How has insomnia found me? I'm a sleep deprived mother of weeks old twins! I should be sleeping like a baby (horrible metaphor) when I get the chance.
Sleep has thus far worked pretty well for us. I go to bed between 8:00 and 9:00pm (no wise cracks about the early bed time, I get excused for now) and Forrest takes the 9:00pm and 12:00am feedings. I wake up and do the 3:00am and 6:00am feedings. That allows me to get about 6 consecutive hours of sleep.
Tonight, I got in bed at 9:00pm and sleep could not find me. I guess insomnia found me first. I haven't had insomnia since my shift working days. Finally at midnight I threw in the towel and got out of bed. Forrest agreed to go to sleep and take my 6:00am feeding, so I'm on duty now until they go down after 3:00am.
Also, tonight is Halloween...the twins' first Halloween. It's funny how it seems important to mark the "first" of everything for the twins. We certainly didn't do anything special like dress them up in costumes. In fact, this is the only way I'm memorializing their first Halloween. When you're 3 weeks old, it's just not that fun to dress up for Halloween. Plus, I'm not sure that they make costumes in preemie sizes.
Of note, I did hand out some candy. One of our trick or treaters was a pregnant woman. Her belly was exposed and she had painted it as part of her costume. I couldn't tell how old she was since she was in costume, but I suspected she was a teenager. It was very strange. I think I would have skipped this year, if I were her.
Monday, October 31, 2011
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Life's little ironies
Last night I had the 3:00am shift, which I had earlier thought I would refer to as "The 3:00am shift....ugh", but I have recently been thinking of it as "The 3:00am shift!!". I know that's not very creative, but it's such a precious hour of my day and I now treasure it instead of want to rush through it.
The babies are pretty good at this feeding. They normally eat well and then go right to sleep. Last night was no exception (or so I thought). I put them both down in their bassinet after they ate and they immediately fell asleep. Their heads both turned in toward each other and they layed their forehead to forehead. My heart was filled with joy and I couldn't help but think of how much of a blessing that moment was.
Then, Olivia spit up all over herself and Carter. The irony of it made me laugh out loud. I then got them both up, changed their clothes, their swaddling blankets, and the bassinet sheet, then put them back down. I smartly turned Olivia's face away from Carter and watched them another couple minutes. Then she spit up again, so I had to change her clothes and blanket all over again. Since I was officially out of sheets, I just put a burp cloth over the wet area and laid her back down.
I ended up getting back to bed at 4:30am...smile still on my face and heart still filled with joy.
And today, we do laundry!
The babies are pretty good at this feeding. They normally eat well and then go right to sleep. Last night was no exception (or so I thought). I put them both down in their bassinet after they ate and they immediately fell asleep. Their heads both turned in toward each other and they layed their forehead to forehead. My heart was filled with joy and I couldn't help but think of how much of a blessing that moment was.
Then, Olivia spit up all over herself and Carter. The irony of it made me laugh out loud. I then got them both up, changed their clothes, their swaddling blankets, and the bassinet sheet, then put them back down. I smartly turned Olivia's face away from Carter and watched them another couple minutes. Then she spit up again, so I had to change her clothes and blanket all over again. Since I was officially out of sheets, I just put a burp cloth over the wet area and laid her back down.
I ended up getting back to bed at 4:30am...smile still on my face and heart still filled with joy.
And today, we do laundry!
Saturday, October 22, 2011
First week with the babies
How can I describe the first week home with the babies? It's been full of joy, feedings, changings, and sleeplessness....but mostly joy (and sleeplessness, maybe that's a close second!).
It has been a very long week, as every day is the same. We had a saying when I was working the four week shift schedule up at Tenaska. We'd say that the four week rotation flies by, but each shift feels like forever. That's kind of how it has been this week, except backwards. The week itself seems so long, but the days fly by.
I am nursing the babies every 3 hours during the day. We have a fantastic arrangement at night which is allowing me to get some decent sleep. Of note, our pediatrician told us that we have a "new normal". I would have never described the sleep I'm now getting as "decent sleep", but that's our new normal and I'm now quite pleased with it.
