I'm not a huge bread fan, however I like a sandwich or toast now and then. I've heard so many good and bad things about bread, that I decided to do some research and find out what bread is best for you. Below is an article that I found in Men's Health. I'm happy to say that I have selected a "good" bread! We eat Sara Lee 45 calorie! Hope this helps some of you wondering the same thing about bread!
Here's the article:
First off, ignore the advertising copy on the front. Flip around to the ingredient list. Is the first ingredient a whole grain? Does each slice have 2 or more grams of fiber? Do "inulin" or "polydextrose" show up? The correct answers are yes, yes, and no. "With whole grain, nothing is stripped away," says Jim White, R.D., of the American Dietetic Association. That means you're noshing on natural fiber, not inulin or polydextrose, two additives used to artificially boost fiber. The breads below meet the criteria, and could also help you build muscle, lose weight, and beat heart disease.
1. Arnold Grains & More
Double Oat Hearty Oatmeal Bread110 calories, 5 grams (g) protein, 3 g fiber
2. Sara Lee
45 Calories & Delightful 100% Whole Wheat with Honey45 calories, 3 g protein, 2 g fiber
3. Food for Life
Wheat & Gluten Free Brown Rice Bread110 calories, 2 g protein, 2 g fiber
4. Martin's
100% Whole Wheat Potato Bread70 calories, 6 g protein, 4 g fiber
5. Genesis 1:29
Sprouted Grain and Seed Bread80 calories, 4 g protein, 3 g fiber
Monday, July 25, 2011
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Olivia Updates
Over the past couple months, I have really slacked on keeping updates on Olivia. Here we are in July and I haven't had updates since February.
Olivia will be 8 months the first part of August. She is slowly learning to crawl and makes lots of sounds. She is trying so hard to make words. She weighs 16 1/2 pounds. I know full term babies that way less then she does at this age! What can I say, she is like her mama and loves food. She sleeps well. She wakes up about one time a night. She can't get enough of her Gar and Papa and cousins. I'm so happy she has a love for people and hasn't had any "stranger danger" experiences. I guess being in the NICU with tons of different people a day may have played a big part in that.
Olivia is using a service called Tiny K. Tiny K is a state program that helps families out with the growing and development of children. Olivia is almost 8 months, however being born 3 months early, we have to adjust for that time. Tiny K makes sure she is meeting the requirements of a 4-5 month old instead of a 7-8 month old. We are still working on sitting on her own. She almost has it down. She can also hold her bottle on her own... when it's close to empty. I'm just so proud of her accomplishments. She's my world and I love her so much!!!!
Olivia will be 8 months the first part of August. She is slowly learning to crawl and makes lots of sounds. She is trying so hard to make words. She weighs 16 1/2 pounds. I know full term babies that way less then she does at this age! What can I say, she is like her mama and loves food. She sleeps well. She wakes up about one time a night. She can't get enough of her Gar and Papa and cousins. I'm so happy she has a love for people and hasn't had any "stranger danger" experiences. I guess being in the NICU with tons of different people a day may have played a big part in that.
Olivia is using a service called Tiny K. Tiny K is a state program that helps families out with the growing and development of children. Olivia is almost 8 months, however being born 3 months early, we have to adjust for that time. Tiny K makes sure she is meeting the requirements of a 4-5 month old instead of a 7-8 month old. We are still working on sitting on her own. She almost has it down. She can also hold her bottle on her own... when it's close to empty. I'm just so proud of her accomplishments. She's my world and I love her so much!!!!
February 2011 Olivia Updates
Saturday, February 5, 2011 7:15 PM, CST
Sorry that is has been a few weeks since my last update. Danny & I have been busy preparing the apartment for Olivia's arrival. We've been trying to declutter and make room for all her toys. She also has been doing very well. She is officially off of oxygen and eating from a bottle! She is also off of Caffeine. They had to add thickener to her formula to help her learn to eat and they are starting to transition her to the formula she will go home on, Similac Neosure. She is 9 weeks old today and weighs 6 pounds 14 ounces.
