Part-time oxygen tube free!

Tuesday Ansel weighed 7lbs. 12.5ounces and got another synagis shot to protect him from RSV. His nurse also turned his oxygen down to 25cc, which isn't much at all, and said he could have breaks throughout the day without it as well. He seems to enjoy those breaks and isn't too happy when we put the tube back on. Soon enough he'll be a full-time cord free baby! It's great just being able to pick him up and walk around the house with him.
As for my wound, it was much better this week. I got different stuff called Maxorb last week to put in it to help absorb the extra drainage. There has been a tunnel at the bottom of my wound for months which hasn't seemed to make any progress in closing up. After only one day of using this new stuff it had completely closed off! So good progress there this week.

Over 100 days old!

Thanks for the update Mom! As she mentioned, the past couple of weeks have been pretty busy getting moved back and settled in at Carthage. We finally got our computer up and going so we have more pictures to share! Wednesday marked Ansel's 100th day. When I lived in Korea, a baby's 100 day mark was a traditional celebration, marking a point at which the baby was much more likely to survive and do well after getting through those first fragile months. So, Happy 100th day to Ansel! He seems to be doing well. He loves the push off game and nearly jumped out of Dad'd lap the other day! He's also working hard at keeping his head up for longer periods of time to look around and he even played with his hands today. . . little developmental steps that make a mom proud. Thanks again to EVERYONE for your continued support!










Dreaming of a Hawaiian luau















Bright colored birdies? I must have bumped my head good!
















Long day!

Thursday

An update from Grandma: Ansel's Grandma Jeanne, Aunt Rachel, and Aunt Lorelle have been away from home for spring break so we don't have complete updated news--but we will include what we know! Visiting for a couple of days in Boise, Idaho with Ansel's Aunt Melinda, we learned some of our Boise friends are missing an update! Kerri and Cody are very busy with Ansel--he is a full-time job! Kerri, Cody, and Ansel moved back to Carthage on March 16. We really appreciate all the care and kindness from Great-Grandma and Great-Grandpa Sneddon in Joplin for the past couple of months. Some of Kerri's church friends had a baby shower for Ansel on March 17. It was a lot of fun and the gifts were very much appreciated. Eating well--last weigh-in: 7 lbs. 4 ozs. Continuing with the oxygen for awhile, we are all looking forward to a day without tubes! Kerri is continuing to heal with her incision, but has an infection in it that is being monitored. Your continued prayers are a blessing for this young family!

Adventures of being at home

Ansel has been home a week now and is growing fast (6lbs. 11ounces today!) He's letting us see more and more of his preferences and dislikes. For example, after being used to the ready made formula in the NICU, the same type formula in the powdered version isn't tolerated as well. He eats it all right but will lose quite a bit of it 15-20 minutes later.. Solution: Heat distilled water when mixing formula, let sit in fridge for awhile, then reheat before serving. Also, keep baby inclined for a period of time after feeding is complete to ensure proper digestion!
The following pictures will illustrate another preference he has! Amazing the communicative capabilities of such a little guy.

He also tries to get rid of his oxygen from time to time. He'll pull it off, put it on his forehead, or even in his mouth. Luckily he does well enough until we see it and get it fixed, which doesn't make him real happy. The nurses think they'll slowly start weaning him off before too long. There's no time estimate there yet, it will just depend on how he handles it and making sure he doesn't get overworked, especially after his recent recovery from pneumonia. He still has times where he breathes a little fast indicating that he's still working harder than he should be.



"We're going WHERE?! Does that mean another shot?"






Afternoon nap...




Evening nap...


Somebody doesn't like his own bed.





"Wonder what this tube tastes like?"

Ansel finally hits his due date today!

As of today, Ansel is no longer considered to be a negative number when it comes to his "adjusted" age! He's adjusting well to being home and now weighs 6lbs. 6ounces. He has home nurses who visit twice a week to monitor his growth, breathing progress, and other routine vital checks. They also give him his monthly synagis shot to help protect him from RSV. His nurse today even delivered Ansel his first love note from one of his old NICU roommates! His roommate Brianna had outgrown her diapers and was thoughtful enough to pass the extras on to him with a note saying she hoped he was doing well. It's been a fun week having our baby home.