Braxton brings KiKI home

For the month of March we decided to keep Braxton at home from daycare so that he could get to know his baby brother and to make sure he did not feel left out at all. The last week of March was spring break and my plan was to do all kinds of activities with Braxton and to bring Beckett along for the ride. Of course my mom was available to help anytime I needed. 

Well Beckett got RSV and plans changed. Now Beckett is quarantined to ensure he doesn't get sick again so we are stuck at home. So my spring break plans morphed into Braxton and DD plans! 

One of their activities included going to Pets Mart and getting Braxton his very first pet! Now Luke and I are not big pet people but a fish we can handle. 

The fish now lives in a bowl on our kitchen table so Braxton can see her in the mornings during breakfast. And yes I said "she" because Braxton decided his fish was a girl. After the fish arrived and got settled on we began coaxing Braxton to name the fish. After 3 days he finally settled on KiKi. We have no idea where he came up with the name but it has stuck. 

Home sweet home....1st baths

With Braxton I had all these predisposed ideas about how fun and relaxing baths were going to be when we got home from the hospital. Those ideas quickly flew out the window when I realized baths were terrible with a newborn. The baby is cold and screaming along with wet, slippery, and squirmy. It's a high stress situation for everyone involved. And then just when you think it is over you have to lotion and dress said cold, screaming infant. But then sweet victory is yours as you cuddle the fuzzy haired, sweet smelling, soft skinned infant in your arms. 

I was prepared with Beckett. My goal...as quick as humanly possible in a bathroom heated to sauna level with a space heater. The first baths were still not picture perfect as I once dreamed but they were no longer a high stress situation. 

Sponge bath

Bath with daddy

Bath with mommy

Newborn pictures

Jillian Thomas has captured all of Braxton Cole's milestones since birth and we couldn't imagine using anyone else for Beckett Allen as well. 

Beckett was 11 days old for his newborn pictures and as always Jill did fabulous getting Braxton to cooperate during his part and she managed to keep Beckett asleep for all of his photos and position changes. Luke and I were able to just sit back and watch which was a nice timeout. 

All of our pictures turned out amazing. Here are some of my favorites!

Watch our handsome boy grow....Month 1

Photo Shoot fun

4 weeks old and counting.....

Beckett Allen what an eventful debut you have had....starting with your grand entrance during an ice storm followed with contracting RSV and landing yourself in the hospital at 2 weeks old.  

We love you so very much and are so very thankful for you as you are the perfect addition to our family. Of course time is flying by way too quickly and I feel sad knowing that before I know it you will be going to daycare and I will be heading back to work. For now we are trying to soak up all the snuggles we can...except the middle of the night snuggles...we could do without those. Hehe. Braxton Cole also loves his "baby brudder" very much and constantly wants to kiss him, touch him, and hold him. 

Things you are doing:

You are a big guy weighing in at 8lbs 6oz at birth. At your 3 week appointment you weighed in at 8lbs 8oz.

 Immediately after birth you latched on to nurse and you have really never stopped. Ha. You nurse for 20 minutes every 3 hours like clockwork. During your 6 night hospital stay for RSV you did not nurse well but quickly made up for lost time after discharge. 

You are a terrible sleeper and I truly mean terrible. During the day you require to be held during most naps probably because of your hospital stay. At night you sleep swaddled although you always fight to remove your arms and sleep for approximately 30-60 minute increments. Your record for consecutive sleep is only 1.5 hours. Obviously we are working on this. During your short bouts of sleep, you sleep flat on your back although in the hospital you were on a incline to assist with congestion. We have also tried side lying, prone, in a fisher price rock and play and some co sleeping (when we are exhausted). 

You are wearing all newborn clothes but are quickly outgrowing everything and are now wearing size 1 diapers because you were peeing out during the night. You had a terrible diaper rash for approximately 2 weeks which has resolved. 

You smile a lot although I don't call them purposeful yet. You enjoy tummy time and can easily clear your airway and you have managed to roll tummy to back over both sides 2x although I don't call that purposeful either. 

We call you bubba, handsome, lil B, B2, lil duck, or bubba. 

Things you like: being held, eating

Things you dislike: sleep, baths, diaper rash, swaddling
Big Events: Easter pictures, Newborn pictures, RSV, dying Easter eggs

 

RSV.....

With round 2 of this newborn business I definitely found myself being way more laid back and less cautious about germs and direct contact with sweet Beckett. I mean there is a dirty, germy toddler boy running around our house so in my mind poor Beckett is exposed to it all. 

Boy do I wish I could reverse time and change that mind set. My poor, defenseless, baby boy got RSV. 

Now I had heard of RSV before and knew it was serious business in an infant but when Beckett developed a slight cough on day 10 of his life I shook it off....allergies, sinus infection maybe. On day 11(Saturday) the cough escalated so I called the ACH after hours clinic and she gave me strategies to help with congestion which we were already doing (nasal aspirating, steam shower, humidifier). On day 12 I started getting nervous and debated a trip to the ER. First thing Monday morning on day 13 we went to our PCP. They tested Beckett and confirmed our fears...RSV.  Since Beckett was not even 2 weeks okd this diagnosis meant a hospital stay for us. 

We were admitted into NW medical center on March 16 and ended up with a 6 night hospital stay as we watched Beckett first deteriorate and then slowly improve. 

Day 1: chest X-ray✔️, blood work✔️, IV placed in skull after 3 failed attempts in hand/foot✔️, and late in the night O2 administration at 1.5L due to saturation levels dropping to 86%✔️. 

Day 2: attempts to wean O2 levels with significant increase noted with work of breathing (increased respiration rate and rib retractions). O2 back up to 1.5L

Day 3-4: Same song another verse. Attempted weaning daily very slowly but never able to successfully sustain O2 saturation levels at room air. Nurses began suctioning Beckett with saline every 4 hours. 

Day 5: respiratory therapists began performing saline updrafts. Beckett made it to room air and maintained O2 saturation levels in the 90s until bedtime. During the night O2 saturation dropped into the low 80s consistently but Beckett was able to recover quickly over and over into the 90s. *lots of monitor watching  for this momma. 

Day 6: discharge with important keys to watch for at home. We were definitely relieved but very nervous at the same time. Luckily we found an angel care monitor to borrow which gave me some peace of mind because I would be alarmed to any apnea events.