Movin' on up....well, movin over anyway! :)

I was shocked not once, but twice today when I went to visit my boys in the NICU......

This morning when I walked in Clay was missing! Well, not really - he just got moved over during the night near his sweet brothers. Of course, not being use to change just yet, I was shocked when I didn't see him in his usual area. I said very loudly as I walked in and noticed my missing child, "where is my baby"! The nurses kindly pointed out to me that he was just a few feet over by his brothers. (Everyone should note that this is the FIRST time that they been so close together since they were born.) It was wonderful to be able to sit in the middle of all of my boys, whose beds were placed in a U-shape to that I could see all of them together.

When I went back for the afternoon visit, my boys' nurse kindly came to see me at the scrub sink to let me know that 2 of my boys had been moved to the step down NICU. Let me tell you, it was REALLY weird to go in to the regular NICU and see just Paul in the little back corner area where all 3 boys have been for the last 3 weeks. BTW, today is their 3 week birthday! (Got to love the number 3!) Anyway, I made sure that Paul was okay and of course he was. Then I went right next door to check on Seth and Clay in the step down unit. It is really quiet in the step down unit and I think my boys are just going to love it over there. Don't worry, Paul will be going over first thing in the morning. They can only allow 8 babies in the step down until and one little baby is going home tomorrow (not mine of course), but this will allow room for Paul to come over. Then, we will ALL be happy because my boys will once again be in the same area.

All of the boys are doing so well. When they are in the step down NICU the babies are referred to as the "feeders/growers". They are only on apnea monitors - which just makes sure that they are breathing - and in open cribs. Shane and I will get to take a more "hands on" approach with them and WE get to take care of them, not all the wonderful nurses. The boys are at a good weight to come home, they just have to learn to take their bottles.

Everyone is practicing on their bottles and doing so well. Big Paul actually took a WHOLE bottle the other night!!! I couldn't believe it!!! :) It was the only time that he has done that, but I know he is going to do it again any day now. (I am hoping that his daddy will be able to have a talk with him and convince him this weekend!) Paul and Seth are taking about half of their bottles everytime we try with them. Sometimes we offer them a bottle every 4 hours, but if they look real tired we will wait until the next feeding. Clay is taking just a little less that half of a bottle when we try with him, about 20cc. It just takes SO much energy for them to drink from their bottles. Our goal is for them to drink a whole bottle, but we don't want them to work so hard that they are losing weight. It's a hard balance. We want to push them, but not too hard.

All of the nurses and doctors just keep telling us that they will take their bottles one day and it will just click with them. Shane and I know that our boys are like us - they will do what they want and in their own time! ;)

Their updated weights are as follows:
Paul: 4lbs, 13.8 oz
Seth: 4lbs, 10.8 oz
Clay: 4lbs, 7.7 oz