Return of the Return to the Hospital
Before anyone gets the wrong idea, James did not have to get admitted, we just had to get another renal scan. This time it was a DTPA to be sure (doubly, tripley I've lost count) that the renal reflux (...)
after the NICU
NICU Friends - they stay with you
I have been thinking a lot of the things I want to say here. The words that paint stories for my kind readers. As I do this and try to find a balance I keep remembering something. My mind drifts back to the time we spent in the NICU but instead of our son I think of all the people we met while there. As I have said before and will most likely say again, "Nothing is Random." That is that while having to have spent all that time (...)
Bottle feeding your Preemie months after the NICU
Once upon a time, not so terribly long ago this brand new daddy was fighting for every ML that my new son would eat. I watched him using his NG tube then finally start taking bottles of breastmilk. When James graduated to the Simple Ward in the NICU and I was finally able to feed him we were barely finishing bottles of 30ML. It would take as long as 30 minutes to try and get through those bottles. Then the nurses started (...)
Renal reflux exam - PASS
I have to admit I was ready for a nightmare visit this time. I had read up on the ways that they do this test and, well, I was a bit concerned. One of the things I had not taken into consideration however was that James has been poked and prodded for most of his short life. I have a feeling being intubated within an hour of being born is probably way worse than the exam he had yesterday.
But still, things (...)
NICU newborns: Bottles, breastfeeding and nipple confusion, does it exist?
As our son is settling in to life after the NICU, one topic kept coming up. Nipple confusion. Sounds funny when you say it out loud, but when your child is born very early (31 weeks gestation for James) they are not able to feed themselves from the breast. In our case it was about a month before the staff even let my wife try to let him latch on. It comes down to muscle strength and the amount of effort that is expended to eat (...)
What do parents do after life in the NICU
After finally getting free from the NICU I thought it was time to talk about what it is like after we finally got home. Living in the NICU for 46 days was difficult. The stress and wondering "what if" is something that I would never wish upon anyone. I like to think that my wife Eri and I handled it well. For the most part we did I think. I have posted article after article about our time there. I am almost done with that (...)
Dancing with the NICU - Follow up exams
Sometimes I feel like the NICU will never go away. We had to take our son back for some preemie follow up exams. Head scan, eyes, blood, blah blah blah. Luckily most of these were in the children's hospital across from the IASO building where the NICU lives. But it was close, leering from shaded windows. Of course before the day was over we had to go up to the NICU to ask some questions about what needed to be tested. (...)
The Seeds we Plant
That which does not kill you makes you stronger.
My sister said this to me today. I don't know if it was because of her feelings from reading my ramblings lately or if there was something else that spurred this thought. It is however appropriate. Tonight I will sit down and just talk. Not that I don't usually do that, but tonight I will let the (...)
Return to IASO - Ghosting the Machine
Today was an interesting day. I had to go to Jumbo to get some odds and ends for James. You know, extra bottles, more tiny underclothes and about twelve thousand other minor items. Yes, there are no less than two other stores nearby but for some reason I felt the need to take the trip across the city. Like some sort of weird salmon swimming upstream thing. I'm not really sure I can explain it.
Maybe in (...)
James VS So that is where the Bottles of Milk come from
Today was a really good day. I got out of the house for the first time since James came home. The buses were on strike so I couldn't get some odds and ends that have been piling up on a list and had to walk back home. The weather was indeed very good after being quite cold since our son was released from the NICU. Oh, and James finally figured out just where we have been filling all those bottles of his...
(...)
