Hello all,
With the New Year already rung in, here are the holiday updates for December.
December found us venturing out a bit more, walking to Vienna on warm days, walking at the mall in the mornings (which the pediatrician assures is safe) on cold days, developing smiles and laughs, and taking our first big trip!
We had a wonderful visit in Ohio with Grandmas, Grandpas, Aunts, Uncles, and cousins, and friends. It was so good to finally be home again, and Katharine and Christopher had great fun on their first multi-state travel! :)
The last photos from our Christmas visits are up on the December gallery. Enjoy!
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=6649285000105%3A1079353112&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee
More in the New Year!
Love,
Andrea, David, Katharine, and Christopher
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Saturday, November 20, 2010
A Time To Be Thankful For What Matters Most
We are so thankful to have our little girl and boy home as we approach the holidays!
The fall has been beautiful, and things are beginning to turn colder here. So we still take advantage of the warmer days for walks, and are starting to get into a routine here at home.
The last several weeks have presented some feeding challenges for both of the kids, but especially for Katharine. She had been having a great deal of discomfort when eating, which caused lots of screaming and crying and spit ups, and unfortunately not enough eating and growing. Many long days and nights of worry caused us to visit the doctor a few times a week to try to pinpoint a treatment which would give her relief from the excessive acid reflux she was experiencing. Finally after three weeks, we were sent to a GI specialist, who recommended simplifying her medications to just one in greater strength, and going back to thickening her feeds, as they had done in the hospital.
While a follow up exam showed that all is functioning properly and that her delayed swallow reflex was corrected, thickening of her milk now allows her to keep it down better, helping to control acid reflux and spit ups. As soon as we made this change, she began to double what she can eat, and has not had spit ups as frequently. Christopher also had been having more reflux symptoms than before, as he is getting bigger and eating more. So the pediatrician recommended thickening his feeds too, and now they are both eating with greater ease.
We learned that this is not necessarily a step backward in their development, it is common among babies to reflux, and sometimes even a little rice cereal in the milk solves the problem. And eventually rice cereal will be a first food. We are using a different gel thickener we became used to in the hospital, and it is a very easy change that has made a world of difference for the kids! At their pediatrician’s appointment this week, Katharine’s weight broke the eight pound mark at eight pounds, two ounces! And Christopher is our big boy at ten pounds, two ounces!
The alleviation of this constant worry has made all of our lives easier and happier this last week, and we are beginning to settle into a routine. We are getting a little more sleep, and are glad to have help coming in a couple times a week to give Mama a break and give us both one good night's sleep a week.
We have been SO grateful for all the kindness of our friends who have come to brighten long days, bring meals, and lend moral support. And let’s not forget the cookie-laden care packages from Grandmas and Grandpas!! There have been moments when we truly needed to be lifted, and we thank you so much for doing just that!
We realized that we have taken shamefully few photos so far this month, and now that things are calmer, we are eager to capture and share more of those “almost smiles”, fun in the activity gym, and other precious moments to come! We look forward to sharing the kids’ first Thanksgiving this next week with Grandma and Grandpa Keller, which will also be sure to provide lots of opportunities for several sweet photos!
This post is our thanks-giving to all of you for your love and support, for being there, for listening, and for sending your love and prayers to our family throughout this year. We are so thankful for you, and for the kids, and to God for bringing our little ones home safely to us!
UPDATE:
We had a wonderful time with Grandma and Grandpa Keller for our very first Thanksgiving! We had a lot of fun visiting, sharing our thankfulness, and decorating our first Christmas tree! Complete photos for the month, including the holiday are now ready at our kodak gallery link! Enjoy!
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=836744249905%3A1272939009&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee
Wishing a wonderful December to all!
With Love,
Andrea, David, Christopher, and Katharine
P.S. We became aware through the blog of fellow NICU parents that November is Prematurity Awareness Month! I was surprised to learn that 1 in every 8 babies is born prematurely. As I read through the posts of other parents on the March of Dimes site, I was struck by one that made this comparison; "You never notice how many red cars are out there until you drive a red car."
Through our experience in the NICU, we have heard so many stories from people who had, or knew, or were children born prematurely. Some of these stories have been inspiring, and some have been heartbreaking.
And we are truly grateful for the way our lives have been blessed by the doctors and nurses of the HRP wing this summer and in the NICU's at Fairfax and Fair Oaks this fall.