I cried tears of joy when I watch my baby girl take her first breath with out any help. It was so amazing, she has come so far. She had to be put back on the 1 litter cannula about 4 days ago because she was having several d-sats. She perked right up the next day and was taken off of it.
She is also doing fantastic with her bottle feeding. She has to take all 8 of her feedings by bottle for 48 hours prior to her coming home. The doctors were shooting for her to come home on Feb 10.
That changed a little as of yesterday. Olivia had a very rough afternoon and evening. She kept having d-sat after d-sat and brady after brady. The scariest was after she ate and was all snuggled up with Danny. Her alarm went off and in a matter of seconds a nurse was sweeping Olivia off of Dannys chest and vigorously stimulating her to make her breathe again. She went to a gray/blue color and as limp as a noodle in seconds. It was the scariest thing ever. After they got her to breath again she kept having d-sats and the nurses had to put oxygen back on for a while. The doctor ran blood test last night and started her on 48 hours of antibiotics to be on the safe side in case she was catching a "bug".
The results came back today and the doctor said everything looked normal. After reviewing her charts, she noticed Olivia had her two month Vaccinations yesterday just prior to all of this happening. She believes this was the cause to her crashing yesterday. Her little body was so exhausted from those shots that she just was to tired to remember to breathe.
Olivia had a fantastic day today. She didn't require any extra oxygen, she is taking all her bottles and is having few d-sats and no bradys. God was watching over my precious baby girl yesterday.
Monday, March 7, 2011 3:56 PM, CST
I cried tears of joy when I watch my baby girl take her first breath with out any help. It was so amazing, she has come so far. She had to be put back on the 1 litter cannula about 4 days ago because she was having several d-sats. She perked right up the next day and was taken off of it.
She is also doing fantastic with her bottle feeding. She has to take all 8 of her feedings by bottle for 48 hours prior to her coming home. The doctors were shooting for her to come home on Feb 10.
That changed a little as of yesterday. Olivia had a very rough afternoon and evening. She kept having d-sat after d-sat and brady after brady. The scariest was after she ate and was all snuggled up with Danny. Her alarm went off and in a matter of seconds a nurse was sweeping Olivia off of Dannys chest and vigorously stimulating her to make her breathe again. She went to a gray/blue color and as limp as a noodle in seconds. It was the scariest thing ever. After they got her to breath again she kept having d-sats and the nurses had to put oxygen back on for a while. The doctor ran blood test last night and started her on 48 hours of antibiotics to be on the safe side in case she was catching a "bug".
The results came back today and the doctor said everything looked normal. After reviewing her charts, she noticed Olivia had her two month Vaccinations yesterday just prior to all of this happening. She believes this was the cause to her crashing yesterday. Her little body was so exhausted from those shots that she just was to tired to remember to breathe.
Olivia had a fantastic day today. She didn't require any extra oxygen, she is taking all her bottles and is having few d-sats and no bradys. God was watching over my precious baby girl yesterday.
Monday, March 7, 2011 3:56 PM, CST
Where do I start?? I guess I have the whole month of February to catch up on!
I wish I would have kept up on the dates of things so this would be easy to keep up on... but I'll just lay it out for ya from the begining of the last post.
Olivia is starting to drink from the bottle every feeding now and is having good weight gain. She has to take all her feedings for 48 hours before she gets to go home. Olivia is also moving to "another" room. The NICU is expecting Quads so they are kicking us out of the room. Our new roommate is Eliana.
Olivia had a step back around the end of the first week of February and had to be put back onto the nose cannula for a day and had a brady. They are treating her for possible infection and running tests to see why she took steps back. All test came back negative. We met with the ocupational therapist, Cindy, again. She is having us thicken her formula to help her swallow and learn control of her bottle. It seems to be working.
