Did I Say We Are Changing Fast?

Okay so just since yesterday...... Frances is a full-on crawler now! Wow! And Grace is pulling up in her crib. Crazy I tell you. I'll have to upload some photos and videos - but for now, here is a picture Richard took of Grace standing at her toy in the morning (via cellphone, hence the blurry quality).

Grace standing.

First Mother's Day!

Gracie, Mommy, and Francie at LeeLynn's for an early Mother's Day

Wow! Although I definitely felt like I was a HUGE motha' last year (hehehe), yesterday was my first "official" Mother's Day. We actually celebrated last weekend. It's hard getting out of the house with the babies - especially to go out to eat - so we figured it would be easier to go on the less busy weekend. So Richard, Frances, Grace and I trekked to our favorite Columbia eatery, LeeLynn's. It was great. The girls did pretty well. We were able to eat outside with the girls in their strollers. They lasted for about 1/2 hour and then had enough. So we headed to the park.

This weekend we made baby food on Saturday - we're introducing red meat! Much to their chagrin. Hopefully they'll adapt to the taste. And since last week we've been chomping on Cheerios. I took some with us when we went to the pond on Saturday morning while daddy was playing basketball. The girls ate their share then I decided to feed the fish and the geese. Oh Grace was laughing hysterically. Later in the afternoon, we went to back to the pond with Richard for a picnic. Richard promptly stepped in goose crap - in his socks no less. And tracked it on to the blanket. hahaha. And we thought the girls would be the ones to get in the goose poop.

On Sunday we went to the lake for a mini-picnic. The girls LOVE being outside. They had fun watching the little boys next to us rough house. Yay for entertainment!

Some new developments. Grace is climbing up on everything. She can go from sitting to crawling with no problem. She hasn't really mastered going from crawling to sitting though, but she can sit on her knees. And can pull herself to standing now. This is just since the end of last week. And the standing thing just started yesterday! Frances is so close to the full-on crawl. She'll get a few paces and then forget about coordination. But she'll be there soon. I can't believe how fast they learn stuff. Also, Grace is talking. The night after her 9 month check up she just decided to start saying "Babababa." Really loud! I thought it was Frances. But when I looked Frances was just staring open-mouthed at Grace -- she was as surprised as me! hahaha. Frances now says, "bababa," "dadada," and "papapa." They are so cute!

I can't believe they are going to be 10 months old next week. Crazy! Only two more months until one year old. Wow.

9 Month Check-up and Hearing Screening

Yay! We had our 9 month check-up today. It went well. Everything is looking good. We received 2 shots a piece. Grace didn't even cry and Frances only wimpered for a second. :-) So proud!

Here are the stats:

Frances
Weight: 21 lbs. 3 oz. (90th percentile)
Height: 28 1/2 inches (75th percentile)
Head circumference: 46 cm (90th percentile)

Grace
Weight: 21 lbs. 4 oz. (90th percentile)
Height: 28 inches (60th percentile)
Head circumference: 46 cm (90th percentile)

So we are surprised that Grace weighs more than Frances, because Frances feels much heavier - and even looks heavier. Maybe Grace "helps" more when we are carrying her? And I guess they are looking more and more alike because we come across more and more people who wonder how we tell them apart. Who knows.

The girls also had their hearing screening today. They had one when they were born - and they passed it. BUT the state of Maryland requires follow up screenings for any babies that were in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, because medications they received at the time could have effected the results. So we trudged to the audiologist's office. It went amazingly well. The girls didn't fuss - we didn't have to distract them or anything, they were very quiet! And they passed their hearing tests with flying colors!

After the hearing appointment we went to the mall so I could get more cleaning solution for their earrings. One of Frances' holes is a little irritated - probably due to her eczema. So the doctor said I could put a little neosporin on it and clean it a bit more frequently - like 2x a week instead of 1x. So since we were at the Piercing Pagoda anyway, I bought them some new earrings. Can't wait to try them on this weekend!

So we jaunted around the mall real quick to let them people watch. Mommy and daddy snacked on some yummy Wetzels Pretzels - we were famished! Then we left the mall and the girls conked out in the car. So we drove back to the house so daddy could run inside and get our blanket and some applesauce. We took the long way to the park so the girls could get a good 1/2 hour total of sleeping. Then we had a mini picnic. Took a stroll to watch the geese. And then headed home for a bath and night night.

Phew! A long day... and we all survived! We don't have our next pediatrician check-up until 1 year old! But we have to schedule our allergy test ASAP. Yay for more needles!

9 Months Old!

Ahhh I'm so behind on posting. I missed their 7th and 8th month birthdays! Sooo much has changed. That I can't even remember it all. We have our two top and two bottom teeth and more on the way. Grace is an avid "military crawler." Frances is an expert roller. Grace likes to "walk" -- or do her best Godzilla destruction impression, with big sweeping steps. Frances does not really enjoy "walking." Frances is our "talker" and shouter. She says "babababa" but goes through days where she doesn't. Grace coos to herself occasionally but not much else - although recently she seems to learn how to shout from her sister. They both hold temper tantrums now - that's a fun experience (not!). Frances holds her bottle and cup. Grace refuses to hold either (and she was originally the first to hold her bottle).

We are eating our solids like champs so far. We switched to making baby food a couple weeks ago (maybe a month ago by now). It's saving us A LOT of money, but it does take us almost a whole day of tag-teaming child watching and food prep to make food just for one week (we have two hungry mouths to feed). They eat 3 times a day right now. To date, they are eating: squash, apples, pears, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, sweet potato, carrots, split peas, and chicken. We do different combos of the above. (Egg yolk was resoundly rejected - we'll try again later. And bananas were too constipating!). The other plus with making the food, is that we know exactly what they are eating. I bought a couple mesh feeders at the consignment sale and they love chomping on apples and pears. I haven't tried finger foods yet since they haven't mastered their "pincher" skills. The "books" recommend toasted bagels and bread - but unfortunately in perusing the shopping aisle - it is HARD to find either that is made without dairy or soy (or that are made in a plant that also processes those). So blah on that. We have their checkup next week so I'll ask the pediatrician. The girls LOVE apple juice. I try not to give them more than 2 ounces, once or twice a day. But they drink from their straw cups and get so excited when we bring them out! They are still drinking formula 5 times a day - 6-7 oz. per feeding if they finish it all.

We haven't had a consistent nap routine. Some days they would only nap for 45 minutes the WHOLE DAY! Which makes for a disaster in the evening. The past 5 days or so, the girls have started taking a late morning nap of 1 1/2 hours - but it still means they are awake from Noon/12:30 ish until bedtime at 7:30/8 o'clock. That can mean 8 hours sans sleep and therefore VERY cranky babies. Believe me we try and give them a nap in the afternoon but it's a no-go. They tend not to conk out until 6-6:30 ish which by that time is so close to bed we have to keep them awake. And if we let them "try" to sleep at that time they would not be "down for the night." So alas, we are happy that they take at least ONE nap now and that it's pretty long.