The March of Dimes does wonderful work for all those touched by these challenging and sometimes tragic births. You can find more information at http://www.marchofdimes.com/prematurityawareness.html
The fall has been beautiful, and things are beginning to turn colder here. So we still take advantage of the warmer days for walks, and are starting to get into a routine here at home.
The last several weeks have presented some feeding challenges for both of the kids, but especially for Katharine. She had been having a great deal of discomfort when eating, which caused lots of screaming and crying and spit ups, and unfortunately not enough eating and growing. Many long days and nights of worry caused us to visit the doctor a few times a week to try to pinpoint a treatment which would give her relief from the excessive acid reflux she was experiencing. Finally after three weeks, we were sent to a GI specialist, who recommended simplifying her medications to just one in greater strength, and going back to thickening her feeds, as they had done in the hospital.
While a follow up exam showed that all is functioning properly and that her delayed swallow reflex was corrected, thickening of her milk now allows her to keep it down better, helping to control acid reflux and spit ups. As soon as we made this change, she began to double what she can eat, and has not had spit ups as frequently. Christopher also had been having more reflux symptoms than before, as he is getting bigger and eating more. So the pediatrician recommended thickening his feeds too, and now they are both eating with greater ease.
We learned that this is not necessarily a step backward in their development, it is common among babies to reflux, and sometimes even a little rice cereal in the milk solves the problem. And eventually rice cereal will be a first food. We are using a different gel thickener we became used to in the hospital, and it is a very easy change that has made a world of difference for the kids! At their pediatrician’s appointment this week, Katharine’s weight broke the eight pound mark at eight pounds, two ounces! And Christopher is our big boy at ten pounds, two ounces!
The alleviation of this constant worry has made all of our lives easier and happier this last week, and we are beginning to settle into a routine. We are getting a little more sleep, and are glad to have help coming in a couple times a week to give Mama a break and give us both one good night's sleep a week.
We have been SO grateful for all the kindness of our friends who have come to brighten long days, bring meals, and lend moral support. And let’s not forget the cookie-laden care packages from Grandmas and Grandpas!! There have been moments when we truly needed to be lifted, and we thank you so much for doing just that!
We realized that we have taken shamefully few photos so far this month, and now that things are calmer, we are eager to capture and share more of those “almost smiles”, fun in the activity gym, and other precious moments to come! We look forward to sharing the kids’ first Thanksgiving this next week with Grandma and Grandpa Keller, which will also be sure to provide lots of opportunities for several sweet photos!
This post is our thanks-giving to all of you for your love and support, for being there, for listening, and for sending your love and prayers to our family throughout this year. We are so thankful for you, and for the kids, and to God for bringing our little ones home safely to us!
UPDATE:
We had a wonderful time with Grandma and Grandpa Keller for our very first Thanksgiving! We had a lot of fun visiting, sharing our thankfulness, and decorating our first Christmas tree! Complete photos for the month, including the holiday are now ready at our kodak gallery link! Enjoy!
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=836744249905%3A1272939009&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee
Wishing a wonderful December to all!
With Love,
Andrea, David, Christopher, and Katharine
P.S. We became aware through the blog of fellow NICU parents that November is Prematurity Awareness Month! I was surprised to learn that 1 in every 8 babies is born prematurely. As I read through the posts of other parents on the March of Dimes site, I was struck by one that made this comparison; "You never notice how many red cars are out there until you drive a red car."
Through our experience in the NICU, we have heard so many stories from people who had, or knew, or were children born prematurely. Some of these stories have been inspiring, and some have been heartbreaking.
And we are truly grateful for the way our lives have been blessed by the doctors and nurses of the HRP wing this summer and in the NICU's at Fairfax and Fair Oaks this fall.
The March of Dimes does wonderful work for all those touched by these challenging and sometimes tragic births. You can find more information at http://www.marchofdimes.com/prematurityawareness.html
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Our First Weeks At Home (aka Weeks 10, 11, and 12)
A Very Happy Fall To All!
Ours has been even happier with the kids at home! I have finally gotten all the photos from our first weeks at home together. Here is the link for pictures of Weeks 10,11, and 12, give or take a few days.
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=277668158905%3A1428446907&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee
Beginning in November, we will be likely to just post monthly updates for the blog and add information as we go. As soon as we get some photos ready for each month, we’ll post the link so you can check at your leisure throughout the month as we continuously add photos and update that post with our new doings.
