Today I have two 4 pounders!!!

Brock and mom after his first feed.

Brock being burped

Again

Again

Brock with his first bottle

Brock and mom with his first bottle

Well today was a good Monday for the twins. Brock did his first feeding like a champ and took down his whole bottle in 20 mins with only one little incident where he stopped breathing. For a preemie on their first try this was really wonderful! The nurse said he was a "really good sucker" which I was pleased to hear. He was wide awake during the entire meal and had several cute "burps" in between. I think his weight was 4 pounds, 9 oz. ... but with all that went on today I could be a little off. We will try to bottle/breast feed two times a day right now working up to all 8 feeds. She also warned us that each try is different and not to get disappointed if he doesn't do this well with all feeds.

Christian had his vent tube taken out today (yeah!) and he was on CPAP again today for his air. This was a HUGE step in the right direction again. He will be feed through his tube again later this week, maybe Thursday or Friday which will give him a few more days to heal. He weighted 4 pounds today so for the first time I have two FOUR POUND BABIES! We are thrilled even though we know some of Christian's weight is fluid it does feel nice to have to big babies today.

Christian's face

Christian recovering

Dad and Christian

Brock without his cannula

Brock smiling

Brock with eyes open.

The babies were looking good today. Brock is up to 4 pounds, 5.5 oz and 17 inches long, and is trying to go without his cannula today. He is also off caffeine which he has been on to help him with his apnea and Brady's. We will see how it all goes but we are optimistic that he will do great! He looked happy and healthy when we were visiting today and he has been bumped back up to 24 calories fortifier with my milk. He is our little stable baby :)

Brother Christian awake when we were there today too. He must really be feeling better to be so awake these last few days. He is up to 3 pounds, 15 oz. and is 16 inches long. Although we know some of that is fluid, we are still so thrilled he is growing. Monday will be his 10 days on the antibiotics and the doctors don't feel he is quite ready to come off of them and eat right now. They thoughts maybe Thursday or Friday might be better. His tummy is still puffy and they think sore for him. He x-ray isn't any worse and they don't think the infection is coming back, they just aren't quite sure he is healed at this point, so we will give him a few more days to make sure.

Brandon had a great work trip and I was so happy to see him come through that door on Friday night!

More Stability for the Babies

Hi- Brandon and I visited and held them for a long time today. Brock was a little cranky today for unknown reasons and squirmed the whole time I held him. He was the same weight again today and he is on the 22 cal. milk. Christian was much better behaved for Brandon and he weights 3 pounds, 13 oz. today. We were told today that some of his weight is fluid so it will go down some when he is able to eat again. Monday seems to be the day he will get food again as the weekend doctor didn't seem to want to rock the boat to much. All in all, a good day for the boys.

Dr. Minik (sp?) stopped by to say hello and check on the boys today. She was our first doc in the NICU and I think she has a little soft spot for Christian. We also heard that word of his NEC infection reached the docs up at Plano Presby and those who had cared for him kept checking the computers and checking his status. All the doctors and nurses have been so wonderful to us at the NICU.

Have a great weekend!!

Happy One Month Birthday Boys!

Well they were both doing well today on their one month b-day! Christian weighted in at 3 pounds, 9.9 oz so a gain for him. His vent settings are down some and he opened his little guys when I was visiting again today. I think he is used to me visiting around lunch. The doctor thought maybe he could start being fed again on Sunday or Monday. Yeah!

Brock's weight was the same, 4 pounds, 3 oz and they are starting him back on the fortifier so that should help his weight gain start up again. I held him for a bit this afternoon.

They are both looking great today and I just can't wait until we get to bring them home. Little cuties have stolen my heart already :) Have a great weekend. Jenn

Good day in the NICU

Hi- I got to hold little Christian today in the NICU. It has been a week since I have been able to hold him and since you never know what tomorrow holds in the hospital, I relished my time with my little man. He is doing good, about the same today as yesterday. He was awake again today and kept looking at me when I talked which was so nice. He seemed to feel a bit better today which made me feel better too :) He weighed 3 pounds 8 oz today.

