Evening Update (Wednesday 2/18)

Max had a pretty good day, although he scared us by vomiting fairly vigorously just as Carolyn was leaving. Carolyn was convinced Max was finally projectile vomiting, the long-dreaded sign of neurological distress. However, a passing nurse assured Carolyn that Max had "spit up" in this way before and, what's more, true projectile vomiting involved hitting the side of the crib, not just reaching Carolyn's elbow. Carolyn and I are slightly on edge because the resurgent concern about Max's hydrocephalus and because we're meeting with the pediatric neurologist tomorrow to get a full assessment of the various insults that Max's brain has suffered and what they might mean. We've been warned that this particular doctor isn't known for his bedside manner, so we're braced for a tense meeting.

Aside from that, Max had a great day. He continues to handle his 45 minute feeds with only the usual twice-daily vomits. Carolyn finds the new feeding schedule amazingly liberating: She and Max have twice as much free time together now. Yesterday Carolyn tried feeding Max with a bottle and he wasn't interested. Today, Max took a bottle from Carolyn twice, getting 17 ccs the first time and just 5 ccs the second. This was a major victory because Carolyn wants to get the technique down so she can feed Max by bottle on her own.

Max had a pretty successful physical therapy session. He does have an enormous head, so he has trouble moving it around, but he's clearly trying. He's also starting to vocalize, delighting Carolyn and A. with a few coos. I wonder if being surrounding by constant talking is stimulating his speech center?

In other news, Max moved his bowels without artificial aids or high drama. The consistency, I'm told, clearly indicates that he's on formula but isn't otherwise troublesome. The NICU team report that Max is now in the 50th percentile for length as well as for weight. Previously, he'd been in the fifth percentile for length. Carolyn wondered how Max could jump so dramatically on the charts, but the NICU team assured her it was possible.

Here is a video of Max cooing in his new crib (or click here):