Daily Recap

Whew, being a mom is hard work!!  Between trips to the NICU, power pumping (that's a whole other post!), and caring for my own battle wounds, sitting down to blog just has not made my daily to-do list.  But now, Cody has left for work and the NICU is closed for shift change, so I have a few minutes to recap the past few days for you...

Friday, March 25th
Cody and I left for Children's Memorial Hermann dark and early in the morning to finally meet our baby boy.  We arrived at the hospital at 5:30 and were being wheeled into the operation room by 8:00.  Because Hayes and his O needed lots of room to make their grand entrance into this world, the doctors performed a vertical cesarean section on me. (Pictures of the 21 staples down the center of my tummy are by request only!)  After a quick hello and an even quicker photo session, Hayes was whisked away to the NICU and I was taken to my own recovery room.  While in the NICU, Hayes was given his own special bed to help him regulate his temperature and was almost immediately put on CPAP to help him breathe.  The doctors were still not pleased with his breathing using this method, so he was moved to a ventilator shortly afterwards.  Between all of the pain medications and the hustle and bustle of the hospital, the rest of the day was just a pretty big blur...

 On our way to the hospital at 4:30 am.

Our first picture as a family of three.

Look at our brand new baby boy!

Saturday, March 26th
Just twenty-four hours after being sliced open, I could not get out of bed and up to the NICU fast enough!  The first time seeing my baby boy was truly indescribable, and the nurses let me take over all of my mommy duties as soon as I arrived.  I was so excited to change his diaper for the first time, and I was even more excited to give him his very first bath.  Hayes showed us that he definitely takes after his daddy in the bodily function department by pooping meconium, peeing, and lots of tooting!  Hayes was doing so well breathing that they lowered the ventilator settings, so he would be taking over some of the breathing on his own.  Way to go, big boy!  Because we know that Hayes will be having an extended stay in the NICU, a special team came to insert a PICC line into his little arm.  This is a catheter that runs from his arm all the way to his heart to help nutrients and supplements go straight into his bloodstream.  It is so tiny and not very intrusive, so we are all happy about this new tube!

First time mommy got to see her sweet boy after delivery.

Sometimes he just doesn't know what to do with his little hands...

...and other times he knows to just hold on tight!

Sunday, March 27th
Hayes got to lose some of his tubes today!  He continued to do so well with his breathing that he was taken off the ventilator and moved to a very low setting on the nasal canula.  Up until this point, Hayes also had a repogle tube running down his throat that was draining the mucus from his stomach.  He was able to get this removed too, and it was replaced with a very tiny NG tube that runs from his nose to his tummy.  They inserted this one to help continue the draining of mucus, and it can also be used to aid in feeding if needed.  (He has not started feeding yet and is getting all of his nutrients through a special cocktail made just for him called TPN.)  On a slightly more superficial note, I was so excited to put all of his blankets, hats, and accessories to use in his little bed to make it feel just a little more like home.

Wrapped up tight...just like he was in mommy's tummy.

All dressed up and laying on blankets from home.

Out came the ventilator and in went the pacifier!

Monday, March 28th
After getting the okay from his team of doctors, Hayes was finally able to be placed in my arms where he belongs!  I could have held him forever, and I think that would have been just fine with him too!!  He is maintaining his own temperature so well, so he was finally able to move into a big boy crib across the pod.  This transition means even more goodies from home - mobile, crib sheets, stuffed animals...  The pediatric surgeons make their rounds at different times each day, so I was thrilled to be there and participate in them.  During rounds, they talk about what a rockstar Hayes is and also dress his omphalocele.  I snapped lots of pictures as they smeared the silvadene cream on the exposed part of his omphalocele and then wrapped it securely in sterile dressing.  In case you could not hear him screaming from your house, he does NOT like this part of his daily routine.  Daddy made everything okay when he got off of work and came up to the NICU to hold his little dude though.  Hayes opened his eyes really wide (this is a rare occurrence for our sleepy boy!), and stared straight into his daddy's loving eyes before settling back to sleep.

Mommy cried the first time holding her lovey boy...Hayes prayed he didn't get dropped!

(In case you couldn't tell, my milk came in too!!)

 Hayes and his new big boy crib!!

Can you tell that he does NOT like getting omphalocele treated and wrapped?

Hayes couldn't take his eyes off daddy the first time he held him.