Papa makes us laugh
Feed Me!
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Friday, January 1, 2010
It's been quite a week for Finley and the Cook Family. After several days of losing weight (which all babies do, not just preemies), Finley is on the upswing and has gained weight steadily over the past three days. Her weight tonight was 3 pounds 8 ounces, so she has passed her birth weight of 3 pound 7 ounces. A gain of half an ounce to an ounce per day is considered good progress. Finley has gained 7 ounces in the past three days! She's an over achiever already!
Our days consist of driving to the hospital to feed Finley her 11:30 am feeding and then again for her 5:30 pm feeding. The unit closes several times a day to visitors for an hour at a time while nurses change shifts. We also try to limit our time with her so that she has as much time as possible to rest and conserve energy. She tends to wake up when we hold her, so we try to only hold her right before and right after a feeding. This is incredibly hard on me. I hate that she lays in her isolette for most of the day and doesn't really get any stimulation. I have to constantly remind myself that rest is what she needs and it is what's best for her, but I could sit in the rocker and hold her all day long.
The nurses and doctors seem very pleased with her progress. She needs to be at least 4 pounds 4 ounces to go home. She also has a list of other milestones she has to meet before they'll discharge her. We're thinking she'll probably be in the hospital at least 2 more weeks. Hopefully they will start weaning her tube feedings and let her breastfeed or take bottles more frequently. I'm dying to see her make more progress, but I know that we can't ask too much of her.
She seems like such a different baby from just a few days ago. She has more energy and is much more alert. She opens her eyes, kicks her legs, and cries when she's upset. Most of the time she's awake and sucking her hand and ready to eat 30 minutes or so before her feeding is due. This makes her mamma happy!
Here are a few more pictures.
Our days consist of driving to the hospital to feed Finley her 11:30 am feeding and then again for her 5:30 pm feeding. The unit closes several times a day to visitors for an hour at a time while nurses change shifts. We also try to limit our time with her so that she has as much time as possible to rest and conserve energy. She tends to wake up when we hold her, so we try to only hold her right before and right after a feeding. This is incredibly hard on me. I hate that she lays in her isolette for most of the day and doesn't really get any stimulation. I have to constantly remind myself that rest is what she needs and it is what's best for her, but I could sit in the rocker and hold her all day long.
The nurses and doctors seem very pleased with her progress. She needs to be at least 4 pounds 4 ounces to go home. She also has a list of other milestones she has to meet before they'll discharge her. We're thinking she'll probably be in the hospital at least 2 more weeks. Hopefully they will start weaning her tube feedings and let her breastfeed or take bottles more frequently. I'm dying to see her make more progress, but I know that we can't ask too much of her.
She seems like such a different baby from just a few days ago. She has more energy and is much more alert. She opens her eyes, kicks her legs, and cries when she's upset. Most of the time she's awake and sucking her hand and ready to eat 30 minutes or so before her feeding is due. This makes her mamma happy!
Here are a few more pictures.
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