Our lactation consultant recommended that I feed all day and end my day's feedings with the 9:00pm feeding. Then I go to sleep and Forrest feeds the babies pumped milk at midnight. I wake up again for the 3:00am feeding and my mom takes the 6:00am feeding. That allows me about 4 consecutive hours of sleep, twice a night. Now that my mom is gone, Forrest and I took turns the last two nights taking the 6:00 feeding. Also, I try my hardest to get a nap in after the noon feeding.
Everything revolves around the feedings. E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G
We had a pediatrician appointment on Thursday. We chose Dr. Harris who is in a practice with Dr. Raine and a new doctor, Dr. Dao. I didn't realize we'd be seeing Dr. Dao, but we were really pleased with him and our next appointment (next week) is also with him. He has 17 month old twin girls, so he seems like a kindred spirit. The babies checked out just fine. They were weighed, measured, tested for jaundice, had their temperatures taken, and generally prodded by the doctor. Nothing was too uncomfortable for the babies. Also, Dr. Dao was really impressed by how big Carter is for his gestational age. He said that they don't really have records and averages for preemies, but he would estimate that Carter's size would put him in at least the 50th-75th percentile.
We are so proud of them!
They also had a neonatal screening on Friday, which just tests for genetic abnormalities and deformities. They had one done within the first couple days of their lives and protocol says they have to have it repeated 10-14 days after birth, so that's what we did. We'll get the results back in 2 weeks.
That's pretty much it for the first week. We are so happy being parents to these two miracles. God is so good to us and I hope we don't forget to thank him every day for his immeasurable generosity. Nobody deserves this much happiness, but for some reason he gave it to us.
And because no post is quite as good without a pic, here's one I just took. Carter looks angry because he is just waking up and is fussing a bit. He needs to eat in about 30 minutes, but I bet if I pick him up he'll be happy and I can hold him off.
It has been a very long week, as every day is the same. We had a saying when I was working the four week shift schedule up at Tenaska. We'd say that the four week rotation flies by, but each shift feels like forever. That's kind of how it has been this week, except backwards. The week itself seems so long, but the days fly by.
I am nursing the babies every 3 hours during the day. We have a fantastic arrangement at night which is allowing me to get some decent sleep. Of note, our pediatrician told us that we have a "new normal". I would have never described the sleep I'm now getting as "decent sleep", but that's our new normal and I'm now quite pleased with it.
Our lactation consultant recommended that I feed all day and end my day's feedings with the 9:00pm feeding. Then I go to sleep and Forrest feeds the babies pumped milk at midnight. I wake up again for the 3:00am feeding and my mom takes the 6:00am feeding. That allows me about 4 consecutive hours of sleep, twice a night. Now that my mom is gone, Forrest and I took turns the last two nights taking the 6:00 feeding. Also, I try my hardest to get a nap in after the noon feeding.
Everything revolves around the feedings. E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G
We had a pediatrician appointment on Thursday. We chose Dr. Harris who is in a practice with Dr. Raine and a new doctor, Dr. Dao. I didn't realize we'd be seeing Dr. Dao, but we were really pleased with him and our next appointment (next week) is also with him. He has 17 month old twin girls, so he seems like a kindred spirit. The babies checked out just fine. They were weighed, measured, tested for jaundice, had their temperatures taken, and generally prodded by the doctor. Nothing was too uncomfortable for the babies. Also, Dr. Dao was really impressed by how big Carter is for his gestational age. He said that they don't really have records and averages for preemies, but he would estimate that Carter's size would put him in at least the 50th-75th percentile.
We are so proud of them!
They also had a neonatal screening on Friday, which just tests for genetic abnormalities and deformities. They had one done within the first couple days of their lives and protocol says they have to have it repeated 10-14 days after birth, so that's what we did. We'll get the results back in 2 weeks.
That's pretty much it for the first week. We are so happy being parents to these two miracles. God is so good to us and I hope we don't forget to thank him every day for his immeasurable generosity. Nobody deserves this much happiness, but for some reason he gave it to us.
And because no post is quite as good without a pic, here's one I just took. Carter looks angry because he is just waking up and is fussing a bit. He needs to eat in about 30 minutes, but I bet if I pick him up he'll be happy and I can hold him off.
