24 hours of firsts!!

My babies are growing up too fast! How can I say that when they are only ten days old and less than 4 pounds? I guess it's just part of that crazy mom gene that I got passed to me from every direction.

Last night we did baths, very exciting. Ben and Michael got sponge baths because they still have IVs, but Delia got a big girl swaddle bath in the tub because she is IV free! Ben and Delia both loved their bath, except for getting their bottoms washed, and Michael really wasn't so hot on it at all. Maybe things will improve. I hope it gets easier because it took close to two hours to bathe everyone, and the nurse said that was faster than she expected. Good grief!

Side note - there are THREE NICU nurses from Ethan's home town of Oran (population 1,200). One girl several years older than Ethan, one who was in our nephew Zack's class, and the little sister of one of Ethan's good friends. Isn't that so strange, a town that small has that many nurses that specialize in babies? Works good for us :)

I also started "recreational" nursing yesterday, which entails going through the motions while they are getting tube fed. Ben isn't quite ready yet but Delia and Mike both did really well with it. We'll keep doing it about once a day for a while, no one has talked about when we move to the next step but that's OK. I'm content for now!

And to top off the day, everyone got clothes! They look a little silly because they are swimming in even the preemie clothes, but it's a big step because it means they are closer to being able to maintain their own temps. The heat in the incubators is getting slowly turned down to room temperature as they adjust to clothes and blankets.

On the medical front, everyone is doing well. Ben got off the jaundice light today, so everyone is light free, and Ben will hopefully lose his nasal cannula tomorrow so that he'll be oxygen free like the others. Everyone is going up in feedings by 3mL a day, and Delia is off her IV so she is all tube feed. Michael will hopefully get rid of his tomorrow. And everyone is growing at a good pace:

Ben: 3lb 12 oz (+ 4 oz since birth)
Delia: 3lb 9 oz (+ 2 oz since birth)
Michael: 3lb 6 oz (+ 6 oz since birth)