Tuesday, June 26, 2007

The Power of Prayer

What a miracle! Brody had another ultrasound and the doctor said that he is looking good and he shouldn't have to have the shunt put in. It truly shows how powerful God is, and all the prayers that everyone one has made is what gave us this miracle.

Brody, you have reached the 5 lbs mark today. You are 5 lbs 2 oz which is almost a pound bigger than Savannah. The last few weeks you have gained so much weight. This morning you ate the entire feeding from a bottle; 45 cc. You are coming down very slowly on your oxygen setting; so if you start eating from the bottle all the time and you are not on any oxygen we can start thinking about bringing you home.

Savannah, you may not weigh as much as your baby brother, but you are still doing so great on everything. You are now feeding twice a day from a bottle, you are at 4 lbs 3 oz, and you are holding your temperature in open bassinet. You are also going up on your feedings; you are now at 38 cc per feeding. The doctors did an eye exam again today and they said there was no change so that is good news.

Cheyenne, you are 3 lbs 13 oz today. You are almost to that 4 lbs mark. You are also in an open bassinet, and holding your temp very well. You are starting to feed from a bottle, but you haven't decided that its your cup of tea yet. The doctors are starting to lower your oxygen too, and you also had an eye exam and the doctor said that it has gotten better since last time. You maybe the smallest, but you are still doing great.

All the great things that have been happening lately have shown how powerful prayer really is, and we want to thank everyone who has kept us and our little babies in theirs'. Hopefully we will be able to bring them home soon.

Friday, June 22, 2007

Update on Brody

Well the ultrasound came back and it looks great. His head is soft too. The doctor told us that we are on hold for the shunt. I don't really know what that means, but we are hoping Brody will not have to have the shunt at all.

Not much else has changed. They are all going up on their feeds and doing great on their breathing. Brody and Cheyenne got another test to see if they are ready for a nipple trial. Not yet, but it won't be long. We are going to try again in the next couple of days.

Thursday, June 21, 2007

7 Weeks Old Today

For everyone who keeps up with our journey here I am sorry for the lack of postings. We are all doing very good. I have some great news to share this evening. First of all the babies are 7 weeks old today. I can't believe it has been this long, but at the same time I can't believe they are already 7 weeks old. I am just so ready for them all to be home with us.

Savannah is off the oxygen! Wow can you believe it. Baby girl you are the leader of the pack. You have been on room air for over 24 hours and still doing wonderful. We fed you your bottle today and you did great. I am so ready for you to come home and you have made that major step by not needing any oxygen. I can't even remember the last time you had a spell and that is awesome. It won't be long now!

Cheyenne is still doing very well. Sweetheart you are still rollercoastering with your breathing. They turned your oxygen down again. We turned it down a few days ago and you had a brady episode, but this time you seem to being doing ok. Hopefully you will continue so we can get you on room air like your big sister.

Brody is such a strong little boy. Baby boy we have been so worried about you. We do not want you to have the shunt put in, but if it is what we must do to get you better than that is what we are going to do. This week has been a very emotional week for me and daddy because we are so scared of you having another surgery. The deal was that when you hit 2 kilos (4lbs 8oz) they were going to schedule you for surgery. We knew that was going to happen by the end of this week. So yesterday I was just sitting their with you waiting for the news of when this surgery was going to happen. Well then the phone rang and it was Dr. Marchaund's nurse practitioner to tell me that your ultrasound looked great and we weren't going to schedule the surgery just yet. The Dr decided that we were going to do a no tap test. So they haven't tapped since Tuesday and today Dr. Marchaund came in to examine you and he said your head looked great. So we are doing another ultrasound tomorrow and if it hasn't gotten worse then we are going to hold off on putting the shunt in. We are so exited that your little body may be doing what is suppose to do. We have had a miracle with Savannah's bleed self resolving so fast, please Jesus give us one more!

As soon as we find out about the ultrasound I will let everyone know the results. Please pray for our little guy. I believe in prayer more know than I have ever in my life. Our babies are doing wonderful and thanks is to be giving to God and to all of you who have prayed for us. It means so much to us. They haven't been weighed tonight so here are their weights from last night.

