Happy 1 Month Birthday Kayley

Tomorrow is Kayley's 1 month birthday. What a month it's been. Luckily our ride has featured mostly smooth terrain. Hopefully it continues that way.

The day started out with the doctors lowering Kayley's flow from .5 to .4 lpm. She has been doing great on .5 so naturally, they lowered her to .4. She spent most of the day there, however, when I got in tonight the nurse told me they had to put her back to .5 lpm. She just wasn't ready. Her oxidation stayed in the 70's when it is supposed to be between 83 to 93. Well, I guess we'll try another day.

Megan received the results of Kayley's recent PKU (Phenylketonuria) test when she got in today. Her level is normal! That's great news. PKU is a genetic condition in which the body can’t process phenylalanine (Phe), an amino acid found in many foods. Too much Phe is toxic to the brain. It can be controlled by diet but would be a lifelong pain in the you know what. Anyway, another dodged bullet.

Kayley has been so stable lately that her status is rising. She is no longer considered a NICU baby. She is now in Special Care. There's no change to location but there are changes to Kayley's routine. Mainly, the nurse that has Kayley will now have 2 other babies instead of just one. Also, Kayley's vitals no longer have to be recorded hourly. They will now be recorded every 3 hours. Basically, they don't have to watch her as closely as they have been. It's a very good sign because they have a lot of confidence in her.

Kayley did her job again this last 24 hours by putting on a good deal of weight. She is now up to 1795 grams, up 45 grams from last night. That equals 3 lbs 15 oz. 4 lbs is just right around the corner. That will be a great milestone for her. Tonight, I also asked the nurse what Sunday night's measurements (her weekly measurements) came out to. She showed me the chart and Kayley is right on schedule with her head circumference and weight. Her length came in a little above average. She is now 17" long. Kayley is becoming our big little girl.

Another thing to note is that Kayley's little nose looks to be getting sore. As I said last night, the new prongs do not give her humidified air so they tend to dry her nose out. Tonight, the nurse suctioned Kayley's nose because it sounded stuffed again. The good news is that she got some nice chunks out. The bad news is that she got some blood too. It's nothing to worry about because between the prongs sticking up there and the dry air, it's very normal. However...poor little girl!