Brock was a good little man while I was there. He weighted in at the same weight as yesterday I believe. The fun news about him is we get to start trying to bottle feed him on Monday! At 11am we will try to introduce him to the taste of food. I am so excited even though the developmentalist let me know how difficult this process will be. She warned me I would get very frustrated but it will just be a long learning curve for both of us.

The boys have had quite a few visitors this week, my parents, sister and Cheryl, a friend of my parents from their church. They have enjoyed each visit and all the cuddled time they have had with mom this week.

Keep up the prayers!!! Thank you all!!!

Another Day of Stability

Recovering Christian with his bull.

Brock with his passie. His bull is wearing a preemie hat so they match :)

Hi- The boys are looking good and stable today. Christian is at 3 pounds, 7 oz. and Brock is 4 pounds 3.07 oz. I got to hold Brock awhile today and Christian was awake for the first time in a few days for us today. No new news on either one but stability is good!!! Keep up those wonderful prayers!!! Also pray for Brandon who is traveling for work this week while I hold down the fort.

Jenn

Better Day in the NICU

Hi- Today when we visited the boys the doctor told us that he thinks Christian has "turned the corner"! We are thrilled to hear that as the doctor doesn't throw words like that around. Christian got his pick line (baby general IV place) back into place which I actually think is better for him since they have stuck him soooo many times with IV's. He was weighing in at 3 pounds, 8 oz, yeah! His stomach looked softer and he was resting when we visited. Brock was doing well and he weighed in at 4 pounds, 2 oz. He was going to town on his pacifier today and the doctor thought he might be ready to start bottle feeding at the end of the week or so. Double yeah!

We feel so blessed to have two healthier babies tonight. Praise the Lord!! Thank you all for all the prayers, so please, please, please keep it up!!!

Jenn

We have a 4 pounder!

Well the babies are looking good today. Christian had a better x-ray than the day before and the surgeon has taken him off his daily rounds with him. He will now only be called if something happens which is a great sign! He still has air in his intestines but it looks reduced and that is a great sign. He is up to 3 pounds, 6 oz. and is still resting a lot each day. We try not to touch him much when we go in since he is messed with so much. Keep up the prayers on this little guy, he still has a tough week of recovery ahead of him!

Brock is up to 4 pounds, .02 oz. Big, Big Boy!!! We are so proud of both of our boys and their growth! He is still having a little big of watery poop, but we hope that will go away soon. I had an upset stomach this weekend so it could be he got it from my milk. Whoops! I really hope to start trying to bottle feed him this week.... the nurse said he is doing great with his pacifier so I hope that will help them decide that he is ready!

Keep up the prayers!!

Love Jenn

Is it Sunday already?!?

Christian with his infection. We only took one photo of him since we are trying to let him rest in peace.

Brock's little face... I love how it is filling out.

Brock in his open air bed with his eyes open. Good job keeping your temperature up!

Brock in a puppy onsie enjoying his new bed.

What a weekend! Mommy is tired and I think these boys are well on their way to turning my hair grey.... Christian is "stable". Try as hard as I did, the doctor refused to use the word good. He had an X-ray at 5am this morning and it was better than the one before. Yeah! His belly is softer and most of his blood levels are looking better. There is only one (platelets) that is showing some decline, a sign of infection. Since we know he has an infection, I don't find this one surprising and we hope to see that one rise each day. He will continue to have his blood checked frequently but his next X ray is not supposed to be until tomorrow. He is still on the protein, fat and calorie drip (and will be all this week) and is up to 3 pounds, 5 oz. I am thrilled he is gaining weight even though he is not on milk. His color looked good and they surgeon agreed with the doctor that there is no need for surgery today. I have learned one thing about NICU talk, and they only talk about "right now" and not what will happen in the future. I find it frustrating, but apparently it is necessary as babies can change courses so fast.

