Scratch that.

Lets get an update in here before more happens/ changes!



Yesterday Matt and I went to visit Jaycie and they changed her to "AD LIB" feeds. This means she got to pick when she was hungry rather than being on a scheduled time. The critera? She had to eat every 3-4 hours. Finish 200cc's a shift AND gain weight. Well last night at 9pm (12 hours after starting the order) She lost almost an ounce. Today at 9am (24 hours after the order and 12 hours after the last weight check) She lost another ounce. They canceled the order. She is on scheduled feeds again. 60cc's every 3 hours.

The Dr informed me that when Jaycie goes home she will be on a monitor. (This will let us know her heart rate, Oxygen Saturation, and Resperations). I have mixed feelings about this. I like it because... thats all I know Jaycie with is a monitor and I constantly watch it to see her fluxuations. She does still desat and have bradycardia with her feeds. During the night and when she is in deep sleep she does have lower sats. But what I am NOT looking forward to is "lugging" around a monitor where ever my baby goes. Hearing the LOUD no volume control monitor for false beeps. Downloading it to the company monitoring it.
The Dr informed me of the monitor at about 11 this am. By 4pm the company called me and let me know they are delivering it to the NICU tomorrow. They also want me to be there to get the training lesson on it. They work fast!

Yesterday Matt and I got to give her a bath. (this was the first bath Matt was present for) he videoed it while I bathed her. We will post the video soon!

6 weeks!

6lbs 10oz.

Stay Tuned for a video tonight!

37 Weeks

FULL TERM! She is full term now. (Anywhere from 37-40).
She weighs 6lbs 8oz.
Her food USE to be EBM (expressed breast milk) which is 20cals/ml and they added a human milk fortifier of 24 cals/ml. They switched it to EBM + Neosure formula (22cals/ml). She is gaining weight perfectly and she should stay on the added 22 cals until homecoming. (Which we still have no word on yet).

I hear an ECHO... In the Canyon...

Last night Jaycie nursed 1 feed, Bottled two feeds and use the NG tube for the other. We are quite proud of her! She was with a "HARD" nurse that will only feed her when SHE thinks is right so we are glad she was able to feed! :)

At 3am the nurse was with another baby and heard Jaycie making noises over there. She finished up with the other baby and didnt feel the need to call for help because Jaycie was being quiet. Well about 10 min later the nurse went over to Jaycie. She had her hand straight up in the air in a fist waving her arm around. In her hand you ask? Her NG tube she pulled out. The nurse said she looked quite proud to have it too! Her and the other nurse in the POD laughed about it! She got to keep her tube out until 9 this morning when we needed to use it. She was wide awake but had a episode while nursing and then another with the bottle, So TUBE fed she was!

Jaycie gets an ECHO today for her murmur and tachycardia. Im glad shes finally getting it since they've been talking about it .... FOR WEEKS and how they MIGHT do it. I hope it all comes out good!

We learned that Jaycie is in a "CURSED" bed spot. I guess the last few babies that had that spot in the unit had "FEEDING ISSUES" also. We joked about moving her but... the unit is FULL FULL FULL! I think they have babies stuffed everywhere! :) (Jaycies pod holds 3 beds and their are currently 6 babies in it, a set of twins, a set of triplets, and miss lonely Jaycie)

Jaycie is currently 6lbs 6oz, You can call her chubby... Im NOT denying it!

I hope everyone had a MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Kristy

ETA (Edited to Add): Jaycies ECHO came back normal! No Cardiac issues!

Merry Christmas

*Dont hate on the HUGE bow*... DADDY!

Jaycie is doin well. She is 6lbs 3oz. She isnt feeding well yet but... It'll come... with time! We are very sad she isnt home with us for Christmas, BUT we are very THANKFUL that she is doing as well as she is! We are truely blessed to have 4 great kids!

5 Weeks Old!

*5lbs 15oz. Shes BOUND to hit the 6lbs mark tonight!
*She is still having "Punky" episodes while eating. They want to do a swallow study towards the end of this week.
* She had her Crit and Retic count done (blood test for anemia) She still has some low levels so they increased her iron. They will recheck it in about a week to make sure its on the rise! if not they may do a blood transfusion.
* She is eating 57cc's ALMOST 2oz (which is 60cc's).

Please keep praying she comes home soon.

