Pictures

Hard to believe that Addison is four weeks old already. Time has really gone fast! Amelia also turned 18 months this week. I was able to take a few pictures at my attempt of a photo shoot. These are a few of my favorites.

4/22

What a relief...the last appointment for Addison (until her two month check up). The last foot poke for a while, I think that makes the total close to 10 since she has been born. She is always a little trooper. Billy numbers went down to 12, not what I wanted to hear but Dr. Dahl said everything is just fine. No more billy light - thank goodness.
I made my first trip bringing both girls to the doctor - alone. Rob usually meets us at the hospital to help out with Amelia but was running late. I had to think about my strategy of getting both out of the car. Amelia was good about holding my hand on the walk to the clinic doors. It was a SLOW but steady walk and went well. I don't know if it was just my imagination but I was sure everyone was starring at me thinking I was crazy for hauling around two little ones. I even made a trip into the bank with both girls. Definitely more work but I did it.
We made it home just in time to meet Jess. She came to visit, see Addison, and brought pizza. Thanks Jess, it was great.

4/19

Today's (Monday) checkup went well. Addison's Billy numbers dropped to 12.6. The doctor was very optimistic and told us not to worry. It is not uncommon for the numbers to fluctuate the way they have been. Of course we still worry and can't wait to be done with all of these doctor appointments. Addison will continue to be on the billy light until Thursday. If her numbers are below 10 we get to send it back for good.

Emergency Room Visit

We were so happy to send back the billy light earlier this week. However, yesterday we thought Addison was beginning to look a little orange again. We called a nurse to get her opinion. Knowing we had another billy rubin check on Monday, we didn't feel comfortable waiting the weekend knowing Addison's history. We were advised to go to the Emergency Room (clinic was closed) just to be sure. Deb happened to be at our house at the time so she took Amelia for the night while we got Addison ready for yet another trip to the doctor. One more poke to her heel was added and we waited for the results. At her last appointment the billy rubin number was 13.4. Last night her results came back elevated to 15.1. The Allina truck brought another billy light to our house today. Addison needs to be under the light at all times until Monday when she has another check up. We are hopeful that this will do the trick and we can put this jaundice stuff behind us so we can hold and snuggle Addison.

4/5/10-4/9/10

Looking back at the second week of Addison's life. We headed to the doctor in Hudson on Monday to check how things were going after the weekend home from Children's. Addison had a weight check; 5 lb 6oz, and a trip to the lab to have her foot poked. As we left Children's Addison's billy rubin number was at a 12, not concerning but enough to be rechecked. Monday's numbers shot up to a suprising 20! At 5:00 p.m. Monday, the nurse ordered a billy blanket to be delivered to our house. After a few phone calls wondering the whereabouts of this equipment we needed, the delivery truck showed up at 9:00 p.m. I immediatly put Addison into her new contraption then snuggled her up the best I could with blankets. She was unalble to wear clothing so the light would hit directly on her skin. The billy light was a long pad that wrapped around Addison's stomach.

We were off to the doctor again Tuesday for another weight check and billy rubin check. Her wieght went down to 5 lb 5 oz and billy numbers down to a 17. On Thursday we had yet another trip to the doctor. Weight was up to 5 lb 7 oz and billy number went down to 13.8. Slowly but surely the numbers were dropping but we still needed to have Addison in her little tanning bed for the weekend. It was frustrateing because I felt like I could not hold her as often as I would have liked. By Monday the 12th I thought I had enough practice getting two kids ready and out the door. I realized that when I think I plan enough time - it's not. I will get it down one of these days. Rob met us at each of the appointments to take Amelia. Chasing Amelia while holding Addison, the diaper bag, and carrier would have been a good show for others sitting in the waiting area but not something I am ready for yet. Monday's wieght: 5 lb 10 oz Monday's billy number: 13.4. We were able to send the billy light back but will pack up for another doctor appointment next Monday. I recieved the bill for the billy light - wow! Rob says he is going to go into a new career of selling medical equipment.

Easter 4/4/10

Doctors reccommended that we stay home with Addison as much as possible. I was sad that we were not able to make it down to my parent's for Easter but happy that we were still able to get the family together. My parents came to our house along with Paul and Deb. We had a great Easter meal thanks to the great food by Deb. I found the cutest Easter outfit for Amelia and wanted to see her in it. After lunch I got her dressed while Grandma Diane went to the back yard to hide easter eggs. Amelia looked adorable and had a great time finding the eggs.

We also needed to get some pictures of the sisters together. Amelia loved that the easter bunny brought her a little sister.

NICU 3/29-4/1

At Children's hospital they do not allow access to any blogging websites so I was unable to make any updates. I was keeping track of daily events so that when I got home I would post one large update. Just as I was finishing my entry I stopped to go feed Addison. When I came back, I realized that my computer automatically restarted and I lost everything. I will try to remember the details of each day but our stay at the hospital was one big blur.