Our 7 day countdown to go home is on! She is breathing on her own with no help and is taking all her feedings. she is now on Neosure formula, she will go home on this. Oy makes her very,very gassy. Olivia received her two months shots. The shots didnt' go over so well with Olivia. She had a brady and an Apnea. She was sleeping in daddys arms, the alarms barely dinged and she went blue and limp very fast. The nurses rushed in and had to give her the "bag" (oxygen) and really had to rough her up to get her to start breathing on her own. Let me tell you, that was the scariest thing. I was more scared then, then when she was younger. she had a couple more bradys that night. our countdown starts over.
olivia had a good week. she is scheduled to go home on the 11th. on the 9th olivia passed her car seat with flying colors. Thursday morning she had had an eye exam and everthing looked good. minutes after her eye exam she had a brady and apnea that required stimulation. One day to go and we have to start over. Danny and I had reacged our breaking point that day. We finally voiced our complaints and concerns that we had built up inside for so many days. Including getting a new room. We had personal conflicts with her roommates mother and how she felt she was better then everyone and how she acted like her daughter was the only one on the NICU. Her daughter was there just a little longer then Olivia.
olivia had a video swallow gram done on the 11th. We finally have answers to all these bradys and apnea. Oliva was asperating regular and necter consticancy formula. She is now on honey consistancy. We have special gel thickener to put in her formula. The FINAL countdown is on. Olivia did fabulous her kast week in the NICU. She did get another roommate, Kazdyn. He is a quite boy. I was a little disappointed that we didnt have any of her favorite nurses taking care of her the last day. Infact we had nurses we've never had before.
the 16th, The rooming in was fun. she was all ours for the night... with nurse assistance if needed.
Februry 17, 2011. day 7 is here. she made it. 75 days later, she is a NICU graduate. she weighs 7 pounds 10 ounces and is 19.5 inches long. Gead circumfrence is 36.5 cm. we tucked her into her carseat, put her in the NICU wagon and waved goodbye. im sitting here holding her trying to type with one hand and tears fill my eyes. its still hard to believe she is finally out of St Lukes. I owe them everthing i have, they saved my daughters life. My miracle. "its amazing how 2 pounds can change your life "
January Olivia Updates
Saturday, January 1, 2011 9:48 PM, CST
Happy New Year Olivia!
The last two days were better. She has fewer Desats. 12-30-10 she weighed 3.7 and 12-31-10 she weighed 3.7. We are hoping for a gain tonight. We still have yet heard from the nurse.
She had a fantastic afternoon while we were there. Olivia is getting 3 hours of cannula time twice a day. If she does well on the 3 hours, they will move her up to 6 hours twice a day. The nurse dressed her in a little fleece onesie today, she looked soooo cute! They had to up the amount of sodium they are giving her. She is still getting iron, sodium and caffeine daily. Her feedings are up to 32 mils with added protein and calories to it. My pumping hasn't got better. I'm not giving up tho. I keep hoping that it will happen! I believe that's all for now, I should update this as soon as I talk to the doctor/nurse becuase I forget everything by the time I get home
Happy New Year Olivia!
The last two days were better. She has fewer Desats. 12-30-10 she weighed 3.7 and 12-31-10 she weighed 3.7. We are hoping for a gain tonight. We still have yet heard from the nurse.
She had a fantastic afternoon while we were there. Olivia is getting 3 hours of cannula time twice a day. If she does well on the 3 hours, they will move her up to 6 hours twice a day. The nurse dressed her in a little fleece onesie today, she looked soooo cute! They had to up the amount of sodium they are giving her. She is still getting iron, sodium and caffeine daily. Her feedings are up to 32 mils with added protein and calories to it. My pumping hasn't got better. I'm not giving up tho. I keep hoping that it will happen! I believe that's all for now, I should update this as soon as I talk to the doctor/nurse becuase I forget everything by the time I get home
Monday, January 3, 2011 5:39 PM, CST
A quick catch up on Olivia's weight:
1-1-11 weight was 3.7
1-2-11 weight was 3.10
1-3-11 weight is 3.13!
