Day 39: 3 days and counting

Good day, though I was a little lazy and took a nap. Might as well sleep now right? The good news is that bottle feeding is getting easier, and Mom finally is able to consistently get down full bottles. I have also noticed Tara is definitely better at it, and I've also figured out her breathing pattern and how to watch it and ignore the monitors. I'm able to feed her now with no de-sats and no monitor watching, which was my goal to achieve before bringing her home.

I'm also proud of my developing Mommy skills. I had a suspicion today that Tara was still hungry after her bottle, and she typically has 3-5 mL left at the end of one. But today I saw cues that made me wonder after she polished off the entire thing. I mentioned it to Suvarna and she said she would put 35mL in each bottle instead of 30 from now on. Turns out next feed they took all 35 and when Mom and I fed them later it was 32 and 33. Score one for Mommy! I think I just may get the hang of this after all.

In other excellent news the Snuzas arrived today! They asked us to bring them in tomorrow to test them out for the day, so they are laid out and ready to go.

Vivek is back to his usual self and opening his eyes normally again. I have video proof.

He still cries, but the nurses tell me he has no qualms about crying when he is hungry so this is normal. Master Vivek will let you know if his royal highness is displeased, but Princess Tara will suffer in silence.


Tara says hats are overrated



Vivek after a crying fit of unknown origin



 

Day 23: The Comeback Kid

I am over the moon today! I feel like I'm walking 10 feet above the ground. It was a spectacular day. I though maybe next week bottle feeding would start, but they started today. Vivek decided to start off the morning showing up his sister since he was upset about yesterday.

I've decided to nickname my son Hoover for the week! He bottle fed like a pro with no desats at all and stayed at almost 100% the entire time when I witnessed the nurse feeding him! Pretty amazing. He was sucking and breathing and swallowing like the little multitasker he was born to be. I was stunned and so happy I was trying not to cry. I thought it would take weeks, and I've read how there can be considerable difficultly overcoming this particular hurdle. I got to feed him myself for the first time later that night, and he did desat at the end but that probably had more to do with my ineptitude than anything else. It won't go perfectly of course, but it is a surprisingly strong start.

Words cannot describe the joy I got from feeding my tiny boy and watching him suck away, or the overwhelming sense of triumph when I got my first burp out of him. I was pleased that earlier in the day I hadn't realized his feeding had come late and my instincts that he was hungry and frustrated were right, because I'd been operating on the assumption he had just been fed but he was acting more than just hungry. It's easy to worry so much that you won't be able to sense what's going on with your babies, but every day I trust myself more.

But the kicker was earlier in the afternoon the nurse said she though Tara would need more time and wasn't quite ready to bottlefeed. She thought she would take longer. Tara must have heard that because that evening not only did she bottle feed perfectly while I fed Vivek, but I heard the nurse yell out "first prize!" and hold up her empty bottle while Vivek still had half left! The best part was after she finished the bottle and they took it out of her mouth, she was still sucking away like it was still there. It was so incredibly cute I almost overdosed on adorable, but unfortunately my camera was in the other room.


Tara exhausted from the "bottle races"

When I hold them now I'm so much more relaxed and the alarm of any desat surprises me rather that being something I expect. They typically do a very slight de-sat now and pull themselves right out,  and if any stimulation occurs it is early in the game and mild on my part and maybe not even necessary. My only worry right now is that Vivek is so alert and moving that I worry he is not sleeping enough like his sister.

I went out to lunch to celebrate at Decent Restaurant for some more bartha. It was a yummy meal, but ended on a humorous note. I ordered a mango milkshake as a little dessert treat to celebrate the morning events, and ordered it while I had them box up my leftover bartha. I waited. Then I waited some more. How long does it take to make a milkshake? Finally I called over the waiter, and it turns out they had put my milkshake in a baggie with the leftovers. Language barrier 1, Emily 0.

On the way back I did witness something disturbing. One of the stray street dogs was trapped in between the security grates of one of the businesses, and I got the sense that it was done on purpose because it was acting aggressive. Then a man came out and began beating it with a bamboo stick. It was upsetting, but I didn't stick around to see how far it went.

Tonight the family members arrived for the baby that had been on the ventilator next to my son, but is now graduated to a CPAP though he is having some seizures. The mother speaks perfect English and sounds American though she appears to be and speak Japanese. She was full of questions for me because she could tell I was the veteran around the place, so I answered as much as I could. Unfortunately her baby is full term and a lot of my recent knowledge base relates to prematurity specifically. I invited her out to lunch tomorrow after the 11am visitation, and hopefully I can help in some way. She is staying at Madhuban, so I may follow them back to their hotel so I can try the food there because it is probably the best in town.

