Just a little update as of Wednesday, March 25 ...
Abby seems to be rebounding nicely coming in at 19 # 11oz. That appears to be a 11 oz gain in 8 days. I don't know,. I'm having a hard time believing that. I guess it's possible though.
Natalie is still struggling. Her weight definately fell with her illness. She's at 18# 10oz. They are now a pound apart again.
The good news is they have eaten well the last few days and their little bellies are poking out once again. Hopefully, our next weigh-in will be better.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Ben The Tool Man!
Look what Daddy built!Really, he did - he built it all by himself. I am so proud of him. And, the Natalie and Abby just love their new swing set. They had so much fun swinging. Their little faces just light up.
What you see is Phase I of the swing set. Phase II involves building the fort platform that will hold the slide. I can't wait for that. The girls love going down slides. They even do the big slides at the park. It's going to be great when it's all finished. Our backyard will be considerably more crowded, but it will be worth it.
I have to thank our friend, Steve, for the inspiration and the play equipment. He generously gave us the equipment left behind by the previous owners of his new house. It's absolutely wonderful. We are so grateful and blessed to have such a generous friend. Thanks Steve!
Here are a few more pics from our afternoon at our "park":-)
<---- Natalie
<--- Nat and Abby (below) Abby and Nat
Sunday, March 22, 2009
A few cute pics
I was labeling recent pics and just had to post these.
Abby has been really into coloring lately. Yesterday, she found her crayon and paper and sat down to do some serious scribing....
Today, Natalie was ready to hit the beach with her styling sunglasses!
I have many more, but it's late....more next time.
Abby has been really into coloring lately. Yesterday, she found her crayon and paper and sat down to do some serious scribing....
Today, Natalie was ready to hit the beach with her styling sunglasses!
I have many more, but it's late....more next time.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Medical Moment
I took Natalie back to the doctor yesterday to check her pulse ox. At first it was only 93% again, but the doctor tried two fingers and it finally showed 94-96% (blood oxygenation, by the way). Nonetheless, we left with two more prescriptions for meds for the nebulizer so we can do some breathing treatments twice a day. And, I have to take her back in Monday for another pulse ox check.
At the same time, we happened to notice the Abby had some nasty drainage coming from her right ear. Since we were there, the doctor checked her ears. Ear infections. We're not clear if they are both infected or just the right one, but either way, we now have an antibiotic for Abby as well.
Yesterday was also the first time I heard any doctor suggest that their illnesses were due to their prematurity. She said that Natalie's reoccurring pneumonias were from their lung issues as preemies. It makes sense, but honestly, I'm not so sure. They really never had significant lung issues. Plus, they've never had problems until now. It seems to me that if her lungs were weak or "whatever", she would have had issues before 22 months old. Personally, I think it's just that they are now more exposed to germs than they were before. We've been hanging out with school- age kids and all the germs they harbor and we've been visiting more parks and in contact with all the kids there. I really think it's just a matter of exposure.
The matter of exposure actually causes quite a conundrum. At what point does the risk of illness outweigh their need to socialize, run, play and discover new things. They have loved playing at the parks and going down slides and discovering the different kinds of play equipment. They love playing with our little neighbor and actually engage in some interactive play with him. (He loves them too - even made them Valentines - it's so cute!) But, when they are sick, they can't/don't eat and now we are losing weight again. Natalie was below 19# again at the doctor. I need to weigh them at home to really know where we stand. We just can't afford to go backwards - or even stand still. And we were doing so well....
I'm not sure what we are going to do exactly. We are building a playset in the beackyard this weekend. W and B's dad let us have this amazing play equipment that the people had left at his new house. There are two swings, a pull-up rings/bar thingy, a two-person glider, an army climbing thingy, a great slide and I sent the tire swing to my dad's. It's great stuff. At least we can play in our own little park if we decide to become hermits.
..................................
I'm working on a language update so keep checking back. The girls are making great strides - especially Abby. But, Natalie has really come along in the last two weeks or so. I'll try to finish it soon.
At the same time, we happened to notice the Abby had some nasty drainage coming from her right ear. Since we were there, the doctor checked her ears. Ear infections. We're not clear if they are both infected or just the right one, but either way, we now have an antibiotic for Abby as well.
Yesterday was also the first time I heard any doctor suggest that their illnesses were due to their prematurity. She said that Natalie's reoccurring pneumonias were from their lung issues as preemies. It makes sense, but honestly, I'm not so sure. They really never had significant lung issues. Plus, they've never had problems until now. It seems to me that if her lungs were weak or "whatever", she would have had issues before 22 months old. Personally, I think it's just that they are now more exposed to germs than they were before. We've been hanging out with school- age kids and all the germs they harbor and we've been visiting more parks and in contact with all the kids there. I really think it's just a matter of exposure.
