NICU WEEK 4...

    

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 20th  -->  SUNDAY, APRIL 24th:

I (Derek), haven't contributed to this blog much. Michelle has been posting all of the updates so I will help her out this week. The days tend to blend together so I will give a 5 day update.

Lola just keeps pressing forward. She is down to 2 liters of oxygen now. Hopefully she will be able to get off of the high flow oxygen soon. Today they moved her feeding tube from her mouth to her nose. I'm sure she doesn't enjoy having the tube running through her nose but she likes it a lot more than having it run through her mouth. She loves to suck on her binky and it is much easier to do with the tube out of her mouth. Little Lola now weighs 4 pounds 12.5 ounces! She has passed her birth weight by over a pound!

Little Lola is receiving lots of love from her grandparents. Michelle's dad got to hold Lola on Friday. Her grandmas visit her quite often. Also, Derek's dad helped Derek give her a blessing on Saturday. She is lucky to have such wonderful grandparents. She is going to be a spoiled little granddaughter.

MONDAY, APRIL 25th --> TUESDAY, APRIL 26th:
Lola broke the 5 pound mark!! She weighs 5 pounds 1-1/2 ounces. She is 27 days old and her adjusted gestational age is 33 weeks 4 days.

She is still on the high flow oxygen but she keeps getting better. She is not having as many swings in her oxygen. Every once in a while when she is eating she will have a dip in her oxygen. Usually she will get it back up on her own but sometimes we have to sit her up and rub her back or her sternum to help remind her that she needs to breath.

Tomorrow Michelle is going to start trying non-nutrition feedings with Lola. Its pretty much like breastfeeding practice for Lola. Michelle will pump and then let Lola try breastfeeding while she is getting milk from the feeding tube. We are excited to see how she does. After a couple days of the non-nutrition feedings they will try normal breastfeeding. Fingers crossed that she does well with it.

I want to give a specific rockstar shoutout to Michelle. She is amazing. Its not easy having a NICU baby, especially with a crazy 19 month old nicknamed Dex the Destroyer. She has done so well with everything and I am so grateful for her. Day after day she just does what needs to be done. Some days are harder than others but she keeps pushing forward. She does everything she possibly can to make sure that her kids are safe and happy. She is such a good mother to Dexter and Lola.

Also, in her limited free time she has made blankets and burp cloths for Lola.

And she has built up quite the supply of breastmilk for Lola.

Thank you Michelle, Love you