woolfordfamily

website

2006-06-27T12:34:00.000-07:00

Many have been asking for updates, we are now using our website

www.thewoolfords.com

Thanks for the prayers

His favorite place

2006-03-30T12:58:00.000-08:00

Tyler had his last ear exam and it came back much better than we expected. His right is 100% and his left has fluid so they were not able to get a good reading but did say that he should be fine.

Tyler 10lbs 8oz
Emelia 8lbs 8oz

Happy baby

2006-03-30T12:57:00.000-08:00

Moving forward

2006-03-30T10:09:00.000-08:00

We ask for your prayers as we now begin to move forward with our plans to move back to Ecuador. We still have some months to go, letting the twins continue to get stronger. We are asking that God continue to bless them with health and that He guide us as we begin to put together all of the loose ends, enabling us to return to ministry in South America.

Come so far

2006-03-14T19:50:00.000-08:00

It is hard to believe how far they have come in such a short amount of time.

looking good

2006-03-14T19:45:00.000-08:00

Tyler 9lbs 10oz
Emelia 7lbs 12oz

One month check up

2006-02-21T11:08:00.000-08:00

The twins had a visit with their NICU doctor today. He weighed them and evaluated medicines and air needs. He dropped Emelia down to .01 and feels by next month they will have her on just a little night time O2. This past month Tyler's pediatrician felt he needed to go up on his O2 so Dr. Purdie just brought him back to where he started out, but felt that he would be off in no time. They will continue Tylers medicines for at least another month. Their hope is that he will come off it all next visit. They both have been taking leaps in their weight. Over all the doctors said they are doing great and that they are right where they should be!

We will be moving to a larger home this weekend. A local church has offered to help us with their parsonage. This will be a huge blessing so we are all excited. I also start helping the Hispanic church in the area. I will be preaching there every Sunday as well as some work during the week. Continue to pray that the twins will gain strength so that we can return to Ecuador as Soon as possible.

Tyler : 8lbs 6oz
Emelia 6lbs 11oz

Littles Sleep!

2006-02-07T14:41:00.000-08:00

Now that the twins are home we will be updating the blog less frequently. Things have been very crazy over this past week, with lack of sleep and just doing the "normal" things that will be our life over the next months to come. It is a challenge to give care to the twins as well as the other three and keep up with ministry responsibilities. The twins continue to go up in their feedings and are doing very well. Tyler is up to 130cc and Emelia 90cc each feeding! Our prayer is that they stay very healthy over these next few weeks of winter. The week of the 20th we have the exams for their hearing as well as their first visit to the apnia clinic. This visit will be to see if they can come off their O2 and medicines. What probably will happen is they will take them off a little at a time over the next couple of months. Thanks again for your prayers me need them now as we face new challenges.

We are thankful that a new place to live has opened up. A church not to far from our current house has offered us their parsonage. It is twice the size our the home where we currently live. This new home will give us more room as well as give us the flexibility to not sign a lease and leave when the twins are ready. We are also considering helping out a local Hispanic church in the area. They are with out a pastor and have asked us to fill the gap for the time being. Please be in prayer as we look at this possibility as well as move to the other home during the next few weeks.

I will be posting less, It is great to think that their is less news! As things progress and things come up I will put new posts up.

Happy Day

2006-02-02T17:50:00.000-08:00

The day we went to pick up Tyler I am not sure who was happier, Kerry or Madi! All she has talked about is having her little brother and sister home and how she is now the big sister. The hard part is keeping her out of their beds.

Together at last

2006-02-02T17:47:00.000-08:00

It has been a while since these two were together. This is very typical, Tyler sleeping not making a sound and his little sister eyes wide open and always wanting something to suck on!

Home Sweet Home!

2006-02-02T17:45:00.000-08:00

The long wait has come to an end and both babies are home. We have large dark bags under our eyes to prove it! It still feels weird to have them here and depending upon us for everything, no nurses to run to now. They are sharing a room that is just large enough to squeeze in both of their beds, a dresser, two bouncy seats ,two 4 1/2 foot oxygen tanks a rocking chair, 100 feet of tubing and two monitors. We still are not used to dealing with all of the tubes and cables floating around the room, I am not sure we will ever get to that point.

They both seem to be doing fine. We had one episode with Emelia today after her morning feeding. She spit up a bit and then choked which caused her to stop breathing and slow her heart rate enough to make all the alarms sound in the room. It is going to be a while before we don't worry about her.

We had our first appointment with the doctors today so we had to pack up all the equipment and hit the road. We looked pretty funny trying to each carry a car seat, oxygen tank and a monitor. When it was all said and done we made it through it and the twins came home and slept. Tyler is just about at 7lbs and Emelia has passed the 5lbs mark!

I am attaching some pictures, thank you all for your continual prayers for our family. As we look at the babies we are amazed to think how God has carried us through these last 3 1/2 months.

Trusting Him!

Cam,Kerry,Alyssa,Tori,Madi,Emelia and Tyler (wow what a list!)

You have been awesome!

2006-01-30T18:47:00.000-08:00

Through all the ups and downs over these past months one of the major constants has been our hospital "family". They have given a refuge not only to the twins but to Kerry and myself. I know some of them read this blog so I want to say thank you. You have given love to our children when we could not, you have answered so many of my "odd" questions and shown us friendship through some very difficult moments, God has used you to bless us and help us through a very difficult time, for that we will always be grateful. As we look at Tyler and Emelia we will think of and pray for you.

Thank you!

Cam,Kerry,Alyssa, Tori, Madi,Emelia and Tyler

All together!

2006-01-30T18:30:00.000-08:00

After the first night things wound down pretty nicely. We were able to get some new cables for Tylers monitor that do not make the alarm go off as much, and get into a schedule that seems to be working for Kerry and I. I have the shift up till about 1am, giving Tyler his feeding around 11 and then Kerry steps in about 3:30, it has worked well these last couple of days. We should not get to comfortable with our current plan because they have told us to expect Emelia tomorrow! She has taken a leap in her feedings and is now with out a feeding tube, going it all on her own! The last step was for her to wake her self up when she needed to be fed and she has done it every single time, with in the last 48 hours. So now that we are getting things down with Tyler we need to reorganize and make a new plan. I am not sure if I can handle two at one time. Kerry has been going back and forth between bottle feedings as well as nursing in order to keep me in the loop , I am just not confident enough to tackle two at a time, only time will tell.

The church family at Northbridge has been great over these past months. Some of the young girls have provided us with babysitting every Tuesday and Thursday night so that Kerry and I could be together in the hospital. They served our family very faithfully for over three months and with out asking for money. The church provided meals for us in the beginning and is doing so now as we receive both babies into our home. God has been faithful through it all providing all our needs through family and friends, Thanks.

Home

2006-01-28T05:53:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Kerry and I spent most of the day at the hospital learning all the last minute things in order to bring Tyler home. After it was all said and done, we learned how to run the monitor, oxygen tanks and medicines, by the afternoon we were both on overload and ready for bed! Tyler made it through his first night at home. We had some problems with his monitor constantly going off, it is 5x louder than a fire alarm. They told us that the monitors were famous for false alarms and that we would have to be messing with them constantly. At about 1:30am Kerry figured out it did not go off when he was in his bouncy seat, so she left him in that and slept next to him most of the night. I imagine it will take a few days until we feel comfortable with him and about that time his sister will be coming home and we will begin the process again. They have told us to expect her sometime next week, so soon we will be hearing two alarms sounding in the middle of the night.

Waiting

2006-01-26T04:27:00.000-08:00

We continue to wait on the twins to pick up the pace with their feedings. They seem to go back in forth which in turn causes the doctors to change their opinion about their plans to release them. Tomorrow we will be taking a class on how to run the oxygen tanks that the twins will need for a time.
Noe is back in the hospital. He has some sort of infection that has caused him problems with his breathing. Juan called me at the beginning of the week and we have met with them 3 times since then.
We hope our time at the hospital is coming to a close, maybe with in the next week or so. Please continue to pray as we wait on them to come home.

