Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Day Six.

Today was an eventful day for little Elliot. When we first got to the NICU, he was sound asleep and no matter what we did, we couldn't get him to wake up. The nurse let us put the top on his isolette up for awhile, so it was our first chance to kiss his little nose and get up close to him. It was wonderful!
Right before we were planning to leave to go grocery shopping, though, Aaron changed his diaper and he started freaking out. Nothing we did (wrapping him up like a mummy, giving him his pacifier, "rocking" him, or even the sweeties drops that he loves so much) would calm him down. We soon found out why, though- when he spit up a massive amount of bright green bile. The tube in his mouth is supposed to suck all of that yuckiness out of his belly, but Elliot had managed to pull the tube out a little so it wasn't working anymore. Once the nurse repositioned the tube and sucked out several ounces, he was wide eyed and content for awhile before falling back asleep again.
His surgery has been moved to Thursday or Friday, most likely. Since almost all of his bowel is back into his belly, Elliot is starting to swell up and is pretty uncomfortable most of the time. He has the STRONGEST suck reflex ever and is recognizing when he is hungry, but since he can't eat yet he gets pretty frustrated. I think he'll be really happy when he heals up from his surgery and is finally ready to start eating!
We're heading back to the NICU in an hour or so for a parents meeting/dinner and then to spend a little more time with Elliot before heading back for the night. I'm hoping to meet some other NICU parents at the meeting. And tonight could be interesting because I'm going to try to go six hours without pumping- the lactation consultant told me that as long as I'm pumping every 2 hours throughout the day, I should be able to last for six-hour stretch of sleep at night. This would be GREAT because I feel like a slave to the pump and getting up every two hours all night long gets old really fast. I'm not sure how I'll be able to do it without exploding, though. The nurse said to just wait until my boobs wake me up. We'll see how it goes!
And here are the new pictures from today:

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Kisses from Daddy.

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15 comments:

  1. He is too precious! I can't believe that almost all of his bowels are back in his belly! Have fun this evening at the dinner!

    Oh and by the way, You look Fantastic!

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  2. he is so so so so so so so so soooo cute! big hugs coming your way from Maia and me!

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  3. so freaking cute! that dinner sounds so nice... have fun!! are they doing anything special for the babies for the holidays??

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  4. He is the most gorgeous little thing. I'm glad they figured out what was wrong with him and he is alright.

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  5. I'm so glad he's doing so well! He is too cute :)

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  6. I can't get over how handsome he is! Have a good time at the meeting/dinner tonight, I'm sure you'll come away with some great new friends. :)

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  7. He's so adorable. Your supply will be fine for 6 hours of sleep. Laying on your side will let them leak when they're full which makes it less painful. They will wake you up when they're ready. I find being well rested increases supply. Good luck at your dinner.

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  8. He just gets cuter & cuter. You look great as well. How did most of his bowel go back? On it's own? Thanks for the update!

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  9. Thanks guys! :)
    Yes, it's amazing how much the bowel has gone in. It's a combination of gravity and the doctors slowly squeezing a little more in everyday and tying off the silo.
    For Christmas they had a bunch of Christmas hats, booties, blankets, and clothes for the babies to wear and they'll be doing pictures and stuff. :) I'm excited. There's also a Christmas dinner for parents tomorrow night that we're going to.

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  10. He truly is one of the most precious babies I've seen. I have to say that you look amazing! I hope you'll be able to get some sleep and not have to pump so much at night. My fingers are crossed.

    So happy to hear about his progress. Keep it up little man! :)

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  11. I'm so glad things are going well! He is soooo cute. I know you will be ready to take him home.
    Keep up the good work pumping! It's worth it:)
    I'm so glad your hubby is there with you.

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  12. Oh my gosh those pictures are too cute! I see a lot of his mommy in him! It's neat that they get the NICU parents together

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  13. Seriously? Seriously, one of the cutest little guys EVER! OMG I just want to kiss his little face!

    You guys must have been in heaven to be able to touch him and kiss him. Awww, it makes my heart smile.

    He is looking so good! Stay strong little man!!

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  14. He's gorgeous! beautiful eyes! Best of wishes to you all!
    ~Brandy~

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