I apologize for the lack of updates since the birth of our identical triplet girls on Monday, November 11th.  I also apologize for the iphone picture update.  I’ve been (of course) taking a lot of pictures with my DSLR but realized when trying to upload them that I don’t have a card reader at the hospital  So… a collage of iphone photos will have to do for now.

Laura of Crowned Photography will be returning to the hospital this week to capture images of Alvin and I holding our beautiful baby girls so expect a better update with better images soon.

With c-sections, Laura normally returns to the hospital 48 hours after the birth to take pictures of the parents holding their baby.  48 usually gives the mom a chance to recover a bit and be more aware for the session.  Having 3 preemie babies and a preeclamptic mama to photograph has proved to be a bit challenging so we haven’t been able to have our follow up session yet.  First, I was on magnesium for 24 hours after the birth to prevent seizures caused by my high blood pressure and magnesium makes you feel pretty icky.  While on magnesium I had to be monitored every hour.  I was also VERY swollen.  I had gained 10 lbs a week the last 3 weeks of the pregnancy and most of that was water weight.  My legs felt like they weighed a hundred pounds each and my skin was so stretched out that anything touching it felt like razor blades.  I was warned by my doctor that my swelling would likely get worse before it got better and she was right.  By the time I was getting to the NICU more, Grace and Lily had been placed under photo therapy lights for Jaundice.  They had to lay under the  blue photo therapy lights with as much skin as possible exposed for several days… so again we postponed the photos.  The day they came off photo therapy, Grace got sick.  She had some signs of having NEC, a gastrointestinal disease that affects premature infants. It can be very serious and fatal so they immediately stopped her feedings and inserted a tube down her throat to the stomach to remove air and fluid from the stomach and intestine.  They performed x-rays, blood draws, urine samples, and did a spinal tap just in case it was meningitis.   It was terrible for us to see our tiny 2-3 lb daughter going through all of that.  That night she was diagnosed with NEC and started on antibiotics.  Because some of her symptoms were those of other infections, they also put her on isolation just in case she had something that could spread to her sisters.  We had to wear a sterile gown and gloves to touch or hold her (photo of Alvin above right suited up before her care time).  They caught it early and were successful in treating it.  She couldn’t eat for 7 days to give her bowels a chance to rest and recover.  She is now done with the antibiotics and back up to full feeds.  Her face is now chubbier than her sisters because of the IV feedings.

As for Alvin and I and the day to day, we are busy… and tired… but it’s so worth it.  Our NICU days are jam packed.  The girls are on 3 hour feeding and care schedules and each girls’ care time lasts 30 minutes.  So… that means we’re caring for babies for an hour and a half and then have an hour and a half before the next round starts again. In addition to care times I’m pumping milk every 2 hours, there are the doctor’s rounds, physical therapy, lactation nurses coming by to work with me, and somewhere in there we need to find time to eat and sleep.  Because our schedule is so tight and it’s flu season, we’re not welcoming visitors in the NICU.  We’ve received cards, prayers, snacks, baby blankets, hand knitted baby items and we are so appreciative.