Getting Settled in at Home

Well, after spending 3 weeks in the NICU Ashlyn was ready to come home and we were more than ready to have her home. But first, here are a few more pictures from our last week in the NICU.
Ashlyn passed her hearing screen!


This was our first time to give Ashlyn a bath!

Reading a bedtime story



Ashlyn's first roommate, Sarah! I talked to Sarah's mom and she went home a couple of days ago!

The night before we went home, Chance and I spent the night at the hospital with Ashlyn. They call it "rooming in". They unhooked all of the monitors and did her evening assessment. She weighed 5 lbs 13 ounces that Monday night! Once the nurse was finished with her, she turned her over to us. We had a small hospital room with 2 beds and her crib. We were responsible for her care from then until we left the next day. We gave her a bath, did all of her feedings (she was taking 5-2oz bottles and was breastfeeding 3 times) gave her vitamins...YUCK and everything else that goes along with having a newborn! We got a little sleep that night, but were mostly watching Ashlyn sleep! The doctor came by the next day around noon and checked on us. She felt that Ashlyn was ready to go home! The newborn photographer stopped by the room for a mini photo shoot and we found out that Ashlyn is quite the model! She was posing it up. We got some really great pictures.





Once we got packed and loaded up and received our last minute instructions from the nurse, we were ready to head home. I was excited and a little anxious...we had been there so long and I had gotten very comfortable with having the nurses on standby. I don't think my motherly instincts had kicked in because I always had backup! I was a little emotional as we loaded up into the car to take our sweet angel home. She was so tiny in her car seat. I sat in the back and held her head in place as Chance drove ever so cautiously.



We made it home safely!
Nenna, Chance's mom, had this stork delivered to our house! It was very cute!



My mom, Mimi, spent a couple days with us to help us get settled in. She cooked, cleaned, did laundry, held Ashlyn a little (a lot), grocery shopped, bonded with Pip and was all in all a big help! And it was reassuring having someone else around. Her furry sisters, Mazzy and Pip, are handling the new addition very well. Mazzy is very interested in every peep Ashlyn makes. She sleeps by her crib at night and watches her every move! Pip isn't too bothered by her. They both love being in her nursery when we are in there. Here is a picture of them meeting the little sister.

Pip sleeping next to Ashlyn's pack-n-play

We are settling into a routine and it is so nice having our baby home. She eats at 3, 6, 9 and 12 and sleeps the majority of the rest of the time. She fusses a little with her diaper change and when she gets hungry but is honestly a very good baby. Ashlyn is our centerpiece when we sit at our table! She loves the baby lounger and we don't mind staring at her while we eat!

We had a Pediatrician's appointment on Wednesday. Ashlyn got a good report. She was up to 6 lbs! He didn't hear her heart murmur and was confident that if she does have one, it will go away on it's own. Her jaundice is better and her anemia is likely improving, although he didn't want to stick her foot to check it. It is pretty common for preemies to be anemic the first month or so after birth. Ashlyn has a beauty mark on her right check called a hemangioma. Our Pediatrician referred us to a specialist to monitor the birthmark, but doesn't think it should cause any problems. These types of birthmarks are very common (about 10-15% of babies have one) and usually get worse over 6-9 months and then completely go away over the next couple of years with little to no evidence that it was ever there.
Ashlyn has had several visitors since she has been home and many more expected! Pa J (my stepfather) and her great grandma Sally came by to say hi and Ashlyn's Auntie Sarah came over and brought lunch and hung out with us one day.
Ashlyn with her Mimi and PaJ

PaJ holding Ashlyn

4 generations
Great Grandma Sally, Mimi, Mom and Ashlyn

Great Grandma Sally

The Pediatrician recommended that we keep her at home for the next 6 weeks or so until she has a chance to grow a little more. It is good that it isn't cold & flu season, but she is still very suseptible to everything! We are going to do our best to keep her healthy!
Ashlyn and Mimi reading a bedtime story

Ashlyn after her first bath at home...the bath part was a little too hectic to pull out the camera, but here is an after shot! We all survived, but man is she slippery!

I will try to keep the blog updated more regularly once things settle down a little more and we get caught up on everything. It is amazing how time flies. I can't believe it will be 1 month tomorrow that our little angel graced us with her presence. She truly is a miracle and we feel very blessed to have her in our lives!