We are having stranger danger still. Play dates = disaster. I was alone with them on the last one. Oh man, I wanted to escape, but couldn't. I think until they get strong enough that I can safely carry them around on my own - Richard or the nanny will have to be there to help out. It's just so sad to leave them in a situation where they are in "terror" and not be able to console them or remove them temporarily to get them to calm down - because if you leave the room with one baby, the other is still left screaming with "the strangers" in total terror. Ahhhhhh.... twins.... At least with the nice weather we are trying to get out more. They seem fairly okay greeting people in their stroller now - but still have their moments. Richard and I always hold our breath when someone approaches - because we never know the outcome. I hope they are okay when Grandma and Grandpa come to visit again (they were oftly cranky last time - cross fingers!). I'm nervous at how they'll do when we visit family this coming Sunday - cross fingers - double time!

Well, in the past months Richard survived a weekend solo with the girls (thanks to help from Aunty Amy!) as I went to attend the wedding of Aunty Jenny and Uncle Mikey. My folks visited in March. Uncle Joe's mom visited with Aunty Amy and brought some fun St. Patrick's Day outfits. Richard's dad also visited with Uncle Sam's kids. At the end of March, Aunty Amy and Uncle Joe moved away - we are really feeling sad on that one! Whew! We've been busy.

AND... most important: My brother's girlfriend, Amber, is pregnant and due on October 18th (my dad's birthday!). So exciting to have a new baby cousin on the way!!!!

Gracie Videos

Update: I added 3 more videos of Gracie - now I have to upload some of Francie Pants!

Photo Drought

Okay I have not downloaded any photos since Christmas! And I've been so busy and remain pretty busy, so it could be awhile. In the meantime here's a quick fix for those of you who are going through picture withdrawal...

Frances and Grace (2/28/11) saying goodbye to me as I was leaving for work in the morning - from daddy's cellphone.

Frances + teething + stranger danger = unhappy baby. She didn't want grammy, she wanted daddy (weekend of 03/19/11 from grandma's camera)

March Tummy Checkup

Ahhh it's been forever since I updated and I have soooo many pictures I have yet to download. Sorry! This is just a quick update to say the girls' appointment with the pediatric gastroenterologist went fine today.

Apparently exercise is keeping them slim (I'll update on their activities in another post). They haven't really grown in length at all since their six month checkup with the pediatrician. We were kind of surprised because they looked longer - but we all figured it's because they are a bit leaner now.

Frances is 19 pounds and 27 inches. (75th percentile for weight and 50th for height).
Grace is 18 pounds and 27 inches. (50th percentile for weight and height).
[Updated to correct Grace's weight stat.]

We're going to start phasing out the Pepcid. And we're going start upping the amount of solids they eat. Apparently they are getting just the right amount of formula. So all is good.

When we go to their 9 month pediatrician appointment we have to get a referral for them to see an allergist. They have to get the skin test for the milk and soy allergy before we head back to see the pediatric GI again in June. I didn't delve into what would be the procedure going forward if they still have the allergy - I don't want to worry about it now if they get tested and it turns out they've already outgrown it. So we'll see....

I'll try to update more frequently, it's been really busy and now I'm wayyyy behind. The babies have changed so much too!

6-Month Checkup and Illness

Well, first thing's first, the girls had their 6-month checkup today. All is well. Here are the stats:

Frances
Weight: 17 lbs. 13 oz. (80th percentile)
Length: 27 inches (90th percentile)
Head: 43 1/2 cm (a bit above the 75th percentile)

Grace
Weight: 17 lbs. 15 1/2 oz. (80th percentile)
Length: 26 1/4 inches (70th percentile)
Head: 44 cm (80th percentile)

I honestly think they'd be weighing a bit more, but we all lost some weight after a recent bout with stomach illness (see below). They received their 6-month rounds of vaccinations as well as the flu shot. We also have to schedule an appointment for hearing screening. They passed it before they left the NICU. But I guess the state of Maryland requires that they get tested again before a year old, simply because they were in the NICU and received antibiotics in their first 24-hours of life. So I gotta schedule that. Their next pediatrician appointment is at 9 months. (Nine months... I can't even imagine!? Time is flying by!)

Some developmental things to note this past week:

• Grace and Frances both have their bottom two teeth coming in. Grace's have completely broken through, and Frances has one that has broken through and one simmering just under the gums. Yay! At least this explains the hours and hours of screaming. I'm hoping that subsequent teeth will break through sans as much drama. Please!!!
• Also, we were reading "I am a bunny" - well we don't actually "read" it, we just say "where's the bunny?" and point to it each time. This time Grace pasted her slimey hands on the bunny. We thought it was a fluke, that she was just favoring the left side of the book, but when the bunny was on the opposite page, she was slapping her slimey hand right on him. Frances loves to "turn the page" when we read books. Everyday they are changing. So cute!

Last week was our first experience with a full family stomach virus. We've had the full family cold before, but this really sucked. It hit me at work. Richard had felt sick almost at about the same time I did - but at least he was working from home since his office was closed due to weather. So about a 1/2 hour after Richard and I had complained about our symptoms - he calls me at work and puts the nanny on the phone. She says that Grace and Frances are throwing up and have fevers. Initially Richard and I thought it was food related - at this point, we realize that since the babies are sick too, it's a virus. My co-worker had been out sick for two days with the same symptoms. So yea, I brought it home - nice mommy! Doh!

Anywho, I had to leave work a 1/2 hour early. And SOOO glad I did because the full force of the illness pretty much hit as soon as I walked in the door. Grace wasn't keeping ANYTHING down. Frances and Richard were faring a bit better than Grace and I. Richard had to take Grace to the ER. But they told him, just to keep trying to give her pedialyte - and hopefully she keeps it down - if she doesn't, then we have to worry about dehydration. By night time they each got about 2 ounces they kept down. I was in the same boat. And with the fever and aches and pains. Blah! We all felt like we'd been hit by trucks the next day. Richard and I called off work. But, as my mom says, "there are no sick days for parents." And believe me being sick and taking care of two sick babies - not a walk in the park. The nanny was with us, which helped immensely since we were definitely NOT functioning at 100%. Case in point, I was so weak, dizzy and distracted, that I FELL down the stairs. Seriously. What the heck? I was sooo pissed at myself. Thank GOD I did not break anything. Disaster. So as you can imagine, I'm still feeling a bit sore, but the stomach bug was gone for me by Saturday evening, as well as 4 pounds of weight! Seriously, gotta work on replenishing those fluids! The rest of the family felt pretty okay by Friday evening. And no, the nanny is not sick, she's super human.

Well, that's all for now. Stay tuned...

So Many Changes!

So many changes in less than a week! Seriously, time IS flying by.

So just since their birthday last Tuesday:

• Grace is rolling over to both sides now (before she tended to favor rolling to her left side). And she's figured out how to combine the back-to-stomach and stomach-to-back rolls!
• Frances is also officially rolling from her back to her stomach! I was so surprised when I turned for a split second and the next thing you know, she was on her belly, smiling at me! I had to stop for a second and make sure it was really her, and that I didn't get the girls confused haha. But now she's a rolling machine. We're kind of panicking - picturing them both moving around like crazy! Baby proofing time is here!
• The girls finished their week of carrots - now we're on to squash - and LOVING it! So yay, carrots and squash on the menu :-)
• Frances has been kicking it up a notch this week, along with the rolling, she can now hold her bottle. They both still prefer that someone else do it, but if left to their own devices they will grab and chug away.
• AND, Grace has been super cranky lately. Not taking naps as easily as she used to (she was our clinch napper!) and today was a particularly inconsolable one. So I checked her gums to see if she was cutting any teeth and voila! There's a little tooth starting to poke it's way through. I can even feel the sharp little edges! Oh my girls are getting bigger every day! (FYI - I did check Frances' gums as well, since she's been having a lot of symptoms too, but I didn't "feel" or "see" anything yet - doesn't mean something's not brewing under there.)

