It's been a busy few days. Aiden is doing very well and continues to gain weight and develop at a good pace.
Aiden weighed in @ 4 lbs 10.2 oz this afternoon. He hasn't had significant gains the last few days but his bottle feeds have increased which causes him to burn more calories. More calorie burn = possible weight loss or slower gains. He hasn't really lost any weight so we'll take all the small gains we can get.
His bottle feeds are now at every other feed + cues. This means every other scheduled feed is with a bottle, no more feeding tube unless he is too tired. "Cues" mean if he acts hungry they will feed him with a bottle but they don't expect him to take it all. Feed until he acts like he's done.
Aiden's feeds are the only current item keeping him from coming home. He has to sustain every feed with a bottle for 24-48 hours, show weight gain, and not have any indications of distress such as fluid buildup, weight loss, increased Brady attacks, etc. And no other surprises. Our fingers are crossed.
Aiden's nurses and docs continue to be terrific. Very acomodating, very helpful, and very informative. We appreciate all of them! One nurse has even written notes to us for Aiden. She's become a "voice" for him. Not sure how she knows what he wants to say but she swears she only writes what he tells her to.
As soon as Aiden goes 24-48 hours with bottle feeds only, we should be called to schedule CPR and monitor training. The car seat test will also be scheduled once he satisfies the feed requirements. When this happens, Aiden should be within 48 hrs of coming home. Dad expects this call Tuesday so Aiden can come home on Christmas day. (I had a brief chat with Aiden about this. I expect him to listen).
We met the parents of the Babies O'neil. Mom O'neil is the one who made a Christmas hat for Aiden. Finally got to thank her. The O'neil twins are in our prayers and we know they'll be going home soon.
As Christmas approaches, we want to remind you to keep everyone in your thoughts and prayers. We meet new people each day in the NICU and outside on the street who could use some prayers and inspiration. Although we spend a lot of time focusing on Aiden and the rest of our family, we continue to make it a point to remember all those who cross our path and those who have provided amazing support and encouragement.
We know this week will be especially busy for many of you. We hope that by the time you catch up on the blog, Aiden will already be home enjoying his first Christmas.
Posted by: Dad
Ryan and I are continuing to send our prayers your way...we only spent 2 days in the NICU with our little one and that was enough. We check on you every day, so you are always in our thoughts!
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Ryan and Kristen
Coming home will truly happen as fast if not faster than you have described! Once he bottle feeds for 24 hrs straight you are in the home stretch! When the girls did it they were home like 3 days later...and it really only took that long because they tried testing Lilah off her o2, otherwise I think it would have been more like 2 days! Praying you get the best Christmas gift ever!
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