Monday night was a long a lonely night for me. I could not wait for the morning to come so I could be with Rob and Addison. I was up at 5:30 when the nurse came in to check my vitals. I took a quick bath, got dressed, and started to pack up so I would be ready when Dr. Dahl arrived. She came a little after 7:00am to see how I was doing and give me the official go ahead to be discharged. I checked in with Rob to see how they were doing. He assured me that Addison looked much better than the night before. I needed to get a ride to Children's so I called up Jess. I knew that she would be leaving for work soon and heading that way. Of course she did not hesitate to say yes and was in Hudson about 8:00. We packed up the car and headed out. We found the hospital and parking ramp and made our way to the NICU. The security at Children's is high, especially in the NICU. We needed to be buzzed into the secretary's desk where we checked in. Jess and I filled out paperwork, had our picture taken, and were given our badges. Then we were let in another set of double doors that led to Addison's room. When I first saw Addison she was in an isolet. She looked much more peaceful than the night before but it was still hard seeing her hooked up to so many things. Nurses were able to remove the oxygen mask (Si-pak) that was helping Addison's lungs open up. A feeding tube was in her mouth, monitors were on her chest, and IV was in her foot, and the oxygen monitor was on the other foot. The isolet was helping her body temperature stay warm. As Tuesday went on, they were able to remove the feeding tube, and moved her into a crib. Feeding and eating continued to be a struggle for Addison. She had many gagging episodes. It was hard to watch because we knew she wanted to get something up but just couldn't. Her tummy was very upset. Tuesday night the nurse thought it would be best to suction out Addison's tummy. The nurse put a small tube down to the stomach and used a syringe to suction out the contents. She was able to get a large amount which meant Addison was having a hard time digesting her food. The nurse hoped that giving her tummy a "fresh start" would help things. In the middle of the night on Tuesday Addison had what they called a "spell". The monitor alarms began going off because her heart rate and oxygen levels dropped very low. The nurse came and thankfully Addison was able to come out of it without assistance. That was a scary time and luckily it was the one and only "spell".

Early Wednesday morning I awoke to two nurses working at Addison's crib. The IV that was in her foot was leaking. They decided to move the IV to a new spot, her poor little head. I had to step out of the room for that procedure. Later in the day they stopped the IV of antibiotics and extra fluids. Feeding was still giving Addison some trouble. She had not yet mastered the skill of nursing so we supplemented with any milk that I had pumped and a small amount of formula.

The sleeping arrangements were definitely uncomfortable with Rob and I sleeping on a pullout couch made for one. But, that did not matter because we wanted to be with Addison. Although the atmosphere in the NICU was calm and quiet for the most part, we were not able to get a good nights sleep because we were always checking on Addison's and the nurses would be in the room monitoring her as well. I would even find Rob out in the NICU lounge early in the morning talking with Jay. We happened to be just around the corner of the NICU from Jay and Liz's little guy. Although neither of us wanted to be there and see our little ones fight to get stronger, it was nice to check up on each other.

Thursday morning we wanted to be sure we were in the room during doctor rounds. We were anxious to hear what they had to say about Addison's condition and going home. As they went over all of her information, the doctor said she was ready to go home. They wanted to continue to monitor Addison's billy rubin numbers to be sure her jaundice did not progress (her billy rubin number was a 12). W were so relived to hear the news about going home but we were also a little nervous. We were so used to watching the monitors, it gave us confidence that she was doing alright. Now that we were going home, we would not have those monitors to reassure us.

After the good news about going home, we had a special visitor. My dad brought Amelia to the hospital for a quick visit. We had not seen her since Monday night and that was a such a chaotic time. Amelia was not allowed in the NICU so we visited in the hallway. She went back home with my dad for one more night to give Rob, Addison, and me a night to get situated. Addison left he hosptial weighing 5lb 5 oz.

A large and overwhelming crew from Children's came to prepare Addison for the trip. I was surprised at how long it took them to get everything hooked up, situated, and stable before rolling out. It was hard to watch her leave! Seeing so many wires, cords, and oxygen masks was scary. We were reassured that she was in good hands.

Baby Addison

Exciting news! Baby Addison came at 5:35 p.m. on March 29th. She weighed 5 lb 14 oz. Delivery was a breeze and everything went well. Because we were induced early (original due date was April 15) the doctor watched Addison closely for any signs of distress. She was having a hard time breathing and ended up taking her first car ride in an ambulance. Addison was transferred to Children's hospital around 9:00 p.m. tonight. Her lungs were working a little too hard. It was a stressful and scary time for us but we know that she is in a great hospital.

My mom and dad gave Rob a ride to Children's. They were met with a huge support group: Jens and Jennifer, Pete and Mary, Josh and Char, and Brian and Sara. They all said Addison is looking good which makes me feel better. I was finally able to give Amelia some snuggle time when Addison left for her trip. It was not the meeting of the siblings that I pictured in my head. Amelia was able to sneak a peak of her little sister as Addison passed by in the hallway. Deb and Paul took Amelia on a car ride so she could get to sleep. It has been a long night for everyone.

I am unable to join Addison and Rob as I need to stay here at Hudson in the hospital for a night. Dr. Dahl said she would be here first thing in the morning to discharge me. Rob will be here to pick me up and take me to finally hold Addison. It is hard being here alone but I am glad Rob is able to be with Addison.

Do I have time for this?

Facebook - don't like it.
Twitter- never tried, never will.
Texting - try picking up the phone instead.
E-mail - enjoy it.
Blogging - not sure yet.

After months of persuasion from a few friends, I am giving this blogging thing a try. But I think to myself - will I really make time to keep it updated. Our poor chocolate lab, Dakota may not get his breakfast in the morning or his supper at night because we are always on the run. "Did you feed the dog?" is a question Rob and I often ask.
In honor of our wonderful dog, I will do my best to inform you of our fun yet hectic lives.
Tomorrow will have to be my first official post of worthy reading material about the Vrieze family. Not sure why I chose 12:00 am to create a blog.