A few random things...

Because I have a bladder of steel (I think I just went about 7 hours) I sometimes forget that Bennett's diaper might need to be changed more regularly.

Chris and I like to try to guess who will come closest to a certain number.  Usually this is at restaurants as to what the total of the check will be.  In this case, it was how many stuffed animals Bennett was going to get for Christmas.  (He also got a couple of other stuffed items that due to other features of them we classified them as "toys".)  Daddy won.

Bennett has now rolled over from front to back a few times.  Daddy didn't want to believe that this had happened since he didn't see it.  I took video one time and he claims that I photoshopped it.  Last night Daddy saw Bennett roll over, but no luck today.  Now Daddy thinks that Bennett only rolls when I'm around.  :)

Because we are Anglophiles, we want to teach Bennett British English.

I make milk.  What's your superpower?  Because of this, we had to get a new fridge/freezer.  It's full and we're out of space again.  When I transferred milk to the new freezer I had 489 ounces, or 3.8 gallons.  At this point I have even more.

Bennett will finally be starting daycare on Tuesday.  We had planned for him to start on Jan 3rd, but we procrastinated a lot with our daycare search.  However, I think we'll be happy with where he's going.  (And if he had been born on his due date, this might have been when he would start anyway.)

I had great intentions of updating this blog every week.  Obviously that didn't happen.  I'm still planning on playing catch-up though.

I still plan on writing thank you notes for shower gifts.  The envelopes have all been addresses since early October, maybe even September, and I think I put stamps on the envelopes in November or December.  So if you don't have yours yet, your gift(s) are appreciated and the notes are coming.  Eventually.

I miss my pregnancy hair.  Now I'm back to shedding.  A lot.

I generally don't read the books about when your baby should hit certain milestones because I don't want to be upset if he's late (which is pretty much a guarantee that he will be due to his preemie status).  However, because of this I don't really know what to look out for or know what I should be helping him to do.

Week 16: Jan 6th - Jan 12th

Jan 6^th

We took you today to meet a potential day care provider.  I hope she’ll take you (she’s interviewing someone else on Monday) as at this point we don’t have any other options.  Then Daddy brought you to have Mumma’s ice skates sharpened and the guys at the shop all oohed & aahed over you.  When will you start skating?

Jan 7^th

Today you lived up to your nicknames of Mr. Crankypants/ Mr. Fussybritches!  Ugh.  Daddy said that if you weren’t sleeping you were cranky and screaming.  You had an appointment re the flat spot on your head and you continue to make progress.  Then you stopped to visit Mumma at work.  In other news, Mumma’s cousin Beth had a baby today named Jasper Robert Lucey.

Jan 8^th

You had a big milestone today!  You rolled over for the first time from your front to the back.  Daddy doesn’t want to believe that it happened since he wasn’t there to see it.  We thought it might happen soon- you seemed almost ready when we were in GA.  Also, the new reflux meds seem to be working.

Jan 9^th

You did it again, although Daddy’s not quite ready to believe it.  You rolled over again this morning for Mumma and Daddy (but Daddy says it doesn’t count because you were leaning a bit to begin with).  And then later you went to see Mimi and you rolled over while we were there.  Unfortunately your fussy eating returned.

Jan 10^th

It’s days like this when Daddy says he’s ready to go back to work and that he’s not sure that he can last a week!  You had a very cranky morning.  Luckily the afternoon was better.  When Mumma came home you started off ok, but as the evening progressed you got very cranky again.  We’re anxiously waiting for your new reflux meds to work.

Jan 11^th

Today went much like yesterday- you had a cranky morning and a good afternoon followed by a good early evening and then growing cranky again at bedtime.  We also took you to visit another daycare (the one we saw last week decided to go with a different family).  Hopefully this one will work out.

Jan 12^th

Today was a snow day for Mumma and Daddy.  Brandeis was closed so Daddy was home and Mumma decided to work from home.  I think we got about 10” of snow, maybe more.  You had a very good day- very little fussing and you ate well.  And Mumma even got video of you rolling over.

Bennett's first 3 months

Made this as a gift (and I had codes for free books) so thought I would share.

Click here to view this photo book larger

I'm going to spend a bit of time playing catch-up.  One project that I'm working on is an album for Bennett with a photo each day, as well as a very short write-up of what happened that day-- either what we did, new accomplishments, etc.  So, over the next few weeks I hope to get that same info posted here to the blog.  I'll probably post it as a weekly post and I'll post them by the date of that week.  So you may need to do some scrolling to see all of the posts from the past 12 weeks.  Yikes, my boy is 12 weeks old already!

Another update

We're all home again!  Bennett's appetite is back, and his blood is now testing normal, so we were allowed to bring him home.  I went to join Daddy and Bennett after work today, and we headed home around 9:30pm.

Not the update you were all looking for...

Unfortunately we are back at Children's.  I guess you could say it all started Thursday night/ Friday morning.  Five of Bennett's diapers had blood in them.  Not really a lot of blood, but enough to be a concern.  I called the pediatrician and he was able to see us right before lunchtime.  They took a urine sample, which was interesting, and sent us off to have blood drawn for further labwork.   Rather than putting Bennett through a catheter, they attached a little collection bag to him, and then we waited.  I think it took at least half an hour for him to give a sample.  :)  We went to a more local branch of Children's for the blood work.  Since it's right down the road from where Chris works, he was able to join us.  It took over an hour and a half (and three techs) to find a vein and get a blood sample.

