Another few days have passed in the "Small Baby" NICU. With the beeps and buzzing of alarms.
Lately it seems that things are being added faster to Ethan's "To Do' list than they are being taken off. We are a little concerned that about an indent in his mouth that has not resolved yet. It looks like the tubing that has been in his mouth has made its mark (if that's what it is). I just hope it's not here to stay. The doctor, nurse and nurse practitioner came in today to look at it and said that they will keep an eye on it. It is doesn't resolve itself, they will have a Genetics specialist come in to see if it was just the way he was born.
Also, as I have mentioned in previous blogs, Ethan has been working with a development team on his arms and legs. The arms are showing signs of improvement at a "Steady" pace. His legs however have been loosening up a bit. But the progress on his legs is extremely slow. He is not showing any resistance when you push on them and he has minimal reaction when you try to stimulate them. They ordered a spinal ultrasound that was done last night. The results came back as negative today for any abnormality. So they are having a Neurologist come in tomorrow to do a consult to see if there is anything to be concerned with now. Or, if we need to wait a little longer until he develops. While a lot of these issues are not a major immediate concerns, they all affect him long term. So it raises the question. How hard is it going to be for him when he gets older? Will he have any disabilities? I guess we will have to wait at this point to see what happens.
In the mean time, Ethan continues his quest to do better on the CPAP machine. He is about the same as he was a few days ago. The only difference is that they have changed lowered the settings of pressure. The oxygen levels remain the same, so we will watch and wait to see how he responds. He is still retaining fluids, but they re going to hold off on the diarrhetic to see if he can release the fluid himself.
Ethan is also stable with his feeds. They doctors are considering bumping it up a little tomorrow or the next day pending nothing comes up. Again, cross those fingers boys and girls. We want to get some meat on our Little Superman's bones.
Madaline is doing well. She gets TONS of complements from the staff about how darn cute she is (and Ethan too). I asked them if they say that about all the babies. They said no, they just wouldn't say anything at all. Or they would point out how nice their toes are, or something like that.
As of yesterday, Madaline has been taken off the oxygen completely. She is responding very well and we are extremely happy to be able to see more of her face. I'm sure she is a lot more comfortable as well. She had another bath last night. She was a little squirmy at first, but then just gave in and relaxed into it. I'm sure the heat lamps helped a little. The nurse did some suctioning in her nose a pulled out a man-size booger. Who would have though something so gross would come out of something so cute.
Her feeding volume continues to increase and she is responding well to that as well. Yesterday and today were pretty big days for her. Milk was introduced to her mouth yesterday and she enjoyed it very much. The developmental person (Karin), was very impressed at Madaline's ability to suck. Because she is doing so well, we tries a "Non-nutratiive" feeding today. Basically, it means breast feeding without the milk by mouth, but by feeding tube. She did okay, but seemed to want to sleep and snuggle more than anything. The goal is to get the babies to associate a mother's heartbeat, smell, skin-to-skin contact, & breast to a eating and a full belly. We will continue this about 1-2 times a day. And when Ethan is ready, we will do the same with him.
Tomorrow is going to be a big day for the twins. Both have their routine first eye exams. Also, Madaline has a routine ultrasound to make sure that there is not any hemorrhaging in her brain. It's not a concern they have, it's just routine. And Ethan has a consult with the Neurologist. They both also have their daily therapy. Who would have thought that being a mom would mean I have to be their secretary as well. Hopefully, my new bosses will allow me a potty break in between appointments. It's a good thing they pay me well. With good looks and lots of love.
Per the request of some followers, I have been asked to post the weight of Madaline and Ethan.
As of last night Ethan's weight is 1lb, 11oz. Some of the weight may be "Water" weight, but none the less, I think he has gained some weight from his original birth weight of 1lb, 5oz.
Madaline weights 3lbs, 7oz, She is a little rock star.
As a reminder, the CHOC walk is coming up in week from this Sunday. We have have 14 people so far sign up to walk. We would love to have you come out and join us. If you can't walk, you can always help by sponsoring our team. Either way, you can go to www.CHOCwalk.net/therichards to register and/or donate. To those of you that have already signed up and/or donated, I can tell you how grateful and excited we are to have your support. Thank you.
Well lots to do tomorrow, so I should try to get some rest. My next post, I am going to give some pictures that will hopefully put their size into perspective. Stay tuned for the next chapter in our 20 Fingers, 20 Toes.
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