Audrey is Advanced

Audrey is still doing extremely well. Michael thinks it’s because she’s so smart that she’s more advanced than other preemies. He’s a great Dad and is very proud of her.

I was discharged from the hospital yesterday and we moved a few blocks down the Ronald McDonald house. We are so lucky that this place exists. Parents of children who are in the hospital in Louisville, but who don’t live in this county, can have a room and meals for $15 a night. My mom is here helping take care of me and bringing me back and forth to the hospital since I can’t drive for 2 weeks after the c-section.

Unfortunately it’s a little more difficult for me to update the blog here since the internet in our room is very very weak. But it’s hard to complain when we’re so glad we have a place to stay. I can’t imagine if I had to go home and be an hour and a half away from Audrey. Sometimes I go a little crazy if I’m delayed even a few minutes in getting to her :)

Back to Audrey. All of her bloodwork has been great, except her bilirubin which had gone down, but went back up after she was off the lights for a day. The lights are really effective at bringing her levels down, and her level has never really gotten too high since they are watching her so closely. Her doctor says that usually the levels peak at 5 to 7 days after birth, so hopefully if she’s good in a couple of days she can come off the lights.

We’re also hopeful that she can come off her IV in a few days. She is currently still on IV fluids & vitamins while they gradually increase the amount of milk she is receiving through her nasal-gastric tube. She is currently up to 18 cc every three hours, and should definitely be off the IV by the time she gets up to 29. In the last three days she’s been increased from 10 to 14 to 18, so it shouldn’t take long to get to 29. The reason for the gradual increase is that preemies can have intestinal problems that can be extremely serious so they need to watch her very carefully to ensure that she is digesting her food and not having any trouble. So far everything has been perfect.

Yesterday Audrey’s weight went up for the first time. We were very proud of her! She now weighs 1447 grams. Her length was also measured last night – they measure lengths once a week – and she grew ¼ “ and is now 16 ¼ inches long!

Apart from the IV and the UV lights for her bilirubin, Audrey only has two little monitor wires on her for her heart rate and respiration.

I can’t wait until we can take her home. It was really beautiful outside today and it made me excited to think about taking Audrey out for walks. For now I have been enjoying my kangaroo care time together. On Saturday I held her for four hours and yesterday for five. It’s good for both of us, and definitely makes me feel better. I just don’t want to put her back in the isolette!