Catch-up time

I don't know where the time goes! The babies are growing and changing every day, and keeping us very busy. They are both smiling, giggling, and starting to play with their toys... and they want to play all the time. They are sleeping more and more through the night, beginning to roll over, and Katie is even starting to stand up with someone to hold on to for balance. Jimmy has so much fun in his "jumperoo" that all he wants to do when he's upright is bounce.

I have a few last pictures in the Months 4 & 5 album, and we're into Month 6 now.

Today was the twins club halloween party at a local rehab center (for stroke patients, etc.). There was a potluck lunch and coloring for the kids, followed by trick-or-treating around to the patients' rooms. Everyone loved seeing the little ones all dressed up, and there were some great costume pairs -- Buzz Lightyear & Woody, Luke Skywalker & Princess Leia, Captain Hook & Tinkerbell, and a whole family of The Incredibles.

Our little bugs slept through most of the trick-or-treating, but they looked cute doing it!

Update:
Today, Kathryn discovered consonants ("bruuuu") and making raspberries!

Four months old

They were four months old on Saturday... time is just flying by! Nana (Tracey's mom) is here visiting for a few days, and we all went to get pictures taken yesterday. We got a few great shots, including a spur-of-the-moment family portrait (I hadn't planned on being in any of the pictures this time). See them and the other pics I've finally gotten around to uploading in the newly re-titled Months 4 & 5 album.

We're clearing out a whole bunch of clothes they have outgrown, and they're now wearing lots of the things that just a month or two ago looked like they'd be way too huge forever. James smiles and giggles all the time now, and Kathryn is starting to give us some smiles as well. They are both "talking" away, making all sorts of cute baby sounds. They're also holding their heads up well, holding on to toys & waving them around, and getting closer and closer to rolling over on purpose. Our best time is first thing in the morning, they wake up and play happily on the floor, kicking and swatting at the toys hanging from their play gym or laughing at funny faces we make. Now if they'd just give up that last middle-of-the-night feeding so Mommy & Daddy would be happier in the morning too...

We haven't dropped off the face of the earth

I can't believe we're halfway through October already! Time really flies when you're having fun! (and still not sleeping through the night, and trying to catch up on several months of to-do list that just keeps growing, and...)

Both the babies are doing great, and we are getting closer and closer to a full night's sleep. When they got their Synagis shots last week, James was up to 13 1/2 pounds and Kathryn was 12 1/4 pounds. They'll see the pediatrician next week for their four-month (FOUR MONTHS!) check-up and vaccinations.

We are settling into a daily schedule now, and their feeding and naps are getting a little more predictable. They are also sleeping longer at night, occasionally up to 10 - 12 hours, but usually not quite that long. Unfortunately, we're still working on getting one last evening feeding into them, so for now their longest sleep is from 6 or 7 pm until too early in the morning. Hopefully we can get them to take that last bottle before we go to bed and wake up a few hours later in the morning. Sometimes they'll take an ounce or two, but they're very sleepy and when they don't want it they clamp their little mouths shut or just fall alseep and dribble the last mouthful all over.

I am way behind in posting (and taking) pictures this month. I will make up for that soon; Nana (my mother) is flying in tomorrow for a visit, and next weekend we will all dress up for the local twins club Halloween party.

James is still smiling and giggling at most everything, and Kathryn is beginning to smile more as well. They are both at their best first thing in the morning, and we have a great time playing on the floor before their breakfast bottle.

Not much new to report in the past week or so. They're still growing like weeds, we're still not getting much sleep, and they're still getting cuter by the day. I have a couple of pictures in the new Month 4 album. We haven't weighed them since Monday, when James weighed 11 lbs. 13 oz. and Kathryn was up to 10 lbs. 10 oz., which was around a half pound gain for each of them over the previous week.

They are starting to get some longer stretches of sleep, but it will take some work to get the timing right (for us) and turn it into some sort of schedule. Kathryn just won't eat if she's not hungry, so trying to get more calories into her during the day, or "topping off the tank" before bed just doesn't work for her. James will take at least some of his bottle most any time, but he still seems to be on his own timetable for now. The lack of sleep is getting a little rough. We're both pretty exhausted almost all the time, and most non-baby projects and activities are on the back burner for a while, but I know there's light at the end of the tunnel and before long we'll all be able to get a full night's sleep more often. Thank goodness for our weekly reprieve, knowing we get at least one night a week of undisturbed sleep is such a help.

What is changing fast is their personalities. We've gotten over most of the tummy troubles, though they still both have some fussy times when nothing seems to make them happy -- we tell them to stop acting like such babies! :-) Fortunately these are usually short-lived. They are spending more time awake, and happy, and are beginning to really enjoy watching their mobiles and other moving toys. Kathryn studies everything around her and will happily sit in her swing for a long time just watching the mobile go around before finally falling asleep, or in her bouncy chair swatting at the spinny toys in front of her. We get some smiles out of her, but usually she is quite serious. James has turned into Mr. Giggles, smiling and even laughing at almost everything -- diaper changes, toys, and especially Daddy and his silly songs.

Three months!

Three months old tomorrow! They're still growing by leaps and bounds, and getting cuter every day.

We weighed them the other day on a package scale. Kathryn is up to 10 pounds, and James nearly 11 and a half pounds. As if on cue (our pediatrician said we could start working on sleeping through the night at ten pounds), Kathryn slept for nearly six hours that night, and James almost seven. Last night was two five-hour stretches, but with a lot of fussing in between. At least we're seeing some light at the end of the tunnel and beginning to believe that we may, someday, get a full night's sleep again.

The last of the Month 3 pictures are up, including a size comparison with the same stuffed animal they were holding in their hospital photos (taken just before they went home at three weeks old). They now weigh just about three times what they did when they were born, and have grown over five inches in length -- that's a third of what they measured at birth!

Sleep has never been so sweet

Last night I slept for almost eight hours straight, thanks to the help I mentioned last week. It was great!

This morning, James rolled from his tummy to his back for the first time! The first time on purpose, at least, he did flail around enough to flip himself once early on, but this was much more deliberate, pushing up with one arm until he got onto his side, then over onto his back (not sure exactly how he did that, I'd looked up to tell Russ to come see). He is also smiling a lot now, making cute noises, and almost giggling.

Last week's formula change (to Enfamil Nutramigen) seems to be helping Kathryn's tummy troubles quite a bit. She's eating better, sleeping better, and has been much happier the past couple of days. During her tummy time, she has been concentrating on trying to scoot herself along with her feet, and does a surprising job of it sometimes. She's also gotten her legs up underneath her with her butt in the air a couple of times.

They both had their last pulmonologist appointments on Tuesday to officially discontinue the apnea monitors and to get their first Synagis shots. We will have to go back monthly through the winter this year and next for the shots, but we're hoping that we'll be able to get our pediatrician to do them instead since they're much closer to home. The shots are to help prevent severe RSV infections. RSV is a common virus which most kids have caught by the time they're 2. It usually causes nothing more than mild cold symptoms, but it can be very severe in preemies and babies with lung problems.