Anywho, a week from Monday will be their 6 month check-up, can't wait. In the mean time, some more videos for your viewing pleasure.

Frances Laughing
Context: Grace had hit herself in the face with her giraffe teether so I said "Pow! Right in the kisser!" and Frances started laughing. The nanny and I figured out it was the "Pow!" that she thought was hilarious. So here's my video of it cracking her up. (This was taken this week.)




Frances Watching Dora.
Context: Frances was watching Dora, and completely zoned in. I was talking to her and she was ignoring me. So I picked up the camera and proceeded to film it. You can see she gets annoyed with me in the end. Already, acting like a teenager. (This was taken Dec. 12, 2010)


The girls are Six Months, Four Days Old today.

Happy 6 Month Birthday!

Yay! The girls are 6 months old today. Crazy how time is flying by. So much has changed in just the last month. Lots of rolling (which I haven't taken any video of yet, since I'm wrangling babies hehe). Grace is all about holding her own bottle. Frances isn't really doing it yet, the chub gets in the way! hehe. We had been trying spoon feeding since they turned 5 months, but no doing. Last week the GI said to try some vegetable - and skip the cereal from a spoon (they are getting it in their bottles anyway). And sure enough, Saturday we gave them some carrots and yum-o, they loved it! So now we're going through a jar per feeding, twice per day.

Below is a video of Gracie holding her bottle and below that is a video of the girls eating carrots for their birthday. Sra. Esther and I called it their "carrot cake" - Richard said they should get half a candle for half a year old :-) Enjoy...

Gracie holding her bottle...


The girls eating carrots on their birthday...

A Surprised Gracie!

Here is a video from back in December. Auntie Amy was over and we were playing with the girls in their Bumbos. Grace got surprised when I said, "Get the froggy!" - referencing the rattle Amy is holding. It's a bit grainy because I wanted to add the slow-mo effect, and had to do it in Windows Movie Maker. Anywho, I think you still can see well enough.

Enjoy!

Our Tootsie Roll - Gracie

I forgot to post that Gracie is a roller! They both have been rolling from stomach to back for awhile now. But now Gracie loves going from her back to her stomach. She first did it when my parents were visiting. My dad said "Gracie rolled over!" And we didn't believe him - she had always come close - but just not close enough. Then she was crying in her crib and my mom went to check on her and voila she was face down screaming into the mattress. Yikes! So yea, now we are (overly) concerned every time we hear her cries get muffled (but at least she's still crying right?!).

It's just a challenge putting on lotion or clothes. Oh and you can imagine what fun rolling is when you are trying to change a poopy diaper - yea, not so much. You turn your back and Grace is gone, rolling away. Yesterday we were changing both girls on the floor, and Grace rolled on her belly, and promptly returned to her back - thudding her head on the hardwood floor in the process. Doh!

We are already worried about Frances getting as agile. We know it will happen soon because she gets real close to rolling herself over to her stomach. With this added mobility it is a bit harder being home alone with the girls. I can't even imagine what it's going to be like when they are both crawling....... and walking! Omigosh! I'll admit I'm very afraid.

Hopefully we'll survive ;-) Thank God for the person who invented baby gates (aka baby jail hehe).

January Tummy Check-up

The girls had their check-up for their tummy troubles today. They are both doing great. The Similac Alimentum is working like a champ. And the girls are still gaining weight, although not as much this past month as they gained the month before.

We could have sworn Grace looked taller and thinner than Frances but they both measured out equals. They both are 25 inches long and 17.1 pounds. They are between the 75th and 90th percentiles for weight, and around the 50th percentile for height.

I told the doc that I cut out the rice cereal in their formula the last week of December. They were getting one tablespoon for every two ounces of formula. So three tablespoons at each feeding, for each girl. The girls were having such a hard time drinking it through the bottle - and still aren't eating from a spoon yet. They were gulping a lot of air that would get trapped in the bottle. And we had to widen even the cereal nipples for it to flow through - and that would cause gulping of air as well. She said we shouldn't cut out the rice cereal completely. So now we're doing one teaspoon for every 1-2 ounces. But I think cutting out the cereal may have slowed down their growth some. We told the GI we've been trying the spoon feeding every weekend, just to see if they are ready. We had been trying just the rice cereal and oatmeal - but she said we could try other stage one foods - since maybe the babies are just being picky. Who knows...

Frances is suffering from really BAD eczema. Even the GI doctor felt so horrible for her. We went to the doctor and she said to apply 1% hydrocortisone cream, she said no lotion will heal parts that are already cracked and oozing. And I bought some Aquaphor to maintain flare-ups behind her knees after the hydrocortisone treatment. So we just have to be stingy so as to not overdose her on the hydrocortisone. Poor baby. She's all scabby and raw - it really does look painful  - and she definitely let's us know when it's bother her. :-(

Anywho we have another follow up with the GI in March. And we have their 6 month check up at the end of this month. Crazy how time flies!

First Christmas and New Year!

"Team Santa" - Frances and Grace, Christmas morning 

The girls survived their first Christmas! My parents and brother came down to visit. The girls had their initial "stranger danger" episode. Although, I think the over stimulation of various activities just added to their crankiness. Christmas morning they lasted long enough for us to get a couple shots of them with a couple gifts (see above) and then they passed out again. Therefore, I opened all the presents - they were able to marvel at them after their nap.

In the evening we had Christmas Dinner. Richard's dad came over and Uncle Edgar, and Rhonnie, as well. And two cute little girls, Katie and Abby. Like I said above, the girls and their "stranger danger" came to the forefront. They cried A LOT. I tried to explain to the two little girls that came over, that the babies weren't crying because they didn't like them, it's just something babies go through. Richard and I ended up having to escape upstairs to get the girls quieted down.

I would say by Sunday they became accostomed to the added company. It was just a lot of "new" people all at once. My brother headed back Upstate early Sunday morning - to avoid the predicted snowpocalypse - which actually didn't hit anywhere relevant - but ya never know with those things.

My folks stayed the rest of the week! Since Richard and I both had to work, and the nanny was still on vacation - my parents took on the baby duty (doodie hehe). They did such an awesome job! It's A LOT of work. It was nice to have 4 adults around at night, man were we able to get A LOT more done.

Grace and Frances in their New Year's outfits

Richard and I both had New Year's Eve off from work. In the morning we had a New Year's photoshoot with the girls. I had bought these flower headbands that were adorably hilarious (see above). Afterwards, Richard and my dad loaded up a bunch of furniture and etcetera to donate to Goodwill and Salvation Army. Seriously we are crunched for space with two babies! So that was a nice weight lifted off our shoulders (again, my parents are awesome!). And Richard cleaned the girls room and I cleaned our room.

Aunt Sig and Uncle Freddy fought off the jet-lag from their recent trip to visit Glenn in Paris -- and came to visit us. They brought over some gifts for the girls, which promptly entered their mouths - as everything does hehe. After they left we did what we always do, take care of babies haha. We had our New Year's cheer around 9:30 p.m.-ish, since we were all dog-tired from a long day (and week, and month -- let's make that 5 and 1/2 months......).

