In our arms

Silas is now 5 days old - and things are generally continuing to improve for him (and us!). The big news is that he got taken off the respirator so we've been able to hold him! He is still working pretty hard to breathe - but he is much happier not having a huge tube in his mouth and down his throat.

He's also been eating some breast milk from a bottle and digesting it fairly well. Matt and I have both had the opportunity to change a poopy diaper - though mine fell off soon after (guess that just means Matt will be the expert diaper changer in our household!!).
Silas did come down with a bit of a fever last night - so he is back on antibiotics and they've taken a blood culture to determine if it is an infection. You'll notice his IV has moved to a vein in his head, mostly because a belly button IV can't stay in for more than 3 days and is an infection risk itself. The nurses have decided his room is the 'big boy's club' because there is another baby in there that actually makes Silas look small (if you can imagine that). He is over 13 pounds!

The video below shows a little of what Silas' temporary home looks like - and also how much he enjoys his pacifier. In imagining Silas' first days, I used to feel very strongly about not introducing pacifiers or bottles or anything before we had successfully mastered breastfeeding. But none of that little stuff really matters anymore. We'll get there.

No real talk on when Silas will be coming home yet. I guess the average hospital stay for babies with MAS (Meconeum Aspiration Syndrome) is 18 days. But we find comfort in how well they are taking care of our baby in the NICU and our time with him every day is so uplifting.

We continue to appreciate the outpouring of love and warm wishes we've received from everyone - thank you so much.

love,
Julie, Matt & Silas