Monday, January 30, 2006

Ouch!!




Today was Adam and Eleanor's four month visit to the pediatrician. The main reason for the visit was for their immunizations, but they also received a physical. Eleanor weighs 8 pounds 7 ounces and (drum roll please....) Adam weighs 9 pounds! That means he has gained three pounds in 25 days. They are growing so quickly that their growth on the charts is almost vertical. They are still far below what a four month old baby born at term would be, but I am quite confident they will catch up as soon as they can. Other than the four shots each, the visit was great. Bad news is that the home visit nurse had to come and give them their Synagis shot, too. Synagis helps reduce the severity of RSV, should they catch it. Talk about adding insult to injury. So one of their little thighs got two shots today and the other got three. I held them while they got the Synagis and Eleanor cried her very first real tears. On the bright side, her cries are sounding less and less like a little lamb's and more and more like baby bellows. Adam just does the "Silent Scream". Wide open mouth for seconds before he breathes and any sound comes out. The rest of the day? I spent it holding both of them on the couch.

Tomorrow we have a visit with the pediatric surgeon at the hospital. The visit is just for Adam who may or may not have little hernias. Hernias are a common side effect in preemie boys especially, from the pressure the ventilators put on their lower abdomen. We will find out what the doctor says and schedule the surgery, if necessary. I really dread having to spend more nights in the hospital, but this is all really small stuff compared to what we could be dealing with right now. We are truly blessed to have such healthy babies, considering all they have been through.
We have had lots of grandparents visit in the last week. Thank you to everyone else for being patient until the summer to see our not-so-little-anymore) ones. Until then, there will be lots of pictures!








For those of you who remember seeing this picture of Eleanor with my ring when she was less than a month old, I wanted to show a comparison. On the bottom is Eleanor three months later--you barely notice my ring by her elbow.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Michelle,
Your website is fantastic. I feel like I just finished reading one of the heartwarming stories in Reader's Digest! LOL! Adam and Eleanor truly are beautiful miracles. You and Jim are so very blessed. I look forward to reading your updates and visiting you all this summer. Give Jim and Alex a kiss for me. Love ya, Sharon

Anonymous said...

The babies are absolutely beautiful! Isn't it amazing how fast they grow? It is hard to believe looking at them now, that they were born at 23 weeks!