New Year's Day my folks left to head back Upstate. I'll admit I cried after they left. Richard and I both were depressed. Seriously we felt the weight back on. It'd had been a long few weeks. With the nanny being gone and trying to juggle work, and the holidays, it had been nice to have a couple extra hands around to help out. We can't wait for them to visit again, but they might enjoy the "freedom" for a bit longer hahahaha.

So a BIG THANK YOU to Auntie Amy, and Grandma and Grandpa for helping out with everything in December! We couldn't have done it without you guys.

Happy(?) 5 Month Birthday!

The girls with their ears pierced.

If they appear "off center" it's because I haven't tightened the earrings yet.

(Grace on left, Frances on right)

Okay, so I'm posting a day early... tomorrow will be the girls' 5 month birthday, woohoo!

Today Auntie Amy and I took the girls to the Piercing Pagoda at the mall. The lady said most babies cry for a few seconds and then forget all about it (like with shots). Well, Grace went first. Auntie Amy held her since I was nervous. We figured she could pass her off to me for consoling while they did Frances. They had both ears pierced at the same time (thank GOD!). Well Grace is screaming of course, so I take her and walk her around and she doesn't stop. I'm starting to get nervous. It "seems" like everyone is looking at me like - why did you torture your child!

In the meantime Frances is completely unphased. And gets her ears pierced as well. She cried for all of about 10 seconds and then was back to laughing and giggling. Grace on the otherhand - screamed the whole rest of the way out of the mall. And she continued to cry off and on in the car. And when we got to the house she commenced the screaming again. Even after giving her a bottle, she still cried. But fortunately all that crying tuckered her out and she fell asleep pretty quickly.

Man I felt sooo bad for Gracie. If I hadn't seen how Frances had a fairly easy reaction - I would have completely thought I was torturing her! I'm so glad we decided to take them at the same time. If I had taken Grace alone, and first, I never would have gone back with Frances. Frances was still all smiles afterwards - she must feel really pretty :-) She was looking at Grace like, "what's your problem chick?" hahaha. Anywho, I gave them some baby tylenol. By tomorrow, a lot of the warmness, soreness, and throbbing should be going away. Now, cross fingers they don't get infected!

A thank you to Auntie Whitney whose Christmas gift for the girls paid for the earrings! We got a sweet "buy one get one free" deal on the earrings and free piercing with the earring purchase. I went with 14k gold (yellow gold for Frances, and white gold for Grace). I read gold was less likely to result in an allergic reaction. So with the BOGO deal, we really lucked out on price! Woohoo!

A HUGE thank you to Aunt Amy for helping me out. Seriously I can not say THANK YOU big enough!!! Not only did she do the "dirty task" of holding them for the piercings,  she also helped keep me sane (and from passing out from nerves).

So I was thinking about how Carrie felt bad for scheduling Ben's shots for his birthday... I can completely empathize now! Although, honestly, shots are a necessity... earrings are purely cosmetic. They look completely adorable though!

And on a side note - the lady that pierced their ears has a 5 month old son (born 3 days before the girls). She had a c-section at Howard County Hospital too - so we gather we were probably in the maternity ward at the same time. Fun!

Soooo happy birthday girls, I hope you will not have PTSD and will forgive me when you're older :-) Love you lots!

Gracie Rolled Over!

Wearing the sweaters Auntie Amy knitted

(Grace on left, Frances on right)

Frances has been rolling from her stomach to her back for awhile now. We were worried because Grace hadn't even attempted to do it. The doc said that Frances was actually ahead of schedule and that we shouldn't worry about Grace - she was right on target for her milestones. Well sure enough, the other day she was really trying to launch herself from her back to her stomach, so we were assisting her, and she was having fun. Well one of the times, we just left her on her belly, and voila! She rolled onto her back. Yay! We all cheered and she was happy as a clam.

Auntie Amy has been coming to help with childcare this week. WE LOVE AUNTIE AMY! Our nanny is on vacation for 3 weeks. I have to work from home since I don't have any paid time off left (maternity leave ate it up) so it's nice having the help between and during feedings. :-) Anywho, after work on Monday, we were playing with the babies on the gym - giving them play time on their tummies. Frances demonstrated her rolling skills. AND she even did it on command! We thought it was hilarious.

They will both be moving in no time... yikes!

On a side note, my previous post about the babies "sleeping through the night..." yeah - not so much. I guess it was just a fluke. It's frustrating. I know eventually they will, but it seems like it will be just in time for teething. Blah. Actually Frances had progressed to sleeping from 9:30 p.m. to 5 a.m. But Gracie was waking up every hour to half hour starting at 1 a.m. It sucked. Then the past two nights, all of a sudden Gracie is sleeping but now Frances is waking up! You can't win for trying. I wish they would have identical patterns - since they are identical twins! Come on, give mommy and daddy a break. hahaha. Ah well.

Also, we had to call the pediatric GI to ask about upping their Pepcid dosage - since they had gained quite a bit of weight from the beginning of November to the end, at the 4 month checkup. So now they are ate .8 mL. Seems to help them at feedings. We'll see though....

Grandma and Grandpa are coming back at the end of next week, with Uncle Tommy - so the girls will have more entertainment. Should be fun :-)

New Jersey Family Visit AND 1st Turkey Day

Okay so I forgot to update on a couple things that have happened in the past month (aside from their 4-month checkup).

First, our relatives from New Jersey came to see the girls for the first time. Grace was chatting away with Great! and Auntie Judy. While Frances hung out with Uncle Howard and Auntie Ingrid. We had fun. And then we left Richard with the gals so that we could get some Indian food. Delicious!

 Uncle Howard and Auntie Ingrid entertain Frances

Then for Thanksgiving we headed to Great! and Uncle Freddy's house. Grandma and Grandpa Parry were there too. Aunties Barbara and Marina joined the festivities, as well as Uncle Raw-knee.

Uncle Raw-knee feeds Gracie and daddy feeds Francie Pants

Yum - formula and rice cereal!

Here are a bunch of pictures of activities and visitors from the past month - click here.

4-Month Check-up

Our chubettes - Grace and Frances

Wow it's been a looooonnnnnnngggggg day. We're whipped!

The girls had their 4-month check-up today. They are both doing great.

Frances:

• 15 lbs. 10 oz. - the 90th percentile!
• 24.5 inches long - the 50th percentile
• I can't remember her head circumference but it's in the 75th percentile

Grace:

• 15 lbs. 7.5 oz. - just a teensy weensy bit below the 90th percentile!
• 23 inches long - the 10th percentile
• And same as Frances, with head circumference in the 75th percentile.

So basically, they are short and fat with big ol' heads. hahaha. The doctor is not concerned about their length yet, so that's good. But wow, coming from not being even on the charts when they were born, to almost being off the charts on the other side. My big girls!

Developmentally they are doing great. We were nervous that Grace seemed "behind" Frances on a lot of milestones. But it turns out that Grace is right on target for her age - and Frances is ahead of schedule. Whew! Good to know. So "yay" for the girls!

The only unfortunate revelation from the appointment is that both girls have eczema. The doc said it's common with allergies. They'll most likely have asthma issues as well. All three tend to come as a package. Probably inherited that crap from me. Ah well. Anywho, there is no "cure" for eczema so all I can do is keep the vaseline on hand. Poor little gals.

They got their vaccines again, albeit with lots of consolling. They were fussing for awhile. I'm sure their legs are sore. Have to keep an eye out for possible fever. Hopefully they will be fine in a couple days. The next check-up is at 6 months.

