So many changes!

Whew!

There has been a lot of happenings in the past few days or it feels that way to us at least. It has definitely been an emotional roller coaster thus far and I'm certain it will be till the end.  One thing I can say for sure is these little ones are totally worth it!

Since last post they are both off the C-paps still.  For a little while there Kenzington wasn't doing the greatest and so they kept her on a high flow nasal cannula while Oakley was put on a low flow.

They stuck Oakley's feeding tube down her nose which I think should have been done for Kenzington as well--but Kenzlee has had it down through her mouth since she was put on the cannula.

Oakley without c-pap!

Wide awake looking at mom!  We noticed she really likes to take in the things around her, more so than Kenzington.

Here's Kenington with dad-  she made this weird face a lot because of her feeding tube being down through her mouth--

On Monday they both were doing really good with their respiratory rates so we were able to start trying non-nutrative breastfeeding.  Which in short is them getting used to, well me! :p  

It was probably the first of many close and amazing experiences I am going to be able to have with my girls.  It was almost like it was just me and them being able to bond in our own little world.  

Oakley did great!  She seemed to get the idea right off the bat.  While Kenzington got frustrated pretty quickly because of her feeding tube getting in the way. Which them made her began to breath a little fast. So we cut it short with her and put her back to bed so she could rest.

We were happy to hear they both have been gaining weight and are not above their birth weights.  They are eating about 38-40 ML of milk each feeding and taking to them well.  It was apparent when it came to how many stinky diapers we would have to change while their.  As soon as we could clean one up and put a new diaper on she would just mess in it again!  

Tuesday my mom was nice enough to take me to the hospital for an early morning non-nutrative.  It was really great for her to be there and be able to watch the girls for that period of time.  They even began to smile!  Even if it was the kind of smiles that you can tell they don't know what the crap their mouth is doing yet but they do it anyway! Since then they have just been smiling more and more! Later that night my grandparents were able to finally drop by and see them. They seemed to enjoy seeing how tiny they were and all that good stuff.

Wednesday Austin's mom was so great and took the time away from work to take me in so I could spend some one on one time with the girls.  When we got there we could hear one of them crying and saw they had been working on Oakely.  The nurse let us know that earlier this morning they were debating on putting both girls back on their c-paps because their respirations were so high.  Which would have been a step back.  Instead they decided to do some suctioning and see if they could get any gunk out of the way that may be causing them to breath heavier.  They had already finished with Kenzington when we got in.  I could see her in her bed passed out from the stress.  It was almost too hard for me to stand there and hear Oakley scream as they suctioned her throat and nose.  After a few tries and getting some good amounts of gunk suddenly this huge booger just flew out of her nose!  I swear it was the size of a freaking skittle.  A skittle seems small but think about how stinking tiny their noses are!

The nurse doing the suctioning laughed saying she had to go show this off.  I was just glad it was over and she could finally rest.

 I was there for almost 4 hours, mostly watching them sleep and rest.   I really wanted to take the day to just let them relax so hopefully there would be more progression in the future.  After the mornings suction they both were doing so good it was great to see.  The nurses on duty were so awesome!  They saw me running back and forth between the two beds and 3 of them decided they would get together and put their beds closer together so I wouldn't look like one of those silly cartoon characters running round!  They really made things a lot easier. 

Just as I was about to leave that afternoon the Doctor on duty started her rounds on the girls.  She said they both seem to be doing really great and she was even a little surprised at their progress.  Seeing as they were doing so good and had reached their 14 days since birth she thought it would be great to get those picc lines out right away.  Oakley was going to be taken off all of her medications even the caffeine since she hadn't had any respiratory problems in the past couple days.  Kenzington on the other hand they were going to keep putting the caffeine in her food for now since she was still on her high flow cannula due to faster breathing.

Last night while there we were able to give them another bath and this time we weren't going to be putting them back in a heated bed.  We got to put some actual clothes on the girls and the nurse was going to see how well they maintained their body temps.  It was so cute to see little Kenzington wrapped up with a beanie on her little head looking like an elf!

With their picc lines out and their meds practically non existent we knew it would be close for when they could be co-bedded.

We were right..
When we got there this evening sure enough they were together!

(Oakley left making her "worried" face-Kenzington Right just chillin)

They were both wrapped up in the blankets the Parents Network had given us the night before.  With their little onsies on underneath.  

Not only were they together, but they had taken Kenzington off of the high flow nasal cannula and put her on a low flow as well as they took her feeding tube out of her mouth and put it through her nose.  I could tell right away that she was much happier without it in the mouth!

(If you're wondering--no we cannot tell them apart! LMAO Not yet anyway.)

We spent the first hour or so just hanging out while they slept.  At their 7pm feeding we tried some more non-nutritive feeding which turned out really well for both of them.  Oakley did so well she got a little over excited and bit me! lol  Yeah..owe!...  Kenzington did much better now that she had all those changes made.  They did so well that the Occupational Therapist and the nurse said they were going to speak with the doctor to see if it would be possible to upgrade them to the B nursery!

Now the B nursery is like a step forward in their stay at the hospital which is also called the "feeder/grower" side.  It's a lot quieter and a little more private so that moms and babies can focus on what's needed for their return home.  =D

SO, we will see if tomorrow when we go in if they are in their same spots or have been moved. :)  We can only hope and pray for the best.  If not!  It's ok too!   I've learned through this that set backs happen, it's just life.  The best thing to do is just work through them if they happen and be grateful if they don't!

I've been thinking about putting together a post about my experience/frustrations with c-section and breastfeeding.  Simply due to the fact that those have also caused a good portion of these emotional ups and downs.  :)  We will see. I've been pretty scatter brained and most of my re-caps I feel like I'm missing details I hope to remember later on.

Anyway in closing--Here's looking to the future!