Wednesday, September 30, 2009
0 4 October on O2?
Dr. Thompson will try taking Anders off of oxygen tomorrow! He remains at 5lbs 10oz. Grandma Ingrid and I went to his 9 am feeding and he gave us all his Anders looks: the smile, the pursed lips, the worried look, the raised eyebrow with forehead wrinkles, and the "I have to poop" face. His nurse said "He doesn't want to be here anymore." We agree. Tomorrow will be a fascinating day. I think he will do well since he hates his cannula.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Anders Learns to Cry
Anders weighs 5lbs 10oz today. He is down to a quarter liter of oxygen. The nurse practitioner said that at this rate he could be off of oxygen by the end of the week! He hasn't had an apnic spell since the 26th. If he can make it a week, then they can stop his caffeine dosage. After he gets off caffeine, we can begin the conversation about getting him home.
Grandma Ingrid came for a visit today. Anders has made tremendous progress since her last visit over three weeks ago on Labor Day. She held him during his noon feeding, which Grandma enjoyed tremendously.
Anders has found his voice today. He had cried before, but now he is crying louder, longer, and stronger than before. It's a great sign for his lungs, but bad news for our sleep in the long term.
Everything is progressing well. We are excited that he might be off of oxygen soon and that the staff is starting to talk about a discharge. As always, Anders will have the last word on discharge, but we are happy to start thinking about this eventuality.
Also, fall is starting to take hold here. It blew in on Sunday and is settling in today.
Grandma Ingrid came for a visit today. Anders has made tremendous progress since her last visit over three weeks ago on Labor Day. She held him during his noon feeding, which Grandma enjoyed tremendously.
Anders has found his voice today. He had cried before, but now he is crying louder, longer, and stronger than before. It's a great sign for his lungs, but bad news for our sleep in the long term.
Everything is progressing well. We are excited that he might be off of oxygen soon and that the staff is starting to talk about a discharge. As always, Anders will have the last word on discharge, but we are happy to start thinking about this eventuality.
Also, fall is starting to take hold here. It blew in on Sunday and is settling in today.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Update: Stability
Anders remains at 5lbs 9oz. Their weekly measurement is wrong, as it has him shrinking a quarter inch. In the nurses' defense, it is hard for one person to measure him. Anders is down to half a liter of O2 at room air. Anna estimated that Anders took about 30 mils of food from the bottle this afternoon.
Anders was making all sorts of faces during his 3 pm feeding. He was also pushing himself up and turning his head from side to side, things a baby this young probably should not be able to do yet.
There is not much new and dramatic to report, which is good. Anders just continues to make slow and steady progress.
Anders was making all sorts of faces during his 3 pm feeding. He was also pushing himself up and turning his head from side to side, things a baby this young probably should not be able to do yet.
There is not much new and dramatic to report, which is good. Anders just continues to make slow and steady progress.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Cueing
Anders is having a jump in personality. He is always awake when we come during feeding time as he "cues" for his food. Anders not only recognizes us, but is excited to see us. He sort of shows off his personality when we see him. Anders is more fun to be around now that he tracks what we say more than before. We are headed back tonight to see him. When I visited this morning he was babbling at me. Anders was even talking with his hands! If not for his nasal cannula, he would look like he could go home tomorrow.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
25 Mils!
I received a call from Anders' nurse tonight. Normally, we do not like receiving calls from medical professionals, but this one was good. Marsha just called to tell us that Anders took 25 of his 44 mils from the bottle during his 9 pm feeding! That's 15 mils more than he had before to that point. It's great news and very exciting for his progress toward his eventual release. Once he can breath and feed on his own, release cannot be far behind. I'm so excited to get home that I might even sign the state rock song of Ohio when we pass under the big blue arch!
Baby Steps
Anders continues to make good slow progress. He now gets 44 mils of food every three hours. When he demonstrates a willingness, he is bottle fed. He has taken as much as 10 mils of food from the bottle. When he is done, he is done, however. Anders sort of shuts down when he doesn't want to eat anymore. Anders now weighs a robust 5 lbs 9 oz.
