Snoedel (Snoodle)

Here is a little history behind the boys new blankets from Easter Bunnies G-Grandma Betty and G-Grandpa George. Bryan and I slept with them for three days before letting the boys snuggle them.

The Snoedel is a simple and effective concept that originated from a Dutch family tradition. The Snoedel offers parents a means to comfort and bond with their child – even when the baby is in the hospital. The pure, Dutch sheep wool incorporated into the high quality, flannel doll absorbs the parent’s scent and slowly releases it. The Snoedel provides babies with a sense of comfort and helps to ease parents’ feelings of helplessness and may become a child’s favorite comfort toy.

Maybe a few more weeks of the NICU

Another good day for the Howlands. Both boys have continued to do well today. Braylon has been either bottle feeding or nippling about half of his feeds without very many brady spells or desats. Dr. Egger said to start preparing for him to be discharged in about a week or two, although, we are not getting our hopes up. Bryan will be bringing the car seats up on Saturday in case we really do get to do the car seat test within the next couple of weeks. It is one of the requirements for discharge. He will also be bringing up any essentials we may need to make Braylon feel at home at the RMH such as the bassinet, blankets, etc. if he does come home before his brother.
Kaden has continued to do so well on his cannula that they are letting him stay on it 6 hours at a time and then back on c-pap for 4 hours. The nurses said that they really can’t tell the difference in his respiratory status on c-pap or cannula, which is great news, meaning his lungs are developing enough that he may be able to tolerate the cannula full time soon. Dr. Egger wants to try a “bubble” c-pap with him on Thursday. It is very similar to the cannula in appearance but gives a little more pressure like the c-pap. This would eliminate all of the head gear that is required for c-pap, which will be more comfortable for Kaden, and if he tolerates it, he will not have to alternate between two different devices allowing him to use his energy for better things such as growing. It doesn’t look like he will be going home as soon as brother but shouldn’t be too far behind. The doctors and nurses keep saying he may surprise us though so to go ahead and bring both car seats up.
Both boys may require some extra help when going home. Braylon may need to go home on a small dose of caffeine to help with the brady spells and that would mean he would go home on a monitor. Kaden may or may not need caffeine and/or oxygen when he is discharged, which would also require a monitor. Although I think it might help ease my anxiety about taking the boys home since I have gotten so use to watching the monitors, the nurses keep telling me it won’t help us sleep any better at night instead we will just be overly anxious about all the false alarms. Hopefully we won’t have to mess with any of it. The more I think of it, I would rather not turn our home into a smaller version of the NICU.
Sunday will be a big day for the boys. Not only will it be their first Easter, we are planning on holding them together for the first time. Both boys are stable enough to do that now but we are holding off until Bryan is back to share the big moment. It will be the boys first time meeting each other again since being in the womb. The monitors and oxygen are connected to these huge booms that can stretch almost to the center of the room which will allow us to keep both boys on the appropriate equipment while holding them. Bryan and I are so excited; it feels like we have been waiting a long time for the boys to be reunited. It will have been over a month since the boys have been side-by-side. There will be a ton of pictures I am sure.
The boys have their first eye exams tomorrow. I am told that this can be a little disturbing to watch but not necessarily painful since they numb their eyes before using the clamp like device to hold their lids open. They encourage the parents to be there so they can hear the results straight from the eye doctor but warn them about the appearance of the procedure. I have an idea of what it is like since I had eye surgery several years ago but am not really looking forward to watching it be done to my children. I will let you all know how it goes.

Interesting Fact: Today we met with our discharge nurse because she had some questions about our insurance. We asked her how much it cost to have our boys in the NICU. To our surprise it cost almost an average of $4000 per day each, so $8000 a day. Since delivery Braylon has racked up a bill around $180,000 and Kaden's is around $295,000. By the end of the week our boys will have spend $500,000 or 1/2 a million dollars by the time they are 1 month and a couple days old. Wow!!! This does not include my medical costs at all. Thank goodness for insurance.

Kaden with his puppy dog blankie from G-Grandma Betty and G-Grandpa George for Easter


Kaden just hangin' out in the NICU


Braylon holding his own binkie


Braylon having a heart-to-heart with his monkey blankie from G-Grandma Betty and G-Grandpa George, from his Easter basket


"I'll be going home when monkeys fly out my butt" (Bryan made this saying up, if you couldn't tell)


Momma feeding Braylon

Four Weeks Old!

