Sisters, Halloween and ICC

Olivia and Ella meeting 10/31/2010

30 days old/days in NICU

Weight: 3 lbs 6 oz ( +1 oz)

I didn't have time to write yesterday. It was such a busy, busy day with Olivia coming to the hospital and then trick or treating, AND Ella moved to the ICC. Wow, so much happened, I don't even know where to start. Let's go chronologically. 

In the morning we went and I breastfed Ella again, very successfully. She's a breastfeeding champion! Hurray! Then I called Shane and he brought Olivia up to see Ella. She was adorable in her Little Red Riding Hood costume and won over all the nurses with how adorable she was! She came in and instantly knew that mama was holding Ella. She was very well behaved and came up and sat on my lap. We didn't even have to tell her how to be around Ella, it seemed that it was very instinctual. She was very gentle and touched her very softly. A few times she took Ella's hat off, but I think that was a combination of wanting to see Ella's head and also the fact that Olivia has a hat just like Ella's so she was probably wondering why Ella was wearing her hat. It was really wonderful and I was SO glad they were able to meet! Here are some more pictures from the meeting. 

First time she actually saw Ella

First family picture

Big Sister!

Ella is now on feedings every 3 hours and getting 28 ml each feeding. That's just under an ounce every 3 hours. She also gets to breastfeed (or try to) 2x a day. Hopefully that will go up soon!! 

Yesterday, Ella moved into the ICC!! I don't have any pictures because I forgot the camera both times we've gone there since she's been moved. The ICC is at Children's so we were really happy to be able to stay at Children's. Dr. Bendel-Stenzel (aka Gods right hand) called us yesterday and said a bed had opened up and she'd be moving over there. Hurry!! Very exciting. A little nerve wracking because we don't know anything about the ICC or the nurses but I'm sure it will be great! Just one step closer to her going home. 

Getting ready! 

Getting ready to go for our first trick or treating! 

Trick or treating with Daddy

We got our loot! 

 We brought Olivia trick or treating to a few houses yesterday. I was able to fit her coat under her costume so we were able to see her whole costume, which was neat. We only did about a block, maybe 6 or 7 houses but she had fun. 

Breastfeeding SUCCESS!

28 days old/days in NICU
Weight: 3 lbs 5 oz ( +2 oz)

October 30, 2010

Yesterday, we were speaking with one of Ella's doctors and I asked when we would start introducing breastfeeding. After determining how old Ella was gestationally (33w2d), Dr. Bendel-Stenzel (whom, by the way, I call Gods right hand..) said we could start breastfeeding...RIGHT AWAY. I was so flustered and excited! Ella had just eaten so we decided we'd come back for her 8:00 PM feeding. 

That evening, we came back at 7:30 PM and I pumped so that if Ella did manage to latch on again this time (she'd latched on once before), she wouldn't have any issues with choking or aspirating or anything. I got comfy on the chair, with a pillow on my lap and the nurse handed Ella to me. I wasn't sure the best position on how to hold her because she's so darn small! Holding a 3 lb 5 oz baby is much, much different then holding a 15 lb baby to your breast! The nurse asked me how I'd nursed Olivia and I told her that Olivia's favorite way to nurse had always been draped across my body with her belly against mine. So, that's how she told me to hold Ella. Ummm...it's that simple?? Guess so! 

See those smiles? Those are the smiles of pure amazement

 at a  3 lb baby that latched on and started sucking without any help at all!!!!

I don't have any fancy words of advice to other moms of preemies except it simply can come down to patience and knowing that babies just know what to do sometimes! With Olivia, that wasn't the case, but with Ella, it was. She latched on with not a single issue. She's obviously not taking any full feedings or anything like that and she latches and pulls off but she latched and breastfed from my left breast (both times we've breast fed funnily enough). You can see in the above picture how I held her and that worked out really well except the arm I was using to hold my breast got really sore so I think I need a pillow or something to go underneath it. 