They might scale back his calorie enriched formula early next week since it has led to some constipation. I have decided that watching a constipated baby struggle to perform the necessary function is a distant second in "hard things to watch" after desaturation. They might start giving him pear juice to clear things up in the not too distant future. In the meantime, his nurse took a return trip to suppository city. I will stop discussing my son's stoppedupedness now.
I think Anna believes these posts will be read at his wedding toast. Well, to Adult Anders, just pay it forward, My Boy. This problem is sort of like having returned home from a harrowing winter drive where you have been on black ice, almost skidded out of control, nearly been stuck in a ditch, narrowly avoided getting broad-sided, and now the garage door won't open because it's too cold outside. This is the frozen garage door of Anders' problems--minor, annoying, and almost funny. This too will pass (we hope!). It's been a long nine weeks folks. It feels good to laugh!
They might scale back his calorie enriched formula early next week since it has led to some constipation. I have decided that watching a constipated baby struggle to perform the necessary function is a distant second in "hard things to watch" after desaturation. They might start giving him pear juice to clear things up in the not too distant future. In the meantime, his nurse took a return trip to suppository city. I will stop discussing my son's stoppedupedness now.
I think Anna believes these posts will be read at his wedding toast. Well, to Adult Anders, just pay it forward, My Boy. This problem is sort of like having returned home from a harrowing winter drive where you have been on black ice, almost skidded out of control, nearly been stuck in a ditch, narrowly avoided getting broad-sided, and now the garage door won't open because it's too cold outside. This is the frozen garage door of Anders' problems--minor, annoying, and almost funny. This too will pass (we hope!). It's been a long nine weeks folks. It feels good to laugh!
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Anders Pitches a No Hitter
I visited Anders this afternoon. I had to see this phenomenon of Anders breathing without help. I went in around 3:30 pm. The nurse asked if I was going to stay for the feeding, I replied that I would probably visit and then come back later for the feeding. However, I was transfixed by his nasal cannula resting on his head. He was up around 100%. He had a couple of small desaturations, but he handled it amazingly well. At one point, I tried to put the cannula back in and he slapped my hand away! It felt like watching the last inning of a no hitter in the playoffs. Time just flew by as I watched him. I didn't wake him or disturb him since he was doing so well.
I introduced the bottle to him at 6 pm this evening. He took in about 10 mils of food. A lot of his mother's milk ended up on his bib, however.
Anna and Mandy came by before the feeding. I suppose Anna needed a ride there, but again I was transfixed. Mandy held him for the first time. She was glowing like Dorene after the hold.
The breathing and the bottle were huge, but were in some ways overshadowed by Anders' HUGE bowel movement. He hadn't had a bowel movement in 27 hours so the nurse gave him a glycerin supository. It worked in a big way. The first wave in his first was about half the size of my fist. It took about 10 wipes to clean him up. Then, he started going in the clean diaper...twice! It was epic. It was so voluminous that wipes were getting dirty before I even reached skin! I could hold a 5 minute conversation about this event.
Oh, and Anders now has his own private room off the nursery. It is about the size of his half of his college dorm room. He has his own telephone, sink, clock, two doors, and a crib. It's a pretty sweet setup.
He now weighs 5lbs 3oz, but might have lost some of that weight this evening!
I introduced the bottle to him at 6 pm this evening. He took in about 10 mils of food. A lot of his mother's milk ended up on his bib, however.
Anna and Mandy came by before the feeding. I suppose Anna needed a ride there, but again I was transfixed. Mandy held him for the first time. She was glowing like Dorene after the hold.
The breathing and the bottle were huge, but were in some ways overshadowed by Anders' HUGE bowel movement. He hadn't had a bowel movement in 27 hours so the nurse gave him a glycerin supository. It worked in a big way. The first wave in his first was about half the size of my fist. It took about 10 wipes to clean him up. Then, he started going in the clean diaper...twice! It was epic. It was so voluminous that wipes were getting dirty before I even reached skin! I could hold a 5 minute conversation about this event.
Oh, and Anders now has his own private room off the nursery. It is about the size of his half of his college dorm room. He has his own telephone, sink, clock, two doors, and a crib. It's a pretty sweet setup.
He now weighs 5lbs 3oz, but might have lost some of that weight this evening!