Four weeks down. The boys have been doing very well over the last week. Braylon was gum tied to Ashley today, getting his first full nipple feeding. He also drank three full feedings from a bottle last night and drank ½ a bottle for me today.Last night he weighed 4lbs 6 oz and tonight he weighed 4lbs 6.9oz. The doctor called us this morning and said that both boys have been doing fantastic. He also said that Braylon will probably be leaving the NICU a few weeks before brother Kaden; which is good and bad news, good being that he will be out, and bad being that we will have to work something out with him and us to be able to see his brother. Once any of them leave the NICU they are not able to go back in. Hopefully his brother will catch up to him and they will leave together.
Kaden has been kicking butt on the cannula. He seems to be tolerating it a lot better this go around. Our nurse today said “they are doing fabulous”, and she kept saying the word fabulous over and over throughout the day. It was good because she is a nurse that we both really like. She usually gets the boys a couple times every week and she really notices that they are changing and likes to get them to move forward and make their way out of the NICU. Kaden has been trying his hardest to catch his brother and is gaining weight. He weighs 3lbs 9oz, and is really pushing to try to get some of that fresh squeezed momma milk; so is able to get his own crib, start nippling, and catch up to his brother. Other than that the boys are doing as well as they can be, and all we can do now is wait and hope for more “fabulous” days ahead.

Braylon 4 weeks old with his bear


Kaden 4 weeks old with his bear


Daddy bottle feeding Braylon



Daddy and Mommy kissing Kaden

Grandma Brenda and Uncle Cody with Braylon

Kings of the NICU

Crib for Kings

The boys wrote a little not for the nurses

Braylon hangin out in his new clothes more like swimming

Kaden snoozin after cuddlin with dad

All is good on the Howland front. The boys have been doing very well this week, and will hopefully continue their streak. We have had some good news over the past few days and the boys have been growing. The other night the doctor was saying that Braylon would be getting into a crib soon, and today he did. He is now King of the NICU. He also gained 2 more ounces tonight, which brings him to a grand total of 4lbs 6oz. He also has been able to try nipple feeding and bottle feeding; he sucked down 43mL tonight all by bottle and it was his 2nd in two days.
Kaden is not far behind, and he weighs 3lbs 6oz, as of last night. His nurse was taking care of another baby and didn’t make it back in time for us to weigh him. He is not in a crib yet but is working his way towards a crib. The boy has been tolerating his switching over from cannula to c-pap fairly well and I think they might extend his time soon. I’ll leave that one up to the doctors. The last few nights Ash and I have been holding him skin to skin. What makes these nights different is that he is taking to it a lot better. He usually fusses a lot and will move around to get comfy, but I think he really likes it and we will continue to do skin to skin with both boys.
I can’t believe that it has almost been 1 month since they were born. Ever week there is a change with them, and every time I leave and come back they look so big. Braylon is definitely the chunkster of the two and is starting to get all that baby fat. Kaden has been getting a little more every week and you can really notice it in his cheeks now. They have both been a blessing to our hearts and we will hopefully be getting to our real home soon.

