Today started far too early. Or maybe I've just gotten too accustomed to sleeping later than usual - typically 8:00 or later. 7:00 seemed impossible today. Canon's appointment was first. We saw Dr. McAllister, and she reported that he's doing great. He weighs 31 pounds and is almost 3 feet tall (35 3/4 inches, to be exact). Also, both of his tubes have finally fallen out of his ear canals, so we no longer have to wear those pesky earplugs whenever we get wet. Dr. McAllister didn't comment on all of the bruises on Canon's legs. Usually, I get offered a Child Safety brochure whenever I bring him in, but this pediatrician recognized him for what he is - just a boy. I decided to ask her, too, about our newest addition. When would Tera need to start her visits? How often would she have to come in? etc., etc. I don't know why, but I was surprised at how much Dr. McAllister knew about premature babies. She asked me about her birth, her oxygen needs, her heart rate. Are they rotating her head? What medicines has she had? I think I just met Tera's new pediatrician!
After his appointment, he joined his friends at school so that I could take care of my scheduled activities for the day. First was a call to the CCN. How was Tera? Where was her oxygen? Though she was doing great, her oxygen had increased to 30% through the night. Not horrible news, but since her last episode with increased oxygen (which led to apnea, lumbar punctures, urine cultures, and a head IV), I get a little antsy about even the smallest changes. The nurse assured me that she was fine. She had even gained some weight in the night. Still at 3 pounds 2 ounces (1430 grams), but every little gram counts.
After folding the piles of laundry at the house, I went to eat lunch with my students. They were sitting outside when I arrived and screamed with delight when they saw me. It was, of course, just as exciting to see them. They are currently in the middle of standardized tests and had just taken their longest test of the week. Besides just being excited to see me, they were also restless from so much focus and stillness. I got about a zillion hugs from all of them and managed to spend a little one-on-one time with a couple of kids that needed my extra attention.
Then off to my doctor's appointment where I got the "all clear" to do normal mommy things. Yes, that means I can even lift all 31 pounds of Canon. Doctor's orders! Dr. Nicholls and I talked about the night Tera was born, reliving some parts that we can now look back and laugh about. We talked again about the possibility of future children. He sees absolutely no reason why we can't have others, but they will be treated as high-risk pregnancies. We'll talk more about it later, but it's nice to know there's hope. It's also nice that this experience hasn't completely scared me out of more children.
I went back to school after this to visit with my co-workers and help my substitute with her needs. I was surprised at how few there were. I left school back in February completely unexpectedly and completely unprepared for someone else to take over. There were things only half-done, piles of junk on my desk, and no directions whatsoever as to how to get from 8:00 to 3:00 in my classroom. My only saving grace is Mrs. Hamilton, my classroom aide. In an effort to reduce my stress, she had started helping me out more and more in the last few weeks of my pregnancy. I had hoped that this would be helpful for my substitute, and I'm convinced that it was. Though there have been plenty of questions and lots to figure out over the last five weeks, Mrs. Henderson and Mrs. Hamilton have managed to run the class probably better than I could myself. Of course, there are things that are frustrating for them and things that might never run smoothly in my absence, but the students are happy and love Mrs. Henderson. I'm always looking for less to worry about.
Another call into the hospital resulted in the news that Tera's oxygen was very slowly climbing, now around 35%. Why did I decide to stay another night? There was no going back now. I was far too exhausted to drive safely to Birmingham, especially with a two-year-old in the backseat, and the house was still neglected. After dinner with Ed and Leslie, Barry helped me pick up the last of the clutter so that I could rest a little more peacefully.
Nonna and Poppa went to the hospital this evening to spend some time with Tera. Nonna took pictures for me to have a record of her day today.
This hat was crocheted by a childhood friend of Lydia's. It's a zebra and, though Tera won't fit into it for a few more months, it's not nearly as enormous as this picture shows. It's so cute!
Tera pulled her OG (feeding) tube out of her mouth today, and the nurse replaced it with an NG tube in her nose. I didn't think I would, but I like it better here. No more worms sticking out of her mouth.
Poppa likes to check everything out when he visits.
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