Tag: Cassie Vanderwall

The V-5 are 2 months old!

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The V-5 are 2 months old today!

At these monthly milestones, I look back and truly cannot believe all that we have experienced in the last 2 months. It seems like just yesterday that I was trying to figure out how to change the diaper of a 2lb baby in an isolette without lifting them, while being blinded by their “bili light.” Today, I can walk right up to their crib, move a few cords, and lift them up to comfort them. I am eager for the day for them to come home where we can snuggle gown, glove and cord free!

It is also amazing to watch them grow and develop. We knew at birth that they had defining characteristics, but with each day they look more and more different. We thought we would share this growth one-by-one.

Big Brother Theo

TheoSmileyFrog

Theodore Joseph
Theodore Joseph
Theo keepin' it real
Theo keepin’ it real

Theo celebrated his 2-month birthday with a celebratory surgery. He had his reanastomosis today where they reconnected his ileum, or the lowest portion of his small intestine. His surgery went very well and they are planning to extubate him in the next 24 hours. He had his spontaneous bowel perforation on day 3 of life, so we were very happy to say goodbye to the smelly ostomy bags today. Now, at 6lbs and 7oz this little boy is a fantastic eater and we have no doubt that once he is recovered from his procedure he is in the running to be the first or second one home.

Big Sister Bella

Isabella2

Isabella Marie
Isabella Marie
Kung-Fu Bella
Kung-Fu Bella

Isabella has been our rock with no significant issues from day one. She has become the sleepy one of the bunch, nicknamed Sleeping Bella, aka Sleeping Beauty, and has maintained her quiet personality. She is learning how to eat by mouth and is a champ when it comes to taking a bottle. Breastfeeding is not her forte partially because she’s a biter- not fun. This little beauty is now weighing in at 5lbs and 14oz and leads the girlies in size. A few of the nurses bet that she will be the first one home.

Ms. Lillian Grace

Lillian1

Lillian Grace
Lillian Grace
Lily's Trademark Smirk
Lily’s Trademark Smirk

Little Lily continues to amaze us with her resiliency. We have had many scares following her grade 2 IVH with surrounding PVL, but she has showed no signs that this is hindering her development. She is one of the stronger eaters in the bunch and her growth has also been stable. She now weighs 5lbs and 13oz.

Kali-Mae

Kali

Kali Mae
Kali Mae
Kali's impression of Derek Zoolander
Kali’s impression of Derek Zoolander

This little monkey maintains her feisty personality. She has been struggling with GER the last several weeks, and is now on a formula for spit-ups. It was quite difficult to see this happen, since breast milk has so many benefits. But, when I see how much better she feels and looks, I know it was the right choice. We are hoping that she will quickly grow out of it and be back on mommy’s milk soon. Kali is on the smaller size, but is holding her own with the other ladies in the room at 5lbs and 12 oz.

Baby Ellie

Elliott2

Elliott Rose
Elliott Rose
Our little Peanut
Our little Peanut

Our little Princess Ellie also celebrated her 2-month birthday with a reanastamosis. She had her jejunum reconnected and was able to be extubated today. It was wonderful to see her breathing on her own and even smiling after they removed the tube. She truly is a tough cookie. Her tolerance for pain and her ability to self-soothe are amazing. We have no doubt that this was only a speed bump on her journey home. She is our little peanut at 5lbs and 7oz, but keeps pace with Theo in the eating department and definitely may beat the other girls home.

We are so grateful for the continued well wishes and prayers for the V-5. Hopefully, in another month we will be snapping these photos from the comfort of our own home!

7 weeks old

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Time is flying by here in the Madison NICU. The V-5 are now 7 weeks old, and a corrected gestational age of 36 weeks, or 9 months.

Our family has been very busy the last few weeks. The quints spend their days learning to eat by mouth, snoozing and growing. They are all approaching the 10th percentile for weight-for-age with an increasing trajectory. The ladies and Theo are at or near 5lbs:

Bella is
Bella is 5lbs 1oz
Lily is
Lily is 4lbs 15.5oz
Kali is 4lbs 14oz
Kali is 4lbs 14oz
Ellie is
Ellie is 4lbs 10oz
Theo is
Theo is 5lbs 3oz!

