Life in the NICU

Unfortunately, since it's taken me so long to write this, I don't remember exactly how the next couple of weeks happened. It took them a few days to get off of the CPAP machine and to high-flow air. After they were off high-flow, they took them to a different level of NICU where they were in open cribs and learning how to eat, but still hooked up to the monitors to watch them. The funny story, or not so funny at the time, was that 5 days later when I had went to the hospital like I did every morning and walked into their room only to find it empty!! My stomach flipped and I panicked thinking something had happened to them! I just about ran to the front desk and asked where my babies were and they said that they were ok. At about 2 in the morning they were able to take them off of the high-flow air and was on room air so they took them up to "well baby" NICU in open cribs! I was so relieved but also not so happy that they couldn't have called and told me this so I wouldn't have had a panic attack!

Anyways, it was so nice to walk in and see my sweet babies laying there with clothes on and I was able to pick them up whenever I wanted to and snuggle them to my heart's content! I think it wasn't until they were in the open cribs that they were able to take the feeding tubes out of their mouths and in their noses too which was nicer too. I was then able to try to start nursing them and get the process going to get home!  It was such a difficult time trying to balance my time between being at the hospital working with the twins and then to also be home with Ray and the kids. I just had to keep reminding myself that it was a small moment in time and this wouldn't last for forever. It was really nice that every time I walked out of the hospital and was having a hard time leaving Abby and Brooke, the temple was right across the street and I was reminded that I was loved and everything and was going to be ok and that no matter what happened, we were an eternal family. It was a great comfort to see that every time.

Brooke Katherine Miller

Brooke

Abby Jean Miller

Abby

This was the setup in our cubicle of the NICU.

Another advantage to being in this other part of the NICU was that there were windows at the front so that Logan, Chase and Rylee could finally see their sisters! Before the twins had moved levels, there were no windows for observers or anything, but they said that we could bring in the older kids once a week to visit. Ray and I laughed and said that would not be such a good idea with how crazy those 3 could get, so it was nice when we moved and they could finally see the twins.

Dad holding the sweet little ones. Brooke on the left and Abby on the right.

Brooke on left, Abby on right. Aunt Shaelyn found these precious outfits and they were so cute!

More pics from in the NICU in cute outfits from Grandma Jolley. Abby is on the right, Brooke left.

Brooke

Abby

 After a few days of trying to nurse, I got to the point that I didn't care what it was going to take to get us home. I decided to pump my milk and feed it to the babies in a bottle. My philosophy was that it was the same product and it didn't matter how they got it. This way too, I could have some help with feeding them :) After we started this, they took off with it! On the exact 2 week anniversary of their birth, I roomed in the hospital. This was where I basically had to prove that I could take care of them on my own (I was not thrilled with this policy). I stayed the night in one of the hospital rooms by the NICU and they twins stayed with me in there all by ourselves with all of their monitors. I was so excited to hopefully be going home! That was such a long night!! I remember it quite well. All of the monitors beeped nonstop and I couldn't sleep with it. The monitors were going off for no reason and I just wanted to shut them off! But I had to feed the babies, take their temps, and weigh their diapers every 3 hours. Somehow.....somehow.....I made it through that long night and they gave us the ok to go home!!!! I don't know if I have ever received such wonderful news!! So we had a process we had to do to get discharged. There were a bunch of videos I had to watch that I've already seen with all of the other kids and then they also had to do a car seat test. Brooke and Abby had to sit in their car seats for an hour and have their oxygen levels tested to make sure they could breath in that position. The problem we had was one of the car seats was too big. Thankfully, the Health Department had a preemie size car seat they donated to us for Abby so we could go home. After the whole process, we were discharged and able to have our family together again!!! Praise the heavens that was a good feeling to walk into the house and know our family was under one roof!

Ready to go home!!! Abby on the right, Brooke on the left. I think they look like little dolls in their seats.