November 25-27

As parents, we have really been noticing specific preferences and differences between each of our precious triplets. We love to marvel at their little personalities and differences.
For example, Malachi loves to stretch out his tiny body no matter how his nurse positions him. When we walk up to his little bed, we often first see a little arm or foot waving in the air. Malachi doesn't like being laid on his left side.
Another example is how Taylor will use up lots of energy when a nurse is handling her (changing her diaper, putting in an IV, weighing her, etc.). She will cry her tiny cry with all her might, wave her arms, and kick her legs so that by the time the nurse is done she is very tired and sleeps soundly.
Liam has also shown a mind of his own. He loves to have his hands up around his face. Even if the nurse tucks his arms in by his side, he always manages to squirm them out and up by his face.
All three love to suck on soothers. All three love to lay on their tummies all wrapped up. They are little people who have been created by the awesome Creator!

Liam Josiah:
Liam's infection seems to be much better. The second blood culture came back negative which most likely means the antibiotics are working. His skin color is improved and he has more energy. The doctors decided to leave Liam intubated over the weekend and reassess Monday for when he might go back on CPAP. He has been doing quite well intubated in the meantime. He is also tolerating more and more breast milk, as he had not been getting any while he was feeling sicker. He is almost up to full feeds again. A lot of our babies' tests (head ultrasounds and echocardiograms) have been postponed to next week so we don't have any updates in that department. Liam is also growing and is over 2 lbs!

Liam intubated and trying hard to focus on Mommy's face

Taylor Joy:

Taylor has been also looking better than the past few days although she is still fairly pale. Her blood culture came back negative but the doctors are quite sure she had or still has some sickness or infection. She is being kept on a general antibiotic and monitored. In the meantime she has also restarted a small amount of breast milk but has been throwing up a fair amount. She continues to get supplements and antibiotics through an IV, but they have not put a PICC (permanent IV) back in yet, as they hope she will be back to full feeds soon. Taylor has lost weight the last few days as well which is not very alarming considering she is not feeling well. Thankfully, Taylor has remained on CPAP (Continuous Positive Air Pressure) and is breathing room air oxygen (21%, which is what you and I are breathing), However, we have been learning a lot about the different types of CPAP and the different settings that can be applied. The number of puffs of air given as a reminder to breathe, the pressures applied to keep the lungs open, the percentage of oxygen given... there are many different settings and our baby girl has a long way to go before breathing on her own. Because the triplets are so little, they would not be able to grow or develop if they were even able to breathe on their own since all their energy would go into breathing.

Taylor with her CPAP sleeping in her favourite position

Malachi John:

On Friday at midnight we received a phone call (which we were more or less expecting) that Malachi was again being intubated because his lungs were again starting to collapse. Malachi's breathing support is quite higher than it has been this past week. In particular, his CO2 levels in the blood have been higher than they should be. The doctors are continuing to monitor and change settings on the ventilator to find out what is best for our little boy. We are very thankful, however, that Malachi continues to be on full feeds of 11.5 mm of breast milk with the added supplements that used to be given through the IV. This is obviously important for him to grow and get stronger! On this Sunday morning we learned that Malachi's lungs had collapsed partially again overnight. When we came to his bed this afternoon, we were excited to learn that Malachi was being transferred into the same pod (area) as Taylor and Malachi. This will make visiting easier as we divide our time between our three little ones. Shortly after being moved, the new healthcare team assessed Malachi and strongly suspect that he has pneumonia. This would explain his collapsing lungs and how he has been needing higher breathing support. The initial tests seem to really point towards pneumonia but the official blood culture results will take up to 48 hours. The doctor working today decided to start treating Malachi with specific antibiotics as if he has pneumonia, since all signs seem to be pointing to it. As parents we are of course very disappointed and worried to hear of yet another sickness for our triplets. The nurses have assured us that pneumonia is a fairly common risk when babies need to be intubated in the NICU, yet it is serious that our little baby is sick.

Malachi intubated again and wiggling onto his back from his side

Isaiah 40:11 has been sent to us by a number of people: "He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young." We take comfort knowing that our Shepherd tenderly loves our precious triplets who are His covenant children.