Update: Week 3

Things continue to go the right way for Hannah. Her breathing and heart rate have been stable enough in the last week that the doctors have taken her off all of her heart rate and blood oxygen monitors. The only monitor that she has left is a mat that she lies on to make sure we know if she stops breathing.

The only tube that is still attached is her feeding tube, and that may be going soon as well!! On Monday, she started to breast feed a little, and has progressed very well through the week. Yesterday, she had two feeds where she got 82 ml and 77 ml all by herself. She is now on a trial period where, throughout the day, rather than being fed at regular intervals, we wait until Hannah lets us know she's hungry, and then she gets only what she breast feeds. This way, there is a better chance that she will eat a full meal rather than just sucking a little, falling right to sleep, and expecting the food to just come anyway. At night, she still gets fed through the tube. If she can eat enough by herself that she still gains weight as she should, out comes the tube....

....and, when the tube comes out, Hannah comes home!!!!!

The doctors and nurses think that it could be as little as a week before she's ready to come home (she will still, of course, have to go in for regular checks). Alex, who is now tied to the hospital except for very short periods right after Hannah feeds, is really looking forward to "life on the outside" again, and I am really looking forward to not having to go to the hospital to visit my family.

Now, on another note, my mom has provided some insight on the question of who Hannah looks like by e-mailing some of my baby pictures. You can judge for yourself, but I'd have to say that Hannah is definitely her Dad's girl.

Baby Micah



Baby Hannah