Of course, they were weighed and measured while they were there. Kathryn was 20 1/2 inches long and 9 lbs. 10 oz., and James was 10 lbs. 6 oz. and 21 3/4 inches!

It's hard to believe they'll be three months old in another week...

So this is what they call the "colic"

Last night at around 3 am, Russ handed me the baby girl (he was on late shift last night) and said "See if YOU can figure out why she's been crying for the past two hours."

I put her in the sling and walked and walked and walked and walked and she settled down and fell alseep and I could finally sit down. By the time James was hungry again at 5:00, I was, fortunately, able to put her down in the crib without waking her.

This scenario has repeated itself several times ofer the past few days, at different times of the day and night. When it happens, she's pretty much always happy to be in the sling and walking around, sometimes happy in the sling and sitting down, sometimes happy in the front carrier, and eventually she'll settle down enough to be put down.

Poor thing has been having all sorts of apparent tummy discomfort, for which we are trying various remedies. A side effect of this is that what feeding schedule we had is out the window, as she'll get hungry, take an ounce of forumla, and refuse any more until an hour or two later, when she wants more NOW.

On the plus side, I ate lunch and a bunch of sweets and then had a four-hour nap / sugar coma this afternoon. I woke up about every hour, but I couldn't convince any part of my body to move, so I went back to sleep. I feel much better now.

And we got a pair of Bumbo seats, which they're still just a tad too young for, but they seem to enjoy them in small doses already.

Help is on the way

I am slowly beginning to dig my way out from under the piles of chaos and laundry that have overtaken the house in the past couple of months. Eventually I will work my way down to the suitcase that still needs to be unpacked (yes, from July). Fortunately I always segregate dirty & clean clothes when I pack to go home from a trip, and dump the dirties into the laundry first thing, so there shouldn't be any new life forms in there.

The nursery has been somewhat organized, but not really. Now that the babes are beginning to outgrow some clothes (no more preemie sizes! yay!) and we have received a number of larger size outfits as gifts, I'm getting them separated into "too small", "too big", and "just right", and finding homes for each stack. The organizing binge has extended into our bedroom, where I'm slowly working the closet back into a state where I can find he clothes I want to wear (not that I'm wearing much besides sweat pants and T-shirts lately, but I do go out on occasion).

This productivity boost has come from a couple of sources. First, the babies are settling into a decent schedule and sleeping much better at night. We put them down around 7 or 8 pm, they sleep until midnight or so, get another bottle, and sleep until 4 or 5 am. Of course it's not always this easy, sometimes they're hungry at 11 pm and then 3am; this morning it was 1 am and 6 am (which wasn't bad at all, especially for Russ, who had gone to bed shortly after 9 pm). Most nights I'm still on the "late shift", so I handle everything -- feeding, fussing, whatever -- from 9 or 10 pm until at least 3 am (usually 4 or 5 am), then wake Russ and grab 2 or 3 more hours of sleep myself until he leaves for the office. The biggest improvement so far is that they've been fussing a lot less between feedings at night, so I can snooze instead of jumping up every 15 minutes to calm one or the other of them.

Our other good news is that we'll have some help starting next week. We'll have a post-partum doula for a 12-hour stretch Wednesday night into Thursday morning, so we'll both get a full night's sleep and a relaxed morning. She comes highly recommended, and will also share her experience and knowledge with us. We have also enrolled in a program with alocal non-profit organization that offers a few hours per week of help to families with multiples.

Yesterday the kiddies looked so cute in their outfits that we had a little photo shoot on the sofa. The results are on the Month 3 page. There are also a couple of shots Russ took of Kathryn and I after story time.

How babies survive

And then, when I'm running on perhaps 3 hours sleep, and they've been fussing and crying and being generally uncooperative, they do this:




And my heart melts all over again.

(A few more new pics in the Month 3 album, too.)

New trick

Why are they screaming and screaming and screaming at 12:30am?

At first, it appears to be hunger. They don't both awaken at the same time, the second one waits just long enough after the first to let me think I can get away with feeding one at a time. Then everyone's crying because I've taken the bottle away from the first to get the second one up, find the Boppys, and get another bottle prepared. Once we're settled again, they're happy for a few minutes, and then start crying again.

Is it gas? Try burping each of them (again, prompting cries from the one who is without bottle while I burp the other), aha, success. Happy again for a few minutes, and then both start up again, crying so hard they don't even want to eat. OK, try diapers. One poopy, one wet. Clean pants should feel better, but that's not the problem. Try wrapping, unwrapping, different positions, and finally stumble upon the solution...

They want to be held while they eat (Why is this a surprise to us? Not that long ago, it was all we could do to keep them awake long enough to suck down an ounce and a half of formula). At the same time. At midnight. And they're now both too big to scoop up in one hand.

More sleeping stuff; Increasing cuteness

Sis demanded new baby pictures, so here's one. I took this the other day because he looked so cute and peaceful, snoozing away. That's about it for pictures this week, other than Daddy trying to assemble the new swing. I'll have to take some more over the weekend. They keep getting cuter, so we sometimes find ourselves incapable of doing anything but sitting and watching them even when they are sleeping. Doesn't do much for household productivity, but it sure is fun.

On Tuesday we had an appointment -- hopefully our last! -- with the GI specialist for Kathryn. Her reflux has improved and she'll be off the medication (Zantac) completely in another few weeks if all continues to go well. The other news there was the weighings: 8 lbs 5 oz. for Kathryn and NINE POUNDS for James.

I'm not sure where the week went. I have spent most of my time in a sleep-deprived daze. The house isn't falling apart yet, but it's teetering on the brink. If you don't hear from me in a week, send in a search party. Have them look under the collapsed mountain of laundry first.

This week both babies started sleeping through the night, just not at night. They've gone 6 hours between feedings, but from 6pm to midnight or from 4am to 10am. This is despite keeping things dark and quiet at night, even during feedings, and having them out in the light & noise pretty much all day, even for naps. Friday night they ate at 7pm, midnight, and 5am, which was wonderful. I wish I knew how to stop the dial right there and have it stick for a while.

Of course, 5 hours between feedings doesn't mean that we get 5 hours of sleep, but it's better than the 3-hour schedule they were on for a while. Preparing bottles, feeding, changing diapers, and clean-up takes at least an hour, even feeding both at once, and usually closer to 90 minutes. By the time both get rocked., pacifier'ed, and otherwise settled back to sleep, it can be two hours or more. Sometimes one or the other of them -- occasionally both at once -- will just need to be held while they sleep. Sometimes for an hour or two. Sometimes without moving at all. By the time I unwind and get sleepy again, my brain is eyeing the clock and telling me no sense in sleeping now, they'll be awake again in an hour (And that's the time they'll go ahead and sleep for another 3 hours :-).