In the meantime, we are loving our time at home with the kids! Snuggle time is so much nicer now that it’s not scheduled, gowned, and supervised! And we try to take full advantage of this privilege, while still giving the kids and ourselves time for sleep. ☺
We enjoyed a wonderful visit with Grandma and Grandpa Sturgeon, and Grandma stayed for a week to visit and help out after David returned to work. Christopher and Katharine enjoyed the stories she told in the rocking chair, and Mom and Dad were glad for the extra TLC. ☺
We took our first outing with the kids to Meadowlark Botanical Gardens on a gorgeous day, and it was wonderful to just be out in the fresh fall air with them after such a long time under the fluorescent lights. We have also enjoyed a few nice first walks together in our neighborhood, and taking photos in our cute Halloween outfits to commemorate the season.
Our first weeks have also been punctuated by a few standard visits to the pediatrician, as well as a follow-up appointment to Katharine’s cardiologist from the hospital.
We are thrilled to share some news and thank you all for your prayers regarding the PDA that Katharine had been diagnosed with early on. We had been told it would not be likely to close on its own due to its nature and size, and we shared our prayer concern with you that she would at best be facing a procedure down the road. The spectacular news we received at the follow up appointment is that she no longer has the PDA at all! It HAS closed on its own, and that is one less hurdle our little girl will need to face! Thanks to God and to all of you for keeping her and us in your prayers. We are so grateful for this blessing!
We will continue to share news and fun stories over time, as we enjoy getting know our little ones better, and they us.
Wishing you a wonderful end to fall!
With Love,
Andrea, David, Katharine, and Christopher
Ours has been even happier with the kids at home! I have finally gotten all the photos from our first weeks at home together. Here is the link for pictures of Weeks 10,11, and 12, give or take a few days.
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=277668158905%3A1428446907&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee
Beginning in November, we will be likely to just post monthly updates for the blog and add information as we go. As soon as we get some photos ready for each month, we’ll post the link so you can check at your leisure throughout the month as we continuously add photos and update that post with our new doings.
In the meantime, we are loving our time at home with the kids! Snuggle time is so much nicer now that it’s not scheduled, gowned, and supervised! And we try to take full advantage of this privilege, while still giving the kids and ourselves time for sleep. ☺
We enjoyed a wonderful visit with Grandma and Grandpa Sturgeon, and Grandma stayed for a week to visit and help out after David returned to work. Christopher and Katharine enjoyed the stories she told in the rocking chair, and Mom and Dad were glad for the extra TLC. ☺
We took our first outing with the kids to Meadowlark Botanical Gardens on a gorgeous day, and it was wonderful to just be out in the fresh fall air with them after such a long time under the fluorescent lights. We have also enjoyed a few nice first walks together in our neighborhood, and taking photos in our cute Halloween outfits to commemorate the season.
Our first weeks have also been punctuated by a few standard visits to the pediatrician, as well as a follow-up appointment to Katharine’s cardiologist from the hospital.
We are thrilled to share some news and thank you all for your prayers regarding the PDA that Katharine had been diagnosed with early on. We had been told it would not be likely to close on its own due to its nature and size, and we shared our prayer concern with you that she would at best be facing a procedure down the road. The spectacular news we received at the follow up appointment is that she no longer has the PDA at all! It HAS closed on its own, and that is one less hurdle our little girl will need to face! Thanks to God and to all of you for keeping her and us in your prayers. We are so grateful for this blessing!
We will continue to share news and fun stories over time, as we enjoy getting know our little ones better, and they us.
Wishing you a wonderful end to fall!
With Love,
Andrea, David, Katharine, and Christopher
Thursday, October 21, 2010
The Keller Twins Have Come Home! (aka Week 10)
Week 10 was wonderful!
In case you were wondering what happened to our blog posts, you now know… the Keller Twins have come home!!
So much has happened this last week. Our visit with Grandma and Grandpa Keller was wonderful. The kids had so much fun meeting them and we enjoyed being all together!
Katharine was taken off of thickened feeds, and is now taking regular breast milk and formula. While David was out of town for work for a couple of days, Andrea stayed overnight with the kids in their room at the hospital for a couple of nights. It was a great opportunity to get to know the kids’ nighttime routines and learn what it is like to wake up in the middle of the night with the babies.
The day after David returned, we got a huge surprise! After sleeping in for the first time in a while, and planning to get some work and errands done, we got a phone call midday to let us know that BOTH of the kids were ready to come home! While this was an unexpected surprise, we were thrilled to know that they would soon be home, and rushed to the hospital to do the “car seat challenge.” Both kids passed the test with flying colors, sitting successfully in their car seats without any alarms on their monitors.