We are so excited to watch their progress as they learn how to take a bottle and breastfeed. Theo takes the cake…literally, for being the bottle and breastfeeding champ! We are fairly certain that if we let him, he would chug his bottle down in 3 seconds flat. The ladies are also progressing in their pre-feeding and feeding skills. Lily is by far the most interested, followed closely by Bella. Ellie and Kali are still quite content with having their food trickle into their bellies.  The quints have to be able to meet 80% or more of their nutritional needs by mouth before they can have their feeding tubes pulled. They also have to be able to sustain their weight and continue to grow appropriately on p.o. (by mouth) feeds before they can come home.

There are other goals that they must meet prior to coming home. They must outgrow their apnea and bradycardia of prematurity, or their “A’s and B’s”. Currently, they are all attached to monitors that measure their heart and respiration rates, as well as, their oxygen saturation. All of the kids continue to have moments when their heart rates drop (bradycardia) and their respiration rates continue to fluctuate. The only quint that is truly struggling with this task is Kali.

Daddy and his Kali Monkey
Daddy and his Kali Monkey

The medical team has assured us that this is due to her GERD (Gastrointestinal Esophageal Reflux Disease) and not lung or heart disease. We did find out via an ECHO last week that Kali does have a small PDA (Patent ductus arteriosis) and a muscular Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD), but again they have told us that these are unrelated to her difficulties maintaining her oxygen saturation and that both will close as she ages.

The quints have successfully accomplished the third task required for coming home- maintaining their temperatures outside of the isolette. All of V-wall 5 are in cribs! Ellie and Theo have larger cribs because they are in a larger room. The other ladies are in smaller tub-like cribs. Nevertheless, they are champs at regulating their temperature. This means they can come out to play more often!!

Bella with Uncle JD
Bella with Uncle JD
Grandpa T and Lily Bug
Grandpa T and Lily Bug
Whispering Sisters (Bella & Lily)
Whispering Sisters (Bella & Lily)

Daddy and Mommy have been busy, too. We have been finishing up their nursery with all five cribs, sorting and color-coding outfits and blankies, and cleaning and child-proofing the house. We also recently bought a 2012 Honda Odyssey from Zimbrick Honda, here in Madison. They were fantastic and met us at our price-point. We are very happy with our baby mobile; complete with 8 seats, and five of which have a LATCH for car-seat safety.  Many thanks to Justin and the Gurnee Police Department for helping us to install our seats!

2012-Honda-Odyssey-Exterior-Alabaster-Silver-Metallic

It will still be a few more weeks before anyone comes home for the reasons mentioned above. Ellie and Theo will have their bowel surgeries, anastomosis, the first week in October and then will have to stay in the hospital until they heal and can eat normally again. While we wait to welcome our five little miracles home, we spend our days at the NICU doing what we can to support their growth and development.

Homecoming

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LoadEmUp

The V-7 were reunited this past week. On Sunday, Theo and I landed in Madison after an uneventful flight. Theo was a champ and slept most of the way.

Theo is happy to be home
Theo is happy to be home sporting his new do!

It was quite emotional to walk into the Madison NICU and realize that we were all here, and here to stay. I just stood for a brief moment at the entry way and could see all of the entrances to their rooms and my husband standing right in the middle. My mind took me home to when some day soon I would be able to stand in the hallway and peer into their nursery and do this exact same thing. Needless to say, many happy tears followed.

WhatsAStuffedDisneyAnimalGottaDoToGetSomeGrubAroundHere
Our 6-seater table from the wonderful Tille family featuring new stuffed animals from Grandpa T

The following day, our family joined us for the reunion on Labor Day. We also were welcomed by NBC, ABC and Fox/CBS who helped to capture this exciting event for our family, but also for the city of Madison as we are the first quints to reside here. Our interviews with NBC and ABC are featured below:

The remainder of the week has truly flown by. The V-5 celebrated 1 month on Tuesday and in the NICU this celebration includes a battery of tests. All of our kiddos had repeat head ultrasounds and eye examinations to assess their eyes’ maturity, and to rule out retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). Also, Bella had an echocardiogram to investigate her persistent murmur. All of the quints have murmurs, but we now know that Bella does not have a PDA, Patent Ductus Arteriosis. Theo also had an examination of his intestines to see if they could begin refeeding and wake up his large intestine, just like his little sister, Ellie.

All of the tests brought reassuring news, except for one. Our little Lily Bug had minor PVL, which is Periventricular Leukomalacia. The good news is that her grade 2 brain bleed is resolving and healing, but this new finding of PVL was disheartening. PVL is an injury in the brain that affects the white-matter neurons. Infants with PVL most often display deficits related to motor control (movement), developmental delay and are at a greater risk of cerebral palsy and epilepsy later in life. Only time will tell if our little Lillian will face further challenges.