We've got our schedule working pretty well. I take the "late shift" while Russ goes to bed around 9 or 10 pm. I take care of feeding and anything else needed from then until 4 or 5 am, though I sometimes wake him a little earlier if they're ready to eat and I can't keep my eyes open any longer. Then I sleep until 7 or 8am, depending on when he leaves for the office and when my internal clock wakes me (I have a lot of trouble sleeping late, or sleeping at all during the day, and once I'm awake past around 3 or 4 am, I might as well make a pot of coffee because I'm up for the morning). After several days of this, I'm a basket case, because sleeping in one or two hour naps just doesn't do it, even if it adds up to 6 hours a day.

Fortunately, a couple of nights a week, we switch and he takes the late shift while I sleep. On those nights I get in bed as early as I can and read or watch TV. Even if I don't actually fall asleep until 11:00, I can be up at 4 am feeling (relatively) awake and refreshed. An hour or two of quiet time and five or six hours of uninterrupted sleep during normal sleeping hours does the trick, as long as something doesn't awaken me in the middle of it. That hapens sometimes, and it makes me very cranky. I'm still pretty zombie-like even with the good sleep, but it gets me through the next several days of up-all-night.

Yesterday they suddenly spent much more time awake and wanting to play & be entertained during the day -- James in the morning and Kathryn in the afternoon. I think they planned that out during the night to make sure we'd have no time to get other things done. I am hoping this is a sign that they are starting to get night & day figured out, and that we might be on our way to sleeping at night and being awake in the daytime. Stay tuned...

Be sure you get my good side...

I took the babies out by myself tonight for the first time, since Russ was supposed to have a Dad's Night Out (which he skipped in favor of some alone time... can't say as I blame him!). It was fun & nervous-making at the same time, especially the driving.

I went to my favorite mall to spend time with a couple of friends, and also made an appointment at the cute photo studio there. We got some great pictures, and the babies were good through the whole thing and the hanging-out time afterwards. I planned it as a surprise for Russ, and brought home a couple of nice framed prints for his office & the house.

The kiddos just keep growing and growing, physically and mentally. They are looking at more and starting to hold on to things -- toys, me, whatever's nearby. James is enthralled by story time and watches me intently the whole time I am reading. Kathryn is really beginning to use her legs, both kicking at the ball on the new play gym, and scooting herself forward when she's on her tummy. She doesn't do that consistently, but she's made some big moves here and there

Plenty of new Month 3 photos, including highlights from tonight's photo session.

Sleep...

"Just sleep when the baby sleeps," they say.

They don't tell you the long version, for twins:

Sleep when the baby sleeps, and the other baby sleeps (This happens only when one or the other isn't eating -- 6-8 times a day -- having their diaper changed -- also 6-8 times a day -- awake and alert and ready to be stimulated and entertained in developmentally positive ways, fussing and crying over some crushing soul pain such as dropping a pacifier, or just wanting to be HELD).

AND the laundry is done (holy moley, bibs alone, nevermind poop and spit-up stained outfits (theirs and ours) and the normal stuff... yeah, I'd love to be green and use cloth diapers and all, but right now I would wear disposable pants myself if I could), and the bottles are washed, and the cabinets are stocked with diapers and formula, and the cats & dogs & fish & Mommy & Daddy are fed, and the cat box is cleaned, and the bills are paid, and your brain isn't going "HEY, it's the middle of the day! No napping, it's AWAKE TIME!" and spinning around trying to figure out which household tasks are truly essential and which of those you've forgotten altogether for the past 3 weeks (showers anyone? bathe the babies before they reek of stale formula cheese?)... you do the math.

New pictures coming soon. Right after my nap.

Two Months Old!

Today is the babies' two month birthday! To celebrate we went into the office for a while, then to the doctor for their first round of immunizations. :-(

They weren't very happy about the shots, but they've gotten over it now and are sleeping peacefully. James especially needed a lot of extra Mommy cuddling when we got through, and they've both had some Tylenol for their sore little legs.

We got great news at weighing time... Kathryn is up to 7 pounds 11 ounces and 20 inches long, and James is 8 pounds 3 ounces and 20 3/4 inches long! They're just barely onto the growth curve for two-month babies, but they're right around the 50th percentile line for full term newborns (their adjusted age). Also, their weight, length, and head circumference are all catching up to "normal" -- that is, they're not only growing well, they're getting closer and closer to where they should be for their (actual, not adjusted) age. It's hard to tell yet where they'll be developmentally, as there isn't much they're even supposed to be doing yet, but they are doing well with their tummy time and picking their heads up, and they're focusing on things more and more with their eyes, even turning their heads to look at something making noise alongside them.

I have started a Month 3 page in the online photo album. Just a few pictures in there from this morning, but plenty more to come throughout the month.

Picnic Outing

We had an outing yesterday, to the Summer Celebration Party held by out local parents of multiples club. It was at a nearby park with a nice playground and a shelter with plenty of picnic tables, and the club rented an inflatable waterslide to go along with the kiddie pools and water toys brought by members. Our two slept through most of the event, but it was fun watching and taking pictures of the dozen or so sets of twins & triplets, plus their parents and siblings. The pictures are in my online album along with a few new ones in the Month 2 album.

It's hard to believe that tomrorow starts month three! We see the doctor in the afternoon for their 2-month checkup, shots, and weight check. I can't wait to find out how much they've grown! Kathryn has already outgrown one of her "preemie" outfits, and there are several more that are getting tight on both of them. The newborn sizes are starting to fit too -- still plenty of room to grow in them but they're wearable now, at least.

Both kiddos are getting a lot more active now. They're spending even more time awake, and they're really pushing up off the floor with their arms when they are on their tummies. They love it on the Boppys, they can see a lot more of what's going on and still work on picking their heads up. They also seem to like it when I read them stories, they're paying a lot more attention to me as I read.

First two months in pictures

Eight weeks!

The babies' original due date was Tuesday, and yesterday they hit the eight week mark! Monday will be their two-month checkup, we will see how much they weigh and they'll get their first round of vaccinations.

We took them into the office for a few hours on Monday and again yesterday, and I got back to the gym yesterday for the first time in three months. Yes, I am a little sore today! I did get a nap in when we got home, which was wonderful!

The babes are doing great, but we're pretty wiped out right now. They are eating more, and more often, and are not sleeping as much in between. They don't yet know the difference between night and day, so they're just as likely to be awake and looking for attention at 3 am as any other time. We are setting a day/night routine for them -- night-time sleeping in their crib in a dark room, daytime hours spent wherever we are with more activity around them -- but I'm sure it's going to take some time for them to get the hang of it.

New pics in the Month 2 album -- bath time, office, and more.

What I need...

What I need is not a nanny, a night nurse, or a babysitter.

What I need is someone to sit next to the crib and put the %&*#! pacifiers back in when they fall out of the babies' mouths.

Shopping spree

My sister and nephew are in town visiting for a few days, and this afternoon Sis and I went shopping. She's a baaaad influence. See the new pics in the Month 2 album.

