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 INFYMUS .COM
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Michael S. Hoenie
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"ALEXIS - SECTION 1"
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ALEXIS - SECTION 1
Total Articles:
35
Alexis, my daughter and first child. Her birth up to 1 years of age.
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| | Alexis Anne Hoenie Is Born!
Posted: Sep 11, 2003, at 10:53 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus |  | |
Alexis Anne Hoenie was born today, Wednesday September 10th at 10:53am. She weighed in at 3 pounds 2 ounces and is 16 inches long. She is doing just fine and has passed all over her tests perfectly. She just needs time in the ICU to grow a little since she is 8
1/2 weeks premature. Her little hand held the smallest digit on my pinky as they checked her all over. Mom is finally sleeping
soundly and they have moved her out of ICU and into maternity.
On Thursday, September 4th, 2003, Kim went was transferred to the hospital with Pregnancy Induced Hypertension (PIH). After a long week of trying to keep her blood pressure down, a C section was performed and Alexis was born 8 1/2 weeks early.
Mom and baby are doing just fine, all is well. Mom is healing and will be released on Sunday. Baby will come home in about 8 weeks.
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Mom is resting comfortably tonite. Her blood pressure has gone back up a little bit so they have started medication. They can use different
medications now because she is no longer pregnant with Alexis. Hopefully she will come home on Sunday, and Alexis will come home
in about 8 weeks.
Alexis gained 44 grams of weight today, now weighing in at 2 pounds 12 ounces. They do loose weight when first born,
but begin to gain it back. An average gain of 15 to 45 grams per day is what is looked for.
I will have video of Mom and Alexis tomorrow.
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Kim had a small setback today, her blood pressure has been steadily going up the last two days. This morning she had a minor
seizure that last about 30 seconds. They moved her out of maternity and up to the ICU again, put an IV back in and started her
back on magnesium sulphate to prevent further seizures. They are also giving her medications to help bring the BP back down.
She will be in ICU for another 24 hours as they monitor her carefully. During the seizure she was unharmed and her vitals look good.
I'll report on Mom and Baby later tonite.
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| | Mom Stable - Alexis Smiles
Posted: Sep 13, 2003, at 10:16 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus | | |
Mom is finally stable in ICU. Poor dear has tubes coming out from everywhere again, but her BP is finally down to normal levels and she
is sleeping. We will check on her again in the morning to see how she is. She bit her tongue a little bit so her mouth is sore, but she is
doing OK for now.
Alexis smiled for me twice tonite. It was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. When I hold this little angel in my arms and she opens
her eyes and looks at me, I can't help but well up with tears. She is absolutely beautiful.
Tonite we combed Alexis's hair with a small toothbrush and put a bow in her hair. Alexis had us laughing to tears when she just wiggled and
wiggled while we tried to get her diaper on her. When she is on her tummy she will push her little legs down and put her hiney in the air, then
scooch around her incubator. The nurse one rotation found her tucked in the corner peaking out.
I can't believe how much she looks like me. She has reddish orange hair, and sweet coating of baby hair. She has a little heart shaped
mouth that she got directly from her mother. Her ears are mine, but her ear lobes are her mothers. One day we will know if she has her
mother's eyes and eyelids - just like her Grandma Tobin.
I just wanted to express my appreciation for the nurses at the LDS NICU. They have been very kind and loving in caring for Alexis and
numerous other premies. They've set good examples for me and generously allowed me access to my angel.
I put a new video of Mom and Alexis together tonite and it is now in the Videos Section. I'll get more pictures as time goes on.
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Kim has done very well in the ICU and they have decided to move her back down to Maternity, rather than into ICU level 1. They will
be taking off all of the IV lines and keeping her on oral medication to keep the bloodpressure down. Most likely she will remain on that
for about twelve weeks just to make sure. Her prognosis is good and maybe after a few days she can come home.
I will be heading back down tonite to get more video of Alexis and more pictures.
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Last nite Kim's BP was 117 over 77. That's fantastic. First time it has been that low since before this all started. She has been
moved out of ICU and is resting in Maternity. In fact, she was doing so well last nite, I thought I had a whole new woman!
At 7:30pm I wheeled Kim down in a wheelchair to the NICU and she was able to hold Alexis for nearly 45 minutes. We fed her,
changed the bow in her hair and even got her to smile at us several times.
Alexis has now gained 4 1/2 ounces since last Wednesday. Her feedings are up to a "7" now rather than a "3". I believe that means
grams in a small syringe that go into her tummy. This is good it means she is tolerating her feedings well and is digesting the milk
being put in her tummy. She is healthy and warm and very beautiful.
