Monday, December 28, 2009

4 weeks....already?!

Well it's been 4 weeks since the twins were born. Wow....really? lol Guess time is flying. My days are counted in 3hr shifts so they just seem to fly on by.

Christmas was very nice. All 3 girls got a TON of clothes and of course Great Grandma bought Nevy way more toys then she knows what to do with lol. Nevy is no longer a (as she calls it) "happy cake" lover but thanks to Christmas and Grandma making 4 different pies she is a "happy pie" lover...lmao. That kid ate more pie then dinner and she was up until midnight because of it but Christmas comes once a year. So I let her go pie crazy.

The twins are doing wonderful. They are now eating about 20-22oz in 24hrs. They are eating about 3-4oz at every feeding. Celi is really packing the pounds on. For a while she was a little smaller then Ari but I'm starting to think she weighs more now.....chubby monkey! My guess buts them both in the low 7lbs range by now. They are fitting in newborn clothes and have grown out of most of the preemie stuff. Their reflux is still here and I'm waiting for the Pedi. to call me back with what we do next. Rice cereal is usually the next step with some Zantac but with the family history Nevy has we may skip the Zantac and just do Prevacid. I really want this treated early because I know Nevy's reflux started to get worse around the 6-8 week mark and it went downhill from there.

On a lighter note the girls due date was yesterday and they are offically "Newborns". They are really filling out and no longer look like peanuts lol. Nevy still loves to kiss them and help out. We are hoping to get back to potty training as soon as I have a little time. She was almost fully potty trained before I was put on bedrest but with me being on bedrest and the hospital stays and the twins birth it was screwed up. So back to square one and we start over again. She's a faster learner so I doubt it will take long. I just need the time. Jose gets two more weeks of vacation after the New Year. So maybe he can take a few days off so I can work with her. We are already eyeball high in diapers so it's not like potty training will be a relief for us lol.

Well I'm off to wait for the Pedi. to call back. So HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE and I hope this next year is as blessed for us as this one was! :)

Enjoy some X-mas pics....

Arianna, Nevaeh & Araceli
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Arianna & Nevaeh
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Araceli & Nevaeh
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Arianna & Araceli
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Nevaeh
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Nevy kissing Celi
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Nevy kissing Ari
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Friday, December 18, 2009

3rd week home.

Well things seem to final be calming down around here. Jose went back to work yesterday and I was surprised at how well I did on my first day "alone". The twins pretty much sleep all the time but that is because they are preemies and don't have much energy. Nevy is slowly getting back to her old naptime/bedtime routine which allows me 1.5hrs of "me time".

Now "Jose time" doesn't exist at the moment lol because by the time he gets home from work (6-7pm) the twins are ready for their 8pm bottles and then I get everyone ready for bed and I'm sleeping by 9:30-10pm to be ready for the 4am feeding (Jose does the 11pm one). So I hardly see him right now which sucks but once things calm down at work and he gets days off again it will be easier.

The girls are going about 4.5-5hrs at night between feedings. Which is allowing me some sleep (yay!) but after that one stretch of time I HAVE to wake them every 3hrs to feed (preemies will sleep through feedings). Having 5hrs is better then nothing! lol They are now up to about 3oz bottles of either breastmilk or formula which is about 10-11oz in 24hrs. Exactly where they should be! My guess is they are a little over 6lbs now.

It also looks like they have the same milk/soy protein allergy Nevy did. Celi is showing signs of reflux as is Ari. We are dealing with the protein allergy first and hoping it helps before moving on to meds for the reflux. I was really hoping to avoid all this with the twins. It was HELL with Nevy. The only things I am thankful for is 1) I knew the signs and caught it right away. 2) I've dealt with it before I know the tricks to help ease their pain. 3) I know how to get them the treatment they need to feel better. It's VERY hard dealing with GERD babies but Nevy taught me alot and I'm hoping that knowledge will help the twins cause I'd hate to see them suffer as long as Nevy did.

Well now for some good news! Ari lost her cord last week so both girls got their first baths (12/12). They loved the water (yay more water rats! lol) but holy cow it was hard trying to get both of them done at the same time! Even with Jose helping! I gave them another one yesterday which was easier because I did them one at a time but it took me 45mins. I can't wait for them to be old enough and I can just toss all 3 stinky butts in the tub at once! lol

So to answer the question I've been asked a 1,000 times already......

YES! THE TWINS ARE FRATERNAL! :)

That means "not alike". Two embryos in = two seperate babies out. They are no more alike then me having 3 seperate pregnancy instead of just two. All the girls are their own person even though they came from the same batch of embryos.

Yes I do agree that the twins look alike but so does Nevy lol. Arianna & Nevy could have been twins as babies they look so alike but Araceli is my "special" baby lol because she is the ONLY white kid I have lol! Yep thats right I have one Mexican twin and one White twin. Thats how I know they are fraternal for sure. It's hard to tell in pics but Celi is way lighter then Ari. She also has a smaller head and is the only one with Jose's chin (Nevy & Ari have mine).