36 Weeks!!

5lbs 14oz

She had her blood tested to see how her anemia is. Its a little low she they are raising the iron dose.
She is now at 55cc's for her feeds. The past 2 nights she has eaten all her food from a bottle. The day is a different story tho, Sometimes none, Sometimes half, Sometimes all.
Her Desating is coming far and in between now.
I dont think I'll be getting her home for X-mas... BUT I could always hope for my Christmas Miracle. Im hoping by the new year she'll be at home where she belongs!

Santa Pictures!

As Promised.

Happy 1 Month Old!

Bebe girl!
5lbs 7oz
Eating 49cc's every 3 hours.

Interesting facts

- Ive driven at least 3300 miles going back and forth to the hospital alone in the past month

- Ive pumped at least 240 times in the past month

- It takes me at least 5 hours in my day to only be able to see Jaycie for 1 1/2 hours. (2 1/2 - 3 hours drive time depending on the time, 1 hour getting ready, 1 1/2 hours with her.

- Ive gotten to hold her less than 50 hours since shes been born. (Since I usually only get to hold her about 45 min a day, unless I stay for two feedings which isnt often and then I get to hold her about 1 1/2 hours.

- I have not missed a day seeing her.

- I have at least one picture documenting everyday of her life accept her first day (which was only 29 min of that day since she was born at 11:31pm)

- She has recieved 4 baths since being born

- She has 7 people on her medical team on a day to day basis.(Neonatalogist, Nurse Practicioner, Bedside Nurse, Nurse assistant, Social worker, Respitory Therapist, Physical Therapist) This not include the doctors that only come once in awhile.

-

Lifes a Dance...

Alexis, Hunter and Tate taught me a dance. Jaycie is perfecting it. Its a dance of patience. The steps are easy, Two steps forward, One step back. Just when you think the music is coming to an end... it surprises you!

- Patience when driving in morning rush hour on the 101
- Patience when Matt gets off late and I cant get to Jaycie right when I want to.
- Patience on potty training
- Patience on night time potty accidents.
- Patience and dont speed because the new photo radars on the 101... WILL get you!
- Patience with the nurses
- Patience on when your milk comes in
- Patience on your kids speech
- Patience on getting all her feeds
- Patience on getting a back yard done.
- Patience with getting your house in perfect order.
- Patience..... on when she gets to come home.

Phobia??? Uh Ohhh...

Jaycie was fed by two different people to evaluate her today. The Developmental Pediatrician and the therapist. Their evaluation? Jaycie drinks her bottle and then it gets down the wrong pipe and ALMOST goes into the lungs. There is a protective mechanisim and a valve closes so nothing gets into the lungs and she doesnt aspirate. Nothing In...Nothing out. She stops breathing and her heart slows down. She then either coughs or tilts her head back to MOVE the fluid. She moves the fluid and breaths again. In these times she is having high anxiety/ fear.

The day she ate her whole bottle she desated/heart dropped 10-15 times with each bottle. Then that night she refused to eat. They feel if we keep letting her do that and get high anxiety each time she will eventually be afraid to eat. She is associating the bottle with not being able to breath.

So the game plan... At each feed she gets a bottle ... the same bottle/nipple/hold (side lying). Once she has a "PUNKY" episode (her nurse calls them that) She has to stop... Even if she acts like she still wants to suck. They will tube feed the rest. When I am there I will nurse her (since she does the episodes less frequently while nursing) once she has an episode I pump to get the "FAST FLOWING" milk out and nurse her with her tube feed, so she can associate good with the breast and not develop a fear of it. So while this is going to take a while to get her to fully eat without a tube... the doctor said its better than developing a phobia of eating and needing a port placed in her tummy for feeds.

Until I get her Santa Picture up...

Here shes waiting for Santa!!

4 weeks old

Santa came to visit the NICU today. He was so...... REAL! I got two pictures that I need to scan in so I can post them! (Ill give them to Matt to do at work).

She is 5lbs 6oz. She is doing well without her caffiene.
Today she is being a rebel... without a cause? Well there is probably a cause but its unknown to me! She wont nipple any feedings. She closes her lips TIGHTLY and just doesnt want it! Oh well... We will give her a day off. It is frustrating tho, since this is the only thing left that needs to be achieved to go home.

Pictures with Santa SOON!

Jaycie makes a statement!

This whole time Jaycie has had her feeding tube and has never pulled it OUT. She does hold it and pull on it but it never came out.

Today Jaycie pulled it TWICE! I think shes trying to say something :)

35 weeks

Jaycie is 35 weeks gestation today. She weighs 5lbs 4oz.

