(pictured: Cooper when he learned he’d be coming home soon)

When we first learned that we would be taking Quinn home without Cooper, we were really, really bummed. We realized that it would be helpful to master our skills with one before we doubled the fun, but were still sad to have to leave Cooper behind. Well, let’s just say, this was a HUGE blessing for all involved. :) Despite how prepared you try to be, nothing prepares a first time parent for the first day with a baby. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not really the lack of sleep I’m talking about, it’s just all the little things like the diaper changing station to feedings, etc. We had it down pat in the hospital, but we needed to get comfortable doing everything in a whole new environment and without wires! The good news is that we got it down pat now and are counting down the days for Cooper to come home and complete our family (at least for now).

SUMMARY: Cooper started his 7 day brady-free countdown. He was originally supposed to come home today, but he had a brady on Saturday night, signaling to us that he might not be quite ready – or he didn’t think we were ready. :) We’ve since had a talk with him and explained that everything is ready and waiting for him at home. So the countdown is on. Tests determined today that he has reflux, which is one of the leading causes for bradycardia (brady’s).

Details on their progress below:

* Lung Development – Cooper has been off the respiratory assistance for a few days now and has been doing great. We still need to be careful of viruses/illnesses like RSV and pneumonia for the next year or two, but all in all, their lungs are looking stable.
* Head bleeds/hemorrhages – Both Quinn and Cooper’s head bleeds are considered stable.
* Eyes – Eye problems are not uncommon in preemies, particularly ones who had respiratory assistance as long as our guys did. Thankfully, the eye doctors think they only have grade 1 (Cooper) and grade 2 (Quinn) Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP – a disease of the blood vessels to the reina). There are 4 grades, so we are hopeful it will not get worse and do permanent damage or require surgery. We go to the eye doctor for Quinn tomorrow, and Cooper will get another exam next week.
* Nutrition – Quinn is a piggy (see weight below). He is taking between 2-3 ounces every 3-4 hours and Cooper is not far behind, taking 2 ounces every 4 hours.
* Weight gain – Quinn continues to gain quickly and is now 5 lbs 14 ounces. Cooper is also hitting a growth spurt and is weighing in at 4 lbs 8 ounces.

If all continues to go well with Cooper, we should have him home this weekend or early next week. While it’s been a long haul, they are doing remarkably well, especially considering they are still supposed to be in the womb.

One of the best things about the last week is that we got to actually take steps with them and carry them around the NICU. While it may not seem like a big deal to get to walk with them, it’s something we have not been able to do since they have always been hooked up to machines. And it’s such a good feeling. We can’t wait to walk miles and miles with them.

Thanks for rooting us on, friends.

After 66 days in this world, I’ve left the only home I’ve ever known to go to my real one. While I’m so incredibly thankful to the doctors and nurses at California Pacific Medical Center for keeping me healthy the past 2+ months, I’m happy to report that I’ve been turned over to the arms of my mom and dad today.

And the better news is that Coop is not far behind – he should be home within a week (barring no complications), so we can all be together as a family. (He was sleeping when I slipped out the NICU door, so we didn’t have to deal with a meltdown. We’ve since called the nurses and they said he’s coping just fine without me… independent little bugger!)

With the exception of my WLG syndrome (Whole Lotta Gas), I was very well behaved for my parents last night while they stayed over with me in the hospital. I plan to do the same tonight – and for every single night moving forward.

So, that’s it, my friends. I’m home – sleeping, eating and pooping a lot. I can’t wait to meet you all. The doctors/nurses say that my parents need to be a little careful with how many people come to visit me for a bit, but they can’t wait to show us off!

Lovin’ home (and missing Cooper),
Quinn

P.S. It was also nice to have my first breath of fresh air today – being outside ROCKS.

P.P.S. A very, very special thanks to Kerry, Jo, Mary, Lisa and Jasmine – you ladies are wonderful.

It’s on, all. I’m coming home tomorrow (check out my cool digs). Mom and dad are coming to “room in” with me tonight. That means the nurses turn me over to them to sleep with me in a hospital room next to the NICU with no monitors, wires or anything. Should be a fun night for us all! Ironically, today is the day that my parents met 7 years ago (June 21, 1998).

Cooper’s doing great and doctors say that if everything keeps going well, he may be home by early next week. Can’t wait for us to all be together.

Home bound,
Quinn

P.S. It’s probably also a good thing that we are on our way home since the nurses have all been fighting over who gets to take care of us. We certainly don’t want to create any problems among our nurse friends, but I guess that’s the breaks when you are as cute and cool as we are.

(Guest blogger: mom)

I’ve gotten a lot of calls today (thanks all for the love!) about Quinn’s departure from the hospital… He’s still doing great and on track to come home on Wednesday. One little hiccup that we are dealing with is that I’m now sick. :( I’ve got some kind of nasty respiratory infection and am on antibiotics. Today is the first day of my little boys’ lives that I have not seen them. While I’m miserable about it, I know that it’s better for me to stay far, far away from them until I’m better and no longer contagious. The doctors are saying that I will not be contagious by Wednesday and that he should still be able to come home. I honestly don’t know how I feel about that and tend to think we should play it safe, but we’ll see where we are on Wednesday. Until then, Chris and their favorite nurses are giving them extra love in my absence.

Thanks everyone for your support and phone calls. Hopefully we can beat this quickly and get my little monkeys home.

In a move to prove that I am simply NOT going to be far ahead of him in getting home, Cooper decided to have his nasal canula (nose prongs providing add’l oxygen) removed today. The doctor had ordered for them to take it out tomorrow, but since he did so well with it removed in his photo shoot today, they decided to keep it out. So far, he’s doing well and not requiring it. Should he need it, they will certainly put it back on, but he told me he’s really going to try hard to keep it out.