Another Week

2006-01-23T18:55:00.000-08:00

Dr Purdie, the twins doctor, feels that the babies are doing great. He told us today that he wants to give them another week to get the feeding "thing" down so they do not have to go home with feeding tubes. So it looks like at least another week at the hospital. Today I was able to give Tyler his afternoon lunch. He normal takes about 50cc but today he took 70cc and then tonight he took 80cc! So it looks like he is finally getting it and likes a full stomach. Emelia had her eyes checked, the doctor said there had been no more progression so he will give it two more weeks until her next check up! Looks good.

It is hard to believe that their due date was this past weekend. I was thinking today how much my life had been changed over these past 7 months. This past July we sat in a Pennsylvania hospital, at 2am , and the doctor told us that we were expecting twins, I can still remember thinking what have we done? We tried our best to go on as if life would not change and we could continue with "our" plans, we were so wrong. The next time I found myself sitting in a hospital was when Kerry's water broke and we thought we were going to loose the babies, I thought God what are you doing? What He was doing was beginning a long process of change in our lives. He was teaching us one more lesson on abiding, a life of dependence not independence.

John 15:4-5 "... As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. .....for apart from Me you can do nothing.

Practicing for the ride home

2006-01-22T17:56:00.000-08:00

Tyler is wide awake and all bundled up. Before coming home, the babies have to sit upright in their carseats while they are hooked up to the monitor to make sure they are strong enough to keep their breathing and heartrates up in that position long enough to make short trips in the car. For the next couple of months their only trips will be to the dr. and back!

Tyler

2006-01-22T17:50:00.000-08:00

Going between Tyler and Emelia there is such a contrast as he is almost 1 1/2 lbs. heavier than she is. Although he is still small for his age, at 5 lbs. 15 oz. he seems like a real bruiser when we consider how far he has come! He looks and feels sturdy and not quite so fragile. He is taking 50 cc and, like Emelia, the dr. is just waiting for him to be consistent in his feeding before he can come home.

Emelia

2006-01-22T17:41:00.000-08:00

Gretchen, one of the NICU nurses, with Emelia

Emelia sleeping soundly

Emelia continues to do well. Tuesday is her eye exam, one of the final things that need to be completed before she can come home. Once the dr. is confident that she is consistent in her feedings without a lot of choking or spitting up, and taking most of it in a bottle, they will give the ok for her to come home! She is up to 45 cc each feeding, approx. 1 1/2 oz.

The girls

2006-01-22T05:03:00.000-08:00

The babies continue to go up and down with their feedings so they still want to keep them in the hospital. It could be any day now, they say that we will have a day or so notice. We were thinking that this could be the last weekend of "normalcy" so we spent the day with the girls doing what they wanted to do. We don't want them to feel that they have been forgotten or will be forgotten because the twins are now part of our family. Tori and Alyssa are doing well at school and have made the adjustments necessary for them to "fit" in. That is never and easy thing, and I am not sure I want them to totally fit in, we continue to pray for their growth and maturity.
Last night Kerry was able to nurse Emelia for the first time! She took right to it, much better than Tyler. She was able to take her whole feeding so our hope is she will continue on that way and not need the bottle much at all.

Ears and Eyes

2006-01-19T09:29:00.000-08:00

Emelia has the beginning stages of an eye problem that affects many preemies. She is between stage 2 and 3, if she gets to stage 3 they will have to do surgery. Please be in prayer that she will not progress, for more info you can check out this web site -http://www.ropard.org/
Tyler did not pass his hearing test so he will have go to go for another more thorough exam, pray all is well.

Surprises!!

2006-01-18T08:20:00.000-08:00

I can remember not too long ago talking with Kerry and reflecting back on the many ways God has surprised us in how He has met our needs and encouraged our hearts. The majority of the times it has been through people and circumstances that I would never have looked for nor expected. These past months have not been any different. We have been surprised over and over again by His plan for our lives, providing encouragement, lessons and opportunities to live for Him in a difficult situation. Thank you to all of you who have been with us along this journey, for extending prayer on our behalf, for giving us a helping hand and being used by God to help teach us some very important lessons.

The nurse in charge of Emelia and Tyler, this morning ( I feel like I should mention her name, Gretchen, she has been one of those nurses that God has used to lift our spirits along this journey) told me that Emelia is doing incredible! She is up to 30cc of milk and taking it all down! Her comment was that she would not be surprised if Emelia beat Tyler home!! They are boosting her feedings up to 35cc today, so she will only need 40cc to come home. To think of having them both home by next week, that is incredible! I can think back not to long ago and being sure I would be bringing one home and turning the other back to God. He continues to surprise us all along the way.

Heart Rate

2006-01-16T14:27:00.000-08:00

Emelia continues to do well and has taken her first feeding since the operation! We were a little worried about her heart rate, it has dropped from 130 to 90 beats per minute. Her doctor does not seem worried about it and thinks that this could be the rate that she will be at. Tyler pulled his feeding tube out this morning so his nurse decided to leave it out and see if he would continue to take his food by bottle only, thanks Jen! They tell us that by the end of this week we could be taking Tyler home. It all depends on his ability to take his feedings, time will tell. It is hard to believe we are creeping up on 90 days with them in the hospital. We have been through some lows and some highs, we are very thankful for the nurses that have not only taken care of our kids but been an incredible encouragement to us. I have a new appreciation for the nursing profession!

Breathing on her own!

2006-01-15T18:59:00.000-08:00

Thank you all for your faithful prayers! God is so good and hears each one offered up on our behalf and that of our babies. We just got a call from the hospital to let us know that they took Emelia off the ventilator and she went straight to the canula! She is needing just a touch more oxygen than before, but we are so glad not to see her in that cpap again!

The nurse said that the more the morphine wore off, the more agitated she was at having those tubes down her throat. Once they took them out, she was wide awake and giving the nurses little smiles! I think we will see a totally different baby over the course of this next week as she is finally able to feel better and not be bothered by any infections.

Weekly Weights and Measurements

2006-01-15T18:50:00.000-08:00

Tyler is doing great! They just reached their developmental age of 38 weeks. It has been 12 weeks since they were born!

Tyler: 5 lbs. 7 oz., 17 3/8 inches

Emelia: 4 lbs. 6 oz., 17 1/4 inches

After Surgery

2006-01-15T18:25:00.000-08:00

Emelia is resting comfortably after the surgery on Friday. It seems like such a step backwards to see her all covered in wires and tubes, and back in the incubator; but we are glad that the surgeon was able to find the apparent cause of her recurring infections.

We talked with the surgeon today, Sunday, and he feels she is progressing well and could start a small amount of feeding as early as tomorrow to see how she does. He is confident that she will progress rapidly and by the end of the week be back to where she was before the surgery!

Emelia's pain medication was suspended this morning and they will continue to watch for signs of discomfort, but they were wanting her to be more awake and start to breathe more on her own.

Blood

2006-01-14T11:11:00.000-08:00

Emelia is receiving a blood transfusion that they hope will boost both her energy and her ability to process oxygen. She is still on the vent and in a lot of pain. If she moves just a little her face cringes and she looks like she wants to cry but does not have the strength. They are trying to find the balance in her pain medicine. Giving her too much causes her to stay too "out" and not able to breath, too little puts her in so much pain that she won't have the strength to breath. We hope to see her off the vent by the next couple of days.

All over

2006-01-13T13:42:00.000-08:00

Emelia was brought back to the NICU about 2:30. The surgeon said it could take up to 4 hours but it only took a little less than 2! They were able to find the problem and cut out almost 3 inches of her small intestine. She is on morphine and breathing with the respirator. They hope to have her off the vent by tomorrow! She will not be able to eat for about a week, she will have to live off the IV for a while. Thank you so much for all of your prayers, they helped carry us through.

