Conner = Ladies Man

 I couldn't help but to most Conner's latest picture. Check out this pose he was giving his nurse :) 

He loves nurse Amy. 

Handsome Little Boys

As the boys grow and develop they have started to truly show their natural male instincts. Chase will literally hold his breath, make the monitors go off and as soon as the female nurse comes he starts breathing again. Conner will hold off on pooping for a day just until their about to give him a suppository and as soon as the diapers off he explodes everywhere. Conner had to get a new incubator because his old one needed to be hard core sanitized. Boys will be boys :) 


The boys both were started on steroids yesterday for their lungs. Conner is now officially a 4 pound baby and has been given the clear to wear clothes. So, I am doing laundry as I write this. They have called in a GI(gastrointestinal) specialist for Chase's liver. He has been struggling with eating and as long as he's not on full feeds he's been receiving TPN's through his IV. Well, TPNs can cause liver damage from long term use. I will keep ya'll posted on what the specialist says. On a happy note Chase is up to 4ml every 3 hours so slowly he is catching up to Conner who is off TPNs and all IV fluids with 30 ml every 3 hours. 

Here are some super cute pictures of them taken this week. 

Chase Michael Bourque

December 2011

Conner James Bourque

December 2011

Two Months Old

Chase Michael 

Two months old 

3 pounds 12 ounces

Chase fighting his C pap on December 14th 

Crossing his heart December 22nd 

Tummy time December 25th

Conner James

Two months old

3 pounds 14 ounces

Sucking his fingers December 14th

Peeking at Daddy December 22nd 

Holding Daddy's hand December 22nd

A True Christmas Blessing

I know I haven't posted in awhile and I apologize we have had family in and out along with some house issues.

The boys are now two months old and Michael and I got a true blessing today. The doctor gave us the clear to hold both boys today. 

 I got to hold Conner for about an hour and half. He was so calm and fell right to sleep until he got hungry then he was trying to help himself to lunch :) Conner is still on the conventional ventilator. He has tried the C pap twice now and did pretty good but he ended up getting a case of pnuemonia and the doctors felt it was best to keep him on the vent while getting antibiotics. He will be getting another round of steroids to help with lung development later this week. Conner is up to 30ml (an ounce) every 3 hours.  

Michael got to hold Chase for about 45 minutes today. Chase enjoyed snuggling with Daddy and was very interested in his chest hair :) Chase is now on what they call high flow oxygen. He is breathing on his own but the oxygen is pushed in through his nose to remind him to breath. Chase has started to eat a little bit more since his surgery. He is now getting 2ml every 3 hours. 

One Step Forward....Three Steps Back

So, Chase's surgery was a success and his blood pressure and breathing rates have improved, however his feedings have regressed. The doctors had stopped feeds for his surgery. The day after they began feeding him again and they kept getting back up in the tube. They had to drop back down to 1ml every 3 hours to actually get it to go in. We are up to 1ml every hour now, so it's a start back to where we were.

Conner was doing amazing on his vent settings last week he spent last Saturday and Sunday on the c pap but Sunday night it proved to be to much and he needed a break so they put him back on the conventional vent. Tuesday he was back on the pressurized oscillator. The nurse said today that she expects them to put him back on the conventional vent tomorrow to get back to where we were on the c pap.

Parenthood has proven to be a very serious roller coaster ride and we aren't even 7 weeks in yet.

Chase's Surgery

I didn't get time to post before his surgery, but Chase has his PDA surgery Tuesday, December 6th. He did amazing during his surgery. He was able to stay on the conventional ventilator the whole time and the doctors/surgeons were very impressed by his resilience. Michael and I were there to be with him during his surgery and to watch Conner act up the whole time. 

Here are the pictures I took that morning 

Conner James 

December 6th, 2011

Go LSU! Conner loves to snuggle with the tiger his daddy brought him.  

Chase Michael 

December 6th, 2011

Pre Op

His mouth is hanging open cause of how the vent is sitting in his mouth. Rest assured it does close fully. :)

Chase has a mighty tight grip for being so small. Every time I went to walk away he would grasp harder.

Forward Progress

This week has been another week of forward progress. Both boys are continuing to grow. Chase is continuing to increase his feeds and coming down some more on his oscillator settings. Conner has been Conner, he has finally managed to pull every single medical device off/out of him. Friday night Conner successfully removed the adhesive around his ventilator tube and removed the whole tube from his body. The nurses were unaware of Conner's activities until he managed to get it fully out and panicked. Saturday morning they moved Conner to a c-pap. It basically just shoves oxygen into his nose to encourage him to breath and he did great with it. He is back on the conventional ventilator now, but they will continue to extend his c pap time until he manages to hold his own continuously.

