NOVEMBER 30 UPDATE

    
You are the God who performs miracles and you display your power to the people. 
 Psa 77:14

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 30 (two weeks, 4 days old)
29 WEEKS

Mckayla

Madilynn

Mackenzie

 McKayla will  be given indomethacin  because of her PDA but because she had a virus they need to make sure she is healthy enough to take the medicine.  She is off her IV after her scary respiratory issue and is back to 2 ml of mother's milk every three hours.  They will keep increasing her intake every feeding.

The doctor decided to give Madilynn medicine for her PDA.  She is getting 3 doses of indomethacin over 24 hours to help that to close up. She is on IV only now as they administer her medicine. She is having some goo in her eyes that the doctors will monitor.

Mackenzie will not need any medicine for her heart issue as it is determined that it was caused by an infection she had earlier and has resolved itself.  She is up to 19 ml per feeding.

Michael and Christine can only hold the babies during care time, which is every three hours when then get fed and changed.  They can take part in that if the babies have not had many alarms going off.  If the babies are at all stressed, they need to stay inside their isolettes with as little contact as possible to help their stress level decrease.

Mckayla weighs 1 pound, 14 oz.

Madilynn weighs 2 pounds, 1/2 oz

Mackenzie weighs 2 pounds

Pray that the medicine for the PDA will close that up successfully.  Pray there are no side effects to the medicine.  Pray that the babies will start to gain weight continuously now.  Pray that their little bodies will not stress out so that mommy and daddy can hold them every day skin to skin.  The skin to skin contact is critical for brain development among many other important developmental areas.

This NICU has 35 preemies in it.  Right after our miracle babies were born we saw a news crew in the room next to ours and Christine discovered that a baby born at 21 weeks was going home.  The baby had been in the NICU for 6 months.  It is phenomenal that these itty bitty babies are surviving and thriving.  These doctors and nurses have extra training to take care of these miracles from heaven and are truly a blessing to so many parents going through early delivery and subsequent complications.

MACKENZIE BABY C AND MCKAYLA BABY A

Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing that ye may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost. Romans 15:14

Mommy holding Mackenzie while the nurse changes her bedding

McKayla napping

Mackenzie holding daddy's pinkie

MOMMY AND HER ANGEL BABIES

Mommy getting to touch McKayla for the first time

Baby B Madilynn Elizabeth

Baby A Mckayla Grace

 But if I were you, I would appeal to God; I would lay my cause before him.  He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted.  Job 5:8-9

Baby C Mackenzie Karen

The teeny tiny diapers for the miracle babies.  Michael and Christine have each
changed a few of these teeny tiny diapers on their teeny tiny bottoms!

THE MIRACLE BABIES ARRIVAL

Pooh Bear is an important part of Jack's family!

Christine was admitted and the babies' hearts were monitored frequently. 
You can see the three heartbeats on the monitor.
Baby A is 151, Baby B is 142 and Baby C is 137

 And thou knowest not the way of the Spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child, even so thou knowest not the works of God who made them all.  Ecc 11:5

At 27 weeks these miracle babies were perfectly formed right down to the downy hair on their head and their teeny tiny fingers and toes.

The babies' were removed in A, B, C order.
This is Mckayla, Baby A.  It was a very involved process
delivering these babies.  There were about 25 doctors and nurses present.
All had a specific job and the right time to do it.  

Baby A Mckayla Grace. We told Jack she was waving at him.
He loves to look at pictures of the babies and ooohs and ahhhs over them.

Baby B Madilynn Elizabeth

Baby C Mackenzie Karen

PICTURES FROM THE JOURNEY

Jack is going to be a BIG brother to three sisters!

 The cards Christine made for her scavenger hunt.  She put us on two teams.  One for pink and one for blue.
Then she sent us all over looking for clues.  Then we came back and there were three boxes with three ultrasound pics and three GIRL outfits.  Triplets....shocking to say the least. 

 Baby A

 Baby B

 Baby C

NOVEMBER 28 UPDATE

For  with God nothing is impossible.  Luke 1:37

NOVEMBER 28 (two weeks and two days old)
29 WEEKS

All the babies have their eyes open now.  They each had sonograms done on their hearts and the doctor is not overly concerned since they are still so premature.  They will just wait and watch at this time. Pray that their heart issues will resolve on their own in due time. 

