So Poppi has so accurately described Greyson as “a bumble bee in a tin can.” This little guy has no problem winding himself into a fit of furry.
We visited the pediatrician and eye doctor this week. The pediatrician was very happy with his progress but he’s lost some weight. Greyson weighed 7 pounds 1 ounce when we left the NICU on Saturday and he weighed 6 pounds 12 ounces on Wednesday at the doctor. So for now, I am back to fortifying every bottle, which means I add 24 extra calories to my breast milk. He’s pretty much the boss when it comes to eating; I’ve thrown out the schedule for now. I think he took 10 bottles yesterday. If he acts hungry then he gets fed. We have a follow-up visit next week and I’ll probably be scolded for the weight gain!
Our eye doctor visit went well. Greyson has no signs of retinopathy. This is a disease caused by immature vessels in the eye, which can lead to blindness. Babies born at 25 weeks are very likely to have some stage of retinopathy. However, Greyson has beat the odds again. We have a follow-up appointment in 4 months. Note to self, if you are a frantic germaphobe, bound to defeat bacteria, don’t wear your baby in one of those slings to the doctor’s office. Slings draw attention to every woman within eyesight. I could see their intrigued eyes from afar and seriously felt panic- I wanted to scream “Stop! Do not proceed with further closeness” I managed to show his face to one woman for like 3 seconds, five feet away, she clearly thought I was nuts. I avoided eye contact with everyone and ignored all whispers, which included “oh look, that must be a little baby” and “how cute, I think a baby is in there.” I never confirmed their suspension and surely won the unfriendly mother award.
Poor Matthew has probably been crawling on all fours this week at work. An intravenous drip of caffeine probably wouldn’t get him through the work day. Last night is the first night we didn’t sleep with the light on. I literally check Greyson every 10 minutes and if I happen to fall asleep for like 15 minutes then I jump with panic and run to wherever he is sleeping. I allowed him to sleep in the crib for almost an hour last night; this hour included about 10 breathing checks. He usually sleeps in a swing right next to our bed and don’t feel bad- this swing is amazing and surely more comfortable than any crib. I’m just wondering when the worrying ends. I know all moms do this but I haven’t been given any time frames. Am I going to be running around in the night for weeks or months?
3 comments:
I am so happy to see you guys are home and getting settled in to true parenthood. It just brings tears to my eyes to see and hear how far you have come, I cannot even image. To answer your question, I hate to tell you that you will probably never sleep the same again. Gavin is 14 mths old has never been sick or had breathing problems and I checked him 3 times before going to bed just lastnight and then he ended up in bed with me at 2am.
The only advice I can give you right now is don't worry about spoiling him :) Hold that baby all you want, he is yours! Spoiling is loving.
Once Mary Farris came off the pulse ox, we all slept through the night... Until the teething started! I, also watched her breathe all the time and sometimes I still do if she is quiet for very long. Don't worry, they say the fears will stop when they are 18! Congratulations on the ROP miss, we were lucky too. If you got a red stop sign from Synagis, hang it in your stroller, it really distracts the people who think they can put their hands on your precious cargo. We got the "look at the newborn" comments at dr visits until she was 9 months old!
Kiley,
Have you thought about getting an angel monitor? You can get it online or at babies r us. The monitor has a board that goes under his mattress and detects his movements (breathing). If for any reason it does not detect movement for a certain amount of time, it sounds an alarm. You will be surprised how sensitive it is and that it can detect movement through the mattress. It gave me so much peace and allowed me to sleep during those first few months. Savannah actually slept on it until she was a year old. I am so glad that you finally got to bring Greyson home and have been following your blog from the beginning. Let me know if you have questions about the monitor. It was truly the best baby gadget I had. Thanks for sharing the story of your little miracle with all of us!
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