Sweet Dreams
Anders slept for half an hour with his nasal cannula on his forehead. That is, with no assistance. We now know we can do it. We also know that some of his issues with weening are psychological.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Antonization
First of all, do not underestimate how much Brett Favre is part of WI culture and how much they miss him over there. I'm watching the Twins broadcast tonight on which WI tourism advertises for fall. The music for the ad is from the Bodeans--a WI band--and the announcer says to the couple compelled to visit WI after fall's first leave arrives "Go have some fun out there!" The same phrase that every color commentator from Beasley Reece to John Madden used to describe the play of Brett Favre. He's omnipresent! You can't get away from him, Sconsers!
We drove up to Zimmerman this afternoon for a visit. The leaves are noticably more colorful up here than in Edina.
We looked at baby pictures of Anna. Anders has some pure Anna looks. I thought from first sight that he has Anna's eyes, which has only been reinforced by these pictures.
Anders had his first of three sets of immunizations today. Tomorrow he will have the other two. He also has his monthly brain scan tomorrow. That's a weird sentence to write. I'm 29 years older than Anders and I have never had a brain scan or spent a night in the hospital for that matter.
Anders is still hovering at 5 lbs 1oz. He looks a bit more mature in the face, however. His forehead is getting bigger, which is pushing his hair back. Unlike his father he is not losing his hair (in no small part Anders' doing), but it is literally being pushed back by his growing forehead. Also, his hair looks like it's turning strawberry blond on the sides. It's starting to look a bit strawberry blond all over. Anna's hair looked a bit like that when she was a tiny baby. Also, that hair color ran in the family of Anton, Anna's great grandpa. He really is Anna from the eyes up and me from the ears and below.
They moved him down to .75 liters of O2. He is at about 23% O2. I imagine that they will have to move him back up to 1 liter tomorrow after all of his shots and scans.
We can introduce Anders to the bottle whenever we want. I think we may hold off tomorrow since a lot is already happening, but we will probably try on Friday when he hits 36 weeks. At 36 weeks Anders moves into the date range where he could be released. He will not be released for a while, but it's nice to know that time is around the corner. Bottle feeding him, we are told, will help him get out of the hospital more quickly. He's up to 42 mils of food every 3 hours.
All in all, Anders keeps chugging, slowly progressing.
We drove up to Zimmerman this afternoon for a visit. The leaves are noticably more colorful up here than in Edina.
We looked at baby pictures of Anna. Anders has some pure Anna looks. I thought from first sight that he has Anna's eyes, which has only been reinforced by these pictures.
Anders had his first of three sets of immunizations today. Tomorrow he will have the other two. He also has his monthly brain scan tomorrow. That's a weird sentence to write. I'm 29 years older than Anders and I have never had a brain scan or spent a night in the hospital for that matter.
Anders is still hovering at 5 lbs 1oz. He looks a bit more mature in the face, however. His forehead is getting bigger, which is pushing his hair back. Unlike his father he is not losing his hair (in no small part Anders' doing), but it is literally being pushed back by his growing forehead. Also, his hair looks like it's turning strawberry blond on the sides. It's starting to look a bit strawberry blond all over. Anna's hair looked a bit like that when she was a tiny baby. Also, that hair color ran in the family of Anton, Anna's great grandpa. He really is Anna from the eyes up and me from the ears and below.
They moved him down to .75 liters of O2. He is at about 23% O2. I imagine that they will have to move him back up to 1 liter tomorrow after all of his shots and scans.
We can introduce Anders to the bottle whenever we want. I think we may hold off tomorrow since a lot is already happening, but we will probably try on Friday when he hits 36 weeks. At 36 weeks Anders moves into the date range where he could be released. He will not be released for a while, but it's nice to know that time is around the corner. Bottle feeding him, we are told, will help him get out of the hospital more quickly. He's up to 42 mils of food every 3 hours.
All in all, Anders keeps chugging, slowly progressing.
Monday, September 21, 2009
one more trip to Anders
Anders now weighs 5lbs 1.5 oz. He is 18.5 inches long. I don't want to alarm anyone about his hemoglobin. All indications are that he passed the most critical phase for long hemoglobin a couple of weeks ago. Plus, he has another indicator, whose name I cannot remember, that is on the upswing which might presage a higher hemoglobin count for Anders when they check again on Wednesday.