The matter of exposure actually causes quite a conundrum. At what point does the risk of illness outweigh their need to socialize, run, play and discover new things. They have loved playing at the parks and going down slides and discovering the different kinds of play equipment. They love playing with our little neighbor and actually engage in some interactive play with him. (He loves them too - even made them Valentines - it's so cute!) But, when they are sick, they can't/don't eat and now we are losing weight again. Natalie was below 19# again at the doctor. I need to weigh them at home to really know where we stand. We just can't afford to go backwards - or even stand still. And we were doing so well....
I'm not sure what we are going to do exactly. We are building a playset in the beackyard this weekend. W and B's dad let us have this amazing play equipment that the people had left at his new house. There are two swings, a pull-up rings/bar thingy, a two-person glider, an army climbing thingy, a great slide and I sent the tire swing to my dad's. It's great stuff. At least we can play in our own little park if we decide to become hermits.
..................................
I'm working on a language update so keep checking back. The girls are making great strides - especially Abby. But, Natalie has really come along in the last two weeks or so. I'll try to finish it soon.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Oh, what a day...
It's been one of those days. Last week, about this time, Abby spiked a fever and a cold. She also woke up late at night and would cough and then cry, as if her throat hurt. I took her to the doctor last Friday because I was afraid she could have strep. (W - the little boy I watch had it earlier in the week.)
Turned out she was fine - just something viral she would get over. Which she did in a few days - at least her fever went away. Of course, the runny nose takes longer. But, since Abby didn't have anything big, I didn't think much of it when Natalie started getting sick on Sunday. She was out of sorts until Monday afternoon and then seemed better. Yesterday, however, she started spiking a fever again and woke up this morning about 4am with a horrible cough. We were up about 2 hours.
Today, I had to pick W and B up early - at 9am (no school). Ben stayed with the girls but when I got back, I discovered Natalie still had her little cough and had a fever. So, I decided to take her in for a quick visit. Here's where the day goes all wrong.
Keep in mind that sick visits are usually about 30 minutes. I'm usually in and out. No big deal. We had big plans today to go to "Jumping Beans", a nearby inflatable play place. I was doubting whether we'd make that, but I figured we could at least take in some parks and Natalie could swing. Well. So much for all that.
Here are the days events:
9:45ish - arrive back at my house with W and B
call dr. dress girls, leave
10:40 arrive at dr.
one med student, one resident, one attending, one nurse with pulse ox reading (sating at only 93%), one x-ray, more waiting for x-ray to be read and a total of 2 hours later, we leave with our prescription and a diagnosis of probably pneumonia - unless it's just left over from a month ago, but we should treat it anyway.
The kids were spent - all of them. Me too. I have to say that W (almost 8) and B(almost 6) were absolutely amazing. They truly are the best kids ever. They never whined or cried or threw a fit. A few times they asked if we would be done soon and said they wanted to go home (I replied, I did too!). This was NOT how they had planned to spend a fun-packed day with JoJo. I felt SO bad for them.
By this point, I was not above bribing/rewarding/compensating their incredible behavior with promises of lunch and toys from Target.
By 1:00pm, we were at a favorite spot - Mellow Mushroom - for pizza. By 2ish, we were hitting Target for well-earned toys. At 3pm, we were rescued by their dear aunt who agreed to watch the kids while they played with their cousins.
By the time I dropped them off with full-bellies and new toys, I don't think they hated me too much. Then I took poor little Natalie and Abby home for naps and relief. Abby didn't really sleep much, so we played a little.
All in all, it was a pretty awful day. I felt bad on every account: as a mommy because my babies were sick; as a nanny for dragging the kids through all that and ruining their day; as a mommy for trying to balance my kids needs and my charges needs to try to make everyone happy; as a babysitter for failing to provide an enjoyable day. As far as I'm concerned I failed on both accounts: mommy and babysitter.
Oh, did I mention I have a horrible cold and can't breathe when I lay down?
*big sigh*
To top it all off, my sister is coming tomorrow and we were supposed to go to my mom and mema's for the weekend. Needless to say, we won't be doing that. The babies need to rest, recuperate and not infect anyone.
I really hope tomorrow is a better day. It has to be, right?
edited at 10:30pm to add: Abby just spiked another 102 temp and threw up. Ahh, the glamor of spit-up on your face and down your shirt....
Turned out she was fine - just something viral she would get over. Which she did in a few days - at least her fever went away. Of course, the runny nose takes longer. But, since Abby didn't have anything big, I didn't think much of it when Natalie started getting sick on Sunday. She was out of sorts until Monday afternoon and then seemed better. Yesterday, however, she started spiking a fever again and woke up this morning about 4am with a horrible cough. We were up about 2 hours.
