Lakai's story
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elijahsmummy
Mummy to Elijah & Preg!
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Wow 
So pleased he's home! Must feel great xxx
So pleased he's home! Must feel great xxx
xx
mummymadness
Mummy to 4
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awwww welcome home little man , You must all be very pleased . xxx .
K
keelykat
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welcome home! xx
what an amazing story. xx
what an amazing story. xx
As the mother of a 24 weeker too many many congratulations. It is certainly the best feeling in the world when you get your little one home.
I have followed your story from the start and I am so very very happy for you all. You can now start your life together as a proper family.
If I may say, without causing offence in any way, now is such an important time and catching an infection is very easy right now. Your dog looks lovely and appears to love your son alot, but I wonder where his tongue was just before he licked your little ones face. sorry, hope you dont take offence but dogs can carry alot of little infections and have a habit of licking their privates too !
I have followed your story from the start and I am so very very happy for you all. You can now start your life together as a proper family.
If I may say, without causing offence in any way, now is such an important time and catching an infection is very easy right now. Your dog looks lovely and appears to love your son alot, but I wonder where his tongue was just before he licked your little ones face. sorry, hope you dont take offence but dogs can carry alot of little infections and have a habit of licking their privates too !
AnnaBanana9
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Congratulations, and welcome home Lakai!!!! 
xxx
xxx
nkbapbt
Double Preemie Momma
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So we have been home for about a month..well a month exactly today..yippe! But its been a long time coming and it has not been without it's up's and down's. Down's being that its very hard to SLEEP, not that I am complaining but Kyle is the one losing out the most. I stay up with Lakai till his last feeding is done at 1:30 am and then we go to what is called "bed" but mostly Lakai and Kyle sleep while I have on my new found mom ears, so I'm half awake and half not really asleep. Lakai is a noisy sleeper and when he isn't I start to freak out a little, wondering why he is so quiet. He typically sleeps from 1:30 am to about 4:30 am where Kyle gets up and takes him to the couch, where they both sleep..cute!
He eats every 3 hours after that, so basically there is 1.5 hours between each feed where we can do things. So not much gets done if it's just one of us awake. Kyle is still working from home which is an utter blessing while trying to sort out how to sleep. I am secretly dreading him going back to work full time. But I know sooner or later he will have too.
Oh how your life changes after a baby...I swore it wouldn't happen to us, but it did. There is NO time for 'us' anymore, we cannot have a date night or do anything alone together. Either because we are too tired or because there is no one else to help us. No one else knows how to run the feeding pump, and frankly neither of us know who we would even ask if there was someone to ask. But at some point we will need to figure something out because we can't just let our relationship dwindle otherwise Lakai will suffer if his parents cant get along! NOT to say we are fighting, we aren't remotely...but if you have no alone time...its bound to happen!
I am not complaining just stating the facts, the facts of being new parents! Eye opener indeed.
Lakai has had a few appointments, one his Grandma took us too which was with his pedi and the rest his Grandpa Kraft drove us too..who is going to be our new Grandparent Taxi =) as my parents are no longer able too due to health reasons...get better soon!
All of his appointments have gone really well.
We also had a review with the At Home program lady, Laura and we were approved, which is good because they will cover the cost of all of Lakai's medical supplies and equipment until he is 18 should he need it. But its also disheartening since it means he has enough special care and possibly special needs enough to warrant it. So its happy and sad that we were approved. I know it only was approved due to the gtube, so its a short term thing. They are not saying long term he has special care needs.
And they are certainly not saying he is special needs...the future will tell that.
I am a little shocked that so many people cannot believe the amount of appointments he has, but you cannot walk away from being born at 24 weeks..and 4 months in the hospital to a get out of jail free card! There is follow-up and we are so thankful for it. Not all of it is bad (pokes, needles and tests) most of it is actually just seeing where Lakai is at developmentally.
I have learned in this short little time being home that everyone wants to know "will he be ok long term?", I will just answer it here once and for all....we won't know until he is older, and like this whole roller coaster...if he isn't "ok" we will deal with it like we have dealt with everything else. I dont believe you go through something like this and walk away flawlessly. There is always something, be it little or be it huge...there is something to conquer outside of the hospital.
But I can update this...
So far Lakai is showing off developmentally he is tracking along the developmental chart extremely well. And while so many people say/know and so do we, that every baby is different and they will do their own thing at their own pace. It is something that the doctors do follow so it's haWrd to just ignore!
Right now he is tracking, he will social smile but its very random (he likes when you play with his mouth, like put toys on his lip, touch his mouth..), he is doing mini sit ups, sucks his hands/fingers sometimes, following dangling toys, sometimes responds to sounds by moving his head towards them, trying out new sounds like ahhh and cooing, he can hold his head very still and at a 45 degree angle, he likes tummy time and really likes to do it while on my chest so he can look right at my face.
