Andrew's Clinic Stay According to Facebook - Week 6  

Posted by Amber

Last week!

 Monday, April 20, 2015 at 4:01pm
How one pumps in the nursery, behind a coat screen and wearing a coat, mask, and hair net tucked in the corner.


Monday, April 20, 2015 at 4:06pm
Good news, the 3pm feed went well today with no nurse intervention. I think we're starting to learn Andrew's cues. Also, they didn't make him finish the last 1 to 2 ml, so that helped because he was so done. It was quieter than the last two days at 3pm though. Hopefully 6pm and 9pm go well again today. We may just bring him home this week after all smile emoticon
 Monday, April 20, 2015 at 7:25pm
6pm feeding went well. Andrew finished the bottle this time. It maybe helped that this one was caffeinated wink emoticon Hopefully 9pm goes well too.

 Monday, April 20, 2015 at 10:43pm
This little rockstar ate his 9pm bottle in 25 minutes! Here's hoping tomorrow is as good or better. Unfortunately, I was left to put my pump back together tonight after it was cleaned and I left a piece that I didn't even know could come off. Now Matt is headed back to the clinic to pick it up. Oops.

Monday, April 20, 2015 at 10:44pm

Monday, April 20, 2015 at 10:45pm
Oh the faces kids pull smile emoticon

Monday, April 20, 2015 at 10:46pm
Andrew is not amused. smile emoticon

Tuesday, April 21, 2015 at 11:11pm
Went 6 hours between my first and second pumping today....plus side, Henlie and I now have our carnets. Glad we hadn't brought Andrew home yet.

 Wednesday, April 22, 2015 at 12:04pm
Unless something has changed today, we will be bringing Andrew home tomorrow. It's exciting and a little scary, but thanks to a lovely chat with Kristi, I feel much better now smile emoticon

 Wednesday, April 22, 2015 at 8:18pm
Pretty excited to not have to hang out at the clinic for hours starting tomorrow.

 Wednesday, April 22, 2015 at 8:20pm
The nurse tonight offered to take pictures of me and the other momma who are always there feeding our babies.

Wednesday, April 22, 2015 at 8:21pm

Wednesday, April 22, 2015 at 8:21pm
During his 6pm feeding tonight.

Wednesday, April 22, 2015 at 8:22pm

Wednesday, April 22, 2015 at 8:23pm
A little gift with some advertising.

Thursday, April 23, 2015 at 8:01am
Andrew comes home today!

 Thursday, April 23, 2015 at 10:36am
Learned today that Dr. Quispe wanted to deliver Andrew vaginally, but bleeding aside, his arm was in the way. In other news, my uterus is all set for baby #3. Haha
But really, I'm cleared for normal activity again. Woot. Guess I need to get the post partum yoga video out again. smile emoticon

 From Matt
Thursday, April 23, 2015 at 10:39am
My view for the next while until they finish the accounting on my kid so we can go home.


 Thursday, April 23, 2015 at 1:16pm
Their first meeting....both asleep.

And that is that. We made it home from the clinic in one piece. (Hi, we don't use car seats here, mostly because we didn't want to buy an infant carrier and also, we take taxis :)) The whole experience was a rollercoaster ride, but I'm grateful for the care Andrew received there. I believe this was part of the Plan all along, we just didn't know it. That gave me some peace. I knew he would be alright, although it was terrifying at times. Now, a little over two months later, Andrew is doing great and growing up. The NICU nurses were so nice, and they just love Andrew and Henlie. One of the nurses affectionately calls Andrew "Gringo." You can get away with that when he's the only white kid lol. Shout outs to Janet (lead nurse), Edith (super friendly), Doris (first we found who spoke some English), Jeanette, and Lourdes (who also spoke some English).

 While I'm super grateful for them keeping my kid alive his first 39 days and helping me keep him alive on a bottle when he first came home, I'm also super glad to be done with going to the clinic :) Now we just stop by after pediatrician visits to say hi. It's a much happier situation :) 

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Andrew's Clinic Stay According to Facebook - Week 5  

Posted by Amber

On to week five!

