Kilo Club

Arabella is officially in the 'kilo club'. She weighed 1036 grams last night. It's something to celebrate amidst all of the setbacks lately 😃

Since they withheld her feeds the last few days, we were certain she would lose weight and that started to really worry us. But in fact she was receiving lipids (fats) through her IV, which we didn't find out until today. The liquid is called SMOFlipid and it contains soya-bean oil, medium chain triglycerides, olive oil and fish oil (which are rich in omega-3 fatty acids). 

Belle will be back on her full feeds tonight too, including fortifier for her extra calories. So while she battles this blood infection she can continue to grow and gain strength, and eventually she'll be ready for surgery in the near future. 

Full feeds are determined by the babies weight, and are usually about 120ml/kg/day. So right now Bella's getting 11ml of breast milk every two hours. 

Breast milk is so crucial for Arabella's overall health. It helps build-up her immunity, and it does wonders for her brain growth and development.

Kiera has to be resilient with pumping. She pumps every 2-3 hours, including once in the middle of the night. The milk is then placed in sterile bottles, and stored in the fridge or it can be frozen. Each time we visit Belle in the NICU, we bring a few more bottles with us. 

When Kiera first started pumping, she would only get tiny amounts (literally a few drops for the first few days), and after a few weeks she started to fill the 90ml bottles, and more.

I'm so proud of my girls 💗💗💗