I think Friday night there were one or two diapers that had some blood, but that was it.  Overall, we weren't very concerned.  However, he was also being a lot fussier than usual, especially at night.  And both Saturday and Sunday nights there were points where Bennett woke up screaming and he felt very warm.  We took his temperature and it was relatively normal, so we removed a layer of clothing and he would calm down.

Then Monday I went back to work.  Chris was going to stay home for the next two weeks, then we would go to Georgia for a week, and then in January Bennett would start daycare.  Bennett's morning started off well.  Chris changed a couple of poopy diapers (normally he only goes once eveyr couple of days), they had some good non-fussy tummy time, and Bennett was napping in his molding cup.  (More on this another time, but it's something he's supposed to sleep in to fix a flat spot on his head.  He hates it.)  Everything was looking great.  And then Chris thought Bennett felt warm.  102 degree temperature and a call to the pediatrician.  They were out on lunch.

When they called back, his temperature had gone down, but they still thought it best for him to go in.  So Chris brought him to the pediatrician.  As an aside, we love this doctor.  When he went in they took his temperature again and it was still normal.  He looked  up the results of the blood test and they were normal.  For some reason the urine sample had never been tested, but they quickly did that and it showed that Bennett has a urinary tract infection.  Given Bennett's history, the pediatrician felt it best for him to go to the ER at Children's.

Chris called me as he drove home to get a couple of bottles as well as clothes and toiletries for an overnight stay.  I finished up my first day back work and met them at the ER.  They got there around 6pm.  Bennett had lots of tests.  A chest x-ray, EKG, a lumbar puncture, catheter, and an IV (which included being stuck 3 times).  Lots of screaming!  Also, when he first got there he didn't have a temperature, but later in the evening he was up to 104.6.  A dose of Tylenol brought the fever down and after the preliminary lab results came back, they started him on antibiotics.

A little after midnight we were finally admitted to the hospital.  We were expecting that we would get a less desirable space on the hallway side of a room, but we lucked out with a window side!  I must say, this hospital experience has been much better so far than last time.  I think that's mostly due to the fact that we know what to expect.  It was also nice being able to tell the nurses what his routine is in terms of feeding and meds rather than them telling us.

Today they have a little bit more info re his UTI- he has e-coli in his urine and there is also some urine reflux.  He had a renal ultrasound this morning and the cultures grew from yesterday's samples, so now they just want us to wait things out a bit.  Plebotomy was in earlier, stuck him twice, and was unable to get a sample, so they are trying to get one of the NICU nurses to come and get a sample.

Last night Chris and I both spent the night but I think tonight I'll go home and go back to work tomorrow.  The next few days will definitely be interesting!

Week Eleven: Dec 2nd - Dec 8th

Dec 2^nd

After having brought you into our bed the past few nights due to your fussiness, Mumma and Daddy decided to try out the co-sleeper we had been given.  Last night was a success!  Today you went with Mumma to visit Nana.  Her friend Laura came over and we all went out to lunch.  Aunty Hanna also was able to hold you after school.

Dec 3^rd

You had an appointment at Children’s today, so we stopped at Brandeis on the way in so that everyone could see you again.  Children’s, as always, took quite some time.  You met very briefly with a new doctor who assessed a flat spot on your head from laying too much on one side.  (We try to move you and you just roll back.)  You were then fit for a molding cup- a special device that is designed to relieve pressure on your head so that it can grow more evenly.  After that was done (about three hours after we arrived) we headed home in rush hour traffic.  Mumma took you to Granpa and Nana’s for a few hours so that Mumma and Daddy could do some basement organizing- including building some shelves.

Dec 4^th

Mumma and Daddy’s friend Kristin is painting Big Ben on your bedroom wall.  She started while you were in the hospital and came over today to finish.  We also had a new fridge delivered for the basement.  Mumma transferred 489 ounces of frozen breast milk into the freezer.  That’s a lot of milk!  We then went out for dinner and a visit with Santa.

Dec 5^th

Daddy spent the morning at Brandeis (being in the building while an outside group does The Nutcracker) so you hung out at home with Mumma.  When Daddy came home we all went out to BJ’s and Stop & Shop.  Then it was a quiet evening at home.  You’re not a huge fan of the molding cup that you got on Friday, but you’re doing better than expected.

Dec 6^th

Today was the start of your last week at home with Mumma before she goes back to work.  We went to the Burlington Mall to get some reindeer plates that Mumma has wanted for a few years, and we also picked up some Christmas gifts for you and Daddy.  In the evening, on a whim, Mumma tried to breastfeed you.  Major success!

Dec 7^th

This morning you went with Mumma and Nana to MIT to a sale that the glass lab was having.  (Mumma and Daddy have gone to many of their pumpkin sales in the past.)  We also stopped at Diaper Lab to get you some more cloth diapers for overnight use.  Mumma tried breastfeeding again.  1^st try- nope.  2^nd try- success.  3^rd try- success but then you spit it all up on Mumma.

Dec 8^th

I think we had our quickest visit to Children’s!  We were in and out in less than two hours, and that included Mumma taking time to pump.  Dr. B continues to think that you’re looking great.  He also gave you an Rx for some reflux issues you’re having.  Hopefully this will mean less spitting up and fighting while eating.