At some point yesterday evening our quiet docile little Lex seems to have been replaced by a baby who is not only starving all the time but also knows how to vocalize.    zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz  I fell asleep a little just then, but I’m back.  Laura and I have a new respect for the night nurses at St. Vincents.

He is drinking 60 ml at a time and has been waking up half an hour earlier than his “planned schedule.”  Lex has always followed his own agenda, and it appears that he is continuing to do so.

We humbly bow and kiss the feet of all parents who are reading this.  We now understand…

Lex in his “going home” outfit

1st family portrait

Lex loaded into the car

Lex in his pack n play at home

Apple checking out her new brother

2 pm

We went to the hospital at 10 am this morning for Lex’s discharge from the NICU. After signing some paperwork we took a family picture, and our favorite nurse called to wish us luck because she couldn’t leave her post in the other ward. Tim pulled up the car to the front door of the hospital while a nurse and I walked down with Lex in his car seat.

Lex contentedly slept through his very first car ride. I sat in the back of the car with Lex while Tim drove. We were apprehensive at how the dogs would greet their new brother, but it was pleasantly uneventful. The girls cared more about the treats Tim was feeding them than Lex. We were wondering if they’ve gotten used to his scent on us over the last three weeks.

Since bringing him home we’ve had two feedings and one diaper change. He was more fussy than we’ve seen him and we think he was just cold because his temperature was a little low when we took it. We swaddled him up tight and he quickly fell asleep. It’s very nice to have him here and we are grateful that we don’t have to run to the hospital anymore.

8 pm

What a day! This morning Lex’s doctor told us that Lex could go home tomorrow! He said that Lex is just way too healthy to be here any longer. Lex has continued to take all of his bottles and hasn’t needed the feeding tube in a few days.  So that’s it… tomorrow he goes home. We weighed him tonight and he is now 5 pounds.

We spent the entire day getting things ready. First we went to Rite Aid and Albertsons to get his vitamins and other little things. Next we went to Segals baby store to get a changing pad, changing pad covers, a foot stool for feedings, a sleep sack and to get our car seat inspected by a technician. After that we sprinted back home across town to get our room rearranged and to do some cleaning, which took the rest of the evening. We’ve basically crammed my office, our bedroom, the dog beds and Lex’s nursery into the same room. We also put our dogs through a crash course in baby tolerance by playing a CD of baby sounds from a boom box that we put into Lex’s Pack-n-Play. I frantically fed them treats while screaming baby sounds came from the bedroom. We’ll see how it goes tomorrow.

We are excited and freaked out. Too many emotions to keep track of.

8 am

We’ve got a lot to be thankful for today. So many amazing things have happened in the last few weeks. We are thankful that Lex decided to join us early and that he is doing so well, that Laura had such a good delivery and is steadily recovering, that we have such great family and friends who have stepped up to help make these last few weeks easier. It’s been a great experience.

Lex gained 2 oz again last night. He also took all of his bottles and pulled out his feeding tube, which the nurses have not needed to put back in… so far. He’s off of all his monitors and the doctors have put him on ad-hoc feeding where Lex decides how much he wants to eat instead of us constantly forcing it on him to finish. And he passed his car seat test yesterday. (He had to sit in it for 90 minutes while his vital signs were being monitored.) All these things are getting him closer and closer to coming home.

11 am

Lex’s great aunt Ruth came to see him today. He drank his bottle so quickly this time that Ruth actually got to hold him for a little while. Normally it takes the full hour for him to drink the bottle so Laura and I don’t even have time to hold him much. His new appetite might actually mean we get some cuddle time with the little guy. =)

5 pm

It’s been a busy Thanksgiving for Lex. This afternoon he got a visit from his 2nd cousins Robby and Ethan, who are Ruth’s boys.

Lex powered through 55 ml of a bottle this evening! Yesterday we were having trouble getting him to get through 20 ml. The nurses haven’t had to put the feeding tube back in at all because he’s doing so well. He’s ready to come home.

Tonight we are going out to Thanksgiving dinner with Ruth, Robby and Ethan at Jakes Grill downtown. We’re looking forward to not cooking.

Lex was visited by my friend Gayle this morning, so she got to witness our early morning routine.

Tim decided to go to work for a few hours this morning so it was my first opportunity to take care of Lex alone at the 11 am session. After a diaper change he had 20 minutes of successful nursing before getting his bottle. Tim quit work to get back to the hospital by 1:30 to help get Lex fitted into his car seat. The car seat we bought worked extremely well for his little body, which was great because some people have to buy a special preemie car seat just to get their kid home.

Two tired kids.