She is doing pretty well. They are stopping her caffiene for her heart today. They see how she does with out it cold turkey. Im hoping she is ready wont need it ever again (Of course until she decideds to work nights somewhere and needs it to stay awake)





The episode from the other night where she turned blue and needed oxygen they believe was from reflux. They also think thats why she still has "little heart and breathing issues". Hopefully thats true. Hunter had reflux has a baby also and required zantac.





When Im there visiting she is so awake and alert these days. I love it! This week lots of stuff. She will be 4 weeks old tomorrow. Santa also comes to the NICU tomorrow. On the 17th (Wed) She will be ONE month old already.





Thanks for checking in on us.

Miss trouble!

Jaycie did so well today and I couldnt help but gloat. During the day shift she didnt use her tube feeds ONCE. NOT ONCE! She did so well. She had no episodes with her heart. She did great on her oxygen levels all day! She did great!!

Tonight........ I called to see how her 9pm feed went. Aparently little miss trouble... had a pretty long brady episode and her oxygen wouldnt come up. She turned blue so they had to give her some oxygen to get her back up. They thought it was her feeding tube so they removed it because she did so well today eating and didnt need it. At her feeding she did 5cc's and had another episoded which she turned blue so they gave her oxygen again and put the tube back in and gave her, her feeding through the NG tube. ( sometimes after feeding all day the "bottom out" and get tired.) They are going to let her rest for a feeding and try again at the next. Poor baby girl!

My loves!

My first picture with all my kids together

This was the first time the boys saw her. They had to "MEET" her through the window due to runny noses, and coughs. They were all thrilled!

Jaycie is 5lbs 1oz. SHE BROKE the 5lbs mark! I cant believe she use to be 3 1/2 lbs.

Cuddling with daddy!

Down hill from here...

Jaycie "GRADUATED" today. She is in the feeder/growers. She left her High intensive care pod and went to the feeder grower in the NICU. She is 4lbs 14oz. She is with nurses that specialize in getting preemies to "FEED" yay!

She had her developmental assesment today. They see if she is "acting" like a 34 weeker. They observed her for 90 min. And saw how she responded to light, sound, touch, nursing, my voice, strangers voices ect. ect. We get typed out results tomorrow.

We had the lactation consult today to check out her latch and some tips on getting her to stay latched on when she stops breathing (our concern was when she desated she unlatched and it is tough to get her back on)

Matt has his CPR course tomorrow (we both have to be certified to take her home, Im already certified)

Robertsons

First Boyfriend! LOCK HER UP DADDY!

Inside of a pod (where Jaycies' bed is) there are 4 beds to one pod. One of her roomates since she got admitted is a little boy. His mom is a ET fanatic and they named him Elliott. Jaycie gave Elliott some Reeces Peices the other day. Last night I went to visit Jaycie and she had a baby pink stocking hanging on her bed. With a red preemie onsie that says "My 1st Christmas". Elliotts mom was hoping she would wear it when Santa comes to visit the NICU next Monday. I'll be sure she does. It was sweet of them!

Jaycie is 4lbs 13oz. BIGGIN! She had 2 Apnea episodes last night.

I leave you with a pretty picture of her.

Happy 3 weeks!!

Jaycie is 3 weeks old today. 4lbs 12oz. Her face is really filling out. She looks like a full term baby... just... SMALL!

She is doing well! Im really glad how smooth the past 3 weeks have gone. Between my parents and Matts parents watching the kids so I can go visit her when Matts at work. Matt being flexible on when I go and when... he cant go because he has to be with the big kids. My SIL Dawn checking on her the nights shes at work and giving me updates. Everyone that has left comments and emailed me letting me know they are praying and thinking of my daughter and our family. Thank you to EVERYONE! I appreciate all the support from EVERYONE! I hope the next coming weeks that shes in the NICU are just as smooth.

Thankful for everyone
Kristy

34 weeks gestation

Miss Jaycie is 34 weeks gestation today. She is 4lbs 10oz. I KNOW I KNOW... CHUNKER!

She is doing alright on the oral feeds and still needs alot of work. Her heart episodes are getting less and less BUT still present. I cant wait until the day they tell me she can go home!

Normal Ranges!

Jaycie is now 4 1/2 lbs. 4lbs 8oz. OH MY! Remember when she was just 3 1/2 lbs?? Shes doing so good! Last night she had two of her feedings from bottles. She had only little dips in her heart and none that lasted long enough that had to be recorded! YAY!