I have been wanting to find the babies some more "nice" clothes, dresses and things other than onesies and sleepers, so we went to my favorite mall where they have Gymboree, Children's Place, Janie and Jack, and Nordstrom. Almost everything we bought was on sale, much of it marked down 50% or more. The stores had their fall & winter lines out, and the summer clothes were on the sale racks... Perfect! They'll have to grow into some of the outfits, but that's happening pretty fast these days.

When I got home, James was wide awake, and Kathryn woke up not long after. Russ put a Baby Einstein video on the TV, propped them in their Boppys up close, and they both watched it intently. It was adorable! I had fun talking to them about what they were seeing on the screen. We got the OK from the pediatrician's office to use some infant Mylicon drops to help their apparent gassiness (we'd been warned at the hospital not to give them any over-the-counter medicines without checking with their doctor), and it's made a big difference, especially for Kathryn. She is much more alert and happy than she's been lately, and they've both been snoozing peacefully since we put them down affter their last feeding (I will be doing the same very shortly).

Sleep eludes us

When we reported the latest weights to the pediatrician's office on Friday, the nurse called back to tell us we no longer have to do the weekly weight checks, yaaaaaay! (That's what she said, "Yaaaaaaay!"). Our next appointment will be their 2-month check-up & vaccinations in another couple of weeks.

Most everything else is going very well. James is completely off his monitor now, and we only put Kathryn's on at night and when she's napping and we aren't in the room. She is having fewer and fewer episodes, which is great. We go back to the pulmoologist in just over a month, and she may be off the monitor even before then.

Sleep, on the other hand, is not going so well. They are fussy and awake from 10pm until 2am. Feeding times have become totally unpredictable; fortunately the medication is down to a point where we don't have to stick to quite as precise a schedule. This too shall pass, I know...

Look, Ma, no wires!

This morning's doctor visit was with the pediatric pulmonologist, and it went well. James is up to 5 lbs. 15 oz. and Kathryn is 6 lbs 1 oz. -- SIX POUNDS!

Both of them are doing much better with the bradycardia and apnea. Kathryn is still having a few episodes here and there, probably due to her reflux. James hasn't had any problems in a week or so, and we can begin weaning him off the monitor (though, as the doctor pointed out, it's the parents who need to be weaned in this case, not the babies). Kathryn will still need hers while she is sleeping, but we can take it off when we're watching her.

Double Trouble

I am learning different ways of handling two hungry babies at once when I'm on duty solo:
1. Two reclining highchairs
2. Two Boppy pillows in their crib or on the floor
3. Double stroller (reclining side-by-side model)
4. Both propped up on a sofa pillow
5. Feed one baby while the other one screams like someone's sticking a pin in it, focus all of my mental energy on willing the first to finish faster so I can get a bottle into the other one's mouth before one of our heads explode.

It does get a bit tricky when one needs to be moved or have its chin wiped or something, but tonight I did manage to burp Kathryn while James was still sucking away. It helps that she often burps with no more help than a change of position.

On the fun side, James has started smiling a bunch of times in a day. Hard to tell if he's smiling at us or just at random, but it's still wonderful to see and melts my heart every time.

Tummy time

Big sister Kirby was here for two days and finally got to meet the new additions. She jumped right into the big sister role and did a great job, helping with feeding, changing diapers, playing, and cuddling.

Other than that, there's not much new. They're still changing and growing every day -- I uploaded a batch of new pictures to the photo page. We're sleeping less and less every day, or so it seems. The babies have been looking for attention in the wee hours the past several nights, and it's starting to take its toll. On the plus side, I'm finally getting tired enough to be able to nap during the day! They let me get to bed a little earlier last night, so today was a bit better. I even made it out to the store this afternoon, though I almost fell asleep on my feet waiting in the checkout line... I was OK walking around the store, but standing still was another story!

I am amazed at how much they have grown and how different they look and act today compared to their first couple of weeks, or even the first few days here at home. We're starting to see some personality in them now. Kathryn makes lots of noise when she's awake (and sometimes in her sleep), which gradually turns into a cry when she's hungry or uncomfortable. James spends a lot of tme just quietly looking around when he's awake, but lets loose with a piercing cry when he's unhappy about something. When they have "tummy time" on the floor, they both pick their heads up and turn them from side to side, and also pick their legs up off the floor and squirm around. They are fascinated by lights, whether it's a lamp in the room or daylight outside. I took them for another walk in their stroller this afternoon. They slept through most of it, but James woke up in time to enjoy some of the scenery on the way home.

Announcing...

(click for a larger version)

Weights & Measures

Update after the babies' appointment with the GI doc this afternoon: James is up to 5 lbs. 7 oz. (up 12 ounces from a week ago), Kathryn is at 5 lbs. 10 oz. (up 10 ounces from a week ago), and both are 18 1/2 inches long!

Full-on new mommy mode

Now they're definitely becoming regular babies. The schedule is mostly out the window, except that we do wake them up for bottles if they don't wake up on their own after 4 hours. The babies make no distinction between night and day in either their feeding or wakefulness patterns. I have also lost track of what day and time it is, though at least I know what the bright light outdoors means.

We are sticking to the "one eats, both eat" rule (if one wakes up hungry, the other gets a bottle too) to forestall utter chaos. Splitting up the night time duties is also working out fairly well. We each get a shot at 4 or 5 hours of relatively uninterrupted sleep each night, barring monitor alarms or extreme crying.

I am still having trouble napping during the day, though it's getting easier as I become more zombie-like. Putting a snoozing baby on top of me is also a great sleep-inducer. Someone should bottle that and sell it, but it's probably even more addictive than what they've got now.

On the upside of regular-baby-ness, they are spending more time awake, and are more alert and aware of what's around them. They're both getting better and better at lifting their heads, looking around, and focusing on interesting things. On the downside, they are also getting better and more insistent at expressing their displeasure at being hungry, having a dirty diaper, or being subjected to the indignity of a diaper change. They are also soiling things (clothes, bedding, blankets, Mommy, etc.) in various ways at an alarming rate, times two. But they're really cute doing it.

The week everything broke

Perhaps it's required to maintain the cosmic balance, but we've had a string of bad luck in the form of things breaking all around the house. Shortly before the babies were born, one of our (wall unit) air conditioners conked out, and Russ had it replaced with a "mini split" unit that's a nice step up. We also had a new roof put on as the old one had a slowly growing leak.

Snice we've been home, the other air conditioner quit (no replacement yet... July in Florida is a bad time to expect a call back from the A/C man), the clothes dryer broke (on the plus side, I now have the new washer and dryer I've been eyeing for several months), and the Truckster is in the shop having its transmission replaced. Whew!

Other than that, we're all doing fine. We go see a specialist later this week for their reflux, which we hope will continue improving. They have been taking less medicine since Friday's pediatrician visit and seem to be doing alright.

The lack of sleep is beginning to catch up with me. If I write everything down, I have a shot at remembering what I need to do next. If I remember where I wrote it down.

