All settled in Florida

Its about 8:30 on a Saturday night, Grady and I are watching the Olympics and the boys are fast asleep since 8.  We are adjusting well from our DINK-y (Double Income No Kids) life to our new one, far away from all our friends and family but with the three most important people in my life all under one roof. . . finally.  We have been in Navarre, Florida for about 4 weeks now.  My mom so graciously stayed with us for about 3 of those until we got unpacked and settled.  She was such a huge help during the transition that we just don't know what we would have done without her.  We would also like to thank my dad for loaning her out to us for such a long time.  The boys seem to be loving their new home and doing well with bedtimes and sleeping more and more each night.  I have discovered that I can function on 4 straight hours of sleep pretty well and the boys almost always sleep that long before one of them wakes up- then its a quick feed during the night and then back to bed until 6 another longer feed and then back in bed until 9.  Each boy has slept 10 straight hours on different nights- if only I could get them to do that the same night. The time from 6-9 gives me a chance to shower and get organized for the day, catching up on paperwork from work, (I'm not actually working but I did hire another dr. to work for me since the bedrest in January), do some cleaning, and make bottles for the day.  I really do love staying at home with the boys especially since we don't know anyone here to watch our boys.  I have been meeting with different ladies to come in an watch the boys for half a day once a week - we have one that has won our approval and even though she is very qualified- I still haven't left her alone with the boys yet! I just can't bring myself to do it. . . hopefully that will come soon. 

Since we have been in Florida we have had lots of visitors- we love seeing familiar faces and even more so the extra set of helping hands they provide.  Just as we arrived, my cousins Jeff, Sheryl and Mike stopped by for a visit when their vacation plans were abruptly altered by Hurricane Debby. Unfortunatley our furniture hadn't arrived yet but thankfully the Walmart down the road sells air mattresses.  Grady's college friend, Don, was here when the movers arrived and was a huge help with the unpacking and doing all the hook-ups and installing TVs, etc.- he even mowed our grass!!  My dad came to visit as well for a few days.  He enjoyed spending some time with the boys and seeing how much they had grown. My cousin, Russell, and his wife Melissa and their 3 kids popped in one evening for a visit since they were vacationing in nearby Okaloosa Island. The next week my cousin Sandra, her daughter, Mallory and boyfriend, Austin came to visit for several days.  They got to enjoy some beautiful Florida days at the beach and the pool while being a great help with the boys.  And the next week, my sweet sweet niece and nephew came along with Andy and Tessia.  It had been so long since we had spent a lot of time with them and it was such a great chance for the family to be together just hanging out.  Madison and Reece love our boys and I can't wait for their baby brother to get here in September.  Tess offered to watch the boys one night while Grady and I went on a date night! It was a great break but we did miss our boys especially since we got home after they were in bed.  Unfortunately the whole time they were here, I had a pit in my stomach over the fact that when they left- my mom was going with them.  Then it was just us! Me, Grady and the boys.  It was scary but we did great.  We even surprised ourselves.  We couldn't ask for better boys- they really do great with their feeding and sleeping and only really get upset if there is something really wrong.  The funniest thing is that before my mom could even get back to Deville- Griffin decided that he was going to roll over and then 3 days later so did Jack.  We hate that she missed this huge milestone and she said jokingly that they probably would have done it a lot sooner if she wasn't here holding them all the time!! 

We have gotten the boys in the pool and they really don't know what to think about it- not overly excited and not upset either.  Just like with their baths - I'm sure they will learn to love it.  Did I mention that the boys are loving bath time!!!  We give baths every other night and sometimes I wish we did every night because even though its a lot of work (it really is like an assembly line) - they love it and usually sleep better those nights. 

We haven't made it to the beach yet with the boys, babies aren't supposed to wear sunscreen until 6 months and in the evenings it can be windy and the optometrist in me doesn't want them to get sand in their eyes.  Hopefully in the next month we will get them out there and take some pictures.

