Bianca Elizabeth Nielsen was born Thursday – May 24th at 5:24pm. She was 17 inches long and weighed 4lbs and 11oz.  I went in to have my cerclage removed, and before I could get into the hospital my water broke! Contractions were very light, really never felt them (or much pain), and the delivery was very easy (from the first push to the time they put her on my chest was less than 2 minutes!).  She came out breathing normal, on her own, and was very strong – doing great. Because she was 5 weeks ahead of schedule, they did send her to the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit). In the NICU she received antibiotics (as a caution in case she had any infection, which turned out that she doesn’t) and also received fluids and vitamins. I came home Thursday afternoon – but went back every few hours for feeding. She started breastfeeding Thursday – which the doctors didn’t think she’d be able to do because of her size, but she really is a strong baby and latched on very well. By Sunday she was down to 4lbs and 2ozs. This is not what we wanted to see, but it is common for babies to lose weight after birth. She had her first “gain” yesterday, and now weighs 4lbs and 3.7ozs. Rob and I had expected her to go home on Monday – but starting Sunday night she started having episodes of what they call “periodic breathing”. This is normal in preemies, and basically means she forgets to breath, or takes very long pauses between breaths.  So they have started her on caffeine, to stimulate her, and also performed a sleep study Monday night. Unfortunately the periodic breathing has gotten worse, and she had two instances where she quit breathing for almost 20 seconds each (not breathing for over 20 seconds can be life threatening). They will be keeping her in the hospital until Saturday.  She will stay on the caffeine for a few months. They will be repeating the sleep study on Friday night. If she passes, she does go home Saturday with just her daily dose of caffeine – but if she fails then she’ll come home on caffeine and an apnea monitor which she’ll probably remain on for 1-2 months. We are hoping she passes on Friday night… but either way this is something that they grow out of by a few months old, so there is no need to worry. I am spending my time making trips back and forth to the hospital for feedings (and of course bonding time). Life is hectic!