In His hands

2006-01-13T05:45:00.000-08:00

Last night Kerry was able to spend some time at the hospital. We have been very concerned about Emelia's blood count, she looks like a ghost. The doctors have been thinking about another transfusion but said they want to wait. I was concerned because one of the dangers with the surgery is extensive blood loss. Last night a test came back and showed that Emelia is producing an exceptional amount of blood and Kerry said she looks great! I know it is the prayers going up for her, God is working and preparing her little body for today's surgery. The Surgeon said it could take up to 3-4 hours so please be in prayer for us starting around noon. Thank you all for your notes of encouragement, they mean a lot to us.

Deut. 32:3-4 Ascribe greatness to our God! " The Rock! His work is perfect, for all His ways are just; a God of faithfulness and without injustice, righteous and upright is He!"

Friday Noon

2006-01-12T10:58:00.000-08:00

Emelia's operation will take place tomorrow at noon. We just received a call saying they were able to get her in sooner than they thought. Please be in prayer.

Roller Coaster

2006-01-12T06:50:00.000-08:00

Last night when I talked with the surgeon he explained that they think Emelia's problems all stem from a portion of the small intestines. They want to go in and remove that portion as early as Saturday or early next week. There are some dangers such as bleeding, infection and of course the problem that she will need to go back onto the ventilator. He also recommended that we put in a GI tube that would give us the ability to feed her directly into her stomach. This would give us a long term method to feed her once she came home. He said this would be good because she is not taking a bottle well and he feels this might be due to some brain damage. When I heard that I stopped listening and could not speak for awhile. That was the first time we had heard that brought up. The whole night we wrestled with the possibility and wondered why this was the first we had heard of it. I wish I could say I did not ask the question why and went right to what and how. I still have many lessons to learn from this experience.

This morning after I dropped the girls off at school I rushed to the hospital hoping to find some answers. The moment I walked into the unit I talked with the nurses and they all said that they felt Emelia was fine. I can't say enough about the nurses that have taken care of our babies. They have become part of our family over these past few months. I then met with the physical therapist that has been working with the twins. She has been trying to teach them to take a bottle and at the same time evaluating their motor skills etc.. She feels that Emelia is fine and just needs some more time due to her constant weak state. Once I finished talking with her Emelia's doctor came in. He did not look very happy and proceeded to tell me that he did not recommend that we put a GI tube in and that Emelia is perfectly fine. He said that there always exist the possibility for preemies to have brain issues but that Emelia has not given any signs of that. After a night of concern and a morning of prayers I took a deep breath!

We are still not out of the woods with Emelia. Please be in prayer that her little body can with stand the operation. She will need to be in the hospital a while longer, we are not sure exactly how long but it will be a few more weeks. After the operation, if all goes well, she will not be able to eat for at least 7 days.

Tyler on the other hand took a whole bottle from me this morning and had 3 more last night. He will be home very soon.

Surgery

2006-01-11T17:49:00.000-08:00

We were told tonight that Emelia needs to have part of her small intestine removed. We were given some other news that I will share tomorrow once I have more information. Please be in prayer for us as we have some decisions to make over the next couple of days.

Tests

2006-01-11T08:33:00.001-08:00

Emelia began tests yesterday to find out what is causing all of her infections. They ran blood tests, ultrasounds and X-rays and will be doing more today. The tests she will under go today will take place outside of her room. They are more evasive tests so she will need to go to the machines rather than the machines come to her. It will be the firs time she is outside of her hospital room. Please pray that she will do fine and they will come up with some solutions.
Tyler continues to progress. He has taken two full bottles in the last two days. He still has a little ways to go but is doing great. He looks and feels like a healthy baby boy!

Specialist

2006-01-09T08:38:00.000-08:00

This morning we received some mixed news. The nurses told us that Emelia is one step away from not needing oxygen. We have been praying that God would work and she would come home with out oxygen, He is working (we now need to do the same for Tyler). They went onto share that the doctor has called in a specialist to look at Emelia. Her xrays did not look as good today. They are concerned that she has had to many infections, which might indicate an immunity problem. We hope to talk some more with the doctor this afternoon. Last night I was able to sit with Tyler and feed him his bottle. He sucked down 24 cc, more than half!

We continue to trust in HIM, thanks for the prayers.

Another infection

2006-01-08T06:49:00.000-08:00

We were getting ready to head out to church today when we received a call from the twins doctor. He shared that Emelia has another infection in her belly. She stopped breathing early this morning and had to be neo puffed to bring her back around. They have started her on antibiotics but are not sure why she continues to have this problem. Please be in prayer for her and the doctors as they try to find out what is causing these infections. They have also shared with us that the antibiotics that they have had her one cause deafness. With another full dose running through her again her chances increase, please pray that God will protect her little body as she deals with this new struggle.

A Merry Christmas

2006-01-06T18:52:00.000-08:00

Cam has his hands full with these two precious bundles with their Christmas hats. Tyler is on the left and Emelia on the right.
Juan Miguel Delgado, a friend from Ecuador, with Alyssa, Tori, and Madi on Christmas Eve.
We had mentioned earlier that we had invited Juan and Maria, the couple we met up in the NICU, for Christmas Eve dinner. Unfortunately, they had car trouble on their way over from Hartford and weren't able to make it. They came on Christmas day for a short visit and we were able to share with them the generous gifts that many of you had sent for them. They were VERY appreciative. Thank you for such a desire to help a family in need. Noe (Noah) was released this last Wednesday, and they have found an apartment in Hartford where Juan works. We aren't sure if we will ever see them again as they don't have a phone yet. They have our phone number, so we hope they will call us and let us know how they are.

Sweet Dreams

2006-01-06T18:47:00.000-08:00

Emelia is all tucked in for the night. Well, at least for the next three hours

until her next feeding and care time.

Bath time

2006-01-06T18:43:00.000-08:00

Tyler is all clean after his bath.

37 Weeks

2006-01-06T18:01:00.000-08:00

We are getting closer to the babies' due date and they continue to grow and change. Every Thursday night is weighing and measuring time as they complete another week of life, so here are this week's results:

Tyler
17 inches long
5 lbs. 1 oz

Emelia
16 3/4 inches long
4 lbs. 15 oz.

Amazing

2006-01-06T09:06:00.000-08:00

I took some time to look back over some of the early updates, wow God has brought us a long ways! As we face the homecoming of the babies some time in the next few weeks we are both excited and afraid. They will be teaching us infant cpr as well as some other things to help us be prepared, as best we can. This will be another time in our lives when we must throw up our hands and trust in His guidance and strength to override our inadequacies and fear.

The babies continue to progress. Tyler is going up on his feedings each day but does not like to take a bottle much. Emelia is off her antibiotic and is going up on her feeds. She still looks a bit pale, having a hard time producing the blood she needs. When I look at the list of medicines they are on, I just can't understand how those little bodies can handle it but they do!

Thanks for the prayers!!!

Tyler sleeping like a baby

2006-01-04T18:12:00.000-08:00

Tyler continues to do well. He did not do well today taking the bottle but everything else is going well. The took him completely off the computer monitor today and placed him on a smaller monitor. This monitor will be like the one he will come home on. It will tell us that he is breathing and his heart is beating, and will sound an alarm if he stops any of the two. It will also record all that takes place so that once a month for a few months they can study what has taken place. The doctor told us today that they he would probably be on oxygen for two months and that Emelia would probably be a month beyond that. So I guess we will have to get used to lots of equipment around!

Sound sleeper

2006-01-04T18:10:00.000-08:00

Emelia sleeping soundly with out all the big tubes! She is now out of the isolette and into her own crib. The doctor told us today that the only thing holding them back from going home was their feedings. This might take a while so it could be a couple of weeks or another month, time will tell.