One month old

The twins are one month old today! This morning was their weight check and one-month doctor visit. Kathryn tipped the scales at five pounds, and James weighed in at 4 pounds 11 ounces. They have both grown to over 18 inches long too. They are eating like crazy and doing better and better with their other problems. Since they are doing so well, we are going to start decreasing their reflux medicine to see how they do with less of that.

My mother arrived on Tuesday and will be here until the middle of next week, so we have another pair of hands around for a little while -- very helpful! We're getting everything a little more organized around here, but we are still short on sleep and the to-do lists just get longer. We'll catch up eventually. Or not.

Drink 'til ya puke

Who knew they'd be such partiers already?! :-)

We don't have to measure everything as carefully anymore, so they get as much as they want (within reason)... the doctor assured us that they'd "give back" whatever formula is too much at a feeding. Last night they were both looking for more after finishing their bottles, so more they got. So far it hasn't been too much, though their appetites are starting to fluctuate through the day and night. We go back to the doctor on Friday to weigh them again and make sure they're still gaining.

Last night they both fussed a lot during the night, so we didn't get much sleep. James and Kathryn are becoming more and more alert and active as Russ and I become zombies. I can hardly believe it's Tuesday already. The weekend went by in a blur. We have many things to catch up on, and people to catch up with, but we've been in a daze most of the time since we got home. I expect to keep updating this blog, but the updates & pictures will probably be fewer and farther between.

They are starting to act more and more like regular babies, changing by the day. It's hard to tell what to expect next. They're nearly a month old, but also still 4 weeks from their full-term birth date. We know they'll likely be somewhat delayed, especially on some of their early milestones, but it's impossible to predict which ones and how much. The best the books can tell us is that they'll probably do things in roughly the same order as a full-term baby, but maybe not at the same age. Or maybe so. Yikes. They are starting to lift their heads and look around when on their tummies, they seem to focus on our faces and voices, they find their fingers to suck on sometimes, and no matter how we put them down in the crib or how nicely swaddled they are, they manage to squirm around until some part of them is touching each other.

First doctor visit, Settling in

Yesterday's doctor visit went well. Both babies gained some weight -- they're getting weighed with diapers now, and on much less precise scales, but James gained about an ounce and Kathryn almost two ounces. We will have to go see specialists to monitor their reflux and bradys/apneas (monitor their monitors?), but they should outgrow both problems soon enough. Other than that, they continue to be healthy & growing well. We see changes in them every day!

We are beginning to find a routine that works for now, so we were both able to get a little more sleep last night. After their 9:00pm feeding, I napped & watched TV for a couple of hours, did the 1:00am feeding by myself and then slept until around 7:30am; Russ went to bed earlier and got up for the 5:00am. It takes about an hour altogether to prepare medicine & bottles, feed & diaper both babies, and get them settled back to sleep. Fortunately they are are so far sticking to the 4-hour shedule they were on at the hospital, though sometimes they need some distraction before feeding time or a little bit of an early start. We're trying to stick with it at least while they are on the medication to keep things simple and avoid waking them (or us!) up between feedings just to take medicine.

They are both eating very well now, taking almost 2 ounces at each feeding, and we can turn off the alarm clock because they're having no trouble waking up for their feedings and letting us know they're hungry! The home monitors are a little clumsy to handle, but we have had relatively few alarms, and they both fix the problem themselves usually before we even get into the room. It's reassuring to have the monitors, because every now and then they do need a little stimulation to get their heart rates or breathing back up. I am amazed at how well my sleeping self can tell the difference between the "problem" alarm sound (rush in to make sure they're OK) and the "loose wire" (someone moved the wrong way, just wait a few seconds) alarm sound!

I finally got the camera out and added a batch of new photos to the baby album!

Home at last

We got home around 8pm last night (Thursday) and all is well. The drive was long, but not too bad. We made a stop at Babies R Us so I could run in and get a few necessities -- diapers (we had two cases of newborn size stocked up, but only a few packages of premie size), formula, baby monitor, spare crib sheets, etc.

Just now got the laptop in from the car. Haven't dug out the camera with going-home photos yet. Cats have been demanding attention all night, as have babies. Just fed them breakfast (babies, not cats). We have both managed to get a little sleep. Unpacking the car little bits at a time, haven't really made a dent yet.

We got see the pediatrician at 1 pm today, then right back home. One of us will have to go food shopping sometime, the leftover Chinese food we had delivered for dinner won't last forever.

Babies are sleeping, back to bed for me now!

Ready to GO!

It's 5 am and I have been awake for a couple of hours now. After an hour or so, I realized that I wasn't going to get back to sleep, so I got up, dressed, reorganized the diaper bags for the trip, made a pot of coffee, and I'm pretty much ready to go right now.

Too bad the babies won't be ready to leave for three or four hours yet. And Russ is still sound asleep. At least I got a few hours of sleep, and he's driving, so I can nap in the car (time to practice "sleep when the babies sleep", right? :-).

We have a pair of bulging diaper bags from the hospital, filled with enough formula, bottles (they'll still need their formula measured carefully for a little while), and diapers to last a couple of days. Loading those up really made the whole "times two" thing hit home, as did trying to cram enough into one bag to last for the whole drive. Then again, my idea of "enough" is probably more like "enough, even if we get stuck in traffic... for three days."

The NICU staff has been very helpful in getting us ready to go without much stress at all. Everything that could be scheduled or done a day or three in advamce, they've done. The babies have had a whole day to rest without pictures, procedures, baths, and so on. They've been on the home monitors (along with the hospital monitor) since yesterday, so we know those are working well and that we can hook them up correctly. Last night we practiced measuring and giving the medicine that we'll have at hme. The doctor even said he'd get the babies checked out and ready to go first thing this morning so we can get an early start (their usual schedule puts NICU discharges in the afternoon or evening). By the time that and all of the paperwork is done, we should be able to get their 9am feeding into them just before we leave, so we shouldn't have to stop for the first few hours. It's usually an 8-hour drive, but it will take us at least a few hours longer with baby stops, so it will be late tonight before we get in.

I can hardly believe that we are taking them home today, after all that has happened -- especially since they aren't even supposed to be born for another month. I'm amazed at how far they have come in just a few weeks. I'm also amazed at how good they are... when they wake up early, before feeding time, they usually just lie there quietly and look around, or make cute little waking-up noises. They've rarely cried or been fussy at all unless someone was doing something unpleasant to them. Is it too much to hope that the behavior and the schedule will keep going this smoothly?

Even if it doesn't, at least we'll be home, and everything should be a lot easier to handle there. There are many things here that we will miss when we leave, but it will be nice to sleep in my own bed again after two months away!

Stay tuned for Twins... The Home Game!

One more day!

Barring any major problems between now and then, the babies will be released from the hospital Thursday morning and we will all be heading for home!!!

