Saturday, November 04, 2000
Today is my one-month birthday! Can you believe I am already a month old, and they still won’t let me out of this darn brace?
Bonding in the NICU
Mommy and Daddy got to hold me this afternoon. I was very glad to see them and to be held. I was awake when they first got there, and I looked at them when they talked to me. I can tell when they are there by how they touch me and what they smell like. Mommy held me first and put me to sleep by rubbing my head and talking to me. I was asleep for most of the time when Daddy held me. I feel very secure snoozing in their laps!
Baby Care with a Trach
Mommy and Daddy decided that I should have my trach ties replaced today because I spit up on them last night, and they were pretty stinky by this afternoon. The nurse helped them clean around my trach and change the ties. They also had to suction me several times this afternoon. I stayed on 33 cc of milk every three hours again today. That is probably about the right amount for my current size.
No one knows how much I weigh right now because everyone has been weighing me differently, sometimes with the ortho board and sometimes without. I am also being weaned off the ventilator very gradually. Every day the doctors reduce my ventilation settings just a little bit. I have been doing very well with this gradual weaning.
The nurse who bought my first pair of Michigan booties and took the Harley picture stopped by this afternoon to give us some raffle tickets. They were from the “Iron Coffins” motorcycle club. Every year this group holds a raffle to support “Toys for Motts.” All of the proceeds go to Mott Children’s Hospital and Child Life Services. She thought the tickets would be a good peace offering for giving Daddy such a hard time. He is still trying to come up a payback scheme for her though!
Family Visitors from Ohio
Today I met my Uncle Dale and Aunt Marilyn. My cousins Stephanie, Shawn, Michael, and Matthew also got to see me through the window in the NICU. They brought me a small stuffed Ohio State University football helmet that plays the OSU fight song and says, “Go Bucs!” They also brought me a pair of OSU socks and a new music CD. I had to take off my Mizzou socks to put on the OSU ones.
The new music is very soothing. I have my own headphones and CD player at the hospital. I like to listen to music instead of all the beeps going on around me. Uncle Dale and Aunt Marilyn also brought some food for Mommy and Daddy and my cousins made some really neat pictures for me. Mommy is going to save them for my photo albums so that I can see them when I come home.
My Aunt Margaret (who lives in Indiana) sent a tree for us to plant at home. It will grow really big some day and will look like a Christmas tree. I wonder what will grow faster, the tree or me?!