One Week Old

I hope this entry finds everyone having a great day and successfully wrapping up 2007.  I think 2008 will be very special.  One week after birth, both boys are making progress and moving in the right direction.

Alex is starting to gain weight and is only two ounces from his original birth weight (babies lose about 10% of their birthweight during the first few days after birth).  He is still on the CPAP to help his breathing and they have been able to reduce the pressure several steps over the last week.  Alex continues to have apnea and bradycardia spells (called "As & Bs" in NICU lingo) on a rather frequent basis.  This is when his heartrate drops below 100 and he usually needs some external stimulation, like a pat on the back, to remind him he has to breath and to kick start his heart back up to the normal 130-140 range.  He is on caffeine to help control these spells.  We are waiting on the results of the echo test taken this morning to see if his PDA has closed yet.  Alex is still receiving all his nourishment via an IV.

Anthony is making even more progress.  He is back to his original birthweight and he is also now on CPAP after being removed from his ventilator on Saturday.  He is not having the As & Bs like Alex, probably because he is bigger.  He is also on caffeine.  Yesterday, Anthony started receiving breast milk via a feeding tube in addition to his IVs.  They will slowly increase the amounts of milk he receives each day while reducing the IV amounts.  We are also waiting for his echo results.  Anthony is also being weaned off his isolette/incubator.  They doctors do this by slowly lowering the internal temperature of the incubator as he learns to self-control his temperature.  When they get the internal temp lower enough and he is still maintaining his temp at the proper 98.6F / 37C level, they will take him out.

Mom came home on Friday night and is doing fine.  My little milking machine is pumping away every 2-3 hours and is having good success so far.  It will be nice the day she can feed a baby instead of a machine.  She had to relearn where everything was in the house after spending 7 weeks in the hospital.  

Mom and Dad got to hold the two boys together last night.  I held Alex while Tricia held Anthony.  She insisted on holding Anthony for the first time since I was the first one to hold Alex.  The boys seemed to really like their time with us and stay very calm and stable when we hold them.  I even changed my first diaper last night - probably the first of thousands.  The nurses and other staff have been really great to work with and are very supportive.

Thanks again for all your prayers and support.

Albie