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| | Mom Coming Home? Alexis Grows
Posted: Sep 16, 2003, at 08:39 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus | | |
The Doctors have said that Kim should be coming home today. Last nite her BP was up a little more than normal, but only
on the border. There is a small chance that she will stay one more day in the hospital rather than come home. We will know
within the next few hours.
Alexis is growing very well. She has gained good weight and now weighs 3 pounds 1 ounce. That's up from 2 pounds 10 ounces
just last week. She is doing very well and is more alert now than before. Her feedings are up to 10mg up from 5mg (and up from 3mg when
she first started!).
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Yesterday Kim came home and slept and last nite she had her first 8 hour sleep in two weeks. She is doing
well and Grandpa supplied us with an automatic BP machine so we can make sure all is well.
Alexis gained another ounce, she is now 3 pounds 3 ounces. Her Neonatologist said today that she can
be taken off her special IV fluids (she has a Pick Line) and continue on breast milk. She is now up to an
11 on the scale, having milk in her tummy every three hours.
She is so fun to hold and make smile. Now that she is a week old, I will be working on getting a new
set of pictures up, so stay tuned.
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| | Proud Parents - New Pictures
Posted: Sep 19, 2003, at 09:18 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus | | |
Alexis is now up to 3 pounds 4 1/2 ounces. She is growing very well. Last night Kim got to hold Alexis "Kangaroo Style" for the first
time. This is a special bonding hold that is beneficial to both mother and child. This is where Alexis is held in just a diaper on
the bare chest of Mom. The mother's body temperature automatically regulates the temperature of the child. Alexis just softly cooed and
went right to sleep. Even the nurse commented on the BIO feedback display at how well Alexis was doing. Her heart rate, breathing and
oxygen levels were perfect the whole 45 minutes she was there. It is amazing the bond that exists between a baby and their parents.
I have placed new pictures up. Click on the pictures area to view them. This weekend I will be putting together a new video. I do have more
videos that I have made, but they will not fit on the website (they are roughly 480 megabytes in size, DVD quality). As time goes on, I will
be releasing all of these videos on DVD and will begin sending them out to the family.
I wrote too soon! I put a new video up in the video section! Enjoy!
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| | Some Days Good, Some Days Bad
Posted: Sep 20, 2003, at 08:57 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus | | |
Last nite we only got to hold Alexis for a very short time. Premies sometimes become stressed and they cannot tolerate being
held - or sounds - or light. Last nite was one of them. Her little heart rate kept jumping all over the place and her o2' saturation
kept dropping. So it was best that we just put her in her incubator and let her stay calm. Once she was back in she went right
back to normal.
We've been reading books on premature babies and found that this is very normal. It says to count the good days, not the bad
days, and not to get too emotional when things like that happen. Even so, it sure scares you when it happens.
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Alexis is now up to 3 pounds 6 ounces. Yesterday her PICC line was removed. Her o2' saturation was a little bit below
90% so supplemental oxygen is being given to her by way of nasal cannula.
A nasal cannula is used to give babies who can breathe on their own, extra oxygen. The oxygen is given through
small soft prongs (nasal cannula) that are placed in each nostril.
She continues to do well. She no longer needs a Neonatologist and has been assigned a Pediatrician. They have several sections in
the NICU they call "Pods". Each pod contains 4 babies. There are 9 pods in the main NICU area, plus a spill-over area across the
hall. Babies are moved through the NICU as they progress. The more medical attention they need, the deeper into the NICU they
are. Even so, every station in the NICU could handle the most critical of babies. Alexis is now in the last section where babies go
who are doing very well. While there are many pods, not all the pods are full at any given time.
As soon as Alexis has gained enough weight and probably by the 35th to 36th week, they will move her out of her
Isolette (incubator) and move her into a small tub-like table. This is for babies who can maintain their own body
temperatures and no longer need the humidity and heat of the Isolette.
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| | How You Journey, How You Grow
Posted: Sep 22, 2003, at 08:55 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus | | |
Alexis is 3 pounds 7 ounces. She is still on supplemental oxygen. She still continues to have apnea and brady spells
where she stops breathing for more than 20 seconds. This causes her heart rate to drop to 50 to 60 beats per minute
and then her O2 saturation drops as well. We had to do some blow-by oxygen and pinch her foot to get her to come
back again. Every time it happens it brings Kim to tears, but it is very normal for premature babies to have both
apnea and bradycardia. Our pediatrician called this morning saying she had to major apnea spells last nite - where she
stops breathing for over 20 seconds. She did not need to be resuscitated, she just needed a nurse to pinch her foot and
stroke her back until she remembered it was time to breath.
