Millie's Milestones: February 2006

Tuesday, February 28, 2006

Day 11 - Registering Millie

MUMMY and daddy registered Millie's birth today.

This involved an extortionate £3 parking fee and a visit to a bland brick building next to a dual carriageway in Colchester.

Not the sort of place daddy had envisaged to host such an important event.

Later, he told Millie how he believed she was the first Tasker in her direct family line to be born outside Lincolnshire since at least 1765.

This means the genes on her paternal side of the family have travelled at the rate of roughly 1/2 a mile per year for the past 250 years.

Along with a certificate, the Essex Registration Service also offers parents the opportunity of a civil naming ceremony for their child.

Officially approved venues include the local Holiday Inn hotel, The Pier at Harwich, and the Metropolitan Police (Chigwell) Sports Club.

Daddy rather fancied Walthamstow Stadium but it wasn't on the list.

Millie herself continues to grow rapidly.

She has put on 48 grammes (1 3/4 ounces) over the past 24 hours.

Her tube feeds have been increased again to 9ml (almost two teaspoons) of breast milk every two hours.

If Millie continues at this rate, within the next two days she will have made up all the weight lost following birth.

Mummy is visiting twice a day, and doing as much as she can of her "topping and tailing" nappy care and washes.

The Peter Rabbit room at the Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU) is full again at the moment, and Millie has been moved again, nearer the door.

Her progress is such that she is gradually having fewer medicines intravenously and could be free of nearly all tubes and wires by the end of the week.

The potassium levels that were playing up are all now good and the Total Parenteral Nutrition long-line which delivers special nutrients is due to come out soon.

When this happens, Millie will rely primarily on mummy's milk for food.

Once this is the case, she will no longer be classed as a "high dependency" baby and will be moved into the Winnie the Pooh room for older premature babies.

This will be one more step nearer coming home.

Monday, February 27, 2006

Day 10 - Mummy home

MUMMY came home today - the first time she had been out of hospital for almost one month.

She said it was nice to walk on carpet again and to relax in her own bath surrounded by bubbles.

But it was also hard for her to leave Millie in the Special Care Baby Unit and there were a few tears.

Daddy picked up mummy at 1pm, and they drove to Mothercare where they bought some baby things.

On the way back, he treated her to a drive-thru Burger King meal (daddy always did know how to treat a girl well).

After a few hours at home, it was back to the hospital in the evening.

Millie has put on 42 grammes (again about 1 1/2 ounces) in the past 24 hours.

She now weighs 2lb 11 1/2 ounces.

Her potassium levels are well on the way to sorting themselves out, which means her kidneys are improving rapidly.

In the evening, daddy cuddled Millie while mummy expressed milk.

Then it was mummy's turn and Millie had a nuzzle at her breast.

Millie's feeds have been upped again to 5ml (one teaspoon) every two hours through the tube into her tummy.

This means she is having 60ml of milk every day.

It's a short post today because mummy and daddy are very tired. But Millie is doing really well and they are very pleased with her.

Sunday, February 26, 2006

Day 9 - Breast is best

MILLIE had her first breast feed shortly after midday today.

She managed a very short nuzzle on mummy's breast, a few short sucks and promptly fell asleep.

Whether she drank very much is a big mystery, but it shows that she knows what she should be doing.

The nurses gave a little helping hand by dribbling a few drops of milk from a syringe on to her lips as she snuggled up to mummy.

She will continue to have a nuzzle with mummy every day.

But for the time being her main source of milk will be the plastic tube into her tummy. It's not hard to see which she prefers.

The other big news of the day is that Millie wore a dress for the first time. You can catch a glimpse of it in the picture above.

The Special Care Baby Unit has a cupboard full of small cardigans, tiny dresses, miniature hats and other baby things so there is no need for anyone to buy clothes.

This is quite a good job, as the babies change sizes rapidly.

Millie's dress has small red tulips on it. She looked rather sweet, even though it was a few sizes too large.

She gained 36 grammes (about 1 1/2 ounces) over the past 24 hours.

This is less than the day before, but we are told to expect anything from 20-50 grammes each day and not to worry if it is above or below that.

