Saturday 25th December

Well, that was a Christmas with a difference. We got up and drove to Poole hospital, just like any other day. When we arrived at NICU, everyone was jolly and filled with Christmas spirit; and Santa had visited all the babies overnight. There were no stockings this year (NHS cut-backs and all that - well, I'd rather they cut back on stockings than medical equipment), but Willow and Stanley got some lovely presents. Also, as they are long term inmates, they both had an outfit on their cot to wear today. Stanley had a little Santa suit, and Willow was a fairy. They both looked extremely cute, obviously.

Other than a delightful four hours spent at the senior senior Senior household for a traditionally delicious lunch and lots of presents, today was a pretty standard day in NICU. Willow and Stanley both had good days, with Willow especially now growing stronger and stronger. She seems a lot more robust and handles everything so much better. She's also still ahead of Stanley in the milk-drinking department. Willow takes it nice and slowly, remembering to stop for a breath every few seconds. Whereas Stanley just guzzles it down as quickly as possible; as if he is the hungriest man in the world. I have no idea where he gets that from...

We were full of mixed emotions today - very sad to be reminded that our babies are in this condition, and that we are still not at home together; but so happy that we've even got this far. I can't imagine how hard this would've been had they both still been in incubators with no-one really knowing how it would all turn out. There is a new baby in the cot next to Stanley – a 26 weeker, who at 2 and a half pounds is heavier than ours were when they were born. He looks so tiny; it’s hard to believe even now that ours were smaller than that, and looking at his young parents, we just don’t know how they are coping. And perhaps they are not; but when you are landed in this predicament, you really don’t have a choice, and put on this brave face to everyone, including yourselves.

Anyway, we consider ourselves extremely lucky to be in the situation we are in right now; with two beautiful children who will be home and well before we know it (hopefully before next Christmas…..).