Pray for the CPAP

Both girls are gaining weight and looking good. Kamryn had a little trouble with feeding intolerance, but seems to be better now. They stopped her feeds for a couple of days and are now slowly introducing them again. Pray that they both continue to do well with that. Our prayer right now is that they will be able to get off of the breathing tubes and on to CPAP. They are sort of at a stand-still until they can do this. They are at the age now that they can start to bottle feed, but they first have to move on to the CPAP, and then to the nasal canula. Also, pray for their continued protection from sickness and infection as they grow and continue to do better. Pray for us also as we seek ways to minister to those around us. Thank you all so much for your prayers.

Praises and New Struggles

Praise God from whom all blessings flow! We got good reports on both eye exams. They are still maturing, but everything thus far has developed well and without problems. Pray they will continue to develop correctly and without problems. Another exam is scheduled for two weeks. Taylor stayed on CPAP for 48 hours, which is a good run, but she pooped out after that. Continue to pray they will be able to come off the Breathing tube soon. We're praying in the next week. They should be tried again before too long. They have both gained a little weight, but Kamryn is currently NPO, or not feeding right now because she had a little intolerance, and also had a CBC (blood test) that was a little off, so she's now on antibiotics again. Kerri has had a hard time lately, battling mastitis, kidney stones, urinary tract infection, and today a tooth extraction. We went to the dentist today because she has had a toothache for a little while, and found out a molar was split right down the middle and infection had set in above the tooth. The dentist said she was a really tough lady, because she had to be in a good bit of pain from it. Thank you all for your sweet comments and of course all your prayers. Please continue to lift us all up to the father.

TWIN ROOM!!!

Yeah! We got moved to a twin room today, which means they are together for the first time since birth. We weren't sure if they would be able to do that since Taylor is in contact isolation. They did a culture on Kamryn to see if she is colonized with the MRSA (methycillin resistant staph) like her sister, and she was. The good news is that it doesn't mean she's infected, and because she is positive, she and Taylor get to be together. Also, we are now able to Kangaroo with both!! The doctor talked to us today and said he is pleased with how they are both doing. Taylor will be tried on CPAP tomorrow probably, and Kamryn will be tried again soon after that. Pray they can do well, because the sooner they can get off the ventilators the better. Also, They will have their eye exams next week, like they do with all preemies after 31 weeks gested. He said the test is not to see if they have retinal damage, but how much. They grade it from 1-5, with 5 being the worst. Pray they will have minimal damage, and won't need surgery. They are both over 1000 grams, or 2 lb 3 1/2 oz. Thanks so much for your prayers, because we strongly believe God is the only reason they have done well and made it thusfar. More pictures soon!

One Month Today!

The girls turned one month old today, and their gestational age will be 30 weeks tomorrow. They are still doing really good. We got to hold them today. Though Taylor is in isolation, I got to kangaroo with her today, which we didn't think we would be able to do. Kerri held Kamryn and thoroughly enjoyed it. They are both gaining weight. Kamryn is 2 lbs 5 oz, and Taylor is 2 lb 3 oz tonight. They are both at full feeds and off IV fluids at the moment. Pray they can keep that up, and to be protected from illnesses. Your prayers have been a real encouragement and pick me up. Their weights and ages are a milestone which you have all been a part of helping them reach through prayers. Oh, BTW, Kamryn has the darker hair.

Getting Bigger

Taylor moving rooms


Guess who's who


Sorry for the delay in updating. We had our good friends Jay and Erin and their boys visiting this week. We had a great time and enjoyed seeing them. Kerri got sick Thursday with mastitis and was running 104 fever. She felt rough for the day, and by Friday was doing better. She got on antibiotics and is doing well today. She does have some nasal and chest congestion going on, so pray for that to heal quickly. This post finds both girls over two pounds now. Taylor is doing well, but will remain in isolation for the rest of her stay more than likely. We are praying they will let her out, though. They did move her to a private room in a new section, which is much nicer. It's was very difficult to hold her in the other room due to there only being an office chair. The new room has a recliner. She is eating well and just arrived at the point of full feeds, which means she will come off her IV fluids as long as she continues to tolerate her feeds well. She got off of her new breathing machine and is back on the old one, which marks improvement in her lungs. Also, her hemmorhage is improving. She has two small cysts in the ventrical where the hemmorhage was, which is a result of the brain reacting to having bleeds and means that portion is damaged, but hopefully her brain will be able to compensate. They are getting more beautiful by the day. Kamryn is doing well, also. She is eating well and growing. I (Ted) got to Kangaroo with her on Sunday and Monday. That just makes my whole week. She will be tried again on the cpap (nostril prong ventilator) tomorrow, and hopefully will tolerate that well. That will be another great milestone if she can handle it. She will hopefully be able to be moved to the same section Taylor is in soon. They have been under the care of some great nurses and doctors. Pray for their continued growth and health and protection from sicknesses. Thanks for your patience and continued prayers. I will try to be more prompt with updates.

Isolation

Taylor has been put in isolation for having the staph infection that is resistant to traditional antibiotics. That explains her lethargy on friday. There are antibiotics they are giving to kill the infection, and they seem to be working. The bad news is she will likely be in isolation until she is released from the hospital. Pray that it would clear up and she wouldn't have a relapse. Also, she has a problem with her lungs, which is the reason she has been placed on a new kind of ventilator. Her lungs are looking better, but they still have some healing to do, so pray that will happen also. Overall and through it all, she seems to be doing well. She is doing well with her feeding, which they increase almost daily. Kamryn has been doing really well lately. Also, HER PDA IS CLOSED! God really did a work in her with that. Kamryn also is tolerating her feeds well, and even messed up her bedding the other day with a good poopy diaper. Thanks again to everyone for lifting us all up in prayer.

Thanks for All Your Prayers

This morning, the girls seem to be doing well. Taylor’s feedings have been going well. She had a little residual (leftovers in the belly) today, so they decided to slow them down a little. Kamryn has begun not having residual and had a messy diaper without any help, so that’s progress. After doing a chest x-ray on Taylor, they determined her lungs weren’t handling the ventilator well, so they hooked her up on a gentler machine. We didn’t find this out until going in last night and her bed was surrounded by about eight people learning about the machine. This kinda made us nervous, to say the least, to walk in and see all that activity around our daughter’s bed. It seems to be what she needs, though. The last x-ray showed her lungs looked much better. This new machine is a bit more involved, however, so we are not able to do Kangaroo care at this time. We did get to do it two nights in a row, and are glad for that. There was another head scan done on Taylor yesterday. We haven’t talked with the doctor about it yet, but her chart showed that there has been no significant change for the better or the worse. Pray for a change for the better. We really can't express how much your prayers and encouragement mean to us.