Lilah is back on her cannula and getting help breathing. Alec is getting more assistance breathing with a higher flow of oxygen... It's as up and down as a Yoyo, but totally normal. The doctors assured us this is not a setback.

Lilah is now 3lbs 6.3oz and Alec is 3lbs 7oz!

These posts will be a bit later in the evening now that I am back at work.

Lilah is breathing so well on her own they took off the nasal cannula. I was not able to get a picture, but I will try tomorrow.

Alec had a chest X-ray today that showed some haziness which is most likely a bit of fluid, so they will keep him on the drugs to see if that clears things up.

Both kids are now eating every three hours and are doing well! They might also graduate to cribs in a few days. They grow up so fast ;)

Alec responded well to the medication and according to the night nurse there was a lot of peeing. He is breathing easier and looks much less puffy.

Both kids are struggling a bit with reflux after eating so Dave and I spent most of the morning cuddling babies and trying to help ease the pain. It was a perfect lazy day.

Last night Lilah went back on her nasal cannula. She needed just a bit more support for breathing. However when we were visiting today, I had to put the prongs back in her nose a number of times so we will see how long that lasts!

Alec needed his oxygen support increased last night. He has also gained a bit too much weight too fast so the doctors are wondering if he may be retaining a little fluid in his lungs. They will put him on a drug to see if it helps and then possibly do a chest x-ray for further investigation.

Here are a few of the Aunties holding babies:

I usually find Alec wide-eyed and looking around the room and Lilah sleeping. Today when I walked in, Lilah was looking around! It was the first time I've seen her so attentive. Alec was out cold :)

The other switch is the breathing assistance each kid is receiving. Lilah's cannula won't stay put and she seems to be doing okay without it, so they took it off this evening. Alec on the other hand is needing a bit more assistance, but is okay.

Today was a big day! All of Lilah's tests and cultures came back negative and she is back to her old feisty self. They removed her picc line (an IV that delivered nutrients and the antibotics) and her cpap! She now has a nasal cannula just like Alec. Removing those things allows her to be dressed in clothes and swaddled. Luckily Grandma Weidman dropped off some PJs earlier in the day!

These changes also gave me the opportunity to cuddle with them both at the same time! This made my year!

Lilah is still not yet herself. All of the tests and cultures have come back negative so far. They will continue the antibiotics while they wait for the cultures to grow over the next day or two. The nurse said it is even possible she is just worn out and needed to rest a few days. Hopefully she will be back to her feisty self soon! The isolette is keeping her body temperature controlled while the antibiotics do their thing so she has one less thing she has to work on. On the upside she is gaining weight and they continue to increase the amount of breast milk at her feedings.

Alec is getting a little assistance for breathing. He has reflux and has trouble breathing around meal times because of it. This is something he will eventually grow out of.

I was able to cuddle with both of them this morning!

I apologize for not posting yesterday. Luckily, there isn't much to say!

Lilah and Alec had an "okay" day yesterday. They continue to gain weight a little at a time and they seem to be comfortable. 

Lilah was having a little irritation with the nose prongs of her cpap, so they are rotating between the prongs and a mask. I took a picture of the mask and a special hat she needs to wear to keep it in place. 

Both Alec and Lilah continue to have breathing spells (they forget to breathe) and heart rate dips which are very common for preemies. These happen a few times a day and will hopefully resolve with time and growth. Dave and I have become their personal cheering section every time a monitor goes off, encouraging them to self resolve the spells. 


1:40 PM Update:
Spoke too soon! Lilah's temperature was a little low late this morning, so they turned the temp up in her isolette but her body temp continued to drop. The nurse also noticed her behavior was different. She wouldn't protest the cares she was receiving (She will squawk if you try to take her underarm temperature). These could be signs of infection. They have started her on broad spectrum antibiotics until they get the tests back to see what is going on. Preemies can get very sick very quickly so that is why they started the antibiotics already.

7:54 PM Update:

All the tests they have run so far have come back negative for any infection. They are running a few cultures over the next few days to see if anything pops up. This evening when we visited the NICU she was more responsive then she has been all day. Hopefully whatever is wrong is being fixed. I was able to cuddle with her a bit, hopefully that helped her too. I know it helped me feel better :)

Not much to report today.

Alec is still spitting up but gained a little weight. He is just about at birthweight -- 2lbs 15 oz.

Lilah's cpap rate was lowered from 7 to 6... this means she getting less help from the machine to breathe. She also weighed in just a hair over 3lbs today!

Lilah's heart murmur is healing with the help of the medication! The duct has gotten considerably smaller over the last few days. The doctors are very pleased and will just continue to watch things to make sure it closes on its own. We are thrilled! She is now back to getting breast milk for her feeds and is already gaining weight. Today she passed her birthweight and is 2lbs 14oz.

Alec also gained weight now that he is keeping down his food. He is up to 2lbs 13.5 oz.

Today we had hospital volunteers (coordinated by the March of Dimes) come and take a few pictures of the kids. They hooked Alec up to a portable hand held monitor so he could get closer to Lilah. This was the first time they have been next to eachother since being born. We are very excited to get the pictures back in a few weeks.

Some people have asked how long the kids will be in the NICU. We have been told that it will most likely be around their original due date, February 10th.