Today was a whirlwind of preparations, insurance company phone calls, a photo session (this picture is a quick one I took of them in the outfits they wore for their photo shoot... I crocheted the sweaters and pants while I was here awaiting their arrival), training for the home monitors (they'll be on monitors for a few months to alert us if their heart rate drops too far or if they stop breathing), James's circumcision, and the Tuesday night weighings and baths. We're all pretty well exhausted, but both babies are still gaining weight and both took their whole bottles tonight. Kathryn is up to 4 lbs. 3.4 oz. and James is up to 4 lbs. 2.4 oz.

We had yet another moment of hilarity in the NICU toinight... we let down our guard for a moment with his diaper open (one of the many rules there -- go without pooping for 12 hours and you get a glycerin suppository), and he retaliated by squirting Dad right in the face. Fortunately this time it was just pee. We both jumped to get things under cover, and lost a blanket and his pacifier to the floor (another hospital rule -- once something hits the floor, into the trash or laundry it goes) while trying to keep all the fresh post-bath bedding from getting soaked.

We are very excited about heading home so soon, and very happy that the babes are doing so well. We'll be pretty busy between now and then getting the truck packed up and everything ready to go, so I may not post any more until we get home. Maybe not right away then either... don't worry, it'll just mean we have our hands full of babies with no nurses around to help out!

More of the same, but closer to going home

Not a lot of news today, other than James finally catching on to the bottle feeding thing. The nurses say "the light bulb went on." At his overnight feedings, and all day today, James sucked away like a champ at his bottles. A few he even finished faster than his sister. He's certainly using less energy than he was to get through them, and he seems to be enjoying the whole process a lot more.

If the babies keep up this progress with the feedings and weight gain, we may be able to take them home as soon as the end of this week! They will have to be on apnea monitors for two or three months at home, but even though it's an added hassle, it is reassuring to us as they are both still having some episodes of bradycardia and we'll feel much better knowing about it if they need some help. They did pass their car seat tests, which is reassuring.

Although this is right around the doctor's initial optimistic estimates of their stay in the NICU, the actual preparations for their discharge caught us a bit off guard. We've suddenly gone from a sort of holding pattern in the nursery and here at the apartment to making ourselves ready to leave this place. Fortunately all of the nursery essentials are already set up at home!

One of the nurses, who has been off for a few days, asked about their last weight gain and remarked that Kathryn's face seemed to have plumped up quite a bit (on babies this size, even a few ounces can make a big difference). It made me think about all of the changes we've seen in them just in this short time, and how different they are now than just a couple of weeks ago. They have been transformed from strange, spastic little naked creatures, surrounded by tubes and wires in plastic boxes, to nearly normal babies -- on the small side, but they look and act much more like regular babies now.

Sunday baths

We had a nice surprise when we got to the hospital this morning to find that both Kathryn and James ahd their NG tubes removed! Kathryn was doing well enough feeding that hers was removed overnight, and after James pulled his own out (again), they decided to leave it out unless he needs it again.

We gave them bottles at four of their feedings today (9am, 1pm, 5pm, and 9pm). We don't go in for the two overnight feedings (1am and 5am)... we're getting our sleep while we still can! Kathryn is a real champ with the bottles, but is still having trouble with the reflux and accompanying bradycardias. James is having more difficulty with the bottles. At their 5pm feeding, right after their baths, he was so tired out that he only took half his bottle. He got another chance to escape the tube because that was right after a bath, and those baths really wear them out. At 9pm he did somewhat better, but he still had a lot of difficulty finishing the whole feeding. We're hoping he continues to do well enough to stay on the bottle, but he does need to get enough nutrition and gain weight at the same time.

Speaking of weight, they both gained weight again! Kathryn is up to 4 lbs. 2.4 oz., and James is at 4 lbs. 0.4 oz. The bottle feedings are more work than the tube feedings, and they're no longer on the high calorie formula, so they didn't gain very much this time. We're happy as long as they're on the plus side, even a little bit. They are both getting very close to the 1.9 - 2 kilograms (around 4 lbs. 3 oz.) that the doctors like to see before they are discharged. The weight is not an absolute requirement, but they do have to be eating well from bottles at every feeding, gaining weight consistently, and not having major apnea or bradycardia issues.

Our babies will get their first shot at the "car seat test" sometime tonight. They're placed in their car seats for an hour or so, with the monitors all on, to see how well they tolerate the position they'll be in for the ride home. We'll probably end up going home with them on monitors anyway, but they'll still need to pass the car seat test.

There are several new photos on the week 3 photo page, including their faces with no tubes and tape, and their first baths with no tubes or wires attached (the monitor wires are usually removed for bath time, but the NG tubes and oxygen weren't so they always had something still attached before)!

Ups and Downs

Today was a day of ups and downs, fortunately bigger ups than downs. The babies are making great strides and took bottles at four feedings in a row today. James sort of pooped out at the last one, and had to get the end of the feeding through his NG tube. This is disappointing because it means the tube can't come out just yet. Kathryn's might be out by morning if she keeps up her 10 minute bottles. She is still having the reflux and bradycardia episodes fairly frequently, though. The doctor has increased her medication, but it will take a little while to see if that helps.

They seem to be happy in the crib together (you can tell me he's not really smiling in this picture, but I won't believe you :-). We didn't put them down like that, they tilt their heads together all by themselves. Amazingly enough, one of them can be crying and fussing, even get a diaper change and all the associated business, and the other sleeps right through it. One plus to the NICU environment is that by the time they get home they should be able to sleep through anything -- there are near-constant lights, noises, babies crying, machines beeping, and people talking all around them, and they snooze away peacefully. This hospital does what they call "clustered care", where everything that needs to be done for a baby is done at one time, right around their feeding, so that they have several hours of uninterrupted sleep in between.


They are getting closer to going home, but James will have to take the bottles better and Kathryn will have to get over the bradys before they can be released. She may end up going home on a monitor as well. We're hoping that won't be necessary, because we are really looking forward to being rid of the tubes and wires. On the plus side, with all the practice we're getting now, changing clothes and diapers will be a breeze when the tubes and wires are gone!

It's a little frustrating when they take a big step forward and then backslide a little. We know it's normal and expected, but we want so badly for them to be strong and healthy that it's a bit of a blow each time there's another brady or a feeding issue. We also get a little nervous when we're feeding or holding them because we don't want them to "lose points" for our ineffectiveness at getting them to suck or burp, or because we've got them in a bad position that sets off a brady or breathing problem. It's a silly thing to worry about, especially because we have to do all of these things ourselves before they'll even discharge the babies, but we can't help but feel a little bit of personal failure when they have a setback, however minor.

Together again at last

Today was full of fun stuff. We gave the babies their bottles this morning, and then Kathryn had her oxygen removed completely, and they got moved into the same crib!

Russ and I spent the day shopping at a nice mall in Atlanta. We both needed a day off, and I found some very cute baby clothes at Janie & Jack and Oilily (on sale, too :-). It will be a little while before they grow into most of them, but I couldn't resist. There was another store there, Strasburg Children, with absolutely precious outfits, but about the only things they had in these babies' size were their doll clothes so we'll have to check them out again when they get a little older (or mail-order from their catalog).