Braylon's Big Day

Braylon had a big day today. He was able to try nippling for the first time. I had to pump before letting him try so he didn’t actually get to breastfeed but he got to practice for a while. Ever since working with the physical therapist yesterday he has really discovered his thumbs and hands and seems to have them near his mouth during most of his care times. The doctor called this morning and said he was really rooting and showing cues that he was ready to try nippling. We worked with the lactation specialist to get the hang of it and she said he did very well for his first try. He seemed to really enjoy it. It took a little while for me to get used to, on top of the fact that he chomped down with his little gums and pinched me really hard at first until he got the hang of it. I didn’t realize they had that much strength in their jaws yet.
Kaden has been doing well on the c-pap and cannula still. He did have to go back on c-pap about a half hour early this afternoon because he was working a little hard but he got the second tube replaced and shoved down his throat again and it probably stressed him out. They think the one tube finally dropped to his intestines and they weren’t able to pull the air out of his belly with it anymore so they placed the second tube in his stomach to draw back the air, basically to burp him. He is anemic so he has been started on shots and an iron supplement to help him build up red blood cells. The doctors are trying to avoid giving him a blood transfusion because that would require an IV so he gets a little shot every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. He did really well with his first shot tonight and didn’t cry a whole lot. I was proud of our tough little guy.
Both boys have gained weight. Kaden weighed 3lbs 6oz and Braylon weighed 4lbs 1oz. We are so pleased with Kaden’s weight gain because it doesn’t take much for him to lose weight at this point. Braylon has been put on a baby diet already because he was gaining weight too fast. They cut his feeds back a whole 2mL per feeding. They have also increased the rate of his feeding so instead of running over 1 ½ hours they run over 45 minutes. This is to help him get ready and tolerate breastfeeding better since he will get larger amounts of milk in a shorter amount of time once he is truly breastfeeding.
Although Kaden is not ready to start nippling he still really enjoys his pacifier and would love to stick his hands in his mouth if Mom would let him. I always try and keep his hand away from his mouth because of the tubes. He has mastered the art of hooking his little fingers around the tubes and pulling them right out. I keep explaining to him if he would just leave them alone they wouldn’t have to keep shoving them down, but he just doesn’t quite understand yet. He just looks at me with his big eyes and sneaks his little fingers right back up there. He spends a lot of time in his baby straight jacket so he will leave his tubing alone.

The boys have been doing better these past couple of days. Kaden is back to alternating between the c-pap and the high flow cannula. He sure enjoys this much more, but he definitely needs his break and a little extra help from the c-pap. By the end of his four hours he is working harder to breath and the doctor said he loses his lung capacity which the c-pap helps to build back up. The ultrasound of his heart came back normal, so they think that it is just stress causing the color changes and the desats. The continuous feed has helped with the stomach issues, but they were never able to get the tube to fall down to his intestines so they just left it in his stomach and removed the other.
Braylon is back on the regular cannula and doing well. He has had fewer desats and bradys the past couple of days and continues to gain weight. Today when Bryan and I showed up for the boys’ morning care times a woman was holding Braylon. Bryan and I both looked at each other and thought, who is this strange lady holding our son. It turned out she was a physical therapist who was working with Braylon to decide if he will be ready to start working on breastfeeding soon. She showed us different things to work on to get Braylon ready to breastfeed and said that developmentally he is doing great for his gestational age.
Kaden was still a little too stressed to work with the physical therapist today but she did show us some things to work on to help him until she feels comfortable working with him in a couple of days. Everyone keeps saying he is nowhere near being able to work towards breastfeeding right now but we can keep encouraging him to use his pacifier to help him practice sucking and breathing.
Daddy headed back today so he could work the next three days. The boys and I are already anxiously waiting for Saturday when he will be back up here with us. We miss him so much when he is gone. Grammie Brenda will be staying with me until Thursday or Friday of this week to keep me company. This will really make the time go by much quicker. My parents, brother, and my grandma will be back up Saturday afternoon and Bryan will be back in the evening. I just keep telling myself, another week down.

Mommy holding Kaden


Daddy holding Braylon


They are still in the NICU but they already have Papa all worn out


Grammie Marcie holding Braylon


Papa Darold holding Braylon


Papa Mike holding Braylon


The first bad habit we will have to break (look closely, this is what Bryan discovered when opening Braylon's bed)


Kaden's 3 week picture with his bear


Braylon's 3 week picture with his bear


Braylon all balled up

3 weeks old!!!

Yesterday Kaden had a busy and rough day. They placed another tube in his throat that goes all the way down to his intestines. This tube allows for a continuous feeding; while the other tube is left in to let air out. He had to have this done frequently, because the first time they tried he must have worked them back out, or they had too much slobber on them and worked out themselves. The doctor said we have not made any progress with him over the last couple of weeks and hopes that this is the answer. He also had an ultrasound of his heart to make sure one of the ducts has closed, and will hopefully find out the results today. On the brighter side Kaden has increased his calories by 2; which means he is at 24 again. The amount of his feedings have gone down, but he has gained some weight still and is now at 3lbs 3oz. Hopefully with all the changes he has been going through and with all of us roughing him up, it will allow him to go back and forth between his cannula and c-pap.
Braylon is still on the high flow cannula and looks as if he will be on it for a little while. Taking him off wouldn’t really be making progress, so right now it is serving to help him with his bradys’. He also gained some weight the other day and now weighs 3lbs 15oz. Once he gets to the 4lb club he will be able to get a crib. He has to get to 4lbs and has to maintain some other things, but one step at a time and he will get there. I think it will be better so he doesn’t have to sit and smell his mustard sauce all the time. He will share it with everyone else in the room. He will learn about sharing a little more now. More pics will be on their way, we just have to put them on the computer.