Her test results came back for her Thyroid and everything came back all normal! YAY!

We are all eagerly waiting her arrival home. Which we are hoping is around Christmas time!

Blood Tests.

One of Jaycies PKU's (newborn screen) came back a little off on one of the tests. She is going to have a full Thyroid workup in the AM to see how it is. Lets pray nothing is wrong with her thyroid!

Thanks!

Feedings... Feedings...

Jaycie is getting most of her feedings from the NG tube in her nose still. Yesterday though...
9am feeding- 1/2 bottle , 1/2 NG
12pm Feeding- 1/2 nursed, 1/2 NG
3pm feeding- All NG
6pm feeding- All NG
9pm feeding- ALL bottle

12am feeding- 1/2 bottle, 1/2 NG
3am- All NG
6am- ALL bottle

Isnt she doing good? When she normally gets all her feedings from her NG and maybe... ONE a day from a bottle/nurse in a 24 hours period since she was given the OH KAY to do so. With all the sucking and burning calories of eating her food orally they thought she would loose weight or not have as fast of a weight gain. Well as of today she is 4lbs7oz. SHE IS ALMOST 4 1/2 lbs. OH MY GOODNESS! She will be a sack of potatoes before you know it (5lbs).

She is still having her desats in breathing, and her heart rate drops. But like they said before... they usually just mature and stop having those at about 34-36 weeks gestation. Lets hope thats the case for Jaycie.

**Jaycie and her baggy hat**

A Pretty Picture of a Pretty Princess!

* Her other white hat got lost so this ones a little bigger on her**

15 days old!

Jaycie gained 50grams in a day... so she is now 4lbs 4oz. Before you know it she'll be outgrowing her preemie diapers!

She hasnt been drinking from a bottle at all today... the nurses say shes too tired. One of the things that is frustrating is the different stories/ideas/agendas/ect. from the nurses.

I went to see her today and met her physical therapist for the first time. They were working on her range of motion and her neck and make sure she has infant reflexs (like tucking her legs underneath her when shes on her tummy). This is a daily session that last for 20 min.

She was placed on iron today and will need that when she goes home for the first year of her life. Which is a common thing in breastfed babes.

Her eye duct is doing better. She had an underdeveloped or clogged tear duct. My oldest daughter had the same thing for the first few month of her life. But Jaycies is doing much better now!

She had some Apnea issues again last night. They said she was tuckered out from bottlefeeding ( that is one of the reasons they were being easy on her today and just did the tube feedings)

** I have to remember she is only 33 weeks ges. and cant be discouraged at what she ISNT doing. She is still supposed to be in my tummy for 7 more weeks. I forget this sometimes because she is here and has been here for 2 weeks. She is going to do things at a different pace then im used to. And thats oh kay. I just have to remind myself sometimes! **

Happy 2 weeks Jaycie!

Jaycie is two weeks old today. She is also 33 weeks gestation. She weights 4lbs 2oz.

Guess what she got to do today? EAT ORALLY!!! She nursed (real nurse) for a bit and then took some out of a bottle, then fisnished with her NG. (10min nurse, 5cc bottle, 35cc NG) They are going to do bottle feeds as long as she is awake during feeding times. When she is too sleepy to eat orally they will do her feeds through her NG tube so she doesnt choke, aspirate, desat, ect. Im excited for this because its a step in the RIGHT directions. I just pray she does so well at her feeds and wakes up and wants to eat them all orally! Im very excited for her!

EDIT TO ADD @ 3:30pm- The nurse called me to inform me at her 3Oclock feeding she finished ALL 40cc's threw her bottle in 11 min! No desating or anything. That includes her 2 burps.. GO BABY! I am just so thrilled!!

GO BEBE GO!!

Amma came to visit her today. She got to hold her for the first time. I tried not to hog her to much but... you know me... Im all over that baby!

3 out of 5!

So there are 5 main areas that Jaycie needs to overcome in order to come home.

-Breath on own... Check

-Steady Weight Gain... Check

-Regulate Temp... Check

-No Heart Issues

-Learn to take all feeds orally

As you can see, she has 3 out of 5 done. She went into a "BIG GIRL" bed today. Its a 3 foot open crib. She look so tiny in it.

She is still having her little heart issues, and they are considering an echo again.

