Wednesday 27 June 2012

We left the house!

Pictures to prove it. Beth and Lex are on the double and Charlie in the single. Charlie was awake the whole time and the other two slept. We also discovered a park just round the corner.

Monday 25 June 2012

Home sweet home

For a while it looked a bit touch and go but they are finally home!

We were due to stay over at the hospital Sunday night - all five of us. Yesterday morning we noticed Beth had a cold. Nightmare! I rang the hospital fully expecting them to say that we should stay away.

After much discussion they suggested that I come in and stay, with Matt staying at home with Beth. So last night I headed in, a little nervous about caring for two babies overnight on my own.

The boys were quite unsettled, waking often, but I didn't have my nightmare - both babies crying uncontrollably at the same time, until the next day. So the night itself wasn't as bad as is imagined.

Matts night was more stressful than he'd imagined as Beth took up projectile vomiting for a hobby.

We met monday morning at the hospital both looking a little tired and started getting ready to come home. It takes a long time to get three babies fitted into car seats for the first time!

Then it turned out that they needed a final exam by a doctor so we had to get them out again! Charlie seems to have developed an inguinal hernia so might be having a mini operation in a few weeks.

Anyway finally we were ready to go. All babies were looking peckish but we thought it was better to get them home rather than feed them then shake them about (that's Sheffield roads for you). We got ready to leave when....the doctor returned and said a surgeon was available to look at Charlie's hernia - could we wait five minutes?

We agreed and I went to buy us drinks. The surgeon turned up after a while, examined Charlie and told us about the surgery.

By this point everyone just wanted to go. Eventually we were told it was ok to leave, loaded up with lots of baby feeding and breathing supplies, and wheeled the twin buggy and single buggy out.

I felt very emotional and just so stunned that they were actually letting us leave with three gorgeous babies! Matt drove them home in the galaxy and I followed in the focus.

We brought them into the house and... All three screamed in hunger! It was chaos, not the gentle welcome home I'd wanted at all.

Nevermind it's Tuesday now and after a fitful night it's all chilled here at chez Cunnington. Photo proof follows. We have Lex checking out the play mat, Beth in quarantine and Charlie getting daddy cuddles.

I can't entirely believe we wont have to take them back in a few days.

Saturday 23 June 2012

Busy busy busy

Sorry for the lack of updates but, as you can see from the blog title, we are very busy. Why? Because the boys are coming home on Monday!!!!!

Both will be on oxygen with Charlie on a bit more than Lex. The oxygen nurse explained that the boys both have scars on their lungs from being born so early and having to go on ventilators. This means they get less oxygen each breath than an average baby of their size. This then affects their growth. The additional oxygen just means they grow properly.

Over the next few months their body will replace the cells in their lungs, the scars will go and eventually they won't need additional oxygen any more.

Hopefully with lex it'll only be a month or so but Charlie could take six months or more to grow new lungs. Apparently if they get colds or chest infections it could set them back. The nurse said if Charlie gets a lot of colds it could be next spring!

So we have quite draconian rules about what we can and can't do. No crowds, no kids (except in the open air and lergy free), no flying (like we would!), no naked flames...

So if you do want to visit us please make extra sure you are bug free and don't be upset if you want to bring kids and we suggest we meet in a park. Also do get in touch first as we might be sleeping!

Anyway so as well as getting oxygen canisters and a condenser fitted to the house we've had lots of other things to do - clothes to sort, bouncers to build, mattresses to buy, bank accounts to open - yes the kids now have their own baby saver accounts.

The babies are all fine by the way - as cute as ever. The boys had their first bath this week (hopefully the longest they will go without a bath in their lives) which lex loved and Charlie hated. Lex has taken up both smiling and screaming. Charlie now loves taking his bottles. Beth is an angel during the day and Princess Grumpy at night.

Attached are pics of the boys in their cot, Beth as a ballerina and lex after his bath.

Wednesday 13 June 2012

Is that light at the end of that tunnel?

Charlie, Beth and Lex
Big news this week they are talking about sending the boys home! Both are doing really well. Lex is ready to go home - taking his bottles and stable on oxygen (although they are trying to wean him off). Charlie isn't quite there yet as he doesn't take all his food by bottle (although he just had a whole bottle with me) but he's very close.

Charlie and Lex
Looks like the plan is that they will come home with Charlie definitely on oxygen and hopefully Lex not on it. Charlie could, apparently, be on oxygen for 6 months or so - or the nurse said maybe next spring if he gets a lot of colds. So if we seem paranoid about your health when you visit hopefully you can understand why.

They are having their oxygen levels checked again Sunday night and a referral has gone off to the company that fit the oxygen - we're going to have tubing all over the house.

Of course this is all irrelevant so long as we get those boys home.



Sunday 10 June 2012

Cuddles for everyone!

Aunty Julie and Mummy tandom feeding
It's been a different sort of a week. It started with not being able to see Charlie and Lex as they were in isolation. This was quite weird and not very pleasant. We got caught up with our washing but it really wasn't worth it.
The Godfather - Gareth - with Beth

Meanwhile lots of people came to see Beth (photo evidence littering this post) and to have cuddles. She enjoyed all the attention.

Aunty Bex and Beth
Aunty Peggy with Beth
After a few days the boys were released from isolation, as they showed no sign of flu, and put into room 6 (intensive care). This meant that we could visit them but not with Beth. So one of us had to sit in the family room while the other one went to see the boys. It was a right faff.

   
Aunty Jo with Beth (note the lovely quilt in the background)
The week picked up when Granny Cunnington got the all clear to visit. It was great to see her and the babies loved Granny cuddles, although Beth was distracted by a lovely New Zealand quilt.

Granny Cunnington FINALLY gets cuddles
Finally the boys were moved back into cots and back into Special Care. Hurrah! Now we can visit with Beth and pick them up at will. They have both started feeding on demand - another step closer to the door. Now it's just that whole oxygen thing then Hotel Chaos will be opening on Main Avenue. Insanely we can't wait.

Erin and Beth
Today the babies all had their weigh in. They are all huge! Well the boys anyway.

Below are baby pics and weights.





Lex is 6 pound 11 (and a bit ginger)


Charlie is 5 pound 11



      
Beth is now 5 pound


Monday 4 June 2012

We're in for the whole ride

So you remember that roller coaster ride people warned us about when we knew our babies would be in special care? we've experienced that this week.


Beth and Daddy discover a new normal
The brilliant bit was that Beth was allowed home! She's settled in great and looking after her is mostly (except around 3am) great fun. Having her home just makes me so keen to have the boys home too so we can get on with our new family life.

Unfortunately they think the boys have got flu and they've been moved into isolation (room 5 on the unit that takes only 1 or in this case 2 babies). We were advised not to visit as we'd be risking passing it onto Beth. We were told they'd get test results today to confirm if it is flu.


Lex
By 2pm they'd had no results so I headed in to at least look at them through the glass. As it was I could go into the room but just not touch anything. Also there was no one wearing hazmat suits which was quite disappointing.

Anyway the boys are quite snuffly as they have been for at least a week. Their oxygen needs haven't gone up and they don't have fevers.

I'm not a doctor but it doesn't seem like flu to me. Anyway now it looks like we will find out by Wednesday at the latest.


Charlie
So it's lovely being at home with Beth, catching up with our washing and eating meals with vegetables included but I feel something (two things) are missing. Here's hoping the test results just show a cold.