Savannah - 3lbs 13ozs
Cheyenne - 3lbs 8ozs
Brody - 4lbs 8ozs

Sunday, June 17, 2007

Happy Father's Day!!

Happy Father's Day to all the dads!! There is nothing like being a father. I sat today with my kids and dreamed of all the things I get to share with them. Even though our kids have only been in the world for 6 weeks, it already seems like time is flying by.

Brody, when we walked in today we got a big shock. They had you in an open bassinet. We couldn't believe it. Then they put Savannah in one too. You are doing so wonderful, and getting so big. You were 4 lbs 2.8 oz today. The doctors are still tapping your reservoir, and they got 11cc out today. They still believe that you will have to have a shunt put in its place, but we are praying hard that you wont have to have it.

Cheyenne, you are doing great too. Even though you weren't put in a big girl bed like your siblings, you are gaining weight and doing well on your breathing. I'm sorry that we didn't get a lot of pictures of you today, but Aunt Misti was taking pictures for us today and you are the one she got to hold. So the camera didn't get but one picture of you, but it was a great picture.

Savannah, you ate from the bottle again today, and you doubled what you ate from yesterday = 12cc's. You also got a big girl bed today, but when we left you weren't holding your temperature up, so they nurse was going to put you back in an isolate. Its okay though, you weren't even suppose to get in one until you reached 4 lbs. When Mommy called tonight the nurse had not put you in the isolate yet and your tempature was ok. They said we may be in one by morning, but so far you are still in the big bed.

They did move the girls down the hall into the ECU (Extended Care Unit). They didn't want to separate them from Brody again, but they need the bed space in the ICU. Brody didn't get to move with them because they are still planning on doing the surgery, and he will have to be on a ventilator during that. They are not that far apart, and its way better than them being in different hospitals.

My first Father's day was wonderful! Having you three in our lives means so much to us, and we can't wait to take you home. Keep growing and it wont be long. We Love YOU!

Thank you Deeno and Dale for driving up today and spending time with us. It was a great day!

Weights: Brody = 4 lbs 4 oz, Savannah = 3 lbs 13.2 oz, Cheyenne = 3 lbs 3.8 oz

Great Grandma holds a baby!

Savannah eating from a bottle....

Brody Gets a Bath

Saturday, June 16, 2007

Bottle Feeding

This has been a busy couple of days. First off I want to thank everyone for you the wonderful comments, they really do mean a lot. The babies are six weeks and 2 days old. If I was still pregnant I would be 33 weeks and 2 days. In the hospital that is how they classify their age. We got to test them all to see if they are ready to take a bottle. It has been exciting and so much fun. It is a step by step test and if they couldn't do something we would stop.

Savannah, baby girl you are the leader of the pack. The nurses and doctors wanted me to start dry nuzzling (put you to my breast after I pump) to see if you would take it. We started on Thursday and you were not interested at all. I couldn't even get you to show everyone how much you liked to suck on your binky. So when it became time to test your devolpment in the suck, swallow, breath department I wasn't sure how you would do. But you did amazing!!! You passed every part of the test with flying colors. So now you get to eat from a bottle one feeding a day. Yesterday you took 5ccs and today you took 6. It is so wonderful to finally be able to feed you. Also you are doing so good on your breathing. All of you have been on the high flow nasal cannulas and today they put you all on the low flow cannulas. Well you are almost ready to give a trial to no support at all. You are on the next to lowest level and they had to move you up because you were breathing to heavy, but still it won't be long.

Cheyenne, you are doing so good. When we first brought you over from UNMH I was so scared when they decided to put you on the nasal cannula, but you suprised us all. You have already caught up to Brody on the support you need. We did the test on trying for you to get to take a bottle, but you wouldn't swallow. You did everything else so well, but you just wouldn't finish. That's ok, we have been dry nuzzling with you and you love it. It won't be long before I get to feed you, too.

Brody, you are moving along just like your sisters. You weren't ready for the bottle either. When we were trying to see if you would suck your heartbeat went down. We didn't get very far, but I know you are going to be ready soon. I thought you were going to be the one to do it the best because you love sucking on your pacifier and the first time we dry nuzzled you acted like a pro. We are going to try again on Tuesday with you and Cheyenne. We are about to get to turn your breathing support down, but everytime we get to room air you brady.

