Archive for March, 2008
The kids are trying so many new foods, here’s some of the things they’ve been working at eating themselves;
cheese, chicken baby hot dogs, jello, brocolli, grilled cheese, pancakes, waffles, chicken, toast, tofu, carrots, apples, peaches, puffs (like a cereal), graham crackers, cookies, crackers, cherrios, crunchies (kids cheetos), noodles, rice balls, avacado, banana, potato, sweet potato, mini meatballs
We’ve also been feeding them;
yogurt - plain, strawberry & boston cream pie so far, cottage cheese, ice cream - strawberry, mango and vanilla so far
The day the kids saw the Dr. we put the kids in their cribs for their nap for the first time and with very little crying they went to sleep. They’ve napped there since. Yippee!
We went to an Easter Egg Hunt with the kids over the weekend, they enjoyed it I think… but were distracted by all the other multiples/kids around. Next year will be SO much fun when they can understand the concept a bit more.
Evelyn is now in full swing crawling and pulling up mode. It was just like James, where he figured it out and then snap he was just off then. They are both ruling the roost now, going where ever. Because of that we’ve had to rearrange somethings in our family room, the main room the kids are in. Take down picture frames on the bookcase and floor and all the stuff off the top of the bookcase. Along with that we packed away one of the pack n plays and brought out the tunnel and tent.
The kids love the tent, as does our kitty. They haven’t figured out the tunnel yet, not even with our help but the kitty also enjoys running thru that.
I was feeling all sentimental the other night, looking thru photos in the gallery and realized that I’ve never really posted too much about the birth of the kids. I have part of a birth story typed up I’ve always meant to share, but forget (that happens a lot now that J&E are here).
Anyhow, our neice had been hospitalized the late last week into the weekend with really bad croup and so when I was viewing the photos tonight of the kids birth I saw something I realized that I never saw, but in that photo. Evelyn had a mark on her left thigh when she was born, I don’t know quite what it is, a birthmark? Not really sure.
See, Evelyn was born and then James, and they were cleaned and presented to me and vitals, ect checked. After all that they were taken to the nursery with James going along while they finished the c-section. While I was chattering my teeth like crazy and freezing (side effect of the epidural) Evelyn was having gruting a great deal and having troubles breathing. They thought she might have a hole in her lung and did some tests/xrays. Around this time I was wheeled back into my room, which was empty. I fully expected everyone to be looking at the kids-but I didn’t see anyone in the hall as I got wheeled in. I got worried and scared.
James and the peditrican (who is still their peditrican :)) came in shortly there after. I think I remember the Dr saying, did they tell you what’s going on? Umm, what? He explained quickly that she was grunting, trouble breathing, hole in lung, something wrong with her thymus gland, ect… and that she may need to goto the NICU hospital 30 minutes away.
James stayed with me a few minutes before returning to the nursery to see the kids. He snapped photos of them for me, and watched and listened and got updates as often as they’d give them. I however was stuck in my hospital room because I was unable to walk as a result of the epidural which ended up taking SIX hours to wear off and even then it wasn’t really 100%. At that time, the mark was already gone.
I never touched Evelyn until she was over 6 hours old, and barely did James.
After xrays and other tests she ended up with a hole in her lung and low blood counts. I honestly don’t remember everything and a part of me is thankfull for that. I do remember feeling very scared, and thinking thru scenrios of what we’d do if she had to goto the NICU hospital. It was too early, they didn’t know yet.
Even James, I only saw him briefly also. He was brought in sometime after I returned to our room but was quickly swept away because of low blood sugar and inability to regulate his own temperature. So I didn’t see him again until Evelyn also.
James went and stayed in the the nursery as much as possible at first, keeping a close eye on the kids and their progress. In the end, Evelyn got taken off her oxygen hood by the time I saw her around midnight and the hole in her lung had closed itself.
In the end, she did have a hole in her lung, but after subsequent xrays over her stay the hole closed on it’s own. She also regulated her own breathing and was no on the oxygen hood anymore. She also had to go on some antibiotics and such for low blood counts, ect.
She was OK but spent all but about 10 minutes in the nursery while we were at the hospital except for *very* strict feeds they had us on. They’d cart the baby(ies) in already diapered, ect and on the dot 20 minutes later they’d be back in to take them.
It was an incredibly scary time and we felt so alone in it. Trying to think of what our plan of action would be if she had to go somewhere else (the NICU was 30 minutes away). James would go with her, and I remember saying to him almost immediately when their peditrican left our room - If she goes, you go with, but I don’t want to hear any bad news over the phone. You stay there until you can drive home safely and tell me in person. I can’t handle that alone, not that you’ll be able to either…. I think I was promptly told to not think like that… but yes I won’t do that.
Today they are healthy and striving. With the exception of jaundice for both and some major reflux / spit-up issues from James they haven’t really been sick other than those troubles right after birth. I don’t even think we can say the kids have had a cold. We’ve had a day with a drip or two from their nose, but gone the next day. A morning or two with crusty snouts but then nothing. Knock on wood.