Alexis is connected to monitors that show her
current heart, breathing and O2 saturation levels. When the levels go too high or too low, an alarm sounds. If the levels
stay too low or too high, another more urgent alarm sounds. The NICU is staffed by a small army of nurses, head nurses,
pediatricians and neonatologists - she is in the best possible hands and care - and we love all of you!
This morning we spoke with her pediatrician and he has decided to put her on Previcid. Many premature babies have
reflux and this can cause "desats" or apnea spells. If the previcid helps the apnea spells, then that will be the continued
course of treatment. If not, then she will need to be placed on a caffeine derivitive that will stimulate her to continue
breathing.
I have put up four new pictures that we took last nite. They are in the pictures section. Here is some information
on Apnea and Bradycardia (also called Brady episodes).
What is apnea?
Apnea is a pause in breathing that has one or more of the following characteristics:
- lasts more than 15-20 seconds
- is associated with the baby's color changing to pale, purplish or blue
- is associated with bradycardia or a slowing of the heart rate
What is bradycardia?
Bradycardia is a slowing of the heart rate, usually to less than 80 beats per minute for a premature baby. Bradycardia often
follows apnea or periods of very shallow breathing. Sometimes it is due to a reflex, especially with the placing of a feeding
tube or when the baby is trying to have a stool.
Is all apnea due to prematurity?
No, apnea of prematurity is by far the most common cause of apnea in a premature infant. However, apnea can be caused or
increased by many problems including infection, low blood sugar, patent ductus arteriosus, seizures, high or low body
temperature, brain injury or insufficient oxygen.
Why do premature babies have apnea?
Premature babies have immature respiratory centers in the brain. Preemies normally have bursts of big breaths followed by periods
of shallow breathing or pauses. Apnea is most common when the baby is sleeping.
Will apnea of prematurity go away?
As your baby gets older, his/her breathing will become more regular. The time course is variable. Usually apnea
of prematurity markedly improves or goes away by the time the baby nears his/her due date.
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Alexis is now 3 pounds 9 ounces. Last nite she when we lifted the blanket off the top of her incubator, she popped right
awake and was fidgeting - all the while staring at her mommy and daddy's faces. For the first time now since her birth
she took her pacifier into her mouth and sucked on it. This is very good progress. She is such a little sweetie! We just loved
how she would gaze at her daddy, then shift to her mommy and back again. Premies at the age of 32 to 33 weeks can
recognize their parents by both sound and smell, while their site is still too premature - they can focus on objects such as
black bars on a white page, or large black dots - or bright colors.
We did her rounds, taking her temperature, combing her hair with a toothbrush, changing her diaper - she had such a big
poop for a little girl! That is a very good sign - it shows that her bowls are working and she is not gaining weight by retaining
fluids, so it is always a very good sign.
She is still having apnea and bradycardia spells - generally when she eats. So for the moment they have put her back
onto an IV so they can give her little tummy a rest. Today they will put her back on foods but they want to make sure
she is not having reflux. If she is, they are going to put the tube through her stomach and into her small intestine
to feed her that way through a small release machine. The machine drops about a drop every minute or so for about
two hours so that she gets milk - but at a slow rate - and not through her tummy. She will continue on prevacid for
a couple days to see if it helps. They will also be putting her on a caffiene medication to try and stop the apnea
spells.
Even so she is doing quite well considering she has gained 2 ounces a day since last week. At this rate she will
be 4 pounds by Friday! We are very happy. And it is good to see her so alert - even if it is for very short periods
of time.
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| | Small Leaps And Bounds
Posted: Sep 24, 2003, at 08:23 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus | | |
With the removal of Alexis's IV last nite and taking her off her fortifier, her weight has remained the same, but that
should change tonite and she should gain at least 1 or 2 ounces.
Last nite she had three episodes of apnea while we held her, but she snapped right out of two of them. The
doctor still has not placed her on caffeine and will try not to as long as possible. She is still taking prevacid
and it seems to be helping.
We held her for an hour and I took a few pictures, one of which I placed in the pictures area.
