4 Months Old (and 4 Days)

The triplets have passed their 4 month birthday on Thursday! They are technically 3 weeks past their due date or "3 weeks corrected". It has been a really hard week for us parents. It has been so hectic and so draining going back and forth between hospitals, trying to stay up to date on each of the triplets and trying to be there for each of them. Since Taylor started breastfeeding this past week, Jodi had to be with her at specific times, since all the babies are on the hospital's feeding schedule. Emotionally it was exhausting to leave each baby, especially when they were crying when we needed to leave. As parents, we often split up so that we could divide our attention between babies, but it was hard to not be able to support each other. We also recruited our Moms to hold the boys during the times when Jodi needed to be with Taylor. Mentally it was exhausting to always be trying to schedule our time, to get used to the new hospital and new staff, and to stay up to date and active with each baby's health plan... Most nights we would drop into bed exhausted and wonder how we would get through the next day. 

On Thursday afternoon, Nathan met with some administrative staff from the hospital to discuss what Taylor's transfer meant for our triplets and the impact it had on our mental, emotional, and physical health. We wanted to advocate for future families of multiples so that this type of scenario could be avoided for them in the future, if possible. The team was very understanding and told us that they would even try to get Taylor back! As of Monday, it looks like they may be successful. We are so so grateful for their efforts and hope and pray that they will be successful in the next few days.

Liam Josiah:

On Tuesday morning, Liam came off of all his breathing support! We were so excited for our baby boy! We knew that he might not last but were still happy that he had made it to this step! And we loved to see his face and his head and get used to what our baby actually looked like! On Wednesday evening, Liam went back on the breathing support called High Flow. He couldn't quite handle breathing all by himself and needed a bit of help. On Wednesday night, Liam needed to start receiving oxygen. In the last few weeks, he had not needed any extra oxygen, but we learned that it was fairly common for babies challenged to come off CPAP to need a bit extra. As of Monday, Liam is still on High Flow and still needing a bit extra oxygen. The team weaned his settings a bit today, but it will still be at least a week before he could potentially come off of breathing support again. We shall see what our little man can do!

Liam's blood sugars have been a lot stabler this past week, for which we are so thankful. All of the tests that he has undergone have either come back negative or are still pending. The fact that he has had such a good week makes it seem very likely that the blood sugar issue is a result of prematurity and will resolve in its own. Again, time will tell. 

Early this week, Liam was moved to a different part of the NICU as a "half-graduation". He is inbetween Level 3 and Level 2 care. Malachi is still in the most intensive care which is Level 3 while Taylor has graduated to Level 2. Our biggest triplet continues to grow well. Lately, we have been inquiring about what we can use for stimulating or soothing our babies, now that they are technically 3 weeks. They now can go in swings or look at mobiles, etc. It's a fun stage for us to be in, because our babies aren't sleeping 24/7 anymore. All 3 triplets currently love to be in mamaRoo swings. We like to put them on the car seat setting which rocks them like a car ride... while we dream of taking them home in our car... 

Taylor:

Our baby girl has been doing really well learning how to orally feed. Currently she needs to eat 74mL every 3 hours. This is based on calculations in proportion to her weight. She is weighed on a scale before and after she eats so that the team knows how much she had. Lately, she has been breastfeeding around 40mL before she gets too tired. The rest of what she needs is still given through her feeding tube directly into her belly. She has also managed to take 2 full (74mL) bottles in the past week, but otherwise she again tires before the bottle is empty. It may not seem like a big deal to the average person, but we are thrilled with the progress she has made in only a week! The healthcare team warned us that she could take a very long time to learn oral feeding, but she has really impressed us all with how well she is doing. All that is left for her to do is to build up strength, stamina, and efficiency so that she can  orally take her milk and come home! This last week she was also taken off all of her supplements and milk fortifier (except for vitamin D), which means she is able to grow at a good rate on breast milk only. Another step.

On Saturday, we had our first "outing" with Taylor. We walked out of the main part of the NICU to a room about 3 meters down the hall without any monitors attached to our baby girl. We thoroughly enjoyed the peace and quiet (no beeping or screens) but also the "normalcy" of the moment. However, it will take some getting used to once we go home, because we are so used to the monitors telling us how Taylor is breathing, her heart rate, and oxygen saturation. It makes us anxious not to know these numbers, and the security of knowing that her vitals are okay. We will certainly need to get used to it over time.

Malachi:

Our little man is slowly but surely improving as well. His respiratory settings have come down a little bit this past week, and his oxygen levels have also been as low as 27%. This is an all time record for our Malachi! He is still not able to be on straight CPAP (a steady pressure into his lungs) but still needs extra support for each breath. As you may recall, he is no longer on the hospital's trial software called NIV NAVA but is now on something called NIV Pressure Support. He is given 40 breaths in a minute which is extra pressure above the steady pressure (aka PEEP). Over time, he can hopefully come off those extra  breaths and then, of course, have his PEEP lowered as well. It seems to us that Malachi becomes more and more comfortable as his pressures are lowered. He still has days where he cries often and is very unsettled, but he has also had some days lately where he sleeps well and is rested. We think this may be because he is more comfortable, and we hope it's not because he is exhausted. Our littlest man has also been growing much better in the last week or two! He has got round and chubby cheeks and an adorable double chin. With his big blue eyes also in the mix, we have been told multiple times that a nurse or respiratory therapist has a soft spot for our little man... 

"No more pictures, Mom!"

Psalm 145:18-19 says, "The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desire of those who fear him; he also hears their cry and saves them..." Yes, He is near us here in the NICU too. Liam, Taylor, and Malachi are in His loving hands. He creates and sustains all life. What a comfort!