Olivia's first manicure
Olivia's nails are too long. She has several scratches on her face and some on her shoulder. While she eats, she tries to cling to her face. The lactation consultant says that is part of the "organizing instinct", meaning that in order for the baby to focus on eating, she needs to organize her hands and occupy them with something. To keep her from trying to cling to her face, I try to get her to hold on to my finger (which is tough when nursing two babies at once!) or I get her to grip my bra strap. However, the real solution was cutting and filing the nails.
Grandmommie and Pops got here at about 9:00 this morning and Grandmommie held her while I did her nails. I had WAY too much anxiety over this little task. I really did not want to hurt my little girl with the nail clippers. Fortunately I used some baby clippers and it worked out great. She was completely unphased by the clipping and filing.
P.S. I also manicured Carter's nails, but Forrest says that's not very manly so he's not the subject of this blog.
While my folks were here my mother made pound cakes for us (yum!) and also muffalettas for lunch. She made a pot of chili for us tomorrow night and also made extra for us to freeze. We are so lucky to have her!
Pops also contributed. He did an excellent job holding babies, and he also made a trip to Target with me to return something and to buy the groceries that Grandmommie needed to make us all that food.
After lunch I took a wonderful nap. I love naps!
Tonight is a BIG NIGHT. It's date night! Forrest's mother is coming over and we're going to go out to dinner. I'm so excited! I think we'll go to Pappasitos, which is our favorite place. Out on the town!
Grandmommie and Pops got here at about 9:00 this morning and Grandmommie held her while I did her nails. I had WAY too much anxiety over this little task. I really did not want to hurt my little girl with the nail clippers. Fortunately I used some baby clippers and it worked out great. She was completely unphased by the clipping and filing.
While my folks were here my mother made pound cakes for us (yum!) and also muffalettas for lunch. She made a pot of chili for us tomorrow night and also made extra for us to freeze. We are so lucky to have her!
Pops also contributed. He did an excellent job holding babies, and he also made a trip to Target with me to return something and to buy the groceries that Grandmommie needed to make us all that food.
After lunch I took a wonderful nap. I love naps!
Tonight is a BIG NIGHT. It's date night! Forrest's mother is coming over and we're going to go out to dinner. I'm so excited! I think we'll go to Pappasitos, which is our favorite place. Out on the town!
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
The gift of my mother
My mom has been such a huge help. She came to stay with us on Monday night and stayed through Thursday morning. She has cooked, cleaned, changed diapers, done laundry, and most importantly took the 6:00 morning feeding so that Forrest and I could sleep. A thank you is just not enough, but right now it's what I have to give, so Mom.....a thousand thank yous come your way. I know it's tiring but you have eased our load significantly.
Also, she and I snuck away for a pedicure on Wednesday morning. That was a nice treat for us both!
Anyways, here's a pic of her with the grandbabies. They are so lucky to have her and I know they'll love her tremendously (like I did my grandmothers). One other thing she did while she was here is hold our babies. That was probably the most important task (wait no, it was still the morning feeding, haha!).
Also, she and I snuck away for a pedicure on Wednesday morning. That was a nice treat for us both!
Anyways, here's a pic of her with the grandbabies. They are so lucky to have her and I know they'll love her tremendously (like I did my grandmothers). One other thing she did while she was here is hold our babies. That was probably the most important task (wait no, it was still the morning feeding, haha!).
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Olivia comes home
Another wonderful day! Olivia came home today and completed our family of four. She had to stay a bit longer than Carter because she had an infection which required 10 days of antibiotic treatment, which started on her birth day. She got her last dose of antibiotics tonight at 8:00pm and we were there waiting to take her home. Since we did a room in with Carter, we didn't have to do one with her. We just picked her up from the NICU and took her home.
Reunited at last!
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Room in with Carter
On Saturday morning we went to visit Carter and Olivia at the NICU. Uncle Bart came with us and we had a wonderful time with the babies.