More progress

2006-01-03T17:41:00.000-08:00

Today was another good day. Last night, Emelia started showing signs of being ready to take a bottle, so the nurse tried and she took 9 cc (almost 2 tsp.). Tonight I was able to try it with her again, she only took 5 cc, but was more interested in just looking around while I held her. She is such a petite little thing, especially compared to Tyler. They are about a pound difference in weight., but she is still about 1/4 inch longer which makes her seem so much more delicate.

Tyler slept through his feeding time, so they just gave it through his tube. Then he woke up a little later and kept burying his face in the bed like he was looking for something to suck on. I think he was a little upset that he didn't get a bottle and is coming to expect it now!

They had their eye exam today and Tyler was given a clear report with no need of a follow up exam. Emelia's was also good, but they will examine her again in 2 weeks just to make sure. Praise the Lord for answered prayers! Thank you all for your upholding us and our family on a daily basis.

Doing well

2006-01-02T17:02:00.000-08:00

Things continue to go well for both of the babies. I (Kerry) was up with them this afternoon so that I could be there to give Tyler his bottle. It is so nice to have him in a crib so that I can pick him up without having to ask for the nurse's help to disconnect and reconnect wires and tubes, etc. Tyler took almost 20 cc of milk without any problem. He seemed to be sleepy after that, so we put the remaining 15 cc through his stomach tube. But after I put him back in his bed, he was very agitated and was only calmed when I gave him his pacifier, which he sucked on in earnest but then seemed to be frustrated that there was nothing coming out of it! Eventually he gave up and went to sleep!

Emelia is doing great on the cannula. They will draw blood tomorrow to determine if the antibiotics have done what they were supposed to. She is once again on 100% breastmilk, no IV fluids. Once the antibiotics are stopped she will get the IV needle taken out, again! Hopefully this will be the last time! She is two degrees away from getting moved into a crib like her brother. Right now her isolette has a maintained temp of 82 degrees. When they can turn it down to 80 degrees and she still maintains her body temp, then she can be in a crib. Tomorrow, Tuesday, the therapist will come evaluate whether or not she is ready to take a bottle as well.

Tomorrow, is also when they both get their second eye exam. The dr. will look at their retinas to make sure that they continue to develop normally. Two weeks ago, Emelia had the start of abnormal growth which is normal in preemies and can result in a detached retina. If that growth has continued, she could need laser surgery to correct the problem. Tyler's last exam showed no signs of problems, but they will continue to check that nothing develops as they continue to grow.

We appreciate your continued prayers and encouragement. Now that we look forward to their arrival at home, we will be faced with the challenges of caring for them without the help of monitors and alarms to assure us that they are fine, or warn us when there is a problem!

Maybe two weeks!

2006-01-01T20:43:00.000-08:00

We were told tonight to get things ready because Tyler could be home as soon as two weeks. It was a shock, we were not thinking he would be ready until the end of January! They said he still needs to take all of his food from a bottle and then he may come home with us. Emelia is doing well but still is in the isolate. She will be there a few weeks more than Tyler. There are no guarantees so we will plane on two weeks and waite to see what happens. We were also told that their last brain ultra sound came back negative, everything excellent!! The nurse said that more than anything that has been a surprise. She said they were so very small, and so sick to not have had any bleeding. We know it is due to the many prayers that have gone up for them, they have been well protected. Thank you all for your continued prayer and concern for our family. It is great to know that you are going to HIM on our behalf!

Crib

2005-12-30T14:41:00.000-08:00

Tyler had a big day today. He was moved from his isolate to a crib! They will be checking his temp to see if you does fine, so far so good. He also took 16 cc by bottle so he is getting better!!
Emelia is still doing well with out her cpap, keep praying.

Emelia 3lbs 15.6 oz, 16 3/4 in. long
Tyler 4lbs 7.7 oz, 16 1/2 in. long

Bien

2005-12-29T19:17:00.000-08:00

Sorry I have not posted these last couple of days. The girls are on vacation and our lives are a bit crazy. Emelia is doing much better. Today they took her off cpap and as of 10pm she was still off it! She has had one episode where she stopped breather and her heart rated went down to 35 but they were able to get her back up fairly quickly. They said if she does that one more time she will be back on cpap for sure. The infection is still there but does not have a hold on her like a few days ago. They have put her back on feedings and she is gaining strength. They are giving her extra iron because she is so pale, hoping that her body will begin to produce enough new blood to sustain her. Tyler continues to do well. Today he began feeding with a bottle. They will try a little each day so he can learn how to breath, suck and swallow at the same time.
Thanks for the prayers!!

Doing better

2005-12-27T20:16:00.000-08:00

As of tonight Emelia is on two antibiotics and one of them seems to be working. The infection has not caused her any problems with her breathing!! She is fighting it and seems to be doing much better. Kerry was able to hold her tonight so hopefully that will help her to get better quicker. Thank you for all of your prayers!!

Bump in the road

2005-12-26T14:11:00.000-08:00

You can see by this picture how swollen her stomach is. She is pretty lethargic due to the infection. Three steps forward two steps back!!

Infection

2005-12-26T14:03:00.000-08:00

The nurse told us last night that Emelia's stomach looked puffy. He was not sure but thought they would runs some tests early today. This afternoon they told us that things looked like she was sick and had another infection. As I walked into the nursery this afternoon I saw the "multitude" standing around Emelia's bed. That means one thing, things are not going well and they are taking lots of tests. They did another spinal tap and are running lots of tests to see what kind of infection it is. At this time they think that the infection is in her intestines They have stopped feedings and have put her back on the IV. Tomorrow we should know a bit more. Tyler is doing well, he is now taking his food directly into his stomach. Thank you for your continued prayers.

Still going strong!

2005-12-23T20:17:00.000-08:00

Thank you all for your prayers! As I am writing this, 11 pm, Tyler has been off the cpap since 11:30 this morning! The first time they tried him off, two weeks ago, he lasted 2 hours. Last Friday he lasted 6 hours, and today almost 12 hours! He is showing signs of getting a little more tired now, so he may not stay off for the whole night, but he has made a huge improvement.

Emelia has gone way up in her feedings and is off of the IV fluid again, totally on breastmilk given through a stomach tube. If she continues to tolerate that, they will remove the IV in her leg and for my Christmas present I will be able to give her a tub bath and dress her in clothes like her brother! She is still on cpap, but slowly getting closer to the desired 21% oxygen level. Right now she bounces around in the 23%-27% range. Much improved over the 100% she was needing while she was sick three weeks ago. God is so good.

We continue to watch the new babies that have come into the unit, and although for privacy laws, we can't ask too much, we are hoping for opportunities to share with those parents all the things we have been through and hopefully encourage them. We have told the nurses to let other parents know that we are more than happy to talk with them and let them ask questions, and be able to look at our babies and see how well they are doing.

We are looking forward to Christmas, even though it will be difficult not having everyone at home.

Still Growing

2005-12-23T07:43:00.000-08:00

Last night was the weekly weighing and measuring, so we continue to see them grow and change!

Tyler
16 1/4 in.
4 lbs. 1.5 oz.

Emelia
16 3/4 in.
3 lbs. 11.5 oz.

Tyler wishes everyone a Merry Christmas

2005-12-22T19:19:00.000-08:00

Looking festive!!

Bath

2005-12-22T19:16:00.000-08:00

Tyler got another bath tonight. He is doing really well. They will be trying him off the cpap tomorrow so we would appreciate some extra prayers!! Emelia had her IV taken out today. They left the needle in just in case, please pray she is able to make it with out it. Every day is a great testimony to the power of prayer!!

well

2005-12-21T05:32:00.000-08:00

Tyler and Emelia are doing well. They both continue to take strides forward. We need to pray that they stay as healthy as possible. Last night I took Alyssa with me to see the babies. At first she was not too enthusiastic about seeing them but that all changed once we were there. The nurse asked for someone to lift Emelia off the bed enough so that she could change the bedding and blankets, so Alyssa was the lucky volunteer. Her countenance changed as she held her tiny sister in her hands for the first time and was able to calm her after being disturbed from her sleep.

