Randomly Silly

Determined to get outside today and get some fresh air.  The weekend is slated to be rainy and dreary, so even if I got to sneak out for only 10 minutes...

totally worth it. 

Probably because I spent a good portion of Summer at the hospital, it seems like it has slipped right past us.  Before I checked into the hospital, I had just bought J some new bathing suits and coverups - and they never got used.  Today was plenty hot, dad to the rescue with the pool idea.

Random silliness that I love :)

The Sun Shines

Day 4 of being home, 3 nights of learning.  All things one could anticipate being complicated with twins, indeed is.  They eat, usually at the same time.  One wakes and stirs while the other is seemingly out cold... only to find a moment later #2 has the same idea. 

And here's my system for knowing who is who... Alivia is always on the left and Annalise is always on the right.  Their cribs, Alivia left, Annalise right.  In the swings, in their bassinets, in their car seats.  I can tell them apart, but it takes a moment of assessment.  And if all else fails, their hospital bands are still on.  Luckily, I haven't had to refer to them yet.  It remains to be seen when I'll snip them off.  For now, they stay.

And day 4 will likely be a repeat of the previous 3.  Although today is a school day for Josie, so even more casual than yesterday. Naps, eating, washing baby clothes, editing pictures, cuddling, cuddling and more cuddling. Ed's been working on lots of long neglected house projects while he's off this week, in between diapers and feedings, of course. The real test will come next week when he's back at work.  Here's hoping my mom doesn't decide to take a vacation any time soon!

Family of 5

We left this place for the last time on Sunday, bringing home Annalise.  Our family complete and home. So great.

A lot happened here, a place that was comforting and safe while I waited for their arrival, caring people that changed my life and my family forever.  It was bittersweet to say goodbye to a place that was such a huge part of our lives for 40 days.  But we knew the biggest adventure of our lives was waiting for us at home, and were were excited to jump in feet first!

Our last moments in the NICU before packing up, the last minutes of being connected to monitors!  A freeing moment to hold our baby and walk around with her.   We packed her up tight in the car seat, just like we did with Alivia a few days prior... and said goodbye.

Ed, so proud and happy to snap her in and drive off.  I made sure to stop and grab my ritualistic hibiscus ginger ale and blueberry muffin at my favorite tea place as a final adios, and we hit the road. 

We've now survived two nights of twins. It's a drastic adjustment, a steep learning curve, but I think we might just be good at this.  True, we're both home and I have my amazing mom to help, AND they sleep 90% of the day... but it's better than I imagined.  So good. Josie's a great big sister and proving to be a great helper.  It's good to be home.



Hooray for Home

Official news we were headed home came this week. Alivia is a few days ahead of her sister. While sad Annalise wasn't equally as ready to come home, we know she is only a few days behind and will be making the same journey home soon. Having been home a few days now, we are glad we had this slow transition home and into the world of twindom!

Alivia, day 14

We were discharged from the hospital on Thursday, and got to hold and love Alivia for the first time without any monitors connected to her.  It made us nervous to detach from the reassurance all the monitoring gave us, but now that we've been home a few days watching her every adorable move and listening to her coo, we are more relaxed.

Alivia ready for home

She gets swallowed up in the carseat (and this is even one of the smaller models!), and I of course rode home in the back seat with her.  As any baby would do, she slept the entire ride home. 

And yet the nursery isn't quite finished yet, but getting close.  I have art to hang and arranging to do.  I never thought the day would come that I'd have them home to fill the cribs.  I can't wait to see them both here.  Soon!

Upgraded

This past weekend brought some exciting changes.  We moved from the 80s to the 60s (series of rooms), and in NICU speak, that means we moved to the other side of the NICU where we transition to home!  

Alivia, day 13

 With that great news, we spend our days at the hospital doing things much like we would do at home.  We feed them on a schedule, we cuddle, we do diapers, we cuddle more.  The feeding tubes are coming out very soon, they're still there only as a precaution in case one of the girls poops out during a feeding.  To keep their weights increasing, they must take every drop of milk at every feeding. 

Alivia (left), Annalise (right)

Their new room even has a window.  This weekend was the Chicago Air and Water Show which we had a million dollar view of.  We cuddled and sat by the window all weekend.  Ah, and last but not least, they're in open cribs and out of the isolettes.  That means they've mastered maintaining their own body temps.  Just like all the nurses told us, they are strong and won't be there long.  With each passed day we can tell they're stronger and getting closer to coming home! 

