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Log of how they're doing
This is probably boring to most of you - it's for our benefit to look back on and remember how they're doing! The count of weeks below is towards their due date (i.e., -7 is 33 weeks, 40 weeks is fully developed).
Kerstin & Rob's life: The girls are home and need to eat every 2-4 hours. Milk product and sanity drops if Kerstin doesn't get enough sleep, so we do it in shifts. During the day, a standard cycle of changing diapers, feeding, burping usually takes about 1.5 hours for both girls, although sometimes they get hiccups or need another change, so it can extend to 3 hours. Rob still tries to do all the cooking, cleaning, yardwork, cats as Kerstin's breastfeeding and pumping take a lot of time. We have dinner ~6pm, Kerstin gets to bed ~7pm, Rob takes care of things until 1 to 2am, then Kerstin takes over until 9-10am. Our shifts are completely unpredictable. Sometimes it is non-stop crying for both babies and intensely frustrating and nerve wracking, other times they'll sleep lots and we'll have some free time or more snuggle time.
Month of May 2010:
- Their necks are getting stronger. The dr. said wait until 6 months before we use a baby backpack and go hiking, but that is was ok to use our baby carriers that hold them against our chests. On May 3rd, Marilyn came up and we took them on a walk around the block for the first time in the carriers. Cool!
Month of April 2010:
- Focus! The girls are now focusing on our faces. This is awesome, they seem to have more presence. Of course, the focus is often a glare for the first 30 seconds or so when we feed them, as if to say, I've been starving for 10 whole seconds, what took you so long?
- Smiles! Before April all smiles were quick transitory expressions, such as between a frown and mouth wide open. In the last part of April, we've caught them smiling for a few seconds at a time. It's not consistent yet, but oh so beautiful when it happens.
- Fast growth - at our checkup on the last week of April, they were ~11 and 13 pounds. Wow! The dr. said they were growing a bit too fast / too big, and as we're bottle feeding them (breast milk) we should stop after 4oz / 120ml and if they are still starving give them room temp water.
- Out of milk! We went through a whole freezer of stored breast milk that Kerstin pumped while they were in the NICU and not eating much. We supplemented with a little bit of formula. Kerstin started pumping every 2-3 hours with some "power hours" of 10 minutes on, 10 minutes off. She's doing everything she can to increase her milk supply, but they do eat a lot. Now that we are stopping at 120ml, we seem to be at equilibrium and not need formula.
Weekly log from Feb 4th (birthday) to end of March:
- Week -7:
- Thur 2/4: Happy Birthday! Babies were born! The plan was to keep them in longer but they were very excited to be part of things. Both were put on IV's for electrolytes, Lauren was put on an oxygen tube.
- Fri 2/5: Both Katelyn and Lauren started UV treatments for jaundice because of high bilirubin tests (this is really typical for premature babies).
- Sat 2/6: Katelyn started to feed. (gavage tube into tummy)
- Sun 2/7: Mommy and Daddy finally decide on names other than Twin A and Twin B. Pretty perfect ones too.
- Mon 2/8: Lauren's breathing is good, started to feed (gavage tube into tummy). Mom comes home from the hospital.
- Week -6:
- Tues 2/9: Transition day for mommy and daddy. Mommy visiting with girls during the day and both parents coming at night after dinner for a second visit with more cuddle time for all and girls' dinner.
- Wed 2/10: Lauren no longer using oxygen! Her SpO2 is near 100% now. Perfect. Katelyn off UV for a while. Katelyn tried non-nutritive exploring at the breast without much success, but she is being fed through the gavage tube so does not have that much interest in it. Lauren missed a few feedings because she wasn't digesting her food.
- Thur 2/11: Happy 1-week birthday, girls!! Lauren's bilirubin test came back good so she was off the lights as well. She was so alert through the day without her 'purple shades.' Mom got to hold both girls at once for the first time ever. Both girls were eating - Katelyn ~18 ml. every 3 hours and Lauren up to 10 ml. every 6 hours.
- Fri 2/12: Mom held the girls again together and they cuddled up close and all three were extremely happy. Virginia got to meet the girls and gave mom and dad some chocolates which were consumed that evening, and then were told that night that it doesn't go so well with breast feeding. Oops! Yummy treat nonetheless. Daddy changed his first poopie diaper ever on Katelyn, and the poop kept coming. Katelyn thought she was being very funny.
- Sat 2/13: Katelyn was off the IV completely. Lauren is still being weaned off of it (increase in food successfully, decrease in electrolytes). Awesome - Katelyn started to breast feed today using the nipple shield with some success. She needs the shield as the nipple is huge compared to her mouth! She gets tired quickly, so we breast feed what we can, then gavage feed the rest. They weigh her before and after to see how much went in. Clever! She did 12 ml in the afternoon and 13 ml in the evening. 1mg weight gain = 1 ml consumed.
- Sun 2/14: Happy Valentines Day everyone!! The night staff in the NICU made Valentines from the girls on Friday night - the best ones mom and dad have ever gotten. The parents went out to a sushi dinner and brought the girls along (well, the Valentine's). We got a lot of congrats. Lauren was taken off her IV with a strong feeding schedule.