It was so amazing though. I can't even tell you. Just to have her latch and suck but when she actually caused a let down and started nursing for several minutes...I swear, a choir of angels started singing!! It was the most beautiful, natural thing ever. All the fears I had about breastfeeding such a tiny baby completely flew out the window and it was like we fit together like two puzzle pieces. I had worked myself up so much being so worried about having such a tiny little baby at such a ginormous boobie but when she latched on and we relaxed, it all fit together. My advice to new breastfeeding moms, whether or not you're breastfeeding a preemie is to relax and trust your body. And DON'T GIVE UP!! :)

Happy 2nd Birthday to my first miracle baby!

Today was Olivia's 2nd birthday!! We went to Mall of America this morning and did Build-a-Bear which she LOVED! She picked a dog and a "princess" (ballerina but we called it Princess) outfit and she named her dog Princess (shocker). Then we had a cookie for a snack instead of something healthy. Later in the afternoon, we went to our friend Deanna and Emerson's house for a big birthday play date. There were so many kids there!

Tomorrow morning we're having a small birthday party (with many of the same people from today ha ha) at a park and we're having Mickey Mouse cupcakes. Here are some pictures from today's birthday celebrations and tomorrow, we'll share some more.

I'm so overwhelmed at my luck of having not one, but two, beautiful girls. Each of my girls are miracle babies and we are so blessed to have such amazing children. I thank God that He blessed us with these two girls in spite of the many, many odds that were against us!!

Ella gained 2 ounces and now weighs 3 lbs 4 oz and is on the human milk fortifier every feeding. What a great day!

26 days

26 days old/days in the NICU

Weight: 3 lbs 2 oz (-1 ounce)

Ella has some congestion and her oxygen needs were up last night, so today her doctor decided to bring her cannula from .5 liter of pressure up to 1 liter of pressure. She was needing between 40-50% oxygen and now she's back down to around 30%. The way the nurse explained it was that it's not a step backwards, it's more of a sideways step but this way, she's burning less calories while trying to breathe. Ella isn't gaining weight the way they'd like her to, and as you can see she lost an ounce (BOO!) so hopefully this will help. Dr. Morozek decided to keep her feedings exactly as they are because she handled them well (so 18 ml every 2 hours with the human milk fortifier every other feeding) and she's planning on adding the human milk fortifier to every feeding starting tomorrow. I'm glad she's handling it better this time around. 


Today, Ella had her first eye exam. Premature babies are at risk for something called retinopathy of prematurity. Basically, when full term babies are born their eyes are fully developed but when a baby is born prematurely the eyes haven't had a chance to develop and the vessels can have problems. There is a lot more to it but honestly, I'm not even going to TRY and explain it. Anyways, she had her first eye exam and she was found to have premature eyes (duh) but within the normal range so, hurray! They'll do another exam in 2 weeks and we'll probably need to continue seeing a pediatric opthomologist once she's home. 

Tonight the NICU is having a pizza party for the families, and all family members can come so Olivia and my mom are coming too. I'm pretty excited to meet some other families, especially since we've been here for almost a month and we're looking at another 7ish weeks in the NICU. 

Today, I would be 33 weeks pregnant. It's been kind of a rough day for me simply because I SHOULD still be pregnant. Several people have said to me that our situation is just like me being pregnant still but I get to hold her everyday instead (since she's in the hospital and not at home). I appreciate the sentiment and that people want to help you feel better, but it's really not anything like that. If I were still pregnant, I would not be watching her struggling to breathe or worrying about how much weight she's gaining or every single gram that she loses. I would know that she was protected and warmed by my womb and was gaining weight thanks to the nutrients provided by my placenta. Plus, I'd have that super adorable baby belly where, at this point it's just the right size to be nice and big and round without being extremely uncomfortable yet! 

Tomorrow is Olivia's birthday! We're going to get up early, stop into the NICU for a short time and then go to the Mall of America to do build-a-bear with Olivia! On Saturday morning, we're having her birthday party at an indoor park with some close friends of hers (and ours) and her cousin. She picked a Mickey Mouse cake and blue monkey plates. I'm pretty excited to celebrate her birthday and on Sunday...she gets to meet Ella!! 

