I went up with Alan when he went to work on Monday and spent the whole day with Sophie for the first time. She had a lovely nurse called Roz looking after her, and Sophie was in a mischievous mood! By lunchtime, she had pulled two feeding tubes out, and the second time it took both Roz and me to get the new tube in because Sophie was wriggling so much! We ended up putting a mitten on her to stop her from being able to pull anything....or that was the idea, anyway!
This was how I left Sophie when I met Alan for lunch...I met Alan for lunch, and left Sophie looking innocent, wearing her mitten. When we came back, she was still looking innocent, but the mitten was off, and the feeding tube was out once again! Roz said Sophie was getting an ASBO!
Left alone for half an hour...mitten off, feeding tube out!We had been noticing over the previous few days that Sophie had been sucking on her feeding tube, so Roz decided to try her on a dummy to see if she could learn to suck while her milk was going through the tube. She instantly knew what to do as soon as she was given the dummy - and even when it fell out of her mouth, she pushed it back in herself!
After I'd done Sophie's feed and nappy change after lunch, I was allowed her out for cuddles, and she was out all afternoon!! She was still out when Alan came in after work :) We had such a lovely afternoon together and I told her all about our plans for her nursery!
After I'd done Sophie's feed and nappy change after lunch, I was allowed her out for cuddles, and she was out all afternoon!! She was still out when Alan came in after work :) We had such a lovely afternoon together and I told her all about our plans for her nursery!
Lovely cuddles with mummy
On Tuesday, I went up with Sophie's granny and grandpa, and when we were still washing our hands, my mum noticed that Sophie was in a heated cot!!! Woohoo! I'd gone in half expecting to see her in the middle of a blood transfusion, because she was slightly anaemic again on Monday and there was talk of her getting another transfusion, so it was a brilliant surprise to find her in a heated cot. The next piece of excitement was that I noticed she was in a wee outfit - a little pink body suit - and then Roz told us that she had reached 4lb! It was so lovely to see Sophie in an open cot rather than the incubator, and wearing clothes. I didn't tell Alan before he came in, as I wanted to see his reaction - and it was well worth waiting for. My mum and dad were able to touch Sophie for the first time. She was making her grandpa laugh by opening her eye with a very worried look on her wee face - she always looks so worried when she opens her eyes!
When Alan came in, Roz showed us how to change the monitor lead on Sophie's foot to the other foot - this has to be done each time she gets a nappy change, and we have to give her foot a wee massage! When Roz showed us how to massage her foot, it must have been tickly, as the foot was drawn swiftly in!
Very proud grandparents
Clearly a bit worried about what she will see when that eye opens!
I went to see Sophie again on Thursday with her other grandad, and he finally got to hold her little hand which he has been longing to do for ages! Aunty Gail also visited, and Alan was allowed Sophie out for cuddles. It was so sweet, every time he spoke, Sophie was looking up at him. I did my first nappy change with Sophie in a babygro, which was so different from changing her nappy inside the incubator! It was a bit of a joint effort with Aunty Gail's help. It's nice not having to do the nappy changes through the two holes in the side of the incubator although we had got quite used to that!
I had washed a few of Sophie's tiniest clothes to take up to the hospital, as she is allowed to wear her own clothes - so I took those up on Thursday. I hope none of them go missing! They looked soooo cute drying on the radiator!
Grandad's not smitten at all......!!!!
On Friday, we didn't go to see Sophie, as Alan took a day's flexi and he and his dad worked in the garden all day, making it Sophie-friendly. It used to just be all minging gravel and was sooo boring but we now have grass, nice fences, plants, flowers, and a nice little sitting area with a table and chairs. Sophie will now have a lovely place to play when she gets bigger - it's only taken us three years, and Alan's dad says it's taken us having a baby to make us get the garden organised! It's looking great though, and such a difference from how it looked on Friday morning before they started.
On Tuesday, I went up with Sophie's granny and grandpa, and when we were still washing our hands, my mum noticed that Sophie was in a heated cot!!! Woohoo! I'd gone in half expecting to see her in the middle of a blood transfusion, because she was slightly anaemic again on Monday and there was talk of her getting another transfusion, so it was a brilliant surprise to find her in a heated cot. The next piece of excitement was that I noticed she was in a wee outfit - a little pink body suit - and then Roz told us that she had reached 4lb! It was so lovely to see Sophie in an open cot rather than the incubator, and wearing clothes. I didn't tell Alan before he came in, as I wanted to see his reaction - and it was well worth waiting for. My mum and dad were able to touch Sophie for the first time. She was making her grandpa laugh by opening her eye with a very worried look on her wee face - she always looks so worried when she opens her eyes!
When Alan came in, Roz showed us how to change the monitor lead on Sophie's foot to the other foot - this has to be done each time she gets a nappy change, and we have to give her foot a wee massage! When Roz showed us how to massage her foot, it must have been tickly, as the foot was drawn swiftly in!
Very proud grandparents
Clearly a bit worried about what she will see when that eye opens! I went to see Sophie again on Thursday with her other grandad, and he finally got to hold her little hand which he has been longing to do for ages! Aunty Gail also visited, and Alan was allowed Sophie out for cuddles. It was so sweet, every time he spoke, Sophie was looking up at him. I did my first nappy change with Sophie in a babygro, which was so different from changing her nappy inside the incubator! It was a bit of a joint effort with Aunty Gail's help. It's nice not having to do the nappy changes through the two holes in the side of the incubator although we had got quite used to that!
I had washed a few of Sophie's tiniest clothes to take up to the hospital, as she is allowed to wear her own clothes - so I took those up on Thursday. I hope none of them go missing! They looked soooo cute drying on the radiator!
Grandad's not smitten at all......!!!!
...and neither is Daddy!
On Friday, we didn't go to see Sophie, as Alan took a day's flexi and he and his dad worked in the garden all day, making it Sophie-friendly. It used to just be all minging gravel and was sooo boring but we now have grass, nice fences, plants, flowers, and a nice little sitting area with a table and chairs. Sophie will now have a lovely place to play when she gets bigger - it's only taken us three years, and Alan's dad says it's taken us having a baby to make us get the garden organised! It's looking great though, and such a difference from how it looked on Friday morning before they started.
Yesterday Sophie was started on the proper cycle of coming off CPAP. She was taken off it at 1pm when I first went in, and then she came out for cuddles. It was so lovely cuddling her without her hat and mask, and wearing a little babygro! She has found her voice in the past week and was doing all sorts of cute little baby squeaks all afternoon. Alan also got cuddles because Dona, who I met through a pregnancy/baby forum and who had her little baby Archie in the neonatal unit in ERI last year came in to say hi, and she introduced me to Archie so while I was away meeting him, I handed Sophie over to Daddy :) Archie is absolutely gorgeous, and such an inspiration - he was born at exactly the same gestation as Sophie and is now fifteen months old.
Sophie also met Aunty Stella and Uncle David for the first time yesterday.
Sophie has the hairstyle of an old man at the moment, as the CPAP as worn away all the hair at the front, so she just has hair round the sides and the back, poor wee soul! She still looks very very cute though! The hair at the back is all fluffy and sticking out and looks so sweet.
She has been doing really well off the CPAP since they started the cycle - she had seven hours off yesterday afternoon, six hours off overnight and another seven hours off this afternoon. She is on very little oxygen, and at some points has been on no oxygen at all, so she is doing very very well. We can't believe how much progress we have seen this week, considering she started the week in an incubator on the verge of having another blood transfusion and has ended the week in a heated cot, clothes and coming off CPAP - and has reached a whopping 4lb 7.5oz!
Next week: Sophie in her very own clothes for the first time....
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