Of note about the NICU, before you can go to the baby's bedside, you have to scrub in, which consists of handwashing from fingertip to elbow for 3 minutes (or more specifically, 3 minutes and 6 seconds, which is what the timer at the handwashing station is set to). The water is controlled by two foot pedals, a hot and a cold. The soap is also controlled by a foot pedal. The hot water is VERY hot. Bart made a comment about it while washing up....he said "Wow, this will take you straight from the NICU to the burn unit!" Not sure that it is funny when retold, but it made me laugh at the time.
Anyways, I fed both babies and Bart and Forrest held them. While there we were told that Carter was ready to be released and we'd be doing our "Room In" that night. This was the best news I've heard in so long! I got so excited that I even shed some tears.
Rooming in occurs in the Labor and Delivery area. We get to have him all night long and we do everything - feed, change diapers, soothe, etc. The NICU nurses are there to check in on us and make sure it all goes well. Most importantly, Carter wasn't hooked up to any machines! No IV or anything!
Our night went great. The NICU nurse taught us how to give him a sponge bath and then we had to feed him every three hours. It was an exhausting night, as we both had to wake up each time we fed, but we learned a lot and Carter was so good the whole night.
We checked out at about 1:30pm on Sunday (it took WAY too long for the nurses to get their acts together, in my opinion) and went home.
Here are some pics of our night with Carter:
Ready to go home:
Of note about the NICU, before you can go to the baby's bedside, you have to scrub in, which consists of handwashing from fingertip to elbow for 3 minutes (or more specifically, 3 minutes and 6 seconds, which is what the timer at the handwashing station is set to). The water is controlled by two foot pedals, a hot and a cold. The soap is also controlled by a foot pedal. The hot water is VERY hot. Bart made a comment about it while washing up....he said "Wow, this will take you straight from the NICU to the burn unit!" Not sure that it is funny when retold, but it made me laugh at the time.
Anyways, I fed both babies and Bart and Forrest held them. While there we were told that Carter was ready to be released and we'd be doing our "Room In" that night. This was the best news I've heard in so long! I got so excited that I even shed some tears.
Rooming in occurs in the Labor and Delivery area. We get to have him all night long and we do everything - feed, change diapers, soothe, etc. The NICU nurses are there to check in on us and make sure it all goes well. Most importantly, Carter wasn't hooked up to any machines! No IV or anything!
Our night went great. The NICU nurse taught us how to give him a sponge bath and then we had to feed him every three hours. It was an exhausting night, as we both had to wake up each time we fed, but we learned a lot and Carter was so good the whole night.
We checked out at about 1:30pm on Sunday (it took WAY too long for the nurses to get their acts together, in my opinion) and went home.
Here are some pics of our night with Carter:
Friday, October 14, 2011
Gifts by mail
We received four gifts by mail this week. It's so fun to get a delivery! I didn't take a picture of two of them, but it's not because they aren't worth mentioning. I got two beautiful flower arrangements - one from Tenaska and another from a customer, South Mississippi Electric.
I got this gift from Todd and Theresa Wesley:
And I got these gifts from a customer, Southern Company Services:
Cool huh? I've got fantastic friends - thanks guys!
I got this gift from Todd and Theresa Wesley:
And I got these gifts from a customer, Southern Company Services:
Cool huh? I've got fantastic friends - thanks guys!
Babies Day 6
Today was another great day at the NICU. I fed both babies at the same time! I used the footall hold, which I've heard a lot of people don't like, but it seemed to work well for Carter and Olivia.
Olivia is such a motivated eater. Carter however can't seem to focus on anything for very long. He just likes to look around at his surroundings. He still fed well, but he just had to be reminded a few times what he was doing. They were both ready to eat when we arrived, which really helped the cause. It was so nice to have success in nursing both of them at once.
Last night was also a nice night in the NICU, as I fed both babies individually. When we arrived they were both crying, so I was nervous about getting them both fed in a timely manner. However, they instructed me to feed Carter first since woke up first (fair is fair!) and Forrest held and calmed Olivia while she waited.
Forrest is so good with the babies. They are totally smitten with him, as he is with them. It's wonderful to see him as a father. Carter and Olivia are incredibly blessed.
