Sunday, May 6th: No more IV!

Christine-

Today Finnegan crossed the line on his feeding schedule, which means that he no longer will be getting TPN through an IV! The nurses were impressed that he was able to keep his peripheral IV in for 3 days, but then again, Finn hasn't really done things by the book. The's been tolerating his feedings better than anyone expected, and he's creating big poopy diapers for the nurses and mommy and daddy to change!

This morning, Ian and I went to mass at our parish, St. Patrick Church of Merna. It was nice being back there. We realized we hadn't been there in about 3 weeks because of my being in the hospital and then Finn being born. Afterwards, we picked up some breakfast food and ate a quick breakfast. Apparently, I didn't move fast enough because Ian and I ended up missing rounds today.

Whoops... but here's what we found out. Finnegan lowered the amount of bradys by half! Instead of the usual 16 bradys, Finn only had 8! We were so proud, and the doctor aparently was as well because they lowered his forced breaths on his cpap by 5! So, now instead of getting 30 forced breaths per minute, he's only getting 25. He seems to be doing well with that! Otherwise, everything else is going well!

Soon after Ian and I arrived at the hospital, my parents came for a visit. My mom jumped right in to talk to her grandson and my dad sat back on the couch and just smiled. He's still a bit unsure about touching Finnegan. I can see why; Finn is so stinkin' tiny! After a while, we went out to lunch at this brewery called Granite City. SO GOOD! We said goodbye soon after lunch and my mom and dad headed back home while Ian and I headed back to the hospital to await the arrival of Finn's Grandpa Bruckner.



Ian and his dad bonded over technical conversation and where things are located on a map. Quite the typical conversation with those two, but it was nice to see. After Finn had his "dinner," it was time for his IV to be taken out and that meant Kangaroo time!

The nurse handed Finn over to me and I got to place him on my chest. It was so amazing holding his little body in my hands before he got all cozy and nestled up. We had an amazing 90 minute Kangaroo time. During the last half hour or so, Jodie, one of our favorite night nurses, took a family photo of us. It was quite the experience. :) Then, as Jodie was getting his bed all ready for him to go back in, Finn reached up with his little hand and touched my chin. At first, I didn't realize what he was doing because his hands are so small, it took me a second to realize what I felt on my face. Then, I looked down at him and saw his little eyes peak open. That made it harder to let him go! Around that time, Ian went home and I went to the family dining room to eat my dinner. When I came back into Finn's "neighborhood," I could hear his little squeaks down the hall. I hurried into his room and found him all fussy in his bed. I quickly sanitized my hands and reached in his bed to calm him down. He wanted nothing to do with me! I held onto one of his little feet and rubbed the bottoms. Within seconds, he was calm and had his  hands above his head in defeat. Little did I know that feeding time was just minutes away. Apparently Finnegan already has the schedule figured out. Our little man loves his food! :)

I am spending the night at the hospital because I have my follow-up appointment from my surgery at 9:30 tomorrow morning at the hospital and Ian is staying at home because he has his follow-up and pre-appointment for his surgery at 9am in Bloomington. Now that Ian is going to start back up at work, it looks like I might be doing more of the hospital staying. Now that I'm feeling a bit more perky, I can't imagine being anywhere else. That little man blows my mind with how amazing he is! I'm hoping that Ian adjusts well to starting back up with work. All of this has been quite overwhelming, and I just hope he doesn't spread himself too thin. He's the most amazing husband and father I could have ever imagined. Finn and I are too lucky to have him! :)

Before I went to bed, Jodie asked me to help her measure Finnegan's length and get his diaper and temperature for his evening feeding (well... one of them; he gets fed every 3 hours). Finnegan measured 13 inches, .25 inches longer than he was measured at birth! Also, Finn measured in at about 1lb 12.5oz! We're fattening that little boy up for sure! :) It was easy to fall asleep knowing my little guy is making such amazing progress! :)