3 Rounds of In-Vitro $?, 1 month in the NICU $?, Twins - Priceless (or are they)

Last night I went to a college planning seminar that our financial planner put on. It was just another reminder of how much kids will cost over time. At the same time the hospital bills are starting to trickle (or rush) in. I have told Milina on several occasions that if the Twins ask us where their college/mission funds are I will explain to them how much it cost to bring them into the world and their tab is overdrawn. In that spirit I am holding a poll/guessing game.
Here is the premise. How much is the total twins cost from conception to homecoming? I will give you a brief synopsis of the everything building up to homecoming to help you make an educated guess. I am adding up total charges not our total cost. For example the doctor may bill $200 for a procedure and the insurance only pays $75 and then we only pay our $25 copy. So when you make your guess you are trying to guess the total charged amount to the insurance company, it is more fun that way plus everybody's insurance varies too much. I will be using our EOB's to add up the total charged amounts.
1) 2 full rounds of In-vitro (full round is more expensive, it is where you get the eggs to work with and then freeze if you have enough)
2) 1 frozen cycle In-vitro (less expensive because you use frozen embryos)
3) 7 months pregnancy (office visits, ultrasounds, medications, i.e.)
4) Delivery (twin delivery in a operating room, natural birth)
5) 1 month for twins in a NICU

Good Luck, I have an initial amount already but I am not finished adding up yet. I will post the final amount and the winner in a few weeks.

2wk Homecoming

The twins have been home for 2wks now and we are surviving just fine. We have had a great deal of help from church in bringing meals and helping Milina with a few feedings. And of course from elated grandmothers who you can't pry the kids away from. It is amazing how either of us can function on less than half the sleep we are accustomed to getting. We have developed our own routines to make sure the twins stay on a schedule. The twins are growing and now weigh 7lb 5oz and 6lb 2oz for Adam and Mia respectively. They are becoming more animated and interactive but still are content to mainly eat/sleep/poop. I will download more pictures probably over the weekend.

There's No Place Like Home

We have had the twins home for just over 1 full day and they are teaching us their schedule. Both are doing fine with no problems. Adam's breathing has been uneventful (a good uneventful) and Mia is holding her temperature just fine. So far the lack of sleep hasn't been too bad but we are just getting started. We are slowly getting into a schedule and once we get everything down we will alternate feedings overnight so we each do one feeding and the other sleeps. The twins still do not complain much and are easily consolable. The dogs are still adjusting and wondering what all the new smells and sounds are. We are grateful for the several families that have dropped off food as that makes one less thing to worry about. I will have the new pictures of the twins at home up in the next day or so.

Double the Joy, Half the Sleep!!!!

Milina and I will be rooming in the hospital tonight in preparation for bringing home both Adam and Mia. Yes that is right, BOTH twins will be coming home tomorrow if all goes well tonight and tomorrow morning. Adam was apparently just waiting for the go ahead news on Mia. As soon as the plans started rolling for Mia to come home Adam decided it was time. Sunday evening the nurses weaned down his oxygen and he has been off it ever since and responding well. The next steps are as follows. Milina and I will "room in" at the hospital tonight and the twins will be off their monitors. They also must pass a car seat test. They will be placed in a car seat today while in the NICU and monitored to make sure they can keep their vitals stable. If all goes well they will come home with us sometime tomorrow late morning/early afternoon. I do not know if Adam will have an oxygen monitor on him or not. It is possible that they send us home with an oxygen monitor as a precaution since he has not been off his oxygen long. Of course there is always a possibility that he reverts back to his old ways of breathing and has to stay a few more days but either way they will both be home soon.

Bitter Sweet

The last couple of days have been great for both Adam and Mia.

Adam though still on his oxygen is tolerating well the gradual decrease in O2 concentration in his cannula. They really can't turn his flow down anymore because it is between .01 and .025 (nothing more than a whisp). His %O2 is steady between 40-60 (room air is 21%). He was even able to nurse yesterday 2X for 20min once without his oxygen at all. He has more difficulty with his bottle though and used his O2 with bottle feedings. He still frequently pulls the cannula out of his nose and when he does we just leave it out as long as his blood O2 levels are good. His weight now is appx 5lb13oz. He continues to show his patience (maybe too much patience with the whole breathing thing) as the nurses work with him. He complains only briefly and calms easily. He is also our more animated one at the moment as you can tell by the pictures. Several nurses have called him their little gentleman.
Mia - Mia no longer has her feeding tube in which makes her completely assistance free, YEAH! She is allowed to eat as much as she wants (until they are off all assistance, i.e. breathing/feeding, they are given specific feeding volumes and are not given much past that). She was also able to nurse yesterday several times and did great even taking 1/2 of her normal feeding from a bottle after 15-20min nursing. She will still have to be bottle fed regularly as sometimes she gets tired still and she also takes vitamins which are mixed into milk for some feedings. Her bottle feedings are no longer supplemented with calories either and her weight has reached 4lb14oz.

Now for the "Bitter Sweet" part. Mia will in all likelihood be coming home in the next 2-3days. Milina and are were asked to plan to stay overnight at the hospital Mon or Tue evening. When you take a preemie home you spend the night in the hospital with your child in your room and if the baby responds well you go home. We are excited about the possibility but obviously would like them to come home together. Not to mention it takes more planning to care for Mia at home while also making sure we spend as much time as possible with Adam in the hospital. We hope Adam will follow closely, coming home with his oxygen is still a possibility but they would rather send him home with nothing.