Day 28,

I am so excited because i finally got that hold i was so upset about not getting yesterday.. I was able to hold Ronan for around 50mins and it was lovely..

Apparently he had a good day with his breathing and he was at around 30% oxygen even when i was holding him which was incredible as he normally needs more when he is being handled.. He had a bit of a temperature 37.7c and his crib was at the lowest setting 28.7c so they could actually think about moving him into an open bed because he is keeping his temperature now, but we will see..

The best news of all is that he has put on more weight! He has put on another 91 grams in 3 days so he now weighs 1648 grams! 

(i have attached our first family picture taken tonight) 

Day 27,

Gosh where do the days go? I can't believe he is almost 30 days old!

I went and saw Ronan myself after work today as i had a meeting with the music therapist.. It looks like we will be going ahead with it as it may just help him considering he HATES being touched so it may just sooth him.. It's a free service so we thought why not try?

He is now in 35% oxygen and still on the CPAP.. He had an up & down day today as every other day but he was quite stable when i was there.. I was asked if i wanted a hold when i got there (after i did an express first) and after i came back they had to redo his feeding tube as he had pulled it out and then they needed to feed him etc.. so i never got my hold.. I was quite upset that i didn't get to hold him but i said "i understood" with a lump in my throat.. A few minutes later a couple came in and sat down and got to hold their twins so i was fighting back the tears knowing i missed out myself but that is the joy of this rollercoaster ride and when i next get to hold him i will certainly cherish every moment..

They will now be weighing him tomorrow & i hope he has put on weight..

Oh that 23 weeker that was opposite Ronan has gone.. We don't know if she has been moved but we haven't seen the parents around so im praying that everything is OK! We don't think they have just moved her because she was much worse off than Ronan and that is the best hospital for preemies, but i still hope she is alive and going strong..

Day 26,

Well Ronan was still on the CPAP and on 28% oxygen which was FANTASTIC!

They needed to pump up the oxygen to around 40% today and they were considering taking him back to the ventilator but they ended up suctioning his nose (secretions) and since then he has been on 28% for the rest of the night until now so he obvously couldn't breath properly because of his nose! I guess it's like when you have the flu and you have a blocked nose, no one can breath properly really..

He is still on 20mls of milk every 2hrs and seems quite happy besides the fact that he is now pulling out his feeding tube and they have had to insert it 3 times today! I think he's too strong for his own good.. heheh

It was explained to us that they have levels of pressure going into the CPAP and it's a gradual process of it going down in pressure ie: 9 is the highest down to 3 and then after 3 they take him off all breathing machines.. He is on 9 at the moment and will more than likely be taken down to 8 overnight but we will see tomorrow.. *fingers crossed*

Other than that there isn't anymore news for now but they are weighing him tomorrow so i can't wait to see the results..

Day 25,

Well Ronan was still on his CPAP tonight which was a wonderful suprise.. He was apparently breathing a little heavier today but they are still just monitoring him.. He is only on day 1 of the CPAP and the fact he's lasted 24hrs is a great result!

He was weighed again today and he is now 1557 grams so that is another 15 grams since Saturday.. He is still on 20mls of milk and it looks like they will be doing an echo (x-ray) of his heart in the next few days so fingers crossed the valve has closed enough to not need any further treatment.. He has had no more blood come up whilst they suction him for about 2 weeks now but we will find out the results soon!

One thing i have been trialing the past few days is to see how much he recognises my voice.. So when i open the crib i talk to him and say hello before i touch him and each time i talk to him he twitches alot and then when i hold his hand he grasps it that tight that his fingertips go white! hehehehe

Day 24,

We are VERY excited today as Ronan is now breathing on his own! He is on a machine called a CPAP where it gives a constant flow of oxygen to him BUT he is doing the breathing where as the ventilator was doing the breathing for him..

It is still early days and he MAY need to go back to the ventilator but this is the most stable we have seen him so *fingers crossed*

He is still on his 20mls but other than that he is going strong!

(Ps: there is a new pic of Ronan and his CPAP) 

Day 23,

Mark came along to see Ronan today as he was feeling much better! I am guessing he is just run down a little but we are certainly eating healthy so fingers crossed he doesn't get the flu afterall..

We were told that they actually weighed him yesterday and he has gained 400 grams (since birth) whereas his average should be approx 330 grams for a 22 day old premmie.. They are very happy with his weight because the more he puts on each day the more chance that his PDA (duct) will close..

I changed his nappy (he has still got a little bit of a red bottom), cleaned his eyes, smothered him with cream as his skin is quite dry and fed him through the tube (whilst Mark slept in the chair).. hehehe He had his eyes open almost the whole time so he's becoming more interative and it's great because it means that i can be moreso with him..

We left him with a belly full of milk and im sure he will have a good night, our little squirmer!

Day 22,

Well i went and saw Ronan by myself tonight as Mark wasn't feeling the best. Ronan was fine and everything they reported was the same as every other day. His feeds are still on 20mls every 2hrs and he's going strong..

Day 21,

Well there isn't much to report from last night other than Ronan is still on his antibiodics and he has been vomiting up a (little) bit of milk.. He is still on his 20ml feeds as this was the first time they have noticed any vomiting so i guess we will see how he is later today.. Whilst the nurse was feeding him through his tube i was putting the tiny dummy in his mouth which is therapy to help him realise to be feed you need to suck.. He was actually doing it!

The best thing of all is that Cousin Katie came and saw him last night which was fantastic and she got to see him moving about and opening his eyes. I am pretty sure Katie could see the improvement!