Updates!

Richie is doing so well!!! We're on day 17 in the Special Care Nursery - he is just a few steps away from getting to come home. I don't know how long they will take, but at least we're on the way! He is in the "annex" of the SCN, which only has 3 babies in it and they're all babies who are stable and considered "feeders and growers". Richie is right in there, gaining over an ounce a day and eating like a champ!

He has started taking bottles. We just made the decision to start those last night, since his nursing has been going so well. He took 36 ml (out of 44) during his first bottle and 44 (out of 44!) from his second bottle! Great job, Richie! He only took 16 from me today and then another 28 from a bottle. So, he's on his way. It may mean a set-back on breastfeeding, but if it means he can come home earlier then it's completely worth it. We can always work on breastfeeding some more at home.

After he masters feeding (and he's on his way!), he will need to pass his car seat test in order to go home. I think it's mainly to make sure he can be in his car seat with no problems - and then he can also come off of all his monitoring wires. He will also get a hearing test before he leaves the hospital.

So, hopefully he will come home soon! The Dr. said yesterday that it would probably be 3 more weeks, but with all this progress, I sincerely doubt it will be that long. I told Fred yesterday that my gut feeling was 10 more days. That would put us at 3 weeks total in the NICU.

I think I also forgot to give this update: since my birth canal was so narrow for even my 4 1/2 pound baby, I'll most likely have to have a c-section next time. AND because of my preterm labor, I'll have to get weekly progesterone shots starting at 16 weeks to keep the next baby cooking for as long as possible. I'm guessing this will all also make me high-risk for next baby. I wonder if that means more ultrasounds to see the peanut? I guess we'll have to wait (for a long time - that's for sure) to find out!