 Monday, April 13, 2015 at 1:48pm

Tomorrow is a big day for Andrew. They are taking out his feeding tube and moving him to a regular crib. He's still working on suction, so it will probably still be at least a few days before we do breastfeeding, but he's another step closer to coming home smile emoticon

 Tuesday, April 14, 2015 at 12:47pm
Look who's in a bassinet without a feeding tube!

Tuesday, April 14, 2015 at 2:21pm
Daddy getting to hold Andrew for the second time. I didn't have my phone on me on Sunday (no pockets), so I didn't get a pic of the first time. 

Tuesday, April 14, 2015 at 2:25pm
Andrew weighs 1.89 kg or 4 lbs 2 oz. Apparently he overheard they were going to take his feeding tube out today and decided to help the process. He pulled it out himself when he got ahold of it during his bath today. smile emoticon They moved him to a regular bassinet, although they are keeping him on a monitor for oxygen and heart rate still. The doctor says once he has breastfeeding down, he will be able to come home. However, until he figures out the suck-swallow-breathe combination, we won't start breastfeeding. Hopefully in the next day or two we'll get to do that smile emoticon

Wednesday, April 15, 2015 at 2:04pm
Happy one month birthday to this little guy!

Wednesday, April 15, 2015 at 2:57pm

Andrew weighs 1.91 kg or 4 lbs 3 oz today. He is really struggling with learning to suck. Tomorrow I will likely get to bottle feed him. They had me watch today so I could learn the tricks to get him to eat, but his mouth is very loose and he doesn't suck well at all. Although, they said he will probably get to come home Monday or Tuesday. We just may not be breastfeeding at that time unsure emoticon

 Friday, April 17, 2015 at 7:11pm
Sounds like Andrew will come home Monday. In other news, we won't have running water on Monday from 11am to 8pm (but let's be honest, Peru fails at time estimates, so it'll probably be longer). Also, Monday they are fumigating the clubhouse, so we can't have our back windows open. It's going to be an adventure for sure.
This weekend, I'll be bottle feeding Andrew for his afternoon and evening feeds. Assuming we get the hang of that well, they should send him home Monday. Matt says he weighs almost 2 kilos today.

 Saturday, April 18, 2015 at 5:02pm
Fed Andrew for the first time today. His suck reflex is still developing, so that's fun. Learned how to position him and tricks to help him eat, as well as cues to let him rest for a minute. Soon my life will solely consist of feeding him, pumping, and sleeping. Never mind that I have a toddler to watch, a house to maintain, and food that needs to be eaten sometime.

 That ends week five!

1 comments »

Andrew's Clinic Stay According to Facebook - Week 4  

Posted by Amber

Here is another installment - week 4!


Monday, April 6, 2015 at 2:30pm
Wakey boy smile emoticon


Monday, April 6, 2015 at 2:30pm
Thanks to nurse Doris for snapping the shot smile emoticon


Monday, April 6, 2015 at 2:48pm
Either Andrew's weight hasn't really changed or I got it wrong yesterday because they said he weighs 1.645 kg today smile emoticon He is up to 35 ml of milk per feed, and they have started him learning to suck with a bottle. He took 2-3 ml from the bottle. Once he has suction down fairly well from the bottle, we will introduce the breast. It sounds like soon they will move him to the regular nursery side, although probably not in a straight open bed yet. They have a couple isolettes with monitors over on that side as well. They've been keeping him well bundled to allow him to continue to gain weight. While they haven't actually given any timelines, I would be surprised if he was there for more than 2 more weeks given his current rate of improvement.