Two Steps Back

Today was a day of setbacks for both boys. Dr. B called and said that Kaden needed to remain on the c-pap for the rest of the day because he was just too worn out and was working too hard to breath. Braylon had to be taken off the regular cannula and placed on a high flow cannula because he kept having desats and bradys during the night, this was a huge surprise to us. He also said they both seemed very lethargic today, Kaden has days like this but this was very unlike Braylon. Because there were such big changes in the boys’ status they decided to run some lab work to check for infection and to check their caffeine levels. Both boys’ lab work came back normal. The doctor and nurses think they just got over stimulated and were very tired today. We let them rest most of the day today and both boys were showing improvements by their 8pm care time. The nurses kept encouraging us to hold them every care time yesterday, which we both thought might be too much but figured they would know what they could tolerate. We have decided to go back to the same old routine of Braylon getting held twice a day and Kaden getting held once a day until he can tolerate twice a day holdings. Hopefully the boys will regain their strength and be able to make progress.

Well dad decided to come back a little early. One of the boys’ nurses gave Ash and I a little scare, but that is over for now. He is doing better. He was actually able to make it on his high-flow cannula for 8 hours and then 4 hours on c-pap and then back on the cannula for 8 hours last night and this morning. He started to get pretty tired and was working too hard to breathe so they put him back on c-pap early this afternoon. He will have to stay on c-pap through the night so he can have a long break. After tonight’s shift is over he will get another whack at kickin the c-pap habit. So hopefully he will start adjusting himself to his cannula and catch up to big bro.
Braylon has been staying steady for the most part. He has had a few brady’s here and there, and most of them are at his 4pm care times. At least they have been the last couple of days. He weighed 3lbs 10oz as of last night, and Kaden weighed in at 3lbs on the dot. Both boys are gaining steady weight and will hopefully continue doing so. Ash and I are trying to catch up on some sleep seeming both of us haven’t been getting a whole lot. So we will try to keep the blog updated as frequently as possible, but it might not be every day. Especially now that both boys are on 3 hour care times.

The Over-Bearing Mother

So this morning the over-bearing mother in me came out. I arrived for the boys care times a little early this morning so I could meet Bryan's dad, Grandpa Mike, for a visit. Kaden was having trouble with reflux and spitting up during his feeding this morning. He was on the c-pap and it was almost time for him to be switched over to his cannula. While switching him over he just kept desating and desating, and he was doing the color change thing again. He had never changed the colors he did today. I kept telling the nurse, he always does this when his belly is distended and hurting him. She just kept going about her business and messing with him saying “Are you getting sick little guy, are you coming down with something?”. It had gotten bad enough they were considering calling the doctor into the room and just leaving Kaden on c-pap. Deep down I knew that wasn’t the solution to the problem so I kept repeating myself over and over. “I think it’s his belly.” “I think it’s his belly.” She still wasn’t listening to me. We undid his clothing and his stomach was huge but the nurse wasn’t going to do anything about it because he was in the middle of his feed. I didn’t understand why they would keep shoving more food down there when he looked like he was going to explode. I felt like crying, but I decided instead of crying, although there were some tears welling up in my eyes, I would just be very persistent. Most of the staff has gotten to know me pretty well, except for this nurse, and it has gotten to the point that rather than the nurses helping with the c-pap/cannula changes, I help the respiratory therapist with the changes. This respiratory therapist knew me pretty well, as I have been her assistant many times before, and she kept looking at me. She finally said “Well, is there any way we can interrupt his feeding and let some of the air out.” The nurse him-hawed around and so the respiratory therapist got pushy too. She said, “Let’s just give it a try. I just don’t feel comfortable continuing with the c-pap without trying this first.” The nurse finally gave in and pulled some of the feeding back along with 5mL of air, which is not very much, but I will tell you what, it cured the problem. Kaden was fine for the rest of the day. In fact he even set off the alarms for having saturations that were too high. So there, it’s official, mommy knows best.
After the whole fiasco was over the nurse really didn’t have much to do with me for the rest of the day, which was probably good because I may have opened a can of mommy whoop ass on her, just kidding. Braylon’s nurse, who was very nice, spent the rest of the day helping me with Kaden too.
Dr Egger caught up with me while I was visiting with the babies this morning. He has decided to thicken Braylon’s feeds and increase his Zantac to twice a day. He started Kaden on Zantac since he is beginning to have trouble with reflux also. They are going to try and increase Kaden’s calories again tomorrow to see if he can tolerate it better now that he is alternating between c-pap and cannula. They will be using a different type of formula added to the breastmilk that is a little easier on the stomach. He is going to continue Kaden on the alternating of the c-pap and cannula to give him a little break because he still has to work harder than his brother to breath.
Both boys have gained weight. Kaden is 2lbs 15oz, he gained back the ½ oz he had lost last night. Braylon is 3lbs 9oz and is looking more like daddy the more his face starts to fill out. I am amazed at how different he looks since putting on a few ounces. I think I can even tell a difference from yesterday.
They have also changed Braylon’s care times to “big boy” care times, which are now every three hours. This new schedule has been keeping me very, very busy. I missed one of Braylon’s care times this morning because the nurses forgot to tell me about the change. His care times are now at 8am, 11am, 2pm, 5pm, 8pm, and 11pm. While his brothers are 8am, 12pm, 4pm, 8pm, and 12am. I usually don’t make it to the 8am care times since I can’t seem to wake up that early after pumping all night. Their new schedule means I will only have breaks between 12pm and 2pm, 2pm and 4pm, and 5pm and 8pm. The couple of hours in between have been filled with holding the boys and pumping. I know that I could probably miss a few care times but after this morning’s escapade I am even more determined to make it to as many of the care times I can. At least it makes the time go by quicker.

