Routines

So, it has been a while since I posted anything about any of the babies....here goes.

Truthfully, once Susannah came home, I was perfectly content staying at home with the babies and not going anywhere at all. This was partially due to their compromised immune systems, and partially because I spent nearly 7 weeks going back and forth to the hospital each and every day. It was nice to finally get those naps that everyone tells a new mom to take!

Last week, we hit a couple of exciting milestones. On Thursday, the babies turned three months old already. On Friday, I spoke with Susannah's doctor's office, and they had reviewed the data from her monitor. Given the report, they determined that she no longer needed the monitor! Hooray! This was a huge relief, even though I had gotten used to looking at the lights on it to make sure she was breathing. They picked it up yesterday, so she is officially off all medical equipment. It is wonderful to be able to cart her around the house without worrying about where her wires are. Finally, big brother Charlie graduated to his big boy bed. He loves looking at all the different balls on his sheets and naming them ("basketball," "football," "baseball," etc.). It is so fun to listen to him when he thinks no one is around...

This week, I started back to work. The babies are still working into a regular routine, and sleep is still a bit hard to come by, but the oxytocin (not to mention caffeine) is still flowing nicely through my body to help me stay awake. It is nice to have a few hours in the day where I can be pretty sure no one will cry!

Charlie is still loving being a big brother. The fun now comes when we count the babies and compare their body parts to his, pointing at their ears, then his ears, their noses, his nose, etc. Have the three of them within my reach feels better than anything I could have ever imagined.

Lots of love to all....

Home At Last

So, after our night of "camping" at Memorial, two sleepy parents got to bring home a sleepy baby and her monitor. Here's our baby girl ready to go home:


And here she is going for her first car ride:


Now that all of us sleep under the same roof, we feel like a real family. Charlie could not be a more gentle and sweet big brother. He's very patient and is adjusting well to his new role.

I am actually sleeping more with both of them at home. Naps are usually a little easier to find and I sleep more soundly. Admittedly, though, I am hesitant to put them down, even for a nap:



Susannah's monitor mostly alarms falsely, and we're getting used to being a little tethered. It is a nice security system, and sometimes I wish William had one just so I would know he is breathing too! We visit the doctor on September 30 to get an update on how she is maturing.

Speaking of doctors, I took both babies to the pediatrician on Friday. William is up to 6 lbs, 10 oz, and Susannah is already up to 5 lbs, 6 oz. My little babies are getting bigger! Our doctor is very pleased with their progress and so are we.

Meanwhile, Charlie has been standing up by himself for a few seconds at a time! We are so pleased at this progress, and are just waiting for the day he takes a step or two. The remote control is excellent bribery! He has also been saying LOTS more words, including "bubbles," "book," "water," and all the basic colors. We visit neurology this week as a check up, so more on that soon...

We hope all of you have a relaxing Labor Day!

Camping

Barring any major changes, Susannah gets to come home this week! However, there are some stipulations. We will be bringing her home on a monitor to keep an eye on her breathing and heart rate. The monitor will sound an alarm if things drop to dangerous levels. The staff is comfortable sending her home, and we trust their judgment because they are awesome.

That said, in order to get the monitor, we have to stay overnight in the hospital with Susannah and her new, fancy equipment to be sure we know how to operate it correctly. It will be my version of camping!!! Luckily, Geedee is here to hang with Charlie while we spend one more night in different places. Thank you, Geedee!!!!! Wednesday morning, if all goes as planned, we'll get to bring Susannah home to her brothers and work on having some sense of "normalcy" again.

Thank you again for all the thoughts, prayers, food, and favors. We are so, so appreciative!!!

Love from all of us to all of you....

Roller Coaster

One day we'll look back on this past week and laugh! When we brought William home last Friday, we thought sister Susannah would follow early this week. She had other plans, however, and is still hanging out with our friends at Memorial.

