Milestones and Mohawks

Check this dude out. He's kind of awesome. He's made so much progress the last few days, gaining... over 100 grams in 48 hours? I think that's about right. His coloring has changed so much since he got his nasal cannula out on Monday. He was much more aware yesterday. I actually saw his eyes open more yesterday than I ever have! Casey and I started worrying about him because Nik was awake so much more... but you can't compare the two. Little Rowan was behind from the start, and he is trying so hard to compete with his bro. 

(Breastfeeding moment ahead- you've been warned.) Example: Yesterday I got to meet with the lactation consultant to try to get both of them to start nursing. They both love their pacifiers and seem to have the suck/swallow/breathe thing down pretty well (which indicates they are more mature developmentally than their measurements would indicate). Both boys latched yesterday. They may not have gotten much milk, but they certainly tried. Nik was a lot more gentle than Rowan. Rowan bit me so hard that I felt pain even an hour later! (And that's without teeth!!!) That little kid is determined. He was trying to eat so much that he actually started choking, which was about the scariest thing I've ever seen as a Mom. I was nursing him, and he got a mouthful of milk, and then I heard him cough a little and pulled him off. He kept making a noise indicating that he couldn't breathe... I couldn't get to the call light... no nurses were in the room.... I lifted him up and started massaging his throat and patting him on the back. Then he cried and it was okay again. But God help me, I will probably have PTSD from that moment when I feed him for awhile. That was incredibly scary. (Understatement.) I am so glad he was hooked up to monitors and that the nurses came in- I am also glad that some kind of strange instinct kicked in for me and I was able to get him to breathe. It want until the while thing was over that I totally freaked out. Ugh...yikes. Anyway, he recovered just fine, thank the Lord. So the boys are rally doing well. They had head ultrasounds on Monday to check for any brain bleeds, which came back negative. Rowan has a tiny, freckle-sized cyst in his brain, but it is one he will grow out of and is very common. It is not in a place that will do any damage, so it should take care of itself. They will get had ultrasounds again in a month. Hopefully they will come home shortly afterward! The nurses are talking about moving them to one room soon. I can't wait to see them together! I think when Rowan starts gaining more weight, they will look more identical. But if one is a little smaller than the other, maybe I won't get them confused. :-) Keaton is super excited about being a big brother, and asks if they are going to come home almost every day. Casey and I make videos for him when we are holding the his, so he can "meet" them. He is so confused about why they aren't home yet and why he can't see them. The neonatologist told us that when they come home, Keaton shouldn't touch them for a month or so...I think that may be impossible. We will try to be a careful as possible...I just don't know how to regulate that! In other news, I got permission to drive again, so I drive the van for the first time yesterday! I actually really like it! I don't feel like I'm driving a van, that's for sure. I'm driving myself to my doctor today...looks like I caught Keaton's cold. :-( I have to miss visiting the boys until I feel well again. I'm sad, but I have the NICU phone number and have called it twice since I can't be with the boys. Time to rest and get better. I miss my tiny dudes, though. I guess that's all for now. More soon! Ash