She is much to sleepy really to even attempt her feeds orally. She sleeps most the day. We will continue to give her, her food through her NG and let her get her sleep and GROW! Growth is Brain Growth too!

Here she is in her BIG GIRL BED

4lbs Butterball

OH kay so she isnt a butterball JUST yet. But we are on our way! Shes doing well. I asked the NNP about the caffiene and why we are always having to up it and when will she be weaned off of it. She said the more she weighs the more caffiene we have to give her. At about 34-36 weeks gestation they will just stop caffiene and she will either sink or float sorta speak.

She is starting to get a stronger suck on her binki so they mentioned starting her on oral feeds as soon as next week.

We are very Thankful for her...

Jaycie is doing well. She is 3lbs and 15oz. ALMOST 4lbs! YAY!

Yesterday she had 7 heart episodes, one of which was pretty long and the nurses needed to get in there and help her "get it going" again. Today she had 2 episodes, one which she got out of herself and the other the nurses needed to help again. Im hoping these heart issues go away soon.

Her feeding is going well. When its time to eat she is very alert and acting hungry and wanting to suck. These are good signs that she will be ready to take some of her feedings by mouth soon!

She has a diaper rash approching (I can do diaper rash... thats easy compared to heart issues) Hopefully the nurses lather her up very well when Im not there!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!
Kristina

BeBe Girl

Jaycie is doing well. She is still having a few heart issues with it dropping. She is able to pick it back up. They are going to up her caffeine. She is currently at 34cc's a feed but they want to up it to 38cc's (30cc's is an ounce).

Alexis was able to come up with me yesterday and HOLD Jaycie. You can imagine her excitement. Alexis got a little teary eyed when it was time to leave and didnt want to leave Jaycie there by herself. I told her the nurses were taking good care of her and they wanted Jaycie to get stronger before she came home. I dont think Alexis liked that answer.

Daddy was able to come up with me today and HOG HOLD Jaycie. He fell in love. He also wanted to sneak her out, but agreed that it would be best to keep her there until she is eating and stops having heart issues.

Its really hard leaving this everyday. Walking out of that hospital empty handed everyday is something that wont ever come easy Im sure. I cant wait until I can bring her home and I wont need permission to touch/hold/change/snuggle/nurse/kiss her.

Cant you just fall in love?

Leaps and Bounds!

Jaycie gained another 40grams and is now at her birth weight again. 3lbs 13oz. She is doing great. The doctors decided there was no reason to do an echo right now since her past 4 rounds there was no murmur heard. They arent going to worry about an ultrasound of the head because she is showing NO signs of a brain bleed.

She got her first bath last night. I wasnt there, BUT NICU got pictures for me. We are able to leave a disposable camera with her name on it, in her isolette so they can capture special moments when mommy cant be there. She is no longer on a temp monitor and maintains her own heat. She has done this all night EVEN after a bath. They are talking about moving her into an open bed! YAY!!

She is still tolerating her feeds well and she got to "nurse" a bit last night. She was nice and alert and after 3min of REAL nursing she was getting tired, and after an additional 4 min of kinda playing she was sound asleep. So... she does have some work to do on feeds, but thats all to come.

Daddy is going in today and he is going to hold her for the first time. Ill be sure to post pictures of that this evening!

Thank you for all your prayers and support. You guys are all so special to us to be praying for our little girl. Thank you!

Shes come a long way in a week...

This as when she was on C-Pap

Less lines...

My excitement for the day? JAYCIE GOT HER IV OUT! She is no longer getting TPN (nutrition) threw IV. She takes all her feedings (breastmilk) threw her NG (tube threw her nose)! YAY! So as long as she doesnt get an infection or other set backs that would require an IV, shes done for good on that!

She gained some weight 70g, so she is about 3lbs 11oz again. GO BABY GIRL!

Yesterday she only had two heart drops and they only went to the 80's, rather than the 40's she was doing before. Today her "TEAM" is going to decide if they are going to do an ultrasound of the head to check for bleeds and her heart for her murmur.

Otherwise she is just doing great. She is sucking her binki better now. Once she can suck it and keep it in her mouth, and NOT drop any heart rates or sats. They will let her try to go to the breast for non-nutritive sucking. Which will be sucking and getting no milk (we have to coordinate a suck before we throw in her learning to swallow (we all take it for granted, sucking, breathing, swallowing, all at once)

Happy 1 week old Jaycie

Late night visit.

