Eviction Number Three

I know it has been over 6 months since my last post.. It has taken me this long to hopefully be able to complete this post.

Attempting to hold it together for photos

On July 14 I went in for a very much unwanted scheduled C-section.  My OB was going out of town and there was no other OB in the area that I even slightly trusted to even touch me, much less deliver my baby.   I was angry and dreading the surgery, seriously not how you should feel when looking to meeting your child.
My sister was my "doula" and my husband was also there.  When we got there we realized we had not taken any "bump" pictures, so we took some quickly.
 We went in and found out they had given away my room because they expected us to arrive at 8am, while my Dr had told us to arrive at anytime..  I immediately wanted to leave.  The nurse seemed a bit angry that we were "late",  my sister stepped out of the room where she went to the nurses station and politely (from what I was told) and explained that we were a hospital family and I really did not want to be having the section, but was not given a choice in the matter.
We  waited in the prep room, next to a woman in actual labor with the nurse and my sister telling jokes to keep my mind off of it.   We kept being told "a few more minutes"  "uh oh.. someone got pushed ahead"  so I didn't actually go back until 3.  That gave us enough time for them to eat and my sister to braid my hair since I knew it would be a little while until I would be able to shower.
We went over my birth plan (I used this one as a starting point and adjusted it for us) and they assured us that they would attempt to accommodate our wishes.  I swear they thought I was the crazy natural mama up for the section, but after my sister's talk with the nurses they were all really kind to us, almost pitying.
When I finally went back I was scared and worried the entire time.  I really hate getting epidurals... the cold room, the pain, the worry that if they slip up I could be paralyzed, spinal headaches... etc.   Then I was staring at the same ceiling tiles as I was at Lil'K's delivery and thinking that if that Dr hadn't been an idiot then I wouldn't be forced to do this section..

Skin-to-Skin in the OR

 My hubby came in and was allowed to look over the curtain and my sister stood at the door, both got to watch my uterus pulled out, while I looked at the bugs inside the florescent lights.   There was the usual pushing and tugging and to do a "delayed" cord clamping they laid her on my legs and did whatever else it is for as long as they could until the placenta began to separate.  Then they cut the cord, and brought her to me so we could skin to skin.  Unfortunately, due to the epidural I had weakness in my arms and had trouble moving them.  My husband was not by my side at this moment and I have no idea why.  The neonatologist had to help me adjust her because her face was in my neck.
 She was cleaned up and hubby got to trim the cord, which was actually a first for us.  He stayed with her until she was reunited with me in the room.  I of course was numb and unable to move my legs for many hours.  I remember them doing the final clean up and after they removed the curtian being shocked that my legs weren't straight like I thought they were.  When I was back in the room my hubby was able to stay with me,  and my parents brought Lil'C and Lil'K to meet their new baby sister, Baby K.   They both wanted to climb on my lap and cuddle but we of course had to be careful since I couldn't move or feel if they were hurting me.

Lil'K and Baby K

 

 Lil'C and Baby K

Baby wearing less than 24hours after Section.

After the epidural wore off enough I was able to get around a bit, very very slowly.  Baby K did end up having some trouble with holding her temperature and there was talk of putting her in a warmer.  First I grabbed my sling and stuck her on me, where she stayed the rest of the time there.. even at night.  That is something I would only do in a hospital setting since the nurses come in frequently and I am an experienced co-sleeper.  Still worried me but her temperature stayed 1/2 a degree from mine for the rest of our stay.
 The biggest worry I had was going home, and being home most of the day by myself with 3 little ones while healing from the surgery.  Due to Lil'K's affinity for flopping, that did become a worry.  She landed on me once so hard that I screamed and my sister had to pull her off.  I was in tears it hurt so bad.. and I was on pain meds at the time.  

At 5Lb 15oz She was my largest baby. 

She has gotten much bigger in 6 months

I do wonder if I could have done it differently, my scar was thinning but that isn't a huge deal.  If only I had been allowed to attempt a VBAC with Lil'K then maybe I would have been able to do the same with Baby K.  The crazy part is that the risk levels of a VBAC at Lil'K is less of a risk than a 3rd section and they knew I wanted a third child.  It just feels unethical to me and a bit crazy.
My post-pain is worse now as well.  My scar is in almost constant pain along with my upper right thigh,  there is also some numbing at the upper part of it (the pain goes around the edges of the numbing).   It just all feels so unnecessary and a bit unfair to my girls and myself.  So now I have had one necessary and life saving c-section, and two unnecessary ones.
Baby K is growing and is a very happy little person,  for that I am blessed.

Pneumonia.. again.

I'm such a slacker...
I'm having camera issues, plus we are moving.. again, plus we had a nice 5 day hospital stay, days after reading this.. I'm so behind.

