Wakey Wakey Sleepy Baby.

Guess who ate a record 3 ounces this morning? That's right! Good job Beckett!

I promise I will update more later. This week we are still in survival mode. :) Like we have a newborn at home or something? :) like someone who has to eat every three hours? :)

Even though we are on a no visitor quarantine (just can't afford for him to get sick...even a head cold to us, could mean RSV for my little guy...which in a preemie is not good!), don't give up on me. :) in the meantime enjoy the pic of B man's awesome camo pants :)

For these children, I have prayed...

Merry Christmas!

Beckett loves being home! He told me. He is eating like a champ, almost 75 mls each feeding! At the doctor's office on Tuesday, he weighed 6 lbs. 13 oz. Merry Chhristmas from Team Gramkow! Look at this sweet boy!

Not a creature was stirring ...

... except for Mama Gramkow. She was definitely stirring. In fact, she went right through stirring into awake before getting the Beckett update (no NICU phone call required) and promptly falling back asleep. And then there was Beckett and Daddy. They were just downright awake. No, we weren't excitedly awaiting the night before Christmas ... or I guess it would be the night before the night before Christmas Eve ... or maybe the night before that. In any case, that's not why we're up. It's just another 11 o'clock feeding. I can never seem to get to bed before then ... which somehow leads me right into midnight.

Ah, the life of newborn parenting.

Home Sweet Home

First night at home as a family. Priceless. Can't seem to put my Sweet Beckett down. Love him. He ate well through the night. Pediatrician appointment this morning...so we will see if he gained weight. Ellie also held Beckett for the first time! Sweet moments.

Oh what a night!

Oh what a night it was in the NICU suite...we are tired, but still filled with such JOY! Beckett did great with his feedings and made sure to gain weight yesterday to make sure and impress Dr.Grubbs! He now weighs 6 lbs. 11.4 oz. Now, let the discharge paperwork begin! Wahoo...we are going Ho Ho Home! (Pretty sure)

Praise God for Beckett: We are ROOMING IN!

Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Thank you for your prayers. We have definitely felt them. Our hearts are filled with excitement and joy! We are rooming in (staying overnight at the NICU suite) with Beckett hooked up to no monitors tonight! We got the doctor's order! Wahoo! He gained an ounce last night, so is now 6 lbs. 9.something oz!

Pray for weight gain

This is par for the preemie course. Dr.Whitborn called and said that Beckett hasn't been gaining weight adquately. So she is bumping his calories up to 27 calorie fortifier, and maybe we will get to room in tomorrow night now. Maybe Ho Ho Home on Monday.

We are OFFICIALLY rooming in tonight!

Beckett passed his carseat test. Same weight: 6 lbs. 8.4 oz. Still plan to room in tonight! Please pray for my health...my throat hurts, and I feel like I am getting a cold. :( please pray for some amazing rest too.

Rooming in!!

Beckett has had a great day! We are rooming in tomorrow night, and HO HO HOme on Sunday! Pray for him to pass his carseat test tonight.

Oh, and the Matt Hammitt song that I was referring to recently is called "This is Grace"....look it up and listen on you tube.

Our Prayer and Praise

We are so thankful Beckett is doing so well, amidst all that has happened these past few days. He had a big weight gain the night before last, and weighed 6 lbs. 8.6 oz. And then last night, he just dropped a few grams, so today weighs 6 lbs. 8.5 oz. We have been told to bring in the carseat today, and we may room in Saturday or Sunday night. He has been episode free still, and is eating more around 60 mls average each feeding.

Beckett is doing great, and I am trying so hard to cling to that. However, yesterday was worse for me. I know its supposed to get easier with each day that passes, but yesterday was awful. I broke down with Beckett's nurse, on the phone with the DRG...the thought of " how am I supposed to bring a baby home to a home where I don't feel safe?"

I'm parinoid, I jump at every noise, I check out the window constantly, I cringe when I see a sketch looking car drive by...its awful. I know we have a security system now, all our locks are changed...but I have a hard time getting the flashbacks of seeing the house at first, the fear I had as I ran back to get Ellie out of the car, out of my head...I wonder if they will try and come back?...

As I write this though...I do feel more peace. Last night I talked to my mom, and she suggested that we pray for healing and protection in each of our rooms in our house. So after I got off the phone, I asked Ben. We hugged for a long time, and he said to me. "Mandy, we have to trust God on this one"...and my response was " But we have to trust Him on everything"...Ben said, "Yeah, that's usually how it works." :)

Isn't it so true in our walk as a Chrisitan, as we walk with Jesus, we know we are to trust him in everythin?...yet we try so hard to fight feelings, and control on our own.