McKayla had another transfusion done today.  The x-ray of her lungs was totally clear.  So she is fine with that issue. Thank you for your prayers.    She had a virus and was on antibiotics. Her white blood cell count was good so she was able to fend it off.  She is still on IV instead of her mother's milk. 

They are all three on breathing tubes now.  All had alarms going off last night so none were able to be held and touched today.  Madilynn had 31 alarms go off last night; four were serious. Pray that the babies will stabilize so they can be held regularly. 

They gave Christine three blankies  to sleep with  so the miracle babies can have their mother's scent in their isolettes with them.

A real blessing:  Michael's boss called him in and told him to go to the hospital to be with his wife and babies.  They are going to work with him at being able to spend more time with his wife and babies.  This will be so helpful to Christine who has been staying at the Ronald McDonald house alone during the week and spending the days with the babies by herself. 

Thank you so much for your faithful intercession on behalf of our miracle babies also known as the angel babies by their momma. 

THREE BEAUTIFUL MIRACLE BABIES

27 WEEKS
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 12

The  miracle babies were delivered shortly after 3 p.m. on November 12, 2017.  Baby A weighed one pound, ten oz; Baby B weighed one pound, fourteen oz; and Baby C weighed two pounds. Baby A just about caught up to her sisters!   They all came out able to breathe but not quite enough to maintain oxygen levels so A and B have breathing tubes. Baby C is breathing on her own. 

Baby A is named  McKayla Grace, Baby B is Madilynn Elizabeth, and Baby C is Mackenzie Karen.

27 WEEKS (one day old)
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 13

Baby A McKayla is off the breathing tube and is using assisted oxygen through her nose.  We need to pray God's protection from a  myriad of things that can go wrong from errors on nurses and doctors part to infections and more. Pray Baby B Madilynn gets off her breathing tube soon.  They truly are miracle babies held in God's hand. 

27 WEEKS (two days old)
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 14

Baby B Madilynn was diagnosed with a heart murmur today.  Pray that it clears up on her own and won't need meds or surgery.  She is still on the breathing tube.  Baby C Mackenzie assisted oxygen was increased today.  Pray that the miracle babies do not have any brain bleeds.  Tomorrow they will be 72 hours  old and may be held skin to skin.  Christine changed Madilynn's diaper today.  All three are getting 2 ml every three hours of Christine's colostrum in a tube from mouth to stomach.  Phenomenal that they are not on IV.  Thank you prayer warriors. 

27 WEEKS (three days old)
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 15
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Christine was discharged today.  First time to go to the new house that Michael moved into while she was hospitalized.  Mckayla and Mackenzie are off the lights for jaundice.  Mackenzie is still under them.  Madilynn may be taken of the breathing tube and McKayla put back on.  Mackenzie did not digest all her milk today.  Pray that their livers start working and their lungs to strengthen and that Mackenzie can tolerate her milk better.  Pray that Christine does not over exert herself.  She is pretty sore.    Thank you!!

28 WEEKS (five days old)
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 17

We need to put the fervor we prayed for McKayla into the other two now.  McKayla is doing the best.  She may soon be the first to be held.  Madilynn and Mackenzie had alarms going off for low heartbeats and low oxygen.  We need God to heal Madilynn's heart murmur which is a PDA (patent ductus arteriosus) common heart defect in preemies. The vessel connecting the pulmonary artery to the descending aorta fails to close. It usually closes within hours or days of birth.     Thank you for interceding on the babies behalf. 

28 WEEKS (six days old)
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 18

The hospital just called and A Mckayla  and B Madilynn are doing great but C Mackenzie is under 24 hour close surveillance.  She has blood from her mouth and tube to stomach.  She also had a few episodes of choking.  They do not know what it causing this problem.  Please pray blood and choking stop and for doctors to determine what is causing it.

Update:  Mackenzie had no more episodes with bleeding or choking.  She had the best scores on oxygen and carbon dioxide readings today.  She had a good poopy diaper to get that bilirubin out as she is still under the lights.  Christine got to hold her while the nurse changed her bedding.  Christine gave her a lollipop of milk, a long q tip dipped in milk and put in her mouth.  She mouthed it very well. 
Prayers are working.  Thank you!

