April 10th, 2006

Today I had to meet with my doc because I inadvertantly ripped off several of the steri strips (used in place of the staples they removed) and another cluster of them were clumped and bleeding. He examined me and said that the wound was healing so I could go ahead and take off the steri strips and apply hydrogen peroxide and keep site covered. I am still swelling pretty badly. If I cross my legs, the place where the leg touches the other leg will indent and stay that way for up to an hour. Thus, I look deformed. I heard someone talk about water pills helping, but I am not allowed to take them. The doctor doesn't feel they would help me at all as they dry out the veins. He tells me not to stand. i can walk and I can lay. If I sit, I have to put my legs up higher than my hips. Yeah, that doesn't really work when you spend your day at the NICCU.

Today we also signed the birth certificates. I hadn't gotten the chance to sign them before I initially left the hospital. It will take 4 wks to get a copy of this record. We will need copies of these to get any coupons/discounts from the multiple programs at the baby companies.

Today would be known as BATH day. 3/4 had baths today. It started with Gabby. The nurse demonstrated how to give a bath and then it was our turn. Daddy bathed Hunter. He opted to sponge bath vs. emerging the baby in water. I took about a hundred pictures of this and got a few good shots. I will add a photo here as soon as I get my camera back from my father. He is busy uploading photos of the babies onto his computer before he leaves for Iraq on Wednesday. After daddy did the bath and the feeding, he held Hunter. Meanwhile the nurse and I moved on to Alexandria. Now it was my turn to give the bath. Lexy did really well for awhile. I decided to do it like the professionals and submerge her in water. Funny how you add a little water and soap and a baby bath becomes a slip and slide. With one hand supporting her neck and head, we proceeded to clean the bottom of the bathtub with Lexy's bottom. She was sliding everywhere and I was laughing my head off. She didn't find it all that amusing and started crying. Another nurse took a couple photos of me giving her a bath. It looks like I am strangling her. After I bathed and fed her, I held her for awhile and then held Hunter for a short while. Then daddy held Gabby and I went to see Preston. I held him for almost an hour before we swapped and Daddy came to hold him and I went to hold Gabby.

Preston did not gain the weight he was supposed to and went back to 997 grams. They are increasing the calories of his feeds from 20 to 22. This should help him put on some weight he needs. The doctor said they were not moving him over with his siblings until he was over the 1000 grams. He is back on the phototherapy, as he rebounded and his billirubin level went back up. He had been having problems digesting his food, having residuals from his feedings. Today, we got good news that he is tolerating his feedings better. I hope he maintains this track. At least he is off of the IV's.

The doctor said that all of the babies were doing fine. He asked how we ended up with identical twins. I explained about the procedure and the odds of 1 in 10 million that this occurs. He laughed and said he thinks are odds are in totality approaching the billions. He explained that this is the case if you add the fact that we had such a long shot in having quads with the fact that I carried so long and that the babies were all born so healthy. we praised the work he and the team of neonatologists and nurses were doing and he said it was easy "with the good protoplasma" we gave them. Protoplasma? I think that is my new word for the day.

We left the hospital and Ronald McDonald House to return to Sebring around 4:30. Both of us are exhausted from the trip. The plan is to go back up there Wednesday evening after my husband gets off of work, for a short visit. We will go back again next weekend. More good news - In one week I shed 40 lb. Amazing!!! Thankfully I am still only able to tolerate small meal portions so that should help with me losing the remainder of the baby weight. Maybe then people will stop asking when my baby is due!!!