Update and Pictures

Just a quick little update on our little GEM.  She's doing really good!  We're working on getting her to eat more from her bottle to try and get her to complete bottle feeds and off her feeding tube.  She needs to be able to eat 60ml or 2oz from a bottle consecutively and right now we're up to 10-30ml.  She's doing good and gets a little better at it every day.  It's harder for her to take from a bottle and takes a lot more effort on her breathing...she gets tired out quickly from it! 

On to some other big news...we got moved up to the floor!  She is now out of the NICU and in her own private room!  I think she is really enjoying the peace and quiet...no more alarms constantly going off, people talking, and other babies crying!  It's yet another transition period in her journey to her recovery! We'll also be able to do more for her up here as this is that transition period before she comes home.  We've been able to do her feeds, change diapers, clothe her, bathe her and have been watching her dressing changes which occur once a day.  I'm sure pretty soon we'll be taught how to do her dressing changes so we can get used to those.

Eventually on this floor we'll be able to take her for walks in the stroller around the floor and down in the garden...take her to the play room to introduce her to some toys and socialize her with other babies! 

Dr. Buchmiller came in this afternoon and said that she is doing so good.  Most babies with omphaloceles have respiratory issues and are on some form of oxygen assistance.  Gianna doesn't have any issues with her lungs or breathing!  Dr. Buchmiller's next step is to get orthopedics up here to measure her for a cast that will give some pressure to her omphalocele to start the compression phase.  She said that if the only hang up was Gianna's feeding tube, that wouldn't hold us here...that we could learn how to do her feeding tube and be sent home with that.  Obviously we're hoping she doesn't need to come home on it...but it does look promising for her to be coming home within the next couple months if not sooner! :)

We are able to dress her up in cute little dresses, hats, bows and socks!  Her dresses look so funny because of her big belly!  They're like maternity dresses! lol I can't wait to be able to go out and start shopping for some cute outfits!

So for now we're just working on her feedings and getting her closer to coming home!  We're waiting for the skin to grow half way up her omphalocele and the membranes to harden over before we take her home as well. 

Thank you for all of your prayers...she is doing so well!  God is so good and has truly blessed us!

Here are some pictures of our little peanut!