Lily and Daddy Enjoying K-Care
Lily and Daddy Enjoying K-Care

All of our little miracles are now a corrected gestational age of 34 weeks, which means we get to truly start focusing on feeding and growing. Enter this excited Mama who cannot wait to begin truly breastfeeding. No offense to my trusty pump, but nothing beats nuzzling with your babies. The next few weeks will help us to further assess Lily’s potential for feeding and motor issues, as well as, reveal our kiddos’ abilities to suck, swallow and breathe- a touch task for preemies.

bouncy seats

It has been quite a busy week, but overall the Vanderwall family is over-joyed to be reunited. We are forever indebted and grateful for the all of the new and donated items that awaited ua at our home. I have had so much fun going through all of the items, organizing and partaking in some long-overdue nesting. So, thank you once again from the bottom of our hearts for all of the love, support, financial contributions and gifts that we have received. I can confidently say that the quints now have everything they need for when they arrive home. The only remaining item is a way to get them home. Next up on the to-do list…the V-7 mobile, or perhaps we’ll give new meaning to a VW bus!

Two Simple Acts

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Mama Kanga and her Roo's, Lily (right) & Kali (left)
Mama Kanga and her Roo’s, Lily (right) & Kali (left)

When becoming a new parent, best practices, guidelines, and all of the “must-do’s” flood our mind.  All mom’s and dad’s want the best for their children. I find peace in getting back to basics and focusing on two simple acts: Kangaroo care and Breastfeeding.  Both of these can be practiced whether a parent takes their newborn home shortly after birth or for those trying to learn how to be mom and dad in a NICU setting.

Kangaroo care is an endearing term used to describe skin-to-skin holding.  This snuggle time has benefits for both mom, dad and baby. The newborn benefits from skin-to-skin holding because they learn their parents’ scents. The sense of smell is the first to develop and is quite strong, which is why many encourage the use of scent cloths. Additionally, the baby’s vitals mimic those of the person, which is holding them and can help to regulate their heart and respiration rates.  When mom is caring for her baby this way, the infant can be soothed by the sound of her heartbeat since it is what they heard for many months while in utero. Kangaroo care can foster quality sleep for infants. This is why it is typically done for at least 90 minutes at a time. We know that sleep is critical for a newborn, or preemie because it encourages both growth and healing. If time is of the essence, swaddling and hold the baby is also beneficial and many hospitals have “cuddlers” who are happy to help.

"Nana B" & Bella cuddling
“Nana B” & Bella cuddling

Kangaroo care also benefits parents as a unique bonding experience. One is able to simply hold, love and adore their baby. This is also a great time to sing, read or gently speak to the baby while they drift to sleep. A mother can specifically benefit from this practice because oxytocin is released during infant bonding.

Oxytocin is known as a love hormone, but plays a significant role in building, maintaining and letting down a mother’s milk. It also can cause uterine contractions that help the uterus return to its normal state. Therefore, it is evident how the first act leads to our second- breastfeeding.

The breast is best! Breast milk is often referred to as “liquid gold,” due to its nutritional superiority over other methods of feeding. A mother’s milk may vary in composition of nutrients, but on average it is 4.5 % fat, 7.1 % carbohydrate and 0.8-0.9 % protein. It is produced in the body by the mammary glands by pulling sugar, protein, cholesterol and other nutrients from the mother’s bloodstream. Therefore, good nutrition is also very important during the “4th trimester.” Most hospitals recommend fortifying breast milk to increase the calories from the natural 20 calories per ounce, to 22-24 calories per ounce. These fortifiers can also supplement the baby with much needed vitamins and minerals.

UnknownBreast milk is also unique because it contains IgA, or Immunoglobulin A, which is critical to helping to build the infant’s immune system. IgA is quite high in breast milk from day 10 through the 7th month. Additionally, if the mother is breastfeeding, the child can expose the mother to their bacteria and in turn the mother will create antibodies to fight the bacteria, which in turn will be delivered back to the baby via the breast milk.

I have never breast-fed; I have only pumped, but I certainly hope to in the future. The act of breastfeeding is a remarkable bonding experience that also provides an outlet for giving the infant attention. Pumping, with a caretaker present, is also not bad and can grant mother’s a few minutes alone to think, pray, or even grab a quick snack. Another benefit of breast feeding for mothers is that it can foster post-partum weight loss to help the mother achieve a healthier weight after pregnancy. Typically, mothers burn 300 to 500 Calories when breastfeeding or pumping 8 times per day, or every 3 hours. Again, it increases oxytocin which assists the uterus in returning to normal size. For further tips and information on breastfeeding, visit La Leche League.

