Dog days of Summer

5/31/12

The first night at home has been completed and they have now been home for more than 24 hours.  Little sleep was had by most in the house including the dog.  Maggie couldn't figure out what the noise and commotion was all about.  The good news is that tonight is another night to attempt to set a routine again.

The grind is the going to be the hardest part.  Tomorrow won't be much different than today, but it will bring new challenges because we will still be short on sleep.  I pray we are long on patience and don't miss the forest because we have entered the trees.  When we went to visit them in the NICU it was easy to remember to snap a few pictures of them, enjoy the feeding process, and listen to their little grunts while they slept.  Today I had to grad the camera before I sat down to write this just to make sure we had pictures of them today and last night the grunts didn't seem too little.

I did not realize how much I liked the monitors they were on at the hospital.  I hated the wires and hard it was to change and hold them, but I liked being able to look up and see a strong heart beat and know everything was okay.  At home that security blanket is gone and I was not able to sleep through their grunts.  I am sure it will come in time and Jacqueline will be waking me up soon enough asking 'can you not hear them.'  In my early morning fog I am sure I will respond, 'hear who?'  So here is to another night closer to a routine.

Video from yesterday of Maggie and the twins.

Free at last! Free at last!

5/30/12

We know that Emily and Evan had a short NICU stay and we praise the Lord for that.  However, they are home now and ten days was long enough to wait until for them.

The trip home was uneventful.  We did need a little help from the valet guys to get the carseat bases in a little more secure.  I was told that the type of carseats we have do work well with Toyota's anchor system.  Who knew? Good thing for the health and well being on our children the trained carseat installers (real thing, not sure if it the proper title) knew.

I went to work this morning for a half day and then met Jacqueline and my mother at the hospital just after 1pm to bring them home.  We drove home, parked, used their double snap-n-go stroller to walk the block to the apartment, and 'settled' in about 2:45.  Since that minute we have been working to get a routine for the home life.  We had a schedule after fives days of coming from home to visit them in the NICU.  I am sure it won't take long to have a schedule established and I'm sure at least some sleep will be included in there.

The carseat pictures will give some prespective on their size.  I looked down at the two carseats that had nothing but room in them and thought 'why are they letting these tiny things leave the hospital?'  I then realized they were letting these tiny things leave the hospital with me.  At that moment they turned the heat on in the hospital to 120.  At least that my story because that would explain why sweat began to form on my brow.  A few hours at home and them meeting the beast has helped settle that feeling so we will move on to the pictures.

Wire free

locked and loaded

clearing out

vacant beds available

I'm ready

Let's get this show on the road

Last family shot in the NICU. Thanks to all the docs and nurses!

Last one before we leave the hospital

Made it home safe and sound

Time for our first dinner

"Can I help?"

"Can I at least see?"

"Nobody lets me do anything"

More pics and hopefully a video tomorrow. 

Ryan

One tired dad

Home Sweet Home

5/29/12

Short post tonight and no pictures...sorry.  We have been trying to get everything in order all night because (drum roll) the babies come home tomorrow!  At least that is the plan right now.  Evan needs another day of weight gain and Emily can't drop weight.  Those two things happen and we have our family all under one roof for the first time tomorrow.

Evan put on 75 grams yesterday (2 1/2 ounces) and Emily put on 20 grams (2/3 of an ounce).  Both are eating better and should be fat little babies in no time.  Let the sleepless nights begin.

I am off to bed now with hope of one last good night sleep before they arrive home....where they belong.  Look for lots of pictures tomorrow and maybe a video or two of our beast meeting her little siblings for the first time.

(or look for two posts the on Thursday as we get use to little ones at home)
Ryan

Summer time in the city

5/28/12

It has now been eight days since the twins made their escape.  On Friday evening, as Jacqueline and I drove home from the hospital we noticed how full the beaches were and the clear summer time feel.  We went into the hospital early Sunday morning and hadn't seen daylight, other than through a window, in almost a week.  It was a cool 65 degrees when we went in last Sunday morning.  The holiday weekend that marks the beginning of summer for so many snuck up on us.  I have a feeling Christmas is going to sneak up on us as well and all the holidays between now and then may be forgotten along the way.