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| | One Step Back, Three Steps Forward
Posted: Sep 26, 2003, at 08:30 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus | | |
Alexis is now almost 3 pounds 10 ounces. She had to be taken off the fortifier because it was causing her reflux, which then in
turn was causing her apnea spells. Last nite she did not have any apnea spells that were of concern. She had two minor
episodes but she pulled herself out of them before you could even look up at the monitors. Her weight gain has momentarily
stopped because they had her back on an IV and took her off the fortifier. So she went up to 3 pounds 9 ounces, then back
to 3 pounds 7 ounces, and now just a hair under 3 pounds 10 ounces. I have a little sign ready for her that I will tape to
her incubator that says, "Horray for me! I'm 4 pounds!"
We came in at about 8pm last nite and Kim went off to the rooms to pump for Alexis. I found Alexis sleeping on her side and
when I called out her name and cupped her head, she immediately began squirming against her sleeper pouch. She wanted
to be turned over right away. I un-bundled her and turned her over so she could stretch out and she did. We played for about
twenty minutes. She kicked her little feet, gazed at my face, cooed and sucked on my finger, all the while playing with me. This is the first time
I've seen her so alert, smiling, and without any apnea or brady spells. She is beginning to tolerate being touched, rocked, stroked
and loved without having any spells or being overwhelmed. It is a very good sign and shows she is well on her way to
coming home to us.
Our pediatrician is out of town until Monday, so a Dr. Allred has taken over. He called me this morning as they do each morning
to talk about Alexis. I asked him if he knew a Dr. Allred from the SLC Clinic. He said he was the very same Dr. So we chatted a
little bit about the fact that I haven't seen him in almost 25 years and now he is treating my little angel. When I was 11 years old
he was my pediatrician, now he is seeing my little girl. It's a very small world.
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| No weight gain over the last 24 hours. Last nite Alexis was sleepy and so we just held her and gavage fed her. Tonite we will
try again to see if she will respond to breast feeding. It is a very slow process but soon she will pick it up.
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| | Back To Work - Busy Busy
Posted: Sep 30, 2003, at 10:14 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus | | |
I'm back to work now since Monday so updating has been a little bit slower.
Alexis is now up to 3 pounds 13 ounces. She is getting very close to 4 pounds and I can't wait. They
have taken her off the fortifier because she was having reflux problems with it. She is on prevacid and
caffeine to help with her brady spells. Since she was taken off the fortifier and put on caffeine, she has
gone 6 days without an apnea spell. This is very good news.
We have attempted breast feeding now for the last five days, but little Alexis just hasn't quite got the
idea yet. Every time she is on Kim's chest she snuggles in and goes right to sleep. They will continue
to gavage feed her until she gets a little older, but we will continue to try every couple of nights.
So all is well and she continues to grow. This weekend when I have a little more time I will try and
get some pictures updated, I do have quite a few more.
Cheers!
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Alexis is now up to 3 pounds 15 ounces. That is just 1 ounce away from 4 pounds! We are so proud of our little
angel how she is growing. Tonite she latched on three times, but only suckled for a couple of seconds. Even so that
is an improvement. The last five days we have tried but she just gets a little taste and then goes to sleep. The funniest
thing is when we're trying to get her to suckle and she gets a big grin on her face.
We do her rounds each night, taking her temperature, changing her diaper, measuring her tummy and then weight. After that
she's in our arms for up to 45 minutes. Soon she will be home with us.
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| | Almost 4 Pounds, But Not Yet
Posted: Oct 2, 2003, at 10:34 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus | | |
| Alexis lost a few milligrams over the last 24 hours so she is still about 40 milligrams away from 4 pounds. No problem, she will
get there. We tried suckling tonite but she didn't want to try at all. She was just sleepy and stinky. The Enfamil formula makes them
have gas and shes a stinky girl sometimes - but we still love her! Maybe she just takes after her daddy (so mom says...)
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| | Four Pounds Three Ounces
Posted: Oct 4, 2003, at 10:30 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus | | |
Look who just reached FOUR pounds!
Yesterday Alexis latched on and suckled for almost two minutes. Tonite she just gazed at her mommy and
daddy for a long time and we fed her by gavage tube. She gained nearly 3 ounces in the last two days.
She had two apnea/bradycardia spells yesterday. Its the first in almost 7 days now so they did a bloodcount
to make sure her body is creating bloodcells - and it is. No virus, no infections. But since then she has done
just fine.
Tonight we just held her for a half an hour and sweetly and gently told her we loved her. She smiled for us
several times as she looked around and was very alert.
We're so proud of her! She is only five weeks now from coming home.