Monday, April 6, 2015 at 3:00pm
More Andrew updates, because I forgot in the last post haha
So Andrew was pretty awake when I got there today. Whenever they put him on my chest, he starts suckling. Hopefully when the time comes, his latch is better than Henlie's lol
I also got LOTS of smiles from him. I know he's supposed to be too young for social smiles yet, but there were just too many to call it anything else. Dude was content to hang with Mom today smile emoticon
And he coos. It's so cute! And so quiet. He was seriously just super content and happy to be hanging out with me today. Too bad I couldn't stay long. Tomorrow we'll get more time together smile emoticon

Tuesday, April 7, 2015 at 2:14pm
Andrew got moved to an isolette on the regular nursery side. smile emoticon




Wednesday, April 8, 2015 at 11:57am
Andrew weighs 1.68 kg today. He still has issues keeping his oxygen up sometimes, like when I've been holding him for awhile. Apparently also sometimes laying in his bed. Doris had to come adjust him a couple times to find a good spot for him after they laid him back in bed.
 

Wednesday, April 8, 2015 at 11:59am
Taking a nap after being put back in bed because his oxygen wouldn't stay up.


Wednesday, April 8, 2015 at 12:31pm
Lunch time. 



Wednesday, April 8, 2015 at 12:33pm
Apparently your tummy magically getting full can wake you from your nap smile emoticon



Wednesday, April 8, 2015 at 12:34pm
"Holding" Mom's hand.



Thursday, April 9, 2015 at 1:49pm
Andrew got an eye check-up today. His eyes are great. Eye doc also spoke English smile emoticon He weighs 1.71 kg today and is eating 42 ml per feed. They are doing 10 ml by bottle in the morning. It is looking very realistic that he will be home within the next two weeks, which kind of freaks me out a little. smile emoticon Daddy also came in today, the first time in a long time.

Friday, April 10, 2015 at 4:32pm
Practicing sucking. He ate a little over 10 ml from the bottle. He's starting to get the hang of it from what I saw smile emoticon
 


Saturday, April 11, 2015 at 6:09pm
Got a short visit in with my guy today.


Saturday, April 11, 2015 at 6:21pm
Andrew seems to be doing well. They switched his breathing meds to caffeine citrate, which is keeping his oxygen more stable than the Theolair was. However, his bpm seem to be having a harder time staying at a happy level on the caffeine. Except when I was holding him today...then his heart calmed down smile emoticon He's not gaining a ton, so they are limiting his bottle feeds to about 10 ml at a time so he doesn't expend too much energy eating. The nurse told Matt that Andrew is lazy when it comes to eating smile emoticon



Sunday, April 12, 2015 at 12:47pm
Andrew weighs 1.81 kg today, just shy of 4 lbs. Soon they will have him eating entirely on his own. Tomorrow they may even start us trying to breastfeed. Daddy got to hold Andrew for the first time today as well smile emoticon



End week four!

1 comments »

Andrew's Clinic Stay According to Facebook - Week 3  

Posted by Amber

And yet another continuation of Facebook posts and pictures of Andrew's time in the clinic. :)

 Monday, March 30, 2015 at 3:01pm
First selfie with Andrew.


Monday, March 30, 2015 at 3:02pm
Momma's point of view holding Andrew.

Monday, March 30, 2015 at 3:03pm
Little Dude getting settled back in bed after being held.

Monday, March 30, 2015 at 3:06pm
They removed Andrew's oxygen today at noon. He was doing much better today when I was holding him. He is eating 13 ml per feed and now weighs 1.4 kg. It sounds like soon they will start turning down his IV.

 Tuesday, March 31, 2015 at 1:41pm
Got to kangaroo with Andrew today. Little silly decided to really let his oxygen drop. It's like he knew I had to leave. Once he got back in bed, 93. Silly dude. Even the nurse laughed.

 Wednesday, April 1, 2015 at 12:42pm
Andrew is doing well. He's up to 20 ml per feed. Tomorrow they will try him without the IV nutrients, just breastmilk and some vitamin and calcium supplements. He currently weighs 1.45 kg.

