Blue Lights

Like many newborns, Logan had a little jaundice after he was born. Owen had it too and it went away. Logan's didn't seem to be improving and on Tuesday, I noticed that his eyes were beginning to yellow. We had a check-up scheduled for the afternoon but I didn't know that I should wait that long. Made a quick call and the pediatrician said to bring him right in. So Owen hung out with my dad while Chris and I took Logan to get checked out. Bloodwork was done and his bilirubin number came back at almost 18 (20 or higher would have put him in the hospital). So arrangements were made for a home nurse to bring a portable bili-light bed to our house, which is now set up downstairs. At night, it probably looks like we have some type of marijuana operation in our house because the bed emits a bright blue light.

Basically, Logan has to lay in the bed twenty-four hours a day. We take him out every 2-3 hours to change his diaper and feed him. We have to monitor his temperature on a regular basis. At night, I stay downstairs on the couch with the alarm set on my phone so I don't mess up the schedule. Everything must be recorded, and a nurse stops by the house each morning to weigh him and draw a little blood to test the bilirubin level.

Here's a picture of the bed. Nothing fancy... it fits right inside a playpen or crib. The sleeper outfit is sewn onto the bed and the lights shine up onto his back through mesh fabric. They told me I could place rolled blankets around him to make him feel more secure, and I can place more blankets on top of him if I feel he's too cold.Logan just spent his second night on the bed and is doing fine. When he fusses, one of us will sit next to him and rub his tummy and legs. I think it's harder on me than Logan. The nurse just left with another blood sample and I'm crossing my fingers that the bilirubin number comes back low enough to take him off the lights. We have lots of snuggle time to catch up on!