Asleep in the ER

So Lil'K got a runny nose, that came along with a lovely fever.  As soon as she started showing symptoms.. we made sure our Emergency bags were prepped and ready to go, we knew it was only a matter of time until Lil'C would get it too.
Two days later he started showing symptoms.  The day after that she had a nice fever and he went into the 100s (at night) so we called the Ped and had them seen (Monday).  They were both rather chipper at the appointment and Lil'C's lungs were pretty clear with mild "crackling" (yes, that is a medical term) in his upper lungs.  By Wednesday Lil'C's fever had spiked to 103.8 (again at night) and his runny nose had turned green, Lil'K was almost finished with a very slight clear runny nose.  Her's had actually never changed colors.  By noon we were packing up and heading to the hospital, which took longer than expected since we were out of practice.

What's a bored little girl to do?  

 

Drive an IV pole like a car, that's what.

We had cranked his O2 up to 1.5L from .5 and when we got there they had to crank him up more.  For a few days he was actually at 5L!  He ended up needing steroids since it was a viral pneumonia.  They also put him on antibiotics, even though they don't do anything for viral, to protect him from a secondary infection while his immune system was weak.  

3G Geek. IPad Boss

Thankfully this time it was only lungs and no heart issue.
He had to have nebulizer treatment and something we had never had before... IPPB.  If you have no clue what that is, like myself...  It is kind of like a nebulizer except it oscillates.  It sounds like a train and has to be held on tightly.  Hubby had to hold down Lil'C for each treatment every 4 hours.  We all hated it... but it worked.  It broke up the gunk in his lungs and he went on the mend.
So we now have a ton of meds, but he is feeling much better and getting back to his old self.  His toes, fingers and lips have stopped turning purple when he pulls off his O2 for to long.  He is also back to only wearing it when he sleeps, which is nice. 
We were also in the middle of potty training when all this hit and it kinna triggered a regression.  We are slowly getting back to where we were.  Speaking of which... does anyone have any hints for teaching a toddler to pull his own pants up and down when he has poor movement on one side??  

(Days later)
Seriously slacking on the blog..
Lil'C is back to his normal O2 and meds.  Although I added a probiotic (this one) once he got off the Antibiotic, thanks to a suggestion from Kate.. and I think he has really been needing one.  I think he has been on so many really strong Antibiotics throughout his life that it has pretty much destroyed his gut flora. 
Since he started solids he has had trouble gaining weight.   I'm thinking all of the antibiotics are part of the issue.  Breastmilk naturally contains probiotics and whenever I would get serious about giving him yogurt he would gain some weight.. now with this probiotic he is obviously putting on weight and growing.  He has chubby cheeks again, has finally outgrown all his 18mo (yes my 3yo has been wearing 18mo) clothes and is suddenly able to reach things he wasn't able to when we got back.  It is really kinna crazy.  I need to look at his discharge papers to see if  I can find a height and weight to compare it too.

See the cheeks? He is saying "vroom"

So... 2 Questions for all ya'll....  Any help on the potty training with a weak side?   Have you seen a sudden health change after starting probiotics in someone you know (or yourself)? 

One of those days

Today is just one of those days, one of those "life isn't fair" days. I'm frustrated, so that just makes it worse.
I have been watching my niece, who is 9mo (6G) younger than Lil'c, during the day. The comparison just makes his issues all that more obvious. At his age, he should be talking, verbally. We use sign to communicate since the brain cysts damaged his ability to express verbal language and has a rather large vocabulary. About 65 signs. She signs some because he does, but she does have words. She actually prefers sign since it is easier at her age. He used to have words.. He used to say "mama", "ah-ma" (grandma), "Ning-ning" (daddy, he made that noise when Lil'c would beep his nose) and a few more that I have on the list on the fridge that I can't even look at anymore. He lost them all when the scaring hardened around the cyst.
Most of his signs are so similar, because of his lack of dexterity due to the cysts, that he is hard to understand. BALL, YEAH, BOOK, CRACKER, COOKIE, ALLIGATOR, BEAR, and blanket all look like MORE. Hers are perfectly articulated, she even gives a "well, duh" expression when she does sign, which is cute.
He falls frequently while she climbs EVERYTHING. His O2 also gets caught around furniture and he gets stuck, while she flutters about the room. She puts stickers everywhere, he can't get them off his hand. She loves to color and make fantastic scribbles, he makes tic marks.
He has to take meds around the clock while she took some earlier today for a bug bite.
For her the O2 tube is a fun and interesting toy, for him an annoyance.
Her only scar from an accident where she fell down.. His scars.. All from surgery.
Her legs are twice as thick as his and she is already taller, but we are both shorter than her parents, so she probably would have been anyway.
If she is the slightest hungry, she lets me know. He never does, I think he thinks it is normal. I just give him snacks when I give her snacks now.
His 6mo baby sister, Lil'K, almost eats with a spoon as well as he does.
Sometimes the comparisons and the feeling that "life isn't fair" hits you like a ton of bricks, even 2 years after he came home. Today is just one of those days.