I held Anders before and during the first part of his feeding, but then he was done. First, he didn't want to be against my chest. He wanted to be on my lap where he could stare eyeball to eyeball with me. Anders would desat when I put him up to my chest. Then, he desated midway through his feeding and continued to do so until I put him back on his crib and his nurse, Marsha, positioned him on his stomach.
Desating is what Anders does in lieu of crying. In a couple weeks he will start communicating by crying. I know the crying gets old, but I won't miss the desating!
I held Anders before and during the first part of his feeding, but then he was done. First, he didn't want to be against my chest. He wanted to be on my lap where he could stare eyeball to eyeball with me. Anders would desat when I put him up to my chest. Then, he desated midway through his feeding and continued to do so until I put him back on his crib and his nurse, Marsha, positioned him on his stomach.
Desating is what Anders does in lieu of crying. In a couple weeks he will start communicating by crying. I know the crying gets old, but I won't miss the desating!
Back in the Saddle Again
I have been away from the blog for almost a week. My aunt Marilee passed away on Tuesday. I drove to Marquette, KS on Wednesday for her funeral where I delivered a eulogy. I have eulogized before, but that was the toughest one. She was like a mother and a sister to me. She had Down Syndrome. Marilee was 72 years old. I hope that we can bring some of her loving spirit to Anders.
Anders now weighs 4lbs 15oz. We bathed him today for the first time. He handled the bath well. He cried at first, but seemed to enjoy it later.
Anders has a below average hemoglobin number. They are not yet considering a transfusion, but he needs to make some improvement.
The medical team dropped his oxygen amount dramatically yet again yesterday. You can imagine what happened. As Anna said on caringbridge.com, they are focusing on keeping him at room air while keeping his flow a bit higher. Yesterday, I received a call from his doctor saying that he would be dropped from one liter to .75 liters of O2. Yet, when we came back in the late afternoon, our nurse told us that the nurse practitioner had provisionally decided to drop him to .25 liters of oxygen. Anders did not respond well. When we arrived today he was back up to 1 liter and about 22.6% oxygen, 1 percent above room air. One step forward, two steps back. He CANNOT be pushed. I made our concerns known and this evening there is a note on his oxygen saying not to drop it without consulting his chart. They have now done the drastic drop twice in two weeks. I feel that I thoroughly conveyed my point. I do not expect it to happen again.
On the positive side, we hear a lot about the cuteness of Anders, more than just being polite, all the comments make us think he is objectively cute.
Anders now weighs 4lbs 15oz. We bathed him today for the first time. He handled the bath well. He cried at first, but seemed to enjoy it later.
Anders has a below average hemoglobin number. They are not yet considering a transfusion, but he needs to make some improvement.
The medical team dropped his oxygen amount dramatically yet again yesterday. You can imagine what happened. As Anna said on caringbridge.com, they are focusing on keeping him at room air while keeping his flow a bit higher. Yesterday, I received a call from his doctor saying that he would be dropped from one liter to .75 liters of O2. Yet, when we came back in the late afternoon, our nurse told us that the nurse practitioner had provisionally decided to drop him to .25 liters of oxygen. Anders did not respond well. When we arrived today he was back up to 1 liter and about 22.6% oxygen, 1 percent above room air. One step forward, two steps back. He CANNOT be pushed. I made our concerns known and this evening there is a note on his oxygen saying not to drop it without consulting his chart. They have now done the drastic drop twice in two weeks. I feel that I thoroughly conveyed my point. I do not expect it to happen again.
On the positive side, we hear a lot about the cuteness of Anders, more than just being polite, all the comments make us think he is objectively cute.
Monday, September 14, 2009
A Weary Day
Stop me if you've read this before: a surly old battle axe of a nurse, lowering Anders' setting, and deep desaturations.
You're right, it happens about twice a week. This old bag, who wasn't even his nurse, turned him up to 80% when he desated! 80%!!! Not even Pizza Nurse did that! I asked his nurse if that was alright, she answered diplomatically and turned him down. The Battle Axe acted like she ruled the roost. I hope Anders doesn' t have her. He was desaturating in part because he had another eye exam today. He is still progressing with his eyes. They are still underdeveloped, which is normal for an underdeveloped baby. After all, we are still 5 and a half weeks ahead of his original due date.
