Caili's Due Date Arrives

Believe it or not, today (Sunday December 30th) is Cailin's actual "due date."

It hardly seems possible that it is just now here, considering she's been with us for 15 weeks and 2 days already. And while I thought I would feel sad if this day came and I didn't yet have her home, I actually feel elated. Cailin has come so far and is once again doing great!

She had been off the vent and on CPAP since Christmas day. And she had been doing so well with the CPAP that today they moved her back to the high flow nasal cannula, which she was on before she got sick. And so far, so good. While she was breathing fine with the minimal support the CPAP was giving her, the CPAP mask was really bothering her. She kept the nurses busy the past two nights...crying and fussing for hours. So, hopefully the tiny little cannula prongs in her nose will allow her to be more comfortable.

In addition to her progress with breathing, they have weaned her off most all of the other medications she was taking for the past 2 or so weeks. And, she is back to getting her full nutrition from just breastmilk (no more IV nutrition). Unfortunately though, since we still don't know if what happened was reflux/aspiration, they are still feeding her the milk via the tube that goes directly into her small intestine. That way, if she does have reflux, it would have to travel very far uphill to get into her airway and end up in her lungs. Hopefully this week she will have some tests done to help us determine if this is necessary. But until then, better to be safe than sorry!

To celebrate her due date we brought in a mobile for her crib (the occupational therapist advised against it until she was "full term") and a fancy shmancy new swinging plush seat that just came in the mail as a gift. Caili really seemed to love it and the nurses and doctors got a kick out of it too! As you can see in the newest photo album (at right or here), quite a crowd a crowd gathered in her room to admire her in her new swing!

While we certainly have a ways to go before we can start packing her bags...we are just thrilled to be where we are today.

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and we wish you a happy and healthy New Year!