Do not read a complaint in the previous paragraph.  This past week, as exhausting as it may have been, shouldn't be changed for the world.  I say this knowing that tomorrow I return to work.  I have seen the way Evan has been taking his bottle the last two days and we need food money so I must return to work.  I know many of you think tax accounting isn't the greatest gig to begin with, but tomorrow will be an especially boring day for work.  I will be working while my kids are trying to fatten up in order to come home.  The new challenges the family will face as we grow will be interesting.  I am sure each one will be overwhelming when we look at their approach and barely noticeable when we recall their presence.

As for Emily and Evan, they are doing well.  Emily put on almost two full ounces yesterday.  Evan was unchanged, but he is eating much better.  At one feeding today he took 70 ml (just over an ounce), which is a new high for him.  I am sure that will result in some weight gain and we are hoping it shows tomorrow.  If he can put on weight the next two days and pass his car seat test he will be coming home on Wednesday.  Emily could have the same release date because her weight gain has been good over the last few days, but she needs eat more consistently.  It is weird to think that the apartment could have two tiny kids in it on Wednesday night.

We better get some sleep now.

A few pictures....

My favorite are the family shots

Good night little ones

They have to sit in their car seats for 90 minutes with no episodes to be able to come home

Mothership

5/27/12

One Week!  Where has the time gone?  Any one who thinks life is moving too fast and wants weeks to feel like months....have twins.

Looking back at the past week I am struck by the work that my family has done.  Jacqueline working hard both day and night to feed these little ones.  The kids working to staying warm, eat, and keep those little hearts so theirs beating.  I am tired for them all.  I also need to mention the extended family and friends that have been a support to us this week. Thanks.

The kids are doing great and the NICU pediatricians have penciled Emily and Evan for a Wednesday departure.  It is still very early and anything could happen between now and then, but we are excited it could happen so soon.  There are still hurdles to clear but we are moving in the right direction.

One of the biggest challenges faced this week has been for Jacqueline to get food for the kids.  I will spare all the details, but she has been in a lot of pain most of the week (other than the surgery).  Some pain is caused because the kids are so small and have a hard time feeding, but the other has been when she is pumping.  Two lactacin specialists, a pediatrician (who was just checking because she has been there), and any nurse that was willing or offered to take a look was beginning to get concerned about mastitis (for the male readers: an infection).  To see the pain Jacqueline was facing has been a challenge for all who were looking at her.  However, a small change to the pumping process has seemed to make a world of difference.  Two pumping sessions later the pain has been reduced considerable and the joy is evident.  To think that she stuck with this process through that pain is amazing.  It was the pediatrician that made the comment that got me thinking.  She told Jacqueline, "call a doctor so you can get this figured out now, because after all you need to take care of the mothership."

We've heard the catch phrase, 'happy wife, happy life.'  This always seemed trite and ridiculous to me.  I wasn't out make my wife mad, but seemed the phrase seemed to most often repeated by men who really didn't care about happiness for their wives but just wanted to left alone.  However, the idea of caring the mothership seems right on point.  My life and that of the twins feeds a great deal from Jacqueline.  I will play a huge role in our kids lives, but a big piece of that is making sure their mother is best fit to care for all of us.  Lord give me the strength.

Okay, picture time.

Reunited! (Evan is on the left, Emily is on the right)

They let us take them off their monitor to get a few pictures

The Wells Family

Time table?

5/26/12

For the most part today was an uneventful day.  Some feeding, holding, watching them sleep, and poop filled diapers was the story line.  The kids eat every three hours and it takes Jacqueline and I just over an hour to complete the process.  I am tired just thinking about the process and we are only running that race three times a day.  We got to the hospital about 10 am this morning and stayed until 7:30.  This means we were there for the 11 am, 2 pm, and 5 pm feedings.  The kids are doing great and building up strength.

