Wednesday, December 15

Today Jackson is 11 weeks old.  Jackson had a few evaluations today.  The first was his echo cardiogram.  It shows that his PDA is still closed, and they won't need to check it again for 6 months.  His other evaluation was with the ophthalmologist.  The eye doctor is concerned with the way Jackson's eyes are developing.  There looks like there may be some slight damage due to the oxygen levels that were required earlier on to keep him alive.  It could go two ways.  One of these is that his eye development can continue to degrade and it would require surgery to correct.  The other way is that his eye development could improve and there will be no issues at all.  They will be checking them again sometime next week.  We ask that all of you please pray that his eye development improves, and there will be no trace of it.

The patron saint of eyes is Lucy of Syracuse in case any of you wanted to know.

Not today mommy, it's been a rough one.

Double Dose- Pen Comparison from 1lb 5oz to 4lbs 3oz

Tuesday December 14th

I'M A BIG BOY NOW!!!

Today Jackson officially was moved into a crib from the incubator.  Also, Jackson was able to take 15mL from the bottle feed this morning.  The nurse stopped him again today, so he might be able to take more, but again they want him going slow and steady.

Jackson now weighs 4lb 3.5oz. The biggest thing is that Jackson latched on the breast today and took some milk.  He is making great strides on all fronts.

Look at me-- now the pen looks small!

Wheeee!!

Hi Mommy Im enjoying my pacifier.

Jackson's foot, tiny but stinky

getting my face cleaned

all ready to change beds!

check out my new digs. Mommy moved all of my stuff from my old bed to my new one.

Daddy changing a diaper for the first time. He was a pro!

Mommy and Daddy getting a good look at me. So big!

Mommy and Jackson kangaroo time!

Monday December 13th, 2010

Jackson had a great day today.  His physical therapist said he did great.  He is still tolerating the open crib, and is able to regulate his temperature.  They tried the bottle feeding again today, and he ended up being able to take 10cc from the bottle.  Jackson would have kept going, but they stopped him to make sure he doesn't end up having trouble.  They will allow him to take more and more everyday slowly to make sure he won't accidentally aspirate himself.  We also worked on him getting the idea of breastfeeding.  We got some more tips from the nurse tonight that we will incorporate.  They have finally discontinued the last breathing treatment, so he is doing it all on his own. 

Asleep right after my bottle feeding success.

Checking out mommy right before bedtime.

Sunday December 12th- Pop the Top!

Jackson is 4lbs!! woohoo!!! Now he gets to transition into an open air bed, as long as he can continue to regulate his own body temperature. As of now, they have just raised the lid on his isolet bed, after 24 hours if he is stable, they will move him to a "crib". He is just doing so well. The doctors decided to discontinue one of his breathing treatments, the Albuterol. He will remain on the other one just a bit longer, but the intent is to discontinue that one soon. This afternoon when we visited, it was time to work on his breastfeeding skills. His nurse today was a postpartum nurse before becoming a NICU nurse, so she was a wealth of information on how to try and get Jackson to breastfeed. She was so helpful and we learned alot, and Jackson was given a favorable report on his progress.

Jackson enjoying his open crib and binkie

Jackson's bed with the top opened

When Mom went to the NICU tonight, Jackson was hiding his face with his blanket. Now that he doesn't had a top, he doesn't have the cover over his bed which makes it nice and dark. Looks like he figured out a way. When Julia removed the cover from his face, he put it back. So the cover stayed until she was ready to kangaroo.

Where's Jackson?

Here I am!!

Saturday December 11th

Jackson was 3lbs 14oz when they weighed him overnight. We can't believe our little tiny baby is almost 4lbs. Saturday morning Mom was initiated into the "Things little boys do" club, when changing Jackson, she wasn't fast enough and Jackson peed everywhere. She had been told that this could happen, now she has learned why you need to be so quick, or atleast keep things covered :) We worked on his breastfeeding skills and he is slowly learning. Most of the things we do are just getting him comfortable held in the positions. He was also given his pacifier when they were feeding him thru his tube, this was he would start to equate sucking with food in his stomach. The nurses never cease to amaze us with their wealth of knowledge.

bye Mom and Dad, Im tired and ready for a nap. See you tonight!

In the evening it was Dad's turn to kangaroo. Mom loves watching her boys hang out together. Now that Greg is so comfortable with holding Jackson, Jackson seems to sense the lack of worry because he completely relaxes with his Dad. He was pretty alert so Mom was enjoying watching Jackson look around and wiggle.

Greg and Jackson - snuggle time

Friday December 10th

On Friday Mom had the afternoon off, so she was able to spend an extra long time holding Jackson. He was so happy and comfortable that the nurses said she could keep holding as long as she wanted. It was a great feeling to know that we had a little more freedom with Jackson. There really isn't alot changing with Jackson's treatment, just increase in feedings. They are still trying to work on Jackson's bottle and breast skills. On Friday he was able to take the bottle and suck a couple of time. Jackson still really hasn't developed the cough to clear the throat and will freak out sometime when he swallows milk and it doesn't go down right. So they will keep trying and will figure this all out soon.

stretching before swaddling

all tucked in and ready for bed