Monday, May 9, 2011

4 Months Old!

Howdy folks! Time sure is flying by! Will and Sydney are 4 months, 6 days old today, and we have tons of pictures to share!  We had our four month well check appointment last week, and they are growing like little weeds.  In fact, both babies have tripled their birth weights!  Here are their stats, with percentiles for their actual age (4 months) and their adjusted age (10 weeks):

Will


Height- 25 inches, 55.17 %ile (actual), 92 %ile (adjusted)
Weight- 14 pounds, 13 oz; 49.6 %ile (actual), 82 %ile (adjusted)

You can see that Will is the size of an average 4 month old, or a very chunky 10 week old!

Sydney



Height- 23.5 inches, 23.27 %ile (actual), 65 %ile (adjusted)
Weight- 12 pounds, 4.5 oz; 21.19 %ile (actual), 63 %ile (adjusted)

The numbers show that while Sydney is just a bit smaller than the average 4 month old, she is right on track for her adjusted age!

Now that the babies are a few months old, they have begun hitting early developmental milestones and seem to be changing every day.  Will's motor skills are developing quickly...he has been rolling onto his side for a week now and actually rolled from back to front this weekend at Grandma's!  He is making great progress towards holding his head up and is constantly trying to sit up. He is enjoying tummy time more and more and LOVES sitting in his Bumbo chair.  Although he isn't grabbing things yet, he is a champion at batting at his toys with his fists, and has quite a swing!  He slept through the night for the first time the night before Mother's Day...the best present I could receive!  He gets super excited when we sing songs with him ("If You're Happy and You Know It" is his favorite) and loves to look at books.  Over all, he is a pretty happy, laid-back little guy- unless he is hungry, and then he will let you know!

Bath time!

Big baby blues!

I love the Bumbo!

Reading with Daddy

Easter best

Tummy time!

Smiley boy!

Sydney is quite the little character.  Although her motor skills are just a bit behind Will's (her reflux keeps her from getting as much tummy time), she makes up for it with her social development.  While she enjoys singing and looking at books like her brother, her favorite thing by far is to have "conversations" with anyone who will listen.  She will grin, coo, babble, and squeal when she is happy, and if she isn't, be prepared to receive a scolding!  She even talks to her books during tummy time! She tries to imitate our facial expressions and sounds, which is a bit advanced for her developmental age. Sydney has been sleeping through the night for about two weeks and is almost ready to move from her bassinet to her crib.  We love our little diva!  She keeps us on our toes!

My new hobby- blowing bubbles!

Found my tongue!

My other new hobby- chewing on my hands.

Easter dress

Meeting Granddad's new puppy!

Who's that in the mirror?

When it's nap time, I'm out!

So I like bows, ok?


And that's what's shakin' in Haass land!  I'll leave you with a few obligatory "twin shots" for your viewing pleasure. Until next time!

Smile? No way!

Our Granddad works for Chesapeake...

It's fun to be a twin!

Monday, April 11, 2011

When You're Smilin'...



Hello everyone!  The twins are 3 months and 1 week-old today (7 weeks-old adjusted), and it is high time for an update.  For those of you not well-versed in preemie lingo, "adjusted age" is basically how old the twins would be had they been born on their actual due date (February 22).  It is important to keep in mind that although they have been with us for three months, their first seven weeks were spent working on basic survival skills and don't count towards their overall development.  So when checking to see if they are meeting their milestones, we look at what they should be doing at 7 weeks, not 3 months. And I am proud to report that they are right on track for their adjusted age!





Both babies continue to grow in leaps and bounds. Sydney weighs around 10.5 pounds, while Will continues to amaze us all with his seemingly endless appetite and is weighing in around 13 pounds these days!   Their personalities are emerging more and more each day, which leads me to the most exciting development from the past month...real, social smiling! 


Daddy cracks me up!

Sweet cheeks

Too funny!

Still going...

Flirt

Love that face

Sticking out my tongue

Hilarious!

