Today is Becca’s 5-week birthday! She currently weighs 3 lbs 11 oz and is 15.5 inches long. We’re looking forward to when she weighs 4 lbs – that’s when bottle-feeding can begin and bottle-feeding is a big step toward coming home.

We’ve enjoyed being able to participate in caring for Becca more. This week we’ve been learning how to bathe her. Each nurse has her own technique, so we’re learning lots of ways to give preemies baths. Last night we did most of the bathing on our own (with supervision) – Josh washed her hair.

Today we took a spoon into the NICU to “retake” the picture my mom took on Nov. 27th. As you can see, Becca is making progress to someday being able to use a spoon on her own. It’s amazing to look back at pictures and see how much she’s grown since Thanksgiving.

We’re having a quiet New Year’s Eve – Josh is working on finishing up his dissertation proposal, and I’m trying to get some things in order before I start back teaching on Monday. I’m breaking my maternity leave in half, so when Becca comes home from the NICU I can go back on leave and be home during her first few weeks home. Thank you for your prayers for Becca. We are praising God for her good progress and health.