It's been a few days, so it's time to play some catch up, I appologize if anything is duplicate or out of the timeline.
Olivia was put on two diaretics to help get the fluid off of her, the Doctor thinks that the fluid may be pushing up against her lungs causing her breathing problems. With two diaretics, there is a chance she may lose sodium. Well she did lose sodium so the gave her a sodium supplement (on top of the caffiene and iron). Day two on the Diaretics, her sodium dropped even lower. The Doctor ordered an increase in Sodium. Day 3 of the diaretics, her breathing appears to be better, however her sodium dropped again. The doctor took her off the diaretics.
Olivia is scheduled for a head scan today to recheck the bleeding and she has an eye exam on 1-5-11.
Olivia is scheduled to go on 3 hours of nose cannula each shift to help ween her off the CPAP.
They've also increased Olivia's feeding times. They are now feeding her constantly for 2 hours. They think she may have reflux. Hopefully this will help her!
Oh and the funny thing, Olivia pooped on Danny's hand! :)
1-1-11 weight was 3.7
1-2-11 weight was 3.10
1-3-11 weight is 3.13!
It's been a few days, so it's time to play some catch up, I appologize if anything is duplicate or out of the timeline.
Olivia was put on two diaretics to help get the fluid off of her, the Doctor thinks that the fluid may be pushing up against her lungs causing her breathing problems. With two diaretics, there is a chance she may lose sodium. Well she did lose sodium so the gave her a sodium supplement (on top of the caffiene and iron). Day two on the Diaretics, her sodium dropped even lower. The Doctor ordered an increase in Sodium. Day 3 of the diaretics, her breathing appears to be better, however her sodium dropped again. The doctor took her off the diaretics.
Olivia is scheduled for a head scan today to recheck the bleeding and she has an eye exam on 1-5-11.
Olivia is scheduled to go on 3 hours of nose cannula each shift to help ween her off the CPAP.
They've also increased Olivia's feeding times. They are now feeding her constantly for 2 hours. They think she may have reflux. Hopefully this will help her!
Oh and the funny thing, Olivia pooped on Danny's hand! :)
Tuesday, January 4, 2011 5:29 PM, CST
Happy One Month Birthday Baby girl! Sometimes I have top stop and take a deep breath and let reality hit me that I am a Mom. :) I like being called Mom, it's pretty cool. Maybe I should call Doris (Gar) Mom more often. :)
Today Olivia weighs 4 pounds!
Gar came to visit Olivia today.
Olivia didn't have much scheduled for today except her head scan. Her head scan showed that she still has about the same amount of blood on her brain, however it is NOT bleeding. The doctor said that the blood will go away within time. The doctor also mentioned that her ventricles were on the Larger side of normal. She said this could be caused by some of the bleeding. They are going to keep watching it, they will most likely retest her in a few weeks. I'm not sure what side effects can/could happen if the ventricles remain large. I asked the doctor about the ventricles, but I'll be honest, I got very confused!
She is also advancing to 6 hours (each shift) on her nose cannula. Yay! I decided to share and let Daddy hold her today. She had no blood work scheduled today.
We also helped give Olivia get a sponge bath tonight. She loves having her hair washed. When it's freshly washed it fluffs up! It's so cute!
I'm so proud of my little girl! She is growing so strong!
Today Olivia weighs 4 pounds!
Gar came to visit Olivia today.
Olivia didn't have much scheduled for today except her head scan. Her head scan showed that she still has about the same amount of blood on her brain, however it is NOT bleeding. The doctor said that the blood will go away within time. The doctor also mentioned that her ventricles were on the Larger side of normal. She said this could be caused by some of the bleeding. They are going to keep watching it, they will most likely retest her in a few weeks. I'm not sure what side effects can/could happen if the ventricles remain large. I asked the doctor about the ventricles, but I'll be honest, I got very confused!