Ben reminded me that we prayed in every room with our very first landlords, the Taussigs, in our first home as a married couple.

So we did. Ben and I alternated praying...each room...I could feel a little more Peace. When we got to Beckett's room I just started whaling. Such a mix of emotions...so thankful for the ways in which God has saved our sweet boy...how God has used his amazing creativity and skill to develop our little boy, and grow him from 2 lbs to 6, outside the womb even.

We both prayed over our kids's room. We both crawled in Ellie's twin bed, and cuddled with her, cried, prayed, all while she was fast asleep.

It was a neat Peace we felt after we prayed throughout our house. We are so thankful God is loaning two beautiful children to us, that we get to parent and love.

It's going to be Ok. It has to get better. Jesus has our back. I still believe that.

We are so thankful for our blog following community...thanks for reading and praying. Today, we covet some specific prayers, and also would ask that you praise god along with us too.

Our prayer.
Pray for safety and security in our home. Pray that we would not find our security in our alarm system, but really in Jesus.

Pray for my mind, that God would fill it with positive thoughts, and would drive out my fear and insecurity.

Pray for our family as we may bring Beckett home Saturday or Sunday. Pray for protection for Beckett against germs and illness.

Pray for our health. I was able to finally sleep last night, but woke up this morning feeling sick...scratchy throat. :( I know I'm so run down, and exhausted. Pray for rest today.

Pray for an efficient productive day as we want to get all our acct passwords changed, and updated with our new information, insurance paperwork filed, etc. We really want to get that all done today before we bring Beckett home.

Pray for us to be willing to ask for help after Beckett is home. With Ellie we didn't have any visitors, and were in quarantine. And we will be the same for Beckett, but I think we might need to ask our friends (our healthy friends) for more help this time around. We will see.

Our praise.
Praise for God's provison to us to have this house. Praise that Ben has a good job. He is doing amazing things for Team Gramkow by working hard everyday at his job.

Praise for our Beckett. Praise for our Ellie.

Praise for our amazing support community of friends and family, near and far away,

Praise that we are reminded of the Gift of Jesus this Christmas season....as we get to experience the gift of bringing our sweet baby boy home from the hospital...soon.

Happy 37 weeks gestation, Beckett!

Our Home

Well, I'm sure some of you may have read our latest on facebook, but for those who aren't on there...FYI: our home was broken into yesterday afternoon while I was at the NICU, and Ben at work.

It was an awful sight to come home to. Today is better, but I'm still pretty shook up. We now have a security system in place, and I'm praying that will help a little with our peace of mind as we prepare our home (which now has felt so violated) to welcome our Sweet Beckett.

We are so thankful to those who continue to pray for us, for those who came to help, for those who just came to keep us company so we didn't have to be alone. You know...I'm so thankful for times like this when you have friends who don't have to even say anything, just be there, or just walk along side me and agree that this life is hard, and it is sometimes awful...

Friends have let us borrow things that were stolen until we can get our insurance replacements, friends came to help clean up what they destroyed, messed up. We even had sweet friends help us do laundry because I was just sick to my stomach that they touched all our clothes.

Awful to see our home not left as we has thought we did that morning. Awful to see our safe open with papers all across the laundry room, awful as your instinct of getting your kid to safety, screaming, making her cry, her asking what was wrong, dialing 911, calling Ben crying while Ellie wiped my tears...he thought I was crying about Beckett...he actually felt a sense of relief that it was a break in rather than bad news about Beckett..

It's all just awful. It's a different kind of sadness, a different kind of pain, and now a different kind of fear.

We got to meet some neighbors. Should have been a better neighbor before now reaching out to introduce ourselves before all the crazy began. But I do think we will be watching out for each other more now. Community can be built through crisis. I do believe that. I really do.

But perspective, it is just stuff. God protected us. We weren't home, and we are safe. I have to keep clinging to that fact. God kept my sweet family safe. When you have your belongings stolen, you just can't help but realize that you would so much rather it be that...than your family. So thankful God protected us. So thankful God put each of our friends and family in our lives to help support us through this time.

