Not good news, but not terrible news either.

I got a phone call from the NICU yesterday and it was pretty routine at first. Chloe is doing pretty well, she's feisty, etc. etc.

Then the nurse said that Chloe has chronic lung disease and edema around her eyes. Obviously I had no idea what either one meant, and I started to panic before she could explain it. 

Edema is swelling caused by excess fluid in the tissues. I've noticed Chloe's eyelids have been a bit puffy over the past two days, but I didn't think anything of it. What they're doing to help with that is decreasing her fluids to see if it goes away.

Mom and I went to see her today and her eyelids are a lot less puffy, so that is definitely a step in the right direction! Chloe has such expressive little eyes that I would hate for them to be seen all the way. Oh I love her so freaking much! 

The chronic lung disease is fairly common among preemies and infants in general. Hence Chloe has been on some form of oxygen since she was two days old. The lung problem basically means that she has trouble breathing but she should grow out of it within the next few months. It's very likely that she will be sent home with oxygen, which could last anywhere from a week to six months. Hopefully not too long! 

Another thing: Chloe has a high probability of developing asthma. This doesn't seem like a huge deal to me because it's such a manageable thing--especially considering all the other problems she could have had. Mike, however, has asthma and part of him feels guilty because asthma can be genetic. His asthma is borderline, and we are both hoping that IF Chloe gets it, hers will be borderline as well.

*PHEW* 

This has been a crazy journey so far with our precious girl and we are just so grateful for the blessings we've received during this whole thing. Chloe is gaining weight, super alert and feisty. Nothin's gonna stop her now! :)

A Baby Shower

My family threw me a baby shower for Chloe this past Saturday and it was so much fun!

We had a display on the gift table that included a picture of Chloe on the day she was born, her first set of casts, a shadow box with plaster casts of her hands, her footprints and a preemie-sized diaper, and a collage of her at 5 weeks old.

 There was a dessert buffet and it was fantastic! Mini cupcakes, cookies, candies, etc. YUM.

 

We had a great turnout of people and I am so grateful for everyone who was able to come! The gifts were wonderful/adorable/useful and I am so excited for Chloe to wear/use them all! :)

Katie's little one, Hailee Lynn. Chloe & Hailee will be best friends--they have no choice. :)

 Megan & Kaylee

 Brooklyn & Savannah

 Grandma. A.k.a.: Life of Party.

Thank you so much, everyone! It was great to see you all and see how much you love my little girl. And thanks to everyone who helped put the shower together...it was amazing! :)

*36 Weeks Today*

Chloe has been doing better with breastfeeding. I've requested that she's not fed by a bottle at all--I don't want her to refuse to breastfeed because of it. 

It's so fun to see her progress. I'm so proud of her! She's now up to 41 ml. per feeding and she's doing okay with the calories they're putting in her milk (so far). 

She got her casts changed today and the nurse said she's not loving it. I've got a slight cold and so I didn't go see Chloe today, but Mike went up to see her and comfort her. Apparently she was really sad until he got there and then she calmed down a bit. Chick loves her daddy. :)

She weighs FIVE POUNDS and we are excited she's growing so well! She's at the gestational age of 36 weeks and her development is right on track. We should have her home in about four weeks and we are SO excited! :)

Impatient!

I can't wait for SO many things.

I can't wait for my baby to get rid of the feeding tube and start breastfeeding exclusively. 

I can't wait to get her car seat installed. I want to get a cute "Baby on Board" sign to stick in the window. 

I can't wait for her to breathe completely on her own. She hates her nasal canulla--she's always trying to rip it out. 

I can't wait for her casts to be over and done with. 

I want her home. 

That's a bit obvious, right?

Well, there are also some things I want for me. 

I can't wait for the doctor to clear me for exercise. 

I have been excited to get in shape for a few months now. I want Chloe to have a hott mama and I want Mike to have a hott baby mama--I mean wife. :)

I have a plan.

First I am going to take it easy. I'll Just Dance for 2 weeks. 

I will do Pilates for awhile.

And when I feel like I'm getting back to where I was before, I'm going to pull out my favorite workout program:

P90X.

I LOVE it. Tony is my favorite because he's super ripped and kinda crazy. Both are great motivators. 

With all of this exercise, I am going to snack less and gag on veggies more. 

I can't wait. 

It'll be hard, but worth it--for me and for Chloe. 