Chase is scheduled for surgery again this week, a vein in heart commonly referred to as a PDA has gotten bigger and is requiring a clamp. The doctors will go in between his ribs and insert the clip around the vein. When we find out the exact date I will update ya'll. Conner is getting an echo tomorrow to check his heart for the same thing, but last echo he got showed it was closed so fingers crossed.

Conner's First Bath

 Michael and I had the opportunity to give Conner his first bath yesterday, November 30th. 

 He loved getting his back cleaned :) 

 Daddy help me! The whole time I was washing his back he was  staring at Michael :) 

 I think he enjoyed this position a lot more than laying on his belly,  he could stare at us while we were cleaning him. 

 Of course, Conner's favorite part was when nurse Jane convinced Michael to put lotion on him. 

Growing Boys :)

 Chase Michael 

 5 weeks old 

 2 pounds 6 ounces 

 Enjoying some tummy time November 28th, 2011 

 Conner James 

 5 weeks old 

 2 pounds 8 ounces 

 Sleeping like a pro :) 

Positive News

Yesterday, November 27th, after 5 weeks of not eating Chase's doctors were given the clear by surgery to begin feedings. They have started him off at 1ml every 3 hours and so far he is tolerating it very well. Chase was in what Michael calls a "milk coma" yesterday and resting peacefully. We let Chase rest yesterday and spent a good bit of time laughing at Conner. Conner is becoming very alert as he continues to grow stronger. Conner will open his eyes and look in the direction of voices/sounds. Conner also made a lovely mess for his nurse while she was changing him. And to think a month ago we were praying for poop...now it doesn't seem to stop. 

Happy Thanksgiving 2011

 Thanksgiving Day is a day to take a break and remember all the things and people we are so very thankful for in our lives. This year, Michael and I are truly blessed with two very precious little boys who are continuing to grow and thrive. 

 Chase Michael 

 November 24th: One Month Old 

 2 pounds 3 ounces 

 Chase has dropped on his ventilator settings and is staying between 40-60% oxygen 

(normal room air is 21%) 

 Chase's respiratory therapist brought Chase a little friend to keep him company. The respiratory therapist has a special place in his heart, Chase keeps surprising all the doctors with his strength and resilience. 

 The nurses are using Chase's little friend to keep his eye mask on. Now that Chase is feeling better his personality is starting to come out and in the NICU staff's words, "Chase is truly Conner's twin."

 We are still waiting for Chase's ostomy to show some evidence of the surgery's success (poop coming out) If it stays the same over the weekend we will be meeting with the surgeons on Monday to discuss options. They can't start Chase's feeds until we know everything is working properly. 

 Conner James 

 November 24: One Month Old 

 2 pounds 6 ounces 

 Conner is now on 6.5ml of milk an hour and still pooping like a pro. Who would have ever thought we'd be excited about poop. Conner has been receiving steroids to increase lung development and has came down quite a bit on his oxygen level. He has been between 22-45% for the past couple days and the doctor said we are going to start weening him from the ventilator today 

 After throwing a full on fit and working very hard Conner managed to get his thumb in his mouth to suck on it. Note: Conner has a ventilator and feeding tube already in his mouth. 

As you can see he's still resisting the eye cover. He prefers it lie right there. 

 He's not yawning....our little boy is crying. Conner is definitely enjoys throwing a fit when he doesn't get his way. 

4 weeks old

I know I promised pictures and we took them I am just waiting for my dad to email them to me. I tried to take pictures Sunday, but the incubators and I are the same height so its a little hard sometimes. I will have Michael take some if I don't get them pretty soon though I promise.

The boys are doing pretty good this week, Conner has been pretty stable on his ventilator settings so they were weening him down to move him a non pressurized vent but just as they were getting to the no pressure point he couldn't handle it and they had to put him back up. The doctor reassured us this is fairly common and we will try again slower throughout the week. Conner is also up to what is right now considered to be "full feeds" he's getting continuous feedings of 5ml an hour...which is a great jump from the 1ml every 12 hours he started on. Now that he is on full feeds they have taken him completely off of the TPN (gatorade/vitamin) IV. And other then his usual daily removal of monitors and wiggling Conner is just chugging along right now.

Chase is still not receiving feeds yet. They are waiting for his ostomy(I have no idea how to spell that word) to show it is cleaned out by making a "smear." The surgeon says that typically takes about a week, which will be tomorrow,but we won't be concerned until late in the week if there is still nothing. Chase is beginning to prove to the nurses that he is Conner's true twin and not just the "quiet bourque" like he has been called. He is wiggle worm. Every time we go in his little limbs are just a going. Chase is on a higher pressure setting then Conner but is beating him on his oxygen requirement for a couple days now.