We met their new pediatrician this week and we really like her- she has twins as well so she can relate to all my questions and concerns (I went into the appointment with a list of questions for her!)  She was very impressed with the amount the boys are eating and their weights.  Since looked at Griffin's foot and said it looked great to her but we will be seeing another orthopedic dr in a few months just to check it more thoroughly.  We have to see the cardiologist to double check a duct in both boys that hadn't completely closed at birth but none of the pediatricians we have seen since their discharge from the NICU seem to be concerned at all. A social worker from the Florida Early Steps program came to our home to do an assessment on the boys and they will see a developmentalist and Phyical Therapist to assess their development.  We really don't have any major concerns about the boys but since they were so premature and twins- they just need to be monitored closely.  Not to bore you with details but I have a feeling that this blog is going to count as the boys baby book (I just don't know when I will find time to get that all together- maybe when they're 18) -some stats about the boys:
Griff weighs 14 1/2 lbs
Jack weights 14 lbs
Griff's height is 23 inches
Jack's height is 24.5 inches
Griff's head circumference is 17 inches
Jack's head circumference is 16 inches

Both boys are in #2 diapers, wearing 6 months clothes (they are a little big but since there is so much drama involved in putting tight clothes over Griff's head- we just avoid that and went up a size), and drinking 28-30 ounces/day.

Griff rolled over on July 24 and Jack on July 27. Both boys were on their tummy and rolled to their back.  Both boys have slept through the night once- Jack first then Griff.

Grady and I love the end of the day when we both go into the nursery with the boys to feed them. We have on their baby hymns CD and its so peaceful.  We quietly talk about our day and the boys and we are constantly amazed at how far they have come.

Griff on his Birth day

Griff now!

Jack on his Birth day

Jack now!



Now that we have established a pretty good routine- I hope to blog a little more regularly but enjoy the picture overload below!

Sitting on the patio with mawmaw Katy.

Waking up in the morning! So sweet!

 But there is a fine line between sweet and not so sweet with Griff!

We have started putting the boys in their high chairs while we eat supper.  They love to sit there and listen to us talk and we love talking back to them.

The boys first trip to the mall.

Lying on the exam table at the pediatricians office.  Obviously this is Pre- shots.

We call Griff our Chuncky Monkey

This feeding didn't go so well- I ended up stripping them both mid-feed.  They love being naked!!

Jack taking a bath

Brothers!

Jack at 4 months

Griff doesn't like to miss much

 Griff at 4 months

 The kids giving Mawmaw Katy her birthday present.  Its a book that they have recorded themselves reading.  They gave one to the boys too and I can't wait to read it to our boys.

This is our redneck water raft (AKA an air mattress). It works great for a lot of people though! Madison and Reece had such a good time with Mawmaw.  They had a lot of catching up to do with Mawmaw since she had been with us for so long.

 Madison is such a big helper with the boys.  Tessia is so lucky to have her when their new baby arrives.

 Andy and Reece

Our sleepy Griff

Griff rolling over for the first time. Please excuse the weeping commentator- tears of joy!!

Jack rolling over for the first time

I hope to have the nursery completely done this week so I will post pics of that next time.  Thanks for stopping by to check on our boys and thank you for all your prayers.  Our boys are doing great!



Long Nights, Laxatives, and Lafayette

Again I apologize for the gap between posts.  As you can imagine, sitting down and blogging is not on the top of my list right now. When these rare moments occur when both boys are asleep, I try to rest as well.  We are entering our 3rd week at my parent’s house with the boys.  It was been 11 days since Grady has seen the boys and he will be arriving in 2 days to see us- just in time for Father’s day.  I can’t wait to see what he thinks about how much the boys have changed.  I send him pictures everyday but they just don’t do the boys justice.  They get a bath every other night and then its weigh in time.  My dad, who has quite the collection of random items that he has accumulated  over the years, happened to have a baby scale in our attic that he had gotten from an old pediatrician in Alexandria so after bath time each of the boys gets weighed . 