So that was it – the kids were ready to check out of their private accommodations at Fair Oaks Hospital. On Saturday, October 16, Katharine and Christopher were finally able to complete their long journey home!
Since then, as you can imagine, our lives have been filled with feedings, diapers, snuggles, and just a little sleep. The kids seem to be interested in their new surroundings for short periods of time. Christopher is fascinated by the lights on the swing, and Katharine is loving just taking in everything around her, night and day. And both of them are very eager to meet and visit with Grandma and Grandpa Sturgeon this weekend!
While we still mean to document the kids’ new experiences in the world, you may notice a slight decline in the number of photos we get posted, as well as the frequency of our updates, now that our precious children are home. Never fear, updates and photos will still be available when we can get them up. The kids are taskmasters and are keeping us on a pretty tight schedule. ;)
We are so glad to have gotten this update ready for the blog. Pictures are coming soon!
As always, thank you so much to all for your love, prayers, and support during this long journey home.
With love,
Andrea, David, Katharine, and Christopher
In case you were wondering what happened to our blog posts, you now know… the Keller Twins have come home!!
So much has happened this last week. Our visit with Grandma and Grandpa Keller was wonderful. The kids had so much fun meeting them and we enjoyed being all together!
Katharine was taken off of thickened feeds, and is now taking regular breast milk and formula. While David was out of town for work for a couple of days, Andrea stayed overnight with the kids in their room at the hospital for a couple of nights. It was a great opportunity to get to know the kids’ nighttime routines and learn what it is like to wake up in the middle of the night with the babies.
The day after David returned, we got a huge surprise! After sleeping in for the first time in a while, and planning to get some work and errands done, we got a phone call midday to let us know that BOTH of the kids were ready to come home! While this was an unexpected surprise, we were thrilled to know that they would soon be home, and rushed to the hospital to do the “car seat challenge.” Both kids passed the test with flying colors, sitting successfully in their car seats without any alarms on their monitors.
So that was it – the kids were ready to check out of their private accommodations at Fair Oaks Hospital. On Saturday, October 16, Katharine and Christopher were finally able to complete their long journey home!
Since then, as you can imagine, our lives have been filled with feedings, diapers, snuggles, and just a little sleep. The kids seem to be interested in their new surroundings for short periods of time. Christopher is fascinated by the lights on the swing, and Katharine is loving just taking in everything around her, night and day. And both of them are very eager to meet and visit with Grandma and Grandpa Sturgeon this weekend!
While we still mean to document the kids’ new experiences in the world, you may notice a slight decline in the number of photos we get posted, as well as the frequency of our updates, now that our precious children are home. Never fear, updates and photos will still be available when we can get them up. The kids are taskmasters and are keeping us on a pretty tight schedule. ;)
We are so glad to have gotten this update ready for the blog. Pictures are coming soon!
As always, thank you so much to all for your love, prayers, and support during this long journey home.
With love,
Andrea, David, Katharine, and Christopher
Saturday, October 9, 2010
Week Nine
Welcome Week Nine!
As we begin Week Nine, we think we may also be looking into the light at the end of the tunnel! The doctors, nurses, and specialists here seem to think we’re getting closer to the end of our stay!
Now we are mostly working on eating skills. The speech therapist at Fair Oaks who worked with the kids on Tuesday has changed the kids from their thickened feeds to regular milk for Christopher, and just some thickening added for Katharine. This moves them both closer to the end goal of regular feeding. Additionally, both have begun feeding on demand, rather than on a set schedule, and are able to have as much as they want from a bottle.
Eating all of our food from a bottle is one of the final steps required before we’re ready to go home. Christopher is a few days ahead of Katharine. And as long as he continues to gain weight and be without spells, he may be ready to go home as soon as early next week!
Katharine is still working on her feedings, as her swallow reflex is still developing. So she continues to require thicker milk, and we are helping her pace at feedings, although she is starting to learn to pace herself.
Should Christopher come home first, we will be able to take him with us to visit her in her private room until she’s also ready to come home.
It will be exciting to see what develops in week nine!
And we’re so excited that Grandmas and Grandpas can now visit to meet the kids! We look forward to seeing Grandma and Grandpa Keller this weekend, and Grandma and Grandpa Sturgeon next weekend!
Here are some of the photos we have to share so far – don’t forget to check back! We look forward to sharing more updates and lots of fun photos as Week Nine continues!
