February 27, 2009

Luckily yesterday the doctor did not think Colin needed the laser surgery on his eyes at this point. He will examine Colin on Tuesday again to make sure his retinas do not look worse. We are so happy his eyes do not look worse, but the doctor said they don't look better either. The boys are doing well at home. They are still getting up every 3 hours during the night to eat which is tough, but we're managing with the great help that we are getting from family and friends.

February 25, 2009

The boys are doing great and putting on weight. Our home health nurse came out again and each baby is putting on at least 1 oz a day which is perfect! Andrew is now 6 pounds 11 ounces, Daniel is 6 pounds 8 ounces and Colin is 6 pounds 5 ounces. They're doing a little better with their bottles and taking about 3 ounces at a time now. They all love to be held, especially Colin and Andrew. Helpers are always welcome around here because there never seems to be enough hands around here to get the job done. Jack continues to enjoy being a big brother. He has been such a good boy! Colin was diagnosed with retinopathy of prematurity while he was still hospitalized which is common in preemies. The other 2 boys had no problems with their eye exam so the ophthalmologist thinks this is from his circulation being compromised due to his heart surgery, recovery and possibly small amounts of oxygen. The doctor saw Colin again on Monday and there is still no improvement with his eyes so we return to his office tomorrow. The doctor most likely will recommend laser surgery when we see him tomorrow if there is no improvement. He tentatively set up surgery at St. John's for Friday morning. This is disappointing to us because we just got him home 1 week ago today and he is transitioning so nicely here at home. The doctor says he'll be in the hospital for "several days" mostly because of the anesthesia and the probability of intubation. Hopefully if he gets intubated he will be extubated very quickly. Please keep Colin in your prayers and I'll keep you updated through the blog.

February 20, 2009

Well, Colin came home on Wednesday and all has been going fine...just busy, busy, busy! It is so fun to have them all together. Colin went to the pediatrician today and weighs 5 lbs 14 oz. Wednesday evening the home health nurse weighed Andrew at 6 pounds 2 oz and Daniel at 6 pounds even. They're feeding great and slowly increasing their amounts without any problems. They're still eating every 3 hours for now so sleep is hard to get around here! Hoyt's sister, Pat, is in town for the weekend to help out which is great! Have a great weekend and I'll post again soon.

February 17, 2009

Colin comes home tomorrow! We are so excited to finally have our entire family together and establishing a routine. At least we'll try to create some kind of schedule!

February 16, 2009

Things are going well at home with Andrew and Daniel! Colin is doing great with his feedings at the hospital. He pulled his nasal feeding tube out on Valentine's Day morning and has been able to leave it out since he is completing all of his feedings. Andrew's reflux has gotten better since we started him on zantac last Friday. I took Andrew to the pediatrician this morning and he now weighs 6 pounds even! Jack is adjusting so well to the babies being home. He occasionally gives a baby a kiss without even being asked. When he comes into the room he instantly asks where the babies are if he doesn't see them right away. He tries to place binkies in their mouths when they cry. He has been a very sweet and happy boy. He doesn't act jealous at all when we hold, feed and talk to the babies. I know this may change, but I think we're off to a great start!

February 15, 2009

It's been busy around here! Sorry I haven't posted. Andrew came home last Wednesday evening and the transition has gone well. He was having some pretty apparent reflux symptoms on Friday which I called to the pediatrician and she started him on zantac 3 times a day along with 1 tsp of rice per oz of his feedings. Since these changes he hasn't been spitting up nearly as much and seems to feel better. I will take Andrew to his first pediatrician office visit tomorrow. The home health nurse came out to see Andrew and Daniel on Friday. Daniel now takes the lead on weight! Daniel is up to 5 pounds 13 ounces and Andrew is 5 pounds 12 ounces. Their weight gain has been outstanding! Colin continues to gain weight in the hospital and is now 5 pounds 6 ounces. Colin will finish all of his bottles about half of the day, but still tires on some and needs the remaining amount to be gavaged through his nasal tube. We miss Colin at home and hope he gets here soon!

February 8, 2009

Daniel was brought home yesterday afternoon and our first night went well. He is such a good baby! He weighed 5 pounds when discharged. Andrew has been losing a little weight so he may stay in the hospital until Wednesday or Thursday. Andrew is taking all of his bottles great and his nasal tube is out so I'll include some pictures of him in this post of him tube free! Tonight he weighs 5 lbs 5.8 oz which is an increase from last night so that is good! Colin's weight is also up to 5 lbs 1 oz as of tonight. He takes his bottles about half of the time. All of the boys are getting about 1 tsp of Neosure formula added to each ounce of breastmilk. Tomorrow I will take Daniel to his first visit with his pediatrician. I hope I get some sleep tonight!

February 6, 2009

Tomorrow is the day! Daniel is coming home! His weight last night was 4 lbs. 15 oz. They found some dysplasia in his hip upon a routine hip ultrasound. All of his other testing came back fine. Colin also has hip dysplasia in one hip. Both Daniel and Colin will follow up with a pediatric orthopaedic surgeon in 1 month. Colin was fitted for a shoe splint for his right foot to help reshape the curve of his outer foot. Andrew was fitted for these splints on both feet. This is common with multiples because of their positioning in the womb and limited space. I have already made about 4 or 5 various follow up appointments for these boys over the next 2 months and they're not even home yet! Everything is ready at home for these guys. Andrew should be coming home early next week, too. Hopefully Colin will come home in about a week. We'll see!

February 2, 2009

Today the nurse practioner ordered an RSV shot and circumcision for Daniel. That means he is getting ready to go home! Probably by the end of the week! He is taking nearly all of his feedings by bottle and most of the time finishing them 100%. He is doing great! Colin is doing well with feedings, too, but tires quickly. Andrew is doing about as good as Daniel on his feedings. So maybe early-mid next week he'll come home, too! I'm excited to get these little guys home. Andrew weighs 5 lbs 7 oz. Colin weighs 4 lbs 11 oz. Daniel weighs 5 lbs 1 oz.