Plus other things that lack of sleep is causing me to forget...opps!
What else? Well I am now typing one handed...feeding time at our zoo.
Lakai's dog Nu was diagnosed with Stage 1 cancer but it sounds like they will just remove the three (so far) lumps and she may be ok...fingers crossed.
I must say lack of sleep, lack of me or couple time aside...being a Mom is awesome and so rewarding. Every day he does some thing new, something amazing. Some days I cannot believe we made it this far...it seems like the hospital stay was a dream.
Its pretty amazing to be some else's reason to stop crying, to smile, to cuddle and snuggle with.
I would rather never sleep again than miss a moment with him =)
He is 9lbs 10 ozs by the way!!!
I think for now thats it...especially since typing with one hand is rough =)
PS Wubbanubs....are the best things ever!
He eats every 3 hours after that, so basically there is 1.5 hours between each feed where we can do things. So not much gets done if it's just one of us awake. Kyle is still working from home which is an utter blessing while trying to sort out how to sleep. I am secretly dreading him going back to work full time. But I know sooner or later he will have too.
Oh how your life changes after a baby...I swore it wouldn't happen to us, but it did. There is NO time for 'us' anymore, we cannot have a date night or do anything alone together. Either because we are too tired or because there is no one else to help us. No one else knows how to run the feeding pump, and frankly neither of us know who we would even ask if there was someone to ask. But at some point we will need to figure something out because we can't just let our relationship dwindle otherwise Lakai will suffer if his parents cant get along! NOT to say we are fighting, we aren't remotely...but if you have no alone time...its bound to happen!
I am not complaining just stating the facts, the facts of being new parents! Eye opener indeed.
Lakai has had a few appointments, one his Grandma took us too which was with his pedi and the rest his Grandpa Kraft drove us too..who is going to be our new Grandparent Taxi =) as my parents are no longer able too due to health reasons...get better soon!
All of his appointments have gone really well.
We also had a review with the At Home program lady, Laura and we were approved, which is good because they will cover the cost of all of Lakai's medical supplies and equipment until he is 18 should he need it. But its also disheartening since it means he has enough special care and possibly special needs enough to warrant it. So its happy and sad that we were approved. I know it only was approved due to the gtube, so its a short term thing. They are not saying long term he has special care needs.
And they are certainly not saying he is special needs...the future will tell that.
I am a little shocked that so many people cannot believe the amount of appointments he has, but you cannot walk away from being born at 24 weeks..and 4 months in the hospital to a get out of jail free card! There is follow-up and we are so thankful for it. Not all of it is bad (pokes, needles and tests) most of it is actually just seeing where Lakai is at developmentally.
I have learned in this short little time being home that everyone wants to know "will he be ok long term?", I will just answer it here once and for all....we won't know until he is older, and like this whole roller coaster...if he isn't "ok" we will deal with it like we have dealt with everything else. I dont believe you go through something like this and walk away flawlessly. There is always something, be it little or be it huge...there is something to conquer outside of the hospital.
But I can update this...
So far Lakai is showing off developmentally he is tracking along the developmental chart extremely well. And while so many people say/know and so do we, that every baby is different and they will do their own thing at their own pace. It is something that the doctors do follow so it's haWrd to just ignore!
Right now he is tracking, he will social smile but its very random (he likes when you play with his mouth, like put toys on his lip, touch his mouth..), he is doing mini sit ups, sucks his hands/fingers sometimes, following dangling toys, sometimes responds to sounds by moving his head towards them, trying out new sounds like ahhh and cooing, he can hold his head very still and at a 45 degree angle, he likes tummy time and really likes to do it while on my chest so he can look right at my face.
Plus other things that lack of sleep is causing me to forget...opps!
What else? Well I am now typing one handed...feeding time at our zoo.
Lakai's dog Nu was diagnosed with Stage 1 cancer but it sounds like they will just remove the three (so far) lumps and she may be ok...fingers crossed.
I must say lack of sleep, lack of me or couple time aside...being a Mom is awesome and so rewarding. Every day he does some thing new, something amazing. Some days I cannot believe we made it this far...it seems like the hospital stay was a dream.
Its pretty amazing to be some else's reason to stop crying, to smile, to cuddle and snuggle with.
I would rather never sleep again than miss a moment with him =)
He is 9lbs 10 ozs by the way!!!
