The Littlest Hedgehogs, Day 30

The last week has been eventful! We are learning to weather the storms of the NICU.

Rhys reached his limit last Saturday night, and we spent the week letting him show us what was up. He is now extubated, has starting to drink milk again, and can come out for cuddles. Along the way he had his first hair cut to make room for a scalp IV and got to participate in his first scientific study as part of a blood transfusion trial. He is much stronger and breathing so much better.

Harlo keeps chugging along. He's up over 1300g and nearing the 3lbs mark. His eyes are now a very bright blue, and he "looks" for or at us when we speak (when he is awake). His breathing has also improved dramatically with many fewer "tick marks" for incidents each day. He got to wear his first footed onesie this week.

And they look different! Rhys looks just like a Winget baby (dad) while Harlo certainly has a LaFond (my) face.

We are so thankful to the BC Women's nurses, doctors, and staff who care for us as much as for Harlo and Rhys.

The Littlest Hedgehogs, Days 22 & 23

Three weeks old and over 1200g! We have been excited this week at the progress Rhys and Harlo have made and wanted to share some action shots with you.

The Littlest Hedgehogs, Day 20

Rhys (left) and Harlo (right), Day 19

Just a quick note today. Rhys had his PICC line removed yesterday, so both boys are now IV line free. Rhys has been having trouble keeping his oxygen levels up, mostly due to difficulty breathing imposed from too much air in his stomach. This is caused by his breathing assistance, go figure. Yesterday they changed his breathing assistance to one where he actually gets less help, and he is doing great and has less air in his stomach. Harlo gave the change a go too, but he's not ready yet. It was a good try. Yesterday they also wore the same outfit for the first time. We are hoping for big weigh-ins tonight.

The Littlest Hedgehogs, Day 18

Harlo and Rhys, Day 18

The NICU is becoming a bit of a second home. Harlo is doing pretty well - up to 1090 grams and only having "dips" for reasons. Rhys is holding his own, up onto full feeds at last and working on putting together breathing and eating. Danielle had a couple days this week where she held one twin in the afternoon and the other in the evening. Jason's skill set now includes snuggling, diaper changing, temperature taking, sponge-bathing, and suctioning. We are hoping this next week will see Rhys have his IV removed and more growth. Tonight we take in cupcakes for the lovely ladies who patiently take care of the little ones for us.

Jason next to Rhys and his isolette

The Littlest Hedgehogs, Days 12 & 13

Harlo being weighed over the weekend

Still kicking along in the NICU. Both Harlo and Rhys are gaining weight (over 1kg now) and are able to come outside their nests for "cuddles". Saturday was our first double cuddle when Jason and I both had a boy out at the same time. We were able to do that again last night, and today I may get to hold each of them in the same day, although still at different times and not together. We are hopeful that they will both be up to full feeds (that is the giant amount of 12 to 14mLs every 2 hours) by the end of this week. We had some set-backs with breathing over the weekend, but Harlo and Rhys are bigger, stronger, and doing okay.

Both Jason and I are back to work. Jason is full-time back in the lab, and I am slowly adding days back to the work week. It is hard not to feel guilty about not being there all the time, but we know that sleeping is best medicine for them (and us). On the upside (or maybe downside) we both got to change dirty - and not just wet - diapers this weekend.

Keep wishing us luck, we so appreciate the comments, cards and notes. Oh yes, and Richard Winston Mertz you are TOO GENEROUS!

Day 12: Rhys and Danielle snuggling & Harlo chillin'

The Littlest Hedgehogs, Day 7

Harlo and Jason, Day 5

We are one week in and doing well. Both Harlo and Rhys are very stable at the moment, working on breathing, hearts beating and eating. Rhys is our trouble maker, but we get to hold Harlo every day which is a great comfort. On Monday we actually laughed at them both - Rhys for his legs tucked Buddha baby pose and Harlo for his amazing pinky finger sucking action.

Harlo and Danielle (left) and Rhys under the blue lights (right), Day 6

The Littlest Hedgehogs, Day 3

We four are getting along, five if you count Gus. I was discharged yesterday from the hospital and feel pretty good. Our lives tend revolve around NICU visits and the breast pump at the moment. Two things you would not really want in your life!

Harlo and Rhys are doing well. They are both stable and need help breathing and eating. Rhys is a bit more troublesome - he has not gotten the complete trick of breathing down as Harlo has. Our first goal is stability here, and then starting to gain a bit of weight.

We have both gotten to hold Harlo for over an hour each and are hoping to get our hands on Rhys tomorrow.

We'll be updating the blog here periodically, but no longer posting on Facebook about them. Reality is more than enough to deal with at the moment. Feel free to comment and email, but don't call! Phone calls send our breathing and heart rates through the roof as this is how the NICU will contact us with news. We will try for pictures tomorrow or Monday - we have them, but need to process them.