Sleeping Through the Night... Could it Be?

Okay the girls have changed their eating, sleep and wake time routine just in the past few days. As a result, last night we put them to bed at 8:45 p.m. and they slept until 6 a.m. They didn't completely "sleep through" the night. Grace woke up around 11 and fussed for a bit. I gave her some saline drops and she eventually fell back asleep. Then they seemed to alternate waking up every hour after that. But it was only for about 5-10 minutes at a time, maybe 15 max. So I'm looking forward to the complete sleep.

4 months, 5 days old

Tummy Time

I'm trying to give the girls more "tummy time." Of course, they don't like it. Ah well. Anywho, yesterday after their morning feeding we were playing on the gym. And it was Frances' turn for some tummy time. I put her on her belly and not 5 seconds later she rolled over on her back. I was so surprised. She did it once before, when she was REALLY angry, but this time she was perfectly happy. So I put her back on her belly and she rolled over again! I couldn't believe it. And she was giggling. Definitely having fun :-) I think Frances is a bit stronger than Grace right now. Sometimes Frances even pushes all the way up on her hands. Grace is still only raising her head about 45 degrees. But I'm not worried. I think Frances is just a bit ahead and Grace is right on schedule. I just keep encouraging both of them. As long as we're having fun, we're good :-)

Last weekend we had some more visitors. Auntie Amy came over with Uncle Joe's mom. They helped by feeding the girls and joining in play time! Later on, Howard and Ingrid came over with Judy. Their first time meeting the girlies. Aunt Signe joined us as well. And Grace practiced her talking! We all had fun. And then left Richard with the girls so we could go and get some eats - yay for some delicious Indian food :-)

This will be the girls first Turkey Day coming up. Can't wait :-)

4 months, 3 days old

4 Months Old!

Wow! The girls are 4 months old today. I keep thinking, only 8 months until they are 1 year old. I'm happy and sad at the same time. They are just growing and changing so fast.

They have made so many developmental milestones (as mentioned in the previous post). And now we feel they are getting more on-track to sleeping through the night. Cross fingers! We put them down between 10 and 11 p.m. And they wake up between 4 and 6 a.m. Two mornings this week we actually had to wake them up. I'm just hoping it gets more consistent. It turns out that getting the humidifier back in working order was the trick. Isn't it funny how one little thing you'd been avoiding (i.e. cleaning the humidifier) could have avoided you all those sleepless nights for the past two weeks! Darn hindsight! Wouldn't it be just our luck that they'd figure out this whole sleeping thing just in time to start teething. hahaha. I laugh in irony.

Their 4 month check-up will be more like 4 1/2 months. It's so hard to get back-to-back appointments, a necessity with twins. They didn't have any until Turkey week - which wouldn't work with my co-workers taking off, so we had to push it to the Monday following Turkey Day. Yay for more shots! hahaha.

Happy Birthday Girlies!

Ladies Gaga... and Googoo

Frances and Grace have both been "talking" for awhile. Frances has been by far, more vocal. She'll talk non-stop. Grace was hit or miss. Some days she wouldn't say a peep. And then other days she'd have a couple really good vocal sessions.

Well, this past weekend came and Grace just sprung right out of her shell. She's been talking sooo much her sister barely has time to get a word in edge-wise. It's so crazy when they both are just talking non-stop at the same time. It will be fun when they start babbling to each other. Oh, when they squeal and giggle it makes all the work worth it.

Also, just since last week, they've been grabbing at things a lot. The nanny gave them a soft rattle and they grab and fling it around. They grab their little burp cloths (blankies) and fling them around too. And at times, conveniently wipe their own mouths. hahaha.

They are both getting very strong. I was craddling Grace in my arm yesterday and she pulled herself upright into a semi-seated position. It surprised me! We are waiting for their sitting and head holding to get a bit more steady and then we'll begin trying the other Stage 1 solid foods.

The nanny was just as amazed as I was at how much they've changed in just the past week. We were both so excited!

The girls turn 4 months on Thursday. Time is flying...

Girls and Self-Confidence

Living in today's society means lots of challenges for my girls growing up. Girls are notorious for having poor self-images. I want to be sure my girls remain level-headed. Not too down on themselves and not too full of themselves either. It's hard though, because many children are shaped by their peers. And even us girls/women with the most supportive of female counterparts - still have self-image issues. I read this article on MsNBC today: "Is Your Daughter A Self-Loathing 'Body Bully?" I definitely recommend it. The book it references sounds very interesting: Good Girls Don’t Get Fat: How Weight Obsession Is Screwing Up Our Girls and What We Can Do to Help Them Thrive Despite It. I think the body image thing applies to girls who think they are too fat and those who think they are too skinny - someone hates their curly or straight hair - someone hates the color of their eyes - and everything else in between.

I'm hoping the fact that they are identical twins will be an asset, at least body image-wise. They have someone else in the world that looks exactly like them, and that hopefully they will be besties with. Viewing their sister in that positive light should reflect positively on their view of themselves. We can only hope though, and try and provide an encouraging, happy and healthy environment.

And the Baby Bump Lingers On...

I'm a bit peeved. I ordered the BioGaia pro-biotic drops for the babies and when it arrived, the box read, "may contain traces of milk protein." Say what?! The girls pedi GI was not aware of that - she only mentioned that she had heard the drops worked for some parents in alleviating colic symptoms. And I looked all over the BioGaia site and no where did it mention the milk protein thing. I have to call and complain. And definitely demand a refund - $35 for a teeny tiny little bottle. In the meantime I inquired on my Multiple Moms (CAMOM) food allergy subgroup forum about other pro-biotics. One of the moms recommended Culturelle - I checked out the website and it says "dairy and gluten free." So I'll have to order some and try it out.

I'm frustrated. I'm 1 pound BELOW my pre-pregnancy weight. I should be happy right? Well it's this stupid belly. It's stuck there like a ball. I have diastasis recti (abdominal muscle separation) from the pregnancy. Basically, leaves your stomach bowed out like you are still pregnant. Since my belly is pronounced I've had people still asking when I'm due. It's helpful in some respects - people still offer to carry my groceries and such. But I'm sure the novelty will wear off the further I get post-delivery. Yesterday, I asked the other mothers of multiples in the CAMOM group what they recommend as a "fix it" or "cure." I had read varying accounts over the Internet. Some claiming you can "fix" it by doing abdominal workouts wearing a binder. Others saying DON'T do ab workouts, because they make the diastasis worse. And others saying do Yoga, or don't do Yoga. So many different things. Well I received a plethora of responses and everyone said there is no way to "fix" it without surgery. Unfortunately, it's considered plastic surgery, so insurance won't cover it. Many of the moms who had insurance cover it, had suffered hernias through the diastasis -- hernia repairs are covered by most insurances, and the docs just fixed their diastasis during the hernia operations. So looks like I'm going to be stuck looking preggers forever or until I get a hernia - and who the heck wants a hernia? On top of the diastasis, my belly button is herniated, which just adds to my appearing preggers.

I'm trying to keep it all in perspective though. I have two relatively healthy and occasionally happy babies (hahaha) - so a lingering baby bump is really not the end of the world.

This weekend we are hanging out with family. Should be fun. And hopefully Frances and Grace will be in a jovial mood.