Our sweet NICU nurse who watched Beckett all day yesterday, came to our house (and yes, Karen...I'm crying while writing this) after her shift came to our house and brought us a meal. But more importantly she brought us good news about Beckett.

In the dark, tough times, we HAVE to choose to cling to the good. Hope reminds us of the good.

Makes me think of another Matt (from Sanctus Real) song that is on my Jon Jon Heart CD from Casi.

"The reason for our suffering is to help us realize, that in sickness or in death...we are helpless with out Christ. Bless the Lord, Bless the Lord....this is grace, this is grace...when we walk thru the dark times...this is grace, this is grace, and we wait for the sun rise...how I long for the sun rise."

Nurse Karen told us that our Sweet Beckett had his eye exam by the opthamologist, and is ROP free. Dr.Packwood said his eyes looked awesome, and that we didn't need to be seen for a YEAR! Such good news for such an awful day.

Talked to the DRG today. He clarified some of the heart questions yesterday with me, but obviously I didn't have time to post. He does have a PFO, but the PPS is what is causing us to hear a murmur sometimes. In summary, Beckett has no heart problems. The DRG knows that I love the details, but today knew I needed the summary version. What a good doctor.

Ooh, this will be fun. DRG Fun fact trivia question:
What was Dr.Grubbs profession before becoming a Neonatologist?
A. Car Salesman
B. Chemical Engineer
C. Social Worker

Beckett has been eating better. His weight gain was ok last night, but not steller. He is now 6 lbs. 5.7 oz. He still has a couple more days to prove himself on the 5 day countdown. He will be 37 weeks gestation on Friday.

However...it looks like we might be HO HO HOme soon.

We canNOT wait to bring our 3-month-old newborn home! :)

Maybe one more week?

Beckett has been (I feel like) barely passing by on his feedings. Dr.Grubbs isn't satisfied with his eating and weight gain. So my little buddy needs some more time to build up his stamina to eat! He has nursed a couple times a day, and we are actually staying put with that until he gains weight a little better. Then we can start adding in a breastfeeding. Ideal caloric intake for him is 150 mls/kilo for the day (24 hour period). For hydration, he needs to eat 100 mls. Yesterday Beckett ate 120 mls, and his weight dropped to 6 lbs. 4.3 oz. 

He has been sleepy, sleepy! We think his days and nights are mixed up. He was awake last night from 3 am to 5 ready to play. Lovely :) oh well, its a good thing he is cute!

So I asked the DRG the going home ballpark figure, and he said at the earliest this weeken, but may be next week. He still needs to prove he can adequately gain weight and complete his feedings for a few days, and we have time since his 5 day episode count started again.

He does have chronic lung, so just doesn't have a lot of reserve. And that would affect his feeds. Again. He is just 36 weeks, and we are asking him to do a lot!

Oh, and I asked the DRG about the heart murmur thing...its not his PFO, its the PPS??? (which is a vessel that was a little narrow). My bad. Ok...now the nurse is investigating. Have to ask the DRG again, cause the echo says he has a PFO. Gotta keep him on his toes, now that we are on the homestretch, and his job is almost over!

And I shouldn't bring my carseat in until we room in. Which is good because all of my parts are air drying from being washed!

We switched from Enfacare to Neosure. No difference, just the company who makes it. Ellie went home on Neosure.

I was here at 2 pm to breastfeed, and B man was too tired. We barely got him to take 46 mls. So we will try again at 5. Although, right now I'm looking at him....and he is still pretty sleepy. Ooh...just saw some eyes!

Took the infant CPR class, and pray I never have to use it. Have my meeting with my new pediatrician on Wednesday at noon. Pray that goes well! Eye doctor is going to come tomorrow.

Ok...he is making all sorts of squeaky noises now! I hope he is pooping! :)

***update: breastfed for 10 minutes...took 16 mls with bottle afterward.

Please pray for Becketts head. His soft spot is huge and his front sutures are really split, and go all the way down to the bottom of his forehead.

Quick update

Well, Beckett averaged eating 50 mls for the day and night yesterday. He breastfed well 2 times. Yay! However, he did have a feeding episode at 11 am when I was feeding. He didn't need to get his feet flicked, but it was a little longer. So we shall see if the DRG has that one start the count over again.

He did lose a little weight. He is down to 6 lbs. 4.3 oz. It's length measuring Sunday, but he didn't gain any length 48 cm. His head circumfrence is 34 cm.

