Everyday, DH and I have driven back and forth to the hospital to see them, change their diapers, take their temperatures, hold them, feed them, etc, etc . . .I'm starting to think I should get paid at the hospital! :)
They are truly amazing little babies! Today, Mason weighed 6lbs 7 oz. Christopher weighed 6lbs 1 oz. They have more than doubled their weight since birth!
More on the boys:
Mason-
Weighing 6 lbs 7oz and eating 55cc's at each feeding 8/day. He gets many of his feedings by bottle or breast, however he still needs some support from the gavage tube (feeding tube inserted through his nose). He is also still on the monitor that measures his RR (respiratory rate) and HR (heart rate) via three probes on his chest. Mason is also working on getting his HCT (hematocrit) high enough so that he won't need a blood transfusion. His current level was 24 today! :) That is up from 20 last Monday. This is great news since it should be between 32-42. Basically, the HCT is is the number of red blood cells he has in his blood--without an average amount of the red blood cells he has no energy. That means no energy to eat from the bottle or breast--which then means no going home. . . it's a vicious cycle.
Mason has had good results in most other areas. Yet, I am still concerned about signs of very early ROP in one of his eyes. Unrelated, I am also wondering how long this crazy yellow/green eye drainage he has is going to continue. They ran a culture on it and nothing seems to reveal red flags. Everyone keeps saying it must be a bad case of 'clogged tear ducts'. Well that damn tear duct has been clogged for over a month now and I can only de-crust and wipe out his eyes so many times in a day. I wish there was a better answer.
Anyone have experience with this? Thoughts?
Over all, Mason is a pretty happy little boy! He loves to eat and suck on his pacifier. He is also a big fan of being held after he breast feeds--which he is getting so good at. It is fast becoming our favorite time together :) He has also passed his OT (Occupational therapy) appointments with flying colors! Dr. Sue is so impressed! :)
Mason 1 day old. . .
Mason 2 months old. . .
Christopher-
Weighing 6lbs 1oz today he has finally broken the 6 lb weight barrier! He is currently eating 53cc's at each feeding 8/day. However, he is not as advanced as Mason in his 'nipple feedings'. He takes most of his feedings via gavage, but is working hard with the speech therapist to become better at latching on during bottle feedings, which will then help his breast feedings as well. Christopher has had a few successful breast feedings so far, but they are limited to a maximum of 10-15 minute bursts. His HCT (Hematocrit) is much lower than Mason's which of course means he has even less energy. Monday is was only 19, so the news of 20.7 today, although low is welcome news because that means it is increasing. He has already had two transfusions and I (and the doctors) would like to avoid another one if possible. Transfusing can trick the body into stopping the production of new red blood cells. It causes the body to think, "Hey! We got enough here--hold the production line!" --which in turn only makes things worse later down the road.
Moreover, I think Christopher reflux is what is holding him back most. It really is bad. He is constantly refluxing, coughing and waking up from sleep. No wonder he is tired! If I had that kind of reflux, I wouldn't want to eat either. The only thing that seems to solve the problem is to hold him during and after his feedings-- pretty tricky when you have twins exclusively on your breast milk and need to pump/feed every 2-3 hours!
Christopher is also still on the monitor that measures his RR (respiratory rate) and HR (heart rate) via three probes on his chest. He has had no alarms today; A welcome Birthday gift I am sure! While Mason may have to be watched more closely for ROP, at last check Christopher's seems less likely to cause as much of a problem, although the chance is still there. Christopher also has one more OT appointment on Monday at 11am. Hopefully he will still be right on track and not need anymore appointments with Dr. Sue by the time he goes home.
Christopher is a very sweet little boy! He likes to observe a lot. He can sit wide-eyed in my arms for over an hour just looking around at things in the room. He holds his hands across his chest and seems to know wayyyy more than a little baby his age should. While he has not shown as much interest in nipple feedings as Mason has, he is beginning to come around. Lately, he has begun to develop interest in his pacifier. This is great not only to help train him for nipple feeds but also to perhaps help with the amount that his 'tongue tied' issue effect his feedings. Using the pacifier can help stretch out his tongue, bringing it forward and sometimes correcting the problem on his own without the need for 'surgery'.
