Finally home

After 5 weeks and 2 days in the NICU, Madison was finally released at a whopping 5 lbs 8 oz. Trent and I were both so happy to be taking our baby girl home to join Jackson and the rest of the family. The Nicu experience was hard, emotional, and definitely a learning experience. I will have so much more sympathy towards preemies after having two myself, and seeing how hard it really was.  Countless nights I stayed awake crying and worried over these two, and to have them home makes my heart so full!

 

 

 

 

 

Jackson is home!!!!

Yesterday we were told that a carseat test was ordered for Jackson. We have been waiting to hear this for a long time. It means that they have to sit in their carseat for a few hours to make sure that they can handle the angle....but it also means that it is the very last step before a baby can go home. It was very bittersweet to hear this though, as Madison is not quite ready to come home yet.


(my baby Madison getting ready for feeding time)

 

 

 

 

Madison has had a few small setbacks. She hasn't been taking all her feeds so they have been feeding 60% by nipple and 40% by tube. She has also had 2 bradys ( where her heart rate dropped really low) while she was feeding. For just a second, her heart rate dropped to like 55...but she got it back up really fast. When this happens, its not a huge problem or setback, just something else for them to watch.  She is still doing well and continuing to grow. Her weight is 5 lbs 7 oz.


Jackson is quite a bit bigger. He weighs 6 lbs 12 oz and has been doing well with all his feeds. He was the biggest baby on the NICU for the last few days. Before we left this afternoon, the NICU got a phone call needing a few preemie babies to model hats that someone made and donated. they came and took a few pictures of the babies in cute knitted hats and put them on the hospital facebook page.



Jackson was awake and alert in his new hat (his feeding tube was removed this week)

 

Its not a great angle for Madison, but cute nonetheless

After their photo shoot, Trent and I had to take a short CPR class before we could take Jackson home. We completed that, and strapped him into his carseat

Nick has been so excited to FINALLY meet his new brother...but he has had a cold all week. So we stopped by Walgreens and bought a box of masks for him and anyone else who has a cold

Both kids couldn't keep their hands off him and were fighting to hold him

Grandma let Nick stay at her house for the night, to help prevent germs...so Jackson was able to get some sleep. We are so excited to bring him home almost 5 weeks after he was born. We were told that Madison should be home in just a few days.... we cant wait!

Bassinets and milestones met!

 These are the babies boards where we are updated daily on their weight, days of life, gestational age and which doctor/nurse is on for the day

 

 

 

This week the babies have hit some big milestones. Both babies are growing well and have had no setbacks. Madison is always a bit warm, so even though she was smaller than they prefer, they moved both babies out of their isolette and into bassinets.  Usually they like the babies to be about 5 lbs to move them into a bed that is not covered, but she has been over 99.1 for a week so they decided that she was ready, so they moved Jackson into one also.


Here they are in their isolettes

And their new beds

They also started breastfeeding this week and just two days ago started them bottle feeding once a day. They still have a tube in their stomachs until they only drink from the bottle, but progress is being made! The nurse told me that when babies start to use a bottle they only drink about 10ccs at first until they are a little older. Both babies drank the whole bottle (about 40 ccs) ....which surprised everyone. They were so tired from bottle feeding though that the next two feeds they were asleep and fed through the tube...

 

Trent finally got to hold both babies

 

 And one of the most exciting things that happened this week is that Bailey finally got to meet (and hold) her new baby brother and sister. They said that the age limit was lifted for siblings that were 6 and up, so she was very excited to go see them. Nick was crying because he couldn't go and see them, but they should be home within a few weeks.


Below is Bailey holding Jackson

 

 and Bailey holding Madison

What an eventful week. I am exhausted making daily (and sometimes twice) trips to the NICU that is 40 minutes away, but it is worth it. I love walking through the NICU doors and getting to hold my babies. It is so relaxing and makes all my stress go away for a few hours. I am crossing my fingers that they can come home in a week (They are now 3 weeks old (35 gestational weeks) and Madison reached 4lbs 7oz and Jackson 5lbs 7 oz.

Madison and Jackson

There are going to be quite a few posts about Madison and Jackson, so I can get all the details down for my blog books that I make yearly. I want to make sure that I get as much down as I can remember during their NICU time and the 1st year. I have had numerous "twin" mommies tell me that one of the most important things to do when the twins are little, is to write down everything because the first few years will be  a blur.



(Jackson is on the left  with the blue hat and Madison is on the right)

So today the nurse let us finally put the two babies together and I got to hold them side by side. I was in heaven just holding my two precious bundles. They are so sweet and I love them dearly. They also started on non nutritive feeding....where I breastfeed (after having pumped) and then they feed them through their tubes. This way they just practice the sucking and breathing together without swallowing yet. Next week hopefully they will let them try regular feeding which is a milestone they have to pass before they can come home.

Both babies are still growing and doing great. Madison is now 3lbs 15 oz (almost 4 lbs) and Jackson is 4 lbs 15 oz (almost 5 lbs) ...so they are exactly a pound apart. They both have their IV's removed and just need to get to feeding on their own (not through a tube) and regulate their own body temperatures without losing any weight.  I am hoping just another two weeks until they get home, but of course they will not give any dates because it all depends on the babies progress.

 

                                       (Jackson and Madison)

The picture below Madison is on the left and Jackson on the right)

                                                         Madison (below)

 

 

Mommy holding Jackson