I'm smarter than you think

We were afraid Clara might finally lodge a complaint about all the kudos and attention Wilson received for graduating from the NICU. Instead of getting mad, it looks like Clara is trying to get even. Last night the doctors removed Clara's nasal cannula and allowed her to breathe on her own for the first time. Clara has now gone over 24 hours without oxygen and is doing fairly well! There were a few occasions when her respiratory rate spiked or her oxygen rate dropped, but the good news was she self-recovered quickly each time.

While this shows great progress, we understand it doesn't equate to a quick ticket out of the NICU. Clara still has a long way to go and continues to receive daily treatments to ease the stress on her lungs. Below is picture taken today of Clara inhaling some of the pulmonary steroids she needs to make breathing easier. As you can see, her nasal cannula has been (at least temporarily) removed. Wilson had his air cannula taken away three times before the doctors felt comfortable leaving it off for good. (Just as a comparison, Wilson waited another 3-4 weeks to come home after ditching his oxygen support). Clara is in a little different situation because she weighs more and is older, but she has also had more problems with her lungs. All of this is really just a long-winded way to say we're really excited about this development and are cautiously optimistic Clara will join us at home by the end of September.

We also want Clara to know she is lucky Wilson is the first one home because he has to be the guinea pig for our initial missteps as parents. For example, tonight we gave Wilson his first bath. We had little to no clue what to do and Wilson decided not to be helpful. As soon as we laid Wilson down and got him just a little wet, he opened fire. Chris was startled by his counter-attack and instinctively backed away from his little water cannon. In that split second of indecision, Wilson changed angles and began firing toward the head of his tub. With total disregard for her own safety, Chris jumped in to prevent Wilson from dousing himself in friendly fire. Chris received a commendation medal for bravery while Morgan was content to take pictures and make jokes. Hey, we all have our strengths.  

This is a live action photo but we cropped it for decency