Our Big Girl

Today was my day to hold Alicia skin-to-skin for the first time. They call this Kangaroo Care. She was wonderful. Looking up at me for the first fifteen minutes, then slowly drifting off to sleep.



By the end of the forty-five minutes she was so relaxed she was starting to forget to breathe. So we put her back in her cozy bed for the night. Michelle put her in one of her Christmas outfits.


In case we haven't made this abundantly clear, she has been doing incredibly well this week. Gaining weight, breathing well without the CPAP. As of today, she is off of it for good as long as she doesn't need it. It will be just the nasal canula from now on. She seems to much prefer it.


She's still on aminophillin, a medication that helps her remember to breathe. Without it she would be having more apnea spells, but currently she is having them only at times of stress or activity, such as transitioning in and out of her isolette, getting her diaper changed or getting weighed or measured. On her own, she does extremely well. It seems we may be out of the woods. We might be talking about moving out of NICU and into ICC (Infant Care Center) soon. Of course there are still obstacles to overcome, and possibilities of setbacks, but we are proud and excited for our daughter.