Special Care!

I did my usual routine today of checking the names of the babies in intensive care on the board outside the door and Harry's name was missing, which could mean only one thing - he's been down-graded to Special Care! He came off his cpap yesterday afternoon and this morning they needed his space in intensive care for a sicker baby so he was moved. There is every chance he could tire and need cpap again, but fingers crossed and we will cross that bridge if it happens.

Special Care is so different. It's quieter, only one nurse to four babies and it has a much more relaxed atmosphere. I, of course, spent most of the day trotting up and down the corridor between babies but hey-ho, it's not like I can't do with the exercise.

Both babies had their eyes examined again today and the opthalmologist has said Joe and Harry are both fine and so we are free to be transferred back to Poole. So as soon as Poole have the spaces available we will be on our way home. I'm not looking forward to getting used to a whole new set of routines, new doctors, new nurses etc. but I will be so happy not to be driving to Portsmouth and back every day.

Joe managed an hour off his cpap today and will now be doing one hour off in every twelve. He looked like he was working quite hard but his blood gas was good so he came out for a lovely long cuddle once he was back on his cpap. I remember holding him once while he was on the ventilator, and once very briefly while he was on the Bubble cpap so today was really nice for both of us.

Last night the babies were reunited for the first time since birth. One of the nurses put Harry into Joe's incubator for a little while. I wish I'd been there to see it, but she took a picture which I will scan in tomorrow and put on here.