Hello all. Today was a good day for the Trio. All babies are now off any supplamental oxygen. They are all breathing 100% room air! We are so proud of them. We also can now see their little faces for the first time without the nasal canulas and tubing that accompany it. And let me tell you thank God they got KT's good looks. I would feel sorry if that had to go around this life with a bulldog mug like mine :) Anyway, This is a great sign because it shows us that their little lungs are working properly. One of the biggest concerns with premies is that their lungs are not developed and they have difficulty breathing on their own. So, fingers crossed, one hurdle down, several more to go.
Secondly, the little guys are eating between 30 and 34 ML (Roughly 1 oz) during every meal. They are fed every three hours (8 times a day) so they are consuming around 8 oz of formula and breast milk a day. (On that same note, 8oz a day means they are consuming roughly 15% of their body weight in food daily. That would be the equivalent of me eating 35lbs of food everyday. WOW! I bet they will really start growing now) All three are doing very very well to be 32 weeks today. Please keep them in your prayers though. We are not out of the woods yet.
Secondly, I am getting a lot of questions about the pictures of KT and I holding the babies with our shirts open. A lot of people are curious as to what exactly we are doing and why we are doing it. I've have had some funny questions and comments so far. Are you practicing to be a nudist? Are you trying to make the baby feel more comfortable with their skin touching yours? And my personal favorite (Thanks Amy L for this one) - Rhett, seriously. Don't you know that the woman is supposed to breastfeed the babies! Well, Amy, yes I know I am not able to breastfeed. (At least, I hope not. That pump thing scares me.) What we are doing is called Kangaroo Care. It is actually prescribed by the Dr. for us to hold each baby once a day for up to an hour. From everything I have heard and read it is supposed to be one of the most beneficial things for the babies. Here, I've included a definition below. See for yourself.
Kangaroo Care - For preterm and low birth weight infants
Kangaroo care arguably offers the most benefits for preterm and low weight infants, who experience more normalized temperature, heart rate, and respiratory rate (I saw this one today when KT Held Kade. His respiratory rate dropped from around 50 to 19), increased weight gain, fewer nosocomial infections and reduced incidence of respiratory tract disease. Additionally, studies suggest that preterm infants who experience kangaroo care have improved cognitive development, decreased stress levels, reduced pain responses, normalized growth, and positive effects on motor development. Kangaroo care also helps to improve sleep patterns of infants, and may be a good intervention for colic. Earlier discharge from hospital is also a possible outcome. Finally, kangaroo care helps to promote frequent breastfeeding and can enhance mother-infant bonding.
So, as you can see it is super super important that we kangaroo as much as possible. KT and I actually had a discussion a few days ago along the lines that maybe pulling them out of their beds was causing them to much stress. Up to that point we had just taken the Dr's word for it. After we talked about it KT did some research on the effects and we realized that it is not only ok but probably the absolute best thing that we can do for our munchkins. So, if you see KT and I sans shirt on the blog, know that we are not trying to show off our muscles or breastfeed or practicing some weird form of nudism. We are in fact doing just what the Dr ordered. Have a great night everyone!
Rhett
Coming soon - The NICU Process - What is required for KT and I to gain access to the NICU and see our Chillins
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