3 Weeks

(Ava 3 weeks/33 weeks, napping with mama) It's hard to believe that 3 weeks ago tonight I went in for an unexpected c-section and met our girls. So much has happened in the past month that at times it feels like months and other times I can't believe that Ava has already been the NICU for three weeks. Ava continues to do great. She seems to have bypassed many of the problems that preemies can run into early on and is just focusing on growing and developing. When she first started eating (until around 34 weeks this is all done by feeding tube), she was ~3lb 1oz and taking 3ml of milk, now she is ~3lb 8oz and takes 33ml. It sounds like pretty soon we will get to introduce Ava to nursing and see if she is developmentally ready and see how her suction is with her cleft lip. All of doctors and nurses have said that Ava's pallet looks great and that there is a good chance she can still be a great nurser. Jeff spoke with someone from the Cranial Facial Clinic at Children's who said that they expect Ava may only need one surgery to correct her partial cleft lip. They said that with a full term infant that is usually done between 3-6 months, so I'm not sure exactly when that falls with a preemie. They also said that they would want to follow up with Ava again around two years and then again around five to check on the development of her nose and pallet to determine if any additional surgeries are needed. It was nice finally getting abit more information. Thank you again for all of your continued prayers and support. Thlay