That's our Nina!

Grandpa Wayne got to meet little Nina today - and snapped this shot of her with her Mommy (and wearing a ker-azy hat!).

Apparently, he said of Nina: "She looks like a regular baby, but smaller." That's our Nina!

And, she continues to become less small (that is to say, bigger) every day. Yesterday she gained 15 more grams. Furthermore, Dawning thinks she's been alarm free for about 10 days!

We're also pleased to report that we've lined up a pediatrician in NYC (one that was highly recommended to us by friends) and he's all set to start communicating with Nina's doctors in Burlington.

And... it's Friday, which means Daddy will be hopping a flight to Burlington in a few hours! Can't wait!

Adventures in breastfeeding

Nina has been busy lately! Yesterday, she apparently wriggled out of her diaper and pooped all over her little bed! Can you blame her? Why sleep in a diaper if you can sleep naked?

This just in: Today, she successfully breastfed for the first time! Dawning reports that she latched on and actually got quite a bit of milk. Mommy says, "I know she got a lot because she puked it up all over me." Dawning speculates that the gavage feed (through the nose-tube) that started at about the same time might have been too much for her. The nurse thinks that Nina probably got too much air with the milk, so burping sent it all back up (her esophagus isn't so strong just yet).

Anyway, this is GREAT, AMAZING news! Tomorrow, Nina will be 4 weeks old (and only 32 weeks + 5 days, gestationally speaking)... and is starting to breastfeed! Go Nina!

In other Nina news, Grandpa Greenstreet arrived today from Alaska! Stay tuned for further reports...

A good night

Dawning finished cleaning up some poop, and some vomit, and snapped this picture. Ah, catharsis.

Today's memo from Mommy reads: "Good night for the little one! 33 grams, no alarms, and trying to escape from her isolette! Still misses Daddy!"

The second image here is a new favorite. Mommy and Nina look so peaceful.

Daddy will be there in just two days! Hooray!

Short and sweet

Text message from Dawning reads: "14 grams, big poops, no alarms, misses her Daddy!"

There you have it folks - short and sweet (just like Nina)!

I love the chin-on-back-of-hand pose...

Oh, and the matching hat and blanket? Those were hand-knitted by Nina's great grandmother!

That's a big yawn!

Mommy's trying out a new shirt/baby-wrap system. Looks cozy!

Nina gained 6 grams yesterday, and has gone almost a whole week without any alarms.

Here's a fun, short video of Nina. We took this yesterday as Daddy was saying goodbye for the week. It's kind of dark (preemies don't like bright lights), but the best part is the huge yawn, followed by a super-cute face.

See you next weekend!

This is how we found Nina in the morning - our little cupcake!

She continues to gain weight and grow. Yesterday she gained 24 grams. She's up to 3 lbs, 2 and a half ounces!

She's definitely not ready for full-time breast-feeding, but is starting to get the idea of sucking.
Mommy changed her diaper and passed her to Daddy for one last holding.

They had a great time hanging out together this weekend. Daddy made a little cooing noise, and it sure looked like Nina was trying to imitate him!

Goodbye, Daddy! See you next weekend!

Daddy's back!

Daddy's back! Soon after landing in Burlington, Nina was back on Daddy's chest, resting peacefully.

Nina likes to hang out on his tummy though (a softer landing?), so it didn't take long for her to wriggle down there.
She gained another ounce yesterday, and continues to work on her suction power. She's still at an early stage - just getting a handful of sucks in at a time.

Here she is as we found her this morning - in a cute little onesie. It was strange to see her in clothing. We asked the nurse: why the onesie? Was it to keep her warm? Was it a sign of progress or regression in her thermal regulation? No, she told us. It was just to "pretty her up."

First Bath

Splash! Here are two photos from Nina's first bath. The technique involves swaddling her first, then lowering her into the water - this prevents her from being overwhelmed by the sensation of the water on her skin. At first, Nina didn't even seem to notice, but then, seemed to enjoy it!

