33 Weeks, forward strides and hurdles

Since Friday, where Austin's infection was a "touch and go" into the bad zone, it really hit home with a lot of his nurses.  It's almost always better to learn of the seriousness of the condition after the fact, and every nurse in charge of Austin's care has remarked about just how bad it got.  Perhaps one of the worst things about the ordeal was that he didn't lead on to how bad it was getting for him until it got really, really bad.
On a more positive note, he's been responding very well to his antibiotics, although he seems to miss his feedings quite a bit (I think I mentioned this before).  However, he's been taken off of his CPAP again because his problems are not affecting his respiratory function, and he still seems to be gaining weight somehow, now weighing in at a hefty 4.5 lbs!  He looks bigger too, and seems no worse for the wear through all of this, so we're glad that he's such a trooper.
Since Malia's resurgence of brady/de-sat episodes, she remains on her CPAP and still has an occasional brush with a low saturation or heart rate or both.  When we came in this morning, she was in the middle of one such episode, and it was a little too low for comfort.  Unfortunately, she's still to immature to handle this on her own.  But that's the worst of her condition...  Our doctor somewhat nonchalantly told us yesterday that they weren't hearing her murmur any longer, and that he thinks that her PDA has resolved itself.  I guess we weren't expecting a huge celebration for such a milestone, but it certainly is big news in the Malia side.  The nurses said that sometimes these things go in and out during the resolution, but the fact that her murmur was undetectable (even to this untrained ear!) is quite a relief.  Perhaps Miss Malia will be our first kid home...

As for Austin though, the hospital called today and said they would like to transport him over to CHOC for followup on his intestinal issue.  On the surface, this is not the best news, particularly in the fact that our kids are now in different places.  But it also signifies that he's progressed to the weight threshold that they feel they can accurately diagnose whether he has Hirschsprung's disease.  While his weight is still barely there, they feel that since he has not passed the remainder of the barium in his bowel, and that he is responding well to the antibiotics to stem the infection, it is an appropriate time to diagnose and determine whether he will need surgery.

Austin @ 33w0d

He always liked a good swaddle!

It will certainly be hard having our babies in two different places, but we are ready to move forward with Austin's care and get him going on whatever care he needs.  He continues to amaze the doctors as he emerges from his infection, and his transport to CHOC should really be seen as a step in the right direction.  It will be a new environment for Cheryl and I to get used to, as the stories we've heard tell of a more chaotic NICU than the one at Hoag.  Let's hope it will be a short stay, and that it will catapult him into his readiness for home!