Birth Announcement from Clearwater Tribune

IT'S TWINS!

Kaden Darold Howland


Braylon Michael Howland

It’s twins!

Braylon Michael Howland and Kaden Darold Howland were born Monday, March 1, 2010 at Sacred Heart Hospital in Spokane, WA. They are the twin sons of Bryan and Ashley Howland, Lewiston.

Braylon was born at 11:40 p.m. weighing 3 lbs. 5 oz. and measuring 16 inches in length.

Kaden was born at 11:42 p.m. weighing 2 lbs. 12 oz. and measuring 15½ inches in length.

Maternal grandparents are Darold and Marcie Stanton, Orofino. Paternal grandparents are Brenda Mattson and Mike Howland, both of St. Maries.

Maternal great grandparents are Cloann McNall, Orofino and John McNall, Lewiston.

Paternal great grandparents are George and Betty Currier, Lewiston, Ralph Howland, St. Maries and Rosemary Howland, California.

Name That Pump!

We are taking suggestions for the name of my breast pump. The pump and I have developed a very close relationship and it feels as though she is always right there by my side. I can count on her to be there every three hours day and night. When I am feeling all alone I can look over to the side of my bed and there she is just sitting there. Whenever I need her she is there. She goes everywhere I go. I think that since our relationship has been such a suck-cess she deserves her very own name. Post a comment on what you think her name should be.