She is also advancing to 6 hours (each shift) on her nose cannula. Yay! I decided to share and let Daddy hold her today. She had no blood work scheduled today.
We also helped give Olivia get a sponge bath tonight. She loves having her hair washed. When it's freshly washed it fluffs up! It's so cute!
I'm so proud of my little girl! She is growing so strong!
Wednesday, January 5, 2011 5:46 PM, CST
Just a quick update on Olivia.
Her blood gases came back GREAT! The doctor is hoping to extend her cannula time to 9 hours each shift in a couple of days.
Olivia had her eye exam today. It showed that she has immature blood vessels and retnas. This is very typical for immature babies. They will recheck her in 2 weeks.
They are lowering her feedings from 2 hours to 1 hour. They are hoping to be able to get her ready for regular feedings in a couple of weeks.
Her sodium level was better today so the Doctor is decreasing the amount of sodium she is getting with each feeding.
She also will get her Hepatits B shot today or tomorrow. :(
They did the state required testing on her when she was born and everything was normal. They rechecked her at 14 days and she had elevated fatty acid levels. The doctor thinks this was from her IV fluids, but she is going to retest her in a couple of days. (not sure if it is called the "state required test" or if it has an actual name or not, that's what the docotr refered to it as).
I got to hold her for 3 hours today. I love my snuggle time with Olivia!
Her blood gases came back GREAT! The doctor is hoping to extend her cannula time to 9 hours each shift in a couple of days.
Olivia had her eye exam today. It showed that she has immature blood vessels and retnas. This is very typical for immature babies. They will recheck her in 2 weeks.
They are lowering her feedings from 2 hours to 1 hour. They are hoping to be able to get her ready for regular feedings in a couple of weeks.
Her sodium level was better today so the Doctor is decreasing the amount of sodium she is getting with each feeding.
She also will get her Hepatits B shot today or tomorrow. :(
They did the state required testing on her when she was born and everything was normal. They rechecked her at 14 days and she had elevated fatty acid levels. The doctor thinks this was from her IV fluids, but she is going to retest her in a couple of days. (not sure if it is called the "state required test" or if it has an actual name or not, that's what the docotr refered to it as).
I got to hold her for 3 hours today. I love my snuggle time with Olivia!
Saturday, January 8, 2011 11:10 PM, CST
I need to get better at updating this daily. Olivia was put on all cannula yesterday, today she was having a few to many Desats so the doctor dropped her back to 18 hours of cannula and 6 hours of CPAP a day. She was not happy about getting put back onto her CPAP. She has weighed 4.4 the last two days. She is now eating 35 mils of donor milk a feeding. She is still gettting iron and caffeine. Her blood gases have looked great the last few days.
They are keeping an eye out for relux. She is starting to show some signs of it.
Gar and Papa visited today. papa got to hold Olivia for the first time today.
They are keeping an eye out for relux. She is starting to show some signs of it.
Gar and Papa visited today. papa got to hold Olivia for the first time today.
Monday, January 10, 2011 8:03 PM, CST
The weather has kept me from seeing Olivia today. I think we already have about 7 inches and are expecting more.
Olivia has been doing really good the last couple of days. The doctor is doing a blood gas in the morning and if it is good, they are going to try her on all cannula again. I hope Olivia is strong enough. She's a tough little girl!
The Doctors don't have much planned for her today. They said she has good color and is gaining an average of 2 ounces a day. She is still a little under weight, but they are hoping that upping her feedings to 36 mils will help her gain. Last night she weighed 4.7!
Keep up the work baby girl. We love you!
Olivia has been doing really good the last couple of days. The doctor is doing a blood gas in the morning and if it is good, they are going to try her on all cannula again. I hope Olivia is strong enough. She's a tough little girl!
The Doctors don't have much planned for her today. They said she has good color and is gaining an average of 2 ounces a day. She is still a little under weight, but they are hoping that upping her feedings to 36 mils will help her gain. Last night she weighed 4.7!
Keep up the work baby girl. We love you!
