developing....from what the doctor said it is still likely to early to see if she has anything wrong so the diagnosis will most likely retinas are still immature.
Here's to another good night for Rachel!
Jenny
The doctor did up her caffeine dose again....which is normal. She is just processing it faster as she grows. They will check her sodium, electrolytes and caffeine levels again on Thursday to see how they are.
She is also getting a bath and weighed tonight...so that will be updated tomorrow. Next week she will get her first eye exam to see how her eyes are developing....from what the doctor said it is still likely to early to see if she has anything wrong so the diagnosis will most likely retinas are still immature.
Here's to another good night for Rachel!
Jenny
Monday, September 7, 2009
9/7/09
Rachel had a good day today. She rested comfortably all day and was sleeping when we left this afternoon.
She is still on the dueretic to help keep fluid out of her lungs. No changes to her cpap, or feedings.
Here to another good day for Rachel and my first day back to work....will see who takes it harder!
She is still on the dueretic to help keep fluid out of her lungs. No changes to her cpap, or feedings.
Here to another good day for Rachel and my first day back to work....will see who takes it harder!
Sunday, September 6, 2009
9/6/09
Rachel had a better day today....still going up and down with her O2 saturation....when I left this afternoon she was at 25% which is not very high.
They did do a chest x-ray and it looked a bit hazy and her lungs did not look as inflated as they did the last x-ray so the doctor did start her on diretix to help get some of the fluid out so she gets that every 12 hours. Because the diretix causes her to go potty more they are also giving her sodium chloride to help with keeping her sodium level and electorlyte levels up. Both are given during her feeds.
Her next sodium check will be Tuesday or Wednesday next week. They are also still waiting for her caffeine level results as well. If it is low they will up her amount that she gets.
She was resting comfortably when I left on her tummy of course! Here's to another good night for Rachel.
They did do a chest x-ray and it looked a bit hazy and her lungs did not look as inflated as they did the last x-ray so the doctor did start her on diretix to help get some of the fluid out so she gets that every 12 hours. Because the diretix causes her to go potty more they are also giving her sodium chloride to help with keeping her sodium level and electorlyte levels up. Both are given during her feeds.
Her next sodium check will be Tuesday or Wednesday next week. They are also still waiting for her caffeine level results as well. If it is low they will up her amount that she gets.
She was resting comfortably when I left on her tummy of course! Here's to another good night for Rachel.
9/6/09
Rachel had an okay day yesterday and an okay night. She is going up in her stats on O2 and her heart rate was dropping. There are a few reasons it could be happening...her caffeine level could be low and they may need to up it, she could have an infection or this could just be the after effects of not having the steriods anymore.
They did draw some blood this morning to check the caffeine level and check for an infection. They are not going to start treating her with antibiotics yet, they will be waiting to see if anything grows in the cultures....so now we wait to see if anything does.
She was resting comfortably last night when I left on her tummy of course! When I called this morning her nurse said that she is behaving better now then she was yesterday and last night......I guess a few pokes of the needle and she starts to behave! :)
Hopefully she will have a better day today.....so that I can hold her longer then yesterday......
They did draw some blood this morning to check the caffeine level and check for an infection. They are not going to start treating her with antibiotics yet, they will be waiting to see if anything grows in the cultures....so now we wait to see if anything does.
She was resting comfortably last night when I left on her tummy of course! When I called this morning her nurse said that she is behaving better now then she was yesterday and last night......I guess a few pokes of the needle and she starts to behave! :)
Hopefully she will have a better day today.....so that I can hold her longer then yesterday......
Saturday, September 5, 2009
9/4/09 - Evening
Rachel had a good day today and has been having a good night as well. Her O2 is up to 30 - because she is having some events and not recovering as quick as she was. It's not a bad thing she has the O2....just something to help her.
When I called tonight to say goodnight....she hadn't been weighed yet so we will see what that update is in the morning. She is also getting another new incubator....same thing as she has now just a change to get the other one cleaned.
