Baby Update: an Eventful First Week

A little update on baby Lincoln:

A couple days after we took him home from the hospital, we met with his pediatrician for his first visit. Unfortunately things did not go perfectly- he had jaundice and his bilirubin levels went up since we left the hospital. Jaundice is pretty common (especially in male and asian babies), but if left untreated, can have severe effects. In addition to the jaundice, he also lost 15% of his body weight since birth. A little weight loss is expected (up to 10%), so this wasn't good. My milk hadn't come in yet and it also explained his extreme fussiness during those first couple days at home.

It was back to the hospital for us- baby had to be admitted to the NICU for light therapy for his jaundice. We also started supplementing with formula to get his weight up.

Even at just 5 days old, you could see he had lost a lot of chub from his cheeks.

It was so hard to give him up to be put in the little isolette under the lights. We stayed at the hospital overnight, but in a separate room. The nurse would call us every three hours when it was time to feed him.

I like to think that he's dreaming of being on a beach in Hawaii. :)

During his 24 hour NICU stay, he could only come out to eat. We maximized the time allowed to snuggle with him.

Just one of many blood draws to check his bilirubin levels for jaundice. :( He had his blood drawn in the hospital before we were discharged the first time and the tech wasn't nice at all. They essentially prick the baby's heel and then squeeze their foot to their leg to get the blood out. His poor little cries were heartbreaking. Thankfully the nurses at the NICU were much more gentle as he had to get his blood drawn every 8 hours.

The next day we got good news- his bilirubin levels were down enough and he had made significant weight gain- we could go home!

Since coming home, he's been so much happier and calm. Those first couple nights when he would wail and wail were rough. My husband even told me he thought we might be one and done if this was the norm for babies. Now that he's not starving, things are going really well. :)