It’s werid, I’ve been looking thru more photos tonight (I’ve written parts of this post over the span of two weeks) and we look so very TIRED!!! but I don’t remember being tired. I do miss their kicks, hiccups. I miss my fingernails (werid I know but they are short and brittle now and were long and shiny then). I miss my pregnant belly. I do love having them here everyday though.
Ok, enough reminscing for one night. I just feel incredibly blessed and I am thankful everyday to have them in my life, and James.
The kids have started to spin on their bottoms in a circle. I have yet to see Evelyn do it but James says she is also, lil man James does it all the time. He just goes around lifting up one leg and spinning in a circle then stops and continues to play where he started with whatever it was he had been doing. Sometimes he gets distracted by the Tv or another toy but most times he makes a full circle.
Evelyn is hillarious. She makes the CUTEST nosies. She’s channeling something, her inner kitty cat, or trying to vocalize for her next big debut on American Idol or something. I can’t qutie place it… but it is adorable.
James he’s just a ham. His big thing at the moment is to repeat Dodododo, dididi do di do. He LOVES his sister, he’s always at her-more often that not to her dislike. I’m pretty sure he’s getting another tooth, his spit-up has increased by like 500% and that’s what happened before his first tooth. He is very clingy at the moment also.
Sampson kitty is in for it soon, with both the kids up and going the chase is on. He’s been really awesome with them though, and thankfully has several places he can go to be away from them, or taunt them from above.
I went thru the kids clothes a few weeks ago, packed away their 3/6 month stuff and some 6 month stuff that wasn’t fitting anymore, and washed their 12 month clothes and put them into their drawers. Very soon all the 6 month stuff will go away, I bet within the next few weeks.
I hate how I forget things I wanted to post… so until next time, since I can’t remember.
btw- I uploaded 152 photos today, some to ninth month but mostly to the tenth month
March 25th, 2008
I’ve disabled comments temporarily due to a bug in the blogging software. Once the software is updated comments will be turned back on.
James
March 17th, 2008
So we went to the Drs. yesterday for the kids 9 month checkup. Here are their latest stats.
James:
18 lbs 6 oz (25%) and 26 1/4″ (10%) head circum. 43.8 (15%)
Evelyn:
19 lbs 7 oz (65%) and 26 1/2″ (25%) head circum. 44.3 (50%)
I could have swore they were the same height when the nurse measured the kids, but they are written down different. I do think Evelyn looks a bit taller. They got a shot, and Evelyn did her usual fever and not herself afterwards, but she is better today. Wonder why it never happened the first time, but has since.
The next appointment is going to be icky. I had asked James to come to this one, thinking I’d want the help as it has taken me about 45 minutes to get out of the room after the shots. This time was so much easier. But this next appointment at a year old, they get 5 shots, and they have blood drawn. By that time, they might even be walking (I vote yes to at least James doing it)… so he’s thinking he’ll be able to work it out. His Mom might be here at that time too, since it’s a day after their first birthday, poor kids.
Evelyn crawled, pulled up to standing, waved bye-bye and really seems to know that James is Dada-all this weekend. It was like one thing after another. She stood while James was at work, using my leg to help herself up. Then when he got home they were on the kitchen floor while I made their dinner and she crawled. The next day she waved and looked straight at James and said Dada, Dada. So that’s been the word of the weekend.
She’s also posessed. We have video of it, but this girl is crazy. She growls still. Last night they got a cookie after their solids and I’m not sure if she didnt’ like it, or was just drooling or something, but she’d let this whiteish (cookie colored) drool out and it looked like she was foaming at the mouth or something. James said we should get a video of her doing the two, foaming white stuff and making her throaty possessed sounds and send it into Funniest Home Videos.
The Dr said we can give the kids diary now, yippee. No whole milk until a year old though, along with honey and peanut butter. He also said we can stop buying the ‘cereals’ and just finish up what we have with the kids, while it provides a good source of iron like 45% the kids just are not too happy with it anymore, and when we mix it with something else it gets a little too runny. May expirement with it a bit today though to chunky it up a bit more.
Tonight I think we’ll try cheese and little bits of meat with toast, and see how they do and then maybe not give them any jarred food afterwards… well fruit chunks.
They can also have ice cream now, so I’m hoping to convince James to stop for lunch at the Indian place on Saturday when we take the kids to the Multiples Club Easter Egg Hunt. Then they can try mango ice cream. Mmmmm.
Both kids are babbling fools lately, and really are starting to interact with each other so much. It’s fun to see. They give kisses to each other, Evelyn is always giving kisses though her Daddy gets them most often. She snuggles with me though, James also snuggles with Mommy & Daddy though.
I am sure there is more, always is but it’s time for the kids to have lunch so I’m off.
March 11th, 2008
First off, there are new videos in the gallery… and have been for a week or so now. I know it’s been forever since there were any of those put up.