Cloth diapering in the hospital

Using cloth diapers in the hospital can get you some funny looks, but you can get those anywhere.

I have converted/changed the opinion of many a nurse when it comes to using cloth. The nurses actually referred to us as "the cloth diapering mom" for awhile. :P

We frequent the hospital due to my son's medical issues so, I have tried a few different methods of cloth diapering there.

Family of 4

A week before

Well lil'k made her appearance before the end of February.. Barely.

During reading bedtime stories to lil'c I felt a pop, similar to sitting on a balloon. I stopped and waited a second thinking she had either head-butted my pelvis or my water had broken, when nothing happened for a second I figured it was a head butt and went back to reading.

Then someone peed in my pants..

Avoiding NICU head aka Plagiocephaly

Image from Here with tons of info for the medical people.

A more severe version go here and for the same things

I'm saying but in doctor speak, go here.

You maybe asking yourself...  what is NICU head or Plagiocephaly?  It is where the skull gets misshapen due to being in the same position for extended periods of time. It is very common in preemies/long term NICU residents, but is becoming more common in termies as well.

I have been promising this post for awhile and have finally gotten to it!  YEAHHH  to having interwebs again!
Now I have to start off with some basic info....  I am NOT a medical professional, but I am the Mom of a NICU grad.  A long term NICU resident. We were in the NICU for 5.5 months (figured out the other day.. 170+ days).  In our NICU plagiocphaly was EXTREMELY common.  The fact that we managed to leave the NICU with a "normal" skull shape was amazing to many of the medical professionals there, and has inspired some changes in our NICU.

The first signs of NICU head. Lil'C was only a few days old.

So how did we avoid NICU head?  One way is that our nurses rocked and let us know about it.  Another is something I have said before... the greatest asset a NICU child can have is their parent(s)!
A parent gives a unique perspective on the medical interventions.  A parent will notice if their child's head has been in the same spot over 24hrs, which you should point out to your nurse(nicely!).
Even when we were barely allowed to touch him we could still make sure his head got turned side to side daily. We even got center when we started to notice him showing signs of NICU head, which is when we got really serious about finding out how to avoid it.

In the beginning there wasn't much we could do. But we did start letting the nurses know at each shift change about when the last time his head was turned. We made sure his head was turned every 12 hrs (each  shift change). They are supposed to do that anyway but nurses have so much to keep track of, and I would rather they focus on the other things.

The blanket roll method

The blanket roll method with an extra light sheld

One of the other parents told us about Early Intervention and we started asking the medical people about it, but it was early on and we were told that there wasn't anything EI could do for us that early.   We did have one awesome nurse who came up with the blanket roll method.
The blanket roll method requires many receiving blankets.  We used two as sheets to cover the mattress in the isolate. One rolled into a tube on either side another rolled at his feet.  Another blanket was laid over the top of all of these creating a little nest. A cloth diaper and/or scrap of faux fir was placed under his head as a pillow.
The idea was to basically swaddle him/mimic the confinement of the womb as much as we could since he missed those last 3 months in utero.  We baised this idea off of Dr.Sears  (oops... read both books at the same time)  Dr. Karp's "Forth trimester" theory, we figured if it had proven helpful for termies it should really help someone who had missed the whole third trimester.  He stayed a lot calmer after we did, plus it helped avoid NICU head. we still had to make sure his head was turned at least every shift change, but not being on a flat surface helped.
In the beginning we were barely be able to touch him, so the great thing about the blanket roll method is that the nurses were able to do it whenever they had to change his bed anyway.  That way he wasn't disturbed unnecessarily.

Christopher with his EI happies. Froggy pillow under his head and snugglie wrapped around him

Later on we were able to finally get Early Intervention to come in, unlike EI when you are at home they don't actually touch/play with the baby.  They bring HAPPY things!  Bendies, Frog pillows and snugglies.  They generally work the same as the blanket method but are easier to change/customize. 

Kangaroo care is the BEST! This was my favorite day, first day happy holding.