- Mon 2/15: Dad had the day off and continued with house chores. Mom wasn't allowed to help at home so spent the afternoon with the girls. Lauren breast-fed for the first time and got a whopping 18ml.
- Week -5:
- Tues 2/16: Lauren took a little step backwards with a minor complication. They stopped her feeding for maybe a few days (!!!) and put her back on the IV, just as a precautionary measure. It was heartbreaking to see, but we were told this might happen. The doctor told mom that she was 'pissed at not being able to eat, which is a good sign.'
- Wed 2/17: The doctor examined Lauren and has okay'ed gavage feeding, starting back at 10 ml. She will keep the IV in and the antibiotics will run their cycle through tomorrow.
- Thur 2/18: 2 weeks old already!! How time flies. Mom had her two week post partum follow up and learned of an infection. They had to open the c-section wound a little and pack it to let it drain. Ugh! She had been cleared to drive, with the driving privileges quickly revoked. She was unable to see the girls in the evening, but Daddy went up and fed Katelyn with a bottle! Yeah - one step closer to release.
- Fri 2/19: Katelyn's isolette is down to 29 degrees Celsius - at 27, she will go to a regular crib and if she is able to maintain her temperature, will be almost home!! Katelyn is eating 36 ml! She got a lot from the breast at her evening feed and was able to nipple the rest - very exciting. Lauren is up to 13 ml, also through the nipple. We have updated weights for our babies. Lauren is now 4 pounds, 9 oz (+1 oz over birth) and Katelyn is 4 pounds, 3.5 oz (-1 oz over birth). Katelyn is pretty active and Lauren sleeps a lot.
- Sat 2/20: Mom spent the day with the girls, breastfeeding Katelyn a little and holding Lauren who nippled her whole feeding from a bottle again. Katelyn got a little fussy so Mom held both girls together again and there was peace. Katelyn got a CBC (complete blood test) because her heart rate seemed irregular, but all came back clean. Daddy came up for the evening feedings and the parents went home to a turkey dinner. Good job Daddy!
- Sun 2/21: Mom spent the day at the hospital, and had to again see a doctor about packing her infection spot. Lauren was breast fed at noon, although they didn't weigh her because of her IV. Mom got to bottle feed Katelyn at 2:00. Daddy came up for the 5:00 feedings - Katelyn got 6 ml and Lauren got 42 ml!! Lauren's might not be accurate because they weighed her with the IV. Rob joked to nurse Tina that Twin A was named 'Twina' after her. This caused mommy to belly laugh and gave poor Lauren an earthquake!
- Mon 2/22: Mom was up breast feeding both girls at 11 AM and noon. Katelyn got 13 ml and completed her feeding by bottle and Lauren got 29 ml! Both girls are doing great. Lauren still has her IV although it's set pretty low, but they both have their gavage tubes out as they are nippling. The girls are moving to the small room in the NICU - reserved for babies that are close to going home!!! Very exciting indeed.
- Week -4:
- Tue 2/23: We got a message from the doctor this morning - bring clothes to the hospital to room in (stay in the hospital with the baby in the room) as Katelyn is ready to come home! Wow! This put things in perspective. Mom brought a car seat up to the NICU for the car seat test, which Katelyn passed, and gave Lauren lots of snuggles. Mixed emotions for sure. The hospital told us for sure at 5 pm that there was a room available. Mom and Daddy went out for a last supper of sorts (just to Mary's Pizza) and then headed up to the hospital where we watched a CPR video and brought Katelyn to a hospital room, still hooked up to the monitor and nurses standing by in case of need for help. Poor Dad was on the floor. Neither of us slept much. Babies are pretty noisy!! We had lots of laughs about the cute noises.
- Wed 2/24: Katelyn adjusted to her new home pretty well - she looks so small in her crib! Kerstin and Rob adjusted to a new split-shift. Kerstin goes to sleep at 7pm, Rob stays up until 1 or 2, and then Kerstin gets her shift. Luckily this is close to our old lifestyle - Rob's a night owl, and Kerstin used to get up between 3am and 4am to go work out at the gym.
- Thurs 2/24: A truly horrible evening. Katelyn was fussy and crying unless held. 6 straight hours of worry. We found out later she was too cold, and got a space heater for her room. Nice and toasty now! [house was already at 70F for her homecoming, but her room is better at 75-80F when she's chilly]
- Fri 2/26: Rats ... Lauren is still not up to temp at the NICU, so she can't come home yet. Katelyn is doing better. Rob went out to Target and got more bottles and a baby monitor while Mom and Katelyn went to see Lauren - life was too stressful and crazy hanging out in the nursery 90% of the time.
- Sat 2/27: Lauren got out of her isolette this morning, the last step before coming home. ... but ... she got too cold, so she's back in again. It looks like she won't be home until Monday at the earliest.
- Sun 2/28: Mom went up to the hospital alone to visit Lauren and to get her wound packed. Happy birthday Lisa!!
