feeding

He has been doing a great job feeding lately.  Lately, as in the last 48 hours.  I'll take it!  He is overall awake more and it helps being confined to his bedside because then I can see when he fusses immediately and feed him.  He fed every 2 hours this morning for 15 min each, and has fed for 15-45 minutes for the last 5 feedings.  These recent times have been a very quick and immediate latch too, which is nice not having to sit around for a half hour trying to coax him into it.

I met with a NICU lactation consultant today just to make sure I was doing everything right, which of course I was not, but they were just little adjustments to how often I pump regardless of feeding (8 times a day PLUS regular feedings...), and that I should be pumping both sides simultaneously always if possible.  These things will help increase quantity faster because she says the end goal is 1 oz per hour because this will give me a good supply, and it is very difficult to live on the cusp of having enough at all times.  There were a few other tweaks and she gave me some free supplies and is meeting with me again on Friday to follow up.  She is having me keep a quantity/time log too.

Baby is back under the bili light because his levels are back up to 10.4 but that doesn't surprise me. 

They are lowering his IV fluids and that helped make him hungrier, and the neonatologist said he will soon be off IV altogether hopefully.  I'm not sure how much he weighed today but he was gaining tiny amounts of weight recently.  He must be gaining some because he had his first 2 bowel movements today!  Super fun to clean!

We did some skin-to-skin on Tuesday because he was off the bili light and because I was hoping that would help his feedings, and he just likes to cuddle after eating.

Here are some photos from Tuesday morning and night.

Passed out after lunch