...12.21.15...

Today was another great day in the NICU for baby Wyatt. During the night, the night nurse began the process to wean him out of the incubator, which involves turning down the temperature to room temperature, 27 degrees celsius. He has to tolerate it for 24 hours in order to change over to the crib. We should know whether he was successful or not tomorrow morning.

On our way to the hospital this morning, we got a call from the ENT (ear, nose, throat doctor) discussing their consult yesterday and to obtain consent for the frenetomy, or tongue tie release. We assumed this would take place later this week, so imagine our shock when I was feeding Wyatt and the ENT and his assistant came in to complete the procedure! Brian stayed in the room to be with our little guy, while I chose to walk out. I couldn't handle the thought of seeing my baby in pain, so thankfully his daddy is much braver about that and was able to stay with him to help comfort him. Turns out he's a champ! He only cried for about 3 seconds, then started rooting. I came in and fed him and he was so very happy. You could tell he was a little confused about his tongue being so free because he was sticking his tongue out while feeding.

That hair kills me. We try to flatten it out a bit, but it just won't stay. He reminds me of Einstein with that white mess of hair! 

Brian joined the team for rounds and it was a good report. He had a few cardiac events, a few brady's, but all in all the team is impressed with his progress. Their focus for now is the feeding. It's not uncommon for preemies to have brady's and his are self-resolving. This means they don't require stimulation from someone to remind him to breathe and he fixes his heart rate on his own. This is a good thing! He is now up to 4 pounds, 6 ounces. He's getting to be such a big guy! He may even be about ready to transition into newborn size clothes. He's still rocking the preemie diaper, and likely will for a little while. He's a peanut with long legs, so the preemie clothes are fine except the length. I suspect he takes after his dad in this case and this will be the story of his life, rocking high waters! 

My heart melts watching my two boys bonding. Daddy is watching the monitor while he holds him. Daddy is so good with understanding the monitors, which can be a little confusing. The monitors keep track of Wyatt's cardiac function and alert when there is an issue. However, they also alert when another baby on his hall has an issue. The alerts are different, but I panic when I hear them and Brian has to constantly tell me, "It's not him." or, "It's him." He is also very good at understanding the point in which we need to actually be concerned because sometimes a monitor won't pick up his oxygen levels and it will show a de-sat, when it really is a faulty measure. Or when a brady is just a few beats below the normal range. Thank goodness for Daddy, he keeps Mommy sane. 

Tomorrow will be a big day for our family, as it's Brian's last day before going back to work for a few days. We continue to pray for Wyatt to tolerate his feeds, while still gaining or maintaining his weight. We also pray that he tolerates the transition to the crib, if that is what happens through the night. And as always, pray that his cardiac events decrease. Please also pray for Brian as he transitions back to work. 

Thank you for joining us on this journey,

Lori, Brian, & Wyatt