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Alexis now weighs 4 pounds 6 ounces. She has had two days of 100 ounce gains. She is getting stronger every day
and her color is turning a sweet baby-pink. This means you can see less and less translucent skin as she begins to
put on weight. She hasn't quite got the hang of suckling yet, but we keep trying every night. She sometimes just
has a hard time sucking when she has a big grin on her face.
No bradycardia spells in the last 24 hours, but she has had an apnea spell where she required an oxygen mask for
a few minutes. This brings her oxygen saturation level back up to normal (around 90 to 95). Hopefully soon she will
outgrow this.
On the way out of the hospital Kim and I bumped into L. Tom Perry (LDS Apostle).
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| | Baby Steps, Baby Steps
Posted: Oct 7, 2003, at 09:43 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus | | |
Alexis now weighs 4 pounds 7 ounces.
Tonight she latched and sucked for a little over 60 seconds. This is a big step! She has latched before but
only suckles for a few seconds and then stops. It takes a lot of energy to suck/swallow/breath, so going 60
seconds was a big step for her. After she is done they attach a large syringe to her feeding tube (no needles) and suck the
contents back out to measure - that way they can tell how much they have to put back in to keep her calories up. It
was just around 4 milligrams, which is a good amount.
She had two apnea spells today that required blow-by oxygen but no bradycardia. We still worry about her breathing
episodes, but one condition on her coming home is she must have no apnea, no bradycardia in 8 straight days.
We start classes next week on infant CPR. We have to watch "shaken-baby" videos and start going over all of her
conditions of coming home. Even though it will be around 5 more weeks (or less, depending on her growth), it's time to
start planning on her coming home to us.
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Alexis now weighs 4 pounds 11 ounces. She is growing so fast and so beautifully.
Tomorrow Alexis will be moved out of her isolette and into a crib. It wont be your standard crib, but a smaller plastictub they call a crib - all out in the open. She'll be snuggled in little clothes and blankets - and still connected toall of her monitors.
This is another BIG step for little Alexis! She has graduated from her isolette to an open crib!
She is doing so well. She loves to be rocked and smiles when you kiss her little hands.
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Alexis now weighs 4 pounds 14 ounces. She'll be five pounds before we know it.
She has adjusted very well to her crib and has kept her temperature. Tonight she suckled for five minutes. No apnea/bradycardianow for three straight days. I think she is going to be home with us before we know it.
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Alexis now weighs 4 pounds 12 ounces. When premature babies are taken out of their isolettes and placed in cribs, their bodies needto adjust to maintaining their own temperatures. Because their bodies use more energy to maintain temperature, she has dropped2 ounces from 4/14 to 4/12. Soon she will start to gain again in a day or two.
Alexis is only partially interested in breast feeding. We have been holding off on bottle feeding in the hopes that as she gets a littleolder (she is 36 weeks old now) she will catch on. If you start to feed them by bottle then they are less inclined to take anythingelse.
Tonite she was a little fussy and wiggled around a lot, causing Kim some distress. I simply took it in stride.
I could gaze at her sweet little face all night long but our visits are short as we need to get home and get to bed.
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| | Five Pounds, Two Ounces!
Posted: Oct 15, 2003, at 09:54 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus | | |
Alexis now weighs 5 pounds 2 ounces. Tonight we gave Alexis her first bath. Just a sweet little tub with warm water and a sling, but shetook it all in stride and kicked her little legs in the water.
She's now taking all of her feedings by bottle because she still is just not interested in breast feeding. We do still try, but as soon as shegets the bottle in her mouth she sucks it gone.
Tonite was also the first time that I've held her without any leads on her (the ones that connect to her monitors). It was a wonderfulfeeling.
She has also now gone almost seven days with no apnea and no bradycardia. She will be home before we know it.
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| | Sweet Little Princess
Posted: Oct 17, 2003, at 09:55 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus | | |
Alexis now weighs 5 pounds 5 ounces.
We have a new trick to get Alexis to take the breast. There is a small flexible plastic nipple that is used, and a smalltube connected to a syringe full of milk is placed into the nipple. Then when Alexis latches a little, we pump a little milkinto the plastic area. This gets some in her mouth and she sucks it. As she goes, she gets both breast and bottle milkthis way and gets a full meal. She doesn't know where it's coming from and associates it with the breast - something we've had a difficult time getting her to do. Slow process but eventually she'll get the hang of it.
