Veteran's Day

It's hard to keep the days straight anymore.  Today seems more like Day 11 than it does Tuesday or Veteran's Day.  After digesting yesterday's news we decided to spend most of the day in the NICU today.  When we arrived, Scarlett was on the High Frequency Oscillator again.  She didn't tolerate the vent settings last night so they had to change out the machines.  Grayson was back under the Phototherapy light for his billirubin levels (8.8).  We weren't able to hold either of them today :-/

At Rounds, I asked the doctor which baby we should worry about more.  She replied, "Both.  Your babies are both extremely fragile.  They are having different issues but you should worry about them equally."

In times like this, I lean on God who made promises such as:

Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand. - Isaiah 41:10

They both had echocardiograms conducted today to look for PDA - Patent Ductus Arteriosus, In the womb, babies have a blood vessel connecting the two major arteries connected to the heart (aorta and pulmonary).  Typically, this duct closes shortly after birth, but when it doesn't it is called PDA.  It is a fairly common issue.  Both kids had very small openings left.  Technically Grayson's is smaller but neither of them are very concerning to the doctors.

We left them in great hands as they both have their Primary Nurses tonight, Kristy (Grayson) and  Kelsey (Scarlett).  At the time we left, there were some concerns about Scarlett's blood pressure, 55/18.  They were OK with the mean, but did not like how far apart those numbers are.

Here are pics from today.  Grayson hanging out under the lights:

Trish doing hand containment with Scarlett:

And here is a video from yesterday with Grayson's eyes wide open and sucking on the tube: