good news

First, the girls don't have MRSA. Thanks be to God!

Second, they both reached their birth weight today! Again, thanks be to God!

Reaching birth weight (all babies lose weight after birth) is a big milestone, and I'm really excited about it. I also think it's funny that they both reached their birth weight on the same day. So, Jane is 4 lbs, 3 oz again and Katie is 4 lbs, 7 oz again. Now they get to really grow!

They're also maintaining their body temperatures better, and the nurses are slowly lowering the temperature in their isolettes.

They're still tube-fed. The nurses are bottle-feeding them once a day, and both Jane and Kate will suck very enthusiastically . . . for about 5 cc's (approximately 1/8th) of their feeding, and then stop, refusing to do any more. So that's our last big obstacle. But, as their nurse today pointed out, if you have to be slow about something, this is the one to be slow about (as opposed to, say, being unable to breathe or to digest).

I kind of think that they were actually a week earlier than we thought. (This is very possible, because, though I'm sure about my dates, I consistantly have much longer cycles than the 28 day ones they use to calculate due dates, which could knock the due date off by as much as 12 days - a long time when it comes to gestational age!) It feels like they're being really slow, but the good thing is that figuring out how to suck, swallow and breathe in a coordinated manner is something that all babies learn how to do eventually (barring other problems, which the girls don't have), and so it's not so much and "if" as a "when".

We still really want them home soon, but there's much to rejoice about in that they are well, and well cared for. Please pray that they learn how to eat, but thank God for his great mercies to them thus far.

love,
Jessica