I think these girls are in cahoots.
Morgen is now 5lbs 12oz. She seems huge and, considering her birth weight, she actually is huge. All that's left for her to master is her feeds. Once she can manage to take all her feeds by mouth she will be able to come home.
Sonne is another story. She is an eater and regularly chugs down her full feed plus five or ten extra ccs in 20 minutes. She's currently at 4lbs 6oz which is great. Of course she is still contending with Brady and desat events. To top that off, she may have another infection and is now back on IV fluids while they run a gamut of tests to figure out what, if anything, caused her bloody stool. So far the first X-ray is normal. We are awaiting results from a CBC and, assuming she has another bloody stool, they will run a culture (why they didn't order one from the first bloody stool, I don't know). A follow up X-ray will be done during the night to see if anything has changed. If everything comes back normal, she will likely be on NPO status for a couple of days before bing started back of breast milk only.
So, here's what I think is happening...Morgen could be home in a matter of days, but she's not stepping up to the breast/bottle at all feeds. I think she's holding back because she doesn't want to leave her sister and Sonne is lagging in other areas because she doesn't want to leave Morgen behind. Unfortunately, they haven't had a chance to discuss their diabolical plans with one another. I swear if they did, both would be hitting all feeds by mouth and leaving any other shenanigans behind.
Clearly they don't know all the good things awaiting them outside the NICU.
They have two puppies who are eager to sniff them. They have a big crib to share at the foot of our bed. They don't realize that life outside of the hospital is so much better. But best of all, they will have access to mommy and daddy twenty-four hours a day.
I'm just hoping that there isn't anything serious going on with Sonne so she can get back to feeding and growing tomorrow as just IV fluids will likely lead to weight loss and she needs all the grams she can get.
And babies...I promise that we won't leave either of you behind. We want you both home as soon as possible but will take you home one at a time if that's what it takes to get you there. So let's listen to your mother Enough with these silly games. Do what you have to do to get discharged because life really does begin after the NICU.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Monday, June 20, 2011
Five Weeks and One Day - Father's Day
The girls are five weeks old and both have gained nearly two pounds since birth. It's hard to believe that we have been visiting the NICU for this long and at the same time I feel like our girls are so much older.
I am constantly amazed and humbled by our daughters and how much I love them. I know Eric feels the same.
We are still spending a good six hours or more a day with them and it seems as though we are now in a place where both take little steps forward most days. We know there is still a ways to go, but we are getting closer to getting our girls home.
Morgen is now taking three feeds per shift by bottle or breast. It has been primarily the former but we are working on latching and she is getting there...slowly but surely. The nurses keep hinting that they think she will go home this week, but we are trying not to get our hopes up too much. She is still inconsistent with her feeds and they won't let her come home until she takes all by mouth.
Sonne is growing and is as feisty as ever. She is very interested in feeding by mouth, but is only at one oral feed per shift. I think she could be upped, but that's just my opinion given her need to be sucking during her feeds. I'm hoping to get her better evaluated today by the lactation consultant so we can figure out how much she's getting from the breast so we can make the breast her per shift feeding as she seems to settle into it more than the bottle.
Yesterday we celebrated Eric's first Father's Day. We were with the girls for almost the entire day shift. There was much cuddling to be had by both of us and it was good. I think we were both quite content just being with the girls - content in a way I'm not sure either of us has felt before as there is often something weighing on our minds while there. And Eric loved his gifts from the girls - prints of their footprints. I've promised to frame them for him.
I am constantly amazed and humbled by our daughters and how much I love them. I know Eric feels the same.
We are still spending a good six hours or more a day with them and it seems as though we are now in a place where both take little steps forward most days. We know there is still a ways to go, but we are getting closer to getting our girls home.
Morgen is now taking three feeds per shift by bottle or breast. It has been primarily the former but we are working on latching and she is getting there...slowly but surely. The nurses keep hinting that they think she will go home this week, but we are trying not to get our hopes up too much. She is still inconsistent with her feeds and they won't let her come home until she takes all by mouth.
Sonne is growing and is as feisty as ever. She is very interested in feeding by mouth, but is only at one oral feed per shift. I think she could be upped, but that's just my opinion given her need to be sucking during her feeds. I'm hoping to get her better evaluated today by the lactation consultant so we can figure out how much she's getting from the breast so we can make the breast her per shift feeding as she seems to settle into it more than the bottle.
Yesterday we celebrated Eric's first Father's Day. We were with the girls for almost the entire day shift. There was much cuddling to be had by both of us and it was good. I think we were both quite content just being with the girls - content in a way I'm not sure either of us has felt before as there is often something weighing on our minds while there. And Eric loved his gifts from the girls - prints of their footprints. I've promised to frame them for him.
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
25 Days
Well...I'm a few days late on this update. Try as I might, I just can't seem to get the update posted on the weekly anniversaries of the girls births. Oh well...we do the best we can.
We were told that the NICU experience would often feel like a roller coaster ride and we have definitely felt that the past few days.
