2.5 Days and Counting

Sorry for the late update, but today was a very busy day.  Ashton had a good night overall Wednesday. She had two episodes where she forgot to breath and her heart rate dropped, but she recovered from both of those on her own without stimulation from the nurses.  It isn't good that she is having these episodes, but it IS good that she recovered on her own.  Also, it isn't unexpected for her to have these episodes, we just want them to be fewer and fewer as she grows.

I had my follow-up OB appointment at 9:15 this morning and knew it was very possible that I would miss rounds today.  I got to the hospital super early to spend some early time with my girl and make sure I talked to as many of the nurses, nurse practitioners, dietitians, etc. on Ashton's team I saw before I had to leave.  I went to my appointment and made it back to Ashton around 10:30 (the doctor's office building is connected to the hospital via sky bridge and is only a five minute walk from the NICU) to find out that the doctor's were running later today and had not rounded yet.  I was ecstatic!  Something about getting to hear directly from the team what they think and want to do for the day is much easier than hearing it through a third party.  Don't get me wrong, the nurses here are AMAZING, but I prefer to be there when the doctor comes by.  The doctor didn't make any changes today.  She did well enough with her feedings that they are discontinuing her IV feedings.  Her IVs will run out tonight and they will remove her picc line tonight or in the morning.  He also told me that it will be slow going getting her off of the C-Pap.  She has to be able to get the pressure setting down to 4 and maintain her oxygen requirements below 25%.  She is very dependant on the C-Pap help right now, so we are looking at a minimum of a couple of weeks to get her to a nasal cannula.  That being said, Ashton has surprised us all more than once so the timeline may change depending on how she is doing.

After rounds I heated up my soup in the Ronald McDonald House that is on the same floor as the NICU and ate a quick lunch so that I could start holding sweet pea around 1:45.  While holding baby girl I got a VERY welcome visit from a good friend from back home in Midland.  We sat and talked while I held baby girl for over an hour.  She brought a bag of sweet gifts from friends back home which I will definitely use over our stay here in the NICU.  It felt so good to just sit and talk to someone that I've known more than 18 days!  I held Ashton until 6:00p.m. when she really needed her diaper changed and it was getting close to time for shift change. While I was holding Ashton she got the hiccups for the first time.  It was so cute, but boy did she get mad!  Her voice is definitely getting stronger because she cried loud enough for her nurse to hear. 

After shift change Ashton's night nurse did her assessment and got Ashton all settled in for the night.  She also said that Ashton is doing well enough to wear clothes!  Obviously we don't have any clothes that fit our 3 lb. baby girl, but I am sure her Nana will be purchasing some ASAP.

We are praying for a smooth night tonight and that she doesn't have any episodes.  We also continue to praise God for all of the things Ashton has accomplished!

Much Love!
Brandi