28 WEEKS (eight days old)
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 20

Madilynn still has the PDA.  The doctors will give her one more week before they discuss options.  They did put Mackenzie on the breathing tube now.  She has never been on it.  That has helped her not stress out so much.  Mackenzie has now developed a heart murmur that the doctor thinks is related to the blood and choking episodes.  He says it may have been an infection.  He hopes it will clear up on its own.  Mckayla is doing awesome.  Christine got to hold her for 2 hours and Madilynn for 45 minutes.  Mackenzie had a blood transfusion  today because of all the tests to figure out her bleeding issue.  They all had the lines removed from their belly buttons today and have PICC ( peripherally inserted central catheter) lines in.  Mackenzie's PICC line got infected and they had to move it.  All three had a brain scan done and all is well.  Next brain scan will be at 34 weeks. 

28 WEEKS (nine days old)
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 21

Christine got to hold Mackenzie today.  McKayla's PICC line got inflamed so they moved it to her hand.  She almost has her eyes open.  Christine is making tons of milk.  Too much for the hospital to store.  They are going to have to purchase a freezer to store it.  A great problem to have!  Babies got their pictures done today courtesy of March of Dimes and Love It Photography.  Christine was able to stay 10 hours with the miracle babies today. 

29 WEEKS (12 days old)
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 24

Mckayla has now had a blood transfusion and Madilynn will soon which will make that all three.  Through the night the babies get so relaxed alarms go off.  They  will soon have sonograms done on their hearts to determine what is the extent of the problem there.  Mackenzie is back on the breathing tube.  Christine did not get to hold any of them today.  Pray the lungs will continue to mature.  The doctors actually give them caffeine to help with their breathing.  Pray that the heart issues will be easily resolved.  Thank you for all your prayers on behalf of the miracle babies. 

29 WEEKS (13 days old)
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 25

Mckayla had a terrible episode today.  She had stopped breathing several times through the night.  This morning they really had to work on her to resuscitate her.  They decided to put her breathing tube back in and gave her fentanyl for the pain.  First side effect of fentanyl is respiratory distress and it completely closed off her airway.  She is now on IV, no more mother's milk, no more being touched or held for a few days until she stabilizes.  Please pray she stabilizes quickly so she can be held and fed her mother's milk. 

29 WEEKS (14 days old)
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 26

McKayla now has either a collapsed lung or pneumonia.  They will do another x ray to determine which.  The other two are stable.  Michael held Madilynn and Christine gave Mackenzie a bird bath.  Pray the McKayla's lung issue will resolve quickly with no further complications.  Thank you!!

IN THE BEGINNING....

Michael and Christine discovered they were going to be having a new little one in June, 2017 with a due date of February 9, 2018.   Jackson was going to be a big brother.  They kept their special news to themselves for a while.  At eleven weeks they had their first ultrasound and all looked well with the baby.  At nineteen weeks, they had a gender reveal ultrasound and planned a big celebration.  The scavenger hunt revealed the baby was going to be a GIRL with TWO  sisters.  There were three babies growing inside that had not showed up at the first ultrasound.  A set of identical twins sharing a placenta but having their own sacs  and a single with her own placenta and sac.  And for those of you who wonder, there were no fertility drugs involved.  One in 8500 chance of conceiving triplets naturally.               

They were referred to a larger hospital in a much larger metropolitan area.  The babies were named Baby A, Baby B, and Baby C.  It was soon discovered that Baby A had reverse flow in her umbilical cord.  The doctors told them that she would not survive without a miracle.  And if she were to pass this would adversely affect the other twin sharing the placenta and could also pass. The doctors discussed selective abortion to guarantee one healthy baby.    Michael and Christine chose to keep all three babies in the safest place for them for as long as possible.  Every week adds a ten percent survival rate.  28 weeks was the magic number for 90 percent chance of survival.

21 WEEKS
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 4

Baby A weighs 10 oz and Baby B and C weigh 13 oz.  A and B are the identical twins and A is the one with the reverse flow.  C is the single baby. 

22 WEEKS
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11

Baby A's blood flow volume in her body looks good even though the cord does not look like it would be supplying enough.  Her heart looks good.   Baby A weighs 11 oz and  Baby B weighs 17.6 oz  and Baby C weighs 21 oz.   We need another 5.5 weeks to get to 28 weeks.