Here's the good news. Anders is 17.1 inches long, 4lbs 6 oz, and he's breathing room air at half a liter of low flow. That bad news was that he was deeply desaturating while I held him. I'm no doctor, but I do know that he does better when he is weened gradually. So, if you decided to go to room air, then keep him at .75 liters or if you decide to go to .5 liters keep him at 40% O2. I don't want to get a reputation as "those parents" and if I'm going to get mad I will do so about something else, like the Battle Axe's production.
We are both really tired of all of this stuff. The newness is gone, but we can't yet look forward to him getting out. Anders made the leap to Southdale so we don't have an immediate milestone in front of us. We are sort of in the dog days of hospitalization.
I think Anders' early arrival has changed us in ways that we do not even understand yet. A lot of stuff that used to seem stressful seems much less so today, which is mostly good.
Hopefully Anders will have a good night and we will feel refreshed tomorrow.
You're right, it happens about twice a week. This old bag, who wasn't even his nurse, turned him up to 80% when he desated! 80%!!! Not even Pizza Nurse did that! I asked his nurse if that was alright, she answered diplomatically and turned him down. The Battle Axe acted like she ruled the roost. I hope Anders doesn' t have her. He was desaturating in part because he had another eye exam today. He is still progressing with his eyes. They are still underdeveloped, which is normal for an underdeveloped baby. After all, we are still 5 and a half weeks ahead of his original due date.
Here's the good news. Anders is 17.1 inches long, 4lbs 6 oz, and he's breathing room air at half a liter of low flow. That bad news was that he was deeply desaturating while I held him. I'm no doctor, but I do know that he does better when he is weened gradually. So, if you decided to go to room air, then keep him at .75 liters or if you decide to go to .5 liters keep him at 40% O2. I don't want to get a reputation as "those parents" and if I'm going to get mad I will do so about something else, like the Battle Axe's production.
We are both really tired of all of this stuff. The newness is gone, but we can't yet look forward to him getting out. Anders made the leap to Southdale so we don't have an immediate milestone in front of us. We are sort of in the dog days of hospitalization.
I think Anders' early arrival has changed us in ways that we do not even understand yet. A lot of stuff that used to seem stressful seems much less so today, which is mostly good.
Hopefully Anders will have a good night and we will feel refreshed tomorrow.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Anders Peterson, Game Manager
I felt like taking a shower after the Fox love-fest for Brett Favre's Vikings debut today. Favre played the role of game manager today. So it is for Anders this weekend. Anders does better when he makes incremental moves than big leaps. Looking back on the last week, it was a big leap. A week ago at this time, he was on 2 liters of high flow with an NO2 treatment going and was in an isolette. Four days later he was on half a liter of low flow at room air, in a crib, and leaving the 4th floor of Riverside Hospital for the first time as he headed for Edina. Things may have moved too fast for him.
He had a very stable day today. They bumped him up to 40% O2. He did not desaturate for either Anna or me. He was awake for most of the day, another rarity. He's beginning to cope better with his new loud surroundings. I tried to drown out the noise with my "singing." His nurse, Stephanie, claimed to enjoy the serenade, but by that point it was mostly humming. Aside from "The Itsy, Bitsy Spider," Anders' favorite is "Goodnight" by the Beatles, but he hates "Take It To the Limit" by The Eagles. He's a real Achiever.
I picked up a journalistic account of the fall of Saigon at a used bookstore in Dinkytown this weekend, so I'm remembering that things can always be worse.
He had a very stable day today. They bumped him up to 40% O2. He did not desaturate for either Anna or me. He was awake for most of the day, another rarity. He's beginning to cope better with his new loud surroundings. I tried to drown out the noise with my "singing." His nurse, Stephanie, claimed to enjoy the serenade, but by that point it was mostly humming. Aside from "The Itsy, Bitsy Spider," Anders' favorite is "Goodnight" by the Beatles, but he hates "Take It To the Limit" by The Eagles. He's a real Achiever.
