Roommates

Search and Destroy moved out of their individual little plastic boxes and together into a pedi-crib bachelor pad today.

When we walked into the NICU this morning, the two 3.5 pound brothers were squirming around in their new digs. Even though the move doesn’t indicate any major change, it makes the muppets seem so much bigger to me.

And they’ve already clearly demonstrated their capability as mischief makers. I should have named them Fred and George (thank you Harry Potter fans who got that). Destroy greeted us with a major diaper blowout. Search bid us a fond farewell with the same. In between, Search demonstrated all the new faces he’d learned to refuse his bottle and Destroy shot milk out of his nose. The 10 a.m. feeding involves nasty smelling vitamins – I can only imagine how they taste. So Search refused to participate in any event that involved tasting the foul liquid. Brother Destroy, who isn’t quite taking a bottle, solved the issue by simply removing his own feeding tube.

The twins are learning to share their space much sooner than I ever had to share. I didn’t have to share my room until I moved away to college. My mom and Aunt J spent the summer before I left trying to convince me that I shouldn’t expect to be best friends with my roommate – I just needed to tolerate the situation for a year. My roommate’s mom thought she was nuts for noting that she had an interest in theatre on her living arrangement form – she was going get a nut to live with.

Once I got my roommate’s information, the two of us spent the summer emailing back and forth as we prepped for the big move. I think we were both scared of what it would be like when we were finally stuck together, but at least we had some idea of what to expect thanks to our exchanges. I still vividly remember standing in the hallway of the 11^th floor of our dorm building. Face to face for the first time, I asked, “Are you Rebecca?” “Yes,” she replied hesitantly. “Are you Patricia?” As our parents drove away I stared after them wondering what I’d just gotten myself into.

Four years ago, I stood up for Becca at her wedding; three years ago, she stood up at mine. Last year her little girl was born and I traveled to meet my niece. This May, Becca traveled to visit me – spending a day in the hospital with me, where I was on bedrest with her nephews. (So, as you can extrapolate from this memory interlude, the roommate situation was just fine.)

When Jon and I said goodbye to our boys after today’s morning visit, our two little angels looked positively peaceful and content. I assume they were cavorting together in dreamland, conjuring new shenanigans to amuse themselves with.

Since they were ripped away from Mom and each other so early, I am confident that being together will help them to thrive. Although there is not currently any concrete research I have found on cobedding, the majority of studies find that it is a very positive experience for siblings. It is even standard preemie care practice in Europe (the U.S. is just now starting to catch on with regards to routine care). Rooming together can improve their rate of growth and development, stabilize heart and breathing rates and decrease their length of hospital stay.