The nurses have a slight concern over Millie's potassium levels, which are not as good as they should be.

This indicates that her kidneys are playing up a bit.

Sorry to be a bit vague on this one, but daddy can't remember whether her potassium levels are slightly too high, or slightly too low.

It is, however, a common occurrence in a baby of her age. Mummy and daddy view it as a hiccup, rather than a set-back.

The doctors are rectifying the situation by adjusting the potassium chloride levels in her Total Parenteral Nutrition.

This evening, daddy and Millie had another kangaroo care cuddle.

She started noisily but soon went to sleep - probably dreaming of tulips and breast milk and not thinking about potassium levels at all.

Saturday, February 25, 2006

Day 8 - One week old

MILLIE is one week old today.

From being a little bundle of joy about whom we were very worried, she is now a bundle of joy showing real signs of progress.

Her weight has increased by a further 44 grammes (about 1 1/2 ounces) over the past 24 hours.

She now weighs 2lb 9 1/2oz.

This daily weight gain might not sound very much, but it is the equivalent of a 12 stone person putting on more than 6lb in a day.

It shows how hard Millie is working and we are very proud of her.

Her milk has been increased to 2ml every two hours and tomorrow it will be increased again to 3ml every two hours - if all goes well.

She has even managed to lick a drop from the end of the syringe.

Because Millie's size means she is unable to breast feed, we have been advised to buy a very small dummy so she can get used to sucking.

The nurses say this will help her to learn how to feed from her mummy's breasts.

When it comes to premature babies, the hospital says the advantages of carefully using a dummy outweighs any possible disadvantages.

Studies have shown that premature babies who use a dummy transfer more quickly from tube feeding to breast feeding.

Using a dummy can also result in shorter hospital stays for pre-term infants.

Meanwhile, mummy continues to express her milk.

She hasn't had more than four hours sleep a night over the past seven days.

It's important to express milk during the night - just like you would get up to feed a baby.

Last night, mummy went down to the Special Care Baby Unit at 3am. The nurses made her a cup of tea.

Daddy is also tired. He works every day and then goes to the hospital in the evenings. But at least he doesn't have to express milk.

This afternoon he woke up on the sofa to find that Lincoln City had won again and are now in a play-off position for promotion.

Not a bad day all round!

Friday, February 24, 2006

Day 7 - Top and tail

ALL three of us had a much better day today.

NURSES on the Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU) say Millie was the best behaved baby during the night.

She weighed 2lb 8oz this morning.

This means Millie has put on 1 1/4 oz (40 grammes) since yesterday and is rapidly regaining the weight lost in the two days following delivery.

The days seem to have evolved into a 24-hour routine based around the key times of 8am, 12 noon, 4pm, 8pm and 12 midnight.

The plan is to avoid handling Millie unnecessarily.

Unless it is an emergency, anything that needs doing is done at these intervals, allowing both her and her mummy to rest.

At each of these times, mummy visits the SCBU where she expresses her milk and then places it in the freezer where it is stored until needed.

Mummy also checks and changes Millie's nappy. Then she washes Millie's mouth with a cotton bud. The nurses call this 'topping and tailing'.

The nurses help at feeding times. This morning, Millie had 1ml of mummy's milk for breakfast. It was fed through the tube which goes into her tummy.

She is fed every two hours and the quantity of milk is gradually being increased. The nurses up the volume by 0.5ml every eight hours or so.

As Millie improves, she will drink her way through all the milk stored in the freezer. Once she is ready, she will be able to breast feed.

After the 8am session today, mummy had a little walk to see the ducks outside the hospital - one of the rare times she has been outdoors in the past three weeks.

This evening, daddy had what he described as his 'First Proper Cuddle' with Millie.

He held her for over 45 minutes while she slept in his arms.

Every so often, Millie woke up, looked up at her daddy and then went back to sleep again.

She is starting to feel less boney and seems to be growing into her skin.

But Millie is still very small - you can see just how tiny by comparing her thumb with daddy's thumb in the picture.

Times like this make it all worthwhile, but the daily routine is tiring.

Unfortunately, mummy and daddy have had to cancel two very special visits this weekend.

Nana and Papa were going to visit Millie for the first time. So were Uncle Sven and Auntie Sally.

