Cohen's coming home video

For our Friends and Family who don't have facebook: Brian has put together a montage of Cohen's journey so far. Click the play button below and make sure you make it full screen. You may need some tissues. He did a really great job.

Cohen is 6 lbs today. She is doing very well at home. We love having her here. Brayden is still adjusting. lol. Thank you for continued prayers. We love you all!

She's Home!

Our sweet little girl is home with us. She is sitting in her swing (not swinging) right next to me as I type this. It is hard to believe, for me. I smile every time I look at her; she is precious and beautiful. It's crazy that just 10 short weeks ago, our sweet baby was born weighing just 1 lb 14.7 oz; she even got down to 1 lb 10 oz. I am so happy to report that she was tipping the scales today at 5 lb 6 oz! She is definitely still a little peanut, but she is 3 times as big as she was when she was born.

She was supposed to go home on Wed. See-- Here she is all dressed to go home Wed.

Unfortunately, she had a little reflux issue, scared her Mommy, and had to stay for an extra couple of days. Other than that little issue, she has been great! She would be a 35 weeker if I were still pregnant, which means she has done better than anticipated, coming home already. She is on an apnea monitor, which makes me breathe a little easier. 

None of the kids have been able to meet her due to the rules of the NICU; so today they were very anxious. Carter absolutely adored her, which surprised us; he was sweet and gentle and just wanted to be around her. Brooklyn was even better than we expected. She has the kindest little heart and just talked to Cohen and sang to her while holding her. Bobo bear (Brayden) didn't respond as well. We've never had a tough time bringing new babies home. Bobo is the first child to have an adverse reaction. He just doesn't understand :( He was extremely happy at first; however, when he realized he couldn't grab and hit her-- this was his reaction--

We had to deal with a lot of crying from him all day. I know he will adjust to Cohen, eventually. We will just have to take it one day at a time and keep a very close eye on him.

Here are a bunch of pictures from our day

We are all settled in and ready for the night shift. I'm hoping she sticks to her NICU schedule. I guess we will see how she does. Thank you for your continued prayers. God continues to be faithful to us and we are so thankful!

Bottles!

I'm sorry for the silence. Not much has changed with Cohen and we have been so busy lately. She is now 4 lb 7 oz; 2 kilos is the minimum requirement for her coming home and she hit that number within the last couple of days. She is still breathing completely on her own and the top of her isolet is still popped; she is maintaining her temperature marvelously. Her clothes are so cute on her. She is actually fitting into her preemie clothes.

Cohen is surprising her doctors with how well she is progressing. They don't usually start trying to bottle feed until 35-36 weeks gestation, but Cohen was giving them signs that she was ready to try. She was sucking on her hands and a pacifier, as well as being extremely alert. 

She was almost 33 weeks when she took her first bottle. She only did a few ml's, a couple of times a day. As of yesterday she was eating every other meal from a bottle... the whole meal! The doctor told me this morning that if she is alert today, they are going to try EVERY feeding with a bottle. She is quite the burper... takes after all of us:)

He even told me that she could be home as early as a week and a half from now! I am not prepared AT ALL! We still have to get a carseat, a pack n play/bassinet and ALL of the other things that are required for having a newborn baby.... ahhhh... I am trying not to stress out. We are so beyond thankful to God that she is doing as well as she is. The other stuff will work out, I know. She is so precious and we are thankful that we have been able to hold her and bond with her so much lately. I will continue to update as we get ready to bring her home and I'm sure there will be a ton of pictures to show off once she comes home. This little girl has been a blessing to so many people, already and we know that God will continue His good work through her. 

We love you all and thank you for the continued prayers!

About Our Date Night...

My in-laws were graciously willing to watch our 3 big kids for an entire day and night (and then another day) and Brian and I made plans to go to my doctor for my 6 week check up, eat a delicious dinner at a local Italian restaurant and watch the last Harry Potter movie in our hotel room. I haven't been feeling well for the past couple of weeks and I thought I had started my first cycle after having Cohen (TMI? sorry...)but it was getting too heavy and gross. I went to my six week check up and after an exam and ultrasound, found out that my uterus was still extremely thick and there looked to be some blood or tissue stuck in the top of it. I had to go to the hospital (again) for emergency surgery. I was listed as a D&C, possible Uterine Artery Embolization, possible Hysterectomy. I have a very un-fun history of bleeding after a baby (after I had Brooklyn I hemorrhaged and spent a week in the ICU, needing 16 units of blood transfused) so they didn't know what all I would require.

The D&C went well. The doctor said he pulled out a lot of tissue, but we won't know what is was until next Monday during my follow up. We didn't have to do anything else and the only thing that hurt when I woke up from the general anesthesia was my throat from the breathing tube. I was discharged from the recovery room and Brian and I grabbed Carrabba's to-go and headed for the hotel (it was non refundable, and what better place to rest?). We still watched Harry Potter and had a nice, low key night just hanging out. I am now sick from the surgery... my sore throat never got better and turned into what I think is a sinus infection, but as far as the scary bleeding is concerned, I am doing much, much better. Leave it to us to make a quick trip to the hospital for surgery in the middle of our date night, lol :) What can we do but laugh?

Our sweet Coco bean is doing amazingly right now. She is on full feeds and they are decreasing the amount of time she takes her feedings over. Hopefully soon she will be able to try a bottle soon. She is over 3 lb 11 oz, now! I can't believe how big she is getting. You can definitely tell; her little cheeks are chunking up. She is less than one ounce away from doubling her birth weight and has become so kissable.

