Home At Last...

(Top to Bottom: Yu Ran leaving the hosptial holding both Chase & Charissa;  Our wonderful neonatologist with the twins; Chase & Charissa hanging out at home; Charissa hanging out; Chase being Chase

September 5, 11:30 AM

Charissa arrived at home on Wednesday, September 3.  Mom & Dad have had two sleepless nights, feeding, changing, feeding, changing... ...well you know how it goes.  But we are ecstatic!

Charissa came home with her reflux and we've been adjusting to her "gastrol eruptions" every now and then...  ...but besides that she is doing well.

Thank You for all your continued prayers for our family.  I will continue to update this blog up until their 1st birthday!  

Blessings!

Choi Family 

One Down, One To Go....

(Top: Chase enjoying time with Daddy. Next: Charissa with Mommy after a nice bath. Remaining: All Dressed Up and Nowhere to Go. Celebrating their 100th Day Birthday on August 3)

August 25, 10:15 PM

Wow, time flies... ...and I have been remiss in keeping up with the blog. As our children get better, our time becomes more scarce. A blessing in disguise, but now we want to share with you what is due for your diligence in prayer for our children... ...as you have shared with us in our suffering, we gladly share with you the joy of Chase & Charissa (Thanks especially to Tobias & Elizabeth, Hui Jung, & Sun (congrats on Michigan!), Scott, and many, many of you for your calls, cards, letter and e-mails!)

On August 11, Chase was discharged from the hospital!
We took him home filled with joy and sadness. Having our boy home gave us a sense of relief that one COULD leave the hospital! But leaving Charissa behind all by herself was quite difficult for us. A sense of guilt would often overcome us as we would shower Chase with our love & time, knowing that Charissa remained alone.

Our schedule has been hectic ever since. As I would work in the mornings, my wife would watch Chase. Then I would hurry home in the afternoon to watch him while my wife would drive off to the hospital to be with our daughter. She would then return in the early evening and I would either go off to work again, or we would catch up on chores, bills, & other responsibilities from having a preemie.

So how is Chase?
Well, he came home on some medications. His acid reflux continues to hinder him from sleeping through the night. For a period of 6-8 hours Chase would gag & cry as the acid burned his esophagus. My wife and I are helpless when this happens. We try our best to comfort him, but no remedy really exists. The mantra of our doctors echoes in our head, "He'll grow out of it, he'll grow out of it." As we wait for his GI tract to mature, we simply do our best and pray for him. The doctors prescribed prevacid to reduce the acid and we think that it does help. But at the moment, we rejoice when he has his good moments...

When he's not gagging & crying, Chase is a fun baby to be around. He can raise his head by himself and enjoys just being a baby. He's eating extremely well, a little over 2 oz of mom's milk mixed with Neosure, and has raised his weight to a stunning 9 lbs.

Chase is also taking synthroid to help his hypothyroidism. The doctors aren't sure if he'll grow out of this or not... ...we pray that he does.

His eyes are doing extremely well. We took him to the pediatric ophthalmologist and the ROP (Retinopathy of Prematurity) has regressed in both eyes... Now we await for his development. Preemies are at high risk for near-sightedness and strabismus.

Now that Chase has left the hospital we have many, many doctors appointments for the first month. 1. Pediatrician: once/week. 2. Pedatric Ophthamologist: twice/month 3. Pediatric Endocrintologist: twice/month 4. Pediatric Urologist: once. That's right. From August 11 - September 11, we will have to go to the doctors at least 9 TIMES! And this is if everything goes well!

So how is Charissa? She still resides at Northside Hospital with severe acid reflux. She's maxed out on her meds (prevacid & reglan) and again the doctors tell us, "she'll grow out of it." The meds don't really cure her, but simply reduces the acid, until her GI Tract matures. What's her goal? Well, she needs to be able to take 8 bottles in a 24 hour period to come home. At this juncture she's taken 5 bottles and we're hopeful that she will be able to come home within 10 -14 days!

The result of her eye operation is promising. The pediatric ophthamologist gave a thumbs up on the results. She will need a follow up in 3 months!

As any parent out there understands, my wife and I spend our days, smelling our babies diapers, praying for a big fat stool (both Chase & Charissa get constipated, which doesn't help the reflux), rejoicing when they are able to finish their bottle, and feeling relieved when they sleep well. As I've heard said, "if you eat, sleep, and poop well, then the Lord has truly blessed you." : )

Our Prayer Requests...
Chase: 1. Constipation/Reflux. 2. Thyroid Condition 3. Eyes
Charissa: 1. Constipation/Reflux 2. Eyes 3. Get Out of the Hosptial fast!!

Our thankfulness to God is truly unending. My wife and I are still being stretched in our faith as we learn to love and take care of these two new additions to our family. We've been humbled and honored to witness God's grace extend from our family to all of you who read this blog. Soli Deo Gloria!

