Each NICU that we've been at (Jack & Hailey were preemies too) are a little different and so we tried to quickly learn how this NICU worked. Sam was in a little room right outside the nurses station for the first 2 weeks and shared with a set of twins. From day 1, he was a great patient. The nurses would always comment about how good he was and how little trouble he gave them.
While I was still at the hospital (Monday thru Thursday), I would go to the NICU as often as I could. They put him on an every-3-hour-schedule (just like our other babies were), so I'd watch the clock and try to time visitors and pumping so that I could go. Since I had a C-Section, the first couple of days, I needed someone to push me down in a wheelchair. I didn't like being that dependent on people, but the nurses and our family were always so kind.
A big part of this NICU's care was skin-on-skin time. I didn't do this with Jack or Hailey, so it was a pleasant surprise and I looked forward to it every day. They let me do it twice in a 24 hour period. We'd undress Sam to just a diaper and then he could lay on my chest as long as I wanted him too. He was always nice and cozy and I was in absolute heaven to have my sweet baby right next to me. It made all those lonely hours of not holding him worth it.
Sam was a binkie baby right from the start. They offered him a binkie and he loved it! I think this helped him to endure IV changes (they would dip it in sucrose solution) and helped him adjust to drinking from a bottle.
For his eating, they immediately put him on IV fluids. I think that IV stayed in a week. They had to change it several times, which I hated for him. After a couple of days, they put a feeding tube in and would put breastmilk directly down the tube. I was lucky to have a good supply of milk all ready for him. Gradually, the nurses would have me pump and then let him "nurse" while the feeding tube was delivering the milk. That way, he'd get used to nursing and feeling full after sucking. Then we worked towards pumping a little bit to get the initial let-down out and then let me nurse him. Sometimes nursing went really well and other times, he was really sleepy and we'd end up putting milk in the tube anyway.
The night before they released him, he pulled out the tube - probably wanting to show those nurses that he could do it. He was drinking from a bottle and nursing 2 of his feedings a day. What a champ! Since getting home, I've just slowly transitioned him to nursing for all feedings. I try to give him a pumped bottle every other day just to keep him use to it.
We had wonderful visitors. Hospital rules were that Jon or I had to be there whenever someone came to visit Sam and only 2 people at a time. I didn't get pictures of everyone, but here are the pictures that I did get:
Jon holding Sam for the first time
He did have to go under the lights for 36 hours or so. He hated the eye mask, but it was sure cute to come and see him sucking on that binkie and relaxing in his isolette.
One of many moments that I absolutely savored!
Emily came several times to visit. This was the time he had the IV in his head :(
Lindsey came a couple of times too. You can see how little his head is compared to her hand.
Grandma Sorenson
Misty met me there one Sunday morning.
Being weighed - usually at 9:30 at night
Grandma Bowen
Kate - this was one of the first days there. She was so excited to hold him while his feeding was going in.
Aunt Rebecca
I would typically go to visit Sam at 9:30 in the morning (after the kids went to school and while Hailey was either at preschool/dance/or at a friend's house. Then, I'd go again at 9:30 at night after the little kids went to bed (with Jon while his mom was in town and sometimes with Emily). I'd stay about 45 minutes to an hour. NICU babies need a lot of sleep and they like to have them left alone in their beds to get optimal sleep.
It's not easy to have a baby in the NICU. Whenever you're not at the hospital, you feel bad for not being with your baby. But, when you're with you baby, you feel bad for the others kids. We were so blessed to only live about 8 minutes away. Sam did awesome! He came home weighing 4 lbs. 5 oz and based on the response of the nurses/doctors, I don't think they send home babies that little very often.
We love and appreciate all the prayers and thoughts and meals and visits that our friends and family gave us! We really could not have gotten through those 2 weeks without you!
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