Day 51!!!

I got to see my boys today!!! After 3 days I couldn't go one more so I stopped in to see them this afternoon.  They looked great and Joseph was doing awesome in his open crib!!!! The boys both were getting their eye exams when I arrived but the DR said everything looked good!  The boys also had their feedings increased, Joseph to 36ml and Nicholas to 34!!!  Nicholas remains off of oxygen and the nurse will be putting Joseph on "Micro flow" which is almost no assistance at all!!!  The boys will both be receiving epogen again to stimulate the bone marrow, so hopefully we can avoid another blood transfusion.  Other than that they seem to be progressing nicely and we hope Nicholas can reach 4lbs tonight or tomorrow!!!

7 Weeks!!! Big Bro B-Day!!!

 I can't believe that it has been 50 days already!!!  The boys have made outstanding progress over the last few days as well, which is making the time go by a little faster I think!!! I have to start the blog tonight though by wishing Vincent a very happy 2nd birthday!!!  We had a great day celebrating with him and we ventured out to Arlington Racetrack along with Grandpa and Grandma G., Aunt Sheri and Uncle Tom, and his cousins!!!  We also celebrated my parents 39th wedding anniversary too!  The only thing missing today was the boys of course!!!

So since I haven't seen the boys in the past 3 days, I've relied heavily on the information that Kalleigh is providing me to update everyone.  She has been doing an amazing job keeping track of everything that is going on, especially with all of the new progress!!!  Nicholas is now weighing in at 3lb 13.5oz, and is up to 30ml of breast milk every 3 hours! He has been tolerating his increased feeds fine, and in fact yesterday pulled off his nasal canula that was supplying the oxygen, but the nurses decided to try and leave it off to see how he responded.  Of course on this news I was very nervous, but I'm happy to report that Nicholas has now been off of oxygen since he pulled off his nasal canula early yesterday!!!!  It's such an amazing feeling to know he is doing so well, and to think of how much improvement he has made since he was born 7 weeks ago!  We are hoping that Nicholas is able to reach 4lb early this week and be able to move to an open crib in the middle or end of the week!  Nicholas also made his first attempt at breastfeeding today!!!  Kalleigh said he did really good, and was able to get the technique down, but it was kind of a dress rehearsal if you will, because they wanted Kalleigh to pump first and then try to get Nicholas to attempt the feeding.  The reason for this is they don't want to introduce two new experiences at once, so taking to Kalleigh is number one, and then oral feeding is another.  Kalleigh will go back tomorrow and try to actually feed Nicholas.  I can't begin to describe the feelings that have been going through me these past few days listening to all of this progress, and at the same time not being able to witness it by myself, but I know Nicholas is doing great, and I will be seeing him tomorrow!!!

Joseph is also doing great, he now weighs 4 lb 4.25oz, and is up to 34ml of breast milk every 3 hours!  Today his nurse tried taking his oxygen away, and although he handled it for a little while, she had to put him back on, because his oxygen saturation levels just weren't staying high enough for her to be comfortable leaving him off!  Instead the nurse lowered his pressure to 1 liter of air per minute, which is almost nothing, and he is hovering right around room air for his oxygen assistance!!! We of course were very happy to hear that he tolerated some time off of the oxygen, but considering all of the issues we've had with Joseph we are not surprised that he is a tiny bit behind Nicholas in his respiratory development.  Joseph was also moved to an open crib today!!!  He looks so much more comfortable and we hope he can remain out of the incubator from this point forward!!!  We are so happy to see his progress and are looking forward to having him attempt breastfeeding tomorrow too!  We will be keeping a close eye this week on Joseph's progress and hope that he can get off of his oxygen like Nicholas!

The boys are doing so great, and we know we are so lucky to be in the situation we are considering where we've come from!  Thank you for the continued thoughts and prayers from all of you, this has been a truly amazing experience and has given Kalleigh and I a whole new outlook on life!  Sorry for the late post, but today we dedicated the majority of our time to Vince for his day!!!

Nicholas without his canula!!!!

Joseph giving us a smile!!!

Joseph in his open crib!!!

Day 49!!!