I just want to take a minute and thank everyone for all the support you have and are giving Michael and I. Words can not describe how we are feeling right now and with things changing constantly we are living in a constant state of not knowing. The prayers are working. Our boys were miracles to start and every day is triumph. This Thanksgiving our boys will be exactly one month old....and there's nothing in this world I could be anymore thankful for. It amazes me just how many people have our family in their thoughts and prayers and to all you I am so very thankful.

We appreciate the support to get back and forth to the hospital, the hospital is 48 miles one way from our house and with gas being over $3.30 a gallon it doesn't make our daily commute easy. Last week we really had to sit down and figure out what to do about the cost. It broke both of our hearts to think we would have to cut back our trips to the nicu but we were able to pull the donation fund from this site to get a gas card.

I also want to say a special thanks to all those kind women who have cooked and have signed up to cook us dinner. Not having to worry about what's for dinner is such a relief. There was a time I was waiting for one of us to turn into a burger. We have been able to relax on our way home knowing that we don't have to cut our visit at the nicu short just so we can have dinner at a decent time.

Thanks again to everybody and I promise we will return the favors :)

Rejoicing In The Good Days

Yesterday, both boys hit 2 pounds yesterday! Chase is weighing in at 2 pounds 1 ounce and Conner is still ahead weighing in at 2 pounds 3 ounces. The boys had a great day yesterday neither boy got above 60% on oxygen and Conner pooped the whole day again :) I plan on taking pictures today so I will post them when I get home.

Chase's first surgery

So, today was a very stressful day for all of us. Chase had his very first surgery to repair his intestinal block. Michael and I got to hospital this morning around 9 am and they began surgery around 10:15 am. Chase was in surgery until just before 3 pm.

When the surgeon got in it turned out the block was a lot higher then they anticipated/hoped it would be. They ended up having to remove part of his intestine and reattach it. The dye test from last week either revealed or caused a hole in his colon which they also repaired. They ended up pulling the end of his intestines/bowel out of his abdomen so that he can heal and begin feedings. When he gets bigger they will reinsert it into the abdominal cavity. And just to add to the fun the surgeon removed his appendix to allow the repaired area to be tested before they stitched him up.

Right before his surgery they opened up his incubator and I touched his hand instantly he grasped my finger and held on very tightly. He's a strong little boy and is full of surprises. The doctors have told Michael and I numerous times he has surprised them and exceeded past their expectations for him already. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers while he recovers.

Oh yea, I almost forgot! Conner has gone up yet again on his feedings and has pooped every chance he gets. Today Conner was up to his usual tricks to lighten the mood for us...he doesn't like it when daddy gives him the serious voice. During Chase's surgery Conner managed to remove his temperature probe and a heart monitor, so according to the monitors we had a blood pressure less cold baby.

We are 3 weeks old today!

 We are 3 weeks old today, mommy and daddy couldn't be more proud.  

 Chase Michael 

 3 weeks old: 1 pound 10 ounces 

 Chase has had a pretty rough past couple of weeks but things are starting to settle out a bit which means its about time things get stirred up again. Last week at this time Chase was depending on the ventilators at about 75-90% oxygen. Today, he is down to about 40-55% which the doctors are going to take advantage of and have scheduled surgery for tomorrow morning, November 15th. The surgeon is going to repair Chase's intestinal obstruction and the hole in his intestinal lining. 

 Chase sucking his fingers....look how light his hair is getting! 

 An update on Chase will be posted as soon as we can. Please keep him and the surgeon in your thoughts and prayers tomorrow. 

 Conner James 

 3 weeks old: 1 pound 15 ounces 

 Conner is super close to breaking the 2 pound markers but has decided that he does not enjoy getting chipped when the doctor feel it's time for him to poop. He has now decided to control that himself and go every chance he can. The doctor informed us that we have a poopin' professional on our hands and it's just another joy Conner's poor nurses get to enjoy. Conner is keeping up with his usual stunts removing random monitors and his eye cover. 

 Conner is now on what they call continuous feeds which means breast milk is constantly being fed through his feeding tube. He went from 1 ml every 12 hours in the beginning to getting 2.5 ml every hour. He should be breaking that 2 pound marker very soon. 

 This is Morgan, the boys' big sister. She has been smelling the blankets we bring home from the NICU and carries them around. She's been staring at me while I was updating ya'll so I figured I would show you the boys' supportive big sister as well. She's resting now because she knows soon two little boys will be all over her.  

