Quick update

despit thier good appearances, both boys are sick right now. There is some upper respiratory problems and they are very congested. This has caused a slew of apneas to happen and the monitors blaring. Logan even got a little dusky once when he tried to swallow some mucous. they both go to the DR tomorrow. They have slept a lot today probably due to not feeling well.

Connor

The order is reversed on this... Connor protested first, then complied!
"C'mon Mom, didnt you tak enough of me when Logan was in the hospital???"

Logan

Logan was more than happy to cooperate in front of the camera for mommy.

The boys hanging out together

Connor in the bouncer-Logan in the swing- Connor and Logan squished in the bouncer

Big brother helps out

Trevor comforting Logan
Trevor feeding Connor

Trevor is doing such a good job helping me out with the boys. He gets so excited to participate in thier care. He is pretty good at it to. He is so proud to have little brothers.

Going for an outing to big brother's spring program at pre-school.

enjoynig the ride...

Logan left, Connor right.

Need we say more?? Both love riding in the stroller!

out for a walk...

We headed out for a stroll yesterday. It was warm and beautiful out. Weights on the boys are...
Logan- 6lb 10oz
Connor 7lb 11oz

They are getting so big so fast!.

This week, Connor had hi last eye appoinyment til he is a year old. He was cleared of ROP, so any future vision problems wont be related to prematurity, but to heredity!

Do not disturb

Connor left, Logan right

The boys are settling in well with each other and last night we did cosleeping. They didnt bother each other and thankfully I was lucky to only have one awake at a time for eating. Connor seems a bit under the weather and may have caught the cold I have. His little voice is so scratchy and he is so congested. I will be calling the DR this mornign for him to see if we need to go in. Logan has his home health visit this mornign so we are hoping to get a good weight on him. All in all, we are doing well and just beginning our journey all together. mommy is having fun dressing the boys alike.

Thank you again to our sponsors for our March of dimes walk this Saturday. A lot of money was raised and this goes to help research for preemies. My boys are here and alive because of the March of Dimes.

Thank you also, to the many friends and family for gifts, meals , hand-me-downs, and sitter service for Trevor. WE are overwhelmed by everyones generosity and help as we get the ball rolling in this family. We are blessed.

My three sons......

Trevor, Logan, and Connor

Together at last.....

Logan on the left and Connor on the right
Our family is finally complete now that Logan is safe at home with us. No more hospitals, no more driving, no more separate places. Logan came home weighing 6lb 7 oz. He is also on an apnea monitor like Connor. He came home on a medication called Lasix which is a diuretic and so we qualified for home health care. They seemed like they didnt know each other, but after about 5 minutes, they nuzzled right up together.

MOre later....two babies crying!

Delayed....

Well, the word today is he may need a little more time. He was being a little pokey on his eating and so he was being observed to be sure he wasnt working too too hard off of the oxygen. He is still tube-free. So we continue to wait and see. Take your time, buddy. WE want you home, but we want you healthy.

more super-cute pix of Little Lo

Logan is unplugged....

Logan's whole cute face!
Logan has achieved the status of unplugged! He is off the oxygen and is doing well. He should get a circumcision tomorrow and home on Sunday!!!

Tonight's weight was in at 6lb 2oz. He had some minor desats during feeding, but recovered himself well. We are anxiously awaiting his arrival home and havign a complete family with no hospital visits!!!

Logan being cradled by Mary-17 weks gestation

Whenever I get sad or I think aobut all the stuff Logan has had to endure, I go back to this ultrasound picture that was taken at 17 weeks. I had just found out Logan was a boy, although he didnt have a name yet. My pregnancy was rough with alot of bleeding, mainly from Logan's placenta that kept ripping up a little. I truely am calmed and know this was an early sign that Logan would be OK. How could he not? He is being held in the grasp of a devine woman. All I know is this vision showed up for a reason. Its a little famous here in Fort Wayne (especially among my OB's office), but I wanted to share how I deal with things. Logan is here for a purpose. I am comforted in knowing he will be OK.

yet another update.

Logan continues to do much better. Today they asked me for consent for a circumcision which usually means that he is close to coming home. I am excited and scared at the same time.
Connor went for a check-up today and his weight was up to 7lb 2 oz. The pediatrician was very pleased with his progress.
I will hopefully have more info on Logan tomorrow as the nurses told me they were going to pick the Dr's brain about coming home.

Logan on the mend...