He needs to have a poopy diaper. This is a common theme lately. Come on B man, live up to true boy status!! :)

The count down starts again...

He is still in his private NICU hotel room because tonight before Beckett's 8 pm feeding, he decided that he would like to stay a minimum of 5 more days. Yep, he had an Apnea/Bradicardia episode where the nurse had to take him from mommy's arms, put in bed and flick his feet. We think it's reflux related. The nurse also taught mommy how keep rubbing his back when he is nursing, especially when she notices him stopping his breathing.

He still is off oxygen, but still has a intermittent tachypneic breathing (fast breathing). This is pretty common with still transitioning off oxygen.

He is still really cute. Mommy gave him a bath pretty much all by herself, and loves when his hair smells like fresh Johnson and Johnson baby shampoo.

He still has a heart murmur. They are hearing it more often, and stronger now. He has a PFO (patent foramen ovale), so hearing it more now means is possibly closing. The PDA is off of the aorta, that closes 24 to 48 after birth. Ellie had the PDA still open. Beckett's PDA closed. The PFO is the "hole in the heart" between the ventricles that closes as a baby gets to term. His echo back on the 14th indicated that the PFO was trival, and that it was where it kind of is expected to be due to his gestation. 

He still has a buldging belly, which mama hates, but I guess until he really works on his 6 pack, this will have to do. Weak ab muscles due to when he was sick with his distended belly, and the bubble CPAP. I say he looks like my pear baby!  He does have an umbilical hernia. Ellie had that too, and it went away on its own.

He still is pretty tired. He had a good night last night, and finished all his feeds. Ben and I hung out with Beckett fo quite a while yesterday. We were advised to get the car seat out and ready to bring in for the car seat test. We also have been hearing talk of "rooming in!!" Today, however, Beckett barely slid by his feedings. He has to take a minimum of 45 mls, and he had three feedings of 47, 47, and 45 mls...hmm...we shall see if he gains weight. Last night he only gained 3 grams. Today he weighed 6 lbs. 3.6 oz.

Please pray for his reflux. He seems to be refluxing a lot more lately. And of course, I hate seeing him wiggle. It would also be nice if you could pray for him to make more poopy diapers. His belly is so full.

He is still so so cute. Oh, did I already mention this? Ok. So here are some pics to remind you!  

One step back: No rushing please!

Well, quick overview of last night and today. Beckett is tired. Very tired.

He is STILL off Oxygen, which is amazing. I honestly thought he'd be back on by now. But...the transition is wearing him out.

Last night he wasn't real interested in breastfeeding at 8, so Ben tried the bottle. No luck. The nurse got him to eat, but during it he had an episode. :( Yep, Ben and I got to see our son dusky, and get put back to bed quickly, with his feet flicked. He cried. That was almost a sigh of relief hearing. Crying = breathing. Breathing is good.

And then today, not interested at the 11 am feeding today, nurse got him to eat, but he slept the whole time! At 2 pm, he had an episode before she even got the bottle in his mouth. He had to have his feet stimulated again.

So automatic 5 days more. Not that I really thought that we would be home by then anyways.

He did lose weight last night, down to 6 lbs. 2.4 oz, so the DRG put him back up to 24 calorie fortifier. Beckett hasn't had a poopy diaper for a couple days now. :(

He is spending some time on his tummy still, but that's ok for now as he transitions off the oxygen.

Its a good sign that he has been off over 24 hours, but he is so worn out, I'm not convinced he is done with it. Oh, maybe I said that already.

Chest X Ray came back fine. No fluid in the lungs. A little deflated, but could be whether he was inhaling or exhaling when they took the picture. His lungs are still a little small, and they will always be abnormal. Just the life of a preemie. They will still function, just not as complex of aveloi for that oxygen reserve that full term babies have. So could mean asthma for him, respiratory issues when he gets a virus, colds will just affect him harder than the normal kiddo. Ellie and Beckett just have special lungs :) tomorrow is the day...BPD/Chronic Lung diagnosis or not.

He has been just barely sliding by today finishing his minimum 55 mls. Super tired. So we shall see what tonight brings.

I hate seeing him so tuckered out. He is doing just so amazing, and still isn't supposed to be here doing all this hard work! Breaks my heart.

Beckett's Top Five and Go Home Criteria

Beckett's Top Ten...over the past couple days

FYI...
Days in the NICU: 76 days (Ellie was only in NICU 71 days, and came home a week before her due date)
Weeks Gestation: B man will be 36 weeks gestation on Friday! Almost "full-term."