It won't be too long before you are all breathing room air. Its all one step closer to coming home. Oh, I can't wait for that day. You are all getting so big! Here's what you weighed last night:

Savannah - 3lbs 11oz
Cheyenne - 3lbs 4oz
Brody - 4lbs 0oz

Thursday, June 14, 2007

Amazing

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

A Special Treat

The kids received a special treat last night. Amber, Misty, Kelly, and Michele all went down after they ate dinner together and visited the kids. All three received a lot of attention and love. If anyone would like to visit, just give Michele or I a call and we would love for you to visit.

Savannah, we received wonderful news about you today. The doctors did another ultrasound on your head, and since the first ultrasound (you had a grade 2 on one side and a grade 3 on the other side) your body has done its job and absorbed the blood in your ventricles. You now only have a grade 1 on one side and the other you don't have anything anymore. You are doing well on your breathing too. The doctors have been able to go down on the amount of oxygen they give you everyday.

Brody, you almost made 4 lbs the other day, but now for the last couple you have actually lost a little, but not to fret, you will hit that mark before we know it. You are doing well on your breathing, and we still think you will be off the oxygen soon. The doctors did a cat scan on your head the other day and confirmed that you still might need a shunt put in place of the reservoir. Hopefully they will be wrong. Your mother and I don't want you to have to undergo any more surgeries, because we are afraid that it might set you back and you have been doing so well.

Cheyenne, you just amaze us! You were the last one to get put on the smaller CPAP (high flow nasal cannula) and now you are already on the same settings that your brother is on. You keep this kind of progress up and you might be the first one to get off the oxygen. You are also on the verge of hitting that 3 lbs mark. You are 2 lbs 15 oz, so keep it up.

Saturday, June 9, 2007

Everyone is Doing Good

There's not a lot to update tonight. Everyone is doing good. Brody had to get another blood transfusion this morning, but he is doing great. He started acting like he didn't feel too good yesterday afternoon and then last night he had a few spells. He's doing a lot better since he got some blood. The girls are both doing great. They are on a high flow nasal cannula and are doing well on it. I think they are just happy to have those huge prongs out of their noses. Brody got his first eye exam yesterday and the doctor said they are still growing, but he doesn't have any sign of ROP. The girls will get their eye exams next week sometime. I don't have much news so I will just tell you their weights. These are last nights weights because they aren't going to get weighed until midnight tonight.

Savannah - 3lbs 2ozs
Cheyenne - 2lbs 10ozs
Brody - 3lbs 13ozs

Brody and Savannah have gained 1lb over their birth weight.

Oh, we also finally got a better spot in the NICU. We have been right at the door in both hospitals and when we moved the girls to Presbytarian I asked if we could get a spot in the back of the room. The moved us to the "penthouse" spot. It is in the very back corner and has a perfect view of the city from one window and the mountains from the other. It was really nice of the staff to make room for the girls and to move us to just a nice location. We are going to miss UNMH because we had wonderful nurses, but I think we will be happy at Presbytarian for the remainder of our stary in the NICU.

Getting settled in

What a relief! We are all back together again. Savannah and Cheyenne were transported to Presbyterian, early Friday morning. Everything went well, and they set us up in the nicest spot in the NICU. We are in the back now and have the most wonderful view of the Mountains.

All three of you are doing better and better everyday. After you girls were moved, the doctor came in and examined both of you to get a handle on where you are at in the growth process. Savannah, they had you on the big CPAP when you came in, but the doctors then decided that you where doing so well that you could be on a high flow nasal cannula. This is the first time I have been able to see your beautiful face without all those big hoses and all I can say is between you and your sister I am going to have to get a big stick to keep the boys away. Brody, that will be part of your job too!

Cheyenne, you are still doing well. Hopefully you will be able to go on the high flow nasal cannula soon. You are gaining weight so fast, soon you will catch you sister; if you keep growing so well.

Brody, the gave you an eye exam yesterday, and we should find out what the results are of that today. You might have to undergo laser surgery for you eyes, but that is pretty common for preemies and with the way technology is now, they should be able to correct just about anything. You also put on some more weight. In one day you put on 105 grams, which means that you are now 3 lbs 10 oz.