Well I'm off to wash bottles and change poop (oh joy!) Have a HAPPY HOILDAY if I don't post by X-mas and enjoy your family because I sure enjoy mine! :)



Arianna's bath
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Araceli's bath
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All clean! (Ari & Celi)
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(Yes they get Paci's for the reflux. No I didn't want them to have them cause of what I went through with getting Nevy's away but I rather they have them then be in pain from reflux all the time. The swallowing motion keeps the acid down)

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

The 2nd week...

Well the Twins are a little over a week old now. They are both doing really well. Dr.'s appt on Monday put them both back up to birth weight with Ari being 5lbs 3.5oz (.5oz from birth weight) and Celi at 5lbs 3oz. They are eating about 2oz at each feeding which is still a little less then they need to be but Ari took an extra .5oz today. So I'm hoping they will be moving up to 3oz feedings soon. They are also going about 4hrs at night now. Which means we are getting a small amount of sleep again.

Celi lost her cord last night and it looks like Ari is not far behind. I gave them both a sponge bath today which they both hated lol. I can't wait to give them real baths...the little stinkers! I'm still pumping so the girls are getting a breastmilk/formula mix. It probably wont be until they are closer to their due date that they will be able to breastfeed well.

Nevy has been doing great with the girls. She loves them so much. She is still going through the "twos" and gives us a hard time about other things (like picking up her toys) but she has been so good with the babies. She loves to help and acts like a 2nd Mommy.

I can't believe a 1.5 weeks have gone by! Jose has to go back to work next week and I have NO IDEA how I am going do this alone! Right now we take shifts at night so we both get 5-6hrs of sleep and during the day we both feed them but once he goes back to work he wont be able to do the night feedings anymore. I'm hoping to get Nevy to start going to bed earlier so that way I can as well and Jose can do the last feeding (between 10:30pm-12am) and then I only have one night feeding (between 2:30am-4am). He would be gone for work before the AM feeding.

It's been hard these last 9 days with recovering from surgery, taking care of the twin, keeping things as normal for Nevy as possible and still finding time for myself to eat and shower but it is such a blessing to see these two perfectly healthy babies and know that everything I went through all the pain, problems and hormones was so worth it! To have 36 weeks twins that only spent 48hrs in the NICU and got to come home is such a blessing. Thank you all for sharing this journey with me! :)

Saturday, December 5, 2009

The Twins Birth Story!

Well since I FINALLY have a minute.....


THE TWINS ARE HERE!

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Yep our little girls were born on November 30,2009. Baby A- (Arianna) was 5lbs 4oz 19 1/4 inches she was born at 2:21pm. Baby B- (Araceli) was 5lbs 3oz 19 inches she was born at 2:22pm.

So here is how it all happened...

On Monday (11/30) I had my Dr.'s appt and Non stress test at 8:30am. I had been having regular contractions since Sat. night but they were not painful and only lasting 30sec. So I assumed they were braxton hicks. The girls did great on the non stress test and the Dr. came in to talk to me. I told her about the contractions and she said "They sound like nothing to worry about but I'll check you anyway". She checked my cervix and had a shocked look. I asked what I was and she said 4cm but only 5% effaced. We were told to head over to the hospital to be on the safe side since Baby A was a footling breech again and if my water broke her cord or foot could come out. Jose dropped me off and went home to drop off the the car and get my hospital bag. In triage my contractions were showing up in the 30-40's (with Nevy they were over 160!). So they were not very painful just a little annoying. They would come every 5,8 or 10 mins. So not regular at all. My Dr. came down (ya she was on call that day!) and said she was keeping me b/c I was over 4cm but since I had just ate breakfast we had to wait 6hrs for the c-section. So it was planned for after 3pm. Jose arrived and I was sent upstairs to a recovery room were I would be monitored before and after the c-section. The Dr. decided to check me again at about 11am. I was 5cm and still 5% effaced. So I was in labor though I never had hard contractions. The next few hours were a blur of Dr.'s and nursing coming in and asking us to sign things or stupid questions that kept being asked over and over. At about 1:30pm I had to pee and got up to do so. I noticed some blood and told the nurse. She said it's probably from everyone checking you so often. I layed back in bed and about 10 mins later I felt pressure. I told the nurse and since my Dr. was right down the hall she went to get her. I was checked and was 6cm 100% effaced! Thats when things went really fast! The dr. said we had to deliver now b/c these kids were coming fast (still no real contractions! Lucky me right? Had Nevy's labor been that easy I would never of needed a c-section!). Next I know I'm being taken to the OR. I got a resident to do my Epidural and of course he took 3 tries to get it! Finally all numb I was layed down and they started. Jose was brought in 5mins later. About 20 mins into the c-section the twins were born. They both screamed (Ari was very loud and wouldn't stop crying lol). I didn't get to see them b/c the NICU staff had to take them but after a few mins Jose got to go see them. The NICU Dr. came in and told me their weights and that they were doing great. About 15mins later Jose brought both of them to me. Ari was still crying and kept on crying lol. The Dr. finished up and we all went to the recovery room.