Last weekend she started having more dips in her heart rate that progressively got more significant and more frequent. After running more tests this week (all normal), the experts were thinking that acid reflux may be to blame. We started her on a particular formula fortified with rice starch that becomes heavier when it hits the belly. That has been staying down and there have been no unexplained incidents with her heart and breathing rates since! With each unexplained incident, however, there is a five day countdown that begins; she needs to have five days incident-free before it is safe to bring her home. Right now, that day will be Tuesday if she continues on this streak! For now, we're keeping her on this special formula with the hopes of resuming breastmilk when she gets a little older and her stomach muscles mature.

Meanwhile, William has had a very smooth transition to life in our home. Here he is during a thoughtful snooze:


We took him to the pediatrician this week, and he's already up to 6 pounds, 6 ounces. That's nearly an ounce a day of weight gain!

Lots of you kind folks have been asking how they can help. Right now, we'd be so happy and grateful to receive any meal you're willing to share. Our friend Mark McCrary has graciously set up a meal train; you can sign up here:
http://www.mealtrain.com/?id=mkxud44lnywt

Tons and tons of love and gratitude from us to you....

Homecoming #1

William Lawrence Crump is now a resident in our home! Late last week we got the news that he would be ready to go home after all his antibiotics were complete. Friday afternoon, we left the hospital with "Big Will" and have ALL loved snuggling with him since.

Charlie had not yet met William, so we weren't sure what to expect there. Charlie impressed us, though!

He is very curious, but very sweet, and has been asking lots of questions about the "baby." Yes, that is the sound of us melting...




Baby Susannah is still hanging out in the NICU at Memorial. She has passed her hearing and car seat tests, and her last dose of antibiotics is tonight (Sunday) at 10PM. Her feeding tube was removed last night. So far she's doing really well without it, so that's definitely a giant step forward. We will wait to get the doctor's report in the morning, but it looks like she should be home by the weekend. Our home doesn't feel complete without her here, so we are looking forward to the day we can all be in one place.

I know I say it frequently, but we are truly grateful for all the thoughts and prayers. They mean so much to all of us!!!

Birthdays

Yesterday, Charlie turned two years old. Unfortunately, a celebration of epic proportions was just not possible this year. Fortunately, he probably won't remember that we didn't throw a party. However, we did have pizza and cupcakes:


The big guy's brother and sister are doing well also. Susannah is now taking two bottles daily, and is up to 4 lbs, 4 oz. She is getting progressively more feisty! Check out this picture of her after she squirmed her way into a comfortable position:

Her last dose of antibiotics is on the 21st, so we hope to have a better idea of when she will be coming home after that.

Will has graduated to every other feeding as a bottle, potentially every two out of three. He is up to 5 lbs, 14 oz and is looking really big these days. Here he is immediately following lunch:

His last dose of meds is on the 19th.

Keep them in your thoughts and prayers that there are no further steps backward, only steps forward for our little ones. We are so grateful for our many blessings, including all of you.

Pounds

Here we are again at a stage of stability and waiting, a stage we are thankful for. Both babies are feeling much better and tolerating their feedings well. Will has finally graduated to a third bottle each day, and Susannah is getting better at hers. Since they are eating so well, they are putting on weight. In fact, (drum roll please) Will now weighs 5 pounds, 9 ounces, and Susannah weighs FOUR pounds, one ounce!

Right now, we are waiting on both of them to finish their rounds of antibiotics to be sure we took care of the infection and for them to eat without the assistance of a tube for all their feedings. William finishes his antibiotics on the 18th, and Susannah the following Monday.

Big Brother Charlie turns two on Monday, and we've seen him make some huge strides of his own in the last couple of weeks. For those of you that don't know, Charlie had a stroke sometime around his birth. He's had a weakness on his left side that we've been working on with multiple therapists, and we're fortunate that there doesn't seem to be any cognitive damage. Because of his weakness, he didn't crawl until May of this year, and he doesn't stand on his own or walk yet. However, this past week, he has started pulling up to standing, and has gotten very fast at it! Here he is yesterday after he pulled up to the couch and cruised his way over to me:

His bed head makes our day every day!!!

More soon, and thank you again for all the love, prayers, and thoughts sent our way.