Just Us

Being that this may be the last week of just the three of us (woohoo!), I see it fit to spend a little extra time with this goober as we count down the days until 2 new babes join our home.

It had been quite a while since I sat down and just snapped away at this smiley face, and I'm glad I did.  Even at the end of an exhausted day, I didn't even brush her hair or take off her dirty clothes.  And low and behold, my most favorite pictures in a long time.

I have a day this week set aside for just her.  I won't be going to the NICU that day, she won't be going to school, it'll be just us.  I think that means a day of whatever she wants.  Her pick of parks to play at, maybe even ice cream instead of something practical for lunch.  I think I'll take a nap with her and play any and all of the games she wants. 

It was almost 4 years ago we fell in love for the first time with this one, and we can't wait to do it all over again.  She taught us so much that we *almost* feel ready for the chaos that lies ahead. 

Best Big Sister

Alivia, day 6

Rewinding back to the weekend, we had a lot of visitors. The most fun, of course, was Josie being able to come and be the big sister.  On her first visit, the day the babies were born, she wasn't able to touch them.  On Saturday she was able to give them some love.

She really thought Alivia would love her Jessie doll, but alas, Alivia was sleepy.

As lively as J is, I'm sure the babes are going to love having her as a big sister. We all can't wait for them to come home!

Both girls are now in isolettes to help them keep their body temps up. Alivia unfortunately failed her open crib test the other day. But we're assured this is normal and they just need a few more days and we'll try again.  There's no need to force them on this milestone, as we still have plenty of time until they gain the weight necessary to come home.  If I were them, I'd want to sleep snug in the isolettes as long as I could too!

Alivia w/ Grandpa Nick

Sleepy Annalise, day 6

 

Annalise, day 6



Together Again

Since the moment Annalise was born, the girls have been apart in the NICU - although sharing the same pod, they are 20 feet apart in their own isolettes, until yesterday!  

 Yesterday, both girls had been weaned off their IV fluids and therefore their IV's removed! This meant they were no longer attached to their beds.  I hadn't yet gotten to hold them together, and still haven't (Ed had the pleasure) - but was glad to get their pictures snapped. 

They're very easy to tell apart at this point in time due to their vastly different skin tones.  Alivia  (left) is rebounding from low blood count (anemic) thus much more pale, and Annalise (right) is slowly working down her biliruben levels. 

No doubt about it though, they look like their dad. They're still little peanuts, but from here on out we're anticipating their weights to start coming back up and we can soon consider bringing them home!



Photo Catchup: Rainy Day

While I'm in recovery and waiting for babies to come home, I've found this to be prime opportunity to start organizing photos and getting old collections edited and filed away.  I already have a hard time knowing which baby is which when I'm faced with 100 photos to edit, so I have to stay on top of this from the begining.  Wish me luck!

I came across these from just a few weeks ago and wanted to make sure I kept up with Josie's photos as much as possible too!

Ed is really good and finding ways to get Josie soaking wet and or completely muddy.  My parents don't have their driveway in yet (waiting on major landscaping to be complete), so it's a prime place to find really great rain puddles. 



Little Glow Worms

My first visit to the NICU after being discharged, and I brought along my mom and grandma for the day. It was exciting for my grandma to meet her twin granddaughters for the first time, even if we could only limitedly hold them. 



Alivia, day 5

Both girlies were wrapped in the Bili blankets, and look like little glow worms.  It actually looks quite snugly!  Although, I'd rather be the one snuggling them instead.

Alivia w Soothie

One this is for certain, they already like their soothies.  

My mom getting to hold Alivia for the first time, and hopefully again soon without all the cords.  By late this weekend, we expect to be IV fluid free and in open cribs for both girls.  I received news from the nurses today that Alivia is no longer in the Bili blanket and is in an open crib. Way to go cuddle bug! 

Annalise, day 5 with great grandma

  In other great news, the girls continue to up their feeds every day! As a result, and somewhat expected, Alivia has had a few apena events - but she resolves them on her own quickly.  These are totally expected as preemies learn to eat, breath, and swallow at the same time.  Annalise has been a champ taking the bottle and zero apena/bradycardia events.  Her biliruben levels are still a bit high, so today she's still wrapped up, but expected to move to an open crib soon!