Jaycie is just doing so good. I went to see her last night (hence the late update about her) and she was wearing a little outfit. The nurse said she put clothes on her because she didnt want me to get upset about the new IV placement ( in her head). The one in her wrist started getting puffy earlier that day and she had it in her ankle all day until right before change of shift they switched it to her head. She loves having her hands free and all over her face!

She continues to do well on room air and her biliblanket is OFF! She still has bradycardia but comes out of it herself and never de-sats.



She is 3lbs 9oz. Her poor ribs you can see them. They are up-ing her feedings and lowering her IV intake. She didnt have a bowel movement for over 24hrs, so she needed to get a suppository. Yeah, she didnt like that much.



A video of her when I was holding her

All Aboard...

The roller coaster. So I called this morning and was on hold for over 15 min. The lady comes to the phone and says Jaycie's nurse is with a baby and if I could call back in 15 min. I call back. A Dr. gets on the phone (Now you can imagine how I felt when a DR gets on the phone rather than my babies nurse). She informed me that Jaycie is having some troubles at the moment and they are doing a chest x-ray. Jaycie kept having apnea episodes. They were going to draw more blood to see how her WBC count was and if an infection was brewing. They were going to up her SiPAP to more breaths a min. Up her Caffiene. I was so worried. The Dr said I could call back and get her x-ray results in about an hour and I could learn the game plan.

Well by the time I called back around 10am I was on my way to go see her. Between that time Jaycies x-ray looks GREAT! They took her off SiPAP because they think it was hitting a vega nerve and causing more apnea issues. The moved her feeding tube from her mouth back to her nose and a smaller tube in hopes that wouldnt be hitting the nerve either. They did up her caffiene and she was doing great. They upped her feedings to 6cc's ever 3 hours. YAY GO JAYCIE!

When I got there today I got to hold her. I love holding her! She is such a tiny little baby!
She is tolerating her feeds great! Her output is good!

***************
While I was there my Dr. called the NICU to inform them that my placenta indeed had an infection. The markers of where the infection was, were so high it could have been fatal to Jaycie. The infection causes are unknown. It could have been GBS, It could have been my bag of water had a tear and I didnt notice.
Good thing the MAG didnt stop the contractions. (Another blessing in discuise)

Thank you so much for following and praying for our baby! We appreciate it so much!
Kristy

2 steps forward, One step back.

Her team says to expect this type of trend. So when I got a call this morning letting me know that Jaycie had to be put on the SiPAP (which is constant air like the Cpap but then they added 10 breaths per min) because of her Apnea, I tried not to be discouraged.

She got a dose of caffiene to help with the apnea. She is also on a bili-blanket (my little glow worm) for jaundice. All in all she still looks good.

When I went to visit her today I didnt get to hold her. They said she wasnt stable enough just because of the apnea. Her goals are to loose the SiPAP by tomorrow morning and be just on CPAP.

Second Day

Today was another good day. Jaycie got her MBR (to check for jaundice) checked and it was 6.9. She is in the clear for now. Her Calcium was a little low and that could be causing the "BRADY EPISODES with her heart" So, she recieved some calcium and is recovering from her episodes herself rather than using nurses for intervention.


I got to hold my baby girl today for the first time. I held her for about 1 1/2 hours and it was PURE LOVE. Holding her, Feeling her, Kissing her. She was all snuggled up doing kangarooing (which is skin to skin contact). Oh my heart melted, I loved it.



Jaycie had a visitor today. Alexis. Alexis came to see her and we prepared her for what she would see. Alexis did AWESOME. She asked questions like...

Q: Whats on her face?
A: oh that helps her breathe, you know how you do breathing treatments and that helps you breathe.

Q: whats the sticker on her heart?
A: Its like a thermometer... this wire is attached here and her temp shows here.

She got to touch her head, She was facinated with her pacifier. When Jaycie started crying for a second Alexis asked if she was alright and I said yeah grab her hand and she grabbed her hand and Jaycie stopped crying. Alexis was proud of herself because she "FIXED" her.

I was discharged from the hospital tonight at about 0630pm. By 9pm I called up the NICU to check up on her and they told me she was doing fine and I started to tear up. I stopped myself because I know she is in good hands and I know its the post partum hormones. Its hard being 55 miles away tho. But Ill be their to visit tomorrow.

