Every child deserves to have a Christmas regardless of whether they’re in the NICU. The babies received their very first Christmas stockings from our friends the Sibandas. The nurses love them and Brise and I plan to keep the stockings stuffed with treats for them. The stockings are perfect because I believe one thing that I will pass onto my children is a love for glitter.
We also received a number of updates on the babies today. I suppose one might expect the weekends to be slow, but healthcare doesn’t work that way.
Aubrey continues to heal well from his surgery and the surgeons were planning to begin ooching (that’s the word they used) the drain from his tummy today. Additionally, his breathing has been so good that they extubated him and have tried him on the CPAP again. We are hopeful he will do well this time.
Lydia has a swollen tummy and her bowels are “loopy.” An x-ray showed that her bowels are not perforated (like Aubrey’s were), but they are reducing her food as a precaution to help prevent any damage. She does have a lot of air in her abdomen, but this can happen to babies while they are on the CPAP. The doctor isn’t super concerned, but she’s on a watch list.
Finn hasn’t peed very much. The doctor has told us that this is a good sign because it indicates the indomethacin is working. He will pee again soon and will received the final dose of indomethacin. He is scheduled for an ultrasound of his heart on Monday at which time we will see if his PDA has gotten smaller (or even closed). We are hopeful that this will work. Still, there is a chance that Finn will require a steroid treatment to help his lungs develop even more. We also learned that babies who have lungs that have trouble developing will often be “swollen” in appearance. This will apparently remain until Finn has been home for 3-4 months. That’s the first time the doctor has mentioned the babies coming home and I know it’s still months away, but it was great to even think about.