First matching outfits

Well, there really isn’t much to report today on the twins. They both are just plugging away and really haven’t had any major changes since yesterday. Dr. B (I can’t even pronounce his last name let alone attempt to spell it) came in today and said, “Well, I have nothing to say on Braylon. He is just doing great.” He decided to continue Kaden on the alternating of the c-pap and cannula every four hours just to make sure he is getting enough rest. He also started him on some gas drops to help with his tummy, finally! I have been requesting this for several days but no one seemed to give it much thought and today when I finally decided it wasn’t worth asking again, they decided to do it. He has been tolerating his cannula and only has to have his oxygen turned up towards the end of his 4 hours. It sounds like he may be able to stay on the high-flow cannula alone in a couple more days. This would make him very happy. We will keep our fingers crossed.
The boys were able to wear their first matching outfits today. It was Kaden’s first time for wearing clothes. He didn’t really care for the putting the clothes on part but didn’t seem to mind once they were on. I figured I better start putting some of our clothes on them before they out grow them. The nurses really wanted to get a picture with them together in their matching outfits but there really wasn’t any way to pull it off.
When I arrived for their 8pm care times I had a little scare. I walked into their room and there was a bunch of nurses and respiratory therapist standing in there. My heart sunk and I must have had a look of terror on my face because immediately the nurse began to apologize. I had thought something terrible had happened but apparently Kaden was throwing a huge fit over a messy diaper and so they started his cares a little early and everyone had come from the room next door to admire him. The nurse said that Kaden was livid over his messy diaper and so she changed him just in time for him to mess another one. After that he was happy.
The boys have seemed to have won over the hearts of most of the staff and the nurses have been putting in requests for the Howland Boys for their assignments. One nurse told me that the boys have to have separate nurses now because they are such good babies and that it would be too easy of an assignment for one nurse to have both boys, so they have to have one of the twins and one harder baby.
Braylon finally past his birth weight, he weighed 3lbs 7oz tonight. Kaden lost a ½oz tonight. The nurse thinks that it was all the mess he had in his pants this evening. He weighed 2lbs 14 ½ oz. Once the boys make it to 4lbs they can upgrade to a crib. The nurse thinks that Braylon will be in a crib in the next couple of weeks and once Kaden’s tummy issues are under control he will start packing on the ounces and won’t be too far behind his brother. Once Kaden is on a cannula for good and is up to 4lbs the boys can start co-bedding. I am so excited. I am curious to see what they will do when they are back next to each other again. The nurses and the doctors say that they are very pro co-bedding at Sacred Heart.
We just keeping praying that the boys continue to progress, although I have only been up here a little over two weeks it feels like much longer. I am anxious to be back home with our boys and with Bryan where we can really feel like a little family.

Braylon in his matching outfit


Kaden in his first pair of clothes


Great-Grandma Cloann sneaking a snuggle from Braylon last night


Kaden in his baby straight jacket because he kept pulling on his tubes


Burrito Baby Braylon

Trying to kick the C-Pap

Today has been a good day for the Howland twins. Kaden has gotten rid of the bili-light and has been tolerating his high-flow cannula better this time around. The nurse said he had a few desats at the beginning of her shift this morning just before it was time for him to be placed back on c-pap. When they are this little they like to keep their oxygen saturation between 80% and 95%. He had a few desats when we arrived for his noon care times but when Dr. Egger caught up with us to give us a little report and began to talk about the c-pap, Kaden’s saturation continued to climb above 95% and set off the alarms in the unit to the point they had to turn his oxygen down. I think he was saying, “I’ll show you what I can do.” We love it when he sets off the alarms for having high oxygen levels. He has continued to do well on the cannula throughout the day and was even on room air for a while. His nurse thinks that it is his way of showing who his favorite nurse is. The nurses say he does the best when Bryan and/or I are there and they can tell he really enjoys his visits with us. He opens his big eyes up and studies our faces and the alarms start dinging, the good kind of dinging. It is amazing how he will turn his head to our voices and look right at us. I just love it. Today we even got some smiles out of him. He loves having his head messaged and there were times when he had a huge smirk on his face. His belly looks so much better since they have adjusted his feeds and he seems so much more comfortable other than throwing a fit when they put him back on c-pap, he even let out a few toots this evening. He also has been doing less of the color changes which is a huge relief. It really had me worried yesterday, to the point of tears. We pray that he keeps this up and he can get rid to the c-pap for good.
Braylon continues to just plug along. He is still on full feeds and I think I can see a little chub starting to form on his cheeks. They are going to try and thicken his feeds to help with his reflux. He has had a few desats and Dr. Egger believes they are related to his feedings rather than him forgetting to breath. He still gets to wear his clothes when he doesn’t mess on them. Today he had a hospital onesie on and he was just swimming in it. He really enjoys his holdings twice a day and has gotten our schedule down. He knows that he gets held at noon and 8pm and will lay in his little bed with his eyes open waiting for Bryan or I to come pick him up and rock him. I love it when Bryan is here because while he is holding Braylon I can spend time with Kaden and vice-versa. Last night we each got to hold a baby at the same time.
I had my two week follow up appointment and everything is looking good. My incision is almost completely healed and my blood pressure is back to normal. I have lost five more pounds since last week. I told them this is the first time I am actually excited to step on the scale. I’m moving back down to my smaller maternity clothes. At least I am getting my money’s worth. Hopefully I won’t have to keep my next follow up appointment in four weeks (we are hoping we are home by then), but the nurse practitioner is very nice and I have really enjoyed her care.
The boys had another visit from Grandma Brenda and a first time visit from Mike M. Brenda was able to get some more great pictures of the boys. She was even able to catch Kaden with his smirk. Kaden had his first family picture with mommy and daddy also. We haven’t been able to get a good one with him because he has always had the head gear on for the c-pap. He was really loving the camera today.
Bryan has headed back to Lewiston for his work week. It was hard again to see him leave, we both really miss each other while he is gone and he really misses his boys. I don’t think it will ever get easy. The phone calls with little updates have already started after the boys 8pm care times. It was nice to call and tell him that the boys are continuing to do good.
My Grandma, Great-Grandma Cloann, is going to be staying with me at the Ronald McDonald house until the end of this week. It will be nice to have her company. She made it to the boys 8pm care time with me and was able to steal a little snuggle from Braylon. When we left both boys were swaddled and sleeping. Kaden lost his hand privileges because he was pulling on his tubing, so he got put in a little baby straight jacket. He looked so comfortable swaddled in his bed I went ahead and swaddled Braylon and he enjoyed it too.

