A's and B's for C

It is excruciating to watch your child's chest fall silent.

I spent way too much time yesterday staring at Isaac's ribcage, attempting to get him to breathe by the sheer force of my will. He seemed to have improved about 3 days ago and then started having severe apneic (where he stops breathing) and bradycardic (low heart rate) episodes the day before yesterday. These episodes (known in NICU terms as A's and B's) are expected in such premature infants and all three have had at least some mild ones. But there were times that Isaac actually turned a dusky color before they were able to get his oxygen level back up. We are hoping that the treatments they instituted yesterday will make for a better day today.

I suppose these last few days fall into the "Not So Good Day" category.

On the other hand, Emery and Parker still seem to be engaged in an all out competition to see who can progress faster. They have both started tolerating milk through the feeding tube (a VERY small "OG" tube that goes from their mouth to their stomach) so well that their TPN (Total Parenteral Nutrition-- nutrition they had been receiving through their veins) has been discontinued and their IV fluids will probably also be stopped in the next day or two. When that happens, their central IV line can be removed which is a potential source of infection.

They would have been 32 weeks today.