I love weekend visits (Friday/Saturday) because we get to spend twice as much time her as we usually do. So tonite afterfeeding and changing (twice!) we just held her. We put her in a little pink onesey and I held her on my chest while sheslept for almost an hour. She loves to have her back gently stroked in a circle and would smile again and again in midst ofsleeping. Meanwhile we visited with other parents in the NICU because we all have our stories to tell.
She did have a brady tonite so it sets her timeframe back to -0-, but no problem. She is doing fine, growing well and I justcan't get enough time to be with her. Soon she'll be home. Soon.
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| | Home Coming On The Horizon
Posted: Oct 20, 2003, at 09:55 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus | | |
Alexis now weighs 5 pounds 12 ounces. She is on the home coming stretch. She only needs to increase her feedings and shewill be coming home to us. She has been slightly anemic and her bloodcount is down a little, but they are giving her iron andsupplements to see if it will help out. She is now taking the breast or bottle four times a day. That's half a day's feeings (1 feedingevery 3 hours). As soon as she is up to 8 feedings a day on bottle or breast, she will come home.
Soon! Very soon!
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| Alexis now weighs just a hair under 6 pounds. Her pedatrician called today and said we seriously need to start thinking abouther coming home. All that is left for Alexis to do is take all her feedings by breast or bottle. She feeds 8 times per day and rightnow she is taking 6 of those feedings by bottle and breast. He said that there was a chance that she could come home thisweekend, but a more realistic approach would be sometime next week. Tomorrow Kim and I have to take CPR classes anda few more classes next week. Things are really moving faster now!
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Alexis now weighs 6 pounds 2 ounces. We still need to do a few more things before she comes home, but it willbe within the next seven days that she does. Until then, we continue to visit her twice a day, Kim in the morning andboth of us at night.
This weekend we are working on painting the room and next Thursday new carpet comes in. I can't wait untilher room is done and we can set up her crib - it's been sitting in the box the last three months.
So exciting that we are so close to her coming home.
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Alexis now weighs 6 pounds 4 ounces. She has taken the last 9 feedings by mouth. She only needs to take 16 feeds by mouthand she can come home. If things continue the way they are, she will be coming home to us on Tuesday or Wednesday. I'm notholding my breath but the chances are very good. She is so sweet! Every night we get there she is fussy and hungry. As soon aswe get that bottle in her sweet little lips she drinks it gone. Such a good sign and good progress. Her bloodcount has gone back upa little bit now that she's on iron and she's doing very well.
This weekend we got the primer paint on the walls (and the smell is driving us crazy). Thursday the carpet comes in. I'm takingWednesday through Friday off (vacation) to get more done and because most likely Alexis will be coming home this week.
I can't believe it's been almost two months since she was born. That she has spent all of this time in the NICU. She has comesuch a long way and we love her so.
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| | She's Coming Home Tomorrow!
Posted: Oct 27, 2003, at 09:57 AM
Stored Under Topic: ALEXIS - SECTION 1 -GUID-
Posted By: Infymus | | |
Alexis now weighs 6 pounds 5 ounces. Tonight she had to take the car seat test and she passed it. She sat in it for over an hour and finally just went to sleep (after she left her daddy a nice present).
Tomorrow we will be at the hospital at 8am to meet with her pedatrician, go over paperwork and she'll be discharged. Then we just head over to her pediatrician's office, get her weighed, and she is home with us forever.
I can't believe that it has been 47 days now since she was born. That is over 120+ visit to the hospital, twice a day sometimesthree times a day. She has come such a long way and now she is coming home to us. I could sit here and express the joy I feel in bringing my sweet daughter home, but I'd end up filling page after page after page.
I will continue to update the site for the next month so that parents, grandparents and friends who are reading can continue to keep up on how she is doing at home. I never thought I'd be keeping a blogger but here it is.
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Alexis came home yesterday morning. It took several hours to get discharged, get her medications, stop by herpediatrician's office to get her weighed and get home.
The last twenty four hours are as you would expect, very little sleep, lots of things to do. She has been very fussy forover twelve hours as she adjusts to living at home. It does not help that the medication and formula that she is oncauses her slight constipation. Even so there have been many moments of sleepy time and overall she is doingvery well. Tomorrow we visit the pediatrician to make sure all is well. Meanwhile, it is changes and feedings every threehours for quite a while.
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| This morning Alexis had a bad reflux and it caused her throw up into her little nose and mouth. She woke us upfrantic that she could not breathe. I lept out of bed and got her nose and throat cleared out but not before sheturned a little blue. Tonite she i | | |
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