Yes, I do have another baby! Poor Brock hasn't gotten as much press lately but rest assured, he is still stable and doing well. He is up to 3 pounds, 14 oz today (big boy!). He has also started keeping his own temperature so he is in a bassinet in the NICU, the same ones they put the full term babies into. Yeah! He is still on some oxygen (in the cannula) and has had some watery poop the last 24-48 hours. They have taken out the fortifier in his milk and we are waiting to see if that makes it less watery. I told the doctor that he better not have NEC. I can't handle two sick babies. The doctor laughed, but my look to him said I was not kidding. I have been able to hold him all weekend since Christian is off limits for holding these days. What he lacks in press on the blog he is getting in snuggles from mom :)

Thank you to everyone for your wonderful prayers for out little boys. We know that is why they are as strong as they are. We will never be able to say thank you enough to everyone. I also want to thank everyone who has offered their blood, breast milk and other incredibly generous items to us. We wish we could take them from you all but they are pretty stern on that in the NICU as everything has to come from their "approved" places. If I owe you a call or an email, forgive me. Please keep up all the wonderful prayers and support. We hope and pray the Barefoot family will be healthy soon :)

Christian is Stable

Hi- Christian looks like he has NEC which is a scary bowel infection that preemies can get. It can kill the bowel at its worst stages, require surgery at it's middle stage (about 1/3 of preemies) and just be antibiotics for the rest of the preemies (2/3 of all preemies). The first 72 hours are critical with this infection and we have made it through 24+ hours this morning. He is now on three antibiotics and gets x-rays every four hours to check for changes. They also check his blood levels (for any sign of tearing or bleeding in the bowel) and his acid levels. He has had a few rounds of blood and he is on nutrition since he will withheld from food for 10 days. Please keep him in your prayers, especially these next few critical days. We don't want surgery, any bowel death or removal and for peace for all of us.

Love Jenn

Pray for Christian

Hi- I got a 3am call from the night doctor last night. Christian was pooping blood last night so they x- rayed his belly and it looked like an infection. They had to re-tubed him with a breathing tube and have stopped his feedings today. They have started him on lots of antibiotics. When I called when we woke up he was stable. Keep him in your prayers today... sounds like we have one sick little guy.

Second to last day with Dr. Green

Hi- They boys are pretty stable today. Brock weighed in at a whopping 3 pounds, 10 oz! He is a big one!! He is stable and is going between room air and assisted air. We are still planning on trying to bottle feed him late next week or early the week after that I believe if the new doc agrees with Dr. Green's timeline. Brock is no longer on donor milk and when I can't feed them both, they mix in fortified formula. Ok with me since he will have to use that at home as well.

Christian is 3 pound, 4 oz even after taking the diuretic. Great news!! He is still on the CPAP (I am thinking another week or so if the new doc agrees with Dr. Green's thinking). He got a blood transfusion today and will have another one tomorrow. He is still doing breathing exercises and is "doing better" on his CPAP than without. His X ray showed a little "wetness" in the lung area and that in combination with his lung disease (caused by being a preemie) are what is most likely causing him some trouble. What does this mean for the long term?? He will be at an increased rate for getting sick while he is a baby. Sooooo.... anyone who wants to see this little guy when he comes home can NOT be sick, been around sick people, sick children and MUST have a flu shot. This will apply to ANYONE who wants to come in our home this fall or winter. I know that is a little rudely put, but we just can't put his little health at risk this year. So... if you are planning on coming to see or visit us this fall, get a flu shot, be prepared to sanitize at our home and stay healthy! Brandon and I will have to try and stay as healthy as possible as well.

The boys were looking very cute today. We brought in new stuffed animals, woobies, blankets and outfits for them at lunch and are going back to hold them tonight after work.

Back on CPAP

Well, Christian needed to go back on CPAP. He was trying to hard to breath on the cannula today so Dr. Green put him back on the CPAP mask. They also gave him the diuretic and will also give him the blood transfusion. He is doing just fine on the CPAP and it could just mean we took him off it to soon and he has been really trying hard to breath the last few days. Time will tell on this little guy. It could also mean the beginning of an infection... we hope not. They will X Ray his chest tomorrow and look for "wet looking" lungs and we will see where we are at.