Today, I had to pick W and B up early - at 9am (no school). Ben stayed with the girls but when I got back, I discovered Natalie still had her little cough and had a fever. So, I decided to take her in for a quick visit. Here's where the day goes all wrong.
Keep in mind that sick visits are usually about 30 minutes. I'm usually in and out. No big deal. We had big plans today to go to "Jumping Beans", a nearby inflatable play place. I was doubting whether we'd make that, but I figured we could at least take in some parks and Natalie could swing. Well. So much for all that.
Here are the days events:
9:45ish - arrive back at my house with W and B
call dr. dress girls, leave
10:40 arrive at dr.
one med student, one resident, one attending, one nurse with pulse ox reading (sating at only 93%), one x-ray, more waiting for x-ray to be read and a total of 2 hours later, we leave with our prescription and a diagnosis of probably pneumonia - unless it's just left over from a month ago, but we should treat it anyway.
The kids were spent - all of them. Me too. I have to say that W (almost 8) and B(almost 6) were absolutely amazing. They truly are the best kids ever. They never whined or cried or threw a fit. A few times they asked if we would be done soon and said they wanted to go home (I replied, I did too!). This was NOT how they had planned to spend a fun-packed day with JoJo. I felt SO bad for them.
By this point, I was not above bribing/rewarding/compensating their incredible behavior with promises of lunch and toys from Target.
By 1:00pm, we were at a favorite spot - Mellow Mushroom - for pizza. By 2ish, we were hitting Target for well-earned toys. At 3pm, we were rescued by their dear aunt who agreed to watch the kids while they played with their cousins.
By the time I dropped them off with full-bellies and new toys, I don't think they hated me too much. Then I took poor little Natalie and Abby home for naps and relief. Abby didn't really sleep much, so we played a little.
All in all, it was a pretty awful day. I felt bad on every account: as a mommy because my babies were sick; as a nanny for dragging the kids through all that and ruining their day; as a mommy for trying to balance my kids needs and my charges needs to try to make everyone happy; as a babysitter for failing to provide an enjoyable day. As far as I'm concerned I failed on both accounts: mommy and babysitter.
Oh, did I mention I have a horrible cold and can't breathe when I lay down?
*big sigh*
To top it all off, my sister is coming tomorrow and we were supposed to go to my mom and mema's for the weekend. Needless to say, we won't be doing that. The babies need to rest, recuperate and not infect anyone.
I really hope tomorrow is a better day. It has to be, right?
edited at 10:30pm to add: Abby just spiked another 102 temp and threw up. Ahh, the glamor of spit-up on your face and down your shirt....
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
I know, I know...
I've been bad. It's not that I've been busy really. I've had plenty of time in the evenings to blog to my heart's content. Instead, I've obsessively surfed the Internet for stories on the Octomom and spent countless hours bemoaning Jon and Kate Plus 8 on gosselinswithoutpity.com.
In my defense, since the above do not help my case at all, when it comes to the blog, I'm a bit of a perfectionist. I like to write, and when I do, I want to do it well. So, sometimes I'm tired and don't feel like putting my thinking brain on. Other times, there is so much to report that I'm overwhelmed into paralysis.
So, I'm behind. Very, very behind. It's dawned on me that blogging while the girls eat is a perfect time, so that's what they - and I are doing. The next few days of posts will likely be disjointed and random, but, hey, beggars can't be choosy:-)
Where to start....since they are currently eating, we will start there.
Eating. Eating is better. This morning we are having diced pears(which they do not seem to favor), sliced grapes (which they do like) and one half a chicken nugget dipped in ketchup (which they love - at least the dipping part.) Usually, they have sausage for breakfast, which they LOVE, but I didn't feel like cooking. They tend to like spicier things better including mild curry and their favorite, Brunswick Stew with a kick of pepper. They are not interested in mild flavors or anything that resembles baby food including yogurt. They love to take bites of Daddy's apples and love diced peaches. Tonight (hours after this post started), grilled pork chops were a hit as well. We have also discovered that Natalie loves pizza. Their likes and dislikes seem to come and go though. One day they will love something, and the next - not so much.
As far as their bottles - we are in the process of weeding out the midnight one. It's not so much that I mind it, since I'm up anyway, but they are almost two. At some point, they need to give up the bottles and sleep a straight 10 hours without eating. The can't go to kindergarten with bottles which is only is *GASP* three more years! We are hoping they will start drinking more from their straw cups during the day. That's the hope. The last few days have been hit or miss. Since Thursday the girls have been trading fevers and colds and haven't been eating as well. They've also been waking up crying in the night. In other words, they are are acting normal for once. I'm not a fan. On the other hand, they have been sleeping very late - at least til 10 each morning. Of this, I am a fan. This morning, I had the same cold and was very happy to be able to sleep late.
