I forgot to mention yesterday that while I was holding Charlie, he also attempted to breastfeed for a while - he latched on and lasted a few minutes. He got tired very quickly, but still, the fact that he was able to shows that he will get the hang of it in no time. I have been so excited by how well both of these boys have been doing with breastfeeding. It took Lucy almost a week before she was even as successful as her brothers were on their first try!
We got to the hospital right at noon on Wednesday. The doctor had ordered the boys to have regular feedings of 5 ccs of breastmilk every three hours so they are now on a 12, 3, 6, 9 schedule. This helps us plan our visits so that I can try and plan to feed them. . . if they are awake of course. They both had an NG tube put in - this is a small tube that goes through their nose down into their stomachs. It allows the nurses to feed them without disturbing them if they are in a deep sleep. It doesn't interfere with feeding them by bottle or breast - it is just so that if they are resting, we don't have to disturb their growth! Later on, I imagine we will have to disturb them to feed them since they can't go home without being able to have all their feeds through bottle/breast. We changed the boys diapers and took their temperatures, and then I got breastfeed Alex. He was so wide awake, latched on immediately and we finally had to stop him after about 12 minutes. He was starting out getting only 5 ccs of milk, so we didn't want to overdo things right away! After he ate, we got to cuddle and he was wide awake the whole time. . . of course, I didn't have a camera then, so you can't see a picture of his sweet eyes! Michael got to feed Charlie a bottle and he drank all of it as well. After we fed them, we didn't get to hold them too long because they needed to go back under the bilirubin lights. . . these bright lights help break up the jaundice in their bodies. Lucy had the same experience when she was born, so it wasn't a surprise to us that they would need it as well. We had a great morning visit with the boys and I was so excited to go back and try to feed them again that evening.
Well, apparently my body decided it needed a little time to rest, because at dinner time, I began to feel chilled. I was running a fever of 100.5 so no visit back to see the boys for me. I called the doctor, and after running through an extensive checklist, she felt like a good night's sleep would fix things for me. Michael went back that evening to visit the boys and they were both doing really well. They had increased Charlie's feeds to 10 ccs every 3 hours and Alex to 15 ccs every 3 hours. Charlie's oxygen had been turned down to 2 L and he was handling this change very well. Alex was finished with his phototherapy treatment and was now being moved into an incubator. At first, that worried me but the nurse reassured me (via Michael) that it shows that he is much more stable. The incubator is a much more controlled environment and will reduce outside noise, allowing him to rest and grow as much as possible. He has to gain some weight now so that he can begin to maintain his own body temperature. It's just another step towards being ready to come home.
Alex's new bed
Charlie, snoozing under the bright lights
Alex, being chill til his new bed is ready :)
Sometimes, when I am typing out how well the boys are doing, I almost feel like I am bragging. Sure, lots of people get to take home a healthy, full term baby who has no issues and they begin their wonderful journey of sleepless nights, diaper changes, and loving on their precious child. But for others, a stay in the NICU is necessary. Still, when you look at how well our boys are doing, we are beyond blessed. I have read about through blogs of friends from high school and college who have had experiences in the NICU with so much more difficulty than mine. Currently, a friend of Michael's from high school has a little boy in the NICU who was born at 23 weeks. Her due date was only a few days ahead of mine, so as I have followed her story on her blog, I realize more and more how fortunate we were to have them hold on until 34 weeks to be born. These boys have been taking their own breaths from the beginning (even with a little oxygen help) and are already eating some on their own (bottle and breast). They are tiny, but all of their organs are in working condition and after they put on some more weight, I imagine it won't take too long for them to be able to come home. So through all of this journey, it helps me so much to keep things in perspective. Am I sad/frustrated sometimes that I am at home and not with the boys? Yes. . . . of course, I want them with me. But it won't be long until I am able to bring home two beautiful, healthy babies. There are plenty of other people in my situation who will not be as fortunate. So I am grateful for each milestone they reach. I am thankful for each breath they take and whatever lies ahead for our family in this journey, God has our family in the palm of His hand. He knows what is best and is in complete control . . .what greater blessing could there be?
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