Keep it up, Coop!
Quinn

(Guest blogger-Dad)

Two months and I’m just now getting my first invitation to be a guest blogger! Maybe it’s because I can’t get on the d— thing without a step-by-step guide from Terra. My mom didn’t raise the most tech savvy kids (yet she’s been on the blog for two months now).

Pretty big day for me today as I got to celebrate my first father’s day with Terra and the boys. My incredible wife gave me a hysterical calendar presenting the boys in the theme of the month settings. Classic! It had to have taken weeks to pull the whole thing together. Best month: May 2006. (To see the calendar photos, click here)

Mom/Terra also presented me with an original Erin Kellgren painting! The boys had cards and another gift waiting for me when we got to the hospital this morning. They’re thoughtful boys – not to mention incredibly coordinated for being two months old with absolutely no neck muscles!

We also had the boys’ first “official” pictures taken today at the hospital in the cutest, most adorable (if guys are reading: in the coolest, most rugged) outfits known to man. We got some very memorable shots both individually and together, which I’m sure will be shared on the blog soon.

I’d add more about my great Father’s Day, but I’m heading back to the hospital as I just haven’t gotten my fill today!

Big, big week for my boy Quinn. He hit the 5 pound mark, bringing the delta of our weights to a whopping 3/4 of a pound! I have a feeling next week will be my week to shine.

I’m next,

Cooper

P.S. Does he look like Jabba the Hut in this picture, or what?

Big news from the Doc today. He told mommy and daddy that if I can be brady-free (brady = slowing of the heart rate) for 7 consecutive days – and if no other complications occur – I can go home! That means I can go home as early as next Tuesday! (You can bet there will be a blog post that day)

The sad news is that if I do get to go home then, it will be without Cooper. Coop and I talked about this a couple weeks ago and agreed that we really wanted to go home together. I mentioned that to the Doc today, but he said that it’s not a good idea to keep a healthy baby in the NICU because of the increased risk of infection that goes along with being in the hospital. So… if all goes well this week, I’ll be going home to “break our parents in” for Coop until he decides to make his exit from the hospital.

Don’t take this the wrong way, Cooper is a total rock star and doing very well. It’s just that the chronic lung disease that we have has been a little harder on him. Basically, we are both developing new lung tissue to get rid of the scar tissue in our lungs from the pneumonia, respiratory distress syndrome and chronic lung disease we’ve had. The respirators and all the tubes down our throat didn’t help matters either! So… it’s a lot of work for Coop to breathe and eat right now (which mommy and daddy tell us we NEED to do), so he’s burning a lot of calories to do those things instead of using them to grow. While the doctors are not concerned with his weight (4 lbs. 2 oz.), they’d like to see him gain quicker. I’d like to see him fatten up too so I don’t have to be called a piglet any more. Big deal that I’m weighing in at 4 lbs 14 oz.! (Interestingly, the picture above looks like Coop is much bigger, but he’s just posing…)

More to come…

Quinn

I gave mom an early birthday present today – I came off oxygen! Yahoo! One step closer to coming home! Cooper was a little more affected by the chronic lung disease we got as a result of the respiratory distress syndrome and is still requiring some oxygen support, but he’s also doing really well and coming down on his requirements. GO COOP!

Look how different I look without that thing in my nose! I hated that thing and am glad to see it go bye-bye.

As demonstrated by the double chin and wrist roll, I too have joined the 4 lb club. Quinn continues to show me the way – he has reached 4 lbs, 5 oz and we’re both eating really, really well.

Porkin’ up,

Cooper

P.S. Not to embarrass Quinn again, but you are seeing correctly – he is trying to get milk from my wrist (as noted in previous post).

We’re happy to report that we are not only back together again, but we are also in an open crib (instead of the isolette). If we prove to the NICU staff that we can maintain our temperatures on our own, we can stay together! We’re working really hard at that, so we have not taken as much food via mom or bottle (so, gavage city). We are just too darn worn out from focusing all of our energy on keeping warm. To help us stay warm, mom and dad told us to think about laying on a beach in Hawaii… then they said something about not getting there again until 2020.

WAAARM wishes,
Q and C

I’m huge.

I topped 4 lbs today – that’s 1 lb gain in just 3 weeks. Mom and dad say that half of the pound went to my chins, but I think it’s all muscle weight. Coop agrees with me on that one. Speaking of Cooper, he’s also packin on the ounces – he’s at 3 lbs 13 oz.

Also, just to set the record straight on the whole “sucking on the wrist” post Coop wrote yesterday… I was set up. Mom started feeding me, then thought it was a good time for a photo opp. So, mid feed, she threw me next to my bro to “bond” and yes, I did start to suck his wrist – but I was looking for anything that might send some food my way. Nipple, wrist, whatever.

Growing,
Quinn

Today was just a fun day. Nothing extraordinary happened…just a good night with my brother. We were hanging out with mom and dad when Quinn decided to nibble on my wrist! Kind of a strange thing to suck on, but I guess he was really hungry.

I decided to be a real stud today and came down on my requirement for oxygen, so Quinn and I are now on the same levels. In a constant game of “one-up-manship”, he may be moving to an open crib (no isolette) in the next 24 hours. Maybe I’ll get to join him soon thereafter – Sure would be nice to be in the same bed with my bro. Also, we’re both diggin’ the feedings – both breast and bottle. We continue to impress mom and dad, as well as the nurses and doctors.

I don’t want to give away any future blog posts, but we are really gaining weight quickly. Expect a blog post from Quinn on a new weight milestone in the near future (he’s such a show off).

Cooper