Month 1 Recap

As written by Bree

Hi All,

Mom has been pretty busy this week. Since I'm growing up so quickly, I offered to do our Month 1 recap that we've been promising. So here goes!

Drew and I arrived on a Friday afternoon. That was really nice, because even though it was tax season, Dad got to spend the entire time with Mom and us in the hospital. Dad was really helpful. Mom was recuperating from surgery, so Dad changed A LOT of diapers! Don't worry, Mom caught up as soon as we got home. We had a pretty typical hospital stay. The nurses were really nice to us. We also got to meet with the lactation consultant a few times to make sure we were on the right track with breastfeeding. She said I was the best latcher in the whole hospital that day! Drew and I were checked regularly for jaundice, which is common for babies that come early. I ended up needing a bilirubin light or "bili blanket" to help with my minor case of jaundice. I had a light stick wrapped up in my blanket. Mom and Dad called me their little glow worm. We took a rented bili blanket home with us, per hospital orders.

On Monday, we celebrated Daddy's birthday at the hospital. Oma and Opa brought ice cream dessert and a big balloon that sings Happy Birthday. Dad said we were the best gift ever.

We all left the hospital together on Tuesday. Mom was so glad that Drew and I were healthy enough to come home with her!

We saw our pediatrician for our first check up and also for a few weigh ins during our first month. Our doctor looked us over and told Mom and Dad that we were just perfect! Oh, and it didn't take the doctor long to say we no longer needed the bili blanket.

On the homefront, we got lots of help from Grandma and Grandpa and Oma and Opa. Drew and I like this, because we get held A LOT when they are around!

Basically, Month 1 was filled with a lot of sleeping and also frequent feedings. Mom and Dad made sure we ate every 3 hours around the clock so that we could grow. Drew and I both breastfed, and we often did it at the same time, using a special pillow where each of us got a side. Then, we'd both take a bottle with formula to supplement. The nurses recommended it, so we could be extra sure to get enough to eat. After our 2 1/2 weeks weigh in, the doctor said we could go up to 5 hours between feedings at night (if Drew and I felt like sleeping that long) since we did so good on our weight gain and that we were to eat on demand (we like this!).

Oh, and Drew and I both started cracking some grins during Week 3. Mom and Dad seem very excited when we do this, so we try to do it often!

All in all, it was an exciting month! Below are pictures of our Month 1 activities and stats from our doctor visits. Talk to you all again soon!

Me as a little glow worm (with bili light)

Drew and I together in crib - this worked for a little while!

Mom and Me

Storytime with Dad

Drew in the bouncy

Napping with Dad 1

Napping with Dad 2

One of Mom's favorite pics of Drew

Here are stats from our Month 1 doctor visits.

March 5, 2009 Appointment - 5 days old

Drew Weight: 5 lbs. 8 oz.
Bree Weight: 5 lbs. 9 oz.

Drew Height: 18 inches
Bree Height: 18 5/8 inches

Drew's height measured shorter than birth height. The doctor reassured us he did not shrink. They typically rush the hospital measurement a bit and can be off for this reason.

March 9, 2009 Weigh In - 9 days old

Drew Weight: 5 lbs. 13 oz.

Bree Weight: 5 lbs. 10 oz.

March 16, 2009 Weigh In - 16 days old

Drew Weight: 6 lbs. 6 oz.

Bree Weight: 6 lbs. 3 oz.

We're Back!

Hi All!
After 3 weeks and a few days away from the blog, here I am! The weeks have flown by, and I can hardly believe Drew and Bree are now 3 weeks and 3 days old. Today (March 23rd) is their original 40 week due date.

We are having a great time with the twins. It's amazing how in love we are with these babies!

Our days are now filled with typical baby stuff - diaper changes, feedings, naps multiplied by two. The first two weeks were demanding but predictable. We woke the babies every 3 hours to eat, as they slept most the time. Just when we thought we had them all figured out, everything changed! Drew and Bree are now making their own schedules, with mere suggestions from Jim and I. The doctor told us this was normal and to expect they may want to eat even more often. At this point, we are still working on their weight gain, so they are to eat on demand. We do encourage both babies to wake up and eat if one so happens to want to eat early, in an attempt to at least keep their schedules as similar as possible. Sometimes this works.