I love her.

First off, let me just say that Chloe reached her gestational age of 35 weeks on Thursday. 

If my BP hadn't gotten out of control, I would probably still be in the hospital right now. Dr. Nance wanted to deliver her at 35 weeks. Crazy that she's now four weeks old!

Chick has been keeping her body temperature regulated all by herself, so she was moved into a crib. She'll still be in the NICU for another month, but she has a lot more room to stretch her little limbs.

LOOK.AT.THAT.FACE.

 I am so in love! :)

 The nurse picked out her onesie, which is awesome because I bought the exact same one for when she's about six months old. Great minds think alike!

 They are bringing up her feedings to either Mike or me feeding her four times a day instead of two. They will still cover her other feedings with the feeding tube, but it's definitely progress! I am actually pretty relieved, because I have been getting really worn out lately and have been getting abdominal pain at least twice a day. Sometimes my scar starts bleeding a little, so I know I'm overdoing it. This way Mike can go and bottle feed her twice a day and I can go up and breastfeed twice like I have been for awhile. It'll be nice to split her care. 

Chloe is doing SO well! I know I write that in every post...because I am SO proud of how much she is progressing! With these kinds of milestones, she might even come home a week or so earlier. 

Whaddaya say, Chloe?

That's My Girl! :D

We have lots of good news!

The second time I went up yesterday, I practiced nursing with Chloe. She tried for twenty minutes and got FIVE milliliters! :) Soon after we finished, Dr. Fox came in and casted her feet. He was really nice and let me stand next to the table so I could watch. Chloe was a bit fussy with her right leg and Dr. Fox's assistant kept saying, "She's such a little spitfire!" Yep, yep she is. 

 The doctor was awesome with answering questions and I have a video of him casting her left foot, but Blogger won't upload it. You can check my Facebook, I have it posted there. 

 This is how she feels about the whole process:

After the casting, I went home and Mike went to see her with his parents and aunt. His aunt bought Chloe a really pretty bracelet for her baby blessing. Right now it would probably fit better as a necklace, so we'll let Chick get a little bigger. :)

Chloe with Grandma Kathy.

Chloe will have her casts on for a total of six weeks before Dr. Fox does tendon-release surgery. He said it's very minor; he'll just numb her little legs and clip the tendons while she's in her little bed. After that she'll get her final casts and those will last for two weeks. 

And then she's done. 

DONE. FINISHED.

AHHHHH!!!!

I was in shock when the doctor told me. Chloe will be out of casts by the time she comes home! Mike and I were promised miracles, and I know this is one of them. We are so blessed and I am elated that Chloe will have a much more positive experience with her feet than I did. She'll probably forget that she was even born with clubbed feet because she won't have scars to remind her. 

Oh, I am so happy! Mike and I haven't stopped smiling about it. 

WOO-HOO!
And, today I went in to feed her and she got 30 milliliters! 
The nurse weighed her twice to confirm it and only had to push 8 mls. to complete Chloe's feeding. How awesome is my little one? :)

Updates & Breakthroughs

The occupational therapist (not crazy Annie) worked with me last night and Chloe did so well. We found out a solution: a nipple shield. It's probably exactly what you're envisioning, and it helps Chloe latch on better. She tried sucking the entire half hour that I worked with her...it was amazing! The O.T. was great and answered all of my questions. It makes me a lot more excited to go up and practice nursing with Chloe because I'm finally seeing progress. 

Plus, she's freakin' cute. :)

 When I went in this morning, Chloe's stomach was still distended and so they took her off the fortifier and she is strictly on my milk.  Tomorrow they will try a different, more broken down fortifier and see if she reacts well. 

I was kind of frustrated though, because I got to the NICU right at 10:30 (one of her scheduled feedings) and the nurse was already TWENTY MINUTES into her feeding! Are you serious? Chloe wasn't even interested in breastfeeding because she was already full! My nurse was really nice and I'm sure she is crazy busy, but I had made sure the NICU knew I was coming...ugh. Oh well, I'm going back tonight. 

Dr. Fox also came in and took off her casts. He had an emergency come up and didn't recast her immediately, so I was able to see the progress she's making:

AMAZING, right?!

She is such a little rockstar! 

She will be recasted by the time I see her again tonight and I can't believe she's already had almost three weeks of casts. My little girl is growing up...and hopefully out, too. ;)