Aunt Kristy!

Aunt Kristy came over last night for about three hours while mommy and daddy went to see Pirates of the Caribbean. Jehu and Emma loved her visit and want her to come again soon! ;) The evening was filled with high-fives, low-fives, hair brushing, playing chase, new songs and oatmeal creme pies! The latter was daddy's suggestion in case they became unruly. Aunt Kristy said she just wanted to treat them. This morning the children wanted to know where Aunt Kristy went and when she'd be back! Emma thinks Aunt Kristy is beautiful (which she is inside and out) and Jehu thinks she's "cool." :)

Our special visitors at Hotel Richland

Throughout our four month stay at "Hotel Richland" we had lots of special visitors. Visiting was limited to parents and grandparents. Grandmom and Papa came almost every day to check on Emma and Jehu. Towards the end of our stay they even began bottling feeding the little ones. Grandmama Wanda visited a lot in the beginning of our stay then had to return to Oklahoma. Grandpapa Bob was able to visit after he returned from Bulgaria. Grandaddy and Grandmama Carol came right before Christmas for a quick visit. So much attention! After both children were in Special Care we were able to arrange for Aunt Katie to see them.

Special Care - Special Visitor

As I entered the NICU one day I signed in and asked if I could go to the room where my children were...they told me Emma was no longer in that room but had been moved to the Special Care area. She had graduated! And, she was in a crib instead of an isolette! Now, you might not think this is all that exciting but it meant that I could pick her up and hold her anytime I wanted. Plus it meant that she would be coming home soon! About two weeks later her brother joined her but he was still in the isolette. It was then that we were able to have a special visitor....Aunt Katie! Katie had been a NICU baby too.

Vision Scare!

Emma and Jehu were about a month and a half old when we were summoned to be present for the children's eye exams. These typically took place early in the morning when we hadn't yet arrived. Rounds began at 8am and our anxiety grew rapidly as we waited for the pediatric ophthamologist. Emma received a good report. She had stage 1 ROP but it had not progressed over the past few weeks. Jehu; however, was not as fortunate. After his examination we were told there was a 90% chance he would be blind in both eyes. I felt like I had been punched in the stomach. Joe was devastated. How could he take his son to enjoy Carolina football, basketball and baseball? What occupation would he have? The doctor explained that when he was born, Jehu's eyes were more like a 21 "weeker" rather than a 27 1/2 "weeker" and that his eyes were not maturing as they should. Typically in this situation the infant's eyes would rapidaly mature, with the blood vessels spreading across the eye too rapidly which would cause the blindness. We prayed...what else can you do? In my mind I denied it and refused to believe he would never see. We didn't miss an exam after that. The first two were uneventful, but then, the third visit lifted our spirits. The doctor saw some improvement. We continued to pray. He continued to improve. And improve. The ophthalmologist has been amazed at his progress. One eye is in great shape. We have to exercise the other two hours each day to strengthen it and hopefully improve the vision. He also has a scar on that eye, the origin of which we don't know...he was born with it.

Hippo!

Yesterday evening Emma wanted to go for a ride. Her brother was kind enough to provide the manpower!

Doozies - Let's Eat!

Sharing is a must! Emma loves to feed mommy some of her food at each meal!

Doozies - The Wheels on the Bus Go Round & Round

Jehu's favorite thing is music! Favorite song? Not sure - but he loves "The Wheels on the Bus".

Our Beginning

Six years ago, after 10 years of marriage we tried to start a family. Of course this was an exciting time filled with joyful expectations of conception. Four years laters later after exhausting several avenues we decided to get assistance. With a little help we became pregnant with twins and as you can imagine we could hardly contain our excitement. As the pregnancy progressed we enjoyed many ultrasounds...we couldn't wait to have each one and show off the prints to our families and co-workers. How exciting it was to mark the growth of these two precious beings. At 3 months pregnant I appeared to be in my 6th month and I kept getting bigger and bigger. About a month later I was elated to feel movement and flutterings. Even though I gained quite a bit of weight and seemed to be swollen things were going smoothly. At 24 weeks; however, that changed. A routine check of my blood pressure sent me to my OB/GYN in a panic. They monitored me in the labor and delivery area of the hospital for a few hours and released me with instructions to check my blood pressure periodically and call if it was high again. I had a history of white-coat syndrome and they weren't sure if this was my nerves or something to be concerned about. A few days later I was diagnosed with preeclampsia (toxemia) and admitted for observation and testing. The tests confirmed the diagnosis. Additionally an ultrasound indicated that one fetus, our son, hadn't grown in the last couple of weeks. At 2:00am, when the last test result was in, I was transferred to another hospital to be treated by a specialist. I was scared to death. Before the transfer I was given a round of steroids to help with lung development, as the physician felt I could delivery within the next 24 hours. Another round of testing took place at the second hospital with the same results. Additional ultrasounds were conducted to check on the babies and they were stable but there was a backflow of blood in the umbilical cord of our son. Five days later I was sent home on bedrest wich instructions to monitor my blood pressure and to remain as calm as possible. Another ultrasound was scheduled for two weeks later to check on our son's growth. Two weeks later he had grown a very small amount and the backflow continued. There was another problem as well, he didn't have hardly any amniotic fluid left in his sack. I was admitted once again to the hospital and the doctor predicted I would deliver within the next two weeks. The following morning I asked if another ultrasound could be done to check how much fluid remained. The doctor made the arrangements and about 8:30 the technician arrived. There was no measurable fluid. At any time our son could roll onto his cord and cut off his oxygen supply which would lead to death. We had two options. The first was to do nothing and sacrifice our son to give our daughter a better chance at survival. The second was to delivery both and pray for their survival. The former wasn't truly an option for me. As a mother-to-be I couldn't stand the thought of giving up on our son. An emergency c-section was arranged and at 10:01 our children were delivered. Our daughter was first and she weighed a hefty 1 lb 14 oz. Second was our son who weighed in at 1 lb 1 oz. I caught a brief glimpse of them as they were rushed to the NICU in an isolette.