On a positive note, the boys feedings have been doing good and Christian is up to 30 cc's and Brock 34 cc's. Brock had a gain and now weights 3 pounds and 8 oz. and Christian had a small loss and is at 3 pounds 1 oz. Again, since he is working so hard to breath, it is a big calorie burner and that could be why is is having a hard time keeping weight on as well.

They both looked super cute today in the NICU and Brandon and I held them after work.

Tough Speedbump for Christian

Christian has had a hard day today. He is not able to breath very well and they keep having to turn his oxygen up and up. Dr. Green said there could be a couple of reasons for this. He could have water in his lungs, he blood count could be low, or he could have some collapsing of his lungs from being premature. Dr. Green is going to try to remove any excess water first (an easy fix with a baby diuretic) this afternoon. If he is still doing poorly breathing, they will try a blood transfusion, if that still doesn't work, he will have to go back on the CPAP until he is bigger and more stable. He does have some lung disease from being so small and the additional time on CPAP might be what he needs to get better. I am hoping that doesn't happen as it is a huge step backwards for us, but we want our little baby to be able to breath easily.

Brandon and I are going to hold them after work today so we might know more and we might not. We will just have to wait and see if the first two options work for him (we REALLY hope so!!).

Good Day at the Hospital

Hi- The boys are doing well today. Both are still on air today and Dr. Green came to visit while I was there. He said that Christian has been taken off blood thinners since there might be a little more bleeding in his brain. They are not sure, but to be safe they are going to take him off the thinners so that if there is, hopefully this will go away on its own. He is looking pretty much the same except for this news. He is sucking really well on his pacifier and seemed like a happy baby to me today. Oh, also he is on a breathing "exercises" to hopefully boost up his lung capacity. Crying also seems to help (so Brandon we will need you to change his diaper more) just kidding :) His gained a little but not much last night. He is on 24 cal. (I believe) and 28cc's per feeding.

Brock is the same... my little stable baby. He is still on air today as well. They both got dressed in two super cute onsies with trains and firetrucks. SOOOO cute! Brock also gained a little but not to much last night. He is still on 26 cal. about an ounce per feeding. Both are feeding well and not spitting up much.

Dr. Green said we might get to start trying to bottle feed next week! Yeah! What a HUGE step for us and we just can't wait. The boys are three weeks old today. Shocking. This has been the longest three weeks I have been through in awhile.

Our First Step Back

Well, this was officially the two steps forward and one step back day today. Brock has his cannula back in since he needed more air and Christian got his turned back up. Brock had some low stats so his is back on with a minimal amount of air and Christian got his turned back up to 50% air. He might have an infection which caused this, we just don't know yet. Christian looks ok, and is sucking on his pacifier ok but just needed more help.

We knew to expect backwards steps but it is still tough when it happens. They both just need more time to grow. Christian is on 28cc's of 22 calorie food so that should help him beef up a bit! They are also putting him on iron to try to increase his blood levels... if they can't get these up naturally, they will need to do another transfusion at some point.

Keep these little guys in your prayers :)

Big Day for the babies

Great, Great Aunt Rose with Christian

Great Grandma Barefoot with Christian

Great, Great Aunt Alice with Brock

Hi- We had a great day yesterday with the babies. Brandon and I went to the hospital at 8am to hold the munchkins and discovered the Brock was off all air! He is doing great and now we can really see that little cute face. He is up to 26 cal of milk and is eating about an ounce every three hours. Brock was 3 pounds, 5 oz. today, big boy!

Christian is doing well also. He had his air turned down and is up to 22 cal milk. I believe he was on 22 or 24 cc's of food yesterday. He is weighing in today at 3 pounds, 2 oz. They were both wide awake when we visited today. What a treat!

Yesterday the boys had LOTS of family visitors. Several of Brandon's family came and saw them from the Barefoot side. I know the boys loved meeting them all!

Happy Saturday Babies

Brandon and I spent a couple of hours with the babies today from about 11 to 1pm. Brandon held Brock again and I am giving Christian a little TLC these days since he hasn't had much from me. They seemed great today and both really are seeming to love being held. Christian is eating 22cc's today and continuing to increase. He is 3 pounds, .07 oz today and the nurse said he hadn't spit up today. He did have some high blood pressure this morning so they were watching it to see if they needed to up his medication. Christian seemed to like being held better today than yesterday... I think he knew what was going on today and didn't seem to confused.