Griff is weighing in at 11 lbs. 4 oz and Jack is 10 lbs. 5 oz!! Can you believe how much they have grown?

The nights are getting better but are still long- mom gives me a break a lot and she will sleep in the room with the boys and then we both get up during feeding time.  As of now, we only get up once to feed them and thankfully – they both get up at the same time.  It’s quite amazing how they both start stirring at the same time- even if they are in separate rooms.  We finally had to put them in separate beds since Jack flaps his arms a lot during the night and hits Griff in the face.  Griff is like a sleeping bear so we dare not risk him being awakened.

We did have to bring Jack to the dr. for a problem that he was having with reflux.  The dr. recommends that we put cereal in Jack’s milk to prevent food from coming back up- he has been doing great since we have starting this but cereal in milk can cause other issues.. . . like constipation.   They say twins do everything together and this includes getting "stopped up" together.  After talking to drs, nurses, and friends, I decided that more needed to be done.  Prune juice only seemed to make their tummies hurt worse and with each passing day, the boys seemed more uncomfortable . . .so our last resort was baby suppositories. UGH! It worked great and the boys felt much better but that is something that I hope I never have to do again. . ever! We have taken lots of precautions to keep this from happening again- I eat lots of prunes in an effort to get that in their system.  It makes for long days and nights when tummies are hurting.

Last weekend, I needed to go to Lafayette to get some more continuing education hours for my optometry license.  They are offered all over the country and at various times but when would I have more help than I do right now? So, I called on my cousin, Sandra, who agreed to make the journey with me to watch the boys while I sit in class for two days.  Sandra was a huge help and considering her daughter is 17- her baby instincts kicked back in and the weekend was a success.  Staying in a hotel with twins is a challenge.  We had the minivan completely full of their stuff.  Grady has always given me a hard time when it comes to packing- he says I bring too much stuff! Now I realize that my baggage just got downsized to fit all their accoutrements, as Grady likes to call it.  We had bouncies and diaper bags and basins for washing bottle and nap nannies and the list goes on.  Not only do you have more stuff to pack but going places just takes so much longer, partly because getting the 2 ton double stroller in and out of the minivan takes me FOREVER but these two little guys can draw a crowd too.  Going through the hotel lobby took a lot longer than I expected with all the people wanting to stop and see the babies.  Of course, that part I don’t mind. We love to show them off but when strangers stop me – I can almost see the germs jumping off them onto our boys.  During our first night at the hotel, Jack had a really dirty diaper if you know what I mean- hotel rooms are pretty confining so we knew we didn’t want to be cooped up with that diaper until the maids came around the next day. Luckily I had a ziplock bag and what’s the commercials say- “Locks freshness in and odors out” well we wanted to do the opposite of that (keep the odors in) but I thought it would work until the next morning.  As I was getting ready to go down to the convention the next morning, I grabbed the odorous ziplock and heading for the elevators- thinking there would be a trashcan along the way- NOPE, so onto the elevated- quick – put the bag in your purse before someone sees you. Doors open- lots of fellow colleagues heading down for the convention too, hadn’t seen me in a long time- wants to see pictures of the boys, so the rest of the elevator ride is spent oogling over the boys' pictures and when we get to our floor, I see more people I know and just completely forget about the soiled diaper in my purse . . .until about 20 minutes into class when I start digging for a pen. WOW! Dollar General storage bags don’t work as well as Ziplock.  Thankfully I was sitting around friends that have kids and everyone completely understood- what a mess!  One night while we were in Lafayette we took the boys to Chili’s – very close to our hotel, not very expensive since I probably wouldn’t get to eat anyway, and a little on the loud side so our boys wouldn’t disturb anyone if they were to start crying- the perfect trifecta  for infants in restaurants. 