Both of the acts described above may be simple on paper, but more difficult to practice in daily life. I hope the benefits listed above encourage mom’s and dad’s to explore these ways to attend to, bond and communicate with their baby.

Bon Voyage!

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Prop Plane

This has been the week of travel for the Vanderwall quints. Isabella and Elliott celebrated their 3 week birthday by departing for a Madison NICU.  Early Saturday morning, August 24, we packed up Bella and Ellie into a single isolette and began our transition. I joined the sisters, a nurse and a respiratory therapist for the trek on the medical transport prop plane.

Elliott & Bella are ready to head home
Elliott & Bella are ready to head home

It was an emotional 24 hours to say the least and got a good taste of what it may be like to go back to work and leave my little ones at home. I truly felt heartbroken to leave Lily, Kali and Theo for that day and a half. Tears flowed until we boarded the plane. I am happy to say that my heart perked right up when we landed near green grass and fresh water lakes. It also was such a blessing to see how excited Frank was to welcome our daughters home.

The girlies handled the flight and transition really well. Halfway through the flight Bella wet the bed through her diaper, living up to her latest nickname of “Bella Blowout,” and Ellie was not happy about it. For the remainder of the flight, Ellie proceeded to kick her sister to the side of the isolette. By the time we reached Wisconsin, Bella’s face was nearly plastered to the side of the chamber. Firsthand witness to sisterly love! Now settled into their new NICU home, they continue to advance in their feedings and are getting to be better breathers!

After a quick night in my own bed, I boarded a plane on Sunday morning to return to the remaining quints in Arizona. My Mama mission was and is to continue to urge the medical team towards quick, yet safe, transfers home.

Lily and Kali’s turn was early this morning. They have been ready to head home since yesterday morning but there wasn’t any room in the inn… or the new NICU.

Lily on her tummy ready to go see Daddy.
Lily on her tummy ready to go see Daddy.
Kali is bundled up and ready to go!
Kali is bundled up and ready to go!

So, we packaged these little ladies up this morning and watched as the ambulance drove away.

Loading up Kali & Lily

Again, tears flowed.  Although it truly is a bittersweet event and more of a “see you later” than a goodbye, I learned that a parent’s unconditional love does not make sense. There simply is no logic in my love for our children.

Lily and Kali also arrived safe and sound in Madison. They are now enjoying their new homes in a room right next door to their sisters. The nurses reported to me that the plane ride was uneventful, which is exactly what I was hoping for.

Now, all but one are only 20 minutes from their final destination- our home. Theo and I will remain in Arizona until he is also ready to get his wings. He is doing very well and has achieved 4lbs!

Clean baby Theo
Big Brother, Theo

He and I have already logged quite a few hours of Kangaroo care, which I believe has definitely helped his breathing to get stronger. It is amazing to watch how his vitals normalize as we snuggle together. It also helps me to continue to provide “liquid gold” for all of these hungry babies… as evidenced by the overflowing freezer dedicated to the V-5’s breakfast, lunch and dinner!

BM Freezer

So, that is the latest and greatest regarding the V-5. Prayers remain that all five and mommy and daddy will be reunited soon! Please join me in praying that we will all be back in Madison by Saturday to celebrate their 1 month birthday!

Elliott Rose

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As many of you remember, Ms. Elliott Rose, formerly known as Baby E, has been quite the fighter from day one. Today, she continues to fight and has pulled ahead of the quints and is now breathing on her own! She can even hold her own pacifier and has successfully taken milk from a bottle on one occasion. God’s handiwork and healing is truly miraculous. This little peanut is still the smallest of the bunch, but you wouldn’t know it by her resiliency.

Ellie Rose is another fabulous self-soother. She will lie wide awake for an hour if you let her just looking about her isolette, chewing on her feeding tube and exploring her face with her miniature hands. She also is quite the smiler and can steal your heart in a minute. Of all the quints, she knows our voices the best, which could melt anyone’s heart.

Elliott also loves bath time and being clean. She enjoys being snuggled in her blankets and nest, but will bust out of her swaddle like Houdini if she wants to.  We are so proud of our little Rose for how she has bounced back from her obstacles early on.

Praise God for His mercy on Ellie Rose and please continue to pray for her health and healing.

Kali Mae

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ATTENTION WORLD: Watch out for this one.