1. TODAY he has been off Oxygen since 10 am (that would be 6 hours and 20 minutes so far! Yes, I just called the NICU again, after I finished this post, and edited this part...I just had to know if he was still off) AND he tolerated being off the nasal cannula even during two feedings! The nurse actually said his oxygen saturation was higher during the feedings...which I expected the opposite! The nurse is letting him cheat slightly though as he has spent some time on his tummy. He desats less, but he will have to learn eventually to get rid of that! We can't put him on his tummy at home...It's "BACK TO SLEEP" at home with no monitors.

2. The DRG (also known as Dr.Grubbs) finally came back to see Beckett yesterday after a couple other hospitals in the area had been hogging his time. ;) It was good to discuss the Ho Ho Home plan. He is pleased with his progress for a 25 weeker, and is thinking we could likely go home before Christmas. The plan is to get him off of oxygen completely before we go home. Ben and I would just LOVE to take a preemie home with no tubes or wires! Please pray for Oxygen No No for HO HO HOme. It's looking like we will do a combo of breastfeeding and bottle feedings with fortifier (for calcium, phosphorus and calories!), and will still stick pretty religiously to the 3 hour feedings (No "never wake a sleeping baby" rule of thumb for us preemie parents).

3. Weight last night: drum roll please. 6 lbs. 2.4 oz. Yes, that's right. He has now gained approximately 4 pounds since birth. Rock star! Wahoo for normal birth weight sized kid :) He does have a pretty awesome double chin, and some cute chubby cheeks.

4. Dairy Foods: Yes please! The DRG gave mom the go ahead to try a regular diet again with Dairy! So excited, although he said I couldn't go eat a whole tub of ice cream after we talked yesterday. :( When I left the NICU, I may or may not have stopped at McDonalds and had ONE fruit and yogurt parfait. It was just as good as I remembered. And I did stock up ONE for breakfast this morning, and I had a chocolate milk with breakfast this morning. Yummo. Dr.Grubbs said we could try and transition while he was still in the hospital, so we can see how he tolerates it. He has had some "looser" stools lately, but we aren't sure if this is related to the dairy yet. We are still transitioning to the Enfacare, so that could be it too. Dunno.

5. Lungs: Well, Beckett had a Chest X-Ray this morning to see what his lungs looked like now that he is more mature. You know when I was talking about 34 weeks being the week they determine the Chronic Lung Diagnosis...well, I was wrong. It's really 36 weeks. So Friday...dum, dum, dum....is the day. Basically, if he is still on oxygen = He gets diagnosed with Chronic Lung. If he's off on Friday = no Chronic Lung diagnosis. Most likely, he will have some respiratory issues, that could turn into asthma issues, or be the lovely "I have a harder time with respiratory infections when I get a cold, croup, etc." So far today haven't officially heard how his X-Ray came out.

So what will Beckett need to do before we can go HO HO HOme?
A. Be episode (As and Bs) free for 5 consecutive days (He has done this, as his last caffiene dose was November 26, and his last episode was I believe November 22). The DRG believes he has outgrown the Apnea of Prematurity episodes! Hurdle #1, check!
B. Be more consistent with his feedings, and adequately, consistently gain weight for at least 2-3 days. He currently can eat "ad lib" (as much as he wants) with a minimum of 55 mls at 22 calorie fortified breastmilk (with the Enfacare by Enfamil - special formula for preemies that he will go home on...and that we can buy in the store). He still has the feeding tube in if he needs it. He has been going strong now not needing gavage for I think two days (and this is great) but we now need him to prove he can take all his feeds for 2-3 days with out oxygen. We need to make sure he is really letting go and not waffling, and this isn't going to interfere with his feeding/weight gain.
C. He needs to be able to maintain his own temperature. Since this past weekend, his temp has been on the low end of normal, which isn't bad, but it isn't great. So half way, check. This has amounted to a ton of layers both clothes and blankets, hats and being swaddled. They tried him on the "tuck in the side of the bed" anti-swaddle method that is required for home (Yeah, apparently new SIDS recommendations are anti-swaddling)...although I think sleep sacks are still ok (I need to follow up with the Occupational Therapist on this) but he was a little cold with that. So hmm...we shall see. I tried to give him a bath today, but his temp was low, so he couldn't get it. Maybe tonight when both Ben and I are there! (We are spending our date night at the NICU with Beckett, taking the infant CPR class that is required before we come home).
D. Car seat test for 90 minutes where they monitor desats; no episodes.
E. The DRG also said that Beckett will need to draw pictures for his doctor, and some advanced calculus. But then he said he might let that slide.
F. B man will also get the Synagis shot to help prevent RSV (which is a swear word to NICU preemie parents, especially when they go home during lovely cold and flu season). This won't totally prevent the virus, but will help boost his immune system, since his is so compromised from prematurity.
 G. Beckett will need to be ok with his mom and dad going on at least a couple more dates while in the hospital so they can mentally prepare for the no visitor/ quarantine that will occur with the outside world after he comes home. Especially during cold and flu season.