Here's to another good night and a start to a good day for Rachel
When I called tonight to say goodnight....she hadn't been weighed yet so we will see what that update is in the morning. She is also getting another new incubator....same thing as she has now just a change to get the other one cleaned.
Here's to another good night and a start to a good day for Rachel
Friday, September 4, 2009
9/4/09
Rachel had a good day yesterday and a good night. She is still on cpap and holding her own on breathing. She is still tolerating her feeds and her little rash is healing!
She did have her first outfit on yesterday.....it was huge, but looked to darn cute!! She no longer has the temperature line on her and the incubator is set at a certain temp and she has been maintaining it pretty well so far. As long as she continues to do that she will have one less line!
I got to hold her again yesterday.....it's now no longer if we can it's when are we going to.....since she is doing pretty well. It's very nice! She really likes that time out of the incubator. It will be hard tho when I am back at work....I won't have the day time visits.....but at least I can call anytime....and I will be there after work and of course there are the weekends.......I'd rather have the time when she comes home.
Here's to another good day!!!
She did have her first outfit on yesterday.....it was huge, but looked to darn cute!! She no longer has the temperature line on her and the incubator is set at a certain temp and she has been maintaining it pretty well so far. As long as she continues to do that she will have one less line!
I got to hold her again yesterday.....it's now no longer if we can it's when are we going to.....since she is doing pretty well. It's very nice! She really likes that time out of the incubator. It will be hard tho when I am back at work....I won't have the day time visits.....but at least I can call anytime....and I will be there after work and of course there are the weekends.......I'd rather have the time when she comes home.
Here's to another good day!!!
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
9/2/09
Good day for Rachel today!! She is out of her private room.....and out on the floor. The rooms are more for the preemies that are sick, or need the quiet, dark and more care. She's growing out of that! One more step closer to home!! I think Rob and I are a little more bummed about the room change then she will be....ha ha
She is still on room air and only really needs to be moved up on O2 for her hands on with diaper change and temp check, etc. They were going to move her CPAP down to level 5 pressure (she's on 6 right now), but the doctor decided against it just because she is doing so well right now and they want to give her a little more time to get used to breathing on her own. The steriods were stopped and her picc line is out.
They did have to get some speical cream for her little butt. She has a little bit of a rash....since she was pooping so much and because of the antibiotics it happened. The cream they are putting on her is one that stays on even through diaper changes.
She still loves her tummy time, but is getting a little better on her side and also her back. But tummy time is still the all time fav!
Enjoy the pics!
She is still on room air and only really needs to be moved up on O2 for her hands on with diaper change and temp check, etc. They were going to move her CPAP down to level 5 pressure (she's on 6 right now), but the doctor decided against it just because she is doing so well right now and they want to give her a little more time to get used to breathing on her own. The steriods were stopped and her picc line is out.
They did have to get some speical cream for her little butt. She has a little bit of a rash....since she was pooping so much and because of the antibiotics it happened. The cream they are putting on her is one that stays on even through diaper changes.
She still loves her tummy time, but is getting a little better on her side and also her back. But tummy time is still the all time fav!
Enjoy the pics!
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| 9-2-2009 |
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
9/1/09
Here's to Rachel!! She had a great night and was on 21% O2 for that last 3 hours! Go Rachel!!! She is also 1020 grams.....2.4lbs. She will be able to wear clothes soon....once the temperature probe is removed (the little cord that is held with the cute animals)
Last round of steriods was last night and that means....picc line gets removed!!! Yeah! And this morning is her first bigger dose of caffeine......and she has not had any residuals with her last few feeds....that's a good thing!!
Hoping today is as good as her night!!!
Last round of steriods was last night and that means....picc line gets removed!!! Yeah! And this morning is her first bigger dose of caffeine......and she has not had any residuals with her last few feeds....that's a good thing!!
Hoping today is as good as her night!!!
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