By far the biggest roadblock to bringing Virginia home is bottle feeding. She does still have some oxygen support, but we are confident that she will be able to wean off of the nasal cannula once her feeding issues are resolved. Virginia has made progress, albeit sometimes excruciatingly slow, with the bottle. She continues to do great at breastfeeding and is building her strength and stamina each day. We are hopeful that she can continue to make progress in the coming week and start slowly replacing her feeds with full bottle or breastfeeding sessions.
At 3 months old, Virginia weighs 4 pounds and 10 ounces. She is still rather quiet and content but squirms, stretches, squeaks, and chews on her fingers when she is hungry or wants attention. She is outgrowing her smaller preemie sized clothes and has an ever growing double chin :) Heath and I are involved in almost all parts of her care. On any given day we change diapers, give baths, rock and read together, and feed her. What a change from the days where we sat at her bedside staring at her in her isolette!
Specific prayers that we could use this week:
That Virginia is able to successfully feed from the bottle and start replacing entire feeds with bottle feedings.
That Virginia continues to steadily gain weight.
That Virginia's kidney stones cause her no problems.
That Virginia's tests and lab values continue to come back normal.
That Virginia's doctors, nurses, therapists and parents remain patient, allowing Virginia to lead the way in tackling all of the challenges that stand between her and discharge.
Dear Alyssa and Heath,
ReplyDeleteAnd a big happy 3 month birthday to Virginia! She looks amazing! So much personality in her little face now! I have been trying to keep my prayer warriors up on her progress. They rejoice with you in the advancements she has made. And hold you all close in their hearts and prayers. They will continue to do so.
Celebrate each day!
Norma