So we begin our NICU journey....

Wow Infinity. Her weight gain is great and I hope she hit the big 2kg at the weigh in. Talk of moving to an open cot soon is brilliant. When they get growing, boy do they go fast. I was really anxious when they moved DD to an open cot, and then even more nervous when they took off all monitors just before coming home. I think we get very medicalised coming out of NICU and SC. Well done on the continuing breastfeeding. I used to think that each breast feed is a step closer to home. So happy to hear it is going so well.

A great big shout out to thank the darling *Beema* for retrieving all the posts we lost from this thread. Honey, with everything you are going through right now - you are seriously an angel to find all those posts for me. I truly appreciate it so much, DD will love seeing how many people were cheering her on from BB.

And we've hit the 2kg milestone! She went to 2020g and then up another 60g to 2080g overnight! Way to go baby girl. I can't take all the credit though from EBM....she is having some artifical milk at the moment but for very good reasons. Her gut is quite sensitive and irritable after the infection & surgery and she also has some liver issues after being on IV nutrition for longer than normal. All this results in an inability for her body to produce the right enzymes to break down the sugars in milk so she's having a special formula which allows her to absorb & digest things (and grow!) a lot better. Half formula, half EBM so she's stilll getting my good stuff.

The took her central line out too so the only thing she has attached to her is her oximeter which measures oxygen saturation and is on her little foot. So getting her out of the isolette for cuddles is so easy now....no scary lines to worry about. Still in a closed cot but I think they're just playing it very safe for a while...there is really no need to rush her and she still has a way to go before going to Special Care (Level 2).

I had no baby sitters around today and DP is working....almost had a meltdown about not seeing her this morning so packed DS up and took him to the hospital and put him into the playroom they have there....and he loved it. I've felt so guilty all this time about even thinking about putting him in there but I had a great chat to the lady running it and she was very reassuring. So now if I desperately need to get there I feel better about him being comfortable in the playroom. So many toys! And lovely staff running it too.

We're up to day 85 today. But we have more and more glimmers of hope every single day. I can now see that there will be an end in sight, somewhere. A few weeks ago I just couldn't see the wood from the trees as they say. Thank you all for your ongoing love & support. It means a lot.

Infinity I'm soo glad to hear Heidi is powering on soo strongly still, she is a very special little girl xx

Woohoo on such a fabulous weight!!! My DD was 2.56 kg at birth, so your tiny little fighter is getting much, much closer to the size of a small term baby.

Glad to hear your DS liked the playroom, that would sure be a great option to have when you need it.

I bet that light at the end is getting a bit brighter each day now. What's the next goal for little Heidi? The open cot?

She's doing so well! I'm glad you are comfortable with DS in the playroom, it must be one thing off your overloaded mind.

Awesome news!! Well done. Very glad that you have option of playroom to use what a great thing to have!!!!!!!

I keep thinking about your beautiful little lady and wondering how she is. SCBU babies move from strength to strength and soon she will be home with you all. Does your DS 'know' her yet? I tried taking DS to meet the DDs but it was too overwhelming and he would get confused by the sheer number of babies mummy was claiming to be hers :lol:

That's excellent news Infinity. Go Heidi

Fabulous news! Way to go Heidi
That's great your DS is happy in the playroom - an extra option for you!

WooHoo!! Heidi you are getting so big!! Keep growing little princess!!

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What's the next goal for little Heidi? The open cot?

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Open cot would probably be one of them, realistically she can go into an open cot anytime now - she's over 2kg, her central line is out and she's regulating her temp well so they're the main criteria. But I think they're just being a little bit cautious which I'm happy with. She also hasn't reached what they call 'full feeds' yet - i.e. 3 hourly feeds of a certain volume. She's still on 2 hourly and a reduced and variable volume as her tummy is still quite sensitive and her liver choleostasis is impeding her growth a bit. So were just going to keep going, one step at a time.

Sending Heidi lots of 'open cot' vibes hun! What a little fighter!!! Our prem babies never cease to amaze me :).

xoxox

Glad to hear everything is going so well :)
What an amazing little girl you have... no question where she gets it from!
:hug:

wahooo! infinity this is amazing news! what a lil' champion your girl is! strength to strength babe, strength to strength! :hug:

Infinity, it is so wonderful to hear that Heidi has reached the 2kg mark and is doing so well. The strength these little ones have is truly amazing. WTG Heidi! One more step closer to the door that leads to home.

I am so glad to hear she is doing so well. I have been unable to log on for a while, so when I could I had to check on little Heidi's progress. What a clever girl.

sending lots of open cot vibes and hoping her tummy settles down soon xxx

And we're in an open cot!!!!!!!! Yay for a big girl bed. She got switched over yesterday and maintained her temp well so she's staying :D

Up to 2155grams too so she's slowly and steadily growing away. Still having some issues absorbing her milk - her stools are very watery and everyone is still scratching their heads a bit on this one but hopefully it will be sorted soon.

Rhyb - we have taken DS in a couple of times in the early days and he sort of knew there was a baby in the big plastic box LOL but was more interested in all the noise & activity of the NICU and just wanted to get down & run around. We show him pictures of DD and he recognises her as a baby, and we talk about her all the time at home & use her name etc. so I think he might be catching on a bit. Like most older siblings though I think he'll get a surprise when life changes once she's home.

Oh yay on the big girl cot!!! I bet she looks so much more like the baby you'll be bringing home soon enough.