The high light of the day was that both of them moved to open air cribs today! This gives them a chance to show that they can regulate their body temperature on their own.  There is always the possibility that they get tired in about a day or so and may need to go back to the warming bed, but for now they are staying warm on their own.  They also had biliruben levels lower than yesterday so they are off the biliblanket and don't have to wear the masks any more.  Emily put on 30 grams from yesterday and Evan remained unchanged.

Today was the first day that a time table was given for coming home.  Evan may be home as early as middle of next week.  Emily may be a little longer just because of her size and the episode I wrote about yesterday, but should follow Evan home quickly.  This, of course, is a tentative schedule and could change at any point.  Needless to say, we are excited by the idea that they are coming home soon.

Attached are a few pictures from today.  Evan and Emily met folks that are not family members for the first time today.  So many of you have walked the journey of infertility with us and we could not say thank you or thank the Lord enough for each of you.  The folks pictured here, Matt and Nicole Wyngarden and Jason and Jaimee Draper, have been praying for the day our children arrive for years.  I know there are many more just like these four.  The sweetest kids in the world would not be if it wasn't for your (and our) prayers being answered and we look forward to the day that each of you gets to meet that answer to prayer.

Thanks for the visit

Ready to baby sit!

Packing on the Pounds

5/25/12

Today is a BIG day! Evan and Emily are, for the first time in their young lives, bigger today than they were yesterday.  They are still smaller than they were when they were born (Emily is 4 pounds 1/2 ounce) Evan 4 pounds 3 ounces), but will celebrate the small steps toward coming home.  Emily is 10 grams closer and Evan is 20 grams closer to coming home.  We still do not have a time table for their release from the NICU but we know weight gain is one requirement.

We got to the hospital this morning about 9:30am.  We were excited to see our kids.  When we got there we heard the great news that they both put on weight.  However, we also heard that Emily had an 'episode' at 7:45 this morning for 8 seconds.  This episode included her heart rate dropping under 80 beats per minute and a drop in her oxygen saturation levels.  The doctor said the episode lasted 8 seconds and required no intervention.  This does mean that Emily will not come in the next five days.  The kids have to be episode free for five days in order to come home.  I do not think it changes much because neither of us were expecting them to come home in the next fives days anyway.

The other item that the doctors talked about were the biliruben levels.  Emily's levels had gone up again today, but at a lower rate than they had been in the prior few days.  Evan's levels had dropped today.  They both remain at the very low end of the scale in terms of concern, but the doctors want to stay in front of the it.  Evan may be able to lose the biliblanket he is on (a blanket with a light in, see yesterdays pics) while Emily may need the higher powered overhead light if her levels go up again with tomorrow's check.

Jacqueline and I are trying to settle into a routine.  The kids are not even home yet and we are both very tired.  She is pumping every three hours so that we have milk to take the kids each day.  They feed every three hours so Jacqueline is matching their schedule.  The process of preparing, pumping, and cleaning everything takes about 45 minutes.  This means in every three hour window there is a possible 2 hours and 15 minutes of sleep.  We just keep going knowing that help is being given now and more is on its way.  Thanks to everyone for reading, praying, and supporting our family.  I am still not accustomed to the term family for us.  Sure, Jacqueline and I have been a family for nearly 5 years now, but it carries more weight when I talk about our family now.  We praise the Lord every day for the blessing and journey He carried us on.  I have never been so excited about 30 grams (one ounce) in my life, it means the family is one ounce closer to being together and meeting all of you.

Loving being tired
Ryan and Jacqueline

A room with a view, this is the view from the family center just outside Ev and Em's room

Evan is bigger!

We took the glamour magazines out of her room and her body image is already improving.