Brock was awake quite a bit of time awake with Brandon today and had his eyes open and was making "happy baby sounds" while he was being held. He is on 28 cc's of food that is fortified. He is 3 pounds, 2 oz today. The nurse had him in a little onsie with feet that he promptly peed all over once we got there. He also hit Brandon's shirt and shorts which mom found VERY funny :) I think we will bring a new outfit for him tomorrow with a back up :)

We saw Dr. Green around today but he didn't seem to have any new news for us from yesterday. The boys are really doing well to us, and their nurse today Lori, said she is always given "easy babies" since she is a nurse from Labor and Delivery. We felt that was a very good sign.

I was able to go from the hospital to a baby shower for a wonderful friend Barbara today. I try to find all the positives with the babies being in the hospital and us home and today I realized I would not probably be able to attend her shower if I had newborns at home, so I saw that as a positive! It helps for Brandon and I to see things on the bright side :)

On a personal note, my wedding ring fit again today which I am thrilled about!! Yeah!!!

Have a great Sat. night!!

Big goals for little boys and mom

The boys with their parents... Brock with dad and Jenn with Christian.

Family photo... Brandon with Brock and Jenn with Christian.

Us with the boys.

Christian when he first layed on me. I think he was confused by the process but seemed to settle in nicely. Boys boys can lift their head up and are super cute when they do it.

Brock and Dad. This is Brandon's first kangaroo care and their first hold together.

Aren't my boys super cute!

Hi- Well it wasn't the flu... turns out mom had an infection so my wonderful hubby drove me (yet again) to the doc yesterday and I am feeling much better today. My fever broke last night and Brandon and I were able to visit the boys today again! He was able to go without me yesterday and see them and since my fever was over 100 I had to stay home. It is so hard when you have little sick ones and can't see them.

Ok, the updates from Wed on... the boys have moved nurseries... they are now in nursery C (moved from A). This means nothing as far as the nurses and docs are concerned... not a good thing or a bad thing. They are now in a room with 6 babies (instead of 3) and they are right next to each other. They are also sharing a nurse which they have not done before. It does make it easy to have one nurse to chat with instead of two.

Brock is up to 3 pounds 2.8 oz. He is feeding at 28cc's every three hours of fortified food. He is stable as always. His goal right now is to gain weight.

Christian is at 2 pounds 14.8 oz. He is eating 18cc's every three hours and is set to increase 2 cc's over the next few hours so hopefully he will catch up to brother soon. His belly is not as poofy anymore and the x-ray was clean on his little belly. He is not digesting very well and throws up quite a bit. His goal is to gain weight as well. Both boys are supposed to be gaining 3/4 of an oz to an ounce a day and they are not really doing that right now.

We met the boys new doctor, Dr. Green, and I like him. He is from Iowa and a friend of a friend of my dad's from bible study. He will be with the boys for at least 8 days and seems to be very no nonsense which I really like. He tells it like it is and informed me that the boys have not been great eaters (spitting up a lot and not digesting very well) so he really wants to improve that. He also said that I really need to try to make more milk. He has informed me to drink more water, rest and "do better". I will try! We all three got a "do better" on the eating and producing. As a fellow type "A" person, I like goals :)

The boys were just darling today and Brandon and I held them side by side for their lunch feeding. My mom took some great pictures of us while we held them. They are our first "official" family photo with all of us in the picture. For me, this was my first time to get to hold little Christian and his first time doing "kangaroo care" I think he loved it and I know we will get LOTS more time together.

Thank you all for all the emails, calls and love. We all love you all very much and this week we are all going to strive to "do better"!

Jenn

Babies Look Good

Super cute Christian

Ok, taking photos through the glass doesn't work so well :)

Short post today since I am not feeling well. Babies look great and they are both 2 pounds 15 oz and 16.5 inches long. My parents, Ashley and I had a nice visit today. New doctor starts with the boys tomorrow, Dr. Green. I hope we like him and he is a wonderful baby doc!

