Care by Parent

Hello!!!

We made it to Care by Parent!! For those of you who don't know what that is, basically it's rooming in with Alyssa. I have a bed, a sink, a rocking chair and her in my room and I am her primary caregiver. Her nurses are here for assistance with feeding and other issues if I need them. I was getting tired of the NPCU as there were 3 sets of twins that came through and I was having issues with some of the nurses, but I am glad to be out of there and onto our next step home. I don't know when we'll be home, it basically depends on her and how badly she wants to eat. Today she took two full feeds in a row, which is about 50mL. Awesome!! She now weighs 5lbs 15oz and is quickly growing. We hope to continue her growth as she's in a more active environment here. Craig has the option to sleep here. The room has a double bed, but I think for the first few nights he will go home so it is easier for him to get ready for work. My parents are looking after the dogs, again. They're saints!

Off to get some sleep before she needs to eat again. We'll see how the night goes!!!

Lindsay

Update

Things are going well for Alyssa. She came off the monitor on Tuesday, which means she's not attached to anything. She has started breastfeeding and is doing quite well...taking anywhere from 14mL to 26mL (which is half of her normal feeds). They just top her up through the tube. She needs to take all feeds orally for 24 hours before they take the feeding tube out. So she's taking a step into the right direction. She weighs 5lbs 6oz now and is 46cm long with a head circumference of 33cm. She's growing like a weed!

You'd swear it looks like Craig is tickling her!

Bright eyed after her bath

Proud Uncle Adam holding her for the first time


Great Nana

Great Papa

She reaches 5lbs!

Alyssa now weighs 5lbs 0.6oz which is absolutely amazing. It's hart to believe my once very tiny baby is growing so big. To everyone else she is still the 'tiny' baby but as I was bathing her tonight, her little feet were kicking so much I had to change positions because she kept hitting them on the sides. She truly does love her bath times! She was fussy tonight because she has to be weighed before the bath and it's kind of a big ordeal. The second she was in the water, she calmed right down. She kept her eyes closed for most of the time.

Uncle Adam came down today and got to hold his neice for the first time. Even though she's 5lbs, she looked so tiny in his big arms!

(having issues uploading photos, but will add them once I am able to!)

Lindsay

One Month Old

It's hard to believe that Alyssa is now one month old. I know I'm a few days late in congratulating her, but we've been busy the last few days. Busy or lazy, not sure which it is! :)

Craig bathed her for the first time last night, all by himself. Another mom said she kept a distant, but watchful eye on him and she said he did really good. Alyssa does tend to get quite slippery! Doug was there and I know he'd never let her drown. He should have been there when I 'taught' her to hold her breath under water! Wont ever make that mistake again. Good thing she hardly ever cries!

She is now 4lbs 10.6oz and is growing like a weed. I think this shirt may explain why:

Daddy is giving her an early start on her literacy skills!

Yet another proud Grandpa!

Congratulations!

Alyssa now weighs 2015g which means that she is now part of the 2kg club!! Now she has a ribbon above her bed like several other babies in the NPCU. That is 4lbs 7oz. She is growing by leaps and bounds! Congrats baby girl!

Easter bunny from Grandma B

Proud Grandpa holding Alyssa for the first time!

Happy 1st Easter, Alyssa!

Mommy loves playing dress-up with her itty-bitty sleepers!

Daddy does such a great job swaddling her all nice and snug!

Yes, he looks so cozy! Came back from pumping and he was asleep with her!

Grandma McGregor gets a turn too!

New Weight

Alyssa is now 1910g which translates to 4lbs 3.6 oz. Ninety more grams and she's part of the 2kg club and gets a ribbon above her bed! She is doing really well and is starting to do some non-nutritive sucking. It still really wears her out to nurse, which is why we only do it once a day. She's basically just getting used to being there and appears to be quite comfortable there. Will add some first Easter pics when I get home.

Happy Easter!

Lindsay

The Many Faces of Alyssa

As of yesterday, Alyssa is off the caffeine. We'll have to see how she's doing today. She had the shakes yesterday and a bit of a headache from the withdrawal she was also quite cranky. (kidding...those are my symptoms of caffeine withdrawal). They used the caffeine to help with their breathing because it keeps them stimulated so they don't forget to breathe. She needs to be off the caffeine and had no spells before she can come off the monitors. I'm not sure I'm ready for that step yet. When she's been on them for 4 weeks (today!) it's hard not to rely on them. But it's another step she needs to master in order for her to come home. So we'll just have a baby like anyone else who is not hooked up to machines. (I wonder what that's like)

Some cuddle time after non-nutritive sucking. Those red marks on her face are from how I was holding her.

Thanks Grandma McGregor for the cute bear outfit. It may not look it here, but she is swimming in the hat. Is her head really tiny? Or is it the baby next to her's head that's HUGE!

Grandma B. holding her for the first time. The two of them napped while I pumped and cleaned up.

The Many Faces of Alyssa

(I think she just had gas)

Weigh ins!

Alyssa is growing like a weed, and hopefully will be out of the NPCU shortly! We give it another 3 or 4 weeks or whenever she learns to suck, swallow and breathe. It's ultimately up to her!


Weights
April 4 - 3lbs 11oz
April 6 - 3lbs 13 oz
April 8 - 4lbs 0.8 oz

"ta-da"

Back in her cozy little isolette after her bath.

Bath time!

Sorry for the confusion about posting, it is all backwards! This is me giving her her first bath on April 4. Craig is the cameraman! She was so slimy and so tiny! Yet so perfect! She loves having a bath and only cries a little bit when mommy dunks her face in the water and when she has to come out into the cold air!

New home in NPCU

After what happend in the NICU, we asked the staff if they would be willing to move Alyssa to the Neonatal Progressive Care Unit, which is like the level II nursery she was in in Toronto. Yet again, they were willing to accommodate our needs and would give it a try. If for some reason, she begins not tolerating her feeds, then she'd have to go back, but for now this is where she is. It it much quieter here, but a lot busier. There are more parents in this unit as well. We share a lot more of the care, which is wonderful. Who would have thought that I would drive into London with the NPCU on the phone saying, "don't changer her diaper yet, I want to do it when I get there." I may regret it later on, but for now, it's how I stay connected with my daughter.

The butterfly that is attached to her isolette is in remembrance of Mya.

Thank you to great-grandma Poppe for the beautiful outfits!

Take care,

Lindsay

Welcome!

Hello everyone,

Let me be the first to welcome you to our new blog with pictures and updates on Alyssa and how Craig and I are doing. It has been a rough week and a bit and we want to update you on how Alyssa is doing, but I just couldn't add anything to the other website. So this one here will be updates on how our family is doing.

A huge thank you to our family and friends, and people we don't even know, for their love and support. The compassion from everyone is outstanding and it has helped us through the most difficult of times.

God bless,
Lindsay