It was nice to be able to sit with all of you, and not have to worry about getting to another hospital. We love you all so much! Keep growing!

Thursday, June 7, 2007

One more day...

and the girls are scheduled to move to Presbytarian to be with Brody. I can not wait. As long as there are no emergencies for the transport team tomorrow we will finally all be together again.

Brody you are strong little buger. They keep turning your oxygen down and you just keep doing wonderful. At this rate it won't be long until you will be breathing all by yourself. Daddy and I have been trying so hard to get you and your sisters back together again. We were planning on sending you back to UNM but as we were making the plans your surgeon told us that we would have to wait at least another two weeks. Although your head ultrasound looks good the doctor thinks we may still have to put in a shunt. But we can't put in a shunt until you weigh at least 4 1/2 pounds so we have to just sit and wait. There is still a chance you won't need the shunt in 2 or 3 weeks but they want you to stay where the surgeon is in case you do. It makes me sad to think how wonderful you are doing and the set backs it will cause if you have to have another surgery. We will cross that bridge when it gets here.

Savannah and Cheyenne, my angel girls, tomorrow is the big day. I can not wait for you to be with your brother. You are both doing so well. You are both still on the Hundson CPAP and I don't really know what that will mean for you when you get to Presbytarian. They will probably have you trying the nasal cannula CPAP very soon. You are both getting so much bigger and stronger everyday. Nothing much have changed with the two of you. You both are going up on your feeds, one ounce at a time. Keep growing baby girls!

Everyone is doing pretty good right now. Mommy and Daddy are exhausted, but so happy. We love that things seem to be getting better by each passing day. We love you three more than words can say.

Monday, June 4, 2007

Getting So Big

Savannah:

  • Eating 25cc's every 3 Hours
  • w/26 xtra calories
  • Weighs 3lbs 1oz

Cheyenne:

  • Eating 23cc's every 3 Hours
  • w/26 xtra calories
  • Weighs 2lbs 10oz

Brody:

  • Eating 30cc's every 3 Hours
  • w/26 xtra calories
  • Weighs 3lbs 5oz

Sunday, June 3, 2007

Happy 1 Month Birthday

Happy Birthday my Angels!!! Today is the day I had marked on my calendar from the day I found out I was having triplets. I knew I was going to deliver you guys early, but I didn't want to have you one day sooner than June 3rd. Look at us now, we are celebrating 1 month old on June 3rd and you all are so precious and special. I want you to be home with us so bad. We have a while to go but I am so anxious its driving me crazy. I know we'll make it but I can't wait.

Savannah, they are trying to wing you off the Hudson CPAP. They turned your settings down and you are doing great. All the nurses say you are my little feisty one. You got to spend some time with Daddy today. You were so comfy and you did so well. Your time got cut kinda short because of shift change and you were not happy about that at all. I love you so much. Hopefully before long you can get the short prong CPAP and give your poor little nose a break. You hate those prongs in your nose and you are so strong that you can pick up your head and somehow get the prongs out of your nose. Keep doing good and those big prongs will be a thing of the past.

Cheyenne, my little sweetheart, you have to be strong. You have been off the ventilator for 5 days and have done well. But I think you are getting a little tired again. You have had too many little episodes today. The doctors really don't want to put you back on the ventilator so they are just watching you really close. We are praying that you push through this little rough spot, and I believe that you will. I got to cuddle with you for a little while today. I want to just hold you for hours and hours, but you haven't been doing so good when I hold you. I think our last 3 cuddle times have been cut short because you oxygen level drops. You are still eating full feeds but you have lost weight the past couple of nights. We are going to get through this!!

Brody, my little man, you are doing good. I got to hold you for 3 hours today. It was the highlight of my day. I could have set there with you forever, but I had to leave to go see the girls. We are trying to get you back together with your sisters. Hopefully it will happen in the next week. I asked the doctor when you were going to get your next head ultrasound and that is when I found out that you did get one last Wednesday. See if you were in the same hospital as your sisters I would have been there or at least known about it. The ultrasound didn't tell us anything new so they are using this as a base ultrasound for future ultrasounds. So while you are at Presbyterian Hospital you will get you ultrasounds every Wednesday. I am so excited with the progress you have made since your surgery. Before long I will be feeding you. Oh! I just can't wait.


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