Monday, August 10, 2009

Busy Day for Babies

Charlie, Annaleigh and Lily started their day today with eye exams. Perhaps not the most pleasant way to wake up, but I’m sure they were happy to get them over with. Their eyes were dilated with drops and then the eye doctor took a look too see how the blood vessels in their eyes were developing. As expected, all three babies’ eye development was immature, but beyond that there were no other issues. They will all be monitored once every few weeks until they go home to make sure everything is progressing normally, but no one anticipates any problems. Definitely good news!

After their eye exams Charlie and Lily were able to relax, but Annaleigh still had some excitement ahead of her. The doctors decided that she is ready to come off the CPAP and move on to the nasal canula. While the CPAP forces air into the babies lungs to help them breathe, the nasal canula simply provides a gentle flow of oxygen while the baby does all the work. Annaleigh was definitely ready to get rid of the CPAP and has been doing wonderfully on the nasal canula. We’re so proud of her, breathing like a big girl.

Annaleigh has the whole breathing thing down, however she is lacking a bit in the weight gain department. For the third night in a row her weight remained the same at 1115 grams, or 2 lbs 7 oz. Her nurse told us not to be concerned, that Annaleigh has been reaching a lot of other milestones, such as coming off the CPAP, which are causing her to work harder and burn more calories. That makes sense, but we are still hoping to see a nice gain from her tomorrow, and I will of course stalk the doctors tomorrow to get reassurance that nothing is wrong.

Charlie and Lily are both doing well with gaining weight. Lily put on 35 grams for a total of 1235, or 2 lbs 11 oz, and Charlie hung on to his 3 lb status with a gain of 30 grams. Lily is still on the CPAP and seems to be improving a little more each day. She has been having fewer episodes and has been better about bringing her oxygen level back up when it drops. Charlie is still clinging to his BiPap, but those days are numbered. The nurse practitioner said today that they plan to move Charlie to the CPAP either tomorrow or Wednesday. He still has plenty of episodes, but they still think it’s time for him to move on and work those lungs!

This evening the babies were sleepy from their busy day. I held all three babies this morning, and this evening the girls came out again for a cuddle with Joe and me. Charlie, however, was wiped. He was so conked out in his isolette that he didn’t even more when we were touching him and holding his hands. He must be resting up for his battle with the CPAP!

A better look at Annaleigh's new breathing aide. The cannular lets us see her beautiful face much more easily than the CPAP tubes.

Lily is alway wondering what's going on. Her eyes are just mesmerizing.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Excellent news love bugs... Keep it up. And Lily you never stop making me laugh with your expressions. That stage is waiting for you...

All My Love, Auntie :) xoxoo

Sarah - The Home Cook said...

Fantastic news about the eye exams, breathing and weight gain. Sounds like all three babies are doing great!

Andrea said...

What a wonderful way to start my morning, with great news on your blog!!! Isn't it great seeing Annaleigh's beautiful face with the canula on! I loved when the boys finally got their CPAP off, so I could just stare at them!

Andrea
edasmommy0709
twin boys born at 27w6d

Colleen said...

Yay for CPAP! Let's hope that all the babies are on it soon so we can see all of their beautiful faces!

mrsolsenk12 said...

That is wonderful with Annaleigh coming off of the CPAP! What a milestone for her. I hope her sister follows her soon and that Charlie gets moved to the CPAP.

Jen said...

I'm so glad to hear that the babies are making improvements. Keep up the good work! As always you guys are in my prayers and thoughts.

Courtney said...

I'm so excited about all the good news! The babies are growing so much, and I am elated at all the improvements they're making!

Lori (o: said...

The babies are looking so great! I see chubbier checks by the day (o: I hear you were at step on Monday! Everyone is so happy to see you around again.

Blake Worsham said...

Hi,
My name is Blake Worsham,
My wife suscribes to your blog. I work for Honda in TX. She told me of your situation. Where are you located? Ill see if there is anything we can do for you guys, please email me @ rbworsham@gmail.com
thanks
blake worsham