Mr. Blue Eyes

Sit still? Very funny, Mom!
Not only do they smile, but they also giggle and coo when they interact with us.  They are so much fun! Now, if they would only start sleeping a little longer at night...


In other news, many of you know that although we have been home from the NICU for awhile now, we have been keeping ourselves under quarantine until the cold/flu season subsides. What may only be an annoying case of the sniffles for us can be life threatening for a preemie with an underdeveloped immune system!  Although we still have to be careful, we have slowly begun taking the babies out in public, mostly on walks in the neighborhood and occasionally to visit close family and friends.  I even took them solo to the grocery store last week...needless to say I was feeling brave!  Naturally, to be mobile with two babies you need a good twin stroller. Behold, the BOB Duallie...


Rockin' the stroller
That thing is worth its weight in gold!

Lastly, although this post is getting a bit picture-heavy, I thought I would share a shot or two from the twins' first professional photo shoot that we had done last month. The photographer (Kristie Mills Photography) was amazing and was able to capture the babies so well...I can't wait to do another shoot with her in a few months!







Click here to see more pictures from the photo shoot!


Until next time...keep on smilin'!

Friday, April 8, 2011

Eeew.

Hello all.  I am up writing this blog post at 4:00 am and I would love to describe to you all the circumstances that have led me to start my day so early.  I implore you, this is not for the faint-of-heart, so read at your own risk.

So I am sleeping peacefully in my bed, dreaming of a full night of uninterrupted slumber, when I am awakened by  the groans, grunts, and snorts of my baby boy that signify he is ready for his customary 3:00 am feeding. Nothing new here, although I am slightly disappointed because he has recently begun to occasionally make it to 4:00 or 5:00 and skipped this feeding altogether a few nights ago.  Little do I know that this will soon be the least of my worries.

I hop over to his bassinet and pick him up pretty quickly so his moaning does not awake the sleeping diva next to him.  He immediately begins to snuffle wildly against my t-shirt, pounding his giant baby-head against my collarbone as he roots for anything remotely resembling a nipple that he can shove into his mouth. He settles for sucking on my neck as I warm up his bottle.  I'm cool with that.

After his meal has been prepared, we sit down in the glider to eat.  Things go smoothly for about 3 minutes until he suddenly pauses, furrows his brow, clenches his chubby fists and hoists them above his head like a tiny Superman, and bears down with all the strength in his body, accompanied by a groan of man-sized proportions and a landslide as his diaper fills to the brim.  All this with the bottle still in his mouth.  I stare down at him, still reeling from the sudden onslaught, and the little stinker opens his blue eyes, looks up at me, gives me a milky grin, gurgles, and resumes eating.  I roll with it, finishing the feeding while attempting to breathe only through my mouth.

Fast forward to the inevitable diaper change.  As we shift positions to stand up and head to the changing table, I discover to my dismay that his diaper was no match for his recent deposit, and it has shot up the back of his pajamas and out of his leg-holes, as well as all over my t-shirt, shorts, and bare legs.  I wrap a burp cloth around his lower half and continue on to our destination.  I place him on the table and pause to contemplate my next move. He takes this opportunity to add a bit more to the mess with his signature gusto.  When I am convinced he is done, I unbutton his pajamas and realize that they have been annihilated beyond repair. Into the Diaper Genie they go.  I clean up his back so that I can lay him down and then reluctantly open his diaper. He promptly reaches down and jams his fist into the heart of the carnage.  Gagging now, I desperately hold onto his wrist while attempting to wipe the offending substance off of his hand.  As if this is not enough, he chooses this moment to urinate, giving himself a pee-pee shampoo and facial. Horrified, I hurry to wipe off his face and head, only to discover that the wipes container is empty.  Really?

After finding some more baby wipes, I am able to finish the cleanup without further incident.  As I snap him into new pajamas, he begins to coo and smile at me as if sharing a pretty good joke. I got you good, didn't I, Momma?  I cuddle him for a second and kiss his newly clean forehead, and then put him down in the swing so I can attend to his now-awake sister.  Life is good. Disgusting, but good ;)

Monday, March 14, 2011

Photoshoot-FAIL!


