Home

Last night was the most amazing night ever. I held my baby girl for the first time. There is not enough words to describe the feeling. I am sure that every mom knows the feeling I am talking about. I didn't think that I would get to hold her for at least a week or even more. I only had to wait 48 hours.

Raegan is doing very well. They did have to put a tube in yesterday to help her breath, but it should come out in the next few days. They also had to give her blood. Not much at all, just 7cc. They said that babies at her age can't make there own blood, and they are taking so much out that they have to give her more.

Today she is getting 11cc of blood, and she also has a little jaundice. Jaundice is the yellowish staining of the skin and sclerae (the whites of the eyes) that is caused by high levels in blood of the chemical bilirubin. Bilirubin comes from red blood cells. When red blood cells get old, they are destroyed. Hemoglobin, the iron-containing chemical in red blood cells that carries oxygen, is released from the destroyed red blood cells after the iron it contains is removed. The chemical that remains in the blood after the iron is removed becomes bilirubin. They are doing light therapy, also called phototherapy, which chemically breaks down the bilirubin in her skin to non-toxic forms. She will have the lights on her for 24 hours.