I picked up a journalistic account of the fall of Saigon at a used bookstore in Dinkytown this weekend, so I'm remembering that things can always be worse.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Anders Gathers himself
Anders was desaturating a lot yesterday. He had to go up to .75 liters of low flow O2 today. They have started him on lasix again because some of his weight gain might be water weight. The Southdale nurses have also put him back in an isolette, not because his temperature is low but because he gets agitated by the crying babies and commotion in the cramped quarters. I can't blame him! He's not at the bowling alley country club anymore.
Anna thinks he is gathering himself and adapting. At some point he had to leave the fourth floor of the East Wing of Riverside Hospital. This is a needed learning experience about change for him and us.
Dorene got to hold him for the first time today. She seemed like she was in another dimension. Elated might not be a strong enough term.
He is getting used to his new surroundings and will come back strong from this setback.
Anna thinks he is gathering himself and adapting. At some point he had to leave the fourth floor of the East Wing of Riverside Hospital. This is a needed learning experience about change for him and us.
Dorene got to hold him for the first time today. She seemed like she was in another dimension. Elated might not be a strong enough term.
He is getting used to his new surroundings and will come back strong from this setback.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Southdale!!!
We have arrived at the promised land! After weeks of speculation, discussion, and predictions, Anders is safely ensconced at Fairview Southdale.
He is up to 4lbs 2oz. He gained an ounce of the past day, which is a standard amount of weight gain. Two ounces per day was a bit much for the medical staff.
I think Anders knew something was up. When we arrived at the NICU this morning, he was worriedly sucking on his pacifier with his eyes wide open. We forgot the camera in the car, but we do have some pictures pre and post transfer.
Anders thrived when he moved from Nursery 3 to Nursery 6 owing to the better energy there. I am sounding like my next door neighbor, Roger the tie dyed t-shirt salesman. Yet, I think Anders is picking up on the idea that his new neighbors are pretty healthy and he needs to breath rather than beeping off to fit in with them.
He handled the move well. Things are good. We are happy to be less than four miles away. To the pictures!
He is up to 4lbs 2oz. He gained an ounce of the past day, which is a standard amount of weight gain. Two ounces per day was a bit much for the medical staff.
I think Anders knew something was up. When we arrived at the NICU this morning, he was worriedly sucking on his pacifier with his eyes wide open. We forgot the camera in the car, but we do have some pictures pre and post transfer.
Anders thrived when he moved from Nursery 3 to Nursery 6 owing to the better energy there. I am sounding like my next door neighbor, Roger the tie dyed t-shirt salesman. Yet, I think Anders is picking up on the idea that his new neighbors are pretty healthy and he needs to breath rather than beeping off to fit in with them.
He handled the move well. Things are good. We are happy to be less than four miles away. To the pictures!
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Tremendous Upside
I forgot to mention that last Friday Anders measured 16.1 inches. I would not be surprised if he is closing in on 17 inches. Were ESPN College Basketball analyst Jay Bilas rounding on Anders, he would be excited about how "long" he is and would repeatedly mention his "tremendous upside." I think after he finished rounds, someone would have to change Jay. I'm not sure if the NICU carries diapers in 6'8'' Former Dukie Size.
Anders broke 4 pounds today! He is up to 4 lbs 1 oz! Some of that is water weight. They have stopped his lasic, but he is still getting caffeine for his lungs, which also acts as a diuretic so it's probably not that much water weight.
Anders successfully breastfed today. In other words, he actually extracted the good mother's milk from the teet, you understand. That's another first.
He had one bad desaturation while Anna was pumping and while our nurse was on break that probably robbed me of a few more hairs on top, but Anders self-corrected....eventually.
We finally brought Anders some of his preemie clothes. We had been waiting for the transfer, but Southdale is more backed up than the Crosstown during rush hour (you're welcome MN Steve).
Anna and I both feel comfortable handling Anders now. We are sure he won't break! I feel like I'm forgetting something, but I don't know what it is. Let me go Larry King for a minute and see if I remember.... You couldn't give me money to bet on Iowa beating Iowa State this Saturday... I think I might miss the fresh cupcakes Dan brings home more than most things in MN... The new Gophers stadium opening will be overshadowed by OSU-SC on Saturday Night.... I love the 80 degree plus temperatures here... I really have a hankering for hot wings....Sorry, it's not coming. Perhaps I will remember later.
