Welcome to Our Blog! Our Story Starts Below...

Welcome to our blog! We set this up as an information hub about the progress of our little twin boys who were born on January 5, 2010. We along with our little boys first thank you so much for your love and support, and hope that this blog will give you an opportunity to follow their progress as they grow in the NICU at St. Jude Hospital in Fullerton.

Our little boys had a harrowing journey to get here. They were born at 25 weeks and 6 days, which is needless to say, very early. Jared William, was born at 10:49 a.m. feet first, and on the bathroom floor of the delivery room. Anthony Michael was born at 11:30 via C-section after he decided that he wanted to come out hands first.

Our story started on Monday, January 4 after a doctor's appointment with Dr. Gray. Danielle had been feeling generally, "crappy" the day before and reported what sounded like some contractions. The doctor decided to send us across the street to the hospital just to make sure everything was okay. After a couple of hours in labor and delivery the staff confirmed a few contractions, but very far apart. Her cervix was not dilated and the babies were fine.

The doctor sent us home and told us to keep track of the contractions, and so long as they weren't less than 7 minutes apart there was no need for concern. The next morning Danielle started feeling contractions again, but this time they were about five minutes apart. She called the doctor who said to wait another hour and see if they went away.

I was just getting ready to walk out the door to work when Danielle had a contraction that just about doubled her over. Deciding something wasn't right, I called the doctor and said we were coming to the hospital.

On our way to the hospital Danielle was having severe pains in her lower back every three minutes. When we arrived at the hospital Danielle was hooked up to the machines which registered no contractions at all. The doctors and nurses did not think her pains were contractions but constipation. After several attempts to alleviate that Danielle went into the bathroom still having severe lower back pain.

After a minute, I heard a scream, and Danielle was screaming that her babies were coming out. The nurses came rushing, as did the doctor, but Jared was too impatient to wait. He was born on the bathroom floor. After Danielle was moved to the bed, Anthony wasn't so cooperative and an emergency C-section was performed.

The NICU unit was quick to respond and help the teenie little babies breathe and fight for life. Jared was 2lbs. 1oz. and was 13 and 1/2 inches long. Anthony was 1lb. 15oz. and was 13 inches long.

The whole thing was totally unexpected, and frankly more traumatic than happy. But we are blessed with two gorgeous little miracle babies!

Our boys came home to us on March 26, 2010, after spending 81 days or about 12 weeks in the NICU at St. Jude Medical Center in Fullerton. As you may note from our previous posts below, the journey was not without its bumps in the road.

There were highs, and there were lows. We and the boys braved two laser eye surgeries, and countless other obstacles and scares. But, we never lost confidence in the medical team in the NICU, and always kept our faith that God would lead us through this time.

Our steadfastness paid off, because now the boys are happy and healthy at home! This of course brings with it a totally new set of challenges that we are exicted and eager to experience. The task of caring for twin newborns is a daunting one, but a welcome one.

So, just because the boys are now home, don't think the blogging will stop. It may not be as consistent as before, but we will do our best to keep you all updated on their progress, and give you a window into our lives raising twin boys.

Enjoy!

Sunday, January 17, 2010

4 Good Ones in a Row...Momma Holds Anthony!

Anthony Catching Some Zs
Grandpa's Hand is Bigger than Anthony!
Jared with No CPAP
Momma and Daddy Pose With Anthony
There really isn't too much to report tonight with the boys, which is a good thing.

Jared is off the CPAP machine and is on the nasal cannula at room air. He only had two apnic spells all day. Most of the NICU is surprised that both of our boys are all ready on nasal cannula. Most of the staff said they would expect babies of their gestational age to be on a ventillator. So, I guess as far as breathing goes, we're ahead of the curve for now.

A troubling thing was Jared's blood levels today. His white blood cell count was up. White blood cells are the cells in your body that fight off infection and disease. A rise in them usually means you have an infection or disease. Clinically, he shows no signs of infection; fever, etc. However, the doctor has started him on a round of antibiotics in case one shows up. I like this proactive approach. It is possible it could just be a reaction to stress according to Nurse Mary. I can't imagine why the little guy would be stressed. Can you?

All in all, Jared is cruising. We are hopeful he does not have, or get an infection. We are confident the drugs he's getting will head any off at the pass. There is a good chance tomorrow morning after some blood tests that he will eat for the first time. Danielle and I are very anxious for him to eat regularly. It really is the best thing for him. The antibodies in Momma's milk are the best infection fighter money can buy.

Anthony had a good day today as well. He still has periodic apnic spells, but all in all the doctors aren't too concerned about it yet. His feedings have begun again, and he has tolerated them well. His weight is still steady at 2lbs.

An important note I forgot to add yesterday is that Anthony got a PICC line. What PICC stands for I don't know. A PICC line is a central I.V. line that goes into the arm or the leg and is woven up into a major vein near the heart. This type of I.V. is necessary for several reasons. First, an I.V. line in any person has a shelf life. After so many days of use, the vein becomes weak and will collapse. High concentrations of drugs are difficult for smaller veins in our arms or hands to tolerate. Secondly, a PICC line is important so that drugs can be adminstered faster, since the proximity to the heart is very, very close. Finally, this keeps the nurses from having to start new I.V. lines on Anthony every few days which are painful, stress him out, can lead to infection, and cause unecessary bruising.

Nurse Imelda, who does all of the PICC lines in the NICU expertly placed Anthony's line in a big vein near the heart. This has allowed the doctors to increase doses of medicine he desperately needs. The nurses are relieved that this line is in. They are also relieved that Anthony tolerated it well, and Imelda hit the bullseye on the first try. We are very proud of her great work!
Jared will be receiving a PICC line within the next few days, so stay tuned.

As the title of this post states, Momma got to hold Anthony. He like Jared, needed to be held while the nurse changed his bedding. It was an emotional moment again for Momma and Daddy, and I am glad Danielle has finally gotten the chance to hold both of her babies. In case you're wondering, we took the picture of Momma and Jared on a disposable camera in the NICU. When the pictures get developed, we will post them.

The night was fairly emotional all around. Grandma and Grandpa Liso stopped in to see the boys. Grandma was very exicted to get to hold Anthony's little finger and feel his little heart beating. She came out of the NICU crying, because that's what Grandma does. Grandpa was proud to get to hold Anthony's little hand too. Unfortunately Jared was undergoing a little procedure, and was unavailable. His booking agent, Nurse Michelle said she'd check his schedule and see if there was a time Mr. Liso would have open next time for Grandma and Grandpa Liso. He's a busy guy, so we'll have to see.
It's been a nice little run of a few days here. Pray that it keeps going that way. Keep praying for our little Fighters.

Fight On, Little Fighters- Love, Daddy

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