5 months old!! (Almost 3 adjusted)

I can't believe it has been 3 months since milo came home with us. Some days it feels like last week and other it feels like a distant memory. Last week was the NICU graduate Halloween party. It felt weird walking back in to the hospital without feeling anxious. It was nice to see his doctor and the many nurses who watched over Milo. Although at one point Milo was asleep on my chest and the doctor who set us back a few days on leaving came up to say hi. As soon as she started talking Milo got this huge pouty lip on his face. It may have been a coincidence but his doctor said she gets that a lot an tries not to take it personally ;) 

Milo went as a turtle :)

We also took Milo to a local farm to play in a corn maze, explore a petting zoo and get a pumpkin (basically take pictures of

my cute baby in a pumpkin patch).

Milo weighs well over 11lbs now and is a dedicated thumb sucker. I have exclusively pumped for him since he was born but as my supply was dropping . So with the help of my local la leche league and a lot of frustrated tears (from both Milo and I) he is now exclusively nursing with just the occasional bottle if home alone with dad when hunger strikes. 

He is getting better at head control and loves to stare at bright lights and fans. He has a favorite toy and is getting better at grabbing things and waving them around. He smiles all the time and is such a happy baby. I often go back to many months ago when we were told out baby wouldn't survive and I just stare at him in awe and wish I could go back and tell

myself that the doctors were wrong. Our baby doesn't die and is in fact a beautiful happy boy and here are the pictures to prove it. 

His name may not be Selah but every time I look at his smile I pause and praise God.

Done Waiting

Milo finally came home last Sunday August 4th; one day after his due date. He left at 4lbs 14oz and is already up to 5lbs 5 oz. he is growing, eating and sleeping well. 

Yesterday I was sitting down staring at this beautiful baby, reflecting on these past few months. Mainly on just how sick he was in those first few days and how many doctors and nurses told us he was lucky to even go home at all. Most of his problems early on were due to the knot in his cord. I then realized PPROM saved my baby's life. The doctors told us the knot must have been tied when there was still fluid. It wasn't pulled tight until a few days before he was born, It got me thinking that if my water hadn't broken and he was free to move about it could have tightened sooner and possibly killed him or at the very least caused severe brain damage. 

So I thank God my water broke so early, I thank God for this beautiful boy in my arms and I thank God for using the hard times in the NICU to bring me and my husband closer. 

I can not thank you all enough for the encouragement and many prayers you have continuously sent our way. Someday I will get to tell milo all about his birth story and this blog to show him all the love and support that got him through his rough start in life. I will continue to post regular updates on Milo and of course lots of pictures. Here are a few if his first week at home.

Milo finally meeting his BFF

Just about ready!!

Milo has recovered nicely after his surgery. He didn't have any more episodes and was back to his normal self yesterday and is even better today. We finished up everything we need to be discharged and milo even took his carseat test :) the only thing that may hold us back is that his doctor forgot to write up a prescription for his oxygen for him to go home with. Hopefully we can get it sorted out first thing in the morning but otherwise we may not be going home till Saturday. So please pray everything goes smoothly and this time tomorrow we will be home with our little boy! 

Milo's Surgery

Milo had surgery to fix his hernia this morning. The procedure was a breeze and over with in 20 minutes. 30 minutes later his nurse gave him a little morphine for pain and his eyes immediately glazed over and was motionless. The doctor came in and got him back to normal and decided the half dose of morphine was just too much for him. A few hours later his nasal prongs (just used to give him a boost since he has been off oxygen for a few days) fell out and he just stopped breathing. His sats dropped to 14 (normal sats are around 98) and his heart rate to the 70s (normal heart rate around 150). John and I were asleep when his alarms went off and 20 people rushed into his room. It was absolutely terrifying but they finally stabilized him and got him breathing again. He had lots of mucus in the back of his throat which probably contributed to the situation. Please pray that the rest of his recovery is uneventful. He was due to come home Thursday or Friday and now we are not sure what will happen. Even though his time in the NICU has been long, it has been relatively smooth sailing.

Nearly There!!!

Home is just around the corner for us and we are thrilled. Milo got his feeding tube taken out two days ago and has been off oxygen since 2am this morning. So far so good and if it weren't for his hernia we would be headed home in a day or so. He will need surgery to fix his hernia before he leaves and we are hoping a spot will be open either Monday or Tuesday. We are told it will be a quick recovery and won't hold us back too long before heading home. 

Milo is eating well now that he is off the  oxygen. He stopped eating once the feeding tube was out and we had no idea why. Turns out he hated the formula they were adding to his breast milk and the nasal prongs were actually making it harder for him to breathe once his oxygen settings were so low. Now that he is off it all he is back to his normal hungry hungry (baby) hippo self.