Jack at Chili's

Napping in the hotel room. If you notice both boys are only in their diapers- Sandra was getting ready to change their clothes but they are such messy eaters- it was just easier to let them eat sans clothes.  I'm sure this won't be the last time I let them eat shirtless!

Alisa is a sweet friend of mine from Shreveport who was also getting her hours in Lafayette- she came up to our room to get some loving from the boys.  She has Eli, who is not yet a year and one on the way.  She is such a great mom and some how balances it all. She brought us supper at the NICU on our anniversary and that was such a special night for Grady and I.

Granny Benoit comes to the house every other day to offer a helping hand.  It is such a great time for her since this is her 11th and 12th great grandchildren and she loves holding them. 

 

My friend Allison came over to visit with her little girl Avery.  Avery is 10 months old and into EVERYTHING! I will definitley have my hands full when the boys are that age.  She brought the boys these precious boxer shorts.  I can't wait to put them on the boys.

Hanging with dad before he leaves for training.  I think he's teaching Griff how to e-trade.

Seriously mom? Another picture.

Pawpaw Lloyd on his 68 birthday with all his grandchildren (except the one that Tessia is carrying- making his debut in September)

Aunt Cel and Uncle Richard live right through the woods, so they come visit a lot.

No telling what Griff is thinking here!

My cousin, Russell, and his wife, Melissa, and their little girl, Cassie.  They also brought Tucker, who is 10 months, but he was too busy to take a picture.

Griff and Mawmaw

Jack's hair has all fallen out on top- he looks like a little old man. He reminds me of my high school algebra teacher! His complection is beautiful- I hope that he stays this olive color.

We brought the boys to our Family Church Camp.  Growing up, I went every summer and had such a blast.  Andy and Tessia have brought their kids for the past few years.  They did great during the service - Uncle Andy and Aunt Tessia sure do love to hold the boys.

Reece, Griff, and Uncle Andy at camp.

Jack is learning from the Professional Napper, my dad.  They take lots of naps like this. Jack loves to sleep on his tummy and dad just loves to sleep- so this works out well. This pic was taken on June 14 and now check out the next one.

This pic was taken on June 8!! Look at how much Jack has grown!

This is Griff looking at Grady the day he got back from training- they were both checking each other out.

We also celebrated Grady's first Father's Day while he was here and had the boys Christened at our church.  Brother Emitte Belgard conducted the service, he has Christened my brother and I as well as my brother's two kids.

Overall the boys are doing great; they are eating more than I ever thought they would since our days in the NICU. We are constantly reminded of how fortunate we are to have two strong, healthy, although gassy, growing boys.  We do miss Shreveport but are so grateful to be able to spend some quality time with my parents and in Deville.  Being away from your home town and then coming back can sometimes be hard but I have loved it.  So many people are interested in the boys and there is never a shortage of baby rockers that volunteer to come and help out.  Its been great!! 

It will probably be a while before I post again. Our move to Florida is coming up and once I get settled, we will update you on the boys and our new home.  We are very excited to start living in our permanent, well, the most permanent home our boys have ever know, house.

Here we go again

After being at home for 12 nights, it is time for the boys and I to pack up and move again.  Now that we are in a pretty good routine, we are going to change it up by moving onto the the boys' third home in their short lives.  We have loved every minute of having our boys home.  Although we don't let a lot of people come visit, it has been a pleasure to welcome some of our closest friends over to meet our precious boys.  As their mom, its not unusual that I think that they are beautiful and can stare at them for hours, but its such a delight to see the look in others eyes when they meet our boys- especially those who have prayed for them well before they even arrived. 

Jack and Carolle have been such a delight to have in our lives.  We are so sad to have to leave this wonderful couple behind. 

Connie works with Grady and she definitely makes his life a lot easier.  Having several grandchildren of her own, she looked at Jack with such delight- you would think she was one of her own.

