Today's Visit to the NICU

Broox and Me
Broox sleeping in my arms.

The nurses let me take Jane's temperature today.

The first picture of the sisters together! Notice how they are both winking at us with their right eye.

Jane grabbing onto Honey's finger. She has a good grip for such tiny hands.

Jane and Virginia.

Virginia was very alert today. She loves being talked to and having her face stroked.

Virginia and me getting to know each other.

Gray holding Rainer for the first time.

Holding Rainer. We had to keep his oxygen mask near his face while he was out of his isolette.

This morning we were given the great news that Rainer was being moved to the CCN (continuing care nursery) with his brother and sisters. They are now all in one little corner of the nursery, together once again! It was a wonderful thing to see and we were so happy that Rainer made the move very quickly. He is still on a little oxygen support and is under a Bili-Lite. He also has a light beneath him which he lies his tummy on. All of the babies' feedings have been increased except for Jane, who still needs to gain a little weight first, before she moves up. We got to spend a lot of time with them today. I can't believe how different they look every time we go to visit them. I can tell that they are going to be growing and changing rapidly. We know that they are getting everything that they need while in the nursery and that they still need much more time to gain weight and mature, but it is only getting tougher for us to leave them every time we visit.

Thank you so much for asking how Gray and I have been doing. I had a very good day today and was able to get up on my own and walk around more than I have been able to in the past days. I made the mistake yesterday of skipping pain pills and it all hit me in the late afternoon. I didn't anticipate how tough getting over the surgery would be. Today, I stayed on the schedule that I had been on and noticed a huge difference. The doctors are allowing us to stay for an extra evening just to make sure that we are comfortable with my condition before heading home. We will be checking out of the hospital in the morning after breakfast. I am looking forward to getting back to the comforts of home and being outside the walls of my room. Gray is doing well and has been taking care of me non-stop. I couldn't have made it through everything without him. I am excited about being back at home with him as I work my way back to my normal self. It has been a long time since we have had a normal weekend and I can't wait to be able to run errands with him or go out to eat. We wish the babies were home with us, but at least we'll have an opportunity to enjoy each other and prepare for their homecoming.

The First 48 Hours

This is our Rainer. He is still in the NICU and we can't wait for him to get to join his brother and sisters. He has been on oxygen support, but this evening he pulled out the cord. His levels are looking good without the CPAP so the nurses decided to leave it off and see how he does. He was still holding strong when last we saw him. We haven't been able to hold Rainer yet, which is so hard. We have been able to stroke his back, arms and legs and hopefully tomorrow we will be able to hold him in our arms.

Virginia

Here is our little Virginia. The nurses say that she is usually pretty relaxed, but can let out a cry when she wants to. She is using a feeding tube and has also been under the lamps today. She had a great time grabbing and releasing Gray's finger today when he was holding her. She also showed us her pretty eyes a few times.

Broox

Broox is still doing great and still our largest baby. Everyone is saying that he looks more like Gray and the rest have more of my features. I don't think we can tell yet. The nurses are calling him laid back and he likes to keep his arms raised up by his head. Broox is feeding consistently now is eating the most of all of the babies.

Jane

These are pictures that we have been taking on our visits to the NICU over the last couple of days. Jane is still our smallest baby and so precious. We slid Gray's wedding ring on her arm so that you can have some kind of comparison for her size. The nurses keep telling us how feisty she is. She makes the sweetest little cries and loves to move her arms and legs around. Right now she is still breathing on her own and has started feedings. She has also been under lights all day to combat her jaundice. In fact, at this point all of the babies are feeding and under the lamps. They are doing so well!!

Thank you all for the emails, phone calls and congratulations! It means a lot to us and it makes us happy to know that so many people care about our babies. We are sorry if we haven't responded back yet. We have been extremely busy among recovering from surgery and getting rest, meeting with doctors, consultants, nurses and research teams, visiting the babies, and staying on our nursing schedule. It's amazing how quickly the days are passing. We have gone from hanging out and waiting to full speed ahead. We promise to be in touch soon!

THE GARRETT QUADS HAVE ARRIVED!

I am proud to announce that the Garrett Quads have arrived! This afternoon Kate began having some painful cramps and aching which she immediately knew was different than the other contractions she had been feeling. This began around 3pm and continued until the babies were born.

I arrived around 7pm from work and at that time she had been given a painkiller which wasn't working. The doctors came in to examine Kate and determined that she had dilated 4cm. The decision was made to move her from her ante-partum room to the Labor & Delivery wing immediately. It took approximately 5 minutes to roll her down the hall and get into the new room. Kate indicated that she was having some pressure and that it wasn't what she had normally felt. The doctor was called in to examine her and determined that Kate had now dilated 6cm.At this point I was pulled aside and told that if they had to use general anesthesia that I wouldn't be permitted in the room. A few minutes later I was left standing in the hall while my precious wife was whisked away to deliver our beautiful children. She did remarkably well and within 5 minutes gave birth to all four.

Here are the pictures and details.

Broox Gray Garrett, IV
3 lbs 7 oz
16 3/8"
8:19 pm

Elizabeth Jane Garrett
2 lbs 0 oz
13 1/2"
8:20 pm

Virginia Katherine Garrett
2 lbs 10 oz
15"
8:21 pm

James Rainer Garrett
3 lbs 3 oz
15 3/4"
8:23 pm

I would like to thank each and every one of you who has given Kate so much love and support over these past months. It has meant the world to both of us and it has helped her to bring four healthy babies into this world.

Hunka Hunka Burning Love-Mag!

Hi, this is Jane (Kate's Mom).  We are now in the UAB hospital and here for the duration. Yesterday at the weekly Dr.'s appointment Kate's blood pressure was a little elevated. She was sent directly to the hospital.  The blood pressure at the hospital seemed to be fine. The next hurdle was a slight leakage of the amniotic fluid coming from one of the babies.  Two out of three tests confirmed that it was the amniotic fluid.  We were then told that we would stay here until the babies are born.  We stayed in Labor and Delivery over night without much sleep.  Kate was given a 12 hour drip of magnesium which was not a good experience.  She turned red and felt like she was burning up.  (note the title!) She also became sick and a bit out of it.  She thinks that the Dr. told her she could go home but Gray says he did not ever say that!

Kate was moved this afternoon to a private room on the 5th floor of the hospital.  It is a very nice room with plenty of space for all of us.  The nurses have just come in to check the heart beats of each baby.  Everyone sounded great! 

The nurse, Denise, has just given us additional information on the situation.  She said that the fluid will most likely continue to leak at different amounts over the next few weeks. Hopefully we can keep her here until 34 weeks.  They will not keep the babies in there for more than 34 weeks.  We are now thinking that we might have March babies and not February babies.  That is great news!

Other exciting news......we have activities!  Scrapbooking....mother's lactation lunches....movies....educational videos......Sunday church services....snacks..... and even a mini refrigerator in the room!

So... this is all great news!  Thank you for your thoughts and prayers, we are feeling them!

Jane (soon to be grandmother...but not too soon!)

First Look at the Nursery

My Aunt Candy and me in the nursery. Thanks for everything!!!

29 Weeks
The Boys' Crib


The Girls' Crib

We will be moving out this dresser and putting in white changing tables.

We also have a blue rug with a G. We're just trying to figure out how to fit it all in!

Monogrammed pillows.

The Girls' pillows haven't come in yet, and we're waiting on white floor lamps to be shipped for the lamp shades.