Tummy Check-up

The girls had their check-up with the pediatric GI today. She said they are doing really well. Gaining weight like champs! They both weighed in at 13 pounds 8 ounces -- and that's before eating! Gracie was about 22 inches and Frances was 23 inches long.

She upped their Pepcid dosage since they weigh more now. And she also recommended BioGaia probiotic drops - so I just ordered some online. We'll see if it helps with their painful gas issues. Cross fingers.

We're also increasing the rice cereal in their formula. She said at 4 months we can start other stage 1 solids, one at a time. Yay!

Otherwise, all is well. We follow up with her again in 2 months. Their next allergy test is at 11 months old.

Happy Halloween!

Gracie and Francie Pants

Okay, so I took that picture last weekend (thanks Auntie Amy for the "I Love My Mummy" Halloween t-shirts!). We did not take the girls out trick-or-treating. We didn't even dress them up on the "official" day. Chalk it up to being lazy, we don't mind. It was an adventure in multi-tasking last night. Our evenings are usually pretty busy juggling baby feedings and baby chores (making formula, prepping bottles, doing laundry), and trying to get a second to feed ourselves as well -- all while the babies take turns screaming their heads off -- then throw trick-or-treaters knocking on the door every couple minutes, and you have a pretty crazy evening.

We survived though. And it was worth all the hassle to see the cute little kids all dressed up. I can't wait for the girls to be old enough for trick-or-treating. How cute!

Back to Work

Francie Pants sporting "the lip" and an equally unhappy Gracie (too cute!)

I followed up with the GI doc over the phone this past week (we have an in-person follow-up the beginning of November). The Similac Alimentum is working great! So we save a bunch of money going with that versus the Neocate - WHEW! I just started the girls on 5 ounces a feeding - still including rice cereal. We also just started to try and cut out the 2 a.m. feeding. The doc said most babies sleep through the night by 4 months. The girls will be three months on the 18th... very soon! So we're crossing fingers that in a month from now they will give us at least 6 hours straight sleep.

I started back to work last Wednesday. It was hard - Not because I was worried about the girls - But because I was sad to leave them :-( Our nanny, Ms. Esther, is awesome. Thanks to Carolyn for referring her to us! We would have gone B.R.O.K.E. going the daycare route here in Columbia, especially with TWO infants. And it's a plus having the nanny come to our house, so we don't have to pack the kids up and take them anywhere :-)

Due to my schedule, Richard has to do the 6 a.m. feeding by himself. But he's an expert at it now. He's here in the morning when the nanny gets here. It's funny because she only speaks spanish, and Richard doesn't know any spanish - but they manage to communicate. Lots of sign language haha. I've had to brush up on my dusty spanish skills... let's just say, they remain pretty dusty.

My folks were going to visit this weekend (my mom had a 3-day weekend) - but my mom came down with a cold. Ahh the consequences of working with germy little kids. We were sad they couldn't make it down, but there are lots more weekends to visit in the future :-)

In the meantime I've posted some more pictures of the gals. Here are links to the albums:

Trip to my work place (taken by my co-worker, Maureen) HERE.

A visit from Aunt Amy and cousin Aissa, and some miscellaneous HERE.

And a bit early, but 3 month photos HERE.

Including the picture at the top of this blog post, here are a few more of my favs...

Frances showing off her big brown eyes and Gracie avoiding eye contact:

Gracie sporting her "I Love Grandma and Grandpa(s) shirt" and a HUGE smile!My cousin, Joe, feeding Frances at work:

Me feeding Gracie:

Delivery Story

I posted two versions of my delivery story. One is a long (too much information) version - mainly for ladies who like reading that stuff. The other is a MUCH shorter and less detailed version for everyone else. See them listed to the Right under "Pages."

Frances Laughed Today!

So I was making my typical funny faces and various animal sounds - and Frances got one of her big grins on her face and then all of a sudden she laughed! I was so surprised, I cried! hahaha. I haven't been able to get her to do it again though, but I know eventually they both will be giggling and laughing like crazy.

In the mean time here are some more pictures (click on the picture below!!!):

What's Worse Than A Colicky Baby - How About TWO!

Sorrrryyyyyy soooo long in updating. Time has really been flying by! And a lot has happened since my last update.

On a family note - Richard became a US Citizen at the end of August! Auntie Amy babysat so I could go to the oath ceremony. Very cool :-)

It's been a LONG two months since the gals were born. We've been back and forth to doctors wayyy too much. But hopefully we've finally got the girls all figured out. We were dealing with some MAJOR colic issues. If you've had a colicky baby I'm sure you can sympathize with our dealing with TWO colicky babies. No sleep sucks! I felt like running away or just dying. It was so overwhelming with the constant screaming of two babies.

After experimenting with mylicon gas drops to no avail. Then switching formulas from EnfaCare to Gentlease. And then....... the bloody diarrhea. Oh that one was hard for Richard and I to deal with. I'm glad my mom was still here when that symptom developed - to keep us sane. That was when the doc suspected milk protein allergy. So we tried Enfamil hypoallergenic formula Nutramigen. Which did not set well with their intestinal track. They got yeast infections on top of diaper rash!! More to make them scream! Blah. So then we switched to Neocate - the "most" hypoallergenic formula out there. It worked! No more bloody poopies! But the Neocate can only be bought online and is SUPER expensive. $33 for a 14 oz. powder can - that only lasts a day with twins. Yikes! Richard's insurance won't cover it because his company is based in NY which doesn't require insurance companies to cover it. CRAP!

Anywho we had an appointment with the pediatric gastroenterologist on Tuesday to confirm the milk allergy - which she did. She was nervous about us affording Neocate, so she told us to try Similac's hypoallergenic version for a week, just to see if that might work for us. That's still $26 dollars for a 16 oz. can, but every dollar we can save is better than none. We have to test their poopies again in a week to make sure the blood hasn't returned. She said we'll do an allergy test at 11 months to see if they still have a reaction. And if they do, then we'll have another allergy test at a certain time intervals after that. She said most kids out grow the milk allergy by 3-5 years of age. Let's hope sooner! I asked about soy formula. She said 60% of kids allergic to milk protein are allergic to soy protein. And on top of that, she said they don't recommend soy formula, especially for female infants, because the natural estrogen in soy causes puberty-like symptoms. Yikes. So that's a definite no go on the soy.

The pedi GI also diagnosed them with acid reflux. They already are taking rice cereal in their formula to help it set better in their tummies. But she also prescribed Pepcid and the first night we gave it to them (last night) was the first night the girls S.L.E.P.T!!!! It was amazing!! So I'm crossing fingers on that as well.

So we follow up with the GI by phone in 2 weeks, and in person in 6 weeks.

In addition to all that... we all survived our first family cold. I feel so bad for the babies since they can't take the meds we do to feel better. But they survived. Oh so many more colds to "look forward to" in the years ahead. hahaha.

Today they had their TWO MONTH checkup (wow). Richard wasn't able to take off from work. So I took them by myself. And I survived - even though they got 4 shots a piece. I was impressed with myself I must say hehe. As for their current stats:

Frances weighs 10 pounds 9 ounces and is 21 1/2 inches long. This means that by tomorrow she will have doubled her birth weight! Woohoo!

Grace weighs in at 10 pounds 6 ounces and is also 21 1/2 inches long. She still has 6 ounces to double her birth weight, but she'll probably be there by the weekend!

