Reid is One Month Old Today!!!

HAPPY ONE MONTH BIRTHDAY, REID! YEAH!!!!

Everything is Normal!

Reid's chest x-ray came back normal! There was no sign of any fluid retention and Reid's lungs look great! We also found out that Reid had a super heavy diaper after we left last night, so maybe he was just saving up all of his pee for one night diaper! The really great news about all of this is that Reid really is putting on great fatty weight. He is 3 pounds, 6 oz - the additive that was added for extra calories really is like giving him breast milk on steroids! Reid also had his first vision exam yesterday. It is very common for preemies to have some vision problems, so we weren't going to be too surprised if this was the case with our little guy. It is a tough exam for them to have as it is very invasive and causes the eyes to swell pretty badly. Anyway, we got the wonderful news that Reid's exam results were normal and that it doesn't appear that he has any eye problems. Yeah! Mimi and Grampy are visiting with Reid tonight at 6:00, so if there is any new news I'll let you know.

X-ray Results Tomorrow...

It seems like there is something new with Reid everyday. Most days it's great news. Some days it's scary, but o.k. news. Thank goodness we haven't yet had any bad news (everyone please knock on wood after you read that sentence!). The latest thing which falls into the "scary, but o.k. news" category is that there is some concern that he is retaining water. His diapers haven't been weighing as much as they should the last two days, which means he isn't peeing as much as would be expected. So, he is scheduled for an x-ray tomorrow morning. If the x-ray comes back showing that his lungs are cloudy (this is where the fluid would apparently collect), he will be started on a diuretic. This would in turn make him pee more and would clear up any fluid accumulation in his lungs. All of these things sound so serious and scary to me, but I'm am continually assured that these issues are not really a big deal in premature babies - they are apparently all very common. I hope the day never comes when Dr. Ahmed starts a sentence with "This is something to be concerned about..." - because then I know I really have to worry! So I guess we wait and see how the x-ray turns out.... Oh, Reid's weight was 3 pounds, 5 ounces today. But with the issue of retaining water, this weight probably isn't very accurate. We want "fatty weight", not "water weight"! I'll update after I learn more tomorrow.

Today's News...

I'll preface this post by saying that what I'm about to write isn't really a big deal at all - even though it sounds scary! Reid is getting another blood transfusion today. He had his first transfusion when he was about a week old. He has to have this done because his tiny little body can't replenish his red blood cells fast enough (eventually he will be able to) and therefore his oxygen levels have been dropping. This also causes his heart rate to drop. So, the new blood will help to elevate his red blood cells. This is not a traumatic experience for Reid at all and is apparently VERY common with premature babies. In fact, with Reid having been born at 27 weeks, 5 days, it wouldn't have been surprising for him to have had several transfusions at this point. But my little guy is a trooper and has been quite the little overachiever! :-) Now for his daily stats...he weighs 3 pounds 1 oz and is eating 28 cc's at each feeding - still every 3 hours. 2 more cc's and he will be up to a full ounce of milk per feeding!!! Yeah Reid!

New Pics of Reid

Here are the pics I promised from yesterday! What a cutie!

Hooray for Reid!

Reid weighs 3 pounds!!! Doesn't that sound so much better than 2? :-) Our little man is starting to put on some fat and is beginning to fill out. Natalie (Reid's nurse last night) took some adorable pics that I'll scan and post tomorrow - thanks Natalie! Reid even has his eyes wide open in one of the pics... I'm really enjoying holding Reid every day. He seems to know who I am and is very content when he's snuggled up on my chest. Sometimes he gets a little too comfy and his heart rate drops, but that is why he takes his daily caffeine medicine! Hopefully he grows out of the bradycardia episodes soon - they scare me! On another note, Cameryn's cough has come back (again), so it looks like it will be a little while longer before she gets to meet her baby brother.

Everything looks good...

Not too much to report...that's why I haven't updated for a few days. Reid is still on the nasal cannula's and is pretty much just breathing room air (21% oxygen) most of the day. He weighs 2 pounds, 14 oz -- 2 more ounces and he'll be a whopping 3 pounds! Oh, he has started sucking on a pacifier, so hopefully his sucking reflex is developing and he'll be able to try eating from a bottle soon! It will be nice when his feeding tube is removed... I'll keep everyone updated with any new news...