Almost over

I just got back from the hospital, and things are looking much better. Lucas's bilirubin count only dropped 2 pts after the 2:00 PM blood test, but the doctors said that's to be expected since the last drop was so large. They've actually gone so far as to take him off the lights and will check him again at 11 tonight. If all goes well, he'll be released first thing tomorrow morning.

The difference in his actions from yesterday morning to today is like night and day. Whereas yesterday he was barely moving, today he was flailing all over the place. He's also producing poop and pee at a rate that would make a manager at a waste disposal facility turn tail and run. It's definitely good to see him keep his eyes open through an entire feeding, not to mention its much less painful on Marilu since he doesn't need to re-latch every 20 seconds or so.

The only downside to getting rid of jaundice is now he's gonna lose that built-in tan. Man, he looked like he spent 5-6 hours a day out on the Southern California beaches. Soon he'll be able to bask in the radiant paleness that his parents' genes have provided him. Lucky little mutant.

Oh, if you didn't see it yet, I've updated the web albums with the last couple of days worth of pictures. Also of note is a direct link to those albums on the left side of this page, under Lucas's picture. That way, if you're tired of reading my mindless drivel, you can just go straight to the good stuff. In the meantime, here's a couple of pictures from earlier today, if you don't feel like searching through the albums.

For some reason, Lucas loved pulling the eye cover down over his face:


And this one was taken moments after taking the mask off so he could feed. Obviously, the little man is not amused.