Sunday, January 16, 2011 8:17 PM, CST
Olivia has been really improving over the past week. She is now getting formula for four out of eight feedings. She is up to 42 mils. She is getting so big and changing every day. She weighs 4 pounds and 14 ounces. Her head measures 12.5 inches and she is 17 inches long. We will get new measurements tonight.
I wasn't able to go see Olivia today because I feel a little under the weather. I don't want to chance anything. She had 2 new visitors this week that have been waiting very patiently to see her, cousins Chezney and Adrieanne. Lily, Gar & Papa also visited this week.
Olivia is also on all cannula now. Her breathing is now in it's correct range and isn't too fast. She has few bradys and all most all of her Dsats are self resolved. She should have another eye exam on Wednesday.
*** this just in from her daddy***
Olivia is now 17 1/2 inches long and her head is 13 1/4 inches and she weighs 5 pounds!!! She's had a great day.
I wasn't able to go see Olivia today because I feel a little under the weather. I don't want to chance anything. She had 2 new visitors this week that have been waiting very patiently to see her, cousins Chezney and Adrieanne. Lily, Gar & Papa also visited this week.
Olivia is also on all cannula now. Her breathing is now in it's correct range and isn't too fast. She has few bradys and all most all of her Dsats are self resolved. She should have another eye exam on Wednesday.
*** this just in from her daddy***
Olivia is now 17 1/2 inches long and her head is 13 1/4 inches and she weighs 5 pounds!!! She's had a great day.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011 9:46 PM, CST
Oh this snow! A Big Thank You to Angela for the baby clothes and equipment. It means so much to us. We love you! i had so much fun putting them in her closet!
Yesterday she weighed 5.3. her feedings are now being feed for 30 minutes instead of an hour. She also got moved down to a 1.5 liter cannula instead of the 2 liter (high flow). She moved up a size in binkys and she is learning how to suck them and keep them in all by herself. The discharge lady also came in to talk to us about preparing for her discharge. Yesterday, All I did was cry. She is growing up so fast and my dreams of bringing her home are finally starting to happen!
Today(1-19-11) Olivia had her eye exam. They said so far she doesn't need eye surgery and they will check her again next week. She's had a great day. Her oxygen levels are still great and she is having fewer and fewer Dsats. She weighs 5.4 pounds tonight!
Team Olivia Jean for the March of Dimes Baby walk is coming along greatly! I'm so excited for the Walk and We can't thank everyone enough!
Yesterday she weighed 5.3. her feedings are now being feed for 30 minutes instead of an hour. She also got moved down to a 1.5 liter cannula instead of the 2 liter (high flow). She moved up a size in binkys and she is learning how to suck them and keep them in all by herself. The discharge lady also came in to talk to us about preparing for her discharge. Yesterday, All I did was cry. She is growing up so fast and my dreams of bringing her home are finally starting to happen!
Today(1-19-11) Olivia had her eye exam. They said so far she doesn't need eye surgery and they will check her again next week. She's had a great day. Her oxygen levels are still great and she is having fewer and fewer Dsats. She weighs 5.4 pounds tonight!
Team Olivia Jean for the March of Dimes Baby walk is coming along greatly! I'm so excited for the Walk and We can't thank everyone enough!
Thursday, January 20, 2011 10:46 PM, CST
Today was a big day for Olivia. Her oxygen needs are at the same level they have been for the past few days. So the doctor moved her to a 1 liter cannula! This means she can now learn how to eat from a bottle! We asked the doctor to be sure to schedule her to start at a time we can be there.
They are also weaning her off of her isolete bed! She should be in a bassinet in a day or so. She also got to take her first tub bath tonight! She was a little upset at first, but after a while she really enjoy that warm water. The nurse missed weighing her at her 8'clock feeding and will do so at her 11'clock feeding.
She is growing up so fast and has been making huge improvements the last couple of days. Keep it up my little princess!
