A Change of Scenery

Adam had a really good day yesterday and had no events through the night. He was taken off of his IV so now is getting all his nutrition through his belly. He was moved to a different part of the NICU overnight. I'm not sure that there's any major significance in this except that we did not see any other babies on IVs in that room. We are just really glad that the nurses prepared us for the move before we came in to find him not in his original spot! The nurses have been wonderful, though, so I am not surprised that they have thought to tell us just about everything. The little corner where he used to be was very drafty, so we always felt like we could not hold him very long or he would start getting cold.

He weighed 3 lbs, 1.3 oz last night, so had a small decrease, part of which could have been the IV itself. If he does not maintain his weight, he will likely have a fortifier added to his milk or some high calorie formula given as a supplement. Since the volume of his feedings has almost reached goal, he has spit up a couple of times, once while Daddy was holding him. This seems to be related to how fast he is fed. When we are there we are able to hold and keep the rate slow by gravity feeding but he may go on a pump for his other feedings to make sure we don't fill his little belly too fast. Four teaspoons is a lot for this little guy - he started with 1 ml each feeding.

Morning update

I really meant to mention last night that Adam went all day with the same IV yesterday! Even better is that the doctor told us this morning that he plans to stop the IV feedings today around 3PM. Adam needs to keep tolerating food well in his belly and he can do without one more line!

Mommy and Daddy home from CB

Today was busy from the start as we were preparing all day for going home. Emotionally, it was a tough day because we had to leave the hospital without the baby. Again, we could feel everyone's prayers as we were able to stay positive, thinking about how great Adam is doing overall and that we are leaving him in such great hands. There are many other families with babies in the NICU who live out of town and only get to come back a couple of times each week to visit, so we are reminded of how fortunate we are to live a few minutes away. We can also call anytime to find out exactly how he is doing. Plus, we always have something to look forward to.

We left this afternoon and came home to unpack and doze a few minutes before we came back for his 6 and 9 PM feeding times. It is so great to get to take part in his care; we both even look forward to diaper changes! When he is wrapped all snuggly in the blanket like this we call him our little burrito, for he really is about the size of a regular burrito at Chipotle! (The large sticky thing on his forehead in the picture below provides a little skin window to check his bilirubin frequently without sticking him.)

We have noticed since he was born that he LOVES to stretch out. I always think of newborns as all curled up or loving the fetal position. Maybe its because Adam never grew big enough to get crowded in my belly, but he is constantly stretching. We cracked up today because he looked like he could have been sleeping in a hammock when he was leaned up against this little snuggle thing and had one leg thrown over the side of it and a look of satisfaction on his face.

I just called to check on his weight as this usually happens at the midnight care time. Last night I thought it was safe to round 3 lbs 1.8 oz up to 3 lbs, 2 oz. Tonight, however, he weighed 3 lbs 1.9 oz so really he is at least maintaining his weight - I just didn't realize how exact we really have to be! We were warned from the start that he would likely lose weight before gaining and so far he has never dropped below his birth weight, so praise the Lord!

First bath; one less monitor!

Tonight David and I went to Adam's midnight care time and were so excited to see that it was time for Adam to get his first bath since his birthday. One of Adam's biggest issues due to his gestational age is temperature control, so now he is in an incubator and we try to limit holding him to a couple of times a day for ~20 minutes each. Because of this, it was more of a good sponge bath than tub bath but fun nonetheless and we were able to take a few pictures. Mom and Dad might be able to help with the bath more next time but today Mom was happy to get to hold him while his bedding was changed!

After unhooking him from everything, the NICU nurse said it was okay now to take Adam off his pulse ox monitor that wraps around his little foot. She was going to double check with the doctor, but since he had not had any issues with it so far, its likely that it will get to stay off. That's one less wire hooked to him and one thing closer to going home! He had gained a little today so is now up to 3 lbs, 2 oz. Small steps...

One thing specific to pray for is about Adam's IV line, which has been replaced 4 times in little more than 24 hours! First his hand was puffy, and now he is on his third one on his head. Apparently he inherited bad sticking veins from his momma, and with the combination of his feedings through his IV (TPN), it is difficult to have a line last a long time. It sure makes it hard to see him have to get stuck with needles so many times, but if he continues to tolerate the increase in feedings through his tube, hopefully he can stop needing the IV in the next couple of days. Overall, he is doing great and winning the hearts of all his nurses so far!

So what happened?

David and I were right on track for preparing for our precious baby boy to arrive...in January! His due date was 1/15/09 so you can imagine our surprise and fear when my water broke on Election Day - 11/4/08. I was at my Bible study at my friend Amanda's house and we had had a great evening. Looking back, nothing was even unusual about that day as far as my pregnancy was concerned. I guess it was just time!

I immediately called David when I left and he looked up the phone number for me while I drove home to meet him. The doctor on call for my practice said I should definitely come in to the hospital so I met David at our mailbox and we headed straight there. Sure enough, we were informed the membrane had ruptured for whatever reason - could have been infection, a small problem in the membrane formation or even the baby kicking that may have caused it. We felt much better when the nurse and doctor told us that many women go weeks after their water breaks before having the baby, and at 29 weeks and almost 6 days, they were confident they could get me to 30 weeks and hopeful that I could make it to 32 weeks which would be a big milestone for our little guy's development. We WERE suprised, however, to learn that however long it was, I would be in the hospital until the baby came. Wow.

So long story made short, I made it from Tuesday until Sunday (30 weeks, 3 days) and was making plans for being at the hospital for awhile. I felt fine except for some occasional contractions that were to be expected. A ton of friends and family stopped or called to let us know how much we were in their prayers, and we will never forget that. I felt so much peace, even after becoming suddenly helpless and bedridden that I know God's hand was upon us and we were being lifted up by so many. There were occasional dips in the baby's heartrate on the fetal monitor and they coincided with my contractions. Though the baby compensated well, the doctors were fearful that if I started into labor, the position of the umbilical cord would make it dangerous for the baby, so it was time to deliver. Because the baby was in breech position, I had to have to have a C-section. At 1:42 PM, Adam Carson Strunk was born. He was 3 lbs, 0.5 oz and 16.5 inches long. And perfect!

First Post

Hello everyone

We have so many friends and family who love our little man that we decided to start a blog so that everyone can follow his progress with us. As he reaches milestones or his condition changes we will post updates to share with everyone.

Thanks for all the love and prayers

Lisa & David