No More CPAP's!

Hi- Today we hit yet another milestone, both boys are on the cannula air breathers and both are in their isolettes (sp?)! Not only are they doing well, you can actually see Christian's little face for the first time without it being covered in wires and tubes and tape. It is now VERY evident to us how different the boys look. I will post some pics as soon as Brandon gets them downloaded.

Brandon and I visited over lunch but didn't stay long since my tummy was a little upset today. I started taking a prescription for my milk production so I think it might be that making me sick. We will see.

Christian is weighing in today at 3.28 pounds and Brock at 2.15 pounds. Brock is now 16.5 inches long (an increase in .5 in the last two weeks) and I didn't ask about Christian... I will try to remember tomorrow.

My parents are coming in tomorrow to help around the house and visit the boys. I am still not driving since my incision is still sore so it will be a nice break from poor Brandon driving his wife around.

Brandon and I couldn't be more thrilled at the boys progress. We love them and are so proud of them already.

Monday and another great report

I just got back from the hospital and got to hold Brock again for an hour or so. He was so excited and kept wiggling around and making happy noises :) I hope he is getting used to being held and it is not so shocking anymore. While I was there the doctor came in and chatted with me and said the boys were doing wonderful! The BEST NEWS is that Christian's blood clot is GONE! It is a miracle!! The clot was expected to take at least a month or two to go away and here in one week it is GONE! Yeah!! She was as shocked as I was to see the clot disappear. They will keep him on on heparin (blood thinner) for awhile longer to make sure that if there are small pieces left that can't be seen on the sonogram that they will disappear as well. YEAH!

Christian is eating 15cc's today (down from 18) as he had a little air in his belly which was making him spit up quite a bit. This is caused from his CPAP air tube which while he eats puts air in his belly. Hopefully they can move to the step down air tube this week which will help him digest a little better. We will see if that can happen this week. They delayed putting him in the incubator since he was spitting up so much so hopefully the decreased amount of food and the fact that they are spreading the feed over an hour will help and he can move into his incubator tonight.

Brock- Was doing great today. He is up to 27cc's of food (once ounce is 33 cc's) with some extra fortified calories added. He has no new information except he is doing really well.

Both boys will spend the next two weeks getting bigger and concentrating on eating. Starting about week 33 or 34 (we are at 31 on Wednesday) they will start trying to learn to breast feed. From what the doctor said we will start slow (once a day) since this will burn more calories than they will get from eating. Then about a week later we will start them on bottle feeding. They need to know how to bottle feed to be able to leave the NICU (they do not need to know how to breast feed). Right now both boys are eating my breast milk and they have both started on donor breast milk since I am not making enough at this point to feed both boys. Hopefully when I am able to start breastfeeding the boys, my milk will start to increase as well.

Thank you all for the thoughts and prayers. As you can tell from my news, they are working!!! Keep up the praying! They boys are doing great!!!

Jenn

New Pics From the Weekend

Lauren and Cliff Newby with Christian on Sat. Thanks for coming and meeting our boys!!

Ok how cute is this!?! Brock in n his first sleeper outfit.

Awwwww

Please don't take my picture mom!!!

H- Brandon and I spent a few hours with the babies today and I got to hold Mr. Brock again today. As I mentioned, Christian still can't be held with this nose breathing device so we will really have to give him some make up love when he gets this piece out.

We were able to bring in clothes today for the boys... Christian can't wear them yet but Brock is able. Brock looks SOOOOO cute in his first outfit!!! What a treat for mom!!! He fit into the preemie size (thank you Julie for the super cute sleeper :) As of today, Brock's weight is 3.07 pounds and Christian's is 3.14 pounds. He has a little more equipment that he takes on the scale with him so I am betting the boys are really close in weight.

