Xavier's First Week Home
Hello to everyone.
Xavier has been home a week, and, boy, have we learned a lot!
We learned not to feed him every two hours, or no one will get any sleep.
We learned how to plan out things so at least one parent can get sleep, then how to trade off so the other parent gets some shut-eye.
We learned that Xavier does not enjoy overly long stroller walks, but when he starts complaining, it's far enough away from home that we had listen to his complaints for some time.
Near the end of the week, we grew brave enough (or stir-crazy enough) to bring Xavier out of the house and into places where other people hang out. We took a late lunch today at a local pizzeria. It was Xavier's first high chair used to hold his car seat. Also, it was his first trip to a place frequented by other children. We kept his safety net over his seat to discourage others touching him.
One of the nice things this week about Xavier's late-night non-sleep schedule was he kept Rebecca and I awake, down stairs, and awake at 12:30 in the morning. We were sitting on the couch along the wall separating the room from the garage. We heard a strong sound, then the never-wanted sound of water freely coursing through the pipes.
One of the solar storage tanks (120 gallons) in the garage burst. We had a little water damage in the ceiling, but we were able to shut off the water to the house quickly enough (a feat as the water shut-off was blocked by many boxes we have not yet unpacked). This was the reason we had to grab a late lunch Saturday; we had to wait for the solar guy to come out and rig a temporary bypass to isolate the solar from the rest of the house. Mid afternoon, we had water restored to the house.
It's one thing to be without water for a while, but things get complicated with a baby. We had laundry piled up, formula to mix and a number of other things in need of water to support the baby. Plus, mom and dad needed showers!
Always, thank you for your prayers. Several people met Xavier this week who have prayed strongly into his life, and they have seen the results of their labors.
Xavier models his fleecy sleep sack. On the left, the wings are spread out. On the right, the wings wrap him like a burrito.
Growing!
Hello to everyone.
Got some sleep last night! After Xavier's midnight feeding and care, he decided to sleep...for about an hour. After fussing a bit, Rebecca held him a while and he went to sleep. So well, in fact, both he and we slept through his 4:00 AM feeding. (This led to setting Xavier's feeding times forward by two hours, which works in favor of the parents)
We visited the pediatrician again today for his "emergency" visit (after Monday's visit and after Dr. LeBlanc read Xavier's history--finally released by the hospital--she wanted to see Xavier again for another full exam. As she said, "now that I know him better")
We had three surprises with today's visit. The first was Dr. LeBlanc thought Xavier was on .03 litres/min of O2, but she was excited to learn he is on .01 l/min. So, we may only have to suffer the O2 another two weeks. Thank You, Jesus!
Another surprise to us was Xavier's stool. It turned light again about Monday. Rebecca and I asked the doctor what we aren't doing that the NICU was, or perhaps (we thought) was Xavier's growth outpacing the Actigall. Dr. LeBlanc grew very concerned, saying "that's the worst news you've told me."
Thankfully, Xavier filled his diaper and Rebecca thought to show the doctor. She told us the color was good and we shouldn't worry about it. Even though the color is not what we came to expect while in the NICU, still it was a good color. Rebecca and I were further educated about "good" and "bad" colors.
Xavier's weighed in today at 4 pounds, 5.6 ounces (1824 grams). Since bringing him home, Xavier has put on an ounce a day which is what is the rate he should be growing at this point in his development. The NICU nurses and doctors were right: he will grow better at home!
Xavier also got his rotovirus vaccine today. He was supposed to get this as he left the NICU, but they decided to let the pediatrician give the inoculation.
Xavier also ventured into his first two retail stores today. The first was The Great Harvest Bread Company" where mom and dad bought lunch. The second, next door to the first, was Two Rivers Coffee, where mom and dad bought something to drink and ate their lunch. Neither place was crowded, so we thought these would be OK places to bring Xavier.
Always, thank you for your prayers.
A Son Named Boy
Hello to everyone.
I forgot to mention Xavier's weight yesterday. He has not been weighed since Friday night, so yesterday at the pediatrician was his first weighing in two days. He came out at 4 pounds, 2.4 ounces. Wow! Dr. LeBlanche cautioned us that the scale used is different than those in the NICU. Still, that's not dampening our excitement.
We had more sleep last night than the day before. Rebecca sent me to bed at 11:00 PM. I woke at 4:00 AM and spelled her to sleep several hours.
We spent the day making appointments and chasing down the source of a very annoying insurance problem. Somewhere, someone has Xavier named "Boy". So, we keep getting bills and payments denied for Boy Ogden because no one can find a record for him. I told Rebecca Sunday we need to change her name to Jane and mine to Tarzan. Today, we learned that this is not an uncommon problem. It appears it will take another week for this problem to get corrected.
Xavier slept most of the day in his crib. In the afternoon, after his feeding and a reading of "Green Eggs and Ham", he lay wide awake, quietly watching the dangling dinosaurs on his mobile (The pterodactyl is mom's favorite critter). Eventually, and with resistance, he gave way to sleep.
Always, we thank you for your prayers.