I think for now thats it...especially since typing with one hand is rough =)
PS Wubbanubs....are the best things ever!
nkbapbt
Double Preemie Momma
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Its been to long, sorry I have not updated until now. But frankly? I didn't have too much to really say, I didn't think anyone would like to hear about Baby Batman's poops or if he did or did not spit up today..for the record if you ARE interested, he required a bath today after a big well..you know. And he did just spit up big time on his Dad. Which seems to be a trend, he saves them for his Dad I think! Other than this spit up though there hasn't been any really.
Yesterday was an intense morning..I was woken up by Kyle turning on the bedroom lights (he takes the 6am feeding shift and I stay up till 2:30am) and saying "I need you to get up, I pulled out his g-tube!" OMG what?! I guess Kyle in his sleepy state mistakenly got the attachment caught while attempting to change Lakai. And out popped his g-tube with the balloon still filled up..ouch. I then had to put it back in, but not before at 9am Kyle had to run to Shoppers to buy KY Jelly..to make it easier to slide it back into the VERY small stoma. I was not impressed. But it was an accident.
I did not like hurting my son though! Thankfully it all worked out. I got the tube back in, which took far more elbow grease than I would have thought. It took some force to push it back in, I was very careful though. However, there was mild swelling after everything (I think more from it coming out because the balloon is FAR bigger inflated and I put it back in deflated) but a little Tylenol cleared that up for today.
Lakai had his Feeding/Swallow Study on Friday, which went better than expected but still left us with our friendly g-tube in place so it could have been better. On his last one he aspirated as soon as he swallowed the barium and it was a very large amount. This time he did it randomly and it was a very tiny amount, but was still there.
He didn't do it at all on the soother trainer, which is basically a soother with a hole for liquid to be administered by syringe. But we cannot feed him that way.
It sounds like we will be going back in two months..I have a feeling by then we will be safe! I did however get the "ok" to keep breast feeding him (if you want to call it that) on a pre-pumped breast. Which is good in some ways..he is so interested in the breast. He loves it. But its frustrating too because it hurts my heart when he can't get what he wants from it either. At least he can still get comfort from it, tonight nothing could calm him down..so I tried it and boom! His little eyes rolled back and he was calm.
He is doing awesome developmentally maybe even a little advanced at some things. He is two months a few days now and he is doing these things....
Grabbing toys placed in his reach with direction
Moving them to his mouth with help (I guide them up there when he opens his mouth)
Pulling himself up or "standing" ALL the time
Jumping in his Jumperoo
Giggling
Smiling socially
Tracking faces all over the place
Tracking moving objects
Does mini sit ups and has for weeks now!
Holding his head steady for quiet long periods of time
Rolling from being on his side to back
And other things I cannot think of right now!
I think the nicest thing that happened lately would be him smiling! He has this wicked smile that lights up his whole face, it's his Dads smile for sure! (thankfully!!) I wish I could capture it on camera but everytime I get that little black box thing out..he just STARES at it and stops smiling!
Also I would say it was awfully nice of Dr. Jenny for sending Lakai five awesome books that are favorites of her son, Jack! Who also picked out a lovely stuffed duck for Lakai!
Lakai is also now wearing clothing sized 3-6 months..which means so much of newborn or 0 month sized clothing was never worn. Good reason to have more kids..hehe.
A not so cute thing Lakai is doing..Crying for mom! He is good with his Dad IF his dad has been holding him from the get go, so in the morning before I am awake. But if I wake up and hold Lakai..he will cry when his Dad holds him. Or he cries so I will pick him up, he has a very funny "pick me up" cry its very raspy and sounds like a rocker going "WWWWWWWWAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH" in a raspy rockerish voice..heavy metal rocker that is!
Poor Kyle..but there will be a time where he does something like that with me and wants his Dad, so I don't feel too sorry for him.
=P
I think thats about all for now..mostly because I am dead beat tired.
Take care...I promise to update sooner next time!
Yesterday was an intense morning..I was woken up by Kyle turning on the bedroom lights (he takes the 6am feeding shift and I stay up till 2:30am) and saying "I need you to get up, I pulled out his g-tube!" OMG what?! I guess Kyle in his sleepy state mistakenly got the attachment caught while attempting to change Lakai. And out popped his g-tube with the balloon still filled up..ouch. I then had to put it back in, but not before at 9am Kyle had to run to Shoppers to buy KY Jelly..to make it easier to slide it back into the VERY small stoma. I was not impressed. But it was an accident.
I did not like hurting my son though! Thankfully it all worked out. I got the tube back in, which took far more elbow grease than I would have thought. It took some force to push it back in, I was very careful though. However, there was mild swelling after everything (I think more from it coming out because the balloon is FAR bigger inflated and I put it back in deflated) but a little Tylenol cleared that up for today.
