Which the Chicken and Which the Egg?

So Penny has her first cold.

So does Daddy.

Question is: Who gave it to who? Or did we both pick it up at the same time?

So far, she's been doing great and the only real signs are a snuffly nose (for which the terrible, awful, evil bulb syringe offers relief) and she is sleeping a LOT. I mean, a LOT, even for a 6 week old (which she and her brother will be on Tuesday based on adjusted ages). We will be staying on top of this, as even a simple cold can be dangerous for preemies. Their lungs just aren't fully developed until they are almost 2 years of age so potential respiratory issues don't go away for a long, long time.

Both are doing well overall. Last week was very busy with appointments including GI for Isaak and Ophthalmology and preemie clinic visits for both. The GI visit was very positive. It resulted in Isaak getting increased oral feeds - from 3 x 10ml bottles to 4 x 20ml bottles. Based on how well he's doing, that should go to 4 x 30ml bottles beginning tomorrow. A whole ounce! 4 times a day! Way to go little guy. They also stopped IV lipids. He's still getting TPN but that will likely be reduced further if we increase feeds on Monday. Stopping the lipids should really help his liver begin recovering. We'll have to see how he does weight gain wise over the next couple of weeks and whether he can stay off.

The eye doc visit was also encouraging. Isaak's eye development has finally progressed to "Zone 3", meaning that they are maturing. Penny's eye that had suddenly started worsening is back on track. Oh, Isaak's hemorrhage is also clearing up. He's had that for months but it's much better just recently.

The preemie clinic (or Special Infant Care) was their first official visit back to WakeMed since they left. It's essentially to allow a neonatalogist to follow them and watch out for all those potential preemie pitfalls. Overall, it too was positive. The only instructions we came away with were for a few stretches to help increase their flexibility and a follow-up with a speech therapist for Isaak. Why you ask? As he has started eating more, we have noticed that he really gums the bottle nipple and swallows rather than truly sucking. He also doesn't keep a pacifier in well (if at all some days). We want to head off any significant problems with early intervention therapy. He eats really well, just not quite correctly.

We'll be back in a couple of months for another follow up with our friends at WakeMed.

On a sadder note, I'd appreciate any prayers and kind thoughts you feel like throwing my maternal grandfather's way. He had a significant stroke last week and is currently at Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem. He seems to be medically stable right now but has lost a lot of his speech ability and has limited movement on the right side of his body. He hasn't been able to meet his new great-grandchildren yet but we hope it can happen soon.

That is all the news from lake Wobegon - until later....