Life in the NICU

Hello All! The Burns Family is doing well still. We have begun to settle into life in the NICU. Although hopefully our time here is almost up. Our little ones will be a week old tomorrow and I can’t believe it. After i started to feel somewhat better, Mike and I began to spend most of our time in the NICU with the babies. I mean how could you not? They are just too cute!

I am taking on almost all feedings and also providing milk for the few that we do miss. So really our schedule isn’t that different than it would be at home. Just instead of listening to the monitors for cries, our nurses call us when the babies are ready to eat. I have noticed though that the majority of the time I know the babies are ready to eat and have already awaken before the nurses ever call. A mom thing? Maybe. We also change diapers, take their temps, burp, bathe, soothe, snuggle and love them…really the nurses don’t have much to do with us there! If we may say so our selves, they are the cool the kids on the block. The nurses love to come over and talk and play with them. Especially Nora. It’s her size I think—she’s just so tiny but still healthy and she’s got lots of spunk. Even the nighttime doctor carries her around while doing her job. Spoiled already!

NORA WITH HER NURSE

They have made such great progress in just the past week. They are now both sleeping in bassinets, with no breathing devices, IV’s for nourishment or warming lights. They are maintaining/ slightly gaining weight depending on the baby and day—which is great because it is one of the main factors considered when getting released from the NICU. They have passed their hearing tests, which we knew they would. They are pretty alert and turn their heads when they hear our voices. Especially mommy and daddy’s voice, which just melts my heart! They also passed their 90-minute car seat test, although they are a bit small for the seats. Even mommy and daddy took their NICU discharge class that is offered every Friday, in hopes that we would be sure be home this week. Only other they are both being monitored on right now is their billy reuben levels—which is what causes jaundice. They have been under the little glow lights for the last day trying to lower their levels. Their next check is on Tuesday to see if the levels have gone down. Holden's O2 saturation is being monitored closely again. He had a slight drop yesterday and when that happens it is an automatic 3-5 days on the monitors before they will even consider sending them home. Since the drop happened during a feeding and not while sleeping, we should only be on a 3 day watch...so please pray that everything is fine so our little ones can come home soon.

Originally Mike and I had planned to come home today and then just go back and forth to the hospital every day..but that was before we knew how involved we could be in their lives while living in the NICU. I just can't stand to leave them now and home doesn't quite feel like home without them, so as long as we can keep our boarding room in the hospital...which is available as long as their aren't patients that need them, we will be there.


"HELP, BATHS ARE SCARY!"

"I SURRENDER!"

NORA ALL CLEAN

I am actually home on my first outing today out of the hospital since we were admitted the day before Thanksgiving. I could definitely use the fresh air. Mike and I also want to get home, check on the kitties, do some laundry, try out the stairs to see if I can make it up them and get any last minute things done before the babies come home. We really are excited to start our life at home with our “sweet ones”. Every chance we get we tell them about home and how much more fun it will be than the NICU. We tell them about their kitty brother and sister and about the walks we will take outside, and we’ve also been preparing them for Christmas—singing them songs, talking about Christmas trees and Santa…so much to look forward too!

Before I go, Mike and I gave them their first baths the other night. I had Holden and Mike and Nora. Holden’s bath was quick—he’ s not one to be messed with too much. He gets a very worried look on his face and cries. But just as soon as you cuddle him all is better. He’s such a sweet baby. Nora had a little longer bath, also cried through the majority of it but, she made it through and then had a photo shoot with daddy afterward with her hair all tied up in a towel like mommy’s!

Hopefully next blog we will all be home…so stay tuned!