Washing Kayley's head.
Needing 2 hands to wash Kayley's head.
Washing Kayley's belly.
Kayley's clean blonde hair.
Another shot of Kayley's blonde hair.
Got poop? Kayley's nurse did in the middle of the night last night when she changed Kayley's diaper. She said it was a big one too. That's great news as far as her intestines go. It means they work. It doesn't mean we're out of the woods yet as far as the whole process goes but it's a good sign. And just to show off a bit, Kayley pooped 2 more times today. That's our girl!
We had another good day. Her feedings went up to 6 cc's and she handled them pretty well. I say pretty well because at tonight's 8:30 feeding, she started coughing (silently) a bit and spit some back out. The nurse practitioner said it could be because she was fed too fast or something else minor. If it happens a couple more times, they start to worry a little bit more and they'll have to see what's going on down there. So, that's another one of those things that we'll keep a eye on. Like I've said before, feedings can be one of the bigger obstacles that Kayley has to overcome. Every feeding that gets processed before the next is a step in the right direction.
Kayley is back in the spotlight today. Her bilirubin level went up to 8.9 from 6.7 yesterday warranting the light treatment. Again, this is not unexpected. With the light that they put her under, the level goes down pretty quickly. Also, by pooping (that is the medical term for it...I swear) she gets rid of the bilirubin more quickly. So, hopefully she can get back to being all cuddled up soon.
Another tube in Kayley's body was removed today. The IV she had in her hand is gone. The IV was put in the first day. It was to give her some calcium that one of the blood tests showed she was lacking. It wasn't used much after that but they kept it in because it was a good line. We're glad to see it gone because it was right on the top of her left hand. With the tape and gauze, it just looked uncomfortable. Now, Kayley has both hands to use to pull her other tubes out...which she only has 3 of now (ventilator, feeding tube, PCVC).
The fun update of the day is that Kayley had her bath at about 2:30 today. Luckily I'm only working mornings in the office so I could be at the hospital to partake in the activities (Megan is still being cautious due to her infection otherwise she'd be in helping too). It was a sponge bath so the nurse got the little towels ready for me and I wiped her down. We started at her head and went to her feet. I think I was able to get all the crusty stuff off. I was very hesitant at first to push very hard. I voiced my concerns to the nurse and she said to just go for it. So, we got her all clean. The nurse held her and I scrubbed. Now her hair looks blonder than ever. It looks so soft I just want to rub her head. We are now a step closer to holding her. The nurse practitioner said that if her blood gases are good tomorrow, she'll allow us both to hold her. We're hoping for good results!
While we were giving Kayley a bath, a nurse from NIDCAP (Newborn Individualized Developmental Care and Assessment Program) observed Kayley's behavior. The NIDCAP program basically helps us translate Kayley's actions and reactions into what she needs or wants. So basically, they are baby translators. Every baby is unique and special. So, every baby should receive individualized care. That's what NIDCAP is here to do...determine what kind of care is best for Kayley. This is yet another good program provided by Phoenix Children's Hospital. Anyway, the nurse said Kayley was very active and knew very well how to comfort herself. Humans use the hand to mouth approach to calm themselves down...eating, drinking, smoking, nail biting, etc. Kayley already knows this technique. When she becomes mad or agitated, her hands go right up to her mouth. So, if she ever forgets to do this, we will help her. When we contain her, we also try to put her hands up to her mouth. We should find out more of this kind of stuff because I think the NIDCAP nurse will write up a more descriptive report of all of her findings. It will be interesting to read what Kayley is trying to tell us besides "leave me alone" or "I'll kick you if you do that again."
We had another good day. Her feedings went up to 6 cc's and she handled them pretty well. I say pretty well because at tonight's 8:30 feeding, she started coughing (silently) a bit and spit some back out. The nurse practitioner said it could be because she was fed too fast or something else minor. If it happens a couple more times, they start to worry a little bit more and they'll have to see what's going on down there. So, that's another one of those things that we'll keep a eye on. Like I've said before, feedings can be one of the bigger obstacles that Kayley has to overcome. Every feeding that gets processed before the next is a step in the right direction.
Kayley is back in the spotlight today. Her bilirubin level went up to 8.9 from 6.7 yesterday warranting the light treatment. Again, this is not unexpected. With the light that they put her under, the level goes down pretty quickly. Also, by pooping (that is the medical term for it...I swear) she gets rid of the bilirubin more quickly. So, hopefully she can get back to being all cuddled up soon.
Another tube in Kayley's body was removed today. The IV she had in her hand is gone. The IV was put in the first day. It was to give her some calcium that one of the blood tests showed she was lacking. It wasn't used much after that but they kept it in because it was a good line. We're glad to see it gone because it was right on the top of her left hand. With the tape and gauze, it just looked uncomfortable. Now, Kayley has both hands to use to pull her other tubes out...which she only has 3 of now (ventilator, feeding tube, PCVC).
The fun update of the day is that Kayley had her bath at about 2:30 today. Luckily I'm only working mornings in the office so I could be at the hospital to partake in the activities (Megan is still being cautious due to her infection otherwise she'd be in helping too). It was a sponge bath so the nurse got the little towels ready for me and I wiped her down. We started at her head and went to her feet. I think I was able to get all the crusty stuff off. I was very hesitant at first to push very hard. I voiced my concerns to the nurse and she said to just go for it. So, we got her all clean. The nurse held her and I scrubbed. Now her hair looks blonder than ever. It looks so soft I just want to rub her head. We are now a step closer to holding her. The nurse practitioner said that if her blood gases are good tomorrow, she'll allow us both to hold her. We're hoping for good results!
While we were giving Kayley a bath, a nurse from NIDCAP (Newborn Individualized Developmental Care and Assessment Program) observed Kayley's behavior. The NIDCAP program basically helps us translate Kayley's actions and reactions into what she needs or wants. So basically, they are baby translators. Every baby is unique and special. So, every baby should receive individualized care. That's what NIDCAP is here to do...determine what kind of care is best for Kayley. This is yet another good program provided by Phoenix Children's Hospital. Anyway, the nurse said Kayley was very active and knew very well how to comfort herself. Humans use the hand to mouth approach to calm themselves down...eating, drinking, smoking, nail biting, etc. Kayley already knows this technique. When she becomes mad or agitated, her hands go right up to her mouth. So, if she ever forgets to do this, we will help her. When we contain her, we also try to put her hands up to her mouth. We should find out more of this kind of stuff because I think the NIDCAP nurse will write up a more descriptive report of all of her findings. It will be interesting to read what Kayley is trying to tell us besides "leave me alone" or "I'll kick you if you do that again."
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