As we have mentioned, Brandon and I try to get back to everyone that emails and calls, but if we haven't been able to get back with you, we still love you!! I try and put all our updates on the blog if we have any updates. If there is not news on here.... there is no news on the boys and that is a good thing!!! As the NICU tells us, no news IS good news :)

Good Weekend

Hi- The boys had a great weekend in the NICU. Little Christian had a change of nose breathing piece that hopefully is a little more comfortable on his little nose. They changed it out on Friday since his other mask was not letting the septum of his nose heal very well. I was able to be there when they put in in and I think it hurt mom more than it hurt Christian. He cried for about 2 minutes and I was really hurting for him!!! He fell right back to sleep and looked just fine with it yesterday. I will try to post pics of the new air piece when we can. When Brandon and I were visiting yesterday the doctor said that he should be getting his pic line out yesterday which is a great step. He also should be moved to the same isolation box that Brock has enjoyed this week. I know he will really love being in there since it is quiet, warm and dark.... preemie baby heaven :) He has just been doing great and eating 16cc every three hours. He has been spitting up some of his food (more than the doctors like to see) so they might move him to every 4 hours and see if that helps as well as feed him a little slower. They also gave him a suppository to get things "flowing" to help him move the food along a bit better :) He will have a re- sonogram to check his blood clot progress tomorrow. They don't know what time so I hope they will do it while I am there but we can't make an apt. for him. I always try to read the face of the technician who does his scans but I have decided he must be a very good poker player since he doesn't give much away in his facial expressions. He is still having apnea and they will continue to watch this.

Brock- Our little guy is up to 23cc of food every three hours and tolerating it very well. He got his CPAP breather out and just has a little cannula in his nose which Brandon and I love since you can really see his little cute face now. He loves his little private home and every time we go to see him he is in swaddled peace :) Brandon was able to change his diaper yesterday and we were thrilled to see he has moved from a preemie XS diaper to a preemie Small! Big steps for our little man. The diaper looks sooo much bigger to us!

According to the doctor he wants the boys to start growing and gaining weight at this point. They are both stable so it is time to start the fattening up process.

Brandon and I are so fortunate to have so many wonderful and supportive people in our lives. We were able to meet with Manny and Julie on Sat. They have three wonderful triplets who also were preemies and spent some time in the NICU. She has been a wonderful support to me as she was "in my shoes" just a few months ago. They gave us some wonderful preemie "must haves" and some wonderful support. Thank you so much to you two!! The boys also got to meet Lauren and Cliff this weekend and I know they will be fighting over who gets to be her little girls boyfriend when Chloe arrives! Thank you to my mothers of multiple folks who have called, emailed and expressed support. Brandon and I really feel very luckily to be supported by everyone!!

Brandon and I are going up this afternoon and I hope to hold Brock again today. Christian is still not ready to be held until this new breathing piece comes out. It is held in there with a stand that doesn't let us hold him and keep him breathing at the same time. But we know his time is coming where we can cuddle and love on him too!

Jenn

Sleep Apnea

Hi! Both of our little bundles of joy suffer from Sleep Apnea. The apnea can show up in two forms, when the baby forgets to breath and when their heart rate drops or slows down. This sounds super frightening but is actually a very common ailment in the NICU. 80% of babies born before 30 weeks suffer from apnea. Both of our little babies have it and they have both been treated with caffeine to help control it. When they forget to breath and alarm goes off and the nurse touches them to wake them up and remind them to breath. Luckily this is something that both babies should grow out of and we should see some relief at 36-38 weeks.

Papa and Nana Linn and I got to experience an episode with Christian while we were visiting today. We all decided that we were VERY happy they were in the good hands of the nurses 24/7 while they are still so little.

In other baby news, feedings have been going well and increasing for both babies and Brock seems to be loving his new enclosed home. It is warmer, quieter and feels safer to the babies so I am sure Christian will love it to when he is able to be moved. The incubator is set at 0% humidity and 88.5 degrees..... kind of makes me want to move in with him :)

I am feeling very tired today and will be resting for the remainder of the day. Like my babies I keep taking two steps forward and one step back with my recovery. We have a lot in common :)

8 Days old and healthy report

Brandon and I can't believe our little guys are 8 days old today. I decided that this has been the longest week I can remember..... really all this went down only 8 days ago?!? We had a great report from the boys doctor today.

