Finally a Pic!

Hi everyone, the last week and and a bit more have been incredible! Today was for me the first time to actually get out of the hospital during daytime. James is doing very very well and is a big boy (especially compared with Emily!) Emily has had some difficulties getting started. Her weight kept on dropping and her suck-reflex is just very poor. So feedings take place every two hours (! nothing can prepare you for hardly any sleep at all!) and a feeding takes about an hour for just 20 ml. So she is still a major concern for us and we have no clue when we'll be discharged. Yesterday was actually the first day that she gained 50 gram, now the docs are monitoring her everyday to see if she has started to gain weight. The difference between our biggest joys ever is huge. James was at birth a like a full grown baby and he still is doing very well, he sleeps, eats, 'pass motion' (you'll learn) and is a very happy baby. Emily is doing well on every single part too, except the eating ( I thought girls started to get concerned over their weight when they're much older:)

There has been a lot going on for us since their birth and we are extremely happy, busy and also at times extremely tired. Alexander has been going to the clinic for "some" paperwork, to the high commission for "some more" paperwork and is a lot on the road whilst I take care of the babes during daytime. I have done it for 3 days time without a night nanny, but since Alexander has to deal with all the paperwork required he needs to sleep too. This meant that I was awake for 3 straight days and after that I collapsed, we needed help. Emotionally drained we asked for a night nurse, and for that first night it was great, I slept 7 hours! But the next night I was feeling much better again and I have difficulties appreciating our night nurse, I am sure she's a great girl, but when I feed the babes myself, I don't care if it takes 2 hours for Emily to finish her bottle, as long as she finishes it. I mean, who doesn't need a break every once in a while? Our night nurse however likes to hurry things and it makes me mad! One night it was the last drop for me since Emily just wouldn't eat and I dragged every doctor I could find in our room and demanded for Emily to be taken back into NICU and that 'that nightnurse' was responsible for the bad suck reflection of our babe. Yes, emotionally it has been a roller coaster. They understood my concern but still wanted to wait to put her on IV feeding. The next day the head doctor finally agreed with me and stated that they should have kept her in NICU longer. However, I was doing a good job according to him... bollocks! I just want our baby to get stronger! In hospital the Todds were staying across from our room (they've had two lovely boys) and they're great people from good ol' Texas. Via Asha we had contact with the Mikes (appreciated big time) and they called us to see how the babes were doing. At the moment I am still exhausted but starting to feel a bit better, but because of that I am constantly emotional. I have been crying everywhere and just about everything too. The fear for the health of one our babes was immense, also because there isn't a specific cure for it.

Emily seems to have taken life by the horns now, and has now learned how to suck. She doesn't have James' appetite, but we reckon she'll catch up to her big brother's level soon enough!

Incredible India, that's the way India is marketed in the media, well, it sure is incredible. Anything is possible (literally), and we've experienced a lot in our short time here. The Indian community must think that we in the west are ridiculous, playing things by the rules and our supposed honesty...haha...I guess it's a different way of thinking!

We're finally starting to make some headway on the consular front. We've spoken to the staff there, who have been very helpful. It is however proving extremely tiresome getting all the documents together dispersed around this metropolis, and getting them to one collection point at a certain time. Persistence, persistence, persistence, with a double shot of patience, and a patience cherry on the top seems to be required at all times!!!

We're hoping to finally get discharged from the hospital today, so fingers crossed!