It's a beautiful day outside, and the boys are doing great!!! Not too much you can ask for on a Saturday!  I still haven't been able to see the boys, but Kalleigh has been doing double time for me!!! Both Nicholas and Joseph have been weaned down to 2l of forced air per minute, and both boys are in the low 20's on their oxygen assistance, with Joseph being at room air!!!  The doctor is so happy with their progress that tomorrow morning they may allow Kalleigh to attempt to breast feed them!!!  That will be another great accomplishment for the boys, and we're really excited for a lot of progress this week!!

Joseph will probably be in an open crib by tomorrow or Monday at the latest!  The doctor doesn't want to introduce breast feeding and an open crib at the same time, so they will do the feedings first and then open crib!!! Joseph now weight 4lb 3.75oz, and is really holding strong on all of his vitals!

Nicholas is now weighing in at 3lb 11.5oz and doing great as well!  I know I mentioned this before, but his hemangioma has gotten a little bigger over the past couple of weeks, but it seems to be looking a little better and hasn't grown as much if at all in recent days.  Again this isn't anything to worry about, it's only cosmetic and hopefully in a few years it will go away. 

The pictures of the boys will come later, Kalleigh will be sending me some to put on here when she goes to visit them next time.  Pushups went well today, and I look forward to the century mark tomorrow!  I know that sounds crazy, but I believe all of the positive energy from this challenge is paying off, and the boys are feeling it!!!  Keep up the hard work everyone, and I hope you can get outside and enjoy your Saturday!!!

Day 48!!!

It's hard to believe that it has almost been 50 days since the boys joined us, and that they have spent all of their lives thus far in the NICU!!!  We know they are in the best place possible though, and the care and love that they receive from the doctors and nurses in the NICU really provide us with a comfort level that we didn't know would be possible at a hospital!  Again I have to thank all of the wonderful people in the NICU who have helped get our boys to the positions they are today!!!

Nicholas now weights 3lb 10.5oz!!!  There was a little confusion last night with a discrepancy in his weight from the night before, but after a little math correction everything was fine and he gained almost a whole ounce!  Nicholas' forced air was also lowered yesterday to 3l per minute, and he was handling it nicely!  He was hovering right around "room air" (21% oxygen) yesterday, so this is a really good sign that his lungs are developing nicely!

Joseph is weighing in at 4lb 1.5oz!!!  Another big gain for him which is great to see!  I'm hoping they try and put him in an open crib by this weekend, which will be a very welcome site for us!!!  Joseph also had his air flow decreased to 3l per minute and he was doing great!  In fact he made it down to "room air" early this morning as well!!!  During the first few weeks of his life, I would have never guessed he would be doing so well at this point!!!

Unfortunately I was unable to visit the boys yesterday, and I probably won't be able to see them today, I'm feeling a little under the weather, and I won't go near the NICU for fear of getting not only my boys sick, but God forbid another baby, or one of the healthcare providers!  Yes we sterilize very generously when we're there, but I will not be the one who causes any illness or setbacks for my boys!!!  So as hard as it is not to see them everyday, I know I'm doing the right thing by staying back.  Kalleigh has been able to spend a little more time with them yesterday and will today as well, so she'll keep me informed and send pictures as well!!! 

Day 47!!!

WE HAVE A 4 POUNDER!!!! Last night Joseph hit the 4lb mark on the nose, and Kalleigh and I were both there to witness it!!!  We were very excited as he reached this new milestone to say the least, an to think that he has put on 1.5lb's in 6 1/2 weeks is great!!!  Nicholas went up the charts as well hitting 3lb 9.75oz so were hoping by this time next week both boys are over the 4lb mark!!!  Joseph will be monitored for his temperature now, and as long as he can hold his temperature without the help of an incubator they will move him to an open crib!!!  That will be a very exciting day for us as well! 

Both boys are doing great and were very active during last night's hands on!  Kalleigh and I both got to change diapers and put their pajamas on!!!  It was exciting to be there with Kalleigh during this time, and we really only needed Vince to complete the picture!!!  We will begin face timing with one another while we are at the hospital so Vince can start to know his brothers a little more.  Right now we just show him pictures and explain to him that his two brothers are in the hospital, and Mommy and Daddy go see them everyday.  He seems to be getting it a little more now, and it's priceless when he kisses their pictures on our phones!!!  Out of all of the challenges we have faced, I think not having Vince see his brothers is becoming one of the hardest, especially now since they really only have their nasal canula's in and the NG feeding tubes.  Before we didn't want him to see them with their IV's and other lines in, but now since they are doing so well, we're excited to have him meet them when they come home!!!  We know we're still a long way away from that day, but we couldn't be happier with the progress that these boys continue to show! 

