Where we are now - part 2

The babies, meanwhile, have several weeks ahead of them in the special care nursery here in Georgia before they will be strong enough to travel home with us to Florida. They are doing well, but are having some of the common ups and downs that preemies have along the way.



James had a touch of jaundice and had to spend a couple of days under phototherapy lights, but that has resolved completely. He is also having some trouble with feeding and reflux, which they're handling by giving him medication and putting the feeding tube directly into the beginning of his intestine instead of into his stomach. He is also still getting some nutrition through his IV. Kathryn still needs a tiny bit of oxygen to help her breathing, but she is feeding very well and has had her IV removed.



Both lost some weight after birth, which happens with almost all babies, but in preemies the loss is more significant since they're small already, and they have a harder time regaining the weight. On Monday they were both put in isolettes, or incubator boxes, insetad of the open warming beds they were in. This is to help keep them quieter and make it easier for them to stay warm, so that they expend fewer calories and can put some weight back on. At last night's weighings, they had both gained weight -- just a little, but it's a step in the right direction.

We had the babies baptized ("just in case") yesterday by a vey nice priest from the biological grandparents' church.

We are also doing "kangaroo care", where we hold the babies (one at a time! :-) skin to skin on our chests, covered with a blanket. This keeps them warm and relaxes them, and is thought to help them mature and develop faster as well as helping them bond with us. Last night we gave them each their baths, too. Kathryn loved hers, but James got quite upset at his.