Annalise and Grandma. 

Tomorrow we're excited to take Josie along with us to visit her sisters.  We're going to spend a leisurly day in the city (I'm still not moving too fast) and hopefully spend lots of time holding the babies without their glow worm blankets!

The NICU

The NICU. Here we are. We always knew the high likelihood of having to spend time here, but it's still not easy. While the doctors can not yet tell us how long we'll be here, we do know that our girls are considered "growers and feeders". But that doesn't mean they don't still need help. 

Alivia, day 1

On the Sunday my water broke, the doctors quickly administered steroids for their lungs, and magnesium for their brains... and that had given them the boost they needed for the best possible outcome if they decided to arrive sooner that we had planned.

Alivia, day 1

 Although we were hoping to make it until my 34 week date (I was on the schedule to be induced) the fact they surprised us and come a few days earlier than that was still ok.  We knew they were big for their gestational age and hoped that would work in our favor.

Annalise, day 1

 From the start, they did not need oxygen and were breathing room air.  They both started with feeding tubes, but so far all their feedings have been by bottle and that's a great milestone. Now they need to continue to up their feeds day after day, and with that we hope the other issues they're having will resolve themselves as time passes.

Annalise, day 2

We have an amazing team of doctors and exceptionally caring nurses that put us at ease and let us know everything is going well.  Today I head up to the hospital to spend the day cuddling them, and this weekend we hope to make it a family trip and bring Josie along to spend the day too!  

August 5, 2012

I'm still digesting the events of the past 5 days, but without further delay...

Born at 33weeks and 4days.

Annalise Sue, born 12:01 am, August 5th, 2012 - 4lb7oz

and only 12 minutes later (I'm a champion pusher),  Alivia Laine. Born 12:13 am, August 5th, 2012 - 4lb5oz

Our new lovies are warm and cozy in the NICU, doing well.  We're sad to not have them home with us, but know they're in the best possible place with the most amazing doctors and nurses watching over them until they're chubby and ready to come home. 

10th Day: Hospital Bed Rest

And 33 weeks today.  One week left to go until their birthday, unless the girls make other plans.  

I've now been in the hospital 10 nights, 11 days... and now the days left in the hospital are less than those I've been in.  Not counting the rest of today, that's 7 days until their birthday.  It's starting to feel more real.  Yesterday morning I was alarmed while eating breakfast to hear the woman in the room next door go into labor and deliver in a matter of moments.  This isn't a labor and delivery floor, and while my doctors continue to say something could change on a moments notice - I really didn't take it that literally.  They didn't even have time to take her down to labor and delivery. Before I knew it, there was a baby crying and I was panicked! 

We are still enjoying rather quiet days here at the hospital.  I've had such a great group of visitors this weekend through yesterday that have helped pass the time.  And yesterday was packed with activities.  Besides our normal NST in the morning, I had a mid day growth ultrasound planned.  We were excited to peek in on the girls again, to see what kind of fluid pockets were around baby A, and to see what their weights were. 

We were overwhelmingly happy to see that baby A's weight is 4lbs11oz (70th %) and baby B's weight was 4lb8oz (64th %).  Both had ample amniotic pockets, even considering my ruptured (PProm) status. Hearing the weights made me cry. I had been hoping for 4lbs, so gaining more than that with the possibility of delivery at any time was so reassuring.  It's likely, if we cook another week, the girls will both be born over 5lbs. Not bad for 34 week babies.  We hope that means their NICU stay will be minimal.   

With wheelchair privileges granted from my doctor, I was allowed to sign up for a few classes here at the hospital that I had wanted to take but previously didn't have time to drive into the city to make happen.  Low and behold the opportunity to take a few of the classes coincided with being a hospital resident, so we signed up.  Last night was the breast-feeding class that proved worthwhile for this first timer. And if these quiet days continue, we're also signed up for infant and child CPR on Saturday.  I'd take a class on lacing shoes if it gets me time out of this room for a little while.  

Josie and dad are living it up by staying up late, going to ride go-carts and, and eating more junk food than I can probably imagine.  I miss her like crazy but am thankful for the best invention ever, FaceTime.  Ed props the iPad up on the bathroom counter and I sit and talk to Josie while she takes a bath or while she's cuddled on the couch.  I can't wait for the day she comes up to meet her new sisters.