Milo in his new bouncer/swing

No more tubes!!

One step closer

Note: this was supposed to have been published on the 18th not sure what happebs) 

Milo is now almost 38 weeks adjusted and is becoming very active. He loves  being held and is awake more often during the day. He likes looking around at his surroundings and watching the nurses coming in and out if his room. He took his first full bottle the other day and continues to take at least half by bottle at each feed. I hate calling it a "feed" because whenever the nurses say he drank X amount during his last feed, it makes me think of little baby vampires. 

He has also just started breast feeding and he is really good at latching. Sucking is harder for him because he has a very short tongue tie at the tip of his tongue. This prevents him from bring able to stick his tongue out. He may need it clipped to help make breast feeding easier and to prevent speech issues later on. 

The nurses also noticed he may have a hernia that could require surgery. He is getting a consult tomorrow and hopefully it won't be bad enough to need an operation. If the hernia doesn't set us back milo could be home within a week or two!! While our stay has been nice and we found a nice rhythm, I am eager to move forward and have him home :)

His room is ready and waiting!!

This is the co sleeper we made to keep him close but not too close ;)

Milo rockin the bottle 

Milo was great during his hearing screen which he passed :)

His "I'm working on a giant poop" face

Bassinet :)

Milo moved out of his isolette on Wednesday an has been doing great. He  finally was able to tolerate the lowest flow setting on his oxygen, they will keep him at his current settings for awhile and then see how he does without it completely. He has been doing well eating from a bottle and takes an average of 20ml (out of 37) his highest was 29. He is starting to fully wake up for each care session and has been "looking" for his food source. He has moved up to trying twice a day to try and build up his endurance. He is now up to 4lbs 6oz and continues to look better and better! He is 37 weeks adjusted today (just 3 more until his due date) and with him so close to comin off oxygen his only big hurdle will be getting all his food without the tube :) the end is in sight and we are eagerly getting ready for him to come home! 

Good bye old bed!!

Hello bassinet!!

4lbs1oz

Milo hit the 4lb mark yesterday and has been doing great! Two days ago we saw how he did with a bottle and he got 6ml of 35 with his nurse. He did the same yesterday when dad got to feed him. Today was my turn and he ate 15ml before getting too tired :D he is down to .3 flow on his oxygen (original goal is to have him off the oxygen in a few days). As always he is doing amazing and will be home before we know it!! 

First try with Milo's favorite nurse

Dinner time with dad!

Breakfast with mom

Lots of quality time

Spending our days in Milo's room have been great. I love going to bed and seeing him just 5 feet away. When he gets fussy we can soothe him and we are around during his care times a lot more. He is now up to 3lbs 11.6oz (1690g). He continues to gain about an ounce each day; so he will hit 4lbs before we know it! He can just about regulate his body temperature and when he does hit the 4lb mark he will move up to his "big boy bed" (an open crib). At that point the sky's the limit as far as holding and interacting with him. He is one month old (35 weeks adjusted) and his isolette is   no longer covered with a blanket during the day time. He is up to 32ml of milk every 3 hours and soon he will start taking it from a bottle. John and I went shopping yesterday and bought one of every type of bottle just to make sure we would get one that would work well for him. Our speech pathologist said the dr brown's preemie nipple has worked well for every baby who has used it. Of course while we were shopping we made a registry of all the little things we still need for when milo comes home. It's crazy how much stuff one tiny baby will need its first year!  It is amazing seeing how far he has come and we are looking forward to all the exciting milestones just around the corner. We are hoping he will be home by the end of July just in time for my birthday :)

Big smile <3

After his first bath!

Movin On Up

It has been smooth sailing for Milo this past week. He is off of CPAP and is now just on high flow oxygen. The nurses also told us this morning that since he is doing so well and is very stable that Milo will be moved to the continuing care nursery (CCN) once there is an opening (hopefully later this week). There he will have a private room where John and I can stay with him overnight!

He has been handling his feeds well and is packing on the pounds; usually an ounce a day. He was at 3 lbs 6 oz last night but I am sure once they weigh him tonight it will be up a bit more! He has no mediciations, no IV's, nothing but his nasal cannula and feeding tube :) We get to hold him as much as we'd like now; which is usually twice a day for about 3 hours each time. Each day we get more comfortable handling him and helping with his basic cares. His next major milestone will be getting his food completely from the bottle or via breastfeeding (but we will start with a bottle). He will start practicing with a bottle later this week when he is on standard flow oxygen (instead of the high flow) which will make it easier for him to eat and breathe at the same time. We are so proud of the progress he has made and it feel like he will be home any day now and John and I are anxiously getting ready! Thank you all for the continued prayers and support!!