So the girls are on the curve now. And for their "corrected"age - since they were preemies - they are a bit above the 50th percentile - just a bit. So that's great! Even better is that developmentally they are right on target for 2 month olds - so there is no need to "correct" their age for those. Woohoo! I'm so happy :-)

So I'm happy all is looking brighter. Just keeping those fingers crossed!!

More Pictures!

Here are some more pictures of the babies since they've been home. Click here to view all the new pics. Below are a few of my favorites...

The babies together again:

A sleeping baby Frances:
A cute baby doll Grace:

Baby Checkup!

The babies had another check-up at the pediatrician office today. They are both doing well. Both got their second dose of the Hep-B vaccine. Daddy doesn't like shots so mommy did the dirty work of holding them still.

Frances is 7 lbs. 14 oz. and 21 inches long.

Grace is 7 lbs. 15.5 oz. and 20 1/2 inches long.

So the gals are right on average for length (50th percentile). They are sooo close to 8 lbs. - they'll probably be there by tomorrow! They are in the 10th percentile for weight. But considering they would have been full-term 40 weeks on tuesday the nurse practitioner said they are doing excellent and gaining weight like champs! I think they are just going to be tall and skinny like daddy.

Well the girls have been getting fussier every day. We described the symptoms to the nurse and she said it sounds like colic - that it "usually" reaches its peak by 6 weeks and then tapers down from there. But because we have preemies the time will be extended - so it could be 16-17 weeks before they get over it. In the meantime we've done the karo syrup to help with constipation. Today she said to try some mylicon to help with gas. And we're also going to try a different formula for sensitive stomachs. Hopefully something helps. But who knows.

The girls can go out for walks now. We asked about visitors again. She said visitors are always fine - they should have common sense not to come visit if they are sick - no matter what age our kids are. I guess that's a big "duh" - I wouldn't want people visiting while they were sick whether we had kids or not - I don't wanna get sick! hahaha.

Anywho the fussing is commencing as I type so I must go back to mommy mode.

Sticker Shock!

So we've been steadily receiving the itemized bills from the hospital. It's not actually "our" bills, but the bills they will be sending to the insurance company.

My hospital charge: $10,600

My doctor's charge for surgery: $6,500

9 day NICU charge for Frances: $14,600

9 day NICU charge for Grace: $14,700

TV/phone: $40 <-- just added this because it's amusing compared to the others

I'm sure there will be more charges from the anesthesiologist, maybe the neonatologists... who knows who/what else.

So while we don't have to pay that all out of pocket - I still thought the figures were pretty amazing - in the wholly crap, glad we have some insurance-sense!

My charges are covered under my insurance. The girls are under Richard's insurance. The unfortunate part is that because Richard has a family deductible for his insurance - we'll have to pay a pretty penny for the NICU. I think his deductible is $7,000? We're pretty sure we'll be charged the full deductible. Even with the insurance company's contracted rate for services, we doubt the cost of the NICU charges will come down below the deductible. Oh well. Whew! Good thing we've been saving every cent in anticipation that something like this might happen. It definitely helped to find out we were having twins early on in the pregnancy. It helps to plan ahead!

Note to Visitors

Many people have asked about visiting the girls. People are welcome to visit. They are preemies so if you are feeling at all under the weather... or suspicious that you may be coming down with something - we ask that you postpone any visit until you are feeling better. They are too vulnerable at this time to be exposed to anything. Also, just as in the NICU we ask that people with children under 4 postpone visiting with their kids until we get the all clear on the preemie front. As long as the child understands handwashing and the importance of not spreading germs - we're cool.

The fact that they are preemies also means they are on a strict feeding and sleeping schedule. This is to conserve energy so they gain weight. We feed at 10 a.m., 2 p.m., 6 p.m. during the day. If you want to see them "awake" - I suggest arranging a visit with us around those times. Otherwise, they are sleeping - we just wanted to give people the heads up on that. We don't get play time with the babies like parents of regular newborns.

We're crossing fingers that by their next appointment (the end of August) they'll be off the preemie formula and we'll be able to have some more play time. Which will be more fun for potential visitors as well.

Luck o' the Draw

The babies turned 3 weeks on Sunday - feels like they are older than that. Maybe that's the sleep deprivation kicking in? hahaha. Actually they are doing fairly well on their schedule. My mom has been a huge help with cooking dinner, doing laundry, house cleaning, etc. Richard went back to work the week after they came home. But he was still getting up to help with the night changing/feedings. We realize we'll be sharing the task anyway when I head back to work.

This past weekend was a bit more difficult. My mom went back home for a long weekend (and much needed break). And on top of that Richard got sick. Seriously, he's rarely sick, so ain't that the luck o' the draw? With the babies being preemies and so vulnerable we wanted to play it safe, so Richard went to the doctor. He mentioned that we have preemies, so the doc put him on antibiotics right away and ordered him to "stay away from the babies" until today. He's still on the antibiotics and still recovering, but doing better. Anywho, with mom being gone and Richard off baby duty - I was doing all the baby stuff since Friday. It's hard work anyway with two people feeding, cleaning, changing, etc. But when you are alone, you can only take care of one baby at a time - everything takes twice as long. And one baby is screaming while you feed the other one, which makes you feel horrible. So I was getting even less sleep. And my body is still recovering from surgery so I tire easily. I can't wait till they are big enough to "prop" with their bottles - that will make things much easier! ....... of course, by then we'll have new issues to deal with hahaha.

My mom came back this afternoon. And Richard is back on baby duty. So things are feeling less hectic :-) But I did survive on my own and there is some satisfaction and comfort in knowing that it can be done!

On another note... I stepped on the scale with the babies and I'm guessing they are about 6 pounds now. It's by no means accurate. They definitely look a lot fatter and feel heavier. They have that double chin coming and dimples on their hands. They still have a lot of growing to go though.

Also, I'm down 34 pounds! I had reached 190 pounds the Thursday right before I delivered. I still have 13 pounds to go before I reach my pre-pregnancy weight. I can't believe it! Although it's all in the stomach and seems like it will take a long while to disappear. The swelling in my legs and face has gone down soooooo much! I feel like a new person!

Pictures Update

Finally got the pictures online. Here's from the day of delivery through now... enjoy.

Click on the link below:

See Pictures

Welcome Home!

The girls officially came home Tuesday afternoon. So we've survived two nights as new parents with twins! The neonatologist said they are doing well. We almost weren't able to bring both babies home since they weren't gaining weight fast enough. So the last couple days in the NICU we were advised to just let them sleep. So we did a lot of staring at them versus holding them.

Now that they are home, we've been ordered to keep them on that strict eating and sleeping schedule so they gain a lot of weight. The doctor said 22 hours of sleep a day - so we feed them every four hours. As in the NICU, they told us no over stimulating or playing with the babies - feed them and put them to bed - so we don't get cuddle time outside of feedings. :-( But we're willing to sacrifice it so they gain weight. So far they are gaining about an ounce day. They have been very good babies ... so far. But we've only had them for a couple days - not even a week of adjustment under our belts. Cross fingers they keep cooperating!

They had their first pediatrician appointment yesterday. Both had gained an ounce from the day before. She reiterated the feeding and sleeping schedule to encourage weight gain. I can't wait for them to get fat - then we can have more play time. :-)

A lot of the clothes we have for them are so big - even the newborn ones haha. They are such little dolls. And I can't believe they will be 2 weeks old on Sunday!