****Ok, so again, special favor to ask all you Fort Worthian Parents with pediatricians. I'm pediatrician shopping, and need some good recommendations. I need to have this figured out before Beckett goes home, and of course, the FB post that I asked before, I can't find it! Ugh! So can you all e-mail me this time (God bless Gmail search function) at mandysue@gmail.com with your info! Thanks! *****

We are so blessed. So thankful to God for being with us through this journey, and for letting us experience joy during the homestretch. We can't wait for our family to be complete, and at home. We will continue to wait patiently until B man tells us he's ready. Please pray for us, as I know I will be freaking out when he first comes home, kinda like the first few weeks after he was born. We can do this. I know we can do this. I've got a great team. An awesome husband, and a big sister Ellie who just can't WAIT to hold her baby brother.

Praise God with us thanking Him for Beckett's health and progress. He deserves the praise.

Getting better with the O's

Guess who tolerated being with out oxygen support this morning for 3.5 hours? That's right! Beckett did! This pretty darn good compared to his previous 10 minutes.
He is still working on that whole "have enough energy" thing for his feeds. Last night he did have a couple partially gavaged, but today he took 60 mL for the first time! (This is 2 ounces people, wahoo!) He did have four poopy diapers yesterday and two today, which could be a slight factor in his weight loss the past two days. He is back down to 5 lbs. 15.6 oz, but hopefully he will gain tonight so he can impress the DRG when he is back tomorrow. (We call Dr.Grubbs the DRG in case you forgot). His length increased ... Sunday's measurement was 47 cm converted is 19 inches!
It will be good to discuss the HO HO HOME plan of action with the DRG tomorrow. They are talking about CPR class, car seat check, going home stuff that we need to get crossed off the list.
He breastfed twice today, so all is well in that area. We shall see what the DRG is comfortable with as far as how many breastfeedings we can do in a day when we come home. We will still have to fortify feedings with formula to add some poundage to Beckett I'm sure.
We are getting there...just need to wean off those O's!





 

Update: It's 4 am. B man took 2 ounces (look at me being a big girl and using ounces instead of mL now :) at both the 11 pm and 2 am feeding. Good thing too because he gained 28 grams! Now he is back above 6 pounds! 6 lbs. 0.4 oz. To be exact!

Look Mommy, no tubes or cannula!

Quick pic after bath time today...with no ng tube or cannula!
P.S. Beckett passed his hearing screen today! Praising God! He is still pretty tuckered out, but his feedings are starting to pick back up. His temp has been a little on the low side the past day and a half...not sure what that is all about. I LOVED bath time (even though nurse Karen and I laughed thru most of it). I tell ya, my 6 pounder almost doesn't fit in the hospital tub anymore! So cute, and so awesome to see him "normal" with no stuff on his face. He also moved up to newborn clothes because he was sporting 3/4 sleeve preemie sleepers. The newborns are still big, but, ah....he will grow. :) I did successfully nurse for two feedings today that didn't need gavage afterward! Ben and Ellie joined me at the NICU during sibling hour, so we hung out as a fam. LOVED it! Ben and Ellie read stories to Beckett. We were in a silly mood as Ben and I even sang our version of "Hey Dude" to Beckett to the popular tune of Hey Jude. :)

Oh Beckett...you are going to have such a fun time at HO HO HO HOME!

Celebrating Advent

Last Sunday marked the first Sunday in the Advent season. I usually think of Advent as church-speak for the season of Christmas. And I do like Christmas. But the real meaning is more specific than that. Advent is "The arrival of a notable person, thing, or event." So of course we prepare for and celebrate the coming of Jesus every Advent season.

