Two Weeks Old!

The boys are two weeks old now and getting bigger. They are still doing really well, but not progressing very quickly with their feedings right now. It's not uncommon for babies born at 34 weeks to do really well and then slip back a little or just stay put. The nurse said today feeding is the biggest hurdle for them to get over. We are not worried at all, I would rather have them stay in the hospital longer than come home and struggle with feedings. After all, God's timing is prefect! We are praising the Lord for our happy and healthy family!

More pictures!

More Pictures of the Ripke's

10 Days Old

Sorry for the long delay of updating with new pictures. Blake and Jordan are doing great. They are eating well on their own, not often enough to come home yet though. They have to be taking all their feedings without help and gain more weight before that can happen. We sure miss the boys when we are at home. Brooke and Devin have had coughs and have not been feeling that well this weekend, so we were unable to go up to see the boys as much as we wanted to. I am recovering well also and will be able to drive by the end of the week. Having Devin home with me still makes me nervous though. The night I got home from the hospital he ran and threw himself at me and landed right on my incision. He was sad as soon as he realized he hurt me and kept saying he was sorry. Poor little guy, everytime he came near me after that I put my hands out to keep him away. I was afraid I was going to get a karate chop right in the belly!

Monday 2/18

I was able to spend the afternoon with the boys today. When I got there Jason was there on his lunch break holding the boys. The day went by fast, the boys and I got to take a nap together in the recliner. I tried to breastfeed Jordan, it's just practice right now...he actually got his feeding from a tube while I tried to feed him. Tomorrow I have my post partum check up at the hospital at 8:30 AM, so I am going to ride in with Jason when he goes to work and spend the day with the boys. We have taken more pictures, we just have not had the chance to post them on the blog, we will soon though. Brooke and Devin have been having a couple of challenging nights, we all miss each other and life as usual. I know it will take a while to get back to a "new" usual.

Kim is home now (Sunday 2/17 at 6PM)

Babies are doing well but still at hospital. Brooke & Dev are excited to have mom home. We are all tired though...

Mom, Jordan & Blake Update - also some good kid quotes

Kim is doing a lot better and was walking around yesterday (saturday 2/16). She will most likely come home on Monday, but possibly Sunday (today!)

Blake & Jordan continue to do very well and are slowly starting to eat with a bottle (currently 2 of their feedings per day are from bottle, the rest of the feedings are via the tube.)

Last night (2/16) Devin held Jordan and when I put Jordan back and told Dev we were just going to say hi to Blake, Devin insisted he also hold Blake. So, I let him. (Of course Dev had my assistance!) Devin likes to give them kisses and say "bye bye sweetie" and he always makes sure he says that to each of them.

Brooke has been at Heather & Jason's house since Friday so she has not had a whole lot of time yet with the boys. However, on Thursday night, after the twins were born, I was talking with Brooke on the phone and told her she would be coming to visit the boys at the hospital that night. Below are a few things she said:

- Tell Blake & Jordan that I am Brooke and Devin is Devin, that way they will know who we are when we get there.

- Tell Jordan that Jordan is my favorite name

- Tell them that Dalmations is my favorite movie (note: 101 Dalmations was only her favorite at the time because she was watching it when I was talking to her)

- When I get there can I teach them to talk and say "Yeah"

Thank you for your continued prayers!

helpful hint

if you want to see more pictures, click on the pictures within a posting, that will bring you to a site with several pictures...

Jordan & Blake are doing GREAT!

All the nurses & docs have said how "surprisingly well" the boys are doing. They have said that for 34 wk identical tiwn babies, it is uncommon to have so few issues. To Kim & I it is not a surprise because so many people are praying for them! Our God is an awesome God.

Both Blake & Jordan are self regulating their temperature and have been moved into a regular crib as opposed to a heat controlled isolette. However, they still are not eating on their own. So, what it all means is we should still expect from 1-3 wks, depending on how they do with eating and maintaining/gaining weight and fussing when it is feeding time...So far, the news could not be better!

Kim, on the other hand, has preclampcia (spelling??). She will be fine, but has to be on a magnesium sulfate drip which makes her feel "yucky" and uncomfortable. That, topped of with a morphine hit, makes her a little loopy!

Kim had only seen the boys for a few minutes before this afternoon. The NICU nurse brought both of the boys into Kim's room and Kim was able to hold them for about 40 minutes. I hope she will remember it, but one of the side effects of the magnesium is a foggy or skewed memory of what happened during the time frame of the meds...

Thanks again for your prayers. Feel free to call on our cell phone(s) if you want.

JnK...

They are both here and doing well

They are here!!

Here are some pictures of Blake & Jordan. I have tried to ID them, but found I have some challenges!

Both boys are very healthy, Jordan is the oldest!
Jordan Robert born at 12:32 PM
18.1" long
4 lbs 15.9 oz

Blake Samuel born at 12:34 PM
17.5" long
5 lbs .02 oz

Blake drank his first full bottle and Jordan only drank 1/2. So Jordan has a feeding tube for now. They are both in a heated isolet (a bed with a warmer above it). All in all they look very good!