- Mon 3/1: Mom breast fed both girls and Daddy got some good cuddle time in. We are hoping today is our last visit to the hospital. We love the Sutter NICU - the staff has been so great - but we want both our girls home!
- Week -3:
- Tue 3/2: Mom answered a call in the morning from Dr. Miraglia, head of the NICU and the girls' pediatrician, 'Bring your car seat and get this girl out of here! We are sick of looking at her!' We really like Dr. Miraglia and are happy with our choice of him as our pediatrician, which we made before the girls were born. Yeah!! Mom woke Daddy up with the great news. Today we gave Katelyn her first bath. She did great and enjoyed the experience, and then we went to get the fourth member of our family. We are so happy!! They lie in the crib and look at each other, it is very cute. Life is about to get ... more intense!
- Wed 3/3: Today was the girls first pediatric appointment. They both peed all over the scale and all over the bed when Dr. Miraglia was testing their walking reflexes. Too funny. Lauren was a bit stressed at having to go to the doctor's already after just getting home - her eyes said, 'Don't leave me!!'
- Thur 3/4: Lauren got her first bath at home, and warmed up in her new ducky outfit afterwards. :) Thursday night was back-breaking, lots of attention needed non-stop for each of our 7 hour shifts. Zzzz....
- Fri 3/5: Happy birthday Mom (Marilyn)!!
- Sat 3/6: Wow - what a night. :( During Rob's shift, both girls cried non-stop unless held. It was a really, really long night. At the very end, they quieted down for 10 minutes and looked at me with loving eyes. A very nice treat before going to bed. Oliver came to visit and spent the night and met his nieces. Very cool!
- Sun 3/7: Uneventful - we were both really tired all day. 1 diaper change used 4 diapers, and Lauren got three new outfits!! Yikes! We ran out of the newborn size (less than 8 pounds) and Kerstin went and bought some real quick. We took them out in their twin Snap 'n Go baby stroller for the first time, and went around our court. Very quick, but it was the most time they've had outside yet.
- Week -2: 3/9 to 3/16 highlights
- The girls are ready to see family now! They have very weak immune systems, so we're limiting total exposure for the next 2 months & also making sure everyone is healthy. Later on when they have neck muscles and a good immune system, we'll take them out more. We can't wait to be able to hike with them and show them our beautiful county!
- Mom (Marilyn) came over for the day and made us a wonderful home made dinner with leftovers. Dad came for a lunch visit, and Aunt Chris & Uncle Tim made it over too! Oliver came by and spent the night & we all got to catch up on things on our various shifts. Morris, Wendy, Anya, and Owen will be here soon - they've just had some bad luck with colds & stuff and are waiting get healthy.
- Rob opened up some time during his night shifts to see people. That's often easier now, as the days are quite hectic and hard to plan with frequently changing schedules with the 4 of us. Judy came by with a yummy dinner and Cheryl was also able to come for a quick visit. The visits help Rob juggle and burp the girls through the night too. :)
- The MOM's club has been awesome, bringing over huge dinners for us with leftovers for the next night. Thanks!! We will return the favor.
- Week -1: 3/17 to 3/24 highlights:
- The girls are at their official due date - they are now zero! We can now start counting their gestational age to look for upcoming changes.
- The girls are now about 7 pounds and quite healthy! They often don't poop for 5-7 days at a time which is alarming but ok.
- Rob went back to work full time. He found it helps keep him sane to get a break away for a while, but also means he misses them and enjoys his time with them even more. It's hard to miss someone that's with you all the time. :)
- Week 0 - March 29th:
- Wow - the girls are having a growth spurt - and eating every 2 hours. Of course, they are still random, so when one eats, another is not usually hungry or can't be bothered to wake up. This really puts the infinity into the 24x7 care. :) We have ~2-3 more months to go until we can train them onto a similar schedule with some sleep at night.
- Cool development step - both their eyes are focusing on us more now. When we feed them, they look at us. So nice to be noticed!! Of course, if we are running late to a feeding (usually due to being busy feeding the other one) these focusing eyes are quite stern. Pretty funny!
- We passed on all the kind easter offers from family - there's no way to be mobile with them yet - not when 3 out of every 4 hours at best is filled with screaming, pooping, feeding. It's all about them!
Comments for our friends in the mom's club:
- Life with the babies in the NICU: After the C-section and infection, Kerstin can't drive, pick up things, nor do many activities. She can breast feed and see the girls and this takes a *lot* of time. Our std day is to get up in the AM, Rob to make breakfast/do dishes, work from home for a bit, then take Kerstin to the hospital to see the girls ~11am on his way to work. After work, Rob stops by the hospital, helps feed/change diapers & gets some good sleepy cuddle time for a few hours. ~8-9pm we get home, Rob cooks/cleans, Kerstin pumps milk, Rob gets some sleep while Kerstin gets up every 3 hours or so to pump. Whew! And the kids aren't even home yet. :) Rob postponed his time off until the girls were out of the NICU - a very good choice as Katelyn was there for 3 weeks and Lauren for 4 weeks. Life is definitely more intense with them home!
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