The last week...

I've been missing in action this last week. The girls have kept me on my toes and I've neglected the blog. I apologize. Here is what has been going on.

We were told on Monday that we would be going home Tuesday. By noon on Monday we knew that wasn't going to happen. Both of the girls had blood in their stool. A milk fortifier had been added to their breastmilk bottles starting last weekend. Neither of the girls were able to tolerate the fortifier, therefore, their intestines were irritated and began to bleed. The girls then started a regimen of no food for 48 hours to give the intestines a chance to heal. I had a couple of very upset girls on Wednesday and Thursday. It was very tough to watch them go through this process. I could do nothing while they cried because of hunger.

On Friday, they began small feedings (10-20 mL) every three hours. It was amazing how content they seemed after such a small amount of milk (it is actually a formula made of amino acids). Today, they were able to eat ad lib on demand. Audrey and Tessa are both up to 2 oz (60 mL) every four hours now.

We are waiting to hear more news about how the girls are healing. Actually, we are waiting for them to have a bowel movement to make sure there is no blood. As of 9 PM tonight neither of them had one. I think there is a blow out waiting for the night nurses!

If they transition well onto breastmilk on Monday we may be able to head home by Wednesday. It has been a very long week dealing with this as it has brought out a lot of emotions I didn't know existed. I am sure all of you parents reading this know what I am talking about.

I have pictures to load and I will try to get them done soon.