She was moved to the third floor, lower risk unit. She is allowed to wear clothes now and Mommy got her some cute new onesies from babies r us. Girls really are fun to shop for; it's been a while since I've had a baby girl and I guess I forgot. Everything is so precious. Cohen is still breathing on her own, too.

She had her first eye exam today. It is very common for preemies (90 % of micro preemies) to have something called ROP, which can cause them to be sight impaired or even blind. Cohen does have ROP and while it is still in stage 1- it is on the more severe end of stage one. She will be having weekly eye exams to make sure it isn't getting worse. If it does get worse, she will need treatments to try to lessen the chances of vision problems. Right now, there is a less than 20% chance that she will have serious vision issues. We will be praying for her little eyes to heal.

She should get her first "tub" (little tiny bucket) bath soon. I will be sure to get pictures and post them once we do. I should still only be 32 weeks pregnant, so it is truly fascinating to watch her grow and develop as if she were still in my womb. God has been glorified through my pregnancy and her little life, and there is truly nothing more that we could want. Thank you for continued prayers and support. We love you all.

Our Little Three Pound Porker

Coco bean will be six weeks old on Saturday. It's hard to believe. She has had a really great week. She now weighs 3 lbs 5 oz. 1500 grams; which is a big deal because now she gets to wear clothes! I only have one (adorable) preemie outfit, but I am going to stop by babies r us on my way home tonight to find her some more. 1500 grams also means we get to swaddle and hold her for 30 minutes, 2 times a day. I am holding her as I type this.

Cohen is now eating just over an ounce every 3 hours, which is the max for her size. She is tolerating it well so far, but we are still holding our breath a little because she has had tummy issues.

Her breathing has been great. She is on 2 liters with her nasal canula. That just means she isn't requiring that much help. She is doing all of her breathing on her own. Our little coco has quite a fondness for her fingers. She claws her face trying to get them in her mouth to suck. It's pretty funny. We gave her the paci tonight and she went to town on it.

The whole Day clan has had a good week so far. I've been happy with the amount of time I've been able to spend with her, and I think Brian is too. I have my 6 week apt tomorrow and Brian is taking the day off so we can relax. My in laws are taking the kids for the whole day AND night! We are going to hang out with Cohen and have a nice date and sleep an entire night, uninterrupted in a hotel ;). I cannot wait!

Thanks for keeping up with us. I'll post pictures of coco bean in her outfit as soon as she wears it. Have a great night!

-Chelce

A Whole Pound Bigger!

My sweet little coco bean weighs 2 lbs 15 oz today. She was 1 lb 14.7 oz at birth. Putting on a whole pound makes quite a difference for our little peanut. I'm up here with her now, just staring at her. She is doing pretty well; a few ups and down, which are to be expected. She is on a nasal canula right now. I love the canula because her little face doesn't get all swollen. She really is getting more beautiful everyday.

I'm struggling right now with the amount of time I am able to be up here. Brian came last night after work, so I haven't seen her since Tuesday morning. I am struggling with mom guilt. I wish I could be here every moment of every day, but I have three more beautiful children at home that I take have to/ want to take care of, too. I can really use prayers for that if you are up for it. I know Brian had a tough time, too. We can both use prayers :)

Cohen is tolerating her feeds pretty well. She had a little blood in her tummy yesterday, but they think it was because the feeding tube was irritating the lining of her stomach. She has been ok since then. She also got her fifth blood transfusion today. I'm hoping we will be past needing them pretty soon. Brian was able to hold her this past weekend. It was very special. I got some great pictures, but they are on the computer at home. I will post them soon. Coco bean is also a MONTH old! It is hard to even believe. She's still got a couple of months here, but I am starting to get excited about her being home with us.

If you could also be in prayer for a friend of mine-- her baby girl was born weighing 1 lb 10 oz, just two weeks after Cohen. We go to church together and her sweet girl is just down the hall from Coco. Baby Chloe is also doing well, but can definitely still use the prayers. Thanks again and I will update again, soon :)

Chelce

Wires

I've had the song "Wires" by Athlete stuck in my head for a few days. I downloaded it to my itunes a few years ago when it was the theme music of one of those gory discovery health shows I like. I just learned a few days ago that the song was written by the lead singer who had a baby in the NICU. It probably isn't everyone's taste, but I like it.

Cohen is doing great. I am sitting here looking at her right now, with all of her wires connected to her. She is getting cuter. I feel like she is starting to look like a Day kid. She is breathing completely on her own now. She is still on the CPAP, but she is doing well on it.

Her enormous CPAP

More good news: her infection seems to be gone. They finished one antibiotic today and will be finishing another in a couple of days. They also started her feeds today; I am most nervous about this. She has had a tough time with her feeds (blood in bowel movements and swollen intestines), we need lots of prayers specifically for this. They are going to move very slowly this time. She is getting .9 ml's every three hours to begin, it will continue to be increased over time if she does well.

This picture was taken when they were readjusting her CPAP- you can see her sweet face

I was able to kangaroo with her, again, yesterday. It is so nice feeling her warmth against my chest. It helps me to feel like her mom. What's crazy to me is that her little movements remind me of when she was inside my belly. She will give a little kick or a push and I will remember that she should still be inside of me, 30 weeks along today growing happily. 

The other day I got a video of her sucking on a preemie pacifier for the first time. You get a pretty good gauge for her size from the video

A quick detour from Coco bean. We took the kids trick or treating and they had a ton of fun. Here are some pictures. We have a Princess Leia, a Yoda and a transformer. 

Hope you all had a Happy Halloween and thank you for keeping up with us!