Meeting Aviannah

I am so exhausted and ready for a nap, but I know you all are dying for an update, so I'll try to make this quick!

I was so nervous as we pulled up to the hospital. We found our social worker in the entrance and she took us back to the nursery. Aviannah has moved out of the Level 3 NICU and is now in Level 2. John and I scrubbed up and went in to go see her! At first they said Cassidy couldn't see her today, because siblings could only come during a specific time, but they made an exception, which I'm glad for, because she burst into tears when she first heard that she couldn't come in. She's been waiting for this for a long time!

Right away when we walked into the nursery the nurse scooped her up and put her in my arms. She was wrapped up nice but I could still tell how tiny she is! John and I took turns saying hello, then Cassidy came in to say hello. They normally only allow 2 people per family at a time, but no other parents were there so they let my parents come in while we were still in there. It was so special! I posted the pictures on Facebook.

Mom and Dad left with Cassidy around 9:30. The nurse said Aviannah's next feeding was at 11:00, so John and I took turns snuggling her until then. It was wonderful. She slept the whole time and we giggled over the cute sounds she made, talked to her, and just stared at her. The nurse practitioner came and updated us on her condition. Aviannah is still on oxygen, but other then that everything looks really good. Her eyes are getting tested tomorrow and she might need another cardiac test but if those go well, she will be ready to be discharged. She also needs to pass a carseat test. She can be discharged and still be on oxygen, it'd just be something we'd have to deal with out of the hospital. Since we have to stay 6 weeks, the nurse will set us up with a pediatrician here. She is hoping that Aviannah can be off the oxygen by the time we are ready to go home. PLEASE pray that she will! The nurse said she will likely have chronic lung disease as a result of being on oxygen for so long, but it doesn't sound too serious. 

At 11:00 we got to open up her blanket and get a good look at her. The nurse wanted her to stay wrapped up until feeding time because the more awake time they have, the more calories they burn, so they try to get them to sleep as much as possible. It was so fun to see her tiny fingers and toes, and her skinny little legs! I changed her bum and then the nurse showed me how to feed her. Preemies need to be fed a little differently then full-term babies. She ate so well! She chugged back the first half of her bottle, gave me a really good burp, then finished the second half all within half an hour! I put her up on my chest and she fell asleep there again :)

Around 11:45 she was given a hearing test. The doctor stuck all these things to her ears and head and we got to watch on the monitor as she responded to the different tests. She passed with flying colors! After her test was done, we said goodbye and headed back to our place. It was soooo hard to leave her in that tiny bed, but we're heading back tonight after we get a good nap in. The nurse is also going to plan for us to stay one night while my parents are here with Cassidy, so that will be good.

All in all, I'm a little overwhelmed. We had so many people giving us so much information, but I know we'll figure it out. All the nurses were so excited that we were here. Tomorrow from 3-5 is when siblings can visit, so Cassidy will get a chance to hold her. 

I gotta say though, my favorite part of the morning was when I whispered "I love you," to Aviannah and she smiled :)