Drew has really come a long way with breastfeeding. He is now a pretty good latcher and gets the job done. Bree has always been good on the breast and continues to be.

We had a weigh in at the doctor a week ago. Bree weighed in at 6 lbs. 3 oz. and Drew was 6 lbs. 6 oz. They both gained 9 ounces over a week's time, which the doctor felt was outstanding. (Average weekly weight gain at this point is 4 - 7 ounces.) Since they did so well, Mom and Dad were rewarded with the option of letting the babies sleep up to 6 hours between nightly feedings, if the babies so chose. Well, that was a might big "IF". We did have one evening (Saturday) when Bree made it 5 hours and Drew made it 6 hours between feedings. The coolest part of this for me was waking up on my own, instead of to my new little alarm clocks. Overall, we're very happy with their weight gain thus far. And, sleep or lack thereof, is as expected. It's also great to know they have the potential to sleep longer, and we're confident they'll do just that in good time and when it's right for them, of course.

Drew and Bree are already showing their individual personalities. Drew is laid back and quite calm, cool and collected most times. He takes it all in stride. Bree is our little drama queen. She lets us know in no uncertain terms if anything is bothering her. Everything she does is in dramatic fashion, and she is very vocal. If she could actually talk, I can only imagine the words that would go along with her yelps, thrashing of arms, etc. And when you speak to her, she actually appears to intently listen. They are both very entertaining in their own ways.

So, now onto what most everyone really wanted to see - PICTURES!

Drew - one day old

Bree - one day old

Our family - first trip to the pediatrician at 6 days old

Drew ready to hit the road!

Bree catching some sun rays through the window

Our pumpkins resting peacefully

And we have many more to share, but alas someone is ready to eat again. We'll plan to post again soon! We hope to have at least weekly updates going forward...............

One Week and Counting

As written by Jim:

We made it through our first week! Our life now revolves around three hour increments and how many ml of formula did they eat. The twins went in for their first doctor visit. They still have a little jaundice, but other than that they are doing well. Bree has gained two ounces and now weighs 5 pounds 9 ounces (2 ounces below her birth weight). Drew is holding steady at what he was when he left the hospital (5 pounds 8 ounces, 9 ounces below his birth weight). Our focus is getting him to have some weight gain going forward.

This is now a typical day for me:

5:00 AM Get up and wake up Drew, change his diaper, Tricia gets up and I hand off Drew for breast feeding. I grab Bree, change her diaper and hand off Bree so Tricia can double breast feed. Assuming they are feeding well, I go for a run with Riley. I come back fifteen minutes later, take Drew burp him, feed him some supplement and put him back to bed. I take Bree burp her, feed her some supplement, and put her to bed. We have managed to get this down to 45 minutes to an hour, from start to finish. That is the best case scenario, and often times is much longer, or they are hungry again in an hour.

During the day/night our parents have been helping. We could not get by without them. The errands they run, the food, the feedings, and the feedings that they take all on their own so we can get more than two hours of sleep in a row are God sends. Thank you for all of your help! We love you guys.

Thank you to everyone for your prayers, gifts, and food. We appreciate everything you have done as well!

Riley has acclimated well to the kids and visitors. I think she actually gets more attention now than pre kids and she gets extra walks each day as well. There are more people around which means more people to play with, and someone is awake pretty much all day, so she rarely has to go in her kennel. She seems to be protective of the family and will sit near Tricia as she is feeding, otherwise she hangs out on her blanket until someone arrives. Then she is crazy for ten minutes and will go back to her blanket.

Tricia is doing a great job breast feeding, Bree is doing a great job feeding, but Drew takes a little more work. He seems to enjoy motor boating and sleeping at the breast more than eating. I find this to be a man after my own heart, so he makes me laugh every time he does this. Tricia should be taking naps but just keeps going, so we have to keep encouraging her to take a break. Our parents have helped allow these breaks. It is amazing what a difference 4-5 hours of sleep in a row is compared to 2 hours of sleep. I am back to work full time, so thank you again to the parents for all of their help as Tricia continues the healing process and getting back on her feet.