Anders broke 4 pounds today! He is up to 4 lbs 1 oz! Some of that is water weight. They have stopped his lasic, but he is still getting caffeine for his lungs, which also acts as a diuretic so it's probably not that much water weight.
Anders successfully breastfed today. In other words, he actually extracted the good mother's milk from the teet, you understand. That's another first.
He had one bad desaturation while Anna was pumping and while our nurse was on break that probably robbed me of a few more hairs on top, but Anders self-corrected....eventually.
We finally brought Anders some of his preemie clothes. We had been waiting for the transfer, but Southdale is more backed up than the Crosstown during rush hour (you're welcome MN Steve).
Anna and I both feel comfortable handling Anders now. We are sure he won't break! I feel like I'm forgetting something, but I don't know what it is. Let me go Larry King for a minute and see if I remember.... You couldn't give me money to bet on Iowa beating Iowa State this Saturday... I think I might miss the fresh cupcakes Dan brings home more than most things in MN... The new Gophers stadium opening will be overshadowed by OSU-SC on Saturday Night.... I love the 80 degree plus temperatures here... I really have a hankering for hot wings....Sorry, it's not coming. Perhaps I will remember later.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Cribs
Anders is in a crib. Granted, it looks like a Romanian crib from the fall of communism, but a crib none the less. He seems to be doing well on the outside.
Anders is up to 3lbs 15 oz, another 2 oz gain today. It may be a cause for concern that he is gaining weight so quickly or it may be that he is making up for lost time. I'm inclined to slip a Krispy Kreme in there and see what he does with it (chances are, have fun, since we are all having so much fun up here now (sorry Packers fans)).
Anders is having a hearing test right now. The first attempt was interrupted by a computer malfunction I believe originated with the loud drilling around us as the workers build the new children's hospital outside our window. Judging from my credentials as Dr. J. Richard Science (Doctor of Science), things look good. He's picking up sound in both ears. I hope he has Anna's high functioning ears and not my slowly deteriorating hearing.
We forgot the camera at home since I was loading pictures onto the interwebs last night downstairs in my lair. Anna seemed so inspired by the crib that she might come back tonight and snap some pictures, however, I'm not sure she will.
There is one open spot in Southdale right now. If a spot remains open overnight, Anders might get the transfer tomorrow morning. We shall see.
Anders is up to 3lbs 15 oz, another 2 oz gain today. It may be a cause for concern that he is gaining weight so quickly or it may be that he is making up for lost time. I'm inclined to slip a Krispy Kreme in there and see what he does with it (chances are, have fun, since we are all having so much fun up here now (sorry Packers fans)).
Anders is having a hearing test right now. The first attempt was interrupted by a computer malfunction I believe originated with the loud drilling around us as the workers build the new children's hospital outside our window. Judging from my credentials as Dr. J. Richard Science (Doctor of Science), things look good. He's picking up sound in both ears. I hope he has Anna's high functioning ears and not my slowly deteriorating hearing.
We forgot the camera at home since I was loading pictures onto the interwebs last night downstairs in my lair. Anna seemed so inspired by the crib that she might come back tonight and snap some pictures, however, I'm not sure she will.
There is one open spot in Southdale right now. If a spot remains open overnight, Anders might get the transfer tomorrow morning. We shall see.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
The Four Pound Push
Anders gained 2 oz in the last day. He is up to 3 lbs 13 oz. Everything else is stable. He remains at half a liter of low flow O2. He is in line to make the Southdale transfer. I guess there are 17 babies there for 14 beds. They could accomodate us at "The Ridges, " but that sounds too much like the old Insane Asylum on the hills south of Athens. This place is in Burnsville. We might as well transfer to Decorah rather than going all the way down there.
In summary, everthing is the same except he is gaining weight and could be transferred whenever a bed opens at Southdale.
In summary, everthing is the same except he is gaining weight and could be transferred whenever a bed opens at Southdale.
Monday, September 7, 2009
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