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=683499777905%3A1787428627&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee
Love,
Andrea, David, Katharine, and Christopher
As we begin Week Nine, we think we may also be looking into the light at the end of the tunnel! The doctors, nurses, and specialists here seem to think we’re getting closer to the end of our stay!
Now we are mostly working on eating skills. The speech therapist at Fair Oaks who worked with the kids on Tuesday has changed the kids from their thickened feeds to regular milk for Christopher, and just some thickening added for Katharine. This moves them both closer to the end goal of regular feeding. Additionally, both have begun feeding on demand, rather than on a set schedule, and are able to have as much as they want from a bottle.
Eating all of our food from a bottle is one of the final steps required before we’re ready to go home. Christopher is a few days ahead of Katharine. And as long as he continues to gain weight and be without spells, he may be ready to go home as soon as early next week!
Katharine is still working on her feedings, as her swallow reflex is still developing. So she continues to require thicker milk, and we are helping her pace at feedings, although she is starting to learn to pace herself.
Should Christopher come home first, we will be able to take him with us to visit her in her private room until she’s also ready to come home.
It will be exciting to see what develops in week nine!
And we’re so excited that Grandmas and Grandpas can now visit to meet the kids! We look forward to seeing Grandma and Grandpa Keller this weekend, and Grandma and Grandpa Sturgeon next weekend!
Here are some of the photos we have to share so far – don’t forget to check back! We look forward to sharing more updates and lots of fun photos as Week Nine continues!
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=683499777905%3A1787428627&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee
Love,
Andrea, David, Katharine, and Christopher
Friday, October 1, 2010
Week Eight
We recently got the post and photos up for Week 7. Read all about the latest if you haven’t seen it already!
As we start Week 8, we find that we already have a lot of fun photos to share, so we’ve got a gallery started already (see the link below)!
We're still growing strong! At seven weeks on Wednesday, both kids were at 6 pounds 4 ounces!
The biggest news so far this week is that we decided to transfer to Fair Oaks Hospital on Saturday. We met with the staff on Friday, and feel strongly that this will be exactly what we and the kids need now. While it is a little farther for us, the facility is much quieter and more family friendly. All of their rooms are private, a great departure from the crowded and busy open nursery setup at Fairfax.
So Christopher and Katharine are now sharing their own room, out of isolation from one another, and we are able to visit around the clock, with rooming-in facilities. We will be able to care for the kids more independently, while still having medical care and guidance close by, as the kids continue to work on eating and growing. We are thrilled to have access to the more peaceful environment for our family and for the kids’ development.
The best perk to the kids’ new home away from home….that they have finally met one another, after more than seven weeks of separation! This moment is long overdue, and we hope the source of many cute photos! ☺
Check back during the week for more updates! Here is a link for the photos we have so far…
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=601065457905%3A978808929&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee
In other news, we are putting the final touches on the nursery here at home and are all set for the kids to come enjoy their new room when they're ready! We're sharing a few photos of the nursery in a separate gallery. Here's the site for that...
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=594395567905%3A1390857281&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee
Enjoy!
With Love,
Andrea, David, Katharine, and Christopher
As we start Week 8, we find that we already have a lot of fun photos to share, so we’ve got a gallery started already (see the link below)!
We're still growing strong! At seven weeks on Wednesday, both kids were at 6 pounds 4 ounces!
The biggest news so far this week is that we decided to transfer to Fair Oaks Hospital on Saturday. We met with the staff on Friday, and feel strongly that this will be exactly what we and the kids need now. While it is a little farther for us, the facility is much quieter and more family friendly. All of their rooms are private, a great departure from the crowded and busy open nursery setup at Fairfax.
So Christopher and Katharine are now sharing their own room, out of isolation from one another, and we are able to visit around the clock, with rooming-in facilities. We will be able to care for the kids more independently, while still having medical care and guidance close by, as the kids continue to work on eating and growing. We are thrilled to have access to the more peaceful environment for our family and for the kids’ development.
The best perk to the kids’ new home away from home….that they have finally met one another, after more than seven weeks of separation! This moment is long overdue, and we hope the source of many cute photos! ☺
Check back during the week for more updates! Here is a link for the photos we have so far…
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=601065457905%3A978808929&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee
In other news, we are putting the final touches on the nursery here at home and are all set for the kids to come enjoy their new room when they're ready! We're sharing a few photos of the nursery in a separate gallery. Here's the site for that...
