Thursday, September 27, 2007

Halfway Towards Home!

Our girl has eaten 8 bottles in a row -- and is on "ad lib" feeding -- which means we give her extra and see if she can eat that too, and it goes towards future feedings where she might be short a bit and they "forgive" it.

I found out today that she has to eat 16 bottles (48 hours worth) of food before they'll send her home. For some reason I thought it was 24 hours, but my brother Jeff assures me he heard 48 hours, so it was just me in my exhaustion not hearing it right.

She's eating like a champ though! If she gets through the end of today eating all her meals and passes her hearing test, we could go home as early as tomorrow! (Friday)
Nora also took the carseat challenge tonight, and passed it with flying colors! Here's a picture right before Brian put her blankets over her. She isn't real thrilled with it, but she's ok...and eventually fell asleep.

As for my milk, it is getting a bit better. I've been eating oatmeal a couple of times a day for the last two days, and I slept a lot this evening so I could do the midnight/3 a.m. feeding with her. Brian will take the 6 a.m. before work so I can then sleep til 9.

Oh and one thing that's just weirding me out -- they are giving me the full court press to give her a Hepatitis B vaccine before she leaves the hospital...and it's so odd to me to think of giving a baby so tiny some shot she could easily get in two months...for a disease that isn't communicable through casual contact. I've asked the docs and nurses "WHY Hep b? WHY now?" and I keep getting this "why are you asking, just do it" attitude, and they all just say the CDC wants to erradicate the virus...which is all fine and good. I'm all for vaccinations, but she's barely 5 lbs...and I'm just not ready for that! Unless someone here can explain it to me, I am waiting til her 2 month appt.

Thank you Aunt Jenny for the carseat/stroller!!! Brian assembled/installed it all today and it's VERY nice!

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

You are very welcome for the carseat/stroller. I'm glad I could do it.

I am thrilled to hear that Miss Nora continues to do so well!

Apparently, Brew is stalking your blog. :o) Everytime I try to update him on Nora, he says "I know - I saw that on Jules' blog." He has your blog book-marked on his iPhone and apparently he checks on you and Nora daily (at least).

We will see you guys in just 2 weeks! I hope that that gives you enough time to get home a settled a bit.

(((hugs)))

Anonymous said...

I pumped with both girls for a year. At different times, my milk would become low (usually at "that time of the month) and I just drank some root beer. It always did the trick. It is an old wives tale, but it does work.

Amelia's Mom aka Jennie said...

The HepB vaccine is a series of three shots and here in NC the shot is mixed with something else so that when baby needs 5 shots at the 2 mo. appt (and subsequent appts.), they only get 2 needles - three immunizations in one and two in the other.

Amelia did get the HepB at the hospital because I figured that we'd be one up, then at her 2 mos. her pediatrician told me she'd wind up with four HepB shots total since the other HepB shots are not, cannot be separated from the other immunizations they're mixed with.

Basically I'm trying to say I agree with you - there's no reason not to wait until 2 months. Your the parent and you are allowed to decide.

Good luck!

Anonymous said...

Go to www.909shot.com which has a lot of information, replete with links to actual CDC documents and other scientific research papers.

You'll learn that the American Academy of Pediatrics has actually pushed the infant vaccine schedule for boosters to occur at the earliest possible times, and at the shortest intervals, when really the efficacy of the vaccines would be just as good keeping them farther apart. The vaccine schedule, contrary to what many pediatricians will tell you in party-line AAP parlance, is based upon the convenience of parents already being at well baby check-ups, NOT upon some ideal interval times to increase efficacy of the vaccines.

Be sure to look for actress Jennie McCarthy in the news, who is bringing lots of attention to the vaccine schedule. McCarthy is correct when she says in 1990 infants received 10 vaccines, but today it's over 35. When an infant goes to his checkup and receives a Hep B, HiB, DTaP, Polio and MMR that is 4 jabs, but 9 --9!! -- separate vaccines, all at once.

Remember that the combo vaccines ARE available in single doses, and those are also available in single dose vials, which do not contain the anti-contaminant thimerosal (which is used in the multi-dose vials so the whole bottle isn't contaminated by a tainted needle). Also remember that when we do get a vaccination for an infant, make certain the baby's immune system is not compromised in ANY way, not any sign of an illness, not even a snuffy nose. For a preemie, this goes double. (We wash our hands so germs stay away from the baby, but we will instead introduce lots of attenuated VIRUSES of several diseases into this same infant's body, all at once? It's madness!)

I may sound militant about this, but my view is better safe than sorry.

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