Wednesday, July 27, 2011

My little girls are 6 months old today!

Hailee and Hannah are six months old today!  I cannot believe how fast the time has gone, how far the girls have come, and how many milestones they are now starting to meet!  We had their well visit today.  Hailee is now 13lbs 9oz and Hannah is 12lbs.  Hailee was being so cute at the appointment.  She was sitting up (yes, sitting up in the tripod position with her hands between her legs) laughing at herself in the mirror across from her.  I'm sure it was a fluke thing, but she did it for about five minutes or so.  Maybe if we put mirrors up all around the house she will get distracted and start sitting up all the time.....hmmmmm.

Both girls are wearing mostly 3-6 month clothes now.  Some summer 0-3 month clothes still fit, but on Hailee they are all belly shirts :)  Hailee and Hannah love sitting in their Bumbo seats and playing on their playmat.  They talk, coo, and smile all the time.  Of course when I tried to get a couple good smiles to post today, they would be all smiley until I got the camera up to my face and would then just give me some silly look.  :)

Hailee and Hannah

Hannah

Hailee.  They both LOVE eating their hands!

Hailee (and her chubby cheeks :)

Hannah (and a half-smile :)





I just had to post these pictures of Ella.  For whatever reason, she loves putting on my glasses. 
What a cute little goof!






Sunday, July 17, 2011

Neonatal Visit

Overall, the twin's Neonatology appointment went well.  The had an overall developmental assessment with a physical therapist.  Hannah is right on track according to her adjusted age and Hailee is Miss Superstar.  She is ahead of where she should be.  The PT did a lot of exercises with the girls and tested many things.  For example, when an arm is pulled over do they pull their leg to follow?  Do they move their head from side to side to follow sound?  Do they get mad when a blanket is placed over their face?  How long can they keep their head up during tummy time?  Is their head in midline or does it favor one side over the other?  This part of the appointment was very reassuring.

Hannah now weighs 11lbs 4oz and Hailee weighs 13lbs.  Hannah is not gaining as much weight as they want her to be.  I now have to fortify her breastmilk with more Neosure.  I will be putting 1 1/3 tsp in each 4 1/2 oz bottle.  Hopefully she can catch up a little by our next appointment. 

In the past two weeks or so, I have noticed these small red spots on the girl's legs.  Hannah has a few more than Hailee.  I brought it to the doctor's attention and they are called Petechial.  It could be caused from a virus one of the girls had and gave it to the other, pressure that was put on their legs, or a possible blood disorder.  We went and had a CBC to rule out the blood disorder.  Everything came back fine with that, except that both girls are now a little bit anemic.  Hailee was anemic (pretty bad) at the end of her NICU stay, but then got better.  Their anemia is caused by a combination of being premature and being breast fed.  We now have to give them an iron supplement each day and have another CBC in a month.  Hopefully we are all clear at that time.  I hate the girl's having to get blood drawn :(  As far as the Petechial, the anemia could be a contributing factor.  They don't think it was a virus because neither of the girls ever had a fever and they both look great and are so active.  We just have to watch and make sure the rash doesn't get worse. It should start getting better soon.

Hailee, the superstar :)

Hannah and Hailee

Love these sunhats!




 This is how you know the photoshoot is coming to an end...



Friday, July 15, 2011

Mid-July Update

I don't really have much to blog about!  We have just been enjoying our summer, spending time with our girls.  Hannah and Hailee have their Neonatology appointment today.  They will each have a full assessment on their development thus far.  I cannot wait to see what they each weigh. 

Watching TV...they must get that from their daddy!

Hailee and Hannah, about 5 months old


Hannah and Hailee used to always fall asleep on each other, but it seldomly happens now that they are getting older.  The past week or so I have gotten two rare occasion sweet sleeping baby pictures of them snuggled up to one another.






Ella is becoming more and more like a two year old each day.  She is talking a lot more now.  She has such a soft spoken, sweet voice.  I just love hearing her learn to talk.  Ella has such a personality now.  She is very picky about what clothes she wears, what shoes I put on her, and what bow I put in her hair.  The first thing she wants to do in the morning is put on her shoes.  If I don't pick out the ones she wants to wear, she points to her shoe drawer saying "sho, sho, sho" until I get out a different pair.  I think she thinks if she puts shoes on in the morning that we will definitely be going somewhere that day.  Ella loves coloring (on the walls), climbing on top of chairs and tables (and then getting stuck up there), and helping give her sisters a bath (generally this just ends in an almost flooded bathroom and an upset baby :) 
Ella loves her bubble blower.  This is much better than having to blow on the little stick a million times :)

Ella's smooshy face :)

Ella refuses to sit up in the tub these days.  It is sometimes challenging washing her good while she is on her belly. 


Some of you may remember a recent post that our Fourth of July included an almost-broken nose for me from a boating accident.  Well, I finally went to the doctor yesterday and my nose is in fact broken.  I really didn't think it was broken, but now that the swelling is completely gone there is a small bump on the one side of it and the one side slopes down steeper than the other.  I am incredibly upset about it.  I never had a problem with my nose before and now it doesn't look exactly how it did before.  I have to decide whether I want to go through getting it fixed or just deal with it for the rest of my life.  I can't imagine going through the surgery and recovery with how busy I am now with my kids.  I really don't like thinking or talking about it because I just end up getting mad about the situation. 

Hailee, Hannah, and I got together with a friend and her twin boys one day last week.  I actually met this mom in the NICU.  She is a nurse at OSU and helped take good care of my girls.  It was so much fun hanging out with other twins!  Evan and Noah were just adorable!!  Below is a picture of their double date :)



In a couple weeks we are having a twin play get-together with some moms and their babies that I met through the Columbus Mother's of Twins Club.  One of the moms organized a group of us that all had twins due around the same time.  We were supposed to get together before we were all due, but then one by one most of us ended up on bedrest.  So, I am excited to finally meet these ladies and their twin babies!

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Happy 4th of July!

We had a fun filled Fourth of July weekend cooking out (all three days!), boating, swimming, shopping, and playing outside.  We spent lots of time with friends and family.  Besides me getting an almost-broken nose caused by a boating accident, we had an excellent time!
I've always been told that it is best to take pictures of babies as newborns, after they are sitting but before (or at) age one, or after they are about three.  One to three year olds are not easy, unless you are outside and focusing on cute candid (not posed) shots.  This theory was proved as I tried to do a mini session with my three girls for the holiday.  Ella was just not having it!





Hannah and Hailee were a bit more cooperative.





 We went to my aunt and uncle's on Sunday for a cookout.  I had no intention of taking the babies swimming.  However, when we got there and the water was warmer than the water I bathe them in, I quickly had a change of heart.  Hannah and Haille loved the water!  I did not have swimsuits for them, so they just wore their diapers.  We were careful that they didn't fill with too much water and explode in the pool!  I did not want to be fishing cotton out of the pool all day long.  Thankfully, diapers these days hold about 5lbs of water/pee before they burst.