bigger and better

Emily is getting bigger. 3 lbs 10 oz.
My milk will be re-tested tomorrow. God willing it will come back negative and Emily will be allowed to nurse. This will change my visiting schedule. Currently I go once or twice per day and stay a few hours. I like to pump milk at the bedside then hold her for 1.5-2 hours.

Since I want to exclusively breastfeed (No bottles), I will need to organize my visits around feeding times which are every 3 hours. At first they will probably want her to nurse a couple of times per day then increase as she builds up stamina. I hope to stay the night a few times before she comes home. I assume the doctor is going to want her to take all her feeds by mouth for a period of time before she comes home. Now she is receiving 20cc gavage (by tube into the stomach) and 2.4 ml/hour through the central line. They should be able to take out the central line in a few days (This is my prediction.) Her caloric needs increase as her weigh increases.

I am a bit nervous about nursing. There is no lactation consultant at the NICU but I'm told many of the nurses are well versed in helping mom's get started.