This Advent Team Gramkow is preparing to celebrate the arrival of another notable person. A little baby boy name Beckett. We have been praying for many weeks that we he would arrive home by December 25. In fact, according to my plan he will come home the afternoon of the 23rd. That happens to be the day I have off for the holiday. Of course, if history repeats itself he will surprise us all by arriving early. Who knows.

Team Gramkow is a big advocate of holiday traditions. One tradition we started in recent years is the lighting of an Advent candle. So we have a candle to light on each of the four Sundays before Christmas. And I think we're supposed to have a Christ candle to light on Christmas, but truth be told: We've only got four candles. Our church has a Christ candle. Maybe we can use theirs.

Another tradition we follow is everyone getting their own stocking. I have no idea, what I would want to find inside my stocking. A sock full of candy isn't really on my wish list. But by golly it wouldn't be Christmas if I didn't have a stocking.  Just about every Christmas since Mandy and I have been married we've been looking for stocking holders. This has been a difficult search for us. That's partly because we plan on using these stocking holders for the rest of our lives and partly because we weren't really sure how many we were going to need. (One for every person of course, but we weren't sure how many kids we'd end up having.)

Well this year marks the first year that we have a fireplace ... and a mantle ... to hang stockings from. Hmm. We thought we'd better go ahead and get those stocking hangers. And we did! Last Saturday we went out and decided on four stocking holders just like the one below. Well, not just like it. They each have different words. We quickly decided that Beckett would get the Hope stocking. Daddy gets the Peace Stocking. Mommy gets the Love stocking. And Ellie gets the Joy stocking. All very appropriate.

The day after we got the stockings was the first Sunday of Advent. So our church lit the first Advent candle: The candle of Hope. Our pastor explained that the hope we celebrate is more than just a longing, but an assurance of things to come.

We hope you'll celebrate hope with us this during this special Advent season.

Oh What A Beautiful Morning

Ok, well maybe not really....it has been rainy here in Fort Worth. Although I will take that over the snow that all my Iowa family and friends are probably getting this weekend!

Beautiful in the regard that Beckett passed another pound milestone! He gained 63 grams last night making him now 6 lbs. 1.8 oz!

He has finished all his bottles over the night, but still needs to work on having a dirty diaper. Please pray for this...you can see him working to try, and he gets a little fussy. He at least is passing some NOT so beautiful gas, but at least something is moving thru the GI tract!

He has now transitioned to the breastmilk plus Enfacare (2 bottles), so we shall see how/if his weight gain continues.

Couple changes

Well, Beckett is now transitioning to a fortifier that he would go home on. Another sign we are getting closer! Enfacare will be added to the breastmilk for added calcium and phosphorus, and this is formula we can actually buy in the store. The calorie count also is bumped down to 22 calorie. (It was 24 calorie with the Human Milk Fortifier) He is doing "excellent" in his weight gain, and is steadily following the 50 percent curve on the growth chart (compared to other 25 weekers). Dr.Simpson also increased his feeds to 55 mls. (We are getting close to 2 ounces!!

He attempted some time with out oxygen again today, and only tolerated it for 10 minutes. We still won't rush him...he has done GREAT and tolerated all his feedings today (including a successful breastfeed).

Mom and Wendy are here, and so far nothing we have planned has gone according to schedule! Ha! We have laughed a lot though! They did get to see Sweet Beckett, and how big he is since they last saw him! We also went to Target and got everything we need to get Beckett's nursery set up! He is in newborn diapers, so I'm super stoaked we don't have to buy preemie diapers! Even his preemie clothes are getting small. His sleepers look like they have 3/4 length sleeves! :) I actually got some 0-3 size hats and they fit!

Short, Sweet

Short, Sweet...to the point.

Tired.
So excited that my mom and sister are here for the weekend!!
Yesterday...finished all feeds including a successful 11 am breastfeed...yes! We are back!
Beckett had occupational therapy, and did GREAT! He has all his reflexes he should at this gestation, good range of motion, tone, and isn't tight in his muscles.
Daddy fed B a bottle at 8 pm, and he took 59 mls! In 25 min.
He ate 53 mls at 11 pm in 17 minutes....accompanied by his somewhat trending poopy diaper at this time!
And at 2 am, took 55 mls in 20 min.

This is the first time he has been hungry for MORE than 50 mls!

And of course, his weight tonight is classic Beckett style.
5 lbs. 15.6 oz.

Waaaaahoooo!