Kaden smiling



Family photo with Kaden


Braylon wide awake


Grandma Brenda with Bryan and Braylon


Braylon winking


Kaden wide awake


I think he might be laughing

2 Weeks Old

Dad holding Braylon


Braylon looking at Dad


Where did Braylon go (He is under mommy's shirt)


Holdin the binky all by myself (Kaden)


Momma with Kaden


Dad with Kaden


Braylon next to his bear, he is looking bigger than last week


Kaden next to his bear, he looks a little bigger this week than last

The boys are now 2 weeks old, and they look so different from when they were first born. Since tonight will be my last night here with Ash and the boys, I think we are all sad about it. I have been trying to spend as much time as I can with all of them and get in as much cuddle time as I can with the boys. I have been able to hold Braylon everyday at least once. Today I was holding him after I had changed his diaper and did the rest of his cares. It seemed that he was pretty comfy as he let out what I thought was just gas. If you had read the post from yesterday, I talked about a “Dutch Oven”, to my surprise that was what the boy gave me. When he lies on my chest he has a blanket that covers his body to help keep him warm. He wasn’t sleeping this time so every time I would talk he would shift around trying to see where it was coming from. Every time he would shift he would give me a dose of the putty he made in his diaper. Yes, he pooped while I was holding him and not even 10 minutes after I had changed his diaper. I ask Ash and the nurse if they could smell anything and both said no. It was alright I let him lay in it for awhile then put him back in his bed and changed his diaper again. He has been doing very well with his cares and with progressing. Today he had gained 1oz, and he is back to his birth weight of 3lbs 5oz. I’m not sure if he has grown any in length as I forgot to ask the nurse, so probably tomorrow I will ask.
As for Kaden, he is still moving up and then back down. Every time we think he is going to get the c-pap off for good, his little body just works too hard and they put it back on. Earlier in the week Ash posted that Kaden had been getting a little a pale. Late last night, and mid-day today we saw it again. The nurse was giving us some ideas on what it might be, she said he could be coming down with a bug, getting to much milk and not being able to digest it, or that he might just be getting worn out. The little guy, “tank,” has been working hard trying to catch up to big brother. When Dr. Egger came in today he said Kaden wasn’t getting a bug, and that it might be better to take his feedings down to 20 calories instead of 22 calories. They also decided to try and switch him from c-pap to a cannula every 4 hours. His first try he seemed to fuss a little and then they put his c-pap back on and he didn’t like it. The last couple of days he has been trying to rip it off his face. Most of the nurses agree with us in saying take off the c-pap and let him use a cannula. When it was time for his second go around, 8 pm, he was much better. His eyes were wide open and he was very happy. I was able to hold him for 40 minutes and I finally did skin to skin. I have to admit it was very weird. I made the nurse shut the curtain and had her give me a couple blankets to put over the 2 of us. Neither I nor Kaden minded it at all, and it made Ash happy that I at least tried it out. He was awake almost the whole time and even did a couple of push-ups on my chest. He was trying to turn his head and would just about get there, and then he would face plant into my chest. As of last night the nurse said Kaden had lost a couple of ounces but she didn’t give me his weight. He has grown 2cm since birth, and now he is at 41cm.