All of us must remember, our suffering & our joy will NEVER EVER compare to the suffering & joy that our Father endured through his Son. We are forever thankful that no matter what the Lord may place in our hands, true meaning resides in the resurrection of our Savior. Let us never pity ourselves or pity others. Let us never compare our lot in life with that of others. Let us only encourage each other to walk faithfully with what the Lord has given...

In Christ's Love,
Choi Family

A Few Pics..

July 18, 11:30PM

A few pics from yesterday and today on the 7th floor... ...they've come so far...

Only one tube going in there little faces now. They are completely off the nasal cannula. They can breathe on their own! Now it's time to learn to eat!

Joyfully,
Choi Family

Moving On Up...

July 15, 10:40PM

Yesterday, Chase & Charissa turned 11 weeks and 3 days. More significantly, they reached the 36 week gestation mark. My wife and I remain exhausted, elated, and often times perplexed by the mysterious sovereignty of our God. But we press on, in faith, and await the future hope promised to his people...

Charissa's operation went very well, but her recovery took longer than expected. Being under general anesthetic, her lungs were literally 'immobilized' for about an hour. The doctors believed that she would be able to recover in about 1/2 day from the surgery. However, Charissa took about 4 days to regain her respiration. During this period of time, my wife and I worried quite a bit. Her inability to breathe always conjures up the fear of infection. She underwent many tests and antibiotics were actually started for preventive measures. And even with much prayer, our anxieties pressed heavy upon our hearts. But she made it through! She is breathing quite well (2 liters on high-flow cannula). The retinal ophthalmologist came today to check on her eyes. Although there is still a bit of swelling, he's quite optimistic that the retinas will not detach, i.e. no blindness. But we must wait until she is 3 months old to be 100% sure.

Chase is doing quite well. He actually LOOKS like a real baby, with real baby fat, and real baby-like features. He has started to take the bottle and is drinking mom's milk (fortified with vitamins/minerals) really, really well.

Both of them are maximum feeds, but they have quite a bit of problem with acid reflux. This causes them to choke on their reflux and stop breathing. Although they will eventually grow out of it, this does hinder their ability to feed, breathe, sleep and hence grow.


BIG NEWS. We are moving on up to the 7th floor! Affectionately referred to as the "Penthouse." Although this is still the NICU, babies, who are less seriously ill reside here. For the past 11 weeks, the 7th floor was just a whisper of a rumor, some remote place where our kids longed to see. Today they reached their destination. And to boot, Chase & Charissa were placed in the SAME CRIB, side by side. The crib is super-sized and easily accomadats both of them. This was a bittersweet moment for my wife and I. We were ecstatic, knowing that they were going to the 7th floor and bedding together. But we were also sad, knowing that Chelsea was not joining us. God's mysterious sovereignty is often difficult to comprehend.

More Tests...
Head Sonogram (36 weeks gestation): Chase & Charissa are both within normal limits! NO MORE head sonograms!!!
Eye Exams (Retinopathy of Prematurity): Chase is listed at Stage 1. Doctors are quite confident that the ROP will resolve itself. Charissa's recover is positive, but much prayer is still needed.
Thyroid. Chase has a mild form of hypothyroidism. If the thyroid does not work properly, than Chase will have to be on some sort of medicine for the remainder of his life. Tests pending for next weeks.

Prayer Requests.
Chase. 1. Pray for his thyroid. 2. Pray for his acid reflux
Charissa. 1. Pray for her eyes. 2. Pray for her acid reflux

Thank you all once again for your prayers and concerns. We greatly appreciate all your inquiries, prayers, voice mails, & notes...

In His Grace,
Choi Family

8AM Operation for Charissa

July 2, 7:00 PM

On our way to the hospital we received a call from Dr. Kaufmann, the retinal ophthamologist. Charissa's Retinopathy had developed from stage 1 to stage 3 in a span for 4 days. He told us that they would have to perform laser surgery tomorrow morning at 8 PM.

Quite shocked by the suddeness, we arrived at the hospital praying that the Lord would have mercy on her vision. With the surgery, Charissa will sacrifice her peripheral vision with the hopes of retaining her central vision. Dr. Kaufmann tells us that the success rate is high, but that there are risks in any surgery...

Please pray for Charissa's surgery...

In His Grace,
Choi Family

Eyes To See...

June 29, 9:55 PM

Chase & Charissa have been progressively improving. Each are learning how to simultaneously eat while remember to breathe. Not as easy as we thought it would be, but they're learning!!

On Saturday, Chase & Charissa had their eye exams, looking for a disease called "Retinopathy of Immaturity" (Wikipedia.com has an adequate explanation). We knew that both of them would likely incur this disease, the question was simply its severity. Retinopathy can potentially lead to blindness...

Chase has Stage 1 Retinopathy. He will be monitored weekly to see if the condition will worsen. Most preemies will gravitate towards stage 2, but with maturity the disease will fade. Please pray that this would be so with Chase!

Charissa has Stage 1 Retinopathy with "Plus Disease." The Plus disease makes it more likely that she will need laser surgery to help correct her problem. The retinal ophlamalogist specialist will come in on Wednesday to take a look. We hope that Plus is not too severe and that it would either resolve on it's own or would be correctable with surgery. But please pray that Charissa would not need surgery and that her sight would develop normally.