Also-I just finished uploading 88 photos of the kids.
This post, except for the above has been on going for over a week.. so it might refer to yesterday, ect.. and really not have been yesterday but actually two Saturdays ago or something…. but I am going to bed!
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It’s amazing what a difference a nights sleep can make. James changed overnight, literally in the last week or so.
He started to sign “eat”.
He waved bye-bye to Daddy.
He also claps 
The other night, he signed eat while sitting between Mom & Dad, crawled to Mommy put his head on my leg and waved bye-bye to Daddy when he got there. Now I doubt he was aware of his actions as being that exactally, maybe he was. Either way, I say it’s wonderful.
He has also learnt how to “really” crawl. He crawled to Daddy when he got home the other night. He was just sitting in the toys, saw him and then went for him. He knows how to go where he wants if he wants to.
He also pulls up on everything. He is standing probably 75-80% of his playing hours now. He also is cruising the furniture or toys or whatever he’s standing next to. The other day I watched him make his way back and forth between a toy and the couch, and then down the couch side to play with the stuff on the end table and back to the end again.
Another night Daddy saw him go back and forth between his toy and the couch several times. He is getting very brave with letting go too with both hands.
Evelyn is so sweet! She’s a snuggle bug lately. She’s been giving nice wet kisses to Daddy when he gets home. I think I got my first one finally the other night too, she snuggles frequently.
Poor Evelyn is trying to get going somewhere, but has not yet. James noticed that she has stopped rocking on all fours lately. She did a few times when we put her up though, she has the hand co-ordination down first whereas James had feet first. She’s been wanting our help to stand all the time, perhaps she’ll just go straight to standing. I noticed yesterday she’s trying to stand from a sitting position a lot, with her two feet together in front of her so it’s not working out the best for her.
Evelyn I think is also clapping a bit too.
Trying some ‘real’ foods with the kids. Banana, avacado, toast, macaroni. After we see the Dr again, I think we’ll introduce yogurt and cheese and such things, and meats that arent’ in baby food. We’ll see… depends on what he says. Oh! I also made them pancakes that Gerber has on their box and James seems to enjoy them more than Evelyn… but they both eat some.
James drinks pretty much whatever you put in his sippy cup, right up! Evelyn drinks a little but never finishes hers. She’s been refusing dinner lately too, wanting to feed herself. Next plan of action is to give them a ‘real’ cup in the bathtub.
Evelyn is still toothless and James has his two yet. I am not sure when the next ones (the top middle four) are due to come in on average. I think she might be getting close though… still no tell-tale slit that I can confirm though. She gets ornry if I try to see her gums.
The kids are as of today offically alive longer on the outside than on the inside (Sunday the 24th) Yesterday marked the equal point of when I gave birth to them, with how long they’ve been born. *sigh*
The kids went to friends house on Saturday night so that James and I could go out for the first time together without the kids since they were born. We went to an event thru the Multiples Club, for two hours. They did well, cried when they got there but they assured as it was brief and even said that they stopped when they were put next to each other and *aww* held hands then. They said they’d watch them anytime again, so it must have gone well enough to want to have them again. We have a huge list of people wanting to watch the kids, so this was a teeny step towards more Mommy-Daddy time here and there.
Packed away around half of the 3-6 month old clothes for the kids this past week. They still fit a lot of things, but most all the sleepers no longer fit, and we’d been using 6 month ones here and there. Tried the 9 month ones and I am not sure how long they’ll work either. But the clothes are Ok yet, though we have put them in some 9 month stuff here and there.
The kids are starting to play together more. James has always been interested in Evelyn but she tended to want to do things by herself or would get easily upset when he’d touch her. But they are found several times a day playing together with the same toy (though this sometimes leads to a scream or two, also) and giggling at each other. Evelyn likes when James shakes a blanket in front of her.
They both have learnt how to play peek a boo with us. We still put the blanket on their face, but they both know how to pull it down and play. They learnt super fast! I think it took 3 times of putting it on James head and my pulling it down and the next time I went to pull on it and he’d already gotten it down. James did it with Evelyn then and she started right away too, she pulls slowly though, it’s CUTE!
James has started to whisper Dada again, he did it for the longest time, then stopped and only said it in his normal voice. He’s a squealer though, he likes to play with the different tones of his voice. Evelyn has started to growl again too, she did it way back when she was like 2 months old and then not again. She is really starting to expirement with her voice too, she likes to involve her tounge with the expirmentation though.
They both say Dadda and Momma and *I* think they know who is who now.
James has started (not sure when) to sleep on his belly, with his bum up in the air. I caught him doing it the other night when we laid him down when we got back from going out without them and he stayed asleep all the way home, and thru getting his snowsuit off… but Evelyn didn’t, plus she hadn’t taken a bottle and needed to eat whereas he had. Anyhow, when I went to lay down Evelyn he was there all cute I had to call James in to see him. The last two nights when I laid him down he’s rolled right over.
March 3rd, 2008