 Wednesday, April 1, 2015 at 1:59pm
He was napping when I got there today smile emoticon


 Wednesday, April 1, 2015 at 2:00pm
Getting back in bed after a long holding session smile emoticon

Thursday, April 2, 2015 at 1:33pm
Wakey boy smile emoticon


 Thursday, April 2, 2015 at 1:34pm

Thursday, April 2, 2015 at 1:35pm

Thursday, April 2, 2015 at 1:36pm

Thursday, April 2, 2015 at 1:36pm
He was stretching. smile emoticon 

Thursday, April 2, 2015 at 1:59pm
Today, Andrew weighs 1.47 kg or 3 lb 2 oz. They have him on a drug to keep him from too deep of a sleep so he will remember to breathe. He did much better with stimuli while I was holding him today as well, so it must be working. He may or may not be off of IV nutrients. Matt isn't positive. It sounds like they may remove his IV tomorrow. Guess we'll just have to wait until then to see. smile emoticon

Friday, April 3, 2015 at 6:13pm
Andrew is doing great. His IV is out. They dressed him in a onesie. He weighs 1.55 kg today. I also learned that his feeding schedule is pretty much identical to my pumping schedule. smile emoticon He is eating 27 ml today and will probably be up to 30 ml tomorrow. Doris, one of the nurses who speaks some English, said in probably 4 or 5 days, they will start him on a bottle. Once he is doing well with that, we will also do breastfeeding. He did very well keeping his oxygen up today again. I don't know if they still have him on the drug to keep him sort of awake so he remembers to breathe or not. I forgot to ask smile emoticon

 Friday, April 3, 2015 at 6:18pm

Friday, April 3, 2015 at 6:19pm
Henlie and Daddy went to a park to play while Mommy visited with Andrew.

Saturday, April 4, 2015 at 3:26pm

 Saturday, April 4, 2015 at 3:27pm
Henlie isn't the only one who can cover her eyes...


 Saturday, April 4, 2015 at 3:29pm
Andrew doesn't like laying on my chest. He'll do okay for a bit, and then his oxygen dips more than any other time I've seen it drop. Or maybe he likes laying on my chest too much and relaxes to the point of forgetting to breathe. Who knows?

 Sunday, April 5, 2015 at 3:19pm
Happy Easter!

Sunday, April 5, 2015 at 3:21pm

Daddy and Henlie walked to the park while I was holding Andrew. smile emoticon


Sunday, April 5, 2015 at 3:28pm
Andrew weighs 1.65 kg (3 lb 10 oz) today. He is eating 32 ml per feed, but only 23 ml by his tube. The other 9 ml he is learning to eat by mouth. I also got to change his first diaper today. It was poopy....and then he kept going lol. He had to get a new sock and I had to get a new coat after he was done.

End week 3!

1 comments »

Matt Turns 30!  

Posted by Amber

Matt turned 30 on Saturday, March 28th. We'd read about a new restaurant in Miraflores called New York Burger that imports its meat from the US. (Beef here isn't that great, especially when you get hamburger, so importing was an awesome thing :)) I decided Matt's birthday was a great excuse to try it out. Logistics were a little trickier since we ended up having a baby in the clinic and I was pumping, but we invited our friends the McMillens to join us for an early dinner.

Abby and Maisey

 Eliza and Isabelle

 Rob

 Henlie, Matt, and Me
Thanks to Abby for taking the picture :)

 Liberty

 Matt enjoying his Soho burger.
We actually got the same thing, except I'm picky and didn't have any veggies :)
Who knew an egg on your burger could be so yummy?
I've found a love of fried eggs since moving here :)

 Henlie loves sauces, ketchup included.

 Eliza and Henlie with the New York Cab :)

 Mommy and Henlie with the cab

 Libby and Henlie
Henlie's a good copycat. I think they were dancing?
The girls played Ring-Around-the-Rosie.

 They played happy birthday on the radio

Matt's birthday burger
(Doughnut bun, chocolate patty, mango cheese, kiwi lettuce, and strawberry tomatoes)
The McMillens sang us a very traditional Peruvian version of Happy Birthday :)
It was fun to get out for a couple of hours and enjoy some very yummy food and hang out with good friends. Thanks for coming with us, guys! And a very happy birthday to my studly hubby :)

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