We are truly thankful to our God!! Our children are starting to grow. Both are over 4 lbs!!

May the Eyes of all oure hearts be enlightened!
Choi Family

big scare... ...bigger relief... ...TBTG!

June 22, 8PM

The last 3-4 days have been quite a roller coaster ride. Both Chase & Charissa got sick around the same time...

Chase was having a really difficult time breathing about 4 days ago. After running some tests, he had tested positive for an infection. They immediately placed him on 3 antibiotics, stopped his feeding, placed IVs for nutrition, and began to withdraw blood for testing on a regular basis. We did not know what to think... We just prayed. The next day, seeing the familiar yet frightening tubes entering and exiting his body, we sighed a bit of a relief. Not that the infection had gone, but that Chase was no longer gasping for air. He was breathing well. The question for Dr. Maynar was, "what kind of infection did he have?" At first she suspected that the blood test was a false positive, meaning that Chase did not have an infection at all. She hypothesized that a contaminant of some kind had entered into his system. But being cautious, she continued our son on all 3 antibiotics. So what kind of infection had crept into our frail little boy? The number one suspect was a gastrointestianl disease called "Necrotizing Enterocolitis" (NEC). After Sepsis (infection in the bloodstream), NEC is the most frightening diagnosis. NEC occurs only in premature babies. Their unformed bowels often can not handle the bacteria that is growing. Sometimes this bacteria creates an infection which attacks the walls of the intestines. If not caught early, NEC can kill parts of the intestines. The only treatment would be surgery to remove the "necrotized" i.e. dead sections. While not fatal, the operation is high risk. But the truly frightening aspect of NEC occurs if the infection punctures the bowel walls and enters into other parts of the body. The infection could instantly take overtake the premature baby and prove to be fatal. No one knows why this happens, but NEC can come out of nowhere and quickly destroy the intestines and enter into the bloodstream. Dr. Maynar told us that NEC is the most feared disease in the NICU. So did Chase have NEC? He had some of the symptoms, "difficulty breathing & a hard distended stomach." How do we know if he has NEC? X-rays. As we waited for the results of the x-rays, we were nervous. We understood the consequences if we did not catch this disease early enough. By God's grace, the X-rays were negative. After running more tests and growing more cultures, Dr. Maynar concluded that it was either a weak infection that the antibiotics had already killed or a contaminant. Yesterday, Chase was put on 5.5 cc/hour of mother's milk and only one of his antibiotics remained. Today, Chase was sleeping soundly, without any appearance of stress and pain. Eating the full feed of 9.5cc/hour, he had the look of a healthy content baby. Praise God....


Charissa, on the other hand, was not so fortunate. She had cried in her mother's arms for about an hour. And in total she had cried for about 3-4 without the nurses doing much to alleviate her distress. Charissa was in real pain and it was difficult for us to watch. She had thrown up her feedings and her belly was getting hard & distended. After an X-ray, the diagnosis was confirmed on the following day... NEC. NEC was causing real pain to our daughter's bowels. She was immediately taken off her feeds, given an arterial line, IV lines, and placed on the ventilator. We had gone back in time 2 1/2 weeks. But we were glad to see her on the ventilator. For about 19 hours, she wasn't able to rest. Being in so much pain, she would just cry, which meant, she couldn't breathe. She had a choice, cry or breathe. This exhausted her. The ventilator gave her a chance to just sleep and rest. The machine would expand her lungs. All she needed to do was sleep.

But we praise God for Charissa's sensitive bowels!! : ) Dr. Maynar reassured us that they had caught NEC very, very early. They put her on 3 antibiotics and x-rayed her every 12 hours. For the past 2 1/2 days, we would eagerly called 1/2 hour after each x-ray hoping that the NEC had subsided. We were frightened that the NEC would actually get worse, a distinct possibility in a preemie. But by God's wonderful grace, the NEC was disappearing. All her lab work was also indicating that the infection was dying. NEC isn't all gone yet, but Dr. Maynar thinks that in a couple of more days the infection should be eradicated.

Those first 2 days Charissa was like a rag doll. She wouldn't move or open her eyes. She had no strength in her bones. I would move her arms and legs, but she would offer no resistance. Yesterday & today, she looked much better! Her stomach has reduced, she freely opens her eyes, and most importantly, strength has returned to her frail body. Another bit of good news, she has left the ventilator and is now back on the high-flow nasal cannula. She will be on the antibiotics for another 5 days. This will give her bowels a chance to heal and rest. Then, it's back to feeding!

Both Chase & Charissa are now breathing well. No bradycardias and very few desaturations. We're both waiting for the NEC to be completely wiped away from Charissa's body, and we are thankful that God has brought us through another trying moment... ....They are now 33 weeks gestation. Although NEC can reoccur, Dr. Maynar tells us that after 34 weeks gestation, NEC becomes very rare.

Whoa! We thank God for his mercies once again!

TGBG (To God Be The Glory)!
Choi Family