Today has been pretty much the same story as yesterday. Bekka continues to recover well from her surgery. She actually sent me to sleep at home last night because as she reasons it "Someone needs get some rest and I'm in the hospital". After spending 3 weeks in here myself, I really didn't argue too much. She is having good luck steadily increasing her milk supply - something that will be so important for the babies nutritionally and to help them build immune systems from scratch.
Both babies are continuing to do well. Their bilirubin counts are decreasing. The nurses tell us they will likely be under the lights most of this week and then off and on for a couple of weeks while their livers get up to speed. Their skin already looks remarkably less red and purple than it did on their birthday.
The 48hr blood cultures for both came back negative! That's very exciting and meant they were both able to come off the more powerful antibiotics. Penelope will be on ampicillin for a another day or two as a precaution against lung infections since she had the ruptured sac.
Isaak weighed in at 730g this evening, about 50g lighter than this birth weight and Penelope weighed in at 620 which was 30g less than birth. This is considered very reasonable as they are both under the lights and only today started receiving food in their stomachs.
As of now, they are getting about a milliliter of mommy's colostrum/milk every 3 hours.The report from the first couple of feedings is good, as each had minimal amounts left in their tummies. Hopefully this means they can process milk without a problem. At this development age, preemies digestive systems are not "primed" and ready to go like a full term newborn. They have to ramp up their intake through their stomach slowly.
We forgot to relate one really neat thing in earlier posts. Nowadays, the nurseries take advantage of the umbilical cord and actually place lines into both a vein and an artery. This allows them to give fluids and take blood samples and instantaneous blood pressure readings without having to poke the little guys repeatedly. This is less painful AND greatly decreases the infection risk. Typically they can use this connection for about a week and a half. How cool is that?
That's all to report for now. I'm sure we'll have more as the week progresses.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
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So incredibly happy to hear that the news continues to look as good as it can, and that you and Bekka are coping remarkably as well. You Mastins are so darn inspiring! Here's hoping this auspicious day is the beginning of an auspicious week ahead!
ReplyDeleteNeil - You do such a fantastic job of relaying info to those of us who are praying and wondering. Thank you for taking the time to give such detailed information. The fact that it's all so positive doesn't hurt either! Want you to know that I'm continuing to pray and am so thankful to God for the good news so far.
ReplyDeleteLeeann
Great News. I'll keep paying for you all. My friend, Allana, was one of Penny's nurses on her birth day, so I know she is getting the best care.
ReplyDeleteWe could not be happier for you all!!! We were visiting Powderhorn last week and asked about you two. We did not know you guys were expecting but have been thinking about you all (including Ollie) since then. We will keep you in our thoughts and prayers. How wonderful this new adventure is...Regards, Ron, Dora and Ashley Finamore
ReplyDeleteOkay, it's official....Nana Pam and Papaw Grant are REALLY missing Penelope and Isaak!! Of course, we miss Mommy and Daddy too!! It's so hard leaving and coming back to work but we know that's a fact of life.
ReplyDeleteI realized this morning that it's been 9 months since Oliver went back to heaven. As much as we miss the little man, our hearts are comforted in the fact that he's the guardian angel watching over his Mommy, Daddy and little brother and sister. We thank God for these new little blessings in our lives and we pray that they'll continue thriving so we can hold them and eventually take them home. Mommy and Daddy, you two need to get as much rest as possible. You both know that we're here any time you need us!
We love you all...Nana & Papaw
We're in such awe of all of you. The four of you have strength we can't imagine. Thank you for the blog, because I don't want to pester you with calls, and all of us can keep up without interrupting your crazy lives. We also can't wait to meet Penny and Isaac. Ellie REALLY wants to hold Penny. It'll be a while. In another 3 years, Matthew can babysit--scary!
ReplyDelete