Continuing at a Different Place

Well, yesterday couldn't have come sooner. The boys were finally moved to Fair Oaks. We are very excited about this. One baby liked the ride, the other did not; go figure. I will have to upload some new photos of them. They have grown enough in 1 week to make a big difference. Baby A doesn't look so anorexic anymore because he has gained some weight. He is over 4 lbs and his cheeks are filling out nicely. Baby 5 is over 5 lbs still. He hasn't put on any new weight. The boys are adjusting to their new place well. The room is HUGE. I really mean that. There is a bathroom in their room as well. That will be nice because I won't have to leave the NICU and then gain entry again to use the bathroom. There is a shower just in case we want to stay. There are lots of chairs and 1 reclining chair which is actually very comfortable. The nurse there told me that they will be pushing the boys to get better quickly. I am okay with that. Yesterday, Baby A started to cry. He looked like he was trying to eat something because he kept turning his head when you would rub his face and he would try to suck on his fists. I put a pacifier in his mouth and he took and was completely happy with it. I was pretty shocked because he has NEVER done this. The nurse was thrilled. Today, he did the same thing. He was upset that he was hungry, like normal babies are, and so I gave him his pacifier and he was thrilled. I don't think he feels satisfied because his feeding tube isn't in his stomach, it is in his intestines. Even Baby B doesn't feel satisfied because he can't have his food from a bottle yet. His tube is in his stomach though so if I am there and he is getting his food I have to give him his pacifier so he feels like he is at least eating his food. Poor kids. I hope this means they can have bottles for them soon. Baby A has to take baby steps to a bottle though. He has to have his feeding tube pulled back into his stomach to see if he can tolerate that first. It will be a very small amount to start out with but eventually the nurses will get to a bottle.

So much changes in the NICU in a blink. It is hard to blog about everything that changes everyday. I did take 2 Christmas stockings over to the NICU and I hung it up on the wall. I am sure Santa knows to go over there. I should be playing Santa but the girls are still awake and you can't be Santa with your kids still awake. I did eat some of the cookies though. :) Hopefully they don't get out of their beds. I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas.

Disappointed

Since the last post, Baby A has been able to come off of CPAP and onto the nasal cannula. That is exciting. Baby B's breathing is just fine. Remember how I told you that things change in an instant? Well, this past weekend Baby A was found to have a staph infection on his face. It is from the bandages on his face that hold the cannula and feeding tubes in place. Since they don't change the tape that often, dirt and grime get under the tape and of course other things get under the tape and it led to staph infection. Of course Baby B didn't want to be left out so he now has staph infection on his face as well. :} I can hold them still but I have to wear a horrid gown and gloves. This gown always heats me up and I end up sweating to death before I am even done holding one baby. I usually have to step outside where it is cooler then come back and hold the other one. I have to wear the gown for a while now until it is all clear. Since they just found the staph for Baby B, it will be a very long time until the gown can go away.

Baby A weighs 4lbs now and Baby B weighs 5lbs now. They were going to be transferred to Fair Oaks last week but the snow storm was imminent and since there was a ton of other transfers that needed to be done, the boys kept getting bumped. So now since Baby A isn't breathing as well on his cannula as he was last week he can't be transferred. Since I refuse to transfer one baby without the other then they both stay at Fairfax. Anyway, other than that they are fine. I go in everyday to hold them and to try and feed Baby B his bottle. He only gets a little bit through a bottle and he gets mad that he can't eat from a bottle. He puts his hands in his mouth to try and suck on them, he turns his head both ways looking for that bottle, and he will just flat out cry because he can't suck on a bottle. When I am there and they start his feeding I have to let him suck on a pacifier because that is not how he wants to eat. So I hold him and he sucks on his pacifier while the food goes into his stomach through a tube. I know he hates it but for now that has to work because he has to take little steps in order to be fed a whole bottle. It is really sad to see though. I can imagine that it wouldn't be satisfying to just be fed through a tube.