Olivia is such a motivated eater. Carter however can't seem to focus on anything for very long. He just likes to look around at his surroundings. He still fed well, but he just had to be reminded a few times what he was doing. They were both ready to eat when we arrived, which really helped the cause. It was so nice to have success in nursing both of them at once.
Last night was also a nice night in the NICU, as I fed both babies individually. When we arrived they were both crying, so I was nervous about getting them both fed in a timely manner. However, they instructed me to feed Carter first since woke up first (fair is fair!) and Forrest held and calmed Olivia while she waited.
Forrest is so good with the babies. They are totally smitten with him, as he is with them. It's wonderful to see him as a father. Carter and Olivia are incredibly blessed.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Meet my MIL Christine
This is Forrest's mom, Christine, shown here holding Olivia on Wednesday October 12.
She has been so good to us this week! She flew in from California and arrived a couple hours after the delivery (just missed it!) and has been helping us out ever since. On Tuesday she brought over grilled chicken, mashed potatoes, creamed corn, steamed veggies, bread, and brownies. On Wednesday she brought us steaks and baked potatoes. She also brought these beautiful flowers for us yesterday.
Her mother (we all called her "Dunn") loved babies breath and always took that as a gift to new moms. Christine carried on the tradition and brought us some. Also, she has chosen to go by "Dunn" to her grandchildren, in honor of her mother. That made us so happy.
I know that our babies will love her so much!
She has been so good to us this week! She flew in from California and arrived a couple hours after the delivery (just missed it!) and has been helping us out ever since. On Tuesday she brought over grilled chicken, mashed potatoes, creamed corn, steamed veggies, bread, and brownies. On Wednesday she brought us steaks and baked potatoes. She also brought these beautiful flowers for us yesterday.
Her mother (we all called her "Dunn") loved babies breath and always took that as a gift to new moms. Christine carried on the tradition and brought us some. Also, she has chosen to go by "Dunn" to her grandchildren, in honor of her mother. That made us so happy.
I know that our babies will love her so much!
Thursday Update from my mom
Both babies are doing very well. Carter is under the lights for jaundice but has regained his birth weight and is nursing. He will likely go home before Olivia because Olivia has to have IV antibiotics for an infection, and those will be up on Tuesday. That would be the earliest she could go home. Olivia is eating 30cc of milk each time, which is a little over an oz. Carter is up to 26cc every 3 hours. She has also regained her birthweight.
Olivia was dressed in a cute little onesie and hat supplied by the hospital. Carter has only a diaper on due to lights. Forrest has posted pics of todays visit on fb if you want to look at them. Carter got fed by me (after Sarah the cow) and Olivia got fed by Liah. Carter was much more awake - he cried - first sound I have heard either make altho Olivia did kind of mew when I was holding her.
The nurse told Sarah to come back for the late feeding only today - breast feeding is harder for the babies and they needed the rest until tonight. They will be bottle fed at 3 and 6. SHe is also very worn out in that she went to the hospital at 8 and did not come home until 12:30. She will be need the quiet herself for a few hours.
It was wonderful to hold the babies, and I look forward to them being at home when we can cuddle them.
Olivia:
Carter
Olivia:
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Wednesday morning update from my mom
Sarah has an appt with the lactation consultant and will find out when she can begin nursing the babies. She may also inquire about the kangaroo bonding thing.
She is having no problem with 10pm or 1pm pumping - can go right back to sleep. But she is having trouble with the 4AM one so she got up this morning and wrote emails, thank you notes, etc.
She is happy and getting ready to go at 8am to see the babies. She is in love with Carter.
She will call or update us via email when something else is reportable...
Olivia:
She is having no problem with 10pm or 1pm pumping - can go right back to sleep. But she is having trouble with the 4AM one so she got up this morning and wrote emails, thank you notes, etc.
She is happy and getting ready to go at 8am to see the babies. She is in love with Carter.
She will call or update us via email when something else is reportable...
Olivia:
Carter:
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Tuesday Update from my mom:
Well, Sarah is not having a good day. The nurse noticed it this morning and asked her about it and asked if she overdid yesterday. Sarah thinks she did. She is very sore, very tired, pumped every 3 hours all night, got up in time to go to 9AM feeding but almost didn't go as she was feeling bad. She crashed last night and could feel it coming.