Sweet Sleepers

These are a couple pics from my mom's cell phone - a bit blurry - but cute (I'm biased of course hehehe). The nurse said they are scheduled to come home tomorrow! Cross fingers!! :-)

Grace (above) and Frances (below)

The Wacha Gals Have Arrived!

We wish to announce the birth of our identical twin girls!

Born on Sunday, July 18 at 9:06 p.m. and 9:07 p.m. at 34 weeks and 5 days old.

Frances Akor Wacha

(left side of picture)

5 lbs. 5 oz. and 18 7/8 inches long

Grace Apio Wacha

(right side of picture)

5 lbs. 6 oz. and 19 1/4 inches long

The babies are a week old today! Sorry for the delay in posting but I was in the hospital recovering until discharge Thursday evening, and have been visiting the babies in the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) every free second. They are doing GREAT though and should be home soon!!!! :-) I will update with more pictures at some point. I have a few my mom took. We have some on our camera too, but Richard does not know how to download from my camera to the computer in the basement (no railing, so I'm not walking down there!). Haha, one of the things I was going to show him before the babies arrived. Whoops!

I'll update with the birth story later -- it's definitely amusing.

34 Week Check-up

Well I'm 34 weeks and 2 days preggers. I had my OB checkup today. My mom went with me. BTW - Why do they have the most uncomfortable chairs in an OB office??? Sorry, digressing.

Anywho, all is well. I've gained 47 pounds so far... up 4 pounds from two weeks ago. Blood pressure is great. The doctor measured my belly and I'm measuring the equivalent of 47 weeks pregnant!! Whew! So I'm measuring the equivalent of a regular pregnancy overdue by 7 weeks. It's crazy. I remember in June when I had my 30 week checkup I was measuring 10 weeks ahead, and they said the growth would slow down and I wouldn't measure so far ahead anymore. Well, jokes on them! Last time, at 32 weeks, I was 11 weeks ahead and this time, at 34 weeks, I'm 13 weeks ahead. Sumo babies indeed.

Mobility has reached a wall. I pulled a muscle last night trying to adjust my belly during sleep... doh. It's just too darned heavy. I had a hard time sitting up from the doctor's table too. I know I only have two weeks from tomorrow left -- but it's taking forever. It feels more like two months. I just keep on chugging along -- looking forward to breathing, eating, not itching, and sleeping however I want! (.......And of course, seeing the babies hehe).

We managed to take my mom out for her birthday last week. We went to Clyde's in Columbia. They tried to sit us at a booth. So I slid in butt first and tried to turn and "boink" -- nope -- no room for the belly. We laughed. Sometimes I really don't have any concept of how big my belly is! Fortunately there was a table with chairs open! I can't reach to eat over the table though, so I wear half my food. hahaha. We had a great dinner though!

California closets came last week too, to install the nursery closet. So we're almost ready to start getting everything together!!

My dad came down this past weekend to accompany my mom to her follow up scan at Johns Hopkins -- everything is A-Okay! So that's good news! She'll have another scan in 6 months.

So all in all, we're chugging along.

I have two more OB appointments before delivery. Next Thursday, July 22 and then Thursday, July 29 (the day before delivery). And then of course the perinatology appointment on Tuesday, July 27. Final countdown! Two weeks from tomorrow!

Sumo Babies

I'm 33 weeks today. Only 3 and 1/2 weeks to go (seems like forever though)! I had my perinatology appointment today. My mom was able to go with me. I told her she wouldn't be able to see much since the babies are so big and jumbled up now. And that was pretty much the case - just a tangled web of babies. They were moving around like crazy, as usual. The technician was able to see the profile of one of the babies and pointed out that the baby had hair on her head already. Too cute! And both babies are head down now - I can't believe that Baby B still had room enough to flip, but she did it.

Soooo... the babies are doing excellent! Baby A weighs 5 lbs. 7 oz. and Baby B weighs 5 lbs. 4 oz. The doctor came in and asked if I'm trying for some record holders. hehe. My mom's reaction was pretty much: wholly crap that's a lot of babies. The average for twins at 33 weeks is 4 lbs. 12 oz. -- so my babies are definitely above average! Even more amazing considering identicals tend to measure a bit smaller than fraternals. And they are sharing even better now, as you can tell by their similar weights.

So I'm carrying a combined baby weight of 10 lbs. 11 oz. Sumo babies! The doctor guesstimated that at 36 weeks they'll be about 6-7 pounds a piece. We'll see! Only one more perinatology appointment before I deliver, woohoo :-)

So my next OB appointment is Thursday, July 15. And my next (and LAST) perinatology appointment is Tuesday, July 27 at 9 a.m.

Fourth of July Weekend

Kenneth, Heidi, me, Arianna,

Grant and Emma at the playground

Since I'm pretty much house/Columbia bound at this point - we had the Larchars and the Dorsheimers over for some BBQ on Saturday. You can view all the pics from the get together here. I'm sad because both families are moving soon!! But it's nice to be able to get together before the big moves. My folks are down here too. My mom will be staying through my delivery - which is a HUGE help. My dad just headed back up north today.

We had a fun time. Richard BBQ'd and made his famous beans. We all gobbled down the food. And then the Larchars, Amy, my mom and I, took the kids to the playground by Jackson Pond. (Well, my mom took the Larchars - Amy rode with me. I had to drive because I can't walk that far - and yes it's less than a mile from our house and I still can't make it!) The kids had fun at the playground. Too cute! We love those Larchar kiddies!!! :-)

Joe, Amy, me and Richard

After we got back from the playground we had some delicious mini cherry and blueberry pies that Heidi made - with a 4th of July flare! They were sooooo good. And we had some equally delicious and very juicy watermelon that Amy brought. All in all it was a great get together!

Yesterday, the Dorsheimers came back over. Amy is teaching me how to knit - something to keep me occupied during my free time stuck in the house. Joe went for a 50 mile bike ride - because he's CRAZY! hahaha. And afterwards came back to the house and hung out with Richard and my dad in the man cave.

Today, we're just chilling out INSIDE enjoying the AC! Time is still going by soooo slowly. Can't wait for my perinatology appointment tomorrow - my mom is going with me - we'll see how big the babies are getting.

Richard's Surprise Baby Shower

On Wednesday, Richard's co-workers threw him a surprise baby shower! His boss called him into a meeting as a distraction so the others could decorate the kitchen for the shower. Then another co-worker came into the meeting and hoodwinked Richard into the kitchen, under the ruse of donuts. Apparently there were pink streamers in the door way and Richard just burst through without a second thought. Then he's like "hey where's the donuts?!" Then he notices a pink cake with little baby booties on it and the 'it's a girl' balloons -- and still being oblivious -- asks who's birthday party it is and how come he wasn't invited. hahaha. Then everyone says "surprise!" And Richard finally realizes it's a surprise baby shower for him! Oh classic Richard.

He had some issues opening gifts and keeping things in order. But we got soooo much stuff. Seriously, money, high chair, gift cards, swaddlers, towels, onesies, clothes, you name it! It meant so much to both of us that people went all out for the girls! Richard's boss made the favors and the cake. The favors were so cute and funny. And the cake was amazing.

It was so cool for Richard to get a shower since baby showers aren't as common for dads-to-be.

Kathy took pictures, you can see them by clicking here.

Thank you to everyone that contributed! :-) We can't wait for you all to babysit hehehe ;-)