The formula/rice cereal mix they are using for Lilah is doing wonders! However it takes a lot of her energy to get the mix out of the bottle so she is not able to finish the whole feed by mouth. Yesterday they tried to thin out the mix a bit to see if that would help but the reflux crept back up. Today they have decided to try a different type of nipple to help her out. It sounds like the total volume she is taking by mouth may go in a positive direction by the end of the day.

Dave and I have attended a Reflux class so we are prepared to help her when she comes home.

When I arrived this morning she was wide awake and happy. It was great! I can't wait to get her home.

Alec is doing great at home. The dogs have transitioned well and will often be by his crib at the first cry, then come find me seconds later to make sure I've heard the cries. It's pretty cute!

Lilah is finally 6lbs! They have put her on Zantac and formula that is thickened with rice cereal to try to keep the reflux from happening.

From the reports of the nurses and my mom,(who have been around her when she was awake) it's been two days and she is already a different person. She is sleeping better and eating better. Not quite up to full feeds yet, but she'll get there!

Dave, Alec and I miss her like crazy. We can really only make it back once a day to see her and she is usually sleeping. I still hold her but miss the eye contact.

We are adjusting successfully at home. Even the dogs have it somewhat figured out. Zeke voices a concerned bark anytime I try to get Alec to burp. Luckily Alec is not phased by the barking.

I was always told that certain things in life are measured in minutes, while others are measured in days, weeks and years.  Over the last 3+ months, it seems that our lives have revolved around numbers:
 
94 is the number of days ago Katie was admitted to the hospital for pre-term labor contractions
34 is the number of days later she gave birth
2 pounds, 13 ounces was Lilah’s birth weight
2 pounds, 15 ounces was Alec's birth weight
61 is the number of days ago we started our trips back and forth the hospital to visit our children, on average of 1-2 times a day.
2770 is the number of miles we have driven back and forth to the hospital over that time.
21 is the number of nights I slept on the super comfortable chair at the hospital.
4 is the number of nursery’s we have been in and out of in that time.
 
Throughout this ordeal, we have been blessed to have our families and friends who made sure we ate, took breaks, and had plenty of baby holding helpers at the hospital and today, we can add one more number to our journey.
 
3 is the number of Atlas family members who now reside in our home (ok….5 if you count Bentley and Zeke).
In other words,
WELCOME HOME ALEC!
 
And a special congratulations to Katie and Brent Kennedy, who won first prize in the “Guess what day an Atlas goes home” contest with their correct guess of January 27th.  In fairness however, they were also wrong on Lilah’s discharge date, so you will only get half a prize.

Oooo! Those would have been fun names for the twins!

We are sort of stuck in a holding pattern it seems. Lilah is taking the same amount of food by mouth and is only up an ounce over the last few days.

Alec is taking all his feeds by mouth now but has weighed the same for the past five days in a row. He needs to start gaining weight before they will consider sending him home.

It is sort of like watching basketball: The majority of the game is fast and fun to watch. It's the last two minutes on the play clock that never end!!!!!! We are so close to getting them home, but their progress is now slower and it seems as we will be here forever!

I have to keep reminding myself that their original due date is still two weeks away.

Stay warm out there!

Update: I have discovered the cure to Lilah's reflux problem.... Leaving on a Jet Plane! I tried other songs and they just didn't have the same calming effect. Now it's just going to take some convincing to get the nurses to sing it after every feeding!

Two nights ago we spent the night here at the hospital. They have free rooms you can use to stay and care for your baby. Alec and Lilah were both rolled into the room and we spent 7 hours awake. All. Night. Long.

Lilah was having a really bad night of reflux and was continually crying and screaming from the pain. Alec was changed to cue based feeding (choosing his own schedule of when to eat) so his feeding was anywhere from a half hour to hour after Lilah ate. It was rough but we survived!

Today two awesome things happened: Alec's feeding tube was removed and he passed the car seat test. He is eating enough by mouth now that they won't need the tube unless he stops gaining weight. For the car seat test he had to sit in a car seat for an hour without having any trouble breathing. Both are big steps to coming home!

Lilah is still dealing with a bit of thrush. However she has started eating more and seems more interested in food so hopefully her mouth is getting better. She is 5lbs 13 oz today.

Alec took three full feeds back to back this morning! He slowed down the rest of the day but it's a step on the right direction.

Lilah has picked up in her too. She bottled 32 and 28 this morning. She is much more social then Alec when it comes to feeding.

The thrush seems to be going away on both kiddos and that might be why Alec is suddenly eating so much more.

Because of the reflux, both kids have developed thrush. They've been given a medication that dyes their mouths a beautiful shade of purple. I don't think the pictures do it justice.

I apologize for being spoty with my posts! Here is the latest:

Alec reached 6lbs today! His eye exam results were normal, and he took his first full feed at midnight... It's amazing how quickly he is catching on to the feeding thing.

Lilah weighs 5lbs 10 oz today! Her eye exam came back with some questions which is why I was delayed in posting. Her optic nerves are a little under developed. The doctors were concerned about something called Optic Nerve Hypoplasia(ONH). It can cause a lot of different issues with the brain. They tested her glucose and thyroid and both labs came back normal. Then they did an MRI to check her pituitary and that was also normal so this means she has avoided all the cognitive issues related to ONH.

We spoke with the ophthalmologist today. She is not concerned about Lilah having vision loss but she might need glasses when she's older. So we've reached the best possible outcome. We were holding our breath for a minute there!

Here are pictures their Bubby took today.

Alec is 5lbs 13oz today! He is doing well with feeds too.

Lilah is 5lbs 7oz! She is just behind him with feedings.

The doctor mentioned she didn't think they would be there much more then three weeks. It's amazing how fast the time has gone!

Both kiddos had normal brain scans. I guess eyes are tomorrow. My bad.