Morgen started PO training (e.g., learning to feed by mouth) last week. She started slow taking only 7ccs from a bottle. The next day she took 10 and then 13 and on Sunday she jumped up to 28ccs. Her therapist Jean was quite pleased with her progression. She is now "cue ready" which means if she's awake and alert she can try feeding from a bottle or the breast. She gets to do this once per shift for two days and then twice per shift for two days, until she's getting all feedings from the bottle or breast. The nurses also expect her to be moved to a bassinet in another day or two. All in all, great steps towards coming home.
Sonne, on the other hand, has had some tough days. She had some apnea episodes on Sunday which were incredibly scary. She was put back on VapoTherm to aide her breathing and, after a rough night Monday, was moved another step back onto the CPAP device. On Monday she received a transfusion to help her hematocrit level as her CBC showed a significant decrease in red blood cells (apparently we don't start making our own red blood cells until a month after birth so premies often need help). She was also put on antibiotics and had cultures drawn to see if she has an infection. At this point we are waiting, but the doctors believe she might have a UTI. On the upside, both yesterday and today she had nonnutritive practice and both times, despite my having pumped dry, she latched and sucked and my milk let down so she was able to do a little bit of nutritive sucking. Both our lactation consultant and occupational therapist have said she is a natural and believe she will progress easily once she is cue ready. However, until she is past this infection and back off the more heavy duty breathing devices, they aren't going to formally assess her and advance her.
So we've had one baby taking strides forward and the other taking steps back. The doctors and nurses assure us that Sonne's set backs are normal for premies with low birth weights and tell us we shouldn't worry. Of course, that is easier said than done. They have also cautioned us that while Morgen is doing great, often times premies have set backs when they advance quickly as it is often a bit of an overload for them to have to do so many things at once. We are still hopeful that Morgen might be discharged in a few weeks (e.g., before her full term date), but we are still being told to expect them to be here until term. We shall see.
The last bit of news is that the girls had their first eye exams today and every thing looks great. The vascular system in the retinas is 95% developed for both girls. They will be reexamined in two weeks to see if the remaining 5% has developed and, if not, they can be treated for it. The eye doctor was very pleased with their results. And, while neither girl enjoyed the exam itself (and I have to admit I wasn't a fan of the device used to keep their eyes open), both settled down right after the exam was complete and have been resting comfortably ever since.
Best of all, both girls are growing. Morgen is now 4.5lbs. Sonne is 3.5lbs which is a mere three ounces shy of her sister's birth weight. And with each ounce they gain the more they look like healthy babies, even if they are still small.
And that's it from the NICU for now.
We were told that the NICU experience would often feel like a roller coaster ride and we have definitely felt that the past few days.
Morgen started PO training (e.g., learning to feed by mouth) last week. She started slow taking only 7ccs from a bottle. The next day she took 10 and then 13 and on Sunday she jumped up to 28ccs. Her therapist Jean was quite pleased with her progression. She is now "cue ready" which means if she's awake and alert she can try feeding from a bottle or the breast. She gets to do this once per shift for two days and then twice per shift for two days, until she's getting all feedings from the bottle or breast. The nurses also expect her to be moved to a bassinet in another day or two. All in all, great steps towards coming home.
Sonne, on the other hand, has had some tough days. She had some apnea episodes on Sunday which were incredibly scary. She was put back on VapoTherm to aide her breathing and, after a rough night Monday, was moved another step back onto the CPAP device. On Monday she received a transfusion to help her hematocrit level as her CBC showed a significant decrease in red blood cells (apparently we don't start making our own red blood cells until a month after birth so premies often need help). She was also put on antibiotics and had cultures drawn to see if she has an infection. At this point we are waiting, but the doctors believe she might have a UTI. On the upside, both yesterday and today she had nonnutritive practice and both times, despite my having pumped dry, she latched and sucked and my milk let down so she was able to do a little bit of nutritive sucking. Both our lactation consultant and occupational therapist have said she is a natural and believe she will progress easily once she is cue ready. However, until she is past this infection and back off the more heavy duty breathing devices, they aren't going to formally assess her and advance her.
So we've had one baby taking strides forward and the other taking steps back. The doctors and nurses assure us that Sonne's set backs are normal for premies with low birth weights and tell us we shouldn't worry. Of course, that is easier said than done. They have also cautioned us that while Morgen is doing great, often times premies have set backs when they advance quickly as it is often a bit of an overload for them to have to do so many things at once. We are still hopeful that Morgen might be discharged in a few weeks (e.g., before her full term date), but we are still being told to expect them to be here until term. We shall see.
The last bit of news is that the girls had their first eye exams today and every thing looks great. The vascular system in the retinas is 95% developed for both girls. They will be reexamined in two weeks to see if the remaining 5% has developed and, if not, they can be treated for it. The eye doctor was very pleased with their results. And, while neither girl enjoyed the exam itself (and I have to admit I wasn't a fan of the device used to keep their eyes open), both settled down right after the exam was complete and have been resting comfortably ever since.
Best of all, both girls are growing. Morgen is now 4.5lbs. Sonne is 3.5lbs which is a mere three ounces shy of her sister's birth weight. And with each ounce they gain the more they look like healthy babies, even if they are still small.
And that's it from the NICU for now.
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