Day 39

Monday 5/28

Let’s see, where should I begin? If you are anything like my Aunt you are probably wondering about Isabelle and dying for a blog post, so I should start with an update on her progress.

Isabelle is doing great and growing at an impressive rate. Yesterday she added an astonishing 52 grams and has been averaging 20-30 grams a day this past week. By morning she will eclipse 3lbs. (update, she was officially 3lbs 1oz in the morning) This is great news to her parents and Doctors because she had been trending on the lower end of the growth curve and at one point was in the bottom percentile for weight. Last week the nutritionists adjusted her protein level and all of a sudden her curve rebounded and now she is adding weight like her father at the state fair.

Isabelle hit another milestone today, the team decided to take her off the RAM CPAP and put her on a high flow nasal cannula, which provides oxygen but does not add additional pressure to help her lungs expand. Meaning, she is breathing on her own. The next 24-48 hours will tell us if she is ready to breathe without additional support full time or if she needs a little more time to grow. Sometimes babies need to go back on CPAP because they get tired from breathing, other times they are able to sustain breathing on their own as they grow. We’ll keep you updated on how she does.

This week brought another exciting first for Izzy, clothes! She has accumulated quite the little wardrobe and every morning we get to pick an outfit for her to wear. Sometime she goes through multiple outfits a day but we don’t mind doing laundry because her clothes are so stinking cute. The nurses love dressing her up for midnight photo shoots with her friends. They printed 20 photos of her posing with animals and left them there for Susan. Such a funny way to start the day.

I think that does it for the Izzy update. We are so happy with her progress and will just keep taking it a day at a time as we watch her grow before our eyes. Obviously, we would have preferred to keep her inside a bit longer, but since she is here anyway, watching her grow has been fascinating and a great learning experience for both of us. The bonus cuddle time isn’t bad either.

I’ll leave you with her first cuddle time without the CPAP. She loves having her chin free without tape and is discovering her mouth and hands.