1 Month

This week we celebrate the boys' one month birthday!! My how our lives have changed!  The boys are still in the NICU at Schumpert but are doing amazing.  They both are very resilient and continue to amaze us everyday.  After their first week in the NICU, Griff and Jack graduated to the "Growers" side - this is the place where babies are sent to, well, grow.  Our boys are small compared to a lot of the other babies on this side but most of the babies around us have been in the NICU for several months and have had much more serious problems than our boys.  They run test after test on our little guys but so far they have passed with flying colors.  They have tested their hearing, their blood composition, ran scans of their brains and hips.  Since the boys were packed so tightly into my tummy and breached, there is a risk of Hip Dyplasia- one of Griffin's feet is slightly turned out and this is sometimes associated with Hip Dysplasia. Thankfully his hips are fine and the drs feel that the foot is merely a positional abnormality and will continue to straighten on its own now that he has room to move freely.  The Occupational Therapist showed me some excercises to do on Griff's feet after we change his diaper and he is alert- this is a disaster because Griff HATES to have his diaper changed and then rotating his feet in places that they don't like to just adds to the chaos.  He is doing much better though and everyday his foot looks even better.  Jack definitely has Grady's personality- he is very laid back, really doesn't fuss about anything and basically stares at Griffin when he goes into one of his crying fits.  It is so funny how their personalities are already so different.  We love it!!  Everyone keeps asking us when will the boys get to come home and it really is hard to say since they both are growing at different paces and accomplish their requirements to come home at different times.  Both boys are holding their temperatures without any help, they are gaining weight appropriately, having wet and dirty diapers to everyones satisfaction, the two things that are holding us back are their "spells" and feeding.  Spells are when their heartrates drop and then make the Oxygen Saturation in their blood drop.  Most of the time, they come out of this on their own but occasionally it requires just a pat on the butt.  Jack has more spells than Griff and the nurses tell us this is more associated with Jack's reflux.  Ahhh reflux- I've heard about reflux in babies from my friends but its a whole new ballgame when its your own.  Sunday, we went to feed the boys before church (in our church clothes) and I was breastfeeding Griff while Grady was bottle feeding breastmilk to Jack.  We were having a great time- all four of us together just hanging out when without warning Jack projectiled a huge amount of milk onto Grady's shirt.  Twice.  It really was scary at first because even though we both had experienced Jack spitting up before - this was different.  The nurse assured us this was nothing to worry about but easier said than done.  I feel so bad for Jack because I can only imagine how this must feel on his little tummy, but we have to quit feeding him when this happens- so I hate that he has to wait 3 more hours before he can eat again, and on top of all that- if you knew how hard I have to work to keep enough breastmilk for two babies- seeing a large portion of it fly through the air makes me want to cry.  Grady was a trooper and we went on to church, milk stained shirt and all.  I think he was kinda proud of it actually!!  The next challenge for both boys is to eat every feeding (eight times a day) through a bottle or breast.  Currently they are sending the milk into their tummy through a tube- which really helps their weight gain since they have to do no work and still get lots of calories.  Now that we have started to breast and bottle feed, they burn more calories sucking, swallowing, and breathing than they did before so their weight gain, although still increasing has slowed somewhat.  We are quickly approaching a discharge date and are praying that all goes smoothly so that we can all go home and start living a normal life.

Praises:
1. Griff is getting the hang of breastfeeding better this week than last
2. Both boys are gaining an amazing amount of weight

Prayers:
1. Jack's reflux continues to improve.
2. Both boys continue to breastfeed well and my supply is adequate to keep the boys satisfied.
3. Griff's foot continues to correct itself.
4. All the other precious babies and parents that surround us in the NICU.  We are so blessed to have two healthy babies that were simply born a little early- so many of the infants have life-long problems that unfortunately won't go away upon discharge. 

Thanks for checking in again at our blog!!  Up next time. . . as if things couldn't be any crazier in our lives!!