25 days old and ready for Level II!!!

25 days old/days in the NICU

Weight: 3 lbs 3 oz (+ 2 ounces)

I haven't blogged about Ella in a few days because there have been no changes. She's been on 18 ml every 2 hours for a few days and they weren't making any changes. Today, they started her on the human milk fortifier again to see how her tummy handles it this time. Dr. Morozak (one of the Dr.'s I really like!) put her on it every other feeding to see if she handles it a bit better this time. 

We also had some very exciting news today. Ella is officially ready for a Level II NICU! We're HOPING to stay at Children's Hospital because we know the hospital and plus, they have lots of benefits that Abbott doesn't have like the Sibling Play Room, the $45 meal voucher every week for breastfeeding and private rooms. They are going to try to get us in there, and our NICU social worker said they'll have some beds opening up next week but if we can't get in there, we'll be transferring over to Abbott. Abbott will still have the same doctors, which was important to us and is also part of Allina, which is the medical system we decided to stay in. Regardless, soon we'll be in a Level II and we're well on our way to coming home. I'm SO READY for November to come so I can say "Ella will be home next month". I know, it's totally in my head, but I just want to be able to put it that way ha ha. 

Because I haven't blogged in a few days, I have lots of pictures to share so this is going to be a picture heavy post!! 

It's times like these when differences get put aside

Saturday morning, after rooming in with Ella (staying the night), I was down in the cafeteria getting breakfast. As I was making my coffee, there was a lady beside me who had beautiful, long, thick, red hair and I just had to compliment her on it. We started talking and found out that we both had babies in the NICU. I asked her if  her baby had been born prematurely. With tears in her eyes, she told me that when her full term son was 7 days old, they discovered that he had a heart defect and he was air lifted from Pine City to Children's Hospital. I could tell by how she was talking about it that their night had been very much like our night when Ella was 4 days old. She was crying and I reached over and hugged her tightly. She was a stranger, probably 15 years my senior and nothing in common that I knew of but at the moment, we were both one and the same--a mama in desperate need to help their baby but with tied hands. I reassured her that eventually she would be able to talk about all of this without crying. She smiled at me and said thanks. We swapped stories about our babies and how they were doing. I discovered that he was going to have surgery on Tuesday morning (that's tomorrow...we're praying for you baby Malachai!!) and that he was the youngest of 7 children. This mama, whose name I found out the next day is Leslie, probably is completely and totally different then I am. If we were to run into each other on the street,we probably wouldn't have talked much less embraced and bonded but in this moment, all of those walls were dropped and we came together, all differences aside, and we were one and the same. 

Today, Shane and I were talking about Leslie and her family and how amazing it was that situations like this just shove all differences aside and bring people together. Like I said, Leslie and I would have never bonded but after this, even if we never see each other again, we will have a small special place in each others hearts as the woman who bonded with the other over a cup of bad coffee on that Saturday morning. 

22 days old

22 days old/days in the NICU

Weight: 3 lbs 1 oz (+20 grams)

A lot of the same going on in the NICU the last few days. Ella's feedings have gone to every 2 hours and she's getting 18 ml each feeding. They tried to add the human milk fortifier but she had a lot left in her tummy afterwards so they decided to not do it anymore for today. Ella is now 3 lbs 1 oz, 16 inches long and her head is measuring 11 inches. She has gained 7 ounces, 1 inch in her length and 1 inch in head. Now that she's eating more and once they are able to get the human milk fortifier (which adds extra calories) into her breast milk, she'll really start packing on the pounds. At about 1500 grams (which is how they measure her in the NICU), she'll be out of her incubator and in an isolette. That equals about 3.3 lbs, so we're pretty close! 

Another super exciting thing that happened today was one of Ella's primary nurses Jeanette dressed her in an adorable onsie. She looked so sweet!!!!!