They are also weaning her off of her isolete bed! She should be in a bassinet in a day or so. She also got to take her first tub bath tonight! She was a little upset at first, but after a while she really enjoy that warm water. The nurse missed weighing her at her 8'clock feeding and will do so at her 11'clock feeding.
She is growing up so fast and has been making huge improvements the last couple of days. Keep it up my little princess!
Saturday, January 22, 2011 7:53 PM, CST
Olivia is up to 5 pounds 9 ounces(friday)! She was at 5 pounds 6 ounces on thursday! I can't wait to see what her weight is tonight (saturday). Friday we got to meet with the Ocupational Therapist and learn some oral stimulation with Olivia in preparation of feeding. She wasn't able to feed Friday becasue her breathing is too fast.
Today was another big day for Olivia! She is now sleeping in a big girl crib! They are watching her tempature to make sure she doesn't get to cool. if she gets to cool her body will start burning calories to help keep her warm and she'll be moved back to an isolete.
Olivia also got to try and eat from a bottle for the first time today! I think she got more all over her face then she did in her tummy. But she was so cute trying to eat!
Olivia also had her first hearing test today. Her right hear passed at 100% and her left ear was 90%. They will retest her left ear on Monday. The lady doing the screen said it was no biggie.
She also gets another headscan on her brain on Monday to check and make sure the bleeding is still stopped and to check the size of the venticles.
Things are moving very fast for Olivia. And I can't wait!!
Today was another big day for Olivia! She is now sleeping in a big girl crib! They are watching her tempature to make sure she doesn't get to cool. if she gets to cool her body will start burning calories to help keep her warm and she'll be moved back to an isolete.
Olivia also got to try and eat from a bottle for the first time today! I think she got more all over her face then she did in her tummy. But she was so cute trying to eat!
Olivia also had her first hearing test today. Her right hear passed at 100% and her left ear was 90%. They will retest her left ear on Monday. The lady doing the screen said it was no biggie.
She also gets another headscan on her brain on Monday to check and make sure the bleeding is still stopped and to check the size of the venticles.
Things are moving very fast for Olivia. And I can't wait!!
February 2011 Olivia Updates
Where do I start?? I guess I have the whole month of February to catch up on!
I wish I would have kept up on the dates of things so this would be easy to keep up on... but I'll just lay it out for ya from the begining of the last post.
Olivia is starting to drink from the bottle every feeding now and is having good weight gain. She has to take all her feedings for 48 hours before she gets to go home. Olivia is also moving to "another" room. The NICU is expecting Quads so they are kicking us out of the room. Our new roommate is Eliana.
Olivia had a step back around the end of the first week of February and had to be put back onto the nose cannula for a day and had a brady. They are treating her for possible infection and running tests to see why she took steps back. All test came back negative. We met with the ocupational therapist, Cindy, again. She is having us thicken her formula to help her swallow and learn control of her bottle. It seems to be working.
Our 7 day countdown to go home is on! She is breathing on her own with no help and is taking all her feedings. she is now on Neosure formula, she will go home on this. Oy makes her very,very gassy. Olivia received her two months shots. The shots didnt' go over so well with Olivia. She had a brady and an Apnea. She was sleeping in daddys arms, the alarms barely dinged and she went blue and limp very fast. The nurses rushed in and had to give her the "bag" (oxygen) and really had to rough her up to get her to start breathing on her own. Let me tell you, that was the scariest thing. I was more scared then, then when she was younger. she had a couple more bradys that night. our countdown starts over.
olivia had a good week. she is scheduled to go home on the 11th. on the 9th olivia passed her car seat with flying colors. Thursday morning she had had an eye exam and everthing looked good. minutes after her eye exam she had a brady and apnea that required stimulation. One day to go and we have to start over. Danny and I had reacged our breaking point that day. We finally voiced our complaints and concerns that we had built up inside for so many days. Including getting a new room. We had personal conflicts with her roommates mother and how she felt she was better then everyone and how she acted like her daughter was the only one on the NICU. Her daughter was there just a little longer then Olivia.
