More Moments at the NICU

Mommy and Oliver



Oliver's first burping

Oliver

Oliver peeking up at Daddy:)

Nursing is so much work!

Grandma Marsha holding a grandbaby (Audrey) for the first time

Sweet Gracie, our little porcelain doll

Audrey and Oliver ("Hi Mom!")

Audrey and Oliver's new cribs (they're in there somewhere!)

Gracie and Tutu

Mommy and Oliver

For the past week mommy has been working on nursing Audrey and Oliver each once a day. Audrey is starting to get the hang of it, and Oliver is just our little pro! He nursed the other day for 25 minutes without stopping and ended up transfering (swallowing) 26 ml of milk! A full feed for him is 38 ml, so the nurse only had to give him 12 ml through his feeding tube.

Even though we are tired of visiting our babies at the hospital every day and want nothing more than for them to grow up so we can bring them home, Robert and I realized that we were both having feelings that everything was happening too fast! Audrey and Oliver have been gaining weight rapidly (about 2 oz a day), and the thought that they are just going to keep getting bigger and bigger and never be that small again is kind of sad for us. We've gotten used to their tiny size and being able to hold them certain ways, and it's hard for mommy and daddy to watch them grow up in the NICU. We're definitely looking forward to having them home so we can be with them more often and enjoy them more as they grow and change.

Audrey (our little chunky monkey) is now 4lbs 13oz, and will probably hit the 5lb mark in the next day or two! Oliver is weighing in at 4lbs 6 oz, and Grace is now 3lbs 3oz. Babies used to be able to come home from the NICU when they reached 5lbs, but their ability to leave the hospital is no longer determined by weight. In order for our babies to come home they must:

be gaining weight consistently

be able to maintain their body temperature

be able to eat full feeds by breast or bottle, keep breathing, and gain weight

have gone one week without an apnic spell (not breathing)

So far all of the babies have been gaining weight consistently, and Oliver and Audrey are both in cribs and maintaining their body temperatures, so as soon as they quit having apnic spells (which the nurses tell me often stop around 36 weeks) and can handle full feedings, they will be able to come home! So my main job right now is to get them to eat, eat, eat! We're hoping to have at least one baby home by week 37 (3 more weeks!), and we're thinking that may be Oliver since he's doing so well at eating! Audrey will probably come home second, and it is very likely that little Gracie will come home closer to the babies' actual due date, August 14th, as she started out so tiny and isn't gaining weight quite as rapidly as her siblings.

Overall the babies are doing really well and should make significant progress with feedings over the next few weeks!