We've braved the first few days with Madison home!  We haven't got much sleep, but this is much better than going to the hospital everyday!!  She is doing really well.  After some initial curiosity, our 2 dogs, Rusty and Cooper have adjusted to having a new little sister.  Today we take her to a doctor's appointment for an eye exam (routine).  That's about it for now.  Here's some more recent picks of Madison getting ready to head home in her car seat, and some other pics from our home.  Enjoy!

MADISON IS COMING HOME TODAY!!!!

Finally, after exactly 8 weeks of being at the hospital, Madison is scheduled to come home this afternoon!!!  It's been a long journey filled will lots of ups and downs, but in the end Maddie pulled through it all like a true champion.  We are very proud of her and are soooooo excited to finally have her in our own home.  All of the doctors have been very pleased by her progress--so much so that they are allowing her to leave at the very earliest age they possibly allow for premies.   Ahhhh, no more tubes & montitors attached to her--no more traveling back and forth to the hospital everyday (it's 30 min. away).  It will be so nice just to have our little girl home with us.  We feel very blessed and lucky that everything turned out well.  We want to thank everyone again for their support throughout this difficult time.  Please continue to check this blog for more updates about her progress at home.  Also, in the near future, we will be announcing a new website which will contain information about Maddie (where she is registered, etc).  Thanks again everyone!  

Exciting Day for Madison!

Madison is always making funny faces.

What a cutie patootie!!

Madison's first bath!!

Notice her foot sticking out as daddy tries to get her in the water!

Her first bottle feeding!!  She drank 28ml out of 40!  Pretty darn good for her first time!!

Cuddling with daddy after an eventful evening.  

Madison had a great day today.  We got to give her her first bath today.  She really seemed to enjoy it!!  She was surprisingly relaxed and was smiling afterwards.  After her bath, the nurses bottle-fed her for the first time.  She did really well and was able to drink about two thirds of the bottle!!  That's our little champ!!  

4 pounds!!

The many faces of Maddie!!

Madison reached exactly 4 lbs. yesterday!! That's nearly twice the size she was when she was born! Madison hit another preemie milestone yesterday; she is now big enough to be in an "open crib", which means that she is no longer enclosed in the incubator. It makes us a little nervous at the thought of her being exposed to the open air (and noise). In a way, it was somewhat comforting to know that she was protected in her little incubator, but she seems to be doing great without it, plus it makes for better picture-taking!! Another great thing is that Madison has been practicing with breast feeding. She seems to know exactly what to do, but she is still not quite strong enough (sucking) to pull it off. We are hoping that it is just a matter of a week or so before she becomes a pro! Here's some more recent pics for you. Enjoy!

Sorry for the lack of entries lately! It's been a week since the last! Anyways, Madison is doing great! She was recently taken off of her oxygen air flow completely!! Yup, she's breathing on her own just fine. That's one less tube covering her pretty little face! She is now 3 lbs. 12oz and should hit 4 lbs sometime next week hopefully. She's doing so well that there is a possiblity that she will be able to come home sooner than later. It could be anywhere from another 3-5 weeks before we take her home. It all depends on how well she is doing. So for she's looking good! I'll post more pics soon!

Madison says:"Look, I'm a baby burrito"!

(left) Madison says: "Rock on!"

(right) Madison in her new "daddy's little princess" outfit.

Madison is doing well. She's looking cuter than ever. No issues or concerns to report. She's just a 3 lb ball of cuteness!!

Looks like my cold stuck around a little longer, so I've been trying to rest and get well. I'm finally feeling back to my old self now--just hoping that Janna doesn't get sick too. As for Madison, she is doing excellent. She is now 4 weeks old!! My how time flies! She's looking more cute than ever, especially since she's gaining weight, and now that she is wearing little premie clothes!!

No news is good news!!

Madison reached 3 lbs yesterday! Keep growing, Maddie!! Other than this, there is not much news. I know, kind of boring, but like Janna says, "boring is good!". Madison has been enjoying daily visits from Grandma and Grandpa Crogan recently, who have been down for the last couple of days to visit. They came all the way from Tahoe just to see her! Well, isn't she special!!!

Here is Madison being a little camera shy.

Madison continues to do well. My worst fear came true however, and I got sick so I wasn't able to visit Madison yesterday. Its just a slightly sore throat, not a big deal. I'm feeling better today, so I might go see her today, but I will definitely not being touching her. We are being very careful not to jeopardize Madison's health. As far as any updates, Madison had her picc line removed since she no longer needs it. Her infection is gone and she is now off of antibiotics. She is up to full feedings (24ml) and no longer needs supplemental I.V. nutrition. The doctors and nurses are very pleased with how she is doing.

Things are looking great!

(above) Madison is looking at her Daddy while he holds her.

Madison is grabbing on to Daddy's chest hair. Youch!

Madison is doing very well. Within the next few days, the plan is to take her off of antibiotics, take out her pick line which is no longer needed, and take her off of her air flow! Madison is now just one ounce shy of 3 lbs!! She is up to 18ml of breast milk every 3 hours. She even starts to get cranky near the time of her feedings. She wants that milk!! She's a growing girl! She's even graduated to the "big girl" diapers because she has grown so much. Madison is still undergoing photo-therapy to prevent Jaundice, so she has to wear a protective eye mask all of the time, which hides her pretty little face. Hopefully she will be off of this soon! Thanks for following Madison's blog. She appreciates your support! Thanks again to friends and family who have sent their warm wishes through emails, cards, and gifts. Madison should be sending you thank you cards soon!!!!

Madison enjoying her new high-tech bed!