I hope you find some answers soon on her digestion.

:hooray: for the open cot!

OMG!!!!!!!! :leap: :leap: :leap: This is the BEST news! What a little fighter you are Heidi & what an inspirational, amazingly devoted Mama you chose to Mother you! :hug:

:leap: yay for the big girl cot :leap:

so glad that she is doing so well. I look forward to hearing she is doing great with her feeds too :D

This is a huge milestone Infinity! :hooray: I can see from your post that you feel so much closer now to taking her home.
I'm just amazed at how far she has come in the last few weeks.... it's just wonderful. Sooooo looking forward to the day you post that you are taking her home!
:confetti: :confetti:

Woooooo Hoooooo!!!!
:happyforyou:

WOW and open cot!! WTG Heidi!!! :leap:

What a fabulous start to the week, you are both doing a fabulous job, so proud of you and you are both truely amazing :hug:

Take care xxoo

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Rhyb - we have taken DS in a couple of times in the early days and he sort of knew there was a baby in the big plastic box LOL but was more interested in all the noise & activity of the NICU and just wanted to get down & run around. We show him pictures of DD and he recognises her as a baby, and we talk about her all the time at home & use her name etc. so I think he might be catching on a bit. Like most older siblings though I think he'll get a surprise when life changes once she's home.

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Our friends found that their youngest did really well when they brought home their baby. it seemed that with all the preparation etc of the baby being in NICU etc seemed to give him time to adjust (and i reckon that having his mum back full-time also helped...). so could be the case for you guys too!

Awesome news on the open cot!! that must be so cool and less of a physical barrier between the two of you must be something special!

Well done baby girl, an open cot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thats wonderful:)

OMG How exciting!! WTG Miss heidi on your open cot!! Every step is a step closer to going home with mummy, daddy and your big brother!!

And we're in Special Care Nursery! Man things can move quickly LOL! Its a great step for her but I must admit to having a minor meltdown about it all last night. We knew it was likely she would get bumped into Level 2 nursery if they needed the space in NICU and yesterday they did. The whole Neonatal Unit is overflowing....babies everywhere last night.

I know she's ready....I'm just adjusting to how different it is. In NICU there is never more than one nurse to two babies and often Heidi would have one-to-one care when she was unwell. In SCN its 6 bubs to one nurse :o so veeeerrry different. And very busy. Noisy OMG the noise. Heidi is the most settled baby in there probably because she's had to put up with so much noise & fiddling around already.

And after the spending the whole day today with her in there I've started to adjust a bit more and get the hang of things and I'm working on embracing the 'promotion' she's had as one of the consultants put it today. They're still fiddling with her feeds but I'm confident it will get sorted soon. Frustrating that I can't give her more EBM though....patience patience I keep telling myself. They're still happy for her to have proper breastfeeds though to keep the suck feeding up.

I'm pooped, what a big few days. Thanks ladies for all your love & support xo

Wow, what a big development! Congratulations to Heidi on her promotion.
Hope you get a good night's sleep

:leap: :hooray: That is awesome!!!! :hooray: :leap:
Wow Infinity she is just powering through... that is amazing and such wonderful news. It's all happening so quickly it must be hard to adjust but it's all good news for her and is another step closer to being home with you. How wonderful.
:confetti: :confetti:

What fantastic news. It has moved so quickly since her operation. It is a big change but all for the better. They are obviously really happy with how she is going. Hope you get some good rest.

:dance: yay for the promotion to SCN, I am so happy to hear that things are going from strength to strength. :dance:

Woooo hooooo For the HUGE promotion into the SCN :leap:

It is a huge step for all of you, adjusting the big change in level of care is very difficult and I know that a lot of parents do struggle as the relationships that you develop with the NICU staff are much closer, they know every little bit about your baby, where as in the SCN, Heidi is one of a few and the updates aren't as detailed but it also means that you can be a lot more hands on as well.

It is ok to let it all out as well, completely normal :hug:
Take care and you are often in my thoughts xxoo

Wow I have missed a lot in a few days!!!! How awesome for Heidi to be in open cot and in SCN, well done bubba girl! Keep up great work and you will be home in no time!!

Wow that is fabulous news!! Open cot and SCN - she must be going so well!!

Woohoo - Heidi is a big girl! :D Well done on all of the effort you've put into helping her get well. This is fabulous news.

:hug: to you, I hope you are able to still feel confident in the level of care Heidi is receiving and adjust as you take over from here on.

wow! things do move fast!!

my friend mentioned the same thing when her son was moved out of NICU and into SCN. she said it was a bit nerve-racking for a couple of days to see him in a new, and less vulnerable light ITMS. but one step closer to home :happyforyou:

this is wonderful news guys, just wonderful!

how is the BF going?

Infinity that is wonderful (albeit a little scary for you) news!!! I've been reading but not posting as much as I'd like. I really want to send my love and thoughts and I hope you are getting the sleep and support you need IRL. Way to go Heidi you are a fighter with a wonderful family.

xx

Wow Heidi and INfinity, way to go!!! Congratulations!

Such wonderful news for you all infinity... when we transferred from a level 5 SCN/NICu (DD was in the SCN section) to the Level 3 SCN hospital... I drove myself slightly batty with the change. It is a huge step and please know that we are here to support as we can xoxox

Yay for Heidi!!! Keep it up you brave, fighting little girl! Such awesome news Infinity! So happy for you all :)