After dinner, we went back over to the hospital to give them their night time bottles too. Kathryn moved her feeding time up by a whole hour by being cranky and fussy and HUNGRY. We tried to settle her down, but the pacifier just made her mad when no food came out of it. Meanwhile James fell asleep again and didn't really want to wake up to eat, but once Russ got him started, he did fine. They're both sucking well and finishing their bottles in good time. They are also emitting some tremendous burps for such tiny creatures. It's hard to believe there could be enough gas in them to make those noises!

Kathryn is still having quite a few bradys, maybe due to the reflux. It doesn't seem to be getting any worse with the bottle feedings, but it needs to get better before we can go home. James is doing much better with those, he only had a few last night and today. Otherwise they're making great progress, and several of the nurses have commented that it won't be long now before they're ready to head home. They have been very good babies so far, but they're starting to be awake more, and aren't entirely happy with the NICU's 4-hour feeding/diaper schedule.

We also heard from the lawyer's office that the interstate paperwork that has to be approved before we can take them home has been sent on its way and should be back (it has to go through some approval process in both states) sometime next week. We're hoping it all comes through in time, because neither we nor the doctors want these little ones to spend any time in a germy hotel room.

Nippling!

Both James and Kathryn took bottles tonight, and emptied them in short order -- both sucked down 40ml, or an ounce and a third, in about 20 minutes. They also weighed in at four pounds each!


We gave them both baths tonight, which they are starting to enjoy a little more. It takes both of us to maneuver a slippery, soapy baby and a wet washcloth in the little plastic bath tubs they have at the hospital, but we have fun. We had a hilarious diaper incident with James tonight involving three new diapers, and poop and pee everywhere. Yes, I know you're supposed to keep things covered, but you have to open the diaper at some point in order to change it, and he had perfect timing with both barrels. It would probably be less humorous at home, but here any poop is cause for celebration, even if it's all over your pants.

We have been at the hospital almost all day, and it has been an exciting one, so I'm pretty tired right now. I uploaded a few pictures to the new Week Three photo album page. Tomorrow I'm hoping to be able to give them a bottle myself (the nurses have to give the first one, at least, to make sure everything is going alright).

Two weeks old and eating well

Today we hit two milestones: two weeks old, and both little ones got started on "bolus feedings", or receiving their formula over just one hour instead of gradually over three hours. They also switched to a special thickened formula to help with their reflux.

Both James and Kathryn seem much happier with the bolus feedings, perhaps because it makes their tummies feel full, where the gradual feedings never really filled them up. They're also tolerating it extremely well, no spitting up, and had nothing left in their tummies after the first two feedings (they check each time just before the next feeding). That means that all of the formula they were fed -- 40ml now -- is moving through their system.

The next step is to let them try "nippling", or feeding from a bottle. We're not sure exactly when that will happen, but it could be in the next day or two. One of the challenges for preemies is that their breathing is often too fast for them to be able to suck and swallow without choking, or their brains can't quite coordinate all three of those things at once. The nurses and doctors will evaluate their breathing, their sucking, and how they're tolerating their feedings in order to decide when to try the bottle. We have let the nurses know that we want to make sure we're there for the first bottle.

Tonight we held them for quite a while before and during their late-night (9:30 & 10:00) feedings. James went right to sleep as soon as his belly started getting full, but Kathryn stayed awake through her whole feeding and then some. She wasn't fussy or crying, just awake, looking around, sucking on her pacifier, and grabbing onto my finger. She finally drifted off around 11:30 and we could go home... I can't stand to leave as long as they're awake, I want to cherish every moment!

Check out the photos on the week 2 album page. Tomorrow (Thursday) starts Week Three!

Bath time

Russ got back up here this morning, and we both made it back to the hospital for bath time.

Today was the first real bath for both babies. Since their belly buttons are all healed up now, they could sit in the water while we washed them instead of the quick sponge baths they've been getting. We all had fun for most of the process, James got a little upset towards the end of his bath but settled right down once he got wrapped back up in a nice warm dry towel. Kathryn liked her bath a little better.


Both of them are keeping thier temperatures up very well in the open cribs. They were warm enough this afternoon that they can go without hats for a while, and only need light blankets wrapped around them. Now that they're out of the incubators, they get to wear clothes and we can hold them more often. They seem happier dressed and swaddled in blankets than they were even with the snugglers in the incubators. They're also starting to act more and more like babies. Their movements are getting more coordinated, they are more alert when they're awake (which is more often), and they're even making happy baby noises instead of just crying.

Weighings were tonight too, and we got more good news. James is up to 3 lbs. 12 oz., and Kathryn is up to 3 lbs. 14.5 oz -- a great accomplishment considering that they have burn calories to keep themselves warm now too. They are both getting regular (preemie) formula now, and are both up to 38ml (about an ounce and a quarter) per feeding. Tomorrow they will try a bolus feeding, which means giving the fomula over one hour instead of gradually over three hours. Once they're able to tolerate that well, we will be able to try a bottle feeding, maybe as soon as the end of this week!

Houston, we have temperature control!

This evening both of our babies were moved from their isolettes into open cribs -- bundled up nice and snug -- and several hours later were both keeping their temperatures up very well!

This is great news not only because of the progress it represents, but also because it gives us a lot more contact with them. We can hold them more often now, and get them in and out of their cribs much more easily without upsetting them (or, if we're lucky, even waking them up). We can also touch and cuddle them without a wall of plastic between us.

Kathryn is still having a lot of trouble with reflux, and it has been causing her to have more "bradys", or episodes of slowed heart rate. She usually recovers right away without any help, but there was one episode this evening that had us a little worried because her breathing and oxygen saturation (the level of oxygen in her blood) also dropped quite a bit. It turned out that it was probably caused by her her NG (feeding) tube not being in quite far enough -- the babies love to yank on their tubes and wires -- but the doctor ordered some blood work anyway to make sure she doesn't have an infection or some other problem behind all this. She seemed to be doing much better later this evening.

They both had a little formula left in their tummies after their evening feeding as well, which was probably just due to the excitement of changing beds and getting dressed for the first time ever. Even the little tiny sleepers were pretty huge on them, but they didn't seem to mind once they got all bundled up in their blankets.

Russ flies back up here toimorrow morning, and tomorrow night is weighing and baths again, so I'm sure we'll have more news then. Thank you all for the emails, phone calls, and good wishes. Even if we don't get back to you all right away, please know that it all helps keep our spirits up during this stressful time!

Making progress

There isn't a whole lot to report, nor many new pictures, because the past several days have been pretty much the same routine. I have spent at least an hour a day with each of them in kangaroo care, and it seems to be doing them good.

Tonight was baths and weighing, and we were thrilled to find that James and Kathryn have each gained a few more ounces. James is up to 3 lbs. 10.5 oz., just half an ounce shy of his birth weight. Kathryn is a little bit ahead of him, and ahead of her birth weight, at 3 lbs. 11.6 oz.

