Day 21!!!

This is the first picture of the day, and it says an awful lot about how the boys are doing!!!  I've been waiting for this picture for 3 weeks!!!

FINALLY HOLDING BOTH BOYS!!!

 This picture really melts my heart, and hopefully we can continue to see these types of activities on a more frequent basis!!!  The boys did well last night and their stats remain pretty stable.  Joseph's x-ray looked ok, and the nurse said they were happy with his progress.  As the boys get older they want to keep their oxygen saturation levels a little higher, so his oxygen assistance at 60% isn't something to worry about at this time.  Nicholas is also creeping up a little bit, so we'll keep an eye on him today as well. Their weights have not been updated as of this morning, but we'll keep you updated!!! The boys both got baths this morning, because they were a little "stinky" according to their nurse!!!  I can't wait to see how our house smells with all of the males in here!!!  Sorry Kalleigh!!!

Nicholas says Good Morning!!! I'm nice and clean now!!!

UPDATE 8/31/2013 8:30 PM:  After my Wife's long visit this morning, the boys seemed to have calmed down, and settle in to a nice stable rhythm today!!!  My Wife said that she was in heaven holding both boys at once, especially since she was unable to hold either of them the last day or so since they received blood, and were a little worn down!!! 

Joseph had a really good day, and is now up to 11 ml of milk every three hours!!!  His weight was up to 2lb 12.8 oz and his tolerance of the feedings is a good sign that he may be able to come off of his PICC line in a week or so!!!  Also Joseph is off of his last medication, the milrinone which was for his heart complication!!!  His oxygen assistance was also back down to 43% when I left him tonight, and he was all snuggled up ready for bed!!!  Their oxygen levels are a little elevated because as I mentioned before they are trying to hold them at a certain level of O2 saturation.  Before when the boys were doing really well their O2 parameters were 82-92%, and now they are 87-94%.  Joseph is doing really well, and we are so happy that he has come off of his last medication today!!! Joseph and Nicholas will both still receive caffeine for their apnea and their respiratory treatment every 12 hours, but this is standard.

Nicholas continues to be our little easy rider!!!  He's doing really well, and they have moved him up to 2.2ml of breast milk every hour on his continuous feed!!!  His weight is not up to 2lb 9.3oz, and since today was the first day they increased his feeds, we're anxious to see what tomorrows weight comes in at!!!  Nicholas was ranging between 36-42% oxygen assistance today, but he was resting nicely at 38% when I left him tonight! 

I know you are all really wondering about the whole chair incident, and apparently I'm now known around the NICU as "that Dad who broke the chair" because I had a number of comments from many of the nurses, some whom I've never met!!!  Well I'm happy to say the chair is fixed, and I won't be seeing a bill!!!  I think it's safe to say that I won't be reclining in that chair ever again!!!

Today was a great day, it started with my Wife being able to hold both boys at once, and then we got to spend a lot of time with Vince!!!  It was really nice for both my Wife and I to be able to spend quality time with Vince, without constantly worrying about the boys, and calling the NICU every 3 hours for updates.  Don't get me wrong, we still worry about the boys on a minute by minute basis, but since all of the reports on them today were positive, we focused all of our attention to Vince!!!  My Wife is continuing to get better from the C-section, and she is finding herself capable of more and more each day!!!  She has really been a trooper through this entire process, not only since the boys were born, but for also being hospitalized on bed rest for the 5 days prior to their arrival!  I know it's been hard on her, but to see her being able to do the little things with Vince again, and being able to go see the two boys on her own, really makes me happy, because I know she is too!!! 

Push ups were at 21 (42) today!!!  I think I have at least 4 more days in me to go with an unbroken string of 50, but doing them everyday may make that tough!!!  I hope everyone has a wonderful Saturday night, and you will be hearing from me in the morning!!! Goodnight everyone!!!

Since Jr. Didn't get a solo shot today!!!  He's looking so good!!!

Vince and Me getting some good father son bonding time on the super slide!!!