I don't know when Baby A will be learning to feed. It is a very frustrating process though because I really want my babies home. BUT, I do want them to be completely healthy. So, here is to another holiday in the NICU. At least Santa will visit there as well. Santa did stop by the NICU on Saturday though and the boys were able to get pictures with him. No, Santa did not hold or touch the boys he just stood on the outside of the isolette. I am hoping it doesn't ice over on Christmas because that would be too hard to sit here and not go visit on Christmas day. We were very tempted to go and visit the boys this past Saturday even with the snow. It isn't anything we haven't driven in before when were in Idaho. We will see what happens. Take care and have a merry Christmas. I know we will.

Lately...

It has been hard to blog every day but so much changes from day to day. This last Sunday the doctors decided to try the nasal cannula on baby a. He did well on it. However, the next day they did a blood gas and of course the CO2 levels were too high. So, they put baby a back on the CPAP. Tuesday, the doctors wanted to try the nasal cannula again because they need to get to a point so they can start trying to give him a bottle. He needs to learn that before he leaves the hospital. They put the cannula on him while I was there and he looked so cute without the CPAP. So far he has been doing well on the nasal cannula and his blood gas has been fine. We will cross our fingers it remains that way. He hates the CPAP because it rubs on his nose and he doesn't do well with it. I went in yesterday and I was able to kangaroo hold each of them. No it wasn't at the same time but that is okay. They are both getting bigger and it is nice to just hold them. We might be able to transfer to Fair Oaks at some point soon. We are very excited about that but we are sad to leave the doctors and nurses who have taken such great care of the boys. Fair Oaks is smaller and they can both stay in the same room until they leave. The parking is free and you can valet park your car for free as well. I love that feature. The biggest point of all is that Fair Oaks is closer. We like that idea. The boys still have a while to go in their hospital stay so something closer will be great. Baby B is learning to eat with a bottle. He will eat 5 cc's and he does well with that. When he has more than that he kind of forgets to breathe while he is eating. So, obviously he will be in the hospital for a while so he can learn that. I will post some pictures when I can. I am pretty busy. I spend a lot of time in the NICU with the boys and then I am so tired by night time that we just sit here and crash. Our place is pretty messy as well so don't come by anytime soon. I might not let you in. :)

Getting Better

I know it's been a while but here are some updates. Jacob is still on the CPAP but his pressure isn't as high as it was. If he does well enough over the next several days then he can go to the nasal cannula like Benjamin has. That will be better because right now the air masks he has is rubbing his nose raw. I know that is sad to think about, but be glad you don't have to see it. That is pretty sad. His face has a yeast infection because some moisture found it's way underneath some bandages that were on his face and cultured there. His face is clearing up after only a day on the ointment they gave him. I went in this morning and I held him. I kangaroo held him so he was on my chest and we were laying down in a chair they have that reclines. I am so tired I fell asleep as well. It was hard to stay awake with a warm baby, warm blankets, and the comforting sounds of his breathing. So, we took a nap. He wasn't too happy with me when I had to put him back. I did have to leave so we could get ready for church. Jacob weighs about 3 lbs 9 oz now. He is gaining weight and hopefully this is helping him to continue to breathe better. Weight and time seem to be helping.

Benjamin is quite the character as well. They both make the same faces, which I have found odd. They both have the same sad, happy, and crying faces. Yes I know they are identical but they are two different babies in the end. Anyway, these faces might confuse whoever wants to hold them later on because you can't use facial features to tell them apart. There is a birthmark on Benjamin but no one can see it unless you are changing his diaper. Benjamin had a bath today and at first he didn't know what to think of it. He later calmed down long enough only for me to yank him out of the warm water and wrap him up in a towel that wasn't quite as warm. He weighs about 4 lbs 7 oz now. Yes, he is still in the preemie sizes of clothes and I keep trying to put newborn sizes on him and they don't come close to fitting him. Maybe in a week or two those newborn sizes won't be so big. That is it for now. I will try to do more updates. It is hard to keep up with the boys though because they are progressing very quickly. Benjamin is breathing room air right now. He will be the first one home. Hopefully Jacob won't be too far behind because I don't know how I would be able to go and visit him with a newborn home.