Monday, May 18, 2009

Open Crib!

Andrea in her open crib. She looks big, because the crib is actually pretty small.



Where to begin today? As you can see from the title of the post, Andrea has been moved into what is called an open crib. It's actually the same bassinet (or remarkably similar - Kenny was in one when he was born) that newborn babies are put in - It's way smaller than even a portable crib. The reason this is big news is that the open crib provides no warming. Andrea is maintaining her body temperature all on her own. She was moved about 1:30 p.m. yesterday, and was still doing well when I saw her this morning. She looks bigger, because the crib is so small. She's wearing pajamas (with feet!) and is swaddled in blankets to help her stay warm.


Andrea's breathing continues to be a puzzle. She got her blood transfusion on Friday, which helped somewhat. (Thank you for the blood! It came from one of our directed donors!) Her color is much better, and she is back to her old self in terms of personality. She has the strength to give the nurses a hard time. She was providing a lot of resistance to the physical therapist today. The puzzling part is that she is still requiring more oxygen support than in the past. She is on 30% oxygen and 3 liters flow rate. When she first came off CPAP, she was only at 2 liters. Still, on x-ray her lungs are clear, and the doctors tell me they're expanding. We just don't know why she needs this much help right now. So far, the cultures from the blood and spinal tap have been negative. However, the doctors have decided to keep her on antibiotics for a few more days, just to be safe.


Andrea has reached another major milestone. She is more than quadruple her birth weight, weighing 1850 grams (4 pounds, 1.3 ounces). Whatever else is going on with her, she has maintained her interest in food. She has continued to devour her four bottles a day, and has no problem with the tube feedings, either. When I fed her today, she looked like she could keep going, if only we'd give her more milk. I think the voracious appetite is contributing to the weight gain, and we need her to grow! I hope her lung/breathing issues will work themselves out as she gets bigger.

As always, please continue to pray. We are thankful for all the prayers and support. We need to be strong and optimistic for a bit longer, and then hopefully this can all become a memory.


"Great difficulties may be surmounted by patience and perseverance."

Abigail Adams

NOTE: If anyone wants to contact me without posting publicly, I am reachable at tori.zimmerman@gmail.com.






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