Joseph was so excited he almost rolled off the scale!!!

It's official!!! Four pounds on the dot!!!

Nicholas looking very content!!!

Joseph after Mommy dressed him!!!

Day 46!!!

Sorry for the late post, but as you may know we celebrated my Mom's 60th birthday last night, and lets just say I needed to sleep in a little this morning and then head to work, I'll leave it at that! 

The boys are approaching 4lbs fast!!! Joseph as of last night weiged 3lb 15.5oz, and Nicholas 3lb 8.5 oz!!!  Kalleigh and I are heading to the hospital shortly for tonight's weigh in, and hopefully we will see a 4 pound reading!!! It's pretty exciting considering where they boys started to see them progressing so well!!!  Also, the boys have grown in length as well, they were both 13 inches at birth, and now are both 16 inches!!! 

Both boys had their feedings increased today, Nicholas is now receiving 29ml every 3 hours, and Joseph is getting 32ml!!!  We are hoping this increase puts on weight at an even faster pace now!!!  The boys have been tolerating the increase great, and when I visited them earlier today they were both showing good vital signs, and holding strong on their oxygen saturation levels!!!  It's amazing how alike they are in their vital signs too, especially when we hold them close together and they can touch each others hands!!! 

I'm putting a picture of Joseph's monitor on the blog for everyone to see what we look at when we visit.  The green number is the baby's heart rate which we want above 100 and usually in the 120-160 range, and the blue number is the oxygen saturation level.  The nurses and doctors want the waves next to the oxygen level to be constant just like they are in this picture!  The white number is the respiratory rate of the baby, which should be between 10-100.  Just wanted to let everyone know how we judge their progress through out the day!  The technology is great, and as you can see in the lower left, since the nurses have more than one baby they are able to put another monitor on the same screen so they can see both babies at once.  The lower left here is Nicholas!!! 

Day 45!!!

The boys are definitely growing from their Bolus feeds!!! Nicholas came in at 3lb 8oz and Joseph now weighs 3lb 14oz!!! It was great to be there for the weigh in last nigh and to see them doing so well!  Grandma and Grandpa G. came along for the ride to spend some time with the boys!  It was an early 60th birthday present for Grandma G. to be with her two new Grandsons last night, and she briefly got to hold Joseph!!!  On that note, Happy 60th Birthday to my amazing mother, who doesn't look a day over 50!!!  We are truly thankful for all that she has done for us not only in the past two months, but always!!! 

Joseph as I stated now weighs over 1700 grams, and is receiving 30ml of breast milk every 3 hours.  He will have labs done this week to determine how he responded to the Epogen cycle for his anemia, but he looks really good, and doesn't seem to be losing any color at all!!!  He was so peaceful last night when we arrived, it was great to see!!!  He remains at the 4l of air per minute, and also right at 30% oxygen assistance.  He has really decreased the amount of episodes he has been experiencing as well!!!  This is a great sign, because one of the requirements for the boys to come home is to go 7 straight days without an episode, or else the clock starts over!!!

Nicholas is receiving 27ml of breast milk every 3 hours, but as his weight increases he will begin receiving more.  To put that in perspective, he's close to 1oz of milk, as compared to the 2oz you would typically give a newborn.  My theory is that their both halfway to home!!!  Nicholas received his labs yesterday, but we haven't heard the results yet, but he too like Joseph looked really good!!!  Nicholas is also still at 4l of air per minute, but is a little lower on his oxygen assistance ranging from 21-25%.  Nicholas has hardly had any episodes for a while, so we're hoping he continues down this path!!!

Nicholas, really concentrating on his weigh in!!!

My favorite onesie to date!!!

Grandma waving goodnight to Nicholas!!!

Joseph, passed out!!!

Really happy after finding out his weight!!!

An early birthday gift for Grandma, first time holding Joseph!!!