Their "A's and B's" have decreased over the past couple of days, and they may be able to move to open cribs soon as they are getting better at keeping themselves warm and gaining weight. I have been spending more and more time with them. Even if it's just sitting and watching them, reading, or knitting while they sleep, I like being close to them and being there to touch and talk to them when they do wake up. Once they are in the open cribs we'll be able to hold them more, dress them, and hopefully move on to bottle feedings before too long

I am also doing as much as I can to help with their care -- at this point my contributions are pretty much limited to diaper changes and baths -- so that I get some practice handling them. They seem so tiny and fragile, it's a comfort to me to get used to doing these things under the watchful eyes of the wonderful nursing staff in the NICU. The tubes and wires, not to mention maneuvering through the portholes in the isolettes, make everything a bit more challenging, so I should be a pro by the time we all get home.

A's and B's

One of the problems that preemies have to overcome is episodes of apnea (a pause in breathing) and bradycardia (a too-slow heart rate), or "A's and B's". Our babies are no exception. In some cases the apnea is caused by reflux (it hurts, so they hold their breath), in other cases it's just their brains not having matured enough to keep their breathing and heartbeat steady.

The monitors sound an alarm if the heart rate drops below 80 or if breathing slows too far or stops for more than 20 seconds, and there is a nurse at their side within seconds. Fortunately both James and Kathryn usually recover from their A's and B's on their own, often before the nurse even gets there. Sometimes they need a little stimulation, but nothing more than that. It's a scary few seconds, but we can take comfort in knowing that this isn't a life-threatening problem thanks to the close monitoring, and that it will go away eventually.

We are very fortunate in that our babies are not "sick", just premature. All of the problems they do have are ones they will grow out of over the next few weeks and months. All of the care and support they need right now is just there to take the place of the support they would have had in the womb. Even their beds, inside the incubators, are cozy little "snugglers" that give them the feeling of being contained, but still able to move a little -- just like they had inside.

On the good news side, James had his scalp IV removed last night, so they are both completely off of IVs now -- one less tube! One less invasive thing! Yay! They are still tolerating their feedings well, they have very little "residual", or left-over food in their tummies by the time the next feeding starts, and they've been having plenty of bowel movements. Their digestive systems are another thing that will take a little time to mature, which is the reason for the slow, gentle tube feedings -- they eat every four hours, but their little bit of formula is given over a three hour span.

I held each of them, kangaroo style, for about three hours yesterday, James in the morning and Kathryn at night. It is an incredibly peaceful experience, for them and for me. I'm starting to understand better what is going on with their little bodies and brains, and with their care and the NICU environment. I am starting to see changes in them even at this early stage... not just the medical changes, but more calm alertness in the times when they are awake. I am also learning what bothers them and what soothes them. With all of the helplessness that goes along with this environment, it's a great feeling when Mommy's touch or voice is the thing that helps them relax and get back to sleep.

Little gains are big steps

When I stop to think about some of the numbers, it amazes me. Kathryn is getting 30ml, or one ounce of formula, every four hours. The formula has 24 calories per ounce, which means she is getting just under 150 calories per day, plus a few more from a dose of MCT oil (medium chain triglycerides, or easily digestable fat). That's a couple of cookies, a can of coke, or a quarter of a Big Mac. James is eating a little less at each feeding, but is working his way up and should be taking 28ml by morning. He is off the IV lipids (extra fat) now, and if all goes well he should have the scalp IV out tomorrow night. He is having some goopy eye stuff, which we're hoping is just a clogged tear duct and not an infection.

The good news for the day is that they both had poopy diapers this evening, and both were on the plus side for the second weighing in a row. James is up to 1565 grams, or 3 lbs. 7.2 oz. and Kathryn is at 1585 grams, or 3 lbs. 7.9 oz. -- at this rate she may be back to her birth weight by Sunday's weighing. Their next big milestone will be "nippling", or feeding from a bottle. They'll have to be able to take their full measure of formula over an hour instead of three hours, and be able to coordinate sucking, swallowing, and breathing. Kathryn seems to have the sucking pretty well figured out, but James is clueless so far. They say that will come with time, as his little brain makes some more connections. Apparently boys tend to be slower to mature even at this tender age.

Since Russ is back in Florida for a few days, I gave them both their kangaroo time, baths (weighings and baths are on Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday evenings), and diaper changes tonight. I also picked up a few books and read them some stories. I was running out of songs to sing and words to say, so I let Dr. Seuss and Beatrix Potter fill in for a while.

One week old

The babes continue to do well. James has gained a little bit of weight back, and is at 1490 grams, or 3 lbs. 4.6 oz. He is back on the NG (nasogastric) feeding tube, which goes into his stomach, after he pulled the NJ (nasojejunal -- into the beginning of the intestine) tube out last night. He's tolerating it well, getting 18 ml of Pregestimil (pre-disgested milk) formula every 4 hours. Kathryn is also up a bit at 1526 grams, or 3 lbs. 5.8 oz. and getting 28 ml (almost a full ounce) of regular preemie formula every 4 hours.

Theyr'e both having some reflux and getting medicine for it, but that's very very common in preemies. The worst part of it is that it hurts their throat, which makes them hold their breath, which makes their heart slow down, sometimes too far. Usually it comes right back up, sometimes they need a little pat or jiggle, but ideally the episodes will become fewer and less frequent as they get stronger.

They are also both still in the incubators, which means we can only do the kangaroo care once a day and they stay in the box the rest of the time. We can still touch them and talk to them through the portholes as much as we want, but it will be nice when they're back in the open and can be held more often. They'll get weighed again tomorrow night and will hopefully continue the upward trend.

Check the photo page for more new pictures from tonight's visit.

Where we are now - part 2

The babies, meanwhile, have several weeks ahead of them in the special care nursery here in Georgia before they will be strong enough to travel home with us to Florida. They are doing well, but are having some of the common ups and downs that preemies have along the way.



James had a touch of jaundice and had to spend a couple of days under phototherapy lights, but that has resolved completely. He is also having some trouble with feeding and reflux, which they're handling by giving him medication and putting the feeding tube directly into the beginning of his intestine instead of into his stomach. He is also still getting some nutrition through his IV. Kathryn still needs a tiny bit of oxygen to help her breathing, but she is feeding very well and has had her IV removed.



Both lost some weight after birth, which happens with almost all babies, but in preemies the loss is more significant since they're small already, and they have a harder time regaining the weight. On Monday they were both put in isolettes, or incubator boxes, insetad of the open warming beds they were in. This is to help keep them quieter and make it easier for them to stay warm, so that they expend fewer calories and can put some weight back on. At last night's weighings, they had both gained weight -- just a little, but it's a step in the right direction.

We had the babies baptized ("just in case") yesterday by a vey nice priest from the biological grandparents' church.

We are also doing "kangaroo care", where we hold the babies (one at a time! :-) skin to skin on our chests, covered with a blanket. This keeps them warm and relaxes them, and is thought to help them mature and develop faster as well as helping them bond with us. Last night we gave them each their baths, too. Kathryn loved hers, but James got quite upset at his.