Day 60: Lots of excitement

First of all, it is great to have dad back at home. Even though he is sleeping in the guestroom right now. He is not feeling well, and unsure if this is from being awake too long or from actually getting sick. It is far from ideal and cozy, but we cannot have two sick parents, Loki needs at least one person to go out and visit him. Hopefully he is just tired. It is wonderful to see him though! And wow, he came back with many, many, many wonderful gifts from many, many people! Our table is covered with wonderful goodies for Loki. He even received a CD from his Opa Frits' CD guy, how about that? I promise, I am keeping track in my notebook, and one day I will thank all of you individually! For now, THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!! Dad has had a wonderful time in the Netherlands, although he described it as "really cold." He had a brief visit with Loki today, and although he only saw Loki's little head peeking out of the blankets, he immediately noticed how big our little guy is right now.

Loki Sky is doing great. He gained more weight and is starting to look like a sumo wrestler. Well, I guess that is not really true, but he is now 1610 grams. Well on his way to four pounds. Unfortunately for Loki, with being a big boy comes immunizations. He started those this morning. The shots will be given spread out over the upcoming three days, to give his tiny body the chance to process all the toxins. I am a little nervous, but I guess this time it is a typical mom worry.

The plan yesterday was for Loki to sprint on his nasal cannula three hours during each shift, which adds up to hours per day. Today his adventurous doctor Anna decided he will be on the nasal cannula....... period. This is a big step coming much earlier than expected. In fact, Amber and I were talking about the transition process, and we estimated another two or three weeks. We will see how he responds. So far he has done well, needing a little more oxygen than on the CPAP machine. Per doctor's order he will go back to CPAP for a few hours if he needs oxygen over 40% for extended periods of time. We are very proud of our little guy. It is wonderful to see his face and hair, makes him look even more like a typical baby (but than of course a very handsome one).

The wonderful side effect of nasal cannula is recreational breastfeeding. We started yesterday with great help of nurse Lisa. We have practiced twice now. Dudy Meludy latched on a little bit today, with great help of nurse Margaret. It will take a while before he really knows what to do. But, he likes to suck and he seems to be okay sucking on a real life nipple, instead of his pacifier. Hopefully within a few weeks he will be getting a fair amount of his food this way. However fast it may or may not go, it is just such a wonderful feeling to sit in a rocking chair, with my beautiful baby in my arms trying to do what babies do.

In addition to the breastfeeding, I am also able to perform more of the care taking tasks, and transition Loki from and to the isolet when I hold him. Even when I hold him I can move positions if need be. This may not sound like a big deal, but before every tiny move could be too much stimulation for him. Or it could compromise his oxygen saturation due to positioning or issues with the mask/prong from the CPAP/SiPAP. So, it is great to hold him close to my body, than look at his face when he is alert and looking around with his big, big eyes.

Finally, we may need to prepare for a move out of our room relatively soon. Loki has been in the same room for two months now. This is rare as kids are usually moved around according to needs and staff assignments. If he succeeds on the nasal cannula by the time he weighs 4 pounds, he will be in an open crib and probably move to a room with more babies. I feel sorry for the nurses who will have to move him, as we have collected quite some toys, books, stuffed animals and pictures. The newest gift our spoiled little Loki received was from his primary nurse Lisa. She gave him a big, fussy, white teddy bear. When he is old enough he can snuggle up to the bear and remember all the wonderful nurses that took care of him in the NICU.