Chuplicates: 5-21 unedited

Sorry for the lack of update, I guess I'm weaning you guys from regular information! Lets see, what was the last thing I updated about? Oh yes, my precious daughters!

Penelope - 3038 g (6 lbs 11 oz) Lydia - 12 lbs 4 oz

Penny is still a tough cookie. Sweet, and doesn't fall apart easily! She took her immunizations like a champ and never required more oxygen. She did so well that they thought they would try to wean her completely off of the oxygen and hopefully let her come "h" without it! She didn't agree. They turned off the oxygen and her sats dropped to the 70s and didn't come up on their own. They gave her some time to see if she would pull it up but after 10 minutes they turned it back on and she immediately pulled them up to 100 again. So, for now, she likes her nose jewelry. It matches her belly button ring/tail/tube/whatever! They will try again tomorrow but I really doubt that there will be much difference. Honestly, it makes me a little nervous to bring her home without any oxygen. I at least want it available if she needs it! So maybe she's thinking of me in her refusal to breath unassisted. Her weight gain is within the expected amount so far. She lost some last night but had gained so much the nights before that it averages out to acceptable. She's also up to full feeds for her size, so that's one less hurdle to get over. Basically we could come "h" as early as Wednesday, but that would be pushing it a little. I'm planning to ask if we can wait until the following Monday when Jonathan will be home for the whole week. After 5 months what's another few days? If anything it will give her a chance to fully prove that she can gain weight on the formula she's on.

Lydia keeps growing by leaps and bounds. If not always in weight, she's growing in her vocabulary. She's now saying ga, ahgoo, eeeaah, huhhuh...etc. Mostly she says these things to her panda bear mobile and the big brown bear her Daddy brought home for her from New York City. I hope she isn't offending them with what she's saying. You know the language barrier can cause some confusion. She's holding her head up more and more, responding to sounds, expressing her wishes, and sleeping through the night most nights (10ish to 5ish...it counts!). She absolutely LOVES her bath time and cries when it's over. I thought she was crying because she was cold, but last night I took her out and just stepped away from the sink while I hugged her and dried her off. She screamed. I stepped closer to the sink and she got quiet. I stepped away again and she screamed again. The girl knows what she wants!

Right now this girl wants sleep so I'm going to end this here with some specific prayer. I just praise the Lord everyday for all of you lifting our little family up in prayer. It is beyond a shadow of a doubt the reason why we've been able to survive this. Our girls are stronger than we should be, our money is lasting longer than in should, our freezer is more full than it should be, we're happier than we should be...etc. By the world's standards this doesn't make sense. By God's standards, this is just how He designed it. All of these blessings being poured out on His children by His children because of the prayers of His children. Amazing.

Specific Prayer

NO KINKS IN THE WORKS!
weight gain for Penny
decisiveness about her oxygen needs
God's perfect timing on coming "h"
OH, we found out today that the gel that we're using to thicken both girls' feeds has been linked to 2 deaths in preemies using it because of NEC (part of the bowel dying) so we've had to stop using it. We need wisdom and discernment on how to thicken their feeds or adjust the feeding plan to keep them eating well but not put them at risk!