Past Few Days Rewind

OK, I was able to take a 1 1/2 hour nap today, so I'm finally feeling well enough to try to summarize the events that have happened since Sunday.

Sunday:

Sunday began after an OK night where Ada was a bit fussy, but I think the thought of us going home kind of spurred Stephanie and I on. Outside of Ada's fussiness, there were a couple of minor problems that night. For one, Stephanie's staples were really beginning to bother her; fortunately the nurse came through with a cocktail of Percocet and Motrin that helped her get some sleep (her doctor ended up prescribing her this same regimen to go home with). On top of that, I couldn't get in contact with Stephanie's brother who was supposed to be taking the dog out for us that night. So I ended up having to go home at 1:00am Sunday morning to walk the dog. But it was still better than the previous night.

Sunday morning came and we tried to bridle our excitement at the prospect of going home, but we couldn't hold back our joy. The only problem is that neither Stephanie nor Ada had been cleared for discharge. We didn't think that Stephanie getting clearance would be a problem (and it wasn't), but we were worried about Ada. She was still borderline jaundice and the pediatrician had to come in and check her levels before she would discharge her. We tried to keep her in the sun as much as possible, but we knew in the back of our head that there was the possibility that the pediatrician could come in and tell us that she wanted to hold Ada for another night. But fortunately for us, she came in and told us that, while she had some concerns, she was discharging Ada, although we had to schedule an appointment Monday, 9:30am. The reason for the concern surprised us: Ada had lost 12 ounces since she was born and they were concerned.

The trip home was exciting, but uneventful. I drove about 30 miles an hour all the way home, trying to miss all the bumps so that Stephanie's staples wouldn't hurt.

That night, however, was hell. Ada wouldn't stop screaming, and we didn't have a routine on how to handle her feeding and changing yet, so that made the situation worse.

Monday:

Monday morning began with the trip to the pediatrician's office. It was the first time we'd been there, and we immediately liked the place. Everyone was personable and helpful. The doctor came in and checked Ada's weight and told us something even more concerning: She had lost even three more ounces since Sunday and was down to 6pounds 10 ounces. She decided to put us on a regimen of supplementing Ada's regular breast milk feedings with 10 ounces of Similac formula and scheduled us to come back on Wednesday at 9:30am to check again.

Nothing really exciting happened for the rest of the day, except for some diaper changing fun. I went to change Ada's diaper and during the time it took for me to remove the diaper and try to put another one under her, she pooped all over the place. And then, to add insult to injury, while I was cleaning that up, she peed on me. Good to see she already has a great sense of humor.

Monday night went great. We started to find our routine and while it was annoying getting up every two hours to go downstairs to get a shot glass full of formula for supplementing, Stephanie and I both got a total of 6 hours of sleep that night, the most we had gotten since Ada was born.

Tuesday:

Nothing really exciting happened on Tuesday. I picked up Stephanie's prescriptions and a couple of Granny-gowns from Walmart for her to wear around the house. We did have an issue with Stephanie getting some baby blues, though. It was the first time I had left Stephanie alone with Ada for any length of time, and when I got home from Walmart I was greeted with a screaming baby and a crying wife. Apparently Ada started crying shortly after I left and Stephanie was unable to console her. After calming both of them down, I took care of Ada for a while while Stephanie napped.

The rest of the day went well. Grandpa even came by for a little bit that afternoon.

Wednesday:

We had some good news today. We went back to the pediatrician, and Ada had gained two ounces since Monday. While not great, that means she's on her way back up. We still have to supplement with the formula, however if she has gained more weight by Friday, then they will take her off of the formula.

Other than that, it was a quiet day. It was our first day without any visitors and, while we love it when people come visit, it was nice to have a quiet day as a family.

So that is what happened the past few days. I'm too tired to end this post gracefully, so I'll just...