Merry Christmas

2005-12-19T14:35:00.000-08:00

We want to wish you all a very Merry, Christ centered Christmas!

You have been a blessing to our family over these months. Our prayer

is that you continue to Trust Him as He takes you into another year.

Doing well

2005-12-19T14:11:00.000-08:00

Both babies continue to do well. Tyler is way up on his feedings and the doctor mentioned today that in a short time he would like to try feeding him with a bottle! They are still taking it slow with Emelia, it will be a while before they take her IV out. Her pick line came out so they will have to put another in tonight. We saw some new twins come in today. They were as tiny as ours, it made both of us cringe thinking back to those beginning days! It is amazing how God works knowing that if we knew what He did we would run and never look back! So He just brings it on creating dependence on HIM, showing how weak we really are.

Emelia 3lbs 6.7oz
Tyler 3lbs 11.5 oz

Noe is expected to leave the hospital with in two weeks. Please continue to pray that we will have a great opportunity to share with them this coming Christmas Eve.

Big shirt

2005-12-17T10:23:00.000-08:00

That a Boy!!

Light load, for Now

2005-12-17T10:20:00.000-08:00

They have come a long ways! Kerry is ready to have them together and at home, it will still be a while.

Nice hats!

2005-12-17T10:18:00.000-08:00

Together at last. It has been a long time since the two of them were together!

Stronger

2005-12-16T20:35:00.000-08:00

Tyler lasted 6 hours on the nasal cannula today. He is getting stronger little by little. Emelia is holding steady, creeping forward and every day going up on her feedings. I hope to post some new pictures tomorrow.

Eating more

2005-12-15T06:21:00.000-08:00

The twins continue to stay on course, moving slowly ahead. They continue to increase their feedings little by little. The doctor still feels that Tyler can make it home with out any oxygen needs, but feels that Emelia will need to be on supplemental oxygen for at least 4 month. During that time we will have to protect both of them from any sicknesses, which means keeping them isolated. I asked yesterday what we were looking at as far as follow up care, he said it looks like right now that we will need four months of follow up, hopefully no more. They usually check the kids every 6 months to make sure they are progressing well. He told me that they can give us information that would help us to do the evaluations ourselves. We will need to contact some hospitals in the Quito area to see about pediatrician that specialize in pulmonary areas. It has been hard for us to visit the twins these last few days because we have been fighting a nasty cold in our house. We are afraid to take it to the hospital with us so have been laying low.

The girls have made the transition to the new school. They are about to complete their first week and are both very happy. God has provided them with new friends and a desire to get up early every morning to make their lunches and head off to school. We are thankful for their courage and willingness to make this change, they have both been very positive through it all.

Steady

2005-12-13T19:18:00.000-08:00

The twins had another uneventful day. They both had their feedings increased and are staying steady with their air needs. As we go in each time we see babies leaving and new ones arriving. It is hard to watch other babies in the nursery progress with out any problems and with such ease and then be able to go home when the twins have had such a time of just staying steady with no major ups nor downs. It is easy in these times to want to throw out the question WHY? Why now LORD? Why us Lord? Why me Lord? It takes spiritual will power to remember that these are the wrong questions to be asking. We should continue through all of this to ask WHAT and HOW? What is it You would have us learn? What is it YOU would have us do? HOW can we honor you better through this? HOW can we encourage each other through this time? Why puts the focus on us, what and how puts it back on HIM. Please be in prayer as we continue through this to have the strength each day to ask what/how and not fall back on why!

Thank you all again for your continued prayers they sustain us. For those of you who have been praying for Noe he is breathing with out any help and looks great. I stood over him last night talking with his parents and his eyes were wide open. His parents are very encouraged with all the progress. Today I will be taking them to hunt for a job and an apartment, I will be sharing with them how many are praying for Noe and for them. I hope to have an open door to share the hope that we live each day. Thank you to those who have given gifts for them, I never expected that! That is an encouragement to us!

Todo Tranquilo

2005-12-12T19:05:00.000-08:00

Well these past two days have been pretty smooth. They have both stayed pretty much the same. Emelia is about 28% oxygen and Tyler is in room air. He needs to stay there with no major ups and downs for about a week before they will try the canula again. They removed Tyler's IV again so maybe this time it will be for good. Today Kerry gave Tyler his first tub bath with out all his wires, he is nice and clean! I asked the doctor today how much longer did he think they would be in the hospital, he said at least another month, probably longer.
The Mexican couple have still not found a place to live nor a job. Their son Noe (Noah) is doing good, he is off cpap and going strong. We have invited them to spend Christmas Eve with us and they said great so we are looking forward to an international night. Juan Miguel, a young man from La Fe in Ecuador, will be with us for Christmas so it should be a fun night, lots of Spanish!

God's Faithfulness

2005-12-10T07:09:00.000-08:00

Thank you all for your faithful prayers and notes of encouragement. Yesterday was another good day. Emelia continues to go down in her oxygen needs and this morning when I called she was at room air levels! God is so good and we continue to thank Him for giving us another day to love these babies and marvel at how they continue to grow and change every day. It is like God has given us the opportunity to watch the development that would usually be taking place during the final months of pregnancy. It is truly amazing!

Emelia is still 16 1/4 inches, but is now 3 lbs. 4 1/2 oz. ( Last week she was up to 3 lbs 12 oz. because of the fluid retention, the steroids and other medications have helped her a lot)

Tyler is 15 1/2 inches and 3 lbs. 7 1/2 oz.

"Every good and perfect gift comes from above..."James 1:17. Lord, we know that you have numbered the days of each one of us, including Tyler and Emelia, and that by worrying we cannot add even another minute to their lives. Only you know how long we will have them with us, so help us to treasure each day. Thank you for a calm day yesterday so that we could spend a day of shopping and fellowship with friends without feeling like we needed to be close to the hospital.

Doing great

2005-12-09T07:03:00.000-08:00

Emeilia is in 25% air and all her blooded gases are great! Tyler continues to be in room air and is doing good. They hope to start Emelia back on feedings today. They have taken her off her medication because she has done so well and is not retaining fluids anymore. It is nice not to have to write much this morning. Thanks for the prayer and encouragement.

Friends of ours shared this verse with us it is a great one!
IICorinthians 1:3,4
Praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! The Father is a merciful God, who always gives us comfort. He comforts us when we are in trouble, so that we can share that same comfort with others in trouble.

She made it!

2005-12-08T14:05:00.000-08:00

At about 4pm this afternoon Emelia was taken off the oscillator and moved back onto cpap! She did great and was very active the whole time the were making the change. She cried and was moving all over the place, so different from what we have been seeing since last Thursday. We are excited and encouraged to see her make this step forward. The next night will be a big one, the doctor said he does not expect her to go back onto the ventilator. While I visited them this afternoon the nurse took Tyler's cpap off and he looked around, I talked to him and he looked over at me. He did very well staying in the 90% range with his oxygen the whole time. It still seems amazing to me how they can turn so quickly for the good and the bad. Keep those prayers going they are doing an great work!

I spent some more time with Juan and Maria today. They shared how they planned on staying in the states for two years so they could work and earn enough money to return and begin a new life. They left their two daughters with Maria's mom so this has been a difficult time. She said that she wants to pack up and return to be with her family but understands they can not. They will need to be near the hospital for at least 6 months. Their son Noe will be released from the hospital with in the next four weeks. We will be helping them look for an apartment and job over these next few days help us pray that we can find them something and continue to build a friendship with them.

CPAP

2005-12-08T09:03:00.000-08:00

Emelia took steps of improvement last night. She is in 22% oxygen and in very low setting with the oscillator. The doctor said that he hopes to try moving Emelia back onto the cpap this afternoon or evening. The steroids took longer to kick in this time buy have really helped. Thank you all for your constant prayers for her. They said the pneumonia is licked and almost all taken care of! Tyler is doing great, the nurse took him of his cpap for his care and he breathed with out any help for almost 10 minutes! They move forward just a quick as they move backwards! At this point the doctor told us that Emelia will need breathing assistance to return home. We are going to pray that she will do so well that she will come home breathing on her own. Thank you again for your care and concern for the twins, your prayers have made a huge difference.