Well, I asked the Dr today about transferring Logan back to Dupont Hospital. He is so impressed with his progress that he sees Logan going home from Lutheran. Logan is taking 2 ounces by mouth of breastmilk- no additives any more. He has no Nasogastric tube and he is on 1/4 liter of oxygen. He is on the low-flow cannula. He was a little pokey today about eating, but when I got there for his 8pm feed, he sucked all 2 ounces down in 10 minutes. His weight is stable at 5lb 14 oz. He lost a bit when he shed off all of the fluid. Logan has also had 2 of the 3 diuretics discontinued and the remaining one is only once a day.
He may be home by the end of this week!!! I am sad though about Dupont. We didnt get to say a proper goodbye and I still want to do something special for the nurses who cared so well for the boys. They were so wonderful.

Another "identical or not" dilemma

Logan- 4 days post op
Connor

I can't tell. Are they or are they not identical. I kept calling Logan Connor today while visiting him in the hospital. To me they look so much alike.

Logan is back into an open crib and allowed to sport some clothes. I took him in some duds tonight and some Easter attire. He is now taking 2 ounces of breastmilk every 3 hours by mouth. Notice no NG tube up his nose. He will catch up with Connor with his weight in no time!

Connor in his new swing.

Logan off the vent and back on cannula.
Trevor and Connor share a brotherly moment.
Little Lo with all his gear and his bandage on after his chest tube was pulled out.

Little Lo continues to do good off of the vent. He is now on 1 liter of oxygen at about 23-28%. He is allowed 20 ml of breast milk. The puffiness is subsiding and his weight is up to 5lb 15oz.

He is such a little champ. His incision is about 2 inches long and sealed off with steri strips. With a little luck, he can go back to Dupont soon and see the nurses he loves!

Sweet Little Lo update

Logan is still on the vent, but his rate had been decreased to 35 breaths per minute. He also has had his oxygen weaned down to 35%. He was up to 53% earlier. He is still pretty drugged up for pain since his b/p was quite high and he was grunting. The swelling is going down and he is peeing out large amounts of urine. They will continue to wean him as he tolerates. His chest tube hasn't drained all day, so it looks like his lung may be healing fast. His last weight was 5lb 9oz.
Connor at the surgeon yesterday weighed in at 6lb 11oz. He is taking about 2 oz each feed. He remains on his regimented schedule from the NICU. The dr wont do any surgery on his hand until he is off of the apnea monitor. He will go back in 3 months for a recheck and hopefully schedule the surgery for his thumb to be removed. Until then he will still be able to give "2 thumbs up" with one hand and give out "high sixes". Sorry, but we deal with humor.

More Connor Pictures

I'M SO BIG!!!!!!!!!
i LOVE MY BOUNCER!!!! oH YEAH, AND PACI!!

Connor sleeping

Logan update and a word about twin bonding....

We just got back from the NICU and seeing Logan. I dont' have the heart to post pictures of him because he looks aweful and downright scary. He is quite swollen all over due to missing 2 doses of Lasix and and getting his secon blood transfusion. The poor guy has blown 2 IV sites already. He is getting 40 breaths per minute on the ventilator and is on 43-44% oxygen. They are slowly weaning down his oxygen every hour in hopes of taking out his breathing tube tomorrow. He is also pretty doped up on pain meds.
OK- EERIE TWIN BOND EXPERIENCE....At the time that Logan would have been recieving his incision, Connor was inconsolably crying and could not be comforted. He went on this way for about 45 minutes (about the time Logan was done with the surgery). Also, he has been extremely sleepy today as if he is sympathizing with Logan. I have chills writing this.

Logan came through his surgery well. He has all sorts of lines and tubes again. He will be pretty sedated with pain meds (Fentanyl) for the next couple of days. He has a large dressing over the left side of his body, but looks OK. The surgeon told me his PDA was larger than seen on the u/s and that it never would have closed on its own. It took 2 metal clips to close it. Hopefully this will be the turn around point for him. I will try to post pix tonight.

logan's new temporary unit...

Logan is settling in and esting up for his big surgery tomorrow. The Chaplin visited tonght to offer comforting words and prayer as well as a few friends of Aunt Korrie's who also offered prayers on Logan's behalf. He was especially sleepy after his big move and getting used to his new surroundings. We still miss Dupont!!!

all Connor

Here is Connor sleeping and showing off his little "extra", which will be addressed at tomorrows consult with the peds surgeon. The middle is him in his Big Boy outfit from good friends, Tracy and John, who Mommy works with. The last is Connor and his best friend "paci". Both boys like to put one hand on the paci and one on their ear. Too funny!