Christopher 1 day old. . .
Weighing 6lbs 1oz today he has finally broken the 6 lb weight barrier! He is currently eating 53cc's at each feeding 8/day. However, he is not as advanced as Mason in his 'nipple feedings'. He takes most of his feedings via gavage, but is working hard with the speech therapist to become better at latching on during bottle feedings, which will then help his breast feedings as well. Christopher has had a few successful breast feedings so far, but they are limited to a maximum of 10-15 minute bursts. His HCT (Hematocrit) is much lower than Mason's which of course means he has even less energy. Monday is was only 19, so the news of 20.7 today, although low is welcome news because that means it is increasing. He has already had two transfusions and I (and the doctors) would like to avoid another one if possible. Transfusing can trick the body into stopping the production of new red blood cells. It causes the body to think, "Hey! We got enough here--hold the production line!" --which in turn only makes things worse later down the road.
Moreover, I think Christopher reflux is what is holding him back most. It really is bad. He is constantly refluxing, coughing and waking up from sleep. No wonder he is tired! If I had that kind of reflux, I wouldn't want to eat either. The only thing that seems to solve the problem is to hold him during and after his feedings-- pretty tricky when you have twins exclusively on your breast milk and need to pump/feed every 2-3 hours!
Christopher is also still on the monitor that measures his RR (respiratory rate) and HR (heart rate) via three probes on his chest. He has had no alarms today; A welcome Birthday gift I am sure! While Mason may have to be watched more closely for ROP, at last check Christopher's seems less likely to cause as much of a problem, although the chance is still there. Christopher also has one more OT appointment on Monday at 11am. Hopefully he will still be right on track and not need anymore appointments with Dr. Sue by the time he goes home.
Christopher is a very sweet little boy! He likes to observe a lot. He can sit wide-eyed in my arms for over an hour just looking around at things in the room. He holds his hands across his chest and seems to know wayyyy more than a little baby his age should. While he has not shown as much interest in nipple feedings as Mason has, he is beginning to come around. Lately, he has begun to develop interest in his pacifier. This is great not only to help train him for nipple feeds but also to perhaps help with the amount that his 'tongue tied' issue effect his feedings. Using the pacifier can help stretch out his tongue, bringing it forward and sometimes correcting the problem on his own without the need for 'surgery'.
Christopher 1 day old. . .
Christopher 2 months old. . .
Happy two month birthday to my adorable little angels!
I love you more than words could ever say. I can't wait to have you home with Daddy and I-- we are hoping you will BOTH be home to stay by Christmas!
Love, Mommy.
xoxo
I love you more than words could ever say. I can't wait to have you home with Daddy and I-- we are hoping you will BOTH be home to stay by Christmas!
Love, Mommy.
xoxo
Hello there - I can't remember how I stumbled across your blog, but probably through the Bump. I am also a Wisconsin mama, currently pregnant with our second child. Our first, a girl, was born at 35 weeks due to HELLP syndrome. Considering the scenario, everything went as smoothly as it could have. She never had to spend a day in the NICU and we know how lucky we are. The one "symptom" of prematurity that lingered was the tear duct thing. She had a goopy eye for pretty much her whole first year. It is totally frustrating to be constantly cleaning it, but docs and nurses and even an eye doctor assured me it was totally normal and it did eventually go away on it's own.
ReplyDeleteAnother side effect, of sorts, of her earliness is that we never quite got the hang of breastfeeding. I had to return to work after 6 weeks, which really killed our momentum. I ended up pumping exclusively until she was 1. The frequency at the beginning is just brutal, I can't imagine doing it for two, kudos to you!
Congrats on all the boys' milestones and way to stay strong, mama.
- Fellow mama in Madison