In recovery the nurse kept trying to talk me into giving them formula but all I wanted to do was breastfeed them both but Celi had a hard time latching and both their sugar levels went below 55. So I HAD to give them a bottle. After 20mins they checked both girls again and Celi was up to 67 and Ari was only up to 36. So the called the NICU and they came up to take Ari. I was really upset but I knew and prepared myself for an NICU stay since I found out we were having twins. It wasn't so bad since Celi was still with us. I got to breastfeed Celi for 15 mins and then I had to give her formula to make sure her sugar stayed up. The nurse came in and wanted to do another sugar check. I told her she didn't finish eating the formula yet and if she could come back when she was done ( I knew from Nevy's birth that the glucose level peaks 20mins after a feeding and that if she checked before she was done it would be low since she was buring calories to suck) well sure enough her level was below 55. I was so mad at that nurse b/c she KNEW it would be low if the baby wasn't done eating and she was to much of a b**ch to just come back and check later. So off to The NICU Celi went which is when I really broke down b/c both girls were gone.

Celi never had another low sugar level. Her level down in the NICU about 15mins after that feeding in recovery was way over 55! So really Celi never had sugar issues. I was still really numb and had to stay in recovery until I could feel my feet. That took 4hrs instead of 2hrs b/c I was given some extra Epidural right at the end b/c I was starting to get feeling again. I had a pain block done (AWESOME! If you have the option get one!) It's were they use a needle (guided by ulrasound) to inject pain meds into the layers of your uterus and skin. It's done while your still numb so you dont feel a thing. It lasts 24 hrs and works great. I was sent to my room and told I could walk after 8-12 hrs depending on my pain. By 4am I was ready to get up (with Nevy I stayed in bed for 3 days and paid for it. The more you move after a c-section the better you will feel). I wanted to go down the NICU to see the babies right away. So Jose took me at 5:30am. Ari was doing really good her sugar levels were stable and she had a sugar IV in. Celi on the other had had some bloating which they ran tests and x-rays on. They thought she "may" have an infection so to be on the safe side they stopped her oral feeding and gave her an IV and a tube (down the nose) feedings until the blood test came back. It was neg. so they took the tube out and left the IV in until her tummy could tolerate full feedings again. I guess it was from the NICU pushing her to eat so much to keep her suagrs up she got bloated.

That next moring at 9am Ari's IV was removed and the 24hr count down began(they have to go 24hrs without any low suagrs readings to leave the NICU). At 3pm Celi's was removed. We spent the day in the NICU with the girls and family visiting. Nevy got go to the lobby so I could see her and so could Jose. We showed her pics of the babies and then took my mom and grandparents up to the NICU to see the twins while Jose spent time with Nevy. On Wed. morning we went down and were told the girls could come up after the Dr. gave them the ok. At 12pm the girls were both released and got to come to my room. It was soooo nice having them with us again. They eat so well! They were putting away whole 2oz bottles which some full term babies can't even do!

We spent the next two days getting use to having twins (ha! right lol). We came home on Friday (Dec. 4th). We have been home a little over 24hrs and now and I have to say its been nuts! Nevy couldn't wait to see the babies. I pulled the cover off Celi's carseat and Nevy pokes her in the nose and said "dolly". Then Celi started to cry and Nevy realized she was real and looked and me and screamed "Baby! Mommy baby!". It was to cute. She wanted to hold them right away. So I sat her on the bed and gave her both girls on my body pillow. She was so happy! She's been such a good big sister. All she wants to do it kiss them, hold them and help Daddy hold the bottles. She just loves them to death.

They are doing very well. Celi is my pro breastfeeder. I can get her on for 30mins and she still kills 1-1.5oz of formula. Jose went to get me a breatspump today (we tried to get one yesterday but they were closed) and I've been pumping like crazy. Right now I almost make enough to feed both of them. I am really surprised my milk came on the 2nd day this time. With Nevy it didn't come in until 6days after she was born! Since the girls are preemies they dont suck very well and have a hard time latching though Celi does pretty good. I'm hoping to get them off formula soon and either bottle feed breatmilk until they get better at breastfeeding or just keep pumping and using a bottle. Celi acts a little closer to term then Ari. She can eat for longer, eats more and is awake more often but they will both be doing well in a few weeks. We have to feed them every 3hrs b/c they are preemies the Dr. doesnt want them going any longer. So yeah very sleepless nights! Jose is off work the next 2 weeks and I'm so happy he is b/c I really need the help! :)

Well thats it!( Yes I know this was a novel but not only is this blog for everyone to enjoy its my way of keeping a journal for the kids. So I try not to miss a detail). It's going to be hard but I know it will sooooo be worth all the effort in the end. I love my 3 little princesses with all my heart and Jose and I could not be happier with them!

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