And during the wash, her hair started to curl - she's a curly girl!

Nina has finally surpassed her birth weight. She gained a whole ounce (about 30 grams) yesterday, bringing her to a whopping 3 pounds, 1 ounce.

She was actually able to get a drop or two of milk straight from the source today, but the docs don't think she'll really get into more serious breast-feeding for at least another week.

And check out that hat! One of her nurses loves that hat and just HAD to see Nina in it. Whaddya think, readers?

TECHNICAL NOTE: I'm not actually in Burlington just yet. Since Nina moved to the step-down unit, Dawning has been spending more time with her, and has had less time for blogging. I'm getting on plane tonight to Burlington (woo hoo!), but Dawning was able to text these photos to me for faster posting.

Stretching out!

Nina moved to the "step down" unit today and will hopefully stay there until she is discharged.

It's much quieter in the "step down" unit.

Nina is stretching out and getting comfortable!

Here is her new spot next to the window!

Nina gained 50 grams today, had no alarms, and is pooping after every feeding! She is doing great, but still has a few more weeks to go!

Mommy really hates leaving Nina and wishes she could hold her all of the time!

On the move!

Nina moved to the "step down" unit on Monday night. It is very cozy and much quieter there. We were just getting comfy when we had to move back up to the NICU. The NICU is extremely busy right now and there is not enough babies who are able to be in the "step down" unit for the hospital to have two nurses working down there.

Nina is still doing great! She gained 10 grams yesterday and had no alarms. Her doctor is going to increase her calories. He said he wants to fatten her up!

Here's Nina all snuggled up for the move downstairs!

Stay tuned!

Sorry blog readers!

Dawning had a long day at the hospital today, and is having an issue with her internet connection, but relayed some news to me by phone:

*Nina gained 5 grams yesterday.

*Because of staffing problems, the "step down" unit is temporarily closed, so Nina had to move back up to the NICU. Hopefully this will get turned around soon.

and best of all...

*Nina is sucking on her little pacifier like crazy! Dawning even saw her holding it with her hands!

Stay tuned for photos and updates tomorrow!

Transition time!

Nina's doctor said she is ready to move downstairs to the "step down" unit! He said she meets all the criteria for moving to the transition unit.

She has very few alarms, she is gaining weight, and has no IVs!

Nina gained another 30 grams yesterday and is now 2 pounds 13 ounces, a whole ounce above her birth weight. She will be moving down to the "step down" unit tonight or tomorrow morning.

We still don't know how much longer Nina will be in the hospital, but it will probably be at least another 5-6 weeks. Nina has to learn how to breast and bottle feed before she can go home.

Daddy went back to New York to work yesterday. Nina misses him and his hairy chest very much!

Mommy is now pulling double duty, holding Nina for about 4 hours a day. (it's okay, Mommy loves to hold her!)

Tomorrow we will post pics of her new place!

Nina is the sweetest!

Nina gained 63 grams (about 2 ounces) yesterday! She's finally made it back to her birth weight! Go Nina!

Sadly, Daddy has to go back to work. He'll continue to shuttle up to Burlington on weekends, and he'll take off another big chunk of time when Nina's ready for the transition back home. See you next weekend, sweetie!

(Don't worry readers, Dawning will keep the blog going.)

Nina is the sweetest!

More visitors!

Grandma Karen arrived today! She got a glimpse of Nina through the window. Two of our Burlington friends, Ariana and Jaime, stopped by, too. Nina opened her eyes briefly, as if to say, "What's going on?"
Afterwards, she got another chance to practice breast-feeding. Mommy helped Nina get an actual drop this time - baby steps! As you can see in this photo, all that excitement really knocked her out.

Nina lost 47 grams yesterday! We were worried, but the docs tell us it's not a big deal - her weight is likely to fluctuate day to day. They're plotting her trend, and as long as it's generally upwards, she should be ok.

Two weeks old!

Nina is two weeks old today!

Hilariously, she attempted to breast-feed with Daddy yesterday - but ended up with a mouthful of chest hair!