Logan at the new hospital

Logan got to his new location Lutheran Hospital today at about 1pm. He was transported there by MICU (mobile ICU). They said he fell asleep fo rthe 20 minute ride there. Once we got into the new unit, Logan had to lose his outfit for now. He was not happy to be naked again and not swaddled. He is back in the "casserole dish" type bed that he started out in. The new unit is very loud and busy with people buzzing in and out constantly. Logan is missing his nurses at dupont and he made sure he let everyone know it. This new facility houses 26 neonates where as Dupont was much more intimate and small housing only 14 neonates. Lutheran is also very strict about visitors and you have to gown up when you visit (which is very hot).
I will try to post pix tonight of him in his new location.
Surgery is scheduled for tomorrow at 7am. I will have to be there at 6:30 am to meet briefly with the anesthesiologist. With a little luck, he will be back to Dupont in the next two days or so! He will be happy to be back with his favorite nurses!
More news tonight.....

Quick update as the next two days will be running here and there. I will try to post on Logan's condition as I can. Logan is set to be transferred at around noon tomorrow to go to Lutheran Hospital. WE do not have a time yet for surgery, but it will be Tuesday morning. Connor has his surgical consult on Tuesday morning as well. We would have rescheduled this, but due to the fact that he continues to have stooling woes and a swollen scrotum, we thought we better keep this appointmnet. He is being seen for his hydrocele and hernia as well as his extra thumb. This is what I have been told about Logan's surgery. 1) that he will look worse before he looks better. 2) He will be back on a ventilator. 3) He will have a chest tube again as the left lung will be "deflated" to gain access to the PDA. I am trying to prepare my mind for this. With lots of luck he will do very well and have a good response. Please continue to pray for Logan's quick recovery. We want him to join Connor at home. Thank you for everyone's continued support and prayers!!!!

Logan is to have surgery

Connor swaddled in his boppy
Connor loves his paci so much that he holds it with two hands
Logan asleep.

Well, we got the news we had beeen waiting for and that was the follow-up on Logan's heart. Things showed relatively no change on the echo, so plans move forward now to surgery to ligate (close off) his open PDA. He will be transferred to Lutheran hospital here in Fort Wayne on Monday and then have the surgery on Tuesday morning. That is the same day we have a surgical consult on Connor for his hernias and thumb.

Dr Ghazali, the cardiologist, is confident that this will be the thing that helps Logan the best and helps him to feed better. There was talk of havign a gastronomy tube placed at the same time, but the cardiologist felt that this was not necessary and to wait and see how he does with the surgery. Logan's latest weight was 5lb 3.4 oz.

Connor is doing better in the pooping department with the addition of corn syrup to his bottles. We will wait and see what the surgeon says on Tuesday in relation to his issues.

Connor at home

Here is our big boy home with us. Trevor is smitten and so excited to have him home. Connor is adjusting well to being home. Just before discharge his weight was six pounds even. He is taking all 50 cc every 3 hours. We have him on his NICU feeding schedule and it is workign well (except can you say NO SLEEP). Took him to the pediatrician today as he hasnt pooped for almost 48 hours now. He is likely constipated from the formula and vitamins with iron in them. He has pushed a small loop of intestines through his right scrotum (inguinal hernia) and has accumulated fluid (hydrocele) there too. We are consulting with a surgeon on Tuesday April 11th. Also, we were going to have the Dr in the NICU tie off his extra thumb so it would fall off, but we did a follow-up Xray and there is a piece of bone in there, so the surgeon will address that as well. He did not need a circumcision as he was naturally circed (born with very little foreskin), so he avoided one other surgery. He has a slew of follow-ups and it appears that his VSDs (ventricular septal defects) have healed on their own since his murmur is gone. He will see the cardiologist in May. He came home on an apnea monitor, but the only time it sounds is when the leads fall off. He has had no bradycardias with his feeds since we have been home. Things are going well with him. Trevor has lent him "baby Ryan" so he doesnt miss Logan.

I went up to visit Logan tonight and he looked well. Tomorrow he has yet another echocardiogram to look at that PDA and ASD and 2VSD's. Tomorrow's results will give us a better picture of how long he has left in the NICU. If they go ahead and do the surgery to close the PDA, then he will get transferred to Lutheran NICU. This saddens us as we are very fond of our nurses. He would miss them terribly. He is continuing to slowly put on the weight. His last weight was 5lb 3 oz. He has quite the cheeks on him.

Connor is home with us!!!!!!WOOHOO!!!!!I will post pictures later. Logan is a 5 pounder now and Connor is a 6 pounder. More updates later, but after no sleep I need a nap!