Julia’s just over a week old and she’s already going to school. Grandma Nancy is a fantastic addition to the support system that has been surrounding our family. A nurse with 48 years’ experience, she has not taken the easy road into retirement. She is on the faculty at the School of Nursing at Texas A&M and recently lead a medical mission trip to the Dominican Republic.

Aside from her naturally calming role as a mom, perhaps the greatest asset Nancy brings to the table is her years of experience as a lactation consultant. Apparently, she has the home number for K. Jean Cotterman, a nationally known authority on the subject. This was a real Godsend for us, as getting Julia to feed from the breast has been quite a challenge.

It was not long (I figure it was less than twenty minutes after she hugged Jocelyn hello) before the consummate teacher and coach in Nancy came out. After surveying the situation for a few minutes, she offered a few adjustments to Jocelyn’s breastfeeding technique, encouraged her faithful efforts, and even offered a helping hand to get her started. School was definitely in session for our little girl and she was being put to work!

It really wasn’t long before Julia and Jocelyn started working together and daughter was drawing nutrition from mom. There is still a lot of learning that needs to happen, but they are well on their way.

The last 48 hours have really been a game changer for Julia’s progress and Jocelyn’s stress level – and school hasn’t even really begun. Not only are the mechanics of breastfeeding beginning to fall into place, Jocelyn’s sheer enjoyment of Julia has increased tenfold. It’s not just about getting nourishment into her body, but simply being together in the quiet give-and-take of relationship; and it’s been a joy to experience.

Case in point: whether she’s on the breast or the bottle, we’ve found that Julia likes to take a little break after suckling. She may even totally zone out and nap for a few minutes before taking another draw.

We never would have known that if we had remained task-focused on getting her the calories she needed to hit her discharge goals, because almost force-feeding her is a real possibility if we aren’t watchful. In the end, we had to slow down, not only to hear from other perspectives, but to let Julia communicate the best way for us to feed her.

The truth is, school’s in session for all of us. Jocelyn and I, like the generations of parents before us, are merging into the stream of wisdom that comes from hearing the good experience from trusted friends and family, along with simply slowing down and truly hearing the unique wisdom that our child wishes to offer us.

There is other exciting news: Julia is continuing to gain weight (over two ounces in three days!) and is currently weighing in at four pounds, fourteen ounces – a full five ounces over her birth weight. Her volume intake is continuing to trend upward and it seems that another hurdle before her homecoming has been cleared. She’s also maintaining her body temperature and will have no need for an incubator.

I was listening in on this morning’s rounds, where all of the doctors come together at the bedside to review cases. After hearing about Julia’s progress, the attending neonatologist (basically a tiny baby doctor) asked out loud, “Why haven’t we sent this baby home?” I gotta tell you that my heart skipped a beat when I heard that. There is still the issue of the blood platelets that will require close monitoring, but it is the consensus of the NICU team that it can be monitored on an outpatient basis and should resolve on its own. They want to get one more platelet count tomorrow morning, but as long as the results are not too low, the hematologist (blood specialist) will follow up with a more detailed treatment plan sometime next week.

So I’m glad you checked in today. I wanted you to get here before I told her the good news:

Hey Julia – Guess what? You’re coming home with Mama and Daddy tomorrow!

Oh, yeah. There’s going to be a new adventure beginning tomorrow around noon. We’re taking our little girl home and school will really be in session!

I will be posting pics of the homecoming tomorrow! Stay tuned!