Yesterday went okay. They had trouble inserting a pick line earlier in the afternoon, so they tried again in the evening and that time it when very smoothly. She may only need the pick line until Tuesday when they will stop her antibiotic treatment. They decided to hold off on the blood transfusion, hoping that she will not need it. They will test her levels today to see if she needs one. Madison has been digesting virtually all of her 13ml breast milk feedings and we are hoping that they will increase them soon so she can reach full feedings and discontinue the I.V. nurtition. Madison also gained some more weight and is now a whopping 2 lbs. 11.4 oz. We should have a 3-pounder soon! She's doing great! All of the babies surrounding us are all on respirators and having difficulties, so we feel very fortunate and blessed that our little Maddie is doing so well.

Yesterday, Madison was one of the lucky few who recieved a new, high-tech bed made of moldable gel-like material. It's really nice! Apparently the nurses want to get these beds for the whole NICU, but they don't have the budget. The only reason Madison got one is that a representitive from the company gave out a few sample beds to the NICU. I think Madison deserves the pampering after all she's been going through! Nothing but the best for our little princess!!

Madison is doing better. However, today she will receive another blood transfusion, since they have been drawing lots of blood lately for all these tests. Nothing to worry about. They will also insert a pick line today, which is not the most fun thing in the world, but Maddy can handle it. I'll let you know how everything goes.

Madison had another rough day yesterday. They had to insert three different I.V.'s because each one would fail after a while. They may insert another pick line if the regular I.V. continues to fail (her veins are very small and delicate). She also had a spinal tap, which apparently did not not even bother her at all!! Blood and spinal tap results look good so far. There are no signs of major infection. We have to wait another day or two for the results to be conclusive. Her heart rate and breathing were a bit better yesterday, so that was good. She's doing a great job through all of this. We are very proud of her. I'll continue to keep everyone posted. Thanks!

Madison had a rough day

Although Madison has had an excellent track record so far, she hit a little bump in the road yesterday. Her heart rate and breathing fluctuated a lot. They are running tests to check for signs of infection or anything. X-rays show no signs of problems in her lungs or bowels. She is on a higher air flow for now. They took out her "pick" line just in case that was a source of infection. They also put her back on antibiotics as a precautionary measure. When we left her last night, she was doing a bit better. A blood culture was taken and we will know the results of that in a day or two (whether she has an infection or not). This is one of the many "setbacks" that preemies go through, and we are assured that this is very typical. It's often two steps forward and one step back. It is quite a roller coaster ride, but we are sure Madison will be just fine through all of this. She's quite a tough girl. Thanks again for your prayers and support. I'll keep everyone posted on how she is doing.

Grandma Hickman and Auntie Sue

Yesterday, Madison got to see grandma Hickman and her auntie Sue! They both came bearing gifts and good wishes! Madison told me to be sure to thank aunt Sue for the cute, hand-knitted caps and blanket that she made, and for the cute "Daddy's little girl" outfit. She loves them! She also wants to thank grandma Hickman for the money, which will go towards a car seat that she picked out!!

Madison would also like to thank her grandma and grandpa Crogan, who stayed with us at our home all last week to help out while Janna was recovering and while I (unfortunately) returned to work. She also says thanks for all the gifts they have showered her with already! They were a great help and support!

And lastly, thank you for all of your prayers and support. It definitely helps! Madison is doing great and they are already talking about removing her air flow since she doesn't seem to need it (she pulls is out half of the time anyway). They may remove her I.V. as well, if she continues to tolerate as much breast milk as she has been (13ml's). Good job Maddie! That's our little girl!!

This was taken on 7-25-09. Here, Madison yawns and sneezes.

I held Madison for the first time!!

Today was a fun day for me because I got to hold Madison for the first time. At first, I preferred that Madison was held by Janna --you know, the whole mother/baby bonding thing is important. But it was finally my turn, gosh darn it! It was great to hold her. She sat there looking at me as if she was thinking, "wait, you're not my mommy. . .who is this person?". She seemed snug as a bug in my arms. I think they encourage "skin to skin contact" even with dad, but I felt a little weird about taking my shirt off in the NICU. I don't think Madison minded too much that I kept my shirt on. Then again, maybe she'd find my thick bed of chest hair rather comfy!

In other news, Madison keeps increasing the size of her breast milk feedings. She's now up to 12 ml's!

Doing Great!!

Madison is doing very well! There are no concerns at all right now. She just needs to keep resting and growing! She's up to 9 ml of milk every 3 hours now! She first started at 2-3 ml! She's got a growing appetite! She already looks bigger. I'll post some more pics shortly!

Packin' on the pounds!!

Madison is doing better today. Her heart rate is a little bit lower than yesterday, but still a little high. She is back on photo therapy for Biliruben (Jaundice), which is not a major concern. The best news for today however, is that she has now gained 5 oz since she was born, which brings her to a whopping 2lbs 8 oz. (2 1/2 pounds). I'll feel even better when she weighs more than my typical dinner plate!

Madison is doing well after her blood transfusion. She got to snuggle with mommy for an extra hour today to make up for yesterday! Janna was very happy (so was Madison).

Here's a video clip of our little Maddy-cakes just sleeping away.

Blood Transfusion

Madison had a tough day yesterday. She had a blood transfusion due to her low blood level. This is typical for preemies. I was able to donate blood last week just in case she needed it. I'm glad that I was able to do that for her. In order to get an I.V. into her for the transfusion, it took about 2 hours! Madison was not too happy about this. The transfusion was successful, but everthing took a toll on her. Her oxygen levels returned to normal after the transfusion, but her heart rate was abnormally high. We are hoping that everything resolves itself soon. We appreciate your thoughts and prayers.

P.S. Bookmark this page and check it frequently for daily updates on Madison!

Madison pics.

I was encouraged to start a blog in order to share info about Madison. I'm not a fan of blogging, but here you go. Here's some pics for ya.