Once he finally got big enough to do kangaroo care, we started that.  Kangaroo care also helped us avoid NICU head by putting him in different positions and in different angles.  Later on when he was in a crib we also used a Boppy as a positioner.  He continued to use the boppy to sleep in at home, which you shouldn't do unless your LO is on O2 and a monitor, it's right on the bobby not to, it just isn't safe otherwise.
Once we finally got home kangroo care morphed into baby wearing, which I highly suggest for all parents whither you had NICU time or not.  Wearing him in a wrap and later a sling allowed him to be nearby, kept him calm and relaxing for me.  I only retired my sling about a month ago when it got uncomfortable with my pregnancy bump.  He was 19mo and 17lbs.  My sister comfortably wears her much heavier (aka healthy normal termie) 1 year old.
The Plagiocehaly is becoming common in termies is due to the "bucket baby" mentality.   A bucket baby is when parents keep their baby in containers such as the baby carrier/car seat, swings, bouncy seats, strollers and cribs. I firmly believe that car seats should stay in the car... my sister isn't as strict as I am about that.   She has no issues but my niece isn't a bucket baby, a true bucket baby is almost always in some bucket device. Babywearing is a great way to keep that from being an issue and is easier on mom and baby.
Now I'm not saying these devices are bad. Christopher loved his swing in the NICU and loved it some at home. The trick is to use these things sparingly.  Ok... getting off my soap box.

Soo how does his head look after 5.5 months in the NICU?    You would never know he spent months in a bed.

No NICU head. The ears are genetic.. both sides, he didn't have a chance. :P

Family Adventure

Sorry about Friday folks.   It was a crazy week...  On Thursday Lil'C had a checkup with his cousin Lil'E.  Yep.. two infants at a Dr appointment at one time, and both getting shots.  They both calmed down pretty quickly.  After that I started having a health issue and ended up in the ER.  Lil'C stayed home with my family while hubby, my mom and myself was at the hospital.   Mom left earliest and stayed with Lil'C until we got home sometime after midnight.  All in all.. I'm ok but have to take it easy for a bit.
Wait till I tell you about the booby traps I got because of all that!  It was hard not to laugh in the face of some "medical professionals"  but more on that later. 

Also this week is our church's VBS.  What kind of art teacher would I be if I didn't help with crafts? .... I'm not so good at taking it easy....     We're doing "Pandamania" it's ... interesting.  I came into it kinna last minute so they ended up getting mostly "pre-packaged" crafts...  and if you have ever done those you will know that they don't usually take long to do.   So I'm working on coming up with some ideas for filler crafts. 
Got any ideas?? 

I found something!!!!

I found another Micropreemie mom-blog!  And her MP is older!  :D  It is like peering into the future.  A must-follow for any MP mom!
Here is her Birth Story
She also has a GREAT series on dealing with insensitive comments!
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5

Here is her MP post list!   I'm just starting to read through them all.  I think it is gonna take awhile :D It just makes me so excited to read that it isn't even funny!  :D

For my new readers....
My Birth Story

And my MP posts...
Pumping Queen- My pumping helper
War of the Passy- My stance on Passies
Pre-Nom- Dealing with pre-nursing babies
Breastfeeding in the NICU- My BFing info
Being Kanga and Roo- All about Rooing
Comfort Babies = Not worth the Effort  - About the term "Comfort babies"
Saving you Sanity - Keeping your sanity as a NICU parent
Swaddiling in a womb with a view - How to swaddle when you can't touch
Make it Personal- the NICU is your nursery
Drs: The Good, The Bad, The Dangerous- What to watch for
NICU Happy Song- A MUST WATCH for any NICU parent :D

Are you a MP parent?  Have any NICU posts you want to share?  Post them in the comments!  :D

Cloth Diapering in the Hospital

We have already established that I'm a cloth diapering Mama.. really .. it isn't that hard.

The LAST time he ever wore 'sposies.

But cloth in the hospital takes some maneuvering....  The last two times Lil'C has had a hosptal stay (one over night and one for about a week) we used cloth.   The time before (his open heart surgery) he used the hospital provided Dry Max Pampers......  OMG... his poor poor bum..  Chemical burn.  So I swore then to avoid 'sposies from then on.
So how do you use cloth in the hospital?
There are a few ways.

C-Section. my opinion.

Emergencies happen.

When you are a mom of a NICU baby you more than likely had a C-section.  It usually comes with the territory.  I posted on my Facebook page after Lil'C was born about how I don't get how anyone would choose to go through that.  The pain, the pills, the separation from your child, etc.   I wanted to have a standard un-medicated delivery.. which is about as far as possible from what I got.   The life of my son was worth it.   I still don't understand why anyone would choose major abdominal surgery instead of a natural process. 
One "friend's" response was "To save your Vah-Jay Jay!"    I didn't respond to her.. the only thought running through my head was... "really???  Your hubby is failing at his job then... " but I of  course did not tell her that.

Drs: The Good, The Bad, The Dangerous

One of our best nurses, she taught us how to swaddle.

Most NICU mom's have gone through enough Drs that you can tell real quick what kind of Dr you have on your hands.
The first thing you must know and truly believe is, Drs are NOT God. Period.