Emma's 7 week Birthday

Both Eric and I were able to visit Emma at the same time today (I usually visit during the day, while Eric does the evening shift after he gets home from work). When we arrived, we found a lovely gift waiting for Emma -- this beautiful pink preemie quilt made especially for her by the mom of a dear friend (THANK YOU Judy S. !!!)

Emma is 7 weeks old today and weighs in at 2 pounds, 6 ounces. She's added almost 6.5 cm to her birth length and is now measuring near 14.5 inches. She's now the biggest/oldest baby in her room in the NICU!

The team hasn't yet started weaning her from the CPAP to a nasal cannula as Emma tends to desaturate quickly whenever they even briefly take the CPAP off. She's had several big spells over the last 2 days (often just after she's been fed), so she's been re-started on caffeine. Hopefully this will stimulate her to keep breathing, something her immature nervous system occasionally forgets to do. Emma also tends to sleep with her mouth open, so it is hard to get a proper seal on her CPAP mask. When it's not sealed properly, air leaks out, and her oxygen saturation levels drop. She often enjoys sucking on her soother, though, so now we've learned to pop it in her mouth to try and keep her O2 sats. within the proper range.

Soon, we'll start to introduce a pacifier during her feedings so she can begin to associate sucking with the feeling of having food in her stomach. This will be the first step in a long process of getting her used to coordinating the sucking, swallowing, and breathing that must occur for real breastfeeding, so it's a big step forward.