olivia had a video swallow gram done on the 11th. We finally have answers to all these bradys and apnea. Oliva was asperating regular and necter consticancy formula. She is now on honey consistancy. We have special gel thickener to put in her formula. The FINAL countdown is on. Olivia did fabulous her kast week in the NICU. She did get another roommate, Kazdyn. He is a quite boy. I was a little disappointed that we didnt have any of her favorite nurses taking care of her the last day. Infact we had nurses we've never had before.
the 16th, The rooming in was fun. she was all iurs for the night... with nurse assistance if needed.
day 7 is here. she made it. 75 days later, she is a NICU graduate. she weighs 7 pounds 10 ounces and is 19.5 inches long. Gead circumfrence is 36.5 cm. we tucked her into her carseat, put her in the NICU wagon and waved goodbye. im sitting here holding her trying to type with one hand and tears fill my eyes. its still hard to believe she is finally out of St Lukes. I owe them everthing i have, they saved my daughters life. My miracle. "its amazing how 2 pounds can change your life "
I wish I would have kept up on the dates of things so this would be easy to keep up on... but I'll just lay it out for ya from the begining of the last post.
Olivia is starting to drink from the bottle every feeding now and is having good weight gain. She has to take all her feedings for 48 hours before she gets to go home. Olivia is also moving to "another" room. The NICU is expecting Quads so they are kicking us out of the room. Our new roommate is Eliana.
Olivia had a step back around the end of the first week of February and had to be put back onto the nose cannula for a day and had a brady. They are treating her for possible infection and running tests to see why she took steps back. All test came back negative. We met with the ocupational therapist, Cindy, again. She is having us thicken her formula to help her swallow and learn control of her bottle. It seems to be working.
Our 7 day countdown to go home is on! She is breathing on her own with no help and is taking all her feedings. she is now on Neosure formula, she will go home on this. Oy makes her very,very gassy. Olivia received her two months shots. The shots didnt' go over so well with Olivia. She had a brady and an Apnea. She was sleeping in daddys arms, the alarms barely dinged and she went blue and limp very fast. The nurses rushed in and had to give her the "bag" (oxygen) and really had to rough her up to get her to start breathing on her own. Let me tell you, that was the scariest thing. I was more scared then, then when she was younger. she had a couple more bradys that night. our countdown starts over.
olivia had a good week. she is scheduled to go home on the 11th. on the 9th olivia passed her car seat with flying colors. Thursday morning she had had an eye exam and everthing looked good. minutes after her eye exam she had a brady and apnea that required stimulation. One day to go and we have to start over. Danny and I had reacged our breaking point that day. We finally voiced our complaints and concerns that we had built up inside for so many days. Including getting a new room. We had personal conflicts with her roommates mother and how she felt she was better then everyone and how she acted like her daughter was the only one on the NICU. Her daughter was there just a little longer then Olivia.
olivia had a video swallow gram done on the 11th. We finally have answers to all these bradys and apnea. Oliva was asperating regular and necter consticancy formula. She is now on honey consistancy. We have special gel thickener to put in her formula. The FINAL countdown is on. Olivia did fabulous her kast week in the NICU. She did get another roommate, Kazdyn. He is a quite boy. I was a little disappointed that we didnt have any of her favorite nurses taking care of her the last day. Infact we had nurses we've never had before.
the 16th, The rooming in was fun. she was all iurs for the night... with nurse assistance if needed.
day 7 is here. she made it. 75 days later, she is a NICU graduate. she weighs 7 pounds 10 ounces and is 19.5 inches long. Gead circumfrence is 36.5 cm. we tucked her into her carseat, put her in the NICU wagon and waved goodbye. im sitting here holding her trying to type with one hand and tears fill my eyes. its still hard to believe she is finally out of St Lukes. I owe them everthing i have, they saved my daughters life. My miracle. "its amazing how 2 pounds can change your life "
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