 Please keep our little guys in your prayers and thanks again for all the support :)  

11/10 Update

Our little glow worm, Chase, Saturday before his run in with cpr and his dye tests. I took new pictures of Conner tonight but Chase is very swollen and sedated from the procedures, so when he starts looking better I will take and post new pictures of him. Chase has almost doubled in size weighing in at 1 pound 10 ounces today. Please keep him in your prayers as his little body tries to heal and the doctors create a plan for him.

Conner, the black fabric piece should be over his eyes but he'd rather it be up there.

Conner's little face...

It is kind of hard to tell but the red light is attached to his left foot which means his leg is fully extended across his other leg and propped up on the blankets that are meant to be over his legs....silly boy always fines a way to rebel. Conner is now on continuous feeds and weighed in at 1 pound 15 oz today...tomorrow we could have a 2 pound baby!

Both boys have came down on their oxygen levels which is a very good thing. Other than that not much has changed today....no news is good news :) Please continue the prayers and I will post new pictures of Chase as soon as the swelling goes down.

Again, please do not copy these pictures and post them on other sites. Michael and I wish for their pictures to remain only on this posting. Thanks :)

Updates 11-8-2011

A lot has been happening in the last 2 weeks, Conner and Chase made their grand entrance and are giving everyone a run for their money. Both boys have the staff in the nicu on their toes on a daily basis. We want to thank everyone for their continued support, thoughts and prayers for our whole family. We will try to keep things updated as much as we can. Here are our updates and challenges so far for each boy.

Chase:

Chase is continuing to gain weight, tipping the scales at 1 pound 8 ounces this morning. We have had quite a few scares with this little man. Sunday, November 6th Chase had to receive cpr. Today, November 8th Chase had a dye scan performed to determine the extent of his intestinal block. During the scan the dye found a hole in his intestine and leaked into his abdomen. The surgeon was called and a drainage tube had to be placed in Chase's abdomen to remove the dye. He is hanging in there and all we can do is pray for a smooth recovery. Chase's intestines have a blockage but it can not be fixed until his lungs are stable. His lungs will only become stable with his growth and without being able to eat that will come slowly. We are taking it day by day and praying constantly.


Conner:

Conner is also gaining weight and stay ahead of his brother weighing in at 1 pound 11 ounces. Conner has had his fair share of drama as well. Sunday, November 6th while the doctors were talking to us about Chase's episode and need for chest compressions Conner got a mucus plug in his ventilator ( yup, a booger in normal people talk). The plug was removed but it was a scary moment. Conner was on low blood pressure medicine but is now off of it. Conner also has a small bleed in his brain that was found via ultrasound (Chase's was perfect) but the neonatologist have assured us that this is very common for preemies and they will rescan on Friday. Conner has apparently been jealous of his brother and feels the need to cause problems to gain attention in the NICU. Today for example he pulled off various monitors, ripped his eye cover, and pulled out his feeding tube.

On a lighter note;

Today, Michael held Conner's hand for the first time. The look on his face I will never forget. It is amazing how two people so tiny can melt our hearts.

Both boys had very dark hair at birth and for the first week, however now no matter how the lighting is their hair is lightening up.

Oh! I almost forgot both boys have broken the seal on their eye lids and opened their eyes for us. They will continue to have the eye covers but to know their are little eyes under there is amazing.


We are praying for the best and want to thank everyone for all their well wishes and love. Please keep praying with us and keep us in your thoughts.

I'm Chase Michael Bourque

Hi Everyone, I'm Chase Michael Bourque. I was 14 oz when I was born but now weigh over a pound. Sorry for the delay on my intro, I have been busy giving all the dr's and nurses in the nicu a hard time and puzzling them with my tummy troubles. My brother and I are real troopers and are fighting to get healthy and break out of the hospital to go home with mommy and daddy and meet our big sister, Morgan.

Hi, I am Conner James Bourque

My name is Conner James Bourque. I was born at 1lb 4 oz and very handsome. In my spare time I enjoy sun bathing under bilirubin lamps and grabbing my mommy's fingers. I might look small but I am a tough guy. I have my my own place right now, windows on every wall located right next to the beautiful Saint Johns river in Jacksonville, FL. I hope to move soon, maybe with my brother but we plan to move back in with our parents some day soon, we've heard they have a nice crib set up for each of us.

You might wonder how my brother and I got here so soon, I'll fill you in later though because he wants to do his intro now.

Happy Birthday and welcome to the world..

Conner and Chase Bourque made their grand appearance a tad early Oct 24th. The boys were only 27 weeks gestation however they are showing everyone they are little fighters. Both boys are currently in stable condition on breathing machines,iv's and feeding tubes. We have made a support page for donations to help cover costs for meals and transportation to and from the children's hospital that is over 50 miles from home each way. We are still in the early stages and have not been able to hold the boys yet. Once we meet them we will let everyone know how they each stand out in their own way.