Baby Massage

I am way overdue for an update! I've been home alone with the babies a lot this week, so it's been kinda hard to find time. They are keeping me quite busy...imagine that. So, I'll touch on the most important points from the past week. Daddy gave both babies massages and they loved it. Research shows that preemies who get massaged grow faster than those who don't, so we're going to start massaging them as often as we can. Plus it's just FUN!

The rash on Holland's face, that started as a reaction to the tape, has evolved into full blown eczema and has spread over her whole face, as well as her arms and legs. It itches her terribly and she has figured out how to scratch, so we have to keep mittens on her, along with swaddling her arms in a blankie so she won't mess with it and make it worse. I've spent a lot of time researching and experimenting with different things to help her. What works??? Slathering her in Eucerin three times a day to keep it moisturized, wearing a t-shirt only, especially at night so she doesn't get too hot and sweat, and 1/2% hydrocortizone when it's gets especially red and itchy. And absolutely no tape or bandaids anywhere. It has looked pretty good for the past couple of days and I really hope it stays that way. Holland's cannula has actually been staying in pretty good without the tape. We just have it hooked behind her ears with the slidey thing in the back taped to keep it snug.

I've also done a lot of research regarding Eden's little spells. I don't know if I found the answer, or if they just stopped on their own, but I read something about Calcium and Phosphorus levels possibly causing seizures, so we discontinued her TCP (Tribasic Calcium Phosphorus) for a week and she stopped having spells. We started it back on Monday and they might be coming back. The past couple of nights John and I have noticed a couple little ones at night. They are shorter in duration, only happen when she is waking up, and we can stop them by changing her position, so they are not as scary as before. I'll have to check with the pediatrician to see what he thinks we should do. She definitely still needs calcium supplementation for her bones, so maybe we will switch to something different (like the calcium carbonate she was on before).

On a less "medical" note, both girls are really doing well. They are super cute and their personalities are really developing. Holly is a little fireball with a lot of energy. She is quick to flash her quirky grin and loves talking to mom and dad. Eden is a really sweet calm baby who loves to be held. She wakes up in a good mood in the morning with big smiles for Mom. In this picture Eden is looking a little perplexed because her sister keeps bopping her in the face.