Oct 30, 2009

Above - Conor holding Jack.. he is getting great practice!

First time to hold them together! We wonder if they remember each other. Reese has the pink hat on

Day 27

To clarify, the girls were in a level 3 nicu when they were born. We have stepped down to level 2. Same building, just across the hall. Tom was able to kangaroo hold (skin to skin) both the girls tonight at the same time. Riley is up to 2lbs 7oz and Reese is 2lbs 9oz. They are both doing really good. We hope they will be able to co-bed within the next couple of weeks.

Conor is doing good too! He talks about his sisters. He says he can hold Reese and I can hold Riley. This morning he gave me a big hug and said "mommy, you're my favorite son"... it was soo cute!! Tonight we brought the laptop up to the hospital and we did the webcam with him. He was able to see his little sisters! He kept saying wow and ahhh.... Out little guy is getting so big!

Oct 26, 2009

Above - Riley, she loved her bath!!

Above - Reese, she never cried during her bath, but she wasn't quite sure what to think..ha/ha

Well, we haven't posted over the weekend because things were pretty calm and quiet. Both girls are now without any IVs, so we were able to give them baths. Riley got a bath on Saturday and Reese got one today. The girls really enjoyed there time in the "spa." See the pictures. You can also go to our other website to see lots more pictures, look in the top right of this page for the link.
The really good news... neither the Doctor or the nurse have heard a heart murmur in Reese over the last 2 days. We have not had an echocardiogram to confirm it yet, but she's currently not showing any signs or symptoms of a PDA. Riley has been weened down to 3.5lpm on her vapotherm. They both have been on room air (no supplemental oxygen).
Also, the girls have graduated to the other side of the NICU. The NICU is divided into 2 sides, one side has the more critical babies and that's the side that all the new "admins" go to. The other side houses the bigger and less critical babies. Our girls were moved to the other side, not so much because they reached a milestone, but really becasue it was getting crowded where they were and Reese and Riley were the most stable babies to move.
Both girls HCT level are being watched. HCT tells them if they are producing red blood cells. If this number is below 35 they could need a blood transfusion. Both girls are a little low so they are receiving an Epo shot 3 times a week (mon/wed/frid). This is a hormone to help them to produce red blood cells. We understand that they could get this shot for a while, which is better than a blood transfusion. So we pray that it works. We will keep you posted. They get their first shot tonight.

Oct 23, 2009

Sorry, it's been a short while since our last update. There was really nothing new to report, everything was "status quo" for a few days. Yesterday, we had some minor setbacks. First, both girls lots their PICC (central lines). These lines are central IVs. They thread a catheter into an arm or leg and into a larger vein. This allows for larger amount of fluids to be introduced into their blood without worrying about irritation or overload that may occur with a normal IV.
Since both girls are progressing very well on their milk feedings, the loss of the PICC line is not a huge concern right now, but it does limit the amount nutrients they are getting.
We also learned yesterday that Reese's PDA re-opened. We were unaware that this was a possibility, but it was confirmed on an echocardiogram. The Dr. has decided not to treat with Indocin yet, he'll just monitor Reese and see if the PDA caused any "stress." So far, Reese has been doing well.
Riley has not used supplemental oxygen for almost 3 days now, she's doing great. Riley also finally broke the 1000gram mark, she is currently weighing in at 1020grams. (2 lb, 4 oz)
Reese's current weight is 1150g (2lb 8 oz), she's slowing down a little and allowing her sister to catch up.
Conor has finally recovered from his cold and is doing well. I really wish he could see his sisters. He's going to be a great big brother. He got his flu shot yesterday and keeps telling everyone about how "that man" pinched him and checked the muscle in his arm.
Thanks for reading.

Oct 21, 2009

Above is Reese laid back enjoying her lunch!

Above, the nurses are all awsome! We played around and they did plaster molds of their hands. The one on the left is Reese and the right is Riley. That is a quarter if you can't tell. You can see their wrinkles, veins, finger nails.... it is really cool. It will be something they will have when they get older to see just how small they are. Maybe we will do their feet next!

Update

Day 18 in the NICU. The girls are doing great. Riley is up to 1/2oz of breastmilk per feeding and is continuing to go up every 12 hours. We are hoping by this weekend she will no longer be on any IV fluids and just on breastmilk and caffine. She weighs in at 970grams (2lbs 2oz). Reese isn't up to 1/2oz yet but will be there very soon. Maybe by next week she will also be off of IV fluids and just on breastmilk. She is weighing in at 1130grams (2lbs 8oz). Tom and I continue to hold the girls everyday.

Oct 18, 2009

Above - Riley 10/19/09 Below Reese 10/19/09

Here is a picture of Reese from today! I think she looks alot like Conor did as a baby.
A good day today. Reese is up to a whopping 1090 grams (2lb, 6oz) and Riley is up to 945 grams (2 lb, 1oz). Reese has one day left on her anitbiotics. Not a whole lot going on. We are still getting to hold them everyday. We sit there and watch them sleep and grow. More to come later......

Oct 17, 2009

We found out earlier this morning that Reese's pda closed! So now she is back on her feedings. Her weight this evening was 2lbs 6oz! She even looks like she has a double chin already. Riley is doing great too. She weighed in at 2lbs 1oz! When they were born they stayed in humidity. Now they are both off humidity. Still watching both of their blood oxygen levels. Both still have to have a little oxygen to keep their levels up. That's all for now!

Oct 16, 2009

Day 13 already! Riley weighs 930 now and Reese weighs 1020. Riley is doing great. They have increased her feedings and will continue to increase them every 12 hours. Reese is the same. She had her last dose of indocin today at 4:00. We hope she gets her echocardiogram tomorrow sometime so we know if her pda closed or not. She will stay off her feedings until we get results.