I enjoyed the company of my wonderful friend Doneen, who also has twin boys (turning three soon) and she is such a inspiration to the kind of mom I want to be to my boys.  She is currently potty training her boys so I will be calling her for advice on that and plenty of other areas too. I don't have a picture of Doneen with the boys. . . Sorry.

Aunt Cel and Uncle Richard came to visit the boys several times in Shreveport.  The boys have enjoyed having their great aunt and uncle visit!

Moving out

Photo Book

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A Homecoming

Tuesday, May 8th is a day that we will never forget and second greatest day in the lives of our boys.  We were discharged from Christus Schumpert NICU around 3:00 pm and couldn't be happier to have our boys home.

The boys are all ready in their carseats to hit the road.  They are wearing some precious monogrammed day gowns (Grady hates that they are wearing "gowns") and crocheted booties made by a sweet patient of mine.

Outside the hospital, waiting to get in the car. Thank you Mawmaw Katy for the sunglasses! Got to protect those blue peepers.

Rocking in our catnapper, watching basketball.  Grady is so happy to have the boys home just in time for the NBA playoffs.  Perfect timing boys!

Lots of naps with MawMaw Katy

Nighty Night

 

Grady and I took a break from the NICU the Saturday before the boys were discharged to go out to dinner to celebrate their homecoming.  Since we are leaving Shreveport, we went to one of our favorite restaraunts, Superior Steakhouse, and our wonderful waitor gave us this dessert. Delicious!

Our first few nights at home were challenging to say the least.  Thankfully my mom is staying with us and has been a huge help to Grady and I.  There is so much to be done.  It's amazing how something so tiny can make such a huge impact on your life.  We went to the pediatrician a few days after discharge and everything checked out just fine.  Next we see the orthopedic surgeon to look at Griff's foot.  It really does look a lot better and I am thinking that all will check out fine with this appointment.  The Dr. is going to look at Jack too since he was transverse the entire pregnancy. 

Praises:

1. Being able to bring the boys home!!!

2. Having my mom here to not only help us take care of the boys but to guide us in exactly what to do.

Prayers:

1. Good orthopedic appointment for both boys.

2.  We are packing up in a few days to leave Shreveport.  Pray for calmness in this transition and the seperation that the boys and I will have from Grady.  They change so much everyday - I hate that daddy will go weeks between seeing them. 

Better Every Day!

I hate that the time between my posts gets longer and longer but I spend so much of my time at the hospital with the boys (have you seen them? and can you blame me?).  They get cuter everyday!

Griffin and Jack are doing amazing.  Each day is so encouraging with the constant weight gain and the new achievements that they accomplish everyday.  Grady and I realize that preemies take longer to develop and we celebrate the small things everyday- like two bottles in a row, no spells on the monitors, passing the Car Seat Challenge, and really loud burps.  Since preemies are so small and not really ready to fit into standard car seats- each baby has to pass the Car Seat Challenge before they can be discharged. Basically - they strap them into the car seat for 2 hours and closely monitor their breathing and heart rates to make sure both stay within the normal range while in the car seat.  Preemies tend to hunch over in car seats, making them stop breathing while in the car- we definitely don't want this to happen since we know our little guys will be in a car seat quite a bit.  This is where things get interesting.  This whole military thing is really cramping my style!! I have always been a planner, very type A personality, and prepared.  Just ask my mom when we were planning our wedding!  Well, on May 22nd our house will be packed up and the twins and I are moving back to Deville to live with my parents.  I read an article on Huffington Post about Boomerang Kids- adult children moving back in with their parents- well that's us! http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/01/boomerang-kids-multigenerational-households-living-with-adult-children_n_1434966.html
But not only am I moving back in but I'm bringing along my two infant children, a dog, and a lot of sleepless nights.  But since my parents are pretty much the most awesome parents ever - we are welcomed with open arms. Grady will join us on the weekends, as he will be doing some training in Alabama for his super cool new job as the JAG for the Special Ops, that will be moving us to Navarre, Florida at the beginning of July.  We are excited about moving back to Florida- since this is where Grady and I met, fell in love, and have lots of fun memories. .  . but the idea of being  hours away from my mom with two new babies scares me to death. It will be an adventure to say the least.  When we were house hunting in Florida, Grady kept saying to me- "we need plenty of room for your mom, so she will be comfortable and want to stay as long as she wants."  I thought this was too funny, so glad that he loves his mother-in-law.