35%

2005-12-07T19:01:00.000-08:00

The doctor felt that we should just go ahead and give Emelia the steroids today. Her lungs were clearing up from the pneumonia but were looking pretty bad from all the left over damage from the ventilator. The fluid was not into her lungs but rather around her stomach cavity. The doctor feels that maybe the use of the steroids will even clear up all the fluid she is retaining.
The process they now want to use with the steroids is the same process we went through to get her of the ventilator last time so we will be praying she has no diverse affects from the steroids. They gave her the first doses at 5pm and as of now 10pm she is in 35% oxygen. When we left the hospital at 5 she was over 50% so she has made some improvement. She has a difficult road ahead of her. Tyler continues to do well and is still in room air with very few "spells".

We have had a few opportunities to reach out to Juan and Maria. They took me in to meet Noe today. He is a very cute little boy, and at this time seems to be doing well. He has had his struggles but is getting stronger every day. Please be in prayer for this couple as we try to encourage and connect with them over the next few days.

Luke 12:6,7
Five sparrows are sold for just two pennies, but God doesn't forget a one of them. Even the hairs on your head are counted. So don't be afraid! You are worth much more than many sparrows.

Tough night

2005-12-07T06:40:00.000-08:00

Emelia had a difficult night. She has gone up on her oxygen needs and was given morphine. She was very restless and not able to rest so they gave her the morphine to calm her down. They are concerned because she is retaining so much fluid, and it is quit possible it is building up in her lungs. They can not give her steroids until the fluid is gone so they will be putting her on medication today to take the fluid out of her system. Tyler continues to do well.

Steroids

2005-12-06T16:20:00.000-08:00

Emelia seems to be stable and not wanting to change. The doctors feel that if they can not get her to move in a positive direction with her settings they will have to give her a second round of steroids. We are praying that she will show some improvement by tomorrow. Tyler came off the cpap for 2 hours today and was on the nose cannula, that was a big step. They will leave him back on the cpap for a few more days before they try again. Other than that a rather calm day!

Trust

2005-12-05T19:16:00.000-08:00

Psalm 31:24
Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD.
Esforzaos todos vosotros,los que esperais en Jehova, y tome aliento vuestro corazon.

Both babies are sleeping fine tonight. They will try to turn down the settings on Emelia's ventilator, we pray she can adjust.

As I stood and looked at the ultrasound of Emelias brain and waited for the doctor to give me his opinion my mind raced forward. Of course it went to the worse possible outcome and of course I began to ask the question how were we going to deal with that?

This past week in a discipleship class I was giving we discussed man's basic problem, not trusting God . We struggle with thinking it reasonable to put all of our trust in HIM. We are led to believe we can live independent from Him, or partially trust in HIM. We do not understanding that man was created to be dependent on the creator. So when we are faced with difficult situations we try to figure things out, or work them out the best we can. The problem is it is never good enough.

Waiting for a response I was impacted thinking that by ourselves we were in big trouble but with HIM, dependent totally on HIM, we would be ok. No matter what the doctors said Kerry and I could (with much difficulty on my part) turn to our God and rely on Him to lead us through. Dependencence is the key lesson we are learning through this.

Deuteronomy 32:3-4
Join with me in praising the wonderful name of the LORD our God.
The LORD is a mighty rock, and he never does wrong. God can always be trusted to bring justice. He is righteous and true.

Proclamar el nombre del Senor. ¡Alaben la grandeza de nuestro Dios! El es la Roca, sus obras son perfectas, y todos sus caminos son justos. Dios es fiel; no practica la injusticia. El es recto y justo.

Normal

2005-12-05T14:59:00.000-08:00

Just a note, the nurse just called and said Emelia's head scan came back normal!!! It was a long day waiting for that! She is still far from being out of the woods, but at least we had some good news. All the tests from the spinal tap so far look good. Tyler has what looks like bronchitis, so far he is fighting it.

Large needle

2005-12-05T08:01:00.000-08:00

Emelia had enough strength this morning to give the doctors a chance to do a spinal tap. I had to step away, large needle and small baby just made me cringe. The fluid he pulled out looks like water so he said that was a good sign that nothing is wrong. They did take an ultrasound on her brain this morning. They are worried that she might have some brain bleed caused by the infection. Her soft spot has opened to the point where it could mean there is a problem. We will have the results this afternoon. They hope to start her on small feedings today. Tyler is doing well and has been on room air for awhile. He is handling his direct feedings very well.

Praying for a good night

2005-12-04T18:02:00.000-08:00

I just arrived back from picking up the girls. They stayed in Detroit on Saturday while I drove back to Kalamazoo. We just talked to the hospital and they said Emelia is still stable and has just finished with her blood transfusion. They put a pick line in her arm and ran it as close to her heart as possible so that the transfusion would work well. She still has an up hill battle but is moving the right direction. Tyler had a new feeding tube placed into his intestines. They ran it by his stomach and direct into his intestines so as to avoid the gas problem that has plagued him over these past days. He seem to be doing well, breathing in room air through his cpap. He also received a transfusion today, and is feeling better overcoming his own infection.

I had to the opportunity to talk with a Mexican couple who have their baby in nursery two. I saw her crying standing in the hall way so I stopped to talk. They went on to explain how they have been in the USA for 6 months. They have had little work and lots of problems. She followed the same path that Kerry did and had her son at 26 weeks. He was born almost the same weight that the twins were. They are staying in the hospital guest house and are eating what WIC can offer them, it is a gov't program that gives families things like cheese, milk and eggs. They have no family no friends and don't speak English. My heart broke for them, to think about going through this with out support and with out Christ. Please pray for Maria and Juan as well as their son Noah. Pray that we can reach out to them and be an encouragement during this time.

We hope to get some rest tonight praying that the twins have an uneventful night!

2005-12-04T07:34:00.001-08:00

Improvement

2005-12-04T07:34:00.000-08:00

I am beginning to realize that words such as improvement and better all very relative terms. Yesterday I was sure Emelia was going to be leaving us and today she is still holding on and as the doctor said this morning she is doing "better","improved". Improved a few days ago would have meant coming of her cpap and taking one more step towards no breathing helps today improved means that she is one step closer to not loosing the battle to the pneumonia. I could never have imagined the fight these two were going to have once they came into this world. I guess our tendency is to hope it will be easy, a breeze, but that is rarely the case with life in this world. We are thankful that God has permitted her to have one more day to fight through this. As we stand over her little body and pray, it gives us strength to know so many people are praying for her and us through this time. God has been faithful giving us the grace and courage we need to face what ever will com our way.

Tyler has an infection of his own that he is fighting off. He seems to be doing a good job of it. He is still on the cpap and is doing well breathing. They still have him off of his feedings but are talking about starting them up again today. Last night something happened with his IV and it popped out and caused a burn on his leg. The nurse said that he would have a scar from that the rest of his life, a reminder of the battles he was in to save his life!

If you could remember one more prayer request. One of the areas we have been struggling with over these past weeks is home schooling. We love our girls very much and have counted it a blessing to teach them in our home . We have been home schooling over these past years due to our circumstance, living in Ecuador. We have gotten used to having them around and being able to have a huge impacted in their lives. At this time we find our selves stretched beyond what we can give to them. Last week I visited a school in the area that we are thinking about enrolling them in. They will be tested this Tuesday to see exactly where they are at and if all goes according to plan start them right away. It is tough for them and for us to take this step. Please pray that the girls will have the trust and courage to take this new challenge as an opportunity to grow and mature. Pray that Kerry will feel at peace as she sends them out.

Proverbs 15:29 The Lord is far from the wicked, but He hears the prayer of the righteous.

