LooK at Me !!

LooK at Me !!
"l,M Walking !!!

Saturday, January 31, 2009

31 Jan 2009 "1ST DAYS AT HOME"

She,s a hungry lion our wee Gracyn feeding every four hours on the dot!!. She has finally found her voice and certainly lets you now when its Yum yum time. Our first nite home was a bit nerve racking but we got through with some good 4hr sleeps in between feeds.
Gracyn, s monitor drives us mad not only does it bing and bong every time she wriggles it lights the bedroom up like a xmas tree. We have her in our room with us for now but i think that will be short lived as we need our sleep too. The pickup on her monitor is very sensitive and i feel thet sometime,s it is giving us a false reading, we will soon adjust i suppose.

She is on no oxygen at all while sleeping and still only a whiff when feeding, we are trying to weene her off the oxygen all together this will make things a lot easier when it comes to transportation.
We are trying to get in a good routine, with Ang doing the middle of the nite feed and i do the early morning one as i do,nt mind being up early.

We get a visit from the homecare nurse every Monday&Thursday, she will be back this Monday which s Gracyn,s actual due date.This will be interesting as she will be weighed and we will find out who has won the family sweepstake for guess the weight/legnth etc.Mathew seems confident that he has it in the bag but we will just have to wait and see.
The hungry one is protesting now so i better go and feed my wee chubbachuba!! All good fun i say!

Steve,Ange,Tegan,Gracyn

Thursday, January 29, 2009

29 Jan 2009 "Gracyn,s Home coming"

We are home Yippeee!! The fun starts now i suppose. Angela got approval to have a sleep over at the hospital last nite so that was the first step to coming home.

Today has so far been full of First,s.Gracyn,s First car ride,first feed at home,first cuddle with Tegs and mum at home,and her first poo at home which i,m sure there will be many more.
Tegan and I were so excited to get the call from Ang to say "come and pick us up", We could,nt get to the hospital quick enough. We are sad to leave the Scbu as we have met an outstanding bunch of dedicated staff and a whole lot of cool parents in the same situation as us. The Reid Family thank you all including Wellington Neonatal unit for all your support, help and encouragement over the past 15 weeks. You are all special people doing a great job and again we thank you.

We got Gracyn into the car and heading home i had it all planned to play a Ozzy Ozboure song "mama i,m coming home" on the way home but with all the excitement i forgot. We are home with oxygen and a couple of moniters to keep an eye one Gracyn,s Stats. Tegans job is to push the buttons when the alarm sounds but not until he has told us the numbers,Tegy likes to push buttons you see so he is very good at this job.
We have three oxygen bottles here 2 big ones i for the bedroom and one for the lounge and a small travel bottle for when we have to go out. It,s quite a logistic,s mission just to move Gracyn.It took three of us just to move her from the bedroom to the lounge, one holding the baby,one with the monitor, and one with the gas bottle.I guess we will get it sorted in time.
Our first nite at home will be fun, a nite we have been anticapating for 15 weeks, Gracyn is home 4 days before her actual due date of Feb 2 and weighs 3370grms (7lb4)
I have posted some photos of todays events and will keep up with the updates on this bolg as i get time. I have the next week and a bit off to help get Gracyn settled and get Tegan back into the School routine.
More tomorrow and i,ll let you all know how our nite went.
Steve,Ange,Tegan,Gracyn

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

27th jan 2008

Tegans tooth extraction went really well and what a brave boy i have.No hastle to Tegan at all. i,m so proud of him. i have posted a photo of the toothles one.
Gracyn is 105days old today and where has the time gone ! Tegan and Angela made a big cake for the staff to celebrate the 3kg mark and also the 100day birthday. Angela a an expert cake maker and the staff really enjoyed it. She is also really good at lasagne but only Nana Dawn makes that for me these days.
Angela mite be rooming in this weekend all going well.We will have to wait and see.Gracyn is doing fine and still only needs the oxygen when feeding.Not much more to report as she has been very settled and content. she is just sleeping, feeding and growing just what we want.