Kali is far and away my pick for “most likely to get her own way”.  She possesses the lethal persuasion combination of a 10/10 rated puss-in-boots face and a 10/10 rated ability to throw an international-crisis-level temper-tantrum. With her ability to attack from any angle at a moments notice she will undoubtedly be a handful.

Speaking of handful, it was surreal the first time I held Kali, because she literally fit into one of my hands. I am in awe of life because of the incredible intricacies of the human body and how they are replicated to scale in infants. I could hold her in one hand, but she already had perfectly crafted fingernails (on her pinky too!), footprints, eyebrows, a heart, lungs, intestines, and even a little itty-bitty tongue! Absolutely incredible.

Ok. Enough from me. Pictures!!!

Quick Kali Status Update: Little Kali is doing very well right now and continues to grow. Currently she’s up to about 2.5 pounds. Please pray she continues to tolerate her feedings so she can gain weight, and that her lungs continue to strengthen so they can function on their own.

Until next time. Stay classy San Diego.

Lillian Grace

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Lillian Grace is one tough cookie. She has certainly had one of the more rough transitions to life outside of Mommy. This little love bug has faced breathing issues, a puncture in her lung, a brain bleed and an infection scare. But, she has conquered all of them! She is now leading the pack of ladies in growth and is one of the stronger breathers. You will notice below that she has fewer photos than the rest of the V-5. We did not want to bother her while she was healing, so we have some catching up to do now that she is well.

Little Lily has Daddy’s light hair, but Mommy’s nose. She is definitely a cutie like the rest! Our little Lily Bug is a great self-soother. Once you put on her little Lady Bug hat she is as happy as can be. She also cannot stand dirty diapers and she will let you know it. The minute she wets her drawers, she’s wailing. However, once you clean her up, she’s good to go.

If you click on an image, it will give you a full-screen slideshow of all the pictures.

We are so proud of Lillian and very thankful that God has granted her grace and has helped her to heal from her ailments. Please pray that His hand remains over Lillian and the rest of our Quints, so that they will continue to grow stronger and be able to return home together.

Isabella Marie

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Big sister, Isabella Marie, is the oldest girl but one of the smallest at birth. She is our “I don’t do drama” queen. This blonde Bella has very keen senses of hearing and sight. When the others’ start sounding their alarms, or she has had enough photos for one day the little hands go up and shield her little eyes and ears. Bella also takes the cake (literally) as our best eater and grower. She is tolerating 6 times as much milk as her siblings.  “Beautiful Marie” gets her looks from her Daddy with her light hair, long face and tendency to crinkle her forehead. We are excited to introduce you to our little Bella Bean.

If you click on an image, it will give you a full-screen slideshow of all the pictures.

Not pictured above:

  • When Daddy gets the camera too close or her neighboring brother causes a racket, little Bella flashes her hands Vogue-style until peace resounds. Her little spirit finger-spread has caught on in this NICU pod as her signature move.
  • Our big sis also knows how to grab your attention. She’ll hold her breath just long enough to get mom or dad to pay her a visit and then rebounds back to healthy limits.

We are so thankful that Bella has been the most well of the bunch, evading spontaneous ruptures and breathing issues.  Prayer requests for Isabella include her continued tolerance of her feedings, as well as, sustained growth and development.

Keep coming back to meet Lily, Kali and Ellie, too!

Baby Theo

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Theo is quite possibly, in our unbiased opinion, the cutest little infant baby-boy in the history of the world. It’s amazing how at just 31 weeks of age he is already showing quite a personality. It’s also amazing how much of a prototypical boy he can be at times. Here is a snapshot of  sweet little Theodore Joseph who has more than stolen mommy and daddy’s hearts. (If you click on an image, it will give you a full-screen slideshow of all the pictures).

 

Not pictured above:

  • In an unprecedented incident, during the night, Theo escaped out of his little bed, pulled himself across his isolette, and positioned himself right in front of one of the entry portholes. Apparently, he thinks he’s ready to go home :-)
  • We were photographing Theo and he felt the session was running a bit long. We kid you not, he looked right into the camera, conjured up an epic scowl for his little face, and then flipped us the bird. The picture was too obscene for this blog, but it was all captured in high-definition. We’re quite positive it will resurface in the years to come, accompanied by much laughter.
  • When Dad finally decided to jump in for one of Theo’s diaper changings, Theo made sure it was an unforgettable experience – if you catch our drift, literally :-) Welcome to fatherhood!

We hope you have enjoyed the pics and stories of our precious little Theo.

Please pray for his continued health, well being, and many smiles and blessings to come.

Stay tuned for photo galleries of all Theo’s little sisters!