Superstar!

So here is a much needed update on things!  On mother's day I had two big surprises waiting for me at the hospital...  she now weighes 3 pounds!!!  Whoo hoo!  Also my sister had a darling dress monogramed with I Love My Mom on it.  Briley Kate was wearing the dress when I got there that morning and there was a picture of her in it that they had developed from the day before.  I"ll post a picture of the gift soon. Even though my little darling was miles away, it was still a wonderful first mother's day.  Thanks Katie for making it extra special!

She is now taking 28 cc's and they run it in over an hour to prepare her for bottle feeding.  She is still tolerating her feeds very well.  She has been off of oxygen since wednesday (so almost a week!)...yay.   Her oxygen sats have remained stable so that's good.  The next big step we're taking is discontinuing the caffeine.   She gets a dose of caffeine every morning (haha...like the rest of us!) to keep her heart rate up and to prevent any apnea spells (where she stops breathing).  She hasn't had any spells for awhile on the caffeine, so the doctors decided it would be a good idea to discontinue it and see how she does.  She has to be spell free (or able to bring herself out of the spells) for at least a week or two before we go home.  Blood work has all looked good, no signs of infection, and head ultrasound was inconclusive so we'll have an MRI in a few weeks just to make sure everything is okay.  The nurses are going to try and really start to bottle feed the next few weeks.  She is not always alert enough but we're getting there.  

I find myself whispering "thank you Lord" almost every hour of every day.  I truly am thankful for all the progress Briley Kate has made.  We love her more than words can express.  We are also so thankful for all of the people who have prayed for us, cried with us, and shared in those quiet moments with us.  We love yall. 

"The Lord your God is with you,

He is mighty to save.  

He will take great delight in you,

He will quiet you with his love,

He will rejoice over you with singing."   Zephaniah 3:17

Hallelujah for a God who is BIG enough to move mountains, yet small enough to know every hair on our head.  Happy 5 week Birthday My Darling!!