Lakai had his Feeding/Swallow Study on Friday, which went better than expected but still left us with our friendly g-tube in place so it could have been better. On his last one he aspirated as soon as he swallowed the barium and it was a very large amount. This time he did it randomly and it was a very tiny amount, but was still there.
He didn't do it at all on the soother trainer, which is basically a soother with a hole for liquid to be administered by syringe. But we cannot feed him that way.
It sounds like we will be going back in two months..I have a feeling by then we will be safe! I did however get the "ok" to keep breast feeding him (if you want to call it that) on a pre-pumped breast. Which is good in some ways..he is so interested in the breast. He loves it. But its frustrating too because it hurts my heart when he can't get what he wants from it either. At least he can still get comfort from it, tonight nothing could calm him down..so I tried it and boom! His little eyes rolled back and he was calm.
He is doing awesome developmentally maybe even a little advanced at some things. He is two months a few days now and he is doing these things....
Grabbing toys placed in his reach with direction
Moving them to his mouth with help (I guide them up there when he opens his mouth)
Pulling himself up or "standing" ALL the time
Jumping in his Jumperoo
Giggling
Smiling socially
Tracking faces all over the place
Tracking moving objects
Does mini sit ups and has for weeks now!
Holding his head steady for quiet long periods of time
Rolling from being on his side to back
And other things I cannot think of right now!
I think the nicest thing that happened lately would be him smiling! He has this wicked smile that lights up his whole face, it's his Dads smile for sure! (thankfully!!) I wish I could capture it on camera but everytime I get that little black box thing out..he just STARES at it and stops smiling!
Also I would say it was awfully nice of Dr. Jenny for sending Lakai five awesome books that are favorites of her son, Jack! Who also picked out a lovely stuffed duck for Lakai!
Lakai is also now wearing clothing sized 3-6 months..which means so much of newborn or 0 month sized clothing was never worn. Good reason to have more kids..hehe.
A not so cute thing Lakai is doing..Crying for mom! He is good with his Dad IF his dad has been holding him from the get go, so in the morning before I am awake. But if I wake up and hold Lakai..he will cry when his Dad holds him. Or he cries so I will pick him up, he has a very funny "pick me up" cry its very raspy and sounds like a rocker going "WWWWWWWWAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH" in a raspy rockerish voice..heavy metal rocker that is!
Poor Kyle..but there will be a time where he does something like that with me and wants his Dad, so I don't feel too sorry for him.
=P
I think thats about all for now..mostly because I am dead beat tired.
Take care...I promise to update sooner next time!
nkbapbt
Double Preemie Momma
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A more current update...Lakai is now 5 months corrected and doing awesome! He is developing right on track, if not ahead in a few areas. We have been to many different doctors appointments and everyone is pleased!
He is just a joy! So here's some newer pictures!!
https://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-snc1/v3915/101/77/523391637/n523391637_2245833_1433391.jpg
https://photos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs117.snc1/4719_93742136637_523391637_2335997_1235811_n.jpg
https://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs092.snc1/5123_100303336637_523391637_2436081_6097970_n.jpg
https://photos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs149.snc1/5560_109807491637_523391637_2596517_5770522_n.jpg
He is just a joy! So here's some newer pictures!!
https://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-snc1/v3915/101/77/523391637/n523391637_2245833_1433391.jpg
https://photos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs117.snc1/4719_93742136637_523391637_2335997_1235811_n.jpg
https://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs092.snc1/5123_100303336637_523391637_2436081_6097970_n.jpg
https://photos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs149.snc1/5560_109807491637_523391637_2596517_5770522_n.jpg
K
kellysays2u
Guest
aww lakai is doing so well! And is ABSOLUTELY adorable! I always wondered how he was doing! So good to hear news about him!
nkbapbt
Double Preemie Momma
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I agree...sometimes it's hard to believe he had such a rough start. He is the happiest baby I have ever known.
OT: He crawled for about a foot yesterday!
and 
he is only 5 months! He is suppose to be behind in these things..did he not get that memo?!
louise1302
mum to FIVE boys :)
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awww hes sounds like hes doing brilliantly, and hes adorabe well done to the 3 of you xxxx
CeliaM
Pregnant mom of 2
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Thanks for the update! So nice to hear such good news 
You and I were due around the same time, and I was at high risk for preterm labour. Thought I might meet you at Children's Hopital at one point! I've followed your struggles and triumphs knowing they could have been my own.
Congrats on doing a fantastic job. What a sweet little blessing!
You and I were due around the same time, and I was at high risk for preterm labour. Thought I might meet you at Children's Hopital at one point! I've followed your struggles and triumphs knowing they could have been my own. Congrats on doing a fantastic job. What a sweet little blessing!
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