But for mummy and daddy, this has been the longest week of their lives.

They are both tired and need time to relax so they can get ready for when mummy leaves hospital on Monday.

This will involve a whole new routine - of driving to and from the hospital up to four times each day, clocking up almost 100 miles daily.

But above all, it is important to do what is right for Millie and we would like to thank everyone for understanding.

Thursday, February 23, 2006

Day 6 - Spaghetti junction

MILLIE has had her "long-line" in for more than 24 hours now.

Inserting it was not a pleasant experience. Not for her, her mummy nor the nurses.

The long-line is a plastic tube, or cannula, about 20cm in length. It is inserted through a vein and pushed in towards the heart.

This enables the doctors to feed premature babies intravenously, a process called Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN).

At first, the nurses tried to insert the long-line through Millie's foot. But she has always been a fidget-bottom and wasn't having any of it.

The nurses tried again, but couldn't get the long-line in. Eventually, they gave up on her foot and finally managed to insert it in through Millie's arm.

By this time, she was screaming and crying tiny tears. Mummy and even the nurses were crying too.

Today, she is much calmer. She sleeps peacefully when laid on her front and snuggles up to mummy for a cuddle when surrounded by the special blanket knitted by Nana.

Millie was fed for the first time today.

The TPN was supplemented with tiny amounts of milk. Today, she had 0.5ml (one tenth of a teaspoon) of mummy's milk every four hours.

It was fed into her using a tube through her nose and into her stomach.

If the feeding works, the amount will gradually be increased until Millie is able to breast feed and can drink mummy's milk to her heart's desire.

Time together is precious.

Millie enjoys being held skin-to-skin, but like other premature babies she can become distressed if she receives too much contact.

This can make parenting very emotional.

Naturally, parents want to hold their babies. But it is not uncommon for premature babies to be held for as little as one hour each day.

The rest of the time is spent gazing through the perpex glass of the incubator, wondering whether the spaghetti junction of tubes and wires is doing its job properly.

The lack of privacy in the Special Care Baby Unit makes parents very self-conscious.

It means they must get to know their babies in full gaze of other people, rather than in the comfort of their own home like other parents.

But mummy is now a dab hand at changing the tiniest nappies in the world. And despite his shaky hands, daddy has managed to wash Millie using a cotton bud dipped in sterilised water.

Both mummy and daddy feel they and Millie have come a long way in the last few days.

The nurses are doing a sterling job helping them along in what is sometimes a daunting situation.

They never intrude, but they are always supportive and available with advice if needed. And they call daddy 'dad', which he likes.

Wednesday, February 22, 2006

Day 5 - Moving house

TODAY Millie did something her parents have tried unsuccessfully to do for the past year or more: she moved house.

She is now in an incubator, rather than an open tray.

Although incubators are bigger than trays and fully enclosed, they are step up and a sure sign of progress.

The incubator is still in the Peter Rabbit room (the room for the youngest babies) but she is now third in, rather than being on the end.

She weed as she was moved (which is good), is spending more time breathing without any help (good) and cries alot (good).

Another milestone today: Millie's name was printed in full more than 900,000 times and sent all over the world, courtesy of the Daily Telegraph announcements column.

This is something that her mummy wanted. It was also a novel experience for her daddy.

He is more accustomed to receiving money to see his words of wisdom published, rather than handing it over.

Daddy joked that he would be a millionnaire many times over if he was paid at the same lineage rate that the announcement cost. But it was still worth it anyway.

Each day mummy produces milk in increasing amounts. She expressed 38ml this morning, compared to 21ml yesterday evening.

The milk is stored in the freezer and will be used as and when required.

Meanwhile, the special baby unit continues to be very busy.

In fact, we learned that had Millie been born today, she would have been taken to be looked after at a hospital in Nottingham as there is no room for any more babies.

We continue to count our blessings.

Confirmed forthcoming visits to look forward to: John and Linda (this afternoon); Winston & Lynda (Saturday 25th).

Tuesday, February 21, 2006

Day 4 - Kangaroo care

MILLIE continues to show signs of progress and there doesn't appear to be anything to worry about.

