Love this Boy

We have had Henry home for 3 days now and it's still a little surreal that he's officially ours and that it's up to Alan and me to take care of all his needs. It's a satisfying job and waking up every 3 hours in the night isn't too bad when you have such a cute face to wake up to.

His head looks gigantic in this picture, but it made me laugh.

The ever doting Dad putting together Henry's bassinet.

The ADORABLE bedding my very talented Grandma made. Thank you again!

Henry really is a good baby and we haven't had any problems with him. We do have oxygen here at the house just incase, but so far he has been doing just fine. The first night we were more nervous than most parents, but we are getting into a routine and loving every minute of it.

Our day has finally come!

After 76 days in the NICU, Henry came home. He weighs 6 lbs 11 oz and is 18.5 inches long and is no longer needing oxygen or a feeding tube. It was such an amazing feeling to bring our son home and we couldn't have planned it better. It was fathers day and Henry saved me because I didn't have a card or anything for Alan. It was better than anything I could have bought though.

When you have a baby in the NICU they encourage you to pick a primary nurse or two. Andrea and Denise are the nurses we picked for Henry and they did such an amazing job taking care of our baby. The day we left Denise was taking care of Henry and she got quite emotional when we left. It is such a comfort knowing that the people who take care of the babies truely care about them.

This is the sign as you walk towards the NICU.


Henry all ready to go in his car seat. I really didn't think I would get emotional leaving the hospital with Henry, but I have gained relationships with a lot of the nurses, and other parents with children in the NICU. I also realize how blessed I am to have such a healthy baby and that nothing seriously went wrong with him. Thank you everyone for all the love and support. Please feel free to keep checking our blog to watch our little man grow.

With you..

With you in my arms, I know I will get thru another day.

First Bottle

We decided it was time to introduce Henry to the bottle, and he did so well! He ate half of his bottle and that's kind of big deal for preemies. Alan did a great job as well, and picked it up quick. The plan is to start bottle/breast feeding Henry four times in a 24 hour span tomorrow, then a couple days of doing that they'll start doing what's called "ad lib" feeding. That is when they wait for Henry to get hungry and to cry for it. After he does that for 48 hours and still gains weight our baby should be ready to come home! I am still not sure what day because things can change, but it's our goal for the next week or two!

Picture is a little dark, but you can see his eyes wide open. He loves to eat! Last time I asked how much he weighed he was at 5 lbs 13 oz, so I'm sure that he's at 6 lbs today. He's growing so fast and I can't believe that my baby is 2 months old today.

This is the first preemie outfit we bought Henry and he's already out grown it. So just because I'm crazy about pictures and memories, I made him squeeze into it one last time. (Sorry the picture cut off his head.. Daddy took it)

First Bath

After a week or so of Henry being in an open crib they allowed us to give him a bath. It was so funny because he hardly cried at all when we first put him in, then after that he just layed back and enjoyed himself. He loved the warm water, and I loved how yummy he smelled after.

Love those big eyes!


All snuggly in a towel while Daddy dried him off!

First Family Picture

The Roberts 2009

Henry J is the love of our lives! We have been told that as soon as he can eat by breast or bottle for 48 hours and still gain weight, and not dip too bad in his breathing for 7 days, we can take him home! So this week I am going to be spending a lot more time at the hospital so we can really get this eating thing down! Also, he has gone 2 days without a desaturation so only 5 more to go! The nurse practioner told us that Henry is "very healthy" and she thinks he's very cute. I might be biased, but I agree. Also, if you can't tell, he has been gaining some serious weight. He is now up to 4 lbs 14 oz! Way to go Henry! You are amazing.

A Reminder

My mom, the ever proud grandma, sent a picture to everyone of Henry in his big boy pajamas and he looks like a "normal" sized baby. So I decided to take a picture to remind everyone that my baby is still very small. He is now 4 lbs and 4 ounces, which to me and in the NICU is big, but I forget that most babies are atleast 2 lbs heavier than that at birth.

Besides moving to an open crib, there really haven't been many changes. He has been pretty stable and to us that is good news. He's getting better with his breathing and the breastfeeding is still going well. I am going to start spending even more time up there so that I can breastfeed as often as possible. As soon as I feel like we have established breastfeeding, they will start feeding him a bottle when I can't be there. That will hopefully eliminate the feeding tube, and one less wire hooked up to him. After they take out the feeding tube, the only thing left for Henry to accomplish is his breathing. Alan and I know that our little fighter will get there soon enough and we are counting down the days until we can finally be the parents leaving the NICU with our baby.