NICU

The babies are doing well! They are each making slow progress.

Preston

He is a champ.  Starting out on the ventilator and lights and the whole works.  He was the one I waited longest to hold.  When I first saw him in the NICU on the table so small and helpless it broke my heart.  He was sedated and his chest was bouncing due to the high oscilation of the ventilator.  They gave him medications for his lung develpoment.  He also had an arterial line and a PIK line that travels up his vein right to the large vein above the heart.  I could hardly touch him or hold his hand.  It was hard to stand there feeling so helpless.  Everyday he would get a chest X ray to see how his lungs were progressing, and everyday they would turn the ventilator down little by little.  Slowly his sedation was lessoned and he began breathing on his own.  A day or two after they took him off the ventilator (he was still on oxygen through a nasal cannula), they took out his arterial line and I got to change his diaper.  He took this opportunity to poop and pee all over his bed and his mom.  Then I got to hold him.  He is so sweet and snuggled with me for about 30 min.  During this time the staff also prepared to move him into the second NICU room.  They have 3 levels.  All the babies started in level 3, and as they get better they will be transfered to the lower levels.  Once in level 2 he was placed into an isolet.  It is a plastic box.  He is still on oxygen, but just a low flow.  They also started feeding him a couple mls every 6 hours to help stimulate his bowels and guts to start digesting.  Now that he is in the isolet, he can come out and be held twice a day.  They like to do this right around feeding and medications so that he can rest most of the day.

cute boy

big eyes

with mommy

He is doing so well and enjoys being held and swaddled.  He is such a sweet heart.

Kira

Even though she was the smallest at birth (and still is the smallest), she has been refered to by the staff as "The Rock Star" Kira never went on a vent.  She was on oxygen for several days, but was quickly moved to level 2 NICU, where she has her own isolet.  She started eating out of a bottle and they have quickly increased her feeding amount. Last night she was drinking 21 mls every 3 hours.  She needs to be eating 33 mls every 3 hours in order to come off the IV nutrition and fats they are giving her.  She has been breathing room air now for a while.  Yesterday they even took her off the lights.  She also can come out twice a day for holding.  We have been able to feed her several times and it is so fun.  She is so little that I worry about her getting too cold when I holding her for a long time.  I hope she can gain weight, otherwise she is doing great.

on the lights

so many tubes

eating

smiles

 I love to hold her and kiss her little head.

Kinsley

Kinsley just came off the ventilator.  She is still on oxygen through the nasal cannula.  Kinsley makes me the most frustrated.  She came out breathing really well, and I was able to hold her first, and see her in the operating room.  A couple days later they decided her lungs were not getting better. and they placed her on the vent with medication to help her lungs.  Then even after she came off the vent, I don't see a lot of improvement.  She is still on the lights, and just chills there without moving.  I cant see any improvements.  But last night I talked to the nurse and the nurse said Kinsley is improving! They will probably take out her Arterial line today, and then we will be able to hold her again.  Her lungs are looking so clear, and they have started turning down her oxygen pretty fast and she is still doing fine.  She has started eating 2 mls every 12 hours, just for stimulation.
When I mentioned that she didn't appear to be changing, the nurse said Kinsley was just very mellow.  That she was progressing and would soon be able to transfer to level 2 with her brother and sister.

On the vent

On the Lights

 I love that girl and cant wait until I can hold and snuggle her.

I am so excited to have these little babies doing so well.  They are such a blessing and I can't wait to have them all home with us.

Katelyn, Lincoln, and Mommy at discharge

Im home with the kids.  I am healing well, and feel so much better than I have in weeks.  I pump milk for the babies every 3 hours.  I pump on alternating sides for 10 min intervals for 60 min.  Basically the lactation nurse said a normal single baby will eat 10 min on each side to get enough milk for a full meal.  That means that each baby has to eat 10 min on each side to get a full meal.  And because my body needs to rest in between, I need to feed for 10 min and rest for 10 min 3 times on each side.  I hope this kind of makes sense.  But I have to pump for an hour every three hours.  And so I get 2 hours of rest.  This regiment is really paying off as my milk production is increasing and I think as long as the babies are in the hospital at least I will be able to have enough milk for all of them.  This is great news because it makes me feel like I can do something for my babies to take care of them when they are not able to be home.

Daddy holding Kira

Jared is the most amazing dad.  He works endlessly trying to balance the older kids, the babies, the housework, work, school, and taking care of me.  He will get a few weeks off of work, but we decided not to take those weeks until the babies all three can come home.  That way we can settle in and see just how much there is to do.  Also it will give us the opportunity to help and support each other as much as we can.

Katelyn is so cute.  She asks about the babies and how they are doing.  She wonders why they cant come home and be with our family.  She sees pictures of them and asks which one it is.  The best was when she found out what we had named them.  She told me she didnt like those names.  That she really wanted to "name the girls Jessie, and the boy was supposed to be the little Buzz Lightyear" I told her she could still call the boy The Little Buzz Lightyear, but his name would be Preston, she said "that isn't going to work."  She cracks me up and never stops amazing me with her comprehension skills.

Lincoln is an amazing 1 year old.  He is so kind and gentle with me.  He tries hard to snuggle with me without climbing on me.  Sometimes this is more successful then other times....  He is talking more and more.  He no longer refers to my tummy as "baby."  I just cant get enough of this guy.

Im so lucky to have such a wonderful family.  I am so lucky to have 5 kids.  I am so excited to have Katelyn and Lincoln meet their new brother and sisters.  People tell me how hard it is going to be and how busy I am going to be.  Nobody seems to realize how blessed I am to have this opportunity, and to have such a wonderful little family.