Brock- will be moved into an incubator (a covered plastic box with arm holds) today which is a step up from the warmer that they have been under for the last week. They move babies to these when they are deemed "stable" and the doctors and nurses don't have to mess with them all the time. He also might be able to try no air this week and if his feedings keep going well he will loose the nutrient tube to his arm. Big steps for a little boy! His weight has gone down to 2 pounds, 14.5 oz so they will be focusing on feeding him and making him bigger. He is eating 16cc per feeding every three hours.

Christian- He is holding stable. He is having a little sleep apnea so the doctor gave him some caffeine to help his heart keep going when he forgets to breath on his own. This is a common preemie baby issue and he SHOULD grow out of it. He is doing well on his air consumption as well and if his sleep apnea goes away they will try to ween him off in the future. His clot will get re-sonogramed next Monday to see if it has shrunk. His blood pressure has been pretty stable... they had to give him meds yesterday but not so far today. They have a line in his artery to check it non-stop so until that comes out we can't hold him. The doctor said that could be this week or next week or longer depending on how his pressure does.

Thank you all for your prayers for our little guys... they are tough ones!!!

Proud parents with Brock

Sleepy Brock

Little Christian

Dad with Chrsitian

Proud parents with Christian

Pics of the Boys

Baby Brock

Brock and Dad.

Christian

Brock

Brock

Update

Christian got a good report last night. The brain scan showed minimal brain bleeding on both boys (totally normal for preemies) so they are able to do the blood thinner with relatively low risk. They started him on it last night and they will re-sonogram him in a week to see how it is going. They said to expect the clot to take a couple of months to go away since he is on such a low dose of blood thinner. Brock is doing well (as always) and they have been bumping up his feeding size over the last couple of days. He is eating like a big man now!

Both boys are on the step down for breathing with a new form of CPAP tubes. They are exactly one week old today!! We couldn't be more thrilled!!! I am heading to the NICU this morning with my mom and then Brandon and I will go tonight and try to hold them again. We just can't get enough of our little men :)

I am attaching some pics with Brandon's mom and the boys from last week. He just got these emailed to me. How lucky all the boys are to have meet all their grandparents in the first week of life!

Big Weekend in the NICU

Don with Christian

Don with Brock

Christian's first hold with Dad, aren't they cute!!!

Brock's first hold with mom... I got up and had a LOT of drool on me :) Funny how I didn't care at all.

Christian and Dad again with his Barefoot blanket... so fitting :)

We had a big weekend with the boys. Don, Brandon's dad was in town on Friday to meet our little guys. They got a nice visit in with him in the afternoon (see pics below). On Sat. Brandon and I were able to see the boys two times at the 11am feeding and the 2pm feeding. On Sat. night we had a call with their doctor.

As always, Brock is stable and Christian is our little trouble maker. After doing an ultrasound on his kidneys, the doctor discovered a sizable blood clot below his kidneys but before his legs. The clot is large, but doesn't seem to be blocking anything right now. The NICU doctor meet with a hematologist and they decided last night to give him some medication to make sure his clotting levels were correct. Then this morning, he will get another ultrasound to see how the clot is looking. If it is the same or worse, the doctors will give him heparin blood thinner. If it is better, they will just watch it. Another issue would be why did he develop the clot in the first place? Hopefully the blood tests will reveal some reason why his body made the clot.... keep everyone posted on the results! Some blood tests will be back tonight and others will take a week to process.

On Sunday Brandon and I got to feel like parents and hold our little guys. I held Brock and Brandon held Christian. We sat with them for a few hours and just enjoyed being with them. What a treat.

Sunday Brock got taken off his breathing tube (yeah) after he removed it himself (yet again) and was moved to a CPAP line in his nose. He also got the tubes out of his belly button and put into his arm.

I was told again that mid-Oct. would most likely be the release point for the boys..... so we have a LONG few months to deal with all the NICU challenges with them.

Keep they boys in your prayers, as we can see they are still very little and fragile and need all the support there is to offer.

Jenn