Nurse told her to come 1 hour before the feeding times which are every 3 hours beginning at 9AM. She told her not to come if she needed to rest because the most important thing she was doing was making milk and she would not make enough if she didn't sleep. So she is to skip coming if she feels drowsy and just send Forrest. We are to take note of that as well - if and when we come to see babies, she will be going at 8, 11, 2, etc and we should plan on arriving then. Of course, if there are new babies arriving in NICU, we will have to wait. I told Sarah that Liah and I might come Thursday during the day sometime.
She and Forrest got to really cuddle the babies for several minutes each. Both were on their tummies and Sarah had her hands wrapped around and under their tummies with nose and cheeks on hair, kissing them. She really liked that and she said Carter seemed to like it too. This was her best day with Carter. They brought her a tall barstool height chair to sit on so she would not have to stand so long. They missed feeding due to a new delivery.
Today they will try to wean Carter of the breathing apparatus but the nurse does not think he will tolerate it well so be prepared for it not to work. He had been put on his tummy but had rolled a little to his side which indicates he is strong enough to move himself.
Olivia is up from 6cc to 9cc of milk now and Sarah is hopeful she will be able to hold her at 2 feeding.
Sarah has slept about an hour this am and has a friend coming over at noon to visit - she is expecting shortly and Sarah wanted her to come while everything was fresh. She is going to try to sleep more - maybe skip going at 1 if she does not feel up to it. Also she is going to call the doctor about some of the soreness.
Carter:
Carter:
Olivia:
Monday, October 10, 2011
Day after the delivery
Monday was such a blur for me. I was well medicated so I didn't feel much pain at all that day, which prompted me to be WAY too active for my own good (which I paid for on Monday night and Tuesday morning).
I started pumping at 7:00am Monday and I've been doing that every 3 hours since. It doesn't really bother me to have to do it in the middle of the night. I have been taking a nap every day which really helps me stay rested. The rest of Monday I spent hanging out with Forrest, Ellen, Christine, and Aunt Sue in my hospital room. We went to the NICU a couple of times to see the babies, which was nice. I also had all sorts of hospital type duties that I had to attend to. Lots of hospital personnel to see and paperwork to fill out.
My folks came by in the afternoon when it was time for me to check out (I didn't have to stay the requisite two nights since the babies weren't coming home with me). We all went to the NICU for one last visit then went home to meet Liah for dinner (Church's chicken). Also, Liah helped me use the breast pump that she had loaned me (Thanks so much!!). The plan then was to take Liah to the NICU to see the babies. I was exhausted but she had driven all the way out here just to see them, so out we went. I of course was rewarded with more precious time with Carter and Olivia.
After I got home that night I crashed and began my first night of feedings every three hours. I guess I have at least 3 months of this ahead of me, but for now I'm not complaining (stay tuned in a week or two, ha!).
Carter:
I started pumping at 7:00am Monday and I've been doing that every 3 hours since. It doesn't really bother me to have to do it in the middle of the night. I have been taking a nap every day which really helps me stay rested. The rest of Monday I spent hanging out with Forrest, Ellen, Christine, and Aunt Sue in my hospital room. We went to the NICU a couple of times to see the babies, which was nice. I also had all sorts of hospital type duties that I had to attend to. Lots of hospital personnel to see and paperwork to fill out.
My folks came by in the afternoon when it was time for me to check out (I didn't have to stay the requisite two nights since the babies weren't coming home with me). We all went to the NICU for one last visit then went home to meet Liah for dinner (Church's chicken). Also, Liah helped me use the breast pump that she had loaned me (Thanks so much!!). The plan then was to take Liah to the NICU to see the babies. I was exhausted but she had driven all the way out here just to see them, so out we went. I of course was rewarded with more precious time with Carter and Olivia.
After I got home that night I crashed and began my first night of feedings every three hours. I guess I have at least 3 months of this ahead of me, but for now I'm not complaining (stay tuned in a week or two, ha!).
Carter:
Olivia:
Carter:
Olivia:
Carter:
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