Fighting for her life

2005-12-03T14:06:00.000-08:00

Emelia made it through the night but began to loose the battle this morning. The doctors told Kerry to call me and tell me to rush back from Detroit. They told us that Emelia was loosing the battle and they were not sure how long she could hold out. They put her onto what they call an oscillator as a last effort. It is a type of ventilator that vibrates air into the lungs. Their comment was that no one knows exactly how it works but it does. As it vibrates her lungs it shakes her whole body. They have determined that she has a bad case of pneumonia that is taking all of her strength. As I sit here in the hospital we are just waiting to see if she will have the strength to fight the infection off. The doctors do feel a bit more optimistic now more then they did this morning, only time will tell. The antibiotics can not do all the work she needs to give her immune system the strength it needs to work with the medicines. Thank you for all of your prayers, I think the next couple of days will be important ones for Emelia.

Tyler came of the Ventilator this morning and seems to be doing well. They stopped his feedings because a full stomach as well as the air that has built up down there makes it difficult for him to breath. They will be feeding him through his IV for awhile.

Progress

2005-12-02T20:13:00.000-08:00

I had the opportunity to share with the Middle Eastern Bible Fellowship tonight. They have supported us from the beginning of our ministry. They do all of their services in Arabic so they had to translate all that I said. It was great to hear them pray for the twins in Arabic, to hear and see their concern was an encouragement.

I talked to the nurses about 9:30 and they felt that Emelia was not making any progress and that they were afraid they would have to put her on a different ventilator. At 10:30 new test came back and she had made some progress so they were hoping this means she is going to make some leaps forward. Tyler if following in the foot steps of his sister and has his own infection. They have started him on antibiotics and hope to have it taken care of as soon as possible.

Thank you all for your prayers, it has been a tough week. With out those prayers I don't think we would be doing as well as we are.

Infections

2005-12-02T09:01:00.000-08:00

Both Emelia and Tyler are still on the ventilator. They still do not know what type of infection she has. Last night they gave her a blood transfusion which helped take away her pale look, she looked pretty bad. This morning they began to see yellow mucus coming from Tyler's lungs, they are not sure if that is something to be concerned about at this time. He still does not show any signs of infection. The girls and I are traveling to a supporting church in Detroit this weekend. Kerry's mom is coming over to stay with her and take her up to the hospital. Pray that the doctors and nurses will have wisdom from God as they watch over the babies.

Emelia ~ 2lbs 13oz, 16 1/4 inches
Tyler ~ 2lbs 12oz, 15 1/4 inches

Backward steps

2005-12-01T12:14:00.000-08:00

Well they said there would be days like this! I just talked to the hospital and they have put Tyler back on the ventilator. He had another spell where he stopped breathing all together so they put him right back on the machine. Emelia had another X-ray taken at 2 so we should know more in an hour or so. She is on 4 types of antibiotics to kill what ever is causing her the problem. Our fear is she will not come of the vent again and have to deal with another round of steroids, pray that does not happen.

We are both discouraged even though they told us the road was going to be a rough one. Please pray that we will have wisdom and strength through this time and for the twins to get off the vent as soon as possible.

Emelia

2005-12-01T05:23:00.000-08:00

Kerry called this morning to find out how the twins made it through the night and received some bad news. We expected to hear that Tyler had a bad night and that they put him back on the vent. but that was not that case. Emelia began to not breath correctly and required more and more oxygen through out the night to the point were they have put her back on the ventilator. She is very lethargic and pale so they are not sure what is going on. I am going to run down to the hospital and talk with the doctors to see what is going on.

Breathing problem

2005-11-30T20:01:00.000-08:00

I just talked to the nurse and Tyler has had another episode tonight. He stops breathing and it takes them awhile to get him back breathing. They are not sure what is causing it and feel it could just be part of him being a preemie and they are going to just have to wait it out. Please pray that he can overcome this.

Tyler

2005-11-30T10:47:00.000-08:00

Tyler had another bad spell with his breathing just a few hours ago. This is the third one in 24 hours. They are not sure what is happening, please be in prayer that they can find out what is causing this.

No dull moments here

2005-11-29T19:42:00.000-08:00

Our church has scheduled baby sitters every Tuesday and Thursday night so we can be at the hospital together, what an encouragement that has been. Tonight we spent a few hours helping change diapers, clean mouths and give them milk through their syringe. As we were about to end out time with the twins Tyler began to have another episode. He stopped breathing and began to turn colors, I poked him, shook him but it did not seem to help, it is amazing how hopeless you can feel. The nurse stepped in and lifted him up and patted his back all the time telling him to breath. After what felt like forever he began to breath again and his oxygen levels began to climb. With the two babies in intensive care it seems like they take turns having struggles and giving us grey hair!

Emelia seems to be doing very well while Tyler is having the struggles. His stomach looks like it has a few tennis balls floating around, it is so filled with gas. We are praying that this gas will go down and he will be able to handle more food and breath better. Part of his breathing problem is that his lungs do not have much room to work with his stomach being so large because of the air. On the lighter side it was funny to hear him "burp" through his feeding tube. They leave the syringe open at the end of his tube so that air can escape.

Stressful morning

2005-11-29T11:00:00.000-08:00

As I walked into the nursery this morning I noticed quickly that there was a crowd of nurses and doctors around Tyler's incubator. To see so many in one place is never a good sign so I knew something was wrong. As I got closer I noticed that they were pumping air into Tyler manually and not through the cpap. They quickly explained that he had stopped breathing again and they had to intervene. Tyler looked pretty pale so they said they were also going to give him a blood transfusion to give him a boost. Emelia is doing fine, no complications or problems, at this point.

Good day

2005-11-28T15:12:00.000-08:00

The news this morning and this afternoon are both the same, they are doing well. They have boosted Emelias caffeine dose up to stimulate her breathing even more. She still struggles a bit with shallow breathing and at times forgetting to breath. Tyler is creeping his way back up on feedings, he is now at 8cc. The nurse has Tyler on his stomach and he loves it, to bad they can 't just leave him in that position. Both are still right around 22-24 in the oxygen level, 20 is room air, so they are not far off.

Crying

2005-11-27T21:00:00.000-08:00

There is a story of a grandfather and his grandson walking through the woods. They came upon a good size river; the grandfather asked the boy if he thought it possible for his grandfather to change the course of such a large river. The boys response was no, the river is to big and his grandfather to small. At that point the grandfather bent over and reached into the water and removed a good size rock. Once the rock was removed the river filled in the indent the rock left and in affect changed the course of the river.

It is amazing for me to think how two babies weighing only 2lbs could make a difference in our lives the way these two have. They have never left their hospital room, never spoken a word but yet had such a huge impact on my life, the life of our family. To think that God has used them as part of His plan to change our course, change our thinking. Sometimes it takes the very weak and small to make the "strong" and self reliant drop to their knees and realize how very helpless they really are. We may not know for a long time the full affect these two little lives will have on the course our family takes, I am glad we can, with faith, trust in HIM who is using them to touch us.

As of tonight Emelia is still feeding well and on low air. Tyler is back on a strong IV doses. He is still struggling with air in his belly so they are taking it very slow. They both are loosing weight so the doctors feel they need to boost the protein in the food. They were both very restless tonight, doing lots of crying. It was good to hear them both screaming like little babies should. Tyler is finally crying instead of just whimpering.

Room air!!

2005-11-27T08:47:00.000-08:00

Both Emelia and Tyler are approaching room air. Emelia spent most of yesterday at 20% which is room air, if she can hold that for two days then they will take her off the cpap. She probably will bounce around for awhile but the main thing is that she is now consistantly touching 20%. Tyler was around 23% so not to far behind his sister. He is still having some air problems in his belly so they had to back off on his feeding amounts yesterday. The problem is caused when the cpap blows air into his lung and some of it escapes into his stomach cavity so as to cause cpap belly.