Steve, Ange,Toothless Teg,s ,Gracyn

Monday, January 26, 2009

26 Jan 2008

Sorry about no entries for the past few days it,s just that we have been enjoying all this good weather and having lots of fun. Gracyn still comsumes most of our days with regular visits to the hospital.Angela does the 12pm and 4pm feeds and i get up there in the evenings to see my little 3270grm (7lb 2oz)chubba chub wee girl. Yep!! she is growing fast, it looks like she would have been a big 8 pounder if she had just stayed inside Angela,s Tummy.Lucky for Ange she did,nt i suppose.!
Gracyn spends most of her days without oxygen now and just gets a whif when feeding and that is up to 98ml every 4 hours. Still no sign on her home coming yet but that is still fine with us.We both just want her home for good and not have to return to the hospital at all.
Poor Tegan has to go to the Dentist tomorrow to get his two front teeth pulled.This is performed at Southern Cross Hospital in Wellington and Teg,s will go under a general for this opperation. So its up early and no breakfast tomorrow. No over nite stay thank goodness as having two children in hospital will be over the top.I,ll post some photos of the toothless one later.

Steve,Ange,Tegan,Gracyn

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

21 january 2009

3120grams and getting bigger fast (6lb8oz) now consuming 95 ml of formula. Gracyn as had a long stint off the oxygen but as of today she is back on low flow, which is just a whif and no more to give her a helping hand.She has obviously tired herself out and just needs to have a little help. So just a litle step backwards, she will make up her own mind when she is ready to go it alone,after all this is a womans perogative.
We have had the oxygen bottles delivered to home in anticipation of Gracyns home coming.It looks like that will be closer if not past her official birth date of the 2nd Feb. She has to get her breathing sorted and finish taking her bottles completly for at least 2 days before we bring her home. It has now been 14 weeks since this little bundle of joy turned our lives upside down but seeing her now in all her pink clothes i would,nt change a thing, well maybe one thing she could have cooked a bit longer.
Gracyn is the talk of the Hutt Scbu as her nurses (an awsome bunch of special people) can,t believe how well she has progressed for a 24weeker.
Ang will go and do the day visits and i,ll head up for my nightly fix tomorrow as usual.
more later.
Steve,Ange,Tegan,Gracyn

Sunday, January 18, 2009

18th January 2008

Its quiet arround the house this weekend as Tegan has gone to Napier with his Nana&Grandad,i miss the wee guy but i have finaly got to be able to sleep past 6am wooo ho !! what a bonus.
Gracyn is going well, Auntie Kaye and i went for the 8 pm feed last Thursday with Kaye giving her the bottle, She took the whole 85ml from Kaye so it,s not just me that has the 100% strike rate when bottle feeding. The hospital has organized Oxygen bottle to be dropped off at home in anticipation that she may be home soon,so Angela may be rooming in and possibly as soon as next week. We will just see what happens.
We will head up today to do lunch time feeds and cares and possibly the 4pm ones aswell. ohh! 2890grms as of yesturday
Man its quiet arround here, i can,t think of much more to write about, maybe i,ll crank up playhouse disney on the telly for some background noise and inspiration.Angela and i are making the most of this quiet time with a couple of early nites and a dinner out together(gee i spoil her).
more later
Steve,Ange,Tegan,Gracyn

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

14 January 2009

Gracyn had a visit from her Big cousin Hannah, all the way from Dunedin what a special day.Gracyn had a low blood count when they done the tests so she is in the process of getting another transfusion.Her hemoglobin was down which may contribute to her being a little bit lazy with her feeds and being sleepy.Just another hurdle for my girl.Horsey and Bobby paid a visit and gave Gracyn a feed while they were there, another special moment for Gracyn.
13 weeks old tomrrow and another small step forward to getting home, no sign of when but no rush either.

More later

Steve,Ange Tegan,Gracyn

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

14 January 2009

Gracyn had a few special visitors today, Lisa B and her mum Bronnie.i can remember the day when i held Lisa B in my arms when she was a wee baby.Yep i cried then too and had to give her back to her mum.Look at her now all grow up with funny coloured hair!! Gracyn also got a quick visit Aunte Chris all the way from Dunedin.She was in town on business and just could,nt resist the temptation of a cuddle.
i have just got back from her 8pm feed and she did so well taking the whole bottle for me in record time.Gracyn also had an ECHO scan today,one of many scans they perform on premature babies.They have found that her PDA Valve has not closed completely.This is giveing her a very minimal murmer.The doctors have said that it is so small that it is nothing to worry about and that they will just see how it goes for now.Just another hurdle for my wee girl.