23 WEEKS
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 18

Babies A, B, and C are all at a pound or over.  Baby A gained significant weight. Baby A weighs 16 oz, Baby B weighs 17.6 oz, and Baby C weighs 21 oz.    HALLELUJAH!  Her cord is still showing back flow. This could be due to coilage around her neck or a Downs syndrome.  Since the cord is wrapped around her neck, Christine will either be admitted to the hospital for twice daily monitoring or drive three times a week an hour and a half to the hospital for monitoring.   Pray that backflow decreases or stops altogether, the cord unwraps safely, and wisdom in making decisions. 

24 WEEKS
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 20

Christine will be admitted on Monday.  All three babies scored 6 out of 8 on the biophysical test.  This test scores heart rate, breathing, movement, muscle tone, and amniotic fluid level.  Keep praying for our miracle babies.

24 WEEKS
MONDAY, OCTOBER 23

Doctors want to take babies this week.  Survival is not very high.  Every week makes a huge difference.  Christine is admitted to the hospital and Michael is in the process of moving them from a duplex to a four bedroom house.  Baby A is still not getting enough nutrients even though she is gaining weight.  Pray for Baby A specifically to have enough nutrients to survive and thrive.  Pray they can stay in there as long as possible.

24 WEEKS
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 24

Doctors gave Christine steroid shots to strengthen babies lungs.  They will monitor them carefully.  Cord insertion of Baby A is till of concern to doctors.  She needs nutrients and blood flow.  They will be doing multiple tests.  Pray for positive outcomes, God's protection and healing, and to stay safe in mama for as long as possible.  They will check Baby A's umbilical cord on Thursday.  Miracles needed.  Three more weeks. 

25 WEEKS
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27

Backflow is still continuing in Baby A and now looks like Baby B may have the same issue now.  Christine is very discouraged.  Michael is in the midst of moving and is 1.5 hours from Christine.  A lot of prayers for many concerns.

25 WEEKS
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 31

Babies keep passing the non-stress tests.  Hearts are beating well.  They move a lot.  Christine can tell which baby is which by location.  The backflow issue now seems to be the placenta is pumping too much blood and thus the backflow.  This can make their hearts work too hard.  Pray for lungs to mature and babies to be healthy and ready to be born in a week or two.

Baby A's heart dropped too low.  They moved Christine to labor and delivery to monitor her.  They are giving her magnesium to help prevent neurological issues if born so early.  Please pray for our miracle babies.  One of the nurses tonight had Romans 12 tattooed on the nape of her neck.

25 WEEKS
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 2

Triplets are growing.  NICU wants them over 500 grams before birth.  Today Baby A weighs 609 grams = 21.5 oz, Baby B weighs 729 grams = 25.7 oz, and Baby C weighs 781 grams = 27.5 oz.  Baby A and C showed breathing movement.  Baby B wasn't in a position to see if she was.  26 weeks tomorrow. Keep praying for our miracle babies.  Your intercession is greatly appreciated. 

26 WEEKS
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3

Babies had another biophysical test today.  A and C scored 10 out of 10.  B scored 8 out of 10 because she wouldn't be still enough to see her breathing movement.  The miracle babies are doing miraculously well.  Keep prayers for them.

26 WEEKS
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 7

Babies passed their biophysical test today with flying colors.  All babies scored 10 our of 10.  Baby B was showing off by breathing and hiccupping at the same time.  Baby A is doing great despite her reverse flow.  Doctors are amazed at how well she is doing.  We are taking it day by day.  Keep up the prayers you wonderful warriors. 

27 WEEKS
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 10

I was able to observe the ultrasound of the biophysical test today.  Once again they passed with flying colors.  Ii asked the tech how often babies practice their breathing and she said usually not until 30 weeks but these babies are rock stars.  Our miracle babies are continuing to amaze the doctors.  They are 27 weeks today.  Keep praying please.  As long as Baby A is doing ok they will keep them in mama as long as possible. 

27 WEEKS, 2 DAYS
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 12

Baby A's heart rate dropped again.  Then Christine started having contractions. They are prepping her for a C section now. Pray for the miracle babies and Michael and Christine.