So today Mommy let her try with the real thing. Nina had a great reaction - eyes wide open, tongue wagging all over the place - but she's still too small to actually pull anything in. Still, it was a strong start.

Nina gained another 17 grams yesterday! That's about half an ounce, which is perfect - the docs expect her to gain anywhere from a half an ounce to an ounce a day.

She continues to have a handful of alarms (when her vitals dip or escalate beyond healthy levels) a day, but corrects most of these on her own. Sometimes she requires a little soft stimulation, but never more than that. At times we've noticed that these correspond to her poops - it takes a lot of work for little Nina to poop!

Sucker

Nina gained 44 grams yesterday! She's still not back up to her birth weight, though (which was nearly 3 pounds).

Nina is doing a good job of regulating her own temperature, but remains in her heated isolette. It's a "neutral thermal environment" for her, which means that it's kept at the perfect temperature for her to grow. Even though she is able to regulate her temperature, in the isolette she doesn't have to expend any energy doing so.

Nina now makes sucking motions! We're going to do some breast-feeding practice, to help her get ready for the real thing. In this video, you can see her starting to suck on a pacifier. Dawning is not moving the pacifier, so every time you see it move, that's Nina!

18 more grams!

Nina loves Daddy time! She is so peaceful on Daddy's chest.

Nina gained 18 grams today (about a 1/2 ounce).

Nina is up to full feeds for her weight. She gets 24 milliliters every 3 hours. Even this small amount is a lot for her little tummy. She often spits up after her meal if she is not held in the same position for about 2 hours. This is normal for babies and especially preemies. The nurses say she is tolerating her feeding well. This is great news, because we want her to continue to gain weight.

She's a Vermonter!

Nina is still our little "rock star!" She is doing very well and Mommy and Daddy think she has grown a bit in the last few days. Her little hat barely fits her head anymore! Now she needs to pack on the pounds!

One of her nurses, Liz, made footprints for us. Aren't they cute!

Nina also got her birth certificate yesterday. She's a Vermonter!

Not much medical news to report. No news is good news!

Self-correcting

She's awake!

Nina's had a great 24 hours. Only a few alarms (dips in heart rate/blood oxygen), but she was able to self-correct each time.

Tomorrow, the docs will start fortifying Nina's meals with some extra calories to fatten her up!

This is one of Nina's favorite positions (hand-to-face).

And... she's out!

2 lbs, 9 ounces

Nina was born weighing 2 lbs and 12 ounces. She lost weight for the first few days (which is normal, even for full term babies), and now that she's gaining again, Nina's finally getting back to where she started. Today she's about 2 lbs, 9 ounces.

When Nina's a few pounds bigger and able to regulate her temperature on her own, she'll move from the NICU to a "step down" unit. There, her Mommy and Daddy will provide most of her care, and the nurses will standby in case we need them. The point is to facilitate the transition to going home.

Since Nina has no major health problems (fingers crossed!), her main challenge now is growing. The doctors think that she'll need to be in the hospital for at least another six weeks (including time in the step down unit).

When we came into the NICU this morning, it was strange to see Nina's isolette chamber with no medicine bags hanging nearby. Nina's belly button has a scab where her central line was. She's still hooked up to the computer that monitors her vital stats, but now her only tube is the one through her nose to her stomach. Next, she needs to learn to coordinate swallowing and breathing so that she can be fed orally.

After her meal (23 cc's of Mommy's milk + a tiny shot of caffeine), she wriggled into a comfy spot on Mommy's chest for a good two-hour nap.

Nina's first field trip!

Nina took a field trip... all the way to the other end of the NICU! There, her Nana and her Uncle Rick got to meet her for the first time through the window (only parents are allowed inside the NICU, and Nina's not allowed to leave).

This was Nina's first time off of the monitors (since she arrived in the NICU), so Mommy and Daddy were a little nervous!

Her visitors broke into a big laugh when Nina opened up for a giant-sized yawn.

Mission accomplished!