I got my hubby's paperwork printed out for FMLA, and I'll have Dr. Kothiala sign it tomorrow since she is easier to hunt down than Dr. Patel by far! I did speak with Dr. Kothiala today for the first time about general time frame for discharge. She asked me "how soon do you want to be caregiver?" I was confused by the question, but maybe some folks are more timid than I am and want their babies to be bigger and a little more developed or feeding more than 2 hrs apart before they take them home from the NICU. I told her that while we would have apnea monitors being brought on the 7th with my mother in law, that I wanted to take them home when she felt it was safe and the risk of apnea and bradycardias have reasonably passed. However, the sooner that happens the happier I am. She said two weeks at the earliest, so around the 13-14th of September. That means about two weeks and my husband and mother will be here!!! My husband has a fire lit under him and he is rushing around getting everything done on his to do list. Between getting the car seats installed, getting extra apnea alarm batteries, adjusting the stroller to the car seats, contacting the DNA lab, buying formula, getting proof of residency documents, and packing....he has his work cut out for him!

Babies Packing List

So I've been to the Big Bazaar and the Seven Eleven (not part of the US chain) in Anand has a 2nd floor full of baby stuff. However, there is just not much selection in India of baby stuff, and you don't know the quality of what you are getting. Formula is hard to come by. The NICU uses Lactodex, which I've never heard of. So here is my baby packing list so far, including my Lact-Aid SNS (Supplemental Nursing System) and accoutrements. I've some how got to cram all this stuff into two suitcases along with my stuff. I will pack light and have one American outfit and the rest will be sarees. If you aren't having twins, all the other folks say don't bother with a stroller or baby carrier if you are flying back on an airline that provides baby seats/bassinets. It is mostly useful for the airports and such but the streets are not suited for strollers really and a baby carrier is your best bet. I say don't buy a baby carrier and just buy 7 yards of cotton jersey knit that is 30" wide and watch You Tube videos on how to use it as a baby carrier in every possible way. It is basically a Moby wrap, so search that term for wrapping instructions.

This list is still growing, but I've found some cool products that are bound to wind up in the suitcase like the Snuza baby monitors that clip to the diaper and warn you if the baby stops breathing, the Itzbeen timers to help track feeding/changing/etc, and a portable battery powered mini hand mixer for mixing formula inside a bottle.

Feeding:

Portable stove (buy pot in Anand)

slow flow nipples for newborn
bottle brush
baby's powdered milk for newborns for 6 wks
thermos (hot water to warm the milk)
portable stove (to boil water, to sterilize bottles)

Nipple shields-silicone and other w/scissors to trim

Lact Aid system

Boots disposable sterilizer bags for LactAid parts

Bottle sterilizer

First aid tape

Quick clean wipes for SNS

Band aids for tubing
burp cloths

Domperidone & nursing supplements & oatmeal

Breast pump & storage bags

Bottles & nipple selection

Changing:

disposable newborn diapers for travelling
cloth diapers
diaper bag
changing pad
baby wipes or bulk cotton – Anand

Travel baby lotion/shampoo/oil kits

Desitin

Diaper toss bags

Misc:

receiving blankets
washcloth -- Anand Big Bazaar

soft towel

Dreft detergent-powder

dishsoap

Puj baby bathtub that folds out flat

clothesline

USB drive to port documents

Mult copies of all listed docs on VISA Process

Clothing:

undershirts
one piece pajama
onesies
socks
gloves
hats

Carrying:
baby carrier-Moby

Snap & Go stroller

2 Baby carriers

Sleeping

Portable crib & mattress pad

 

Documents needed:

• Proof of the parents' identity and citizenship, such as U.S. or other passports.
• Child's original birth certificate issued by the local authorities (including English translation, if applicable). The birth certificate must include the name of the child.
• Two (2) photo studio quality photographs of the child, 2" x 2" in size and taken against a light background. The child must be facing forward with his/her ears showing and eyes open
• Prenatal and hospital records (e.g., ultrasounds, prescriptions, evidence of pre-natal doctor visits, hospital discharge documents, vaccination card, etc.)  Can be provided by Dr. Patel/Dr. Hitesh, but print of all documentation you got over email and in case some of the document is not provided during baby pick-up
• The parents' marriage certificate, or other proof of their relationship prior to the child’s conception. (This is not required if the mother of the child is a U.S. citizen.).

·         Proof of residency docs