Whew! This past week was a doozy :)  Brady was out of town for work from Tuesday through Friday, meaning one tired Mommy!  Thankfully my mother was able to stay with me during his absence so I wouldn't be totally alone all week...what a lifesaver! In the meantime, I'm a little behind with my posting, so bear with me!

Last weekend Brady's parents (a.k.a. "Papa" and "Coco") came to visit and we all had a great time.

Papa, Will, and Lulu, of course ;)

Coco and Sydney

With Coco's help, I tried to snap a few pictures of the twins with their "two-month" onesies.  We thought it would be cute to photograph Sydney in her pink tutu for the occasion. Needless to say, we discovered that baby photography is not our forte...

So ladylike :)

Photoshoot-shmotoshoot, where's my dinner?

Thanks, Coco!

Much better!

Could you guys keep it down?
My chubby man, no tutu required!
Needless to say, we realized that this is a job best left to the professionals and had photos taken by a "real" photographer on Tuesday.  I should get the proofs back sometime next week and am so excited to share!  Have a great day, everyone!

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Lulu to the Rescue



Like many families, before the kids came along, Brady and I already considered ourselves "parents" to a couple of furry babies.  If you haven't had the pleasure, meet Coolidge the beagle and Lulu the...?

Partners in crime...Lulu and Coolidge

Before Will and Sydney came along, these pups ruled the roost.  Understandably, we were a little curious about how they would adjust once we brought the twins home.  We predicted that Coolidge would be mildly interested until he realized that he was no longer "King of the Castle," and then he would quietly pout for a few days.  We were exactly right!  However, Lulu was the wild card.  We doubted that she would be aggressive toward the babies, but beyond that we had no idea what to expect.  She is the younger and more energetic of the two dogs, so would she be too wild around the little ones?  Would she be interested in them at all?   

Once we brought the babies home, we were amused (and a bit alarmed) to find that not only was she interested, she was a bit obsessed.  Wherever the babies were, Lulu could be found nearby.  Babies in their crib? Lulu would be standing on her hind legs, peering over the rails.  Babies on Mommy's lap? Lulu would be sitting on Mommy's feet, trying to sniff the babies or even sneak a forbidden lick!  Baby in the swing? Lulu would be laying under the swing, keeping watch over the little one.  Then we realized that not only was Lulu staying near the babies at all times, she was making sure that Coolidge stayed away! Any time he would come near the twins, Lulu would bare her teeth at him and "herd" him away with her nose or even a few soft nips at his heels. These were her babies, darn it, and she wasn't sharing!  

We came to realize that Lulu considered herself the babies' guardian, and she still does to this day.  If one of the babies is making noise in the crib or bouncer, Lulu will come and get one of us to check on them.  If friends or family are here visiting the babies, Lulu will hover around the unfamiliar person as if making sure they are holding the baby correctly...no "funny business" allowed!

Here are some pics of Lulu and the babies...the twins are lucky to have such a loyal friend from the beginning!

Pillow talk

Checkin' on my babies!
                                                                                






Friday, March 4, 2011

2 Months Old!


Today our babies are officially 2 months old (adjusted age 10 days old).  We had our 2-month well-check today, and both are doing fine.  Sydney weighed 7 pounds, 15 ounces, and Will weighed 9 pounds, 8 ounces.  After their check-up, they got their first full round of immunizations, which was just as hard on Mommy and Daddy as it was on the babies!  They both spiked a fever earlier this afternoon, making them fussy and screamy, again no fun for Mommy :)  Right now they are snoozing together beside me in the ONLY position that would comfort them (except for on top of me)...and I do not intend to move them any time soon!

Boo-boos :(

Here is a view of their sweet little heads...notice how different they are!  So far, our children look nothing alike!

Night and Day

As usual,  here are a few more pics to share...

Baby blues

Just 5 more minutes, Mom!
I Luv Dad :)
Hangin' with Uncle Brad
My first b-ball shorts


Sweet baby girl