The consultant told Caroline that Millie is doing everything they expect a 30-week old baby to do and more.

This morning, Millie had a routine ultrasound scan of her brain. This is a scan given to all newborn babies as a matter of course.

Sometimes premature babies' brains can bleed, especially if they get cold after they are born, but Millie passed the ultrasound scan with flying colours.

The doctors did wonder whether Millie had some inflamation in her tummy. She had an abdominal X-ray and that too came back completely clear.

The only slight concern is that she has lost about 140 grammes in weight since birth - about 10 grammes more than they would have liked.

Premature babies are expected to lose about 10% of their birth weight before they start putting on weight.

Millie weighed 1298 grammes at birth so she should have lost about 130 grammes.

In old money, the extra 10 grammes lost is less than half an ounce. And because everything else is going so well we are not unduly worried. Nor are the hospital staff.

Millie is having photo-therapy at the moment, which is like being under a sun bed. This is helping to stave off any jaundice.

Beth's 'bug' is keeping her company (see picture above). You might also be able to make out an orange filter or shield over Millie's head which is protecting her eyes from the ultraviolet light.

Caroline had her first skin-to-skin cuddle with Millie today.

Skin-to-skin contact is known as "kangaroo care". Millie really seemed to enjoy it and curled up into a little ball between Caroline's breasts inside her gown.

The hospital says kangaroo care is especially important for premature babies which have little human contact compared to full-term babies cuddled from birth.

Studies have shown that it helps to maintain and cement the mother-baby bond, as the baby can feel the familiar sensation of its mother's heart beating as it did in the womb.

In another minor milestone, Caroline also washed Millie, cleaning her face, eyes, ears and bottom.

The rash that she had has gone down a little bit, but we may need to think about buying hypoallergenic nappies in the future.

Johann paid two visits to the hospital today. The first was to bring Caroline a milk shake and the morning post - we have lots more cards and would like to thank everyone.

We received an especially nice letter from Auntie Miriam and Nana sent a specially knitted blanket with a pink crocheted border that Millie will lie on while she is in the special care unit.

In the evening, Johann visited again and was able to have his first "kangaroo care" cuddle with Millie.

He thinks she really looks like him - right down to the dark curly hair and wrinkly forehead...

Confirmed forthcoming visits to look forward to: John & Linda (Wednesday 22nd); Winston & Lynda (Saturday 25th).

Day 3 (Mon 20 Feb)

TODAY was the first day all three of us found ourselves able to breath a little more easily.

Millie is off the ventilator and no longer on morphine or dopamine. In the words of one midwife, she is "doing lovely".

She is breathing virtually unassisted with just a little help from two tubes which blow oxygen gently in the direction of her nostrils.

Because she no longer has a ventilator tube through her voice box, Millie can now cry (and sometimes won't stop when she starts!). She continues to kick and fidget and opens her eyes occasionally when mummy and daddy are talking to her.

Like her parents, Millie seems to have sensitive skin. She has developed a slight rash and is therefore lying on her nappy, rather than being wrapped inside it.

She has been lying under a plastic cover to keep her warm.

Caroline has been snuggling up to the toy 'bug' given to Millie by her cousin Beth, so it smells nicely of mummy and can be placed next to Millie on Tuesday morning.

Caroline is up and about without a wheelchair. She is expressing milk in increasing amounts every three to four hours, ready for when Millie starts to feed, which will probably be tomorrow (Tues).

Vida, Caroline's god-mother, came to visit and brought some flowers which have brightened up the ward. All the flowers we have been given are lasting well.

The ward can be rather noisy through the night: If the babies don't keep Caroline awake then their snoring mothers do!

It looks like Caroline will be back home in Tiptree on Monday 27th February, which will be almost a month to the day since she first went into hospital.

Confirmed forthcoming visits to look forward to: John & Linda (Wednesday 22nd); Winston & Lynda (Saturday 25th).

Millie's Milestones

Day 11 - Registering Millie

Day 10 - Mummy home

Day 9 - Breast is best

Day 8 - One week old

Day 7 - Top and tail

Day 6 - Spaghetti junction

Day 5 - Moving house

Day 4 - Kangaroo care

Day 3 (Mon 20 Feb)

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