Till tomorrow

Steve, Ange,Tegan,Gracyn

Sunday, January 11, 2009

11 January 2009

2770 grams Today, thats 6lb 1 oz in the old money, what a buda she has become.I have posted some photos of todays visits and one of me giving Gracyn a bath.
At our vsit today she spent most of the time with no assistance from the oxygen at all, especially when Tegan was giving the big brother cuddle.This is going to be a long process, cycling her off the oxygen, but all it will take is time. Gracyn really only needs oxygen when she is feeding or extremely tired.Bottle feeding her just exhausts her.It seems every second feed she will take the full bottle the other feeds she does half bottle and half tube fed, another small hurdle for Gracyn to get over, again this will just take time.She now gets 80ml of formula no EBM anymore,Just as well because Angela would just not be able to keep up the milk supply. i feel we have made the right decision to stop the breast feeding as if Angela had continued she would have worn herself out and made herself sick.
I go back to work tomorrow unfortunatly this will narrow down my visits to the evenings, Tegan will be most upset as he has been my right hand man over these holidays and can,t understand why i have to go back.But we got to do it i suppose.
more tomorrow

Steve,Ange,Tegan,Gracyn

Friday, January 9, 2009

9th January 2009

I told ya me and Tegan would be doing some boy stuff, I dragged the old ute out of the garage to some bodywork on it.Tegan was only too happy to help so i kitted him out with some safety gear gave him an orbital sander and away he went.What a good job he done, this only lasted for a short time as it then became too boring for him, also the heat in the sun yesterday was that hot that i too only got a few hours on the job. After thatit was off to the Naenae pool for an hour or two with everyone else in Naenae.
All off us went to Gracyn,s 4pm feed, the lastest picture shows Ang,Tegs and Gracyn in gaga land after her feed.We have made a plan with the head of the SCBU to when Gracyn may be coming home.At this stage it looks like she will come home on oxygen, thats no problem, but not before the 38 week mark and that they are satisfied that she can be fed with out the feeding tube.Thats ok with us too.
Angela has made a decision to stop the breast feeding and expressing,this is just exhausting her making her energy levels low all the time.Angela also cannot produce enough Boobie juice (LAST TIME HEATHER) for Gracyn to consume.Another factor is while Gracyn is on the breast there is no way in telling how much of the good stuff she is getting.So a formula bottle fed baby Gracyn will be and thats ok with us too.Tegan is off to auntie Wendy,s to play with Anna while Angela and i go to give Gracyn a bath i,ll post some phots of this monumental event tomorrow.

oh!!! a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO "HORSEY" TODAY have a wonderful day.

Steve,Ange,Tegan,Gracyn

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

JAN 6 2009

2390GRMS today, Gracyn nolonger gets fed through a tube anymore she is now a bottle or boobie girl, for now anyway.This takes a bit longer to feed her as it just tire,s her out and she falls asleep while feeding. She may go back on the tube if this gets to much for her. They have tried her on room air on several ocassions but have resorted back to a small amount of oxygen to support her. This may happen for a while until she gets use to doing it by herself, the nurses call it cycleing a small ammount of time off the oxygen and some time on the oxygen just until she is strong enough to do it alone.
Gracyn is finally fitting some of the clothes that we have for her, still a bit to big but looks cute in them anyway. Gracyn looks more and more like Tegan every day, thats a good thing because he,s a handsome dude like his dad!!.
Angela is making the trip into the Hospital twice a day to feed Gracyn, this is a great effort as it is very exhausting for her, i am still off work until the 12th so me and Teggy will do some boy stuff together and give Ang some down time for herself.
Nana and Grandad paid a visit last nite and i have posted some cool photos of them both with G6 (GRANDCHILD NUMBER 6), Must be Bobby,s turn for a cuddle soon, maybe next visit.

Steve, Ange,Tegan,Gracyn

Saturday, January 3, 2009

3rd January 2009

Happy New Year to you all. Gracyn is now 2300grms still feeding well. I went to be with her last nite and gave the 8pm feed via a bottle, A first for me with Gracyn, she also proceded to chuck allover me another First but thats ok, i suppose there will be a few more upchucks to come.
We had a family day at the race,s in the Waiarapa yesturday and had a great time.Tegan run himself ragged and enjoyed seeing the horses run.He was so upset to leave but we had to get back so Angela could express some EBM for Gracyn,s dinner.A fun day was had by all and we are looking forward to next year.
It looks like Gracyn will be in the Hutt until she is near her official birth date of 1st Feb (40weeks)and until she is feeding with out the tube.She is on just a whisp of oxygen to help her out, but they are trying to slowly take her off this before her departure home, otherwise we my have to have her on a oxygen bottle at home until she can cope on her own.We will just have to take it this as it comes.

Happy Holidays
Steve,Ange,Tegan,Gracyn