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=594395567905%3A1390857281&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee
Enjoy!
With Love,
Andrea, David, Katharine, and Christopher
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Week Seven
Photos for Week Seven are ready for you! You can copy and paste this address into your browser to see them. Enjoy!
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=540216157905%3A1033495247&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee
Week Seven has been a week of ups and downs. Par for the course in the NICU, we are recognizing the “two steps forward one step back” experience.
The kids have been doing a great job of breathing on their own without the nasal cannula! Some days are better than others in terms of their oxygen saturation, but for the most part these numbers are looking more stable each day.
Both Christopher and Katharine have had some challenges with steady breathing, however, as they work on taking more of their food from a bottle. Some days are easier for them than others, and they are able to eat more. But sometimes they have some difficulty. As a result, the speech therapist was consulted this week to help examine their suck, swallow, breathe coordination. Both kids showed signs of needing help with breathing while eating, usually holding their breath for a while to suck and swallow, and then breathing very quickly to catch up. This reflex poses a risk for them to accidentally inhale any milk left in their mouth, so some intervention is needed until they are able to coordinate this more easily.
We learned that breast milk can be difficult for some preemies to handle because it flows so quickly that they don’t have time to manage the coordination of these tasks. So both kids were placed on “thickened feeds”, meaning simply that their milk is now mixed with a thickener that makes it flow more slowly from the bottle. Both are doing much better with this consistency, and get practice with the bottle at every other feeding, with time to rest in between practice sessions.
After drinking whatever amount they can from a bottle, they are receiving the remainder through their feeding tubes, so the kids are still growing like champions! They're both over six pounds now! Christopher is now close to 19 inches long, and Katharine is just over 17.5 inches. Some of their first preemie outfits are no longer working, and Mom thinks she’ll soon need to take up weight lifting to keep up with them! ☺
And the question of the month – when are they coming home? Well, we would love to say it would be in a couple more weeks! But we honestly don’t know. Based on their feeding progress, we may have several weeks to go. When pinned down to give us an estimate last weekend, their doctor gave us a very conservative “six to eight weeks”. We would of course love to have them home sooner, but we are very happy for them to have time to continue to grow until they are fully ready. So at this point, we are not ready to start a countdown. For now, we will just enjoy spending time with them while we wait!
Thank you, as always, for all your love and support!
With love,
Andrea, David, Christopher, and Katharine
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=540216157905%3A1033495247&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee
Week Seven has been a week of ups and downs. Par for the course in the NICU, we are recognizing the “two steps forward one step back” experience.
The kids have been doing a great job of breathing on their own without the nasal cannula! Some days are better than others in terms of their oxygen saturation, but for the most part these numbers are looking more stable each day.
Both Christopher and Katharine have had some challenges with steady breathing, however, as they work on taking more of their food from a bottle. Some days are easier for them than others, and they are able to eat more. But sometimes they have some difficulty. As a result, the speech therapist was consulted this week to help examine their suck, swallow, breathe coordination. Both kids showed signs of needing help with breathing while eating, usually holding their breath for a while to suck and swallow, and then breathing very quickly to catch up. This reflex poses a risk for them to accidentally inhale any milk left in their mouth, so some intervention is needed until they are able to coordinate this more easily.
We learned that breast milk can be difficult for some preemies to handle because it flows so quickly that they don’t have time to manage the coordination of these tasks. So both kids were placed on “thickened feeds”, meaning simply that their milk is now mixed with a thickener that makes it flow more slowly from the bottle. Both are doing much better with this consistency, and get practice with the bottle at every other feeding, with time to rest in between practice sessions.
After drinking whatever amount they can from a bottle, they are receiving the remainder through their feeding tubes, so the kids are still growing like champions! They're both over six pounds now! Christopher is now close to 19 inches long, and Katharine is just over 17.5 inches. Some of their first preemie outfits are no longer working, and Mom thinks she’ll soon need to take up weight lifting to keep up with them! ☺
And the question of the month – when are they coming home? Well, we would love to say it would be in a couple more weeks! But we honestly don’t know. Based on their feeding progress, we may have several weeks to go. When pinned down to give us an estimate last weekend, their doctor gave us a very conservative “six to eight weeks”. We would of course love to have them home sooner, but we are very happy for them to have time to continue to grow until they are fully ready. So at this point, we are not ready to start a countdown. For now, we will just enjoy spending time with them while we wait!
Thank you, as always, for all your love and support!
With love,
Andrea, David, Christopher, and Katharine
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