2nd night in NICU

Well Jaycie had to get a nasal cannula for now. She keeps having episodes of Brady Cardia (where her heart rate goes down) and then she de-stats (where her Oxygen goes down). This happens when she crys. So they put 2l of O2 on her to see if that helps with the "episodes". Im getting discharged from the hospital today. So the fun begins of driving back and forth (55 miles one way). Im nervous to see how this is going to work out.

Look Mom

I can breath on my own 16 hours after being born!

Jaycie was weaned off ALL Oxygen today. NO Ventalator, NO C-pap, NO nasal cannula.

Her NICU team couldnt be MORE proud of her they said! She is doing awesome.

The tube coming out of her mouth allowed the air to come out of her belly from the c-pap that was pushing air in her nose/lungs. She got fed for the first time 2cc's threw that tube.

As long as she tolerates no O2 for awhile... the will eventually move a tube threw her nose (NG).

She is doing awesome and I beleive its all the prayer she has behind her!

Vent OFF!

Jaycie was weaned off her ventilator this morning at about 830. She is doing great! She is on C-pap at room air currently.

They are going to put her NG tube in and give her 2cc's of milk (hopefully my milk, if not we will use donor milk) at about 3 this afternoon.

They said as long as she stays off the vent, I can try to hold her for a little bit and see if she tolerates it!

Jaycie with her new gear

Jaycies' First Night in NICU

As of 5am she is now on 26% on the vent. 20% is room air, so she will be weaned off once she can get down that low.

She had a little problem with blood sugars but are now stable and in the 80's

She remains laying on her right side with her hand all on her face.

I got to see and touch her at about 1:45am. She is a cutie!

She is getting antibiotics in her right arm.

No Poop or Pee yet. SOON HOPEFULLY!

ETA: She has had 3 wet diapers now! Kidneys are good! Waiting on a BM!

Jaycies Birth Story

On Monday Nov 17th, I was trying to take a nap with the kids. I was getting in frequent contractions and I remember saying "Jaycie Im laying on my left side come on". By 1:30pm I decided to make a call into the Nurses line. Contractions were 8-10 min apart. After waiting for a little bit to call I decided I just didnt feel right. I took my kids to Aunt Dawns and started driving (it is now 2pm). While in the car the nurse called my cell phone and told me to go to triage (I was already on my way). I couldnt get ahold of Matt as he was away from his store in a meeting. I drove and drove, threw the painful contractions. I got to the hospital at 315pm. I waitied in the waiting room while my contractions grew stronger and were not even 2 min apart. Finally at about 0430 they called me back. Before getting Dr. Orders they checked my cervix 4cm, tried to start an IV (3 times then on the 4th time an anesthesiologist got it). Started Fluids. They couldnt get ahold of a Dr in my practice... then finally, got ahold of A DR. I got a shot of terbutaline, and got my vitals checked. My Heart rate was 140-150 BEFORE the terb hit me... SO they worried. I was put on o2 to see if that would lower it. I was placed on Mag to stop contractions, I was placed on the highest dose possible. I was in PAIN! Contractions would not stop.... They checked my cervix at about 5pm and I was a 5 and 90% effaced. They got my blood test results back and my white count was 26 (VERY HIGH). I was placed on antibiotics because I didnt test for GBS yet. They were HOPING for the best, but expecting the worse. I got a U/S and saw she was head down. I had a NICU consult and was told what to expect from my baby. I recieved my first steriod shot in my hip... HOPING Id be able to get a second at 5pm on Tuesday and lasting until at least wed 5pm. I was placed in a Laboring Room/Ante Room. at 8pm I was 6cm and 100% and they knew there was no stopping these contractions. I got an epidural and it was LOVE. I was still on meds to slow stuff down. By 11:15 my water broke, I was 9cm. By 11:20 I felt an urge to push. They called my Dr. They called the NICU. My Dr was too late. Another Dr in the hall came and looked at me and said it was time. She gowned up and said DONT PUSH. I wasnt... Jaycie was coming out with the contractions. She held her head to come slow and I sat up and got to watch her be born. No Pushing involved.
Jaycie was Born at 11:31pm 11-17-08 3lbs 13oz. 17.2 inches long. Her apgars were 3 the first min and 7 the 5th min. I never heard her cry. They bagged her and were breathing for her. I know shes going to be a fighter. She has to be!!
- Matt showed up at about 5:30pm
- My Mother showed up at about 8:30pm
- Dawn showed up at about 9:30pm
-My placenta had clots in it where it looked like it was tearing away and that COULD have been the possible infection.
Ill post more as I get it.