Grady's first diaper change- not too bad!!  The big sticker on Jack's forehead is place where they can check his bilirubin levels for jaundice without having to draw blood everyday.  All the wires do look kinda scary but they monitor their heart rate, respiratory rate, and the amount of oxygen in their blood.  You can hear the super annoying buzzing of the monitors in the background.  That is probably the most bothersome aspect of the NICU - and trying to change a diaper around all those wires. 

MawMaw Katy's first time holding Griffin.  He is wearing his Biliblanket to help with his jaundice- that's why he looks like a glow worm.

Proud PawPaw

Griff's first time getting his hair brushed.

I just had to take a picture of this- it's Jack's blood pressure cuff- so tiny!!

Future Tech Dawgs!!

Our sweet babies all ready for bed.

Let's Back Up A Bit

Due to the unexpected arrival of our boys, our posts have gotten a little out of order.  Here is the post that was previously promised. . .

Grady and I started the search for a church soon upon our arrival in Shreveport and Grady was volunteering with CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) when he met Carolle Green.  Carolle has some connections to Alexandria and even Deville (the town I grew up in) and she invited us to their church.  We started attending First Baptist of Shreveport and loved it from the beginning.  There is a wonderful group of girls that I have have grown to love and treasure their friendships. . . here are some pics from the shower they had for me. . . Mom, Tessia, and Madison came up for the weekend to attend the shower and just give me some company.  Being on bedrest was really starting to take its toll on me- both physically and emotionally- and I never realized how much sweet Madison would brighten my day.

Mom, Me, Tessia (who is expecting baby #3 in September), and Madison

Although he is smiling here- Grady was very nervous about us leaving the house to go to the shower- realizing this is the first time I had left the house in 7 weeks. . . without him.

Doing what I do best. . . eating!! Man, do I look swollen!!

The Hostesses

Nicky brought these delicious and oh so cute favors,  they are cake balls with "two peas in a pod" on top.  Thanks Nicky!!

This is my favorite card- hand-made from Madison.  Look carefully- two babies- two bumps.  The mind of a six year old! So cute!!

The shower was on Sunday afternoon, this was a lot of activity for one day so I went home and was totally exhausted.  I had an appointment with Dr. Tynes the next day and upon our arrival- I just didn't feel good.  Once we got into the exam room, she and Dr. Jones decided that it would be in the babies best interest for me to be admitted to the hospital for two steroid shots given 24 hours apart.  The doctors did this as a precaution, thinking we should be prepared if the boys decided to come early it was best to prepare their lungs for the early entry into the world.  This was my first overnight stay in the hospital and I was a little scared but things worked out just fine.  I got this great video of Jack with the hiccups.  It was so adorable at the time but I would much rather see him have the hiccups in person.

On Wednesday, I was discharged from the hospital with the instructions of "go home - don't get up- unless you are having babies."  And that's what I did.  Mom came into town to help out while Grady went back to work- even though I am 30 years old- mom comes running when things get tough.  I get that now that I am a mom!!  I was a little aggravated with Grady since I was ready to leave the hospital and he was nowhere to be found.  Ummm? When he finally showed up at the hospital, he wheeled me out to our new. . . minivan.  I know, I said I would never drive a minivan but we (mostly Grady) :) decided that it would be a good idea to have something that is super easy to get the boys in and out of.  All the way home, we practiced our parenting sayings in the minivan, like "Don't make me pull this minivan over" and the like.  We had a good laugh about that!!

The post is full of randomness but we needed to wrap up everything pre-babies.  Since we didn't find out the gender of our boys before they were born- we decided to do the nursery in Noah's Ark, since they come two by two.  Grady bought the twins some animals for the nursery and it was oh so entertaining while I was on bedrest and the doorbell would ring- another package from the FedEx guy- with another stuffed animal in it.  Thankfully he didn't buy two of every kind.

Needless to say- the ark is full!

The post that Grady previously wrote about the day the boys were born was titled "It all started with a Stuffed Porkchop."  The story behind the title is that Grady and I met on a blind date and we went to a little restaurant where I ordered the Stuffed Porkchop.  We laugh now about how far that porkchop has gotten us - driving around a minivan with twin boys and loving the new life we are about to start as parents---my how things have changed!