I (Hope) was discharged and came home on Sunday. To say that Gwen and James were ecstatic to have me home is an understatement; they were over the moon, and there were lots of hugs and kisses. 

Calvin and Simeon are now 31 weeks, 3 days! A major concern at this premature age is for bleeding in the brain. So both Calvin and Simeon had routine 7-day head ultrasounds. Simeon's scan came back completely normal, but Calvin's revealed some variations with potential concerns - no clear bleeding, but some things that need further investigation and monitoring.

In general, Calvin and Simeon are doing well. They're now fed completely on my breastmilk via NG tube and are beginning to regain weight from post-birth losses. Both continue to breathe via CPAP, but remain in room air (so, no additional oxygen needed). This is wonderful news!!!

Ben and I have each been able to hold the boys for an hour or two at a time for only once a day. At this young age, the neonatologists have encouraged minimal stimulation for the first week. We just passed that milestone, so now we'll be able to hold them (called "kangaroo care") a couple times a day! More interaction will increase as the babies get older and bigger. After 5 weeks apart from Gwen and James, you can imagine how pulled between hospital and home that I feel for the needs of all four of our children. We imagine January and February will be very NICU-intense months!

This is such a full-on time for the whole family. My 5-week antepartum stay in the hospital is by comparison much shorter than our twins' long and logistically-complicated stay in the NICU. Please pray for stamina for me and Ben, Gwen and James, as well as my Mom (Kathy) who is staying to help us through this time.