Fun, Not Fun

This is kind of like "I have good news & bad news, which do you want first" kind of post. So, the 'not fun' first...what's not fun is being on maternity leave and not having your baby home with you. That reality set in this morning when Darrin and Miles left for work and day camp and I was alone at home. It was really sad. So much so that I immediately started contemplating ways to extend my maternity leave. I'm so afraid that he will be in the NICU during most of my leave and then as soon as he gets out I'll have to go back to work. God immediately reminded me to slow down and take things one day at a time. Easier said than done. 

Also 'not fun' is that I haven't been feeling great. Over the weekend, I had a few random issues. I'll spare you the details, but one problem has been a little increase in my blood pressure. I had high blood pressure towards the end of my pregnancy with Miles and I've been on a low dose of blood pressure medicine ever since. Anytime I try to get off, it goes right back up. Thankfully it was very controlled all during this pregnancy.  I called the doctor today and they increased my medicine a little bit. Hopefully it will kick in soon.

Now that we got all the 'not fun' stuff out of the way, let's move on to the good stuff.  'Fun' is Miles getting to hang out with all his old friends in Martin. My friend, Christa, asked if she could come get him on Sunday afternoon. She arranged for all my friends and their kids to get together for an afternoon of swimming. After swimming, she let Miles pick where he wanted to eat dinner and get ice cream. It was incredibly nice of her to treat big brother to a day that was all about him. He came home happy and completely worn out.

'Fun' is also any time we get to visit Carson. I'm still rocking a wheelchair b/c it's a long walk to the NICU.

My motto for Carson is slow & steady wins the race. He's being very consistent, but not progressing too fast on the feedings.  He's been at the same level for a while. They are increasing the amounts, but he's still only attempting two bottles every day. They want him to cue, meaning act like he wants a bottle, but he's just not there yet. The closer we get to his due date, the more likely he will cue more. 

He's doing a good job maintaining his body temperature. They have been steadily reducing the temperature in his isolette and are talking about moving him to a regular crib tomorrow. I would actually rather he stay in the isolette a little longer, until he's made more progress with feeding, but I trust them to do what's best for him.

He loves to be held. 

Brothers :)

Miles got to help with bath time. He's only allowed to stay back there for 10 minutes. They bring a kitchen timer with him and when it goes off, he has to leave. We called the nurse on Sunday morning and told her that we would be there for bath time. She was nice enough to have everything already ready to go.

Miles was able to help the whole time. She included him by letting him squeeze the soap and get the warm towel at the end. These nurses are amazing. They go out of their way to accommodate the families.

'Fun' is when Aunt Crystal comes to visit. She was out of town when Carson was born, so she came to visit over the weekend to help us around the house and see Carson. We are both very close to her so it meant a lot to us for her to meet Carson. She's loves all of her nieces and nephews so much and it's very apparent.

Last, 'fun' is my escape from reality...the Bachelorette. Good night, so I can partake!