Kim is feeling a little sick right now as she recovers. No concerns, but she is uncomfortable.

I think I got all the vital info, but if you think I missed something, feel free to call us on our cell phones. If you are intereseted in seeing the babies, we will let you know when a good time would be. Thanks for your prayers.

Talk to you soon. Signed a Father of 4...

2/14 - the birthday!

Happy Blake & Jordan Day!

Enjoy some pics! Will post more when we can...

Valentine's Babies (2/14/2008)

We are on for noon today and the boys will stay at Evergreen, where we are delivering. I have to get there (I am at work now!) Will update blog as soon as I can this afternoon/evening!

Thanks for your thoughts & Prayers!!
J & K

Change of Plans

We thought today would be the big day, but once we checked in at the hospital they let us know the nursery was full. I would still be able to have my C-section, but the boys would have to be transfered to another hospital. Since it was not an emergency situation I told them I did not want to do that and would rather wait for another day. So, we are trying again for Valentine's Day at noon. Of course I will call early tomorrow morning to make sure they have room for the boys in the nursery. If not we will see what my Dr wants to do, whether it be continue waiting or go to another hospital that would be able to keep me and the babies.
Please pray for room in the nusery for the boys tomorrow at Evergreen. We will keep you posted!
Love, The Ripke's

WELL, NOT TODAY, Tomorrow 2/14??

We got to hospital at 6:45 AM and they said the nursery was full and we should have called first. Apparently there was some miscommunication. We could have still had them today, but the babies would have been moved to a different hospital. They are expecting several babies in the NICU to be discharged today so we are tentatively scheduled for Valentines Day at noon. (By the way, the babies are expected to be fine but will be in NICU for up to 3 weeks since they will be 3 weeks early.)

We have to call hospital at 6 AM tomorrow (2/14) to confirm. We will keep you posted!

Man, this was a very disappointing morning. But, God wants the babies inside still. Pray for patience for us!

J

It's Official - 2/13 is the day!

On Wednesday morning at 9 AM, Blake & Jordan are scheduled to be delivered by c-section. We will keep you updated as often as we can and will try to post pictures as well! Thanks for your prayers...

Yikes, tomorrow we go from 2 to 4 kids!

Blog date 2/11 - Wednesday (2/13) is the day...

Well, most likely. Kim had an amnio today (2 of them), which they will test to determine if both Blake & Jordan's lungs are mature enough. We were suppose to hear results earlier today (2/11), but they did not call us back yet.

We do know that the babies are 4 lb 7 oz and 4 lb 11 oz and look great.

We will keep you posted when we know more, but at this point it looks like Wed. 2/13 at 9 AM they will join us in the outerworld.

J

Jason & Kim plus 4

almost time...
Blake & Jordan will very likely be in the hospital for up to 3-4 weeks. This is because they will be born at 34 weeks, a few weeks early. However, 34 weeks is considered a very long time in utero for twins! Everything looks great with the little guys, so we do not anticipate any issues.

Check back often. J

Blake & Jordan Update

Blake & Jordan will join us post utero on either 2/12 or 2/13. Yikes, less than a week away from this post!! We will use this blog to keep you updated...Below is my first entry...Included a photo album link with photos from the last half of 2007.

Ripke Family - July 2007 to Jan 2008

I (Jason) started a new job at Physio Control on 1/22 and at 4:30AM on that day, we were in the hospital because of a scare with the babies. As it turns out the babies are just fine, but Kim has been on bed rest ever since. She stayed in the hospital for two days and has been at home since then. Oh, I made it to work on time that morning...

Brooke & Devin have been at a different house every work day since Kim has been on bed rest. Fortunately our friends and family have been a tremendous help. My brother, Jeff, and his wife watched the kids for Kim's first 3 days on bed rest. On another day my cousin Julie came over and brought the kids to the Children's museum, then my aunt came in the afternoon to watch them until I got home!! That was extremely helpful.

Also, we have been so blessed by our friends from church during this time in our lives. In particular, Sonja & Lisa, who have coordinated two full weeks of baby sitters & dinners for us. I cannot explain how emotionally overwhelmed we feel from the help everyone from Northview has provided. We do not know what we would have done if our good friends in Christ did not offer us such support.

Kim & I have been concerned about how hard emotionally this would be on the kids, but it is much harder on us because we worry about the kido-s! They are doing just fine and look forward to the next house each day. I told Brooke that she is so lucky because she is able to go to a new house every day and will be able to get to know her friends better and also meet new friends.

This whole process has helped me appreciate the fact that Jesus has blessed us with the opportunity for Kim to stay home and not have to work. It has also given me an appreciation for the energy it takes single parents every day/night to taken care of their childrens' needs !

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts! Jason & Kim