Back to the boys. . . Griffin is taking all of his feeding himself now- either breast or bottle- the tube is out of his nose which makes things so much more enjoyable.  It is so fun to see him smile. . and yes, we know that they aren't real smiles and are directly related to what is happening in his diaper, but a momma can dream, right?  He looks a lot like Grady- especially Grady's baby pictures.  Griff is our loud baby- he loves to grunt and I am slowly learning that this is just his personality- grunts don't mean "pick me up." If I did pick him up everytime he grunted- I would never get a chance to hold Jack.  He is quite the eater and an even better burper.  I can see a lot of burping contests in my future not to mention other bodily functions- I'm sure. BOYS!!!  When we feed Griff a bottle, he is so aggressive with it that a lot of times his breathing becomes impaired- which is keeping him from going home.  We are really working on pacing him a little better and the Drs have decided to let him put himself on a On Demand schedule- he is doing well with this since he calls the shots.

Griff, deep in thought!!

Jack is doing better this week than he ever has. . like the nurses say. . "the light bulb has come on."  He has become a excellent breast feeding baby and becoming much more alert and staying awake for longer periods of time.  He seems to resemble the Price side of the family- he looks a lot like I did when I was a baby and even more so like my brother.  It will be so exciting to watch them grow and change over the years.  Jack's personality is much more laid back (like his daddy).  He only cries when he is really upset about something and his main cry is over gas! He is our long and lean baby- he is longer than Griffin but weighs about the same.  He has a little trouble with bottle feeding but is improving everyday- breastfeeding is more his thing- which I love because we really get some nice bonding time. . . until somebody else starts grunting!

Napping with mommy one afternoon, he still has the tube in his nose. . . but we don't use it!!

Both boys weigh right at 6 lbs, 8 oz.  We have come a long way from 4lbs, 3 oz. 

Since we are still in the hospital, the days get long and tiresome but my mom comes up quite often to sit with me and the boys and its provides a quiet place for us to visit which I enjoy.  Grady went ahead and took his paternity leave this week and I enjoy when he is there with me too.  Not very often, pre or post twins, do we get the opportunity to just visit for hours at a time so this has been a welcomed time for us.  And no better feeling than when we each are rocking our boys- sometimes we'll sing the Ricky Van Shelton/Dolly Parton song "Through these Rocking Years."  Its funny- I'm sure the nurses at the NICU think we are crazy!

Overall, the boys are doing great- we had a minor set back last week when both boys had to have blood transfusions.  I know, it sounds scary and horrible, but it did both boys a world of good. Since they are growing so fast, their bone marrow can't keep up with the production of red blood cells- so basically they were anemic.

Last night, I was given a room at the hospital and would wander to the NICU every three hours to nurse the boys- both boys did great and for the first time in 46 days- I truely feel like the end is near!!  I can't wait to get the boys home.

Praises:
1. Good feedings for both boys
2. Good labs came back normal for no more problems with jaundice or anemia.
3. A great husband who goes to work everyday and then comes to the hospital every night to help feed our boys while I take a break- he is exhausted but you can't keep him away from the boys.  He call it "boys night out."
4. A wonderful mother, who loves the boys just as much as we do, she is so willing to spend all day with me at the hospital and makes the long days seem shorter.
5. I can button my old jeans again!

Prayers:
1. A continued improvement in all areas of the boys health.
2. Calmness during this chaotic time for our family in the next 3 months.
3. All the other babies in the NICU

Grady is feeding Jack and mom is feeding Griffin

We HATE bath time but don't all boys?!?!