Please be in prayer that both of them will be able to sustain room air for two days in a row this week and move off the cpap and onto the canuala. Thank you again for your prayers and encouragement! So I have not posted for the last couple of days.

Meme Woolford with the twins

2005-11-24T23:05:00.000-08:00

Emelia is now of her IV and is doing well. She has responded excellently to the steroids and has not had a major relapse now that they have worn off. She is now totally dependent on mom's milk.
Emelia along with Tyler have been retaining some liquids so they are on some medication to take care of that.

Tyler and Meme

2005-11-24T22:08:00.000-08:00

Tyler is doing better with his oxygen than Emelia. He is still connected to his IV but is moving in the right direction. Lord willing he will be off it this weekend. The nurses have detected that he has a small hernia nothing major just enough to keep an eye on.

Tyler is 2lbs and 10oz, 14 1/2 inches long

Emelia is 2lbs and 9oz, 15 1/4 inches long

Thanks!

2005-11-23T22:05:00.000-08:00

I praise you because of the wonderful way you created me.
Everything you do is marvelous! Of this I have no doubt.
Psalm 139:14

Your eyes saw me when I was formless; all my days were written in Your book and planned before a single one of them began.
Psalm 139:16

This time last year we were in Ecuador getting ready to celebrate Thanksgiving with 4 Ecuadorian families. We were excited about the opportunity to teach them what Thanksgiving was. I took time to recount the story of the Pilgrims and what it meant for them to sacrifice so much for a place to worship God in freedom, a place to raise their children to love the Lord as they did. History tells of the first winter they spent in their new home, how 47 of the small group died that first winter, 18 of them being women. I can only imagine that children cried, men and women asked themselves why they had made the trip when now they were faced with being alone with out their spouse, with out their mother or father. So many questions that only had one answer, His way is not only higher but perfect. What kept them going forward was the understanding, the acceptance that everything God does, everything God permits is marvelous. This year as we spend thanksgiving together we can grasp this principle a bit more. The twins have helped us, in a small way compared to what the pilgrims faced, to understand that not only does He created life but in His way for His purpose He sustains it.

Both Tyler and Emelia have had a good day. They both had their first contact with Meme woolford. The nurses let my mother hold both of the babies today giving my mom a day to remember. They are both going up now in their feedings. They have totally stopped Emelia's IV fluid and if she makes it through the night and does well starting tomorrow they will probably take the IV out and she will be totally reliant on mom's milk! Please keep in prayer as they both go up and down with their oxygen needs. They need to become much more stable and stay at room air for at least two days before they will take them to the next level. Thanks for all of your prayers, have a great day giving Thanks!!

Tyler at 30 plus weeks

2005-11-22T16:16:00.000-08:00

Tyler laying on his side. He was not doing so well on his back, so when they moved him he began to breath better right away.

My little girl

2005-11-22T16:13:00.000-08:00

Cam had the chance to hold Emelia today. She did well for awhile then got to relaxed and forgot to breath so they had to put her back and remind her to take some deep breaths! Madi is so proud now that she is not the baby any more. She is always reminding us that she is a big sister now!

Home Sweet Home

2005-11-22T16:10:00.000-08:00

The girls made the babies some new blankets to cover their homes with. The nurses, every 3 hours, change the babies positions. This helps keep their little heads from become to flat and alien looking.

Just wait a few hours!

2005-11-22T16:03:00.000-08:00

They always told us in Cuenca just wait a few hours and the weather would change! One minute it felt like summer and the next like fall. The twins seem to be leading us down the same path, one minute everything looks great and the next minute a new challenge. Last night Tyler stopped breathing for 5 minutes and needed help in order to survive. They checked his blood etc. to see if he has an infection and they can not find anything. The doctor told us that if he has another episode like last night they would have to look at the possibility of putting him onto the ventilator. Please be in prayer that he remembers to breath, that his little lungs have the strength to pump all the air he needs. Emelia has started requiring more and more oxygen now that the steroids are working their way out of her system, nothing critical yet.

Extended weekend

2005-11-21T21:11:00.000-08:00

Kerry and I were able to hold both babies at the same time. My parents are visiting with us this week and took the girls so that we could visit the babies. We did not expect to be able to hold both at the same time but God gave us a gift! Both babies are doing well so the nurses gave us the thumbs up to take them both out at the same time. Emelia is up to 18 cc of milk and with in the next day or so she will have her IV taken out. Tyler is up to 12 cc, they are giving it to him on a slow feed. His oxygen has been up more than the other days but nothing to dramatic. Emelia continues to do great with her oxygen. Our prayer is that she will see no change over the next few days, now that the steroids have ended. They have told us that she probably will get a bit worse as soon as the steroids are all out of her system. The desire is to then see her get stronger and back to low oxygen as soon as possible. There is a possibility that she would not be able to maintain her progress with out the steroids, please be in prayer that she can.

If you can imagine, the nurse told Kerry that the other day she found Tyler rump up in the air with out his diaper on! She had placed him on his stomach and he did not like that so he wiggled around so much that he moved right out of his diaper. More than once he has grabbed his feeding tube and pulled it out of his stomach via his mouth!! It has been amazing to me to see such small little bodies with such will and display of life! Even at 30 weeks they have such personality, likes and dislikes, they are complete, designed by the MASTER ready for life!

Weekends

2005-11-20T13:27:00.000-08:00

The twins seem to like the weekends. They both are in medium oxygen and are handling their feedings well. Tyler is still on low feedings but seems to be doing better. Emelia is still on steroids and has had her feedings raised. Over all the nurses say they are doing well.
If we could just fool them into thinking every day was a weekend!!

What's normal

2005-11-18T22:14:00.000-08:00

It is amazing how something after enough time can seem normal. Just a few weeks ago I could not have imagined living a life with two babies in the NICU. Having to travel back and forth, living with fear of what the next phone call could mean. This now all seems almost normal, taking the multiple trips to the hospital, calling the nurses during the late nights and early mornings. Our vocabulary has expanded way beyond what I feel comfortable with and I am sure it is only going to get worse, but that just seems normal.
Last night a friend asked Kerry what she has struggled with the most through this time. She took some time and shared how difficult it has been to arrive at the hospital and stand next to the babies and have to ask permission to touch her children or to care for them. We know that God has a plan through all of this. We both, Kerry more, has had a trust in God through all of this knowing that all things work for Good because we are in HIM. It has just been hard to see other people be the primary care givers, the ones that are meeting all the needs during this difficult time and us in the dark not knowing what to do or how to make things better, all we can do is pray and with out that we would be lost!
Tyler is still only receiving 3cc of milk, as of 10pm he is doing ok with his oxygen. Emelia is doing great with her feedings, she is at 12cc! She has had no problems with her stomach and the steroids!!! When I left her tonight she was on room air, man what a day can do and a little steroids!!

Romans 8:28 "We know that God is always at work for the good of everyone who loves him. They are the ones God has chosen for his purpose,"

30 Weeks!!!

Tyler ~ 2lbs 4oz
L-14 1/4
HC -9 3/4

Emelia ~ 2lbs 7oz
L- 14 1/2
HC- 9 1/2

Negative

2005-11-18T07:45:00.000-08:00

They took the test after they found the strep B in Tyler's nose and it came back negative. It is just there and causing no problems up to this point. Emelia is still climbing in her feedings, she is up to 10cc but Tyler is back down to 3cc. The nurse told me last night that some babies that receive the steroids do well while they are on them but as soon as they stop revert back to the vent. Please be in prayer with us that this does not happen. Please pray that Tyler would be able to go up in his feedings, at least back to where he was.
I mentioned a while back about a Hispanic family that had their son admitted two days after the twins. Jesse was also born 26 weeks and is doing great. I have had the opportunity to spend some time over the past weeks with his parents, talking about our babies as well as just getting to know them. I am praying that over the weeks to come I will have more opportunity to encourage them and share more with them about our lives.