To be continued....

Our Beginning - Part II

At first glance our little ones seemed so tiny and fragile. To see them connected to ventilators and IVs was painful. Our son was also covered with bubble wrap to keep him warm as his condition was critical enough to keep him from the protection of an isolette so that the physicians could get to him as quickly as possible if the need arose. Even with all of this we were optimistic. Our daughter was also on a ventilator and under lights for jaundice.

At 2am that next morning, the neonatalogist called our room and indicated that he couldn't get Jehu's heart rate and breathing regulated and he wasn't sure if he would make it through the night. I phoned my mother and told her to pray and then we went to sit with our son. He seemed to be resting comfortably but that was due to the medications they had given him so he wouldn't flail his arms and legs. We prayed...and prayed. God answered. Jehu made it through the night and around 6am we visited Emma for a while then returned to our room to rest while the nurses had their shift change. Each day we visited and checked to see how many grams they had gained (or lost) the night before. Some days were better than others as any NICU parent knows. Both of our children had many blood transfusions, platlet transfusions, heel sticks, IVs galore and both had a broviac (a more permanent pathway). Additionally Jehu had one spinal tap (and another attempted one) to determine if he had a genetic disorder that kept him from growing in the womb and to determine the cause of lesions on his eyes. Thankfully the test results came back normal and the doctors couldn't find a reason for the lesions since their first diagnosis was ruled out. The number of medications they were on was staggering and each was administered with a pump through their IVs just as their fluids were. I began pumping breast milk as quickly as possible and storing it in the hospital freezer until they were able to have some. Any first time "pumper" knows the anxiety I suffered those first few days when my pumping sessions resulted in nothing or one little drop. In a few days time however, my milk came in and we were so excited when our daughter could get her first "meal." It was such a tiny amount but a small victory for us all! When Emma was 1 week old I held her for the first time and I cannot express in words what the experience meant to me...to have such a precious gift in your arms...it was incredible. She was so light and I had to continually look at her to realize I actually had a baby in my arms.

NICU Doozies

I know it was aweful of me, but I was jealous of other mothers who had been able to hold their children after their birth and hear them cry. On day 7 I was able to hold Emma and as I mentioned in my earlier posting it was a fantastic experience. What a little miracle! Two days later I "kangarooed" Jehu for about 15 minutes. Since neither had much of the fat acquired in the last couple of months in the womb our snuggles couldn't last very long. Once they gained some weight and were able to maintain their body temperature better our cuddles lasted longer. The NICU experience is something you never forget...especially your first visit. First you scrub your hands and forearms then you sign in. Seeing all of the isolettes and little ones makes you realize how precious life is. Your hearing is bombarded with beeps, whistles and alarms. Medical personal circulate throughout the six rooms assessing each child and documenting EVERYTHING on a chart. Several of the nurses became quick "favorites". Meredith made sure our twins were reunited in the same room as soon as a spot next to Emma became available. Donna was so encouraging. Laura was extremely gentle. Michelle made us laugh and practically adopted Jehu. Joycelyn became Jehu's "girlfriend." Cindy was like a mother and grandmother. We settled into a routine fairly quickly with daily visits. Joe would go to work then visit in the evening. Since I was recovering from the c-section I had eight weeks off of work and generally I would visit by mid-morning. Occasionally we couldn't enter because doctors were performing a procedure in the room. In the beginning we felt so badly for those families who had already had a child in the unit for a couple of weeks or a month. We couldn't imagine what it would be like to have one there for a month or longer. We soon found out. Some days were better than others. Jehu had liver and gall bladder difficulties in the beginning and turned very red. He and Emma would be off the respirator one day and on the next until finally they could breathe on their own. Emma was a squirmer. One day she moved to the bottom of the isolette and had her feet against the wall. Another time, as daddy was filming, she straightened her legs underneath her to push her bottom in the air as if she heard him when he said, "stand up Emma". If we didn't have the video I wouldn't believe she did it.

The twins spent their first Christmas in the NICU. Some of the nurses had made Christmas quilts for all of the babies. Ours received matching ones with gingerbread men and stars...they were so precious. We hung tiny stockings given to us by our neighbors, Jim and Shannon, on their isolettes.