Family Photo....s

Well, we almost have a family picture. It just had to come in two pics instead of one. Now that Grady's uncle is closer, we might get them all into one picture, yet.

You can see the boys are gowned. There is a small outbreak in Grady's unit, so we are all wearing gowns and gloves. One more thing we have to do to spend time with the little guy. It is a good thing he is worth it. You can also see how much he has grown. Grady was a little over 9.5 lbs before this little bug broke out. Grady dropped a few points, but he is still close to the same weight. So far, none of the babies are showing symptoms of any illness, so we are just playing it safe and gowning up when visiting.

Since we last talked, Grady has begun tummy time and he is learning to take his meals by mouth. Today, he took 20 ml in about 5 minutes. You should have seen the look he gave me when I took the bottle away and replaced it with the paci. It was not the best look, believe me. Amazingly, Grady has to take small steps in his learning to take the bottle. Apparently, the amount of calories he burns taking the bottle is a large concern so this week he moved up to 20 mls once a day. The calorie concern has a lot to do with him being a preterm baby. Next week Grady will get to have the 20 mls from a bottle, twice a day. This little man is really enjoying that bottle. It took a little bit, but once he figured it out, that was all she wrote.

Grady has also been moved up to a larger respirator system with larger and longer tubing. This allows him to get into the floor to sit in his bouncy seat or watch the television or just look at how big everything is. There are plenty of padded mats to make him his own little space. With Grady in the floor, we can get down there with him. Mommy really enjoyed just laying in the floor with her boy. I will get those pictures up next time. Most of the babies have floor toys that they can play with. Grady has the strength in his little hands to play with some toys, but he is still so small that Mommy just holds his hand or helps him with some stretches. One day, they will be taking a nap together in the floor.

Well, there are so many little things that can be shared with you. I promise to get back to sending you all updates sooner. Grady has so many people loving and praying for him that we feel very blessed. Thank you all for your continued prayers, love and support.

Talk soon,

JoJo