Their weights are holding steady. We had some huge gains at the first of the month, but have lost since then. Today, Natalie only weighed 19#1 oz and Abby 19# even. I'm a little confused by this. They certainly haven't cut their intake enough to warrant such losses. I'm beginning to think that the results on Mar 2, were a bit inflated, especially for Abby who was 19# 11oz. Maybe she had a big poop inside....
All in all we are making progress, I think, on the eating front. They are working with their spoons and forks and doing quite well. They love to scoop with the spoon. Interestingly, Abby seems to be favoring her left-hand when it comes to eating. She may take after her Auntie Kimmy.
I have much more to share so stay tuned...and be patient. I still need to get some mindless surfing in....
In my defense, since the above do not help my case at all, when it comes to the blog, I'm a bit of a perfectionist. I like to write, and when I do, I want to do it well. So, sometimes I'm tired and don't feel like putting my thinking brain on. Other times, there is so much to report that I'm overwhelmed into paralysis.
So, I'm behind. Very, very behind. It's dawned on me that blogging while the girls eat is a perfect time, so that's what they - and I are doing. The next few days of posts will likely be disjointed and random, but, hey, beggars can't be choosy:-)
Where to start....since they are currently eating, we will start there.
Eating. Eating is better. This morning we are having diced pears(which they do not seem to favor), sliced grapes (which they do like) and one half a chicken nugget dipped in ketchup (which they love - at least the dipping part.) Usually, they have sausage for breakfast, which they LOVE, but I didn't feel like cooking. They tend to like spicier things better including mild curry and their favorite, Brunswick Stew with a kick of pepper. They are not interested in mild flavors or anything that resembles baby food including yogurt. They love to take bites of Daddy's apples and love diced peaches. Tonight (hours after this post started), grilled pork chops were a hit as well. We have also discovered that Natalie loves pizza. Their likes and dislikes seem to come and go though. One day they will love something, and the next - not so much.
As far as their bottles - we are in the process of weeding out the midnight one. It's not so much that I mind it, since I'm up anyway, but they are almost two. At some point, they need to give up the bottles and sleep a straight 10 hours without eating. The can't go to kindergarten with bottles which is only is *GASP* three more years! We are hoping they will start drinking more from their straw cups during the day. That's the hope. The last few days have been hit or miss. Since Thursday the girls have been trading fevers and colds and haven't been eating as well. They've also been waking up crying in the night. In other words, they are are acting normal for once. I'm not a fan. On the other hand, they have been sleeping very late - at least til 10 each morning. Of this, I am a fan. This morning, I had the same cold and was very happy to be able to sleep late.
Their weights are holding steady. We had some huge gains at the first of the month, but have lost since then. Today, Natalie only weighed 19#1 oz and Abby 19# even. I'm a little confused by this. They certainly haven't cut their intake enough to warrant such losses. I'm beginning to think that the results on Mar 2, were a bit inflated, especially for Abby who was 19# 11oz. Maybe she had a big poop inside....
All in all we are making progress, I think, on the eating front. They are working with their spoons and forks and doing quite well. They love to scoop with the spoon. Interestingly, Abby seems to be favoring her left-hand when it comes to eating. She may take after her Auntie Kimmy.
I have much more to share so stay tuned...and be patient. I still need to get some mindless surfing in....
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Wordless Wednesday
One of the blogs I follow does something called "Wordless Wednesday". On Wednesdays, she just posts pictures. I love the idea. Of course, I've already blown it by writing this much. That, and who really believes I'll be able to keep my mouth/keyboard shut and say absolutely nothing. Ha!
So, maybe we'll have Nearly Wordless Wednesdays (like nearly Headless Nick in Harry Potter).
So, to start...a few recent pics
.
So, maybe we'll have Nearly Wordless Wednesdays (like nearly Headless Nick in Harry Potter).
So, to start...a few recent pics
.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Fun with Poppy at the Park
Poppy's here! Poppy arrived late last night and the girls were so happy to see him this morning. After a little breakfast and play therapy (more on this later), we packed things up for the park. NC weather being what it is, it was a beautiful 61 degrees today (I haven't mentioned we had 2 inches of snow Monday).
The park was great. Natalie just wanted to explore. She was particularly interested in heading to the large mud/water puddles. Poppy had to keep chasing her and reigning her back in. Abby was interested in climbing, but not as much usual. They both went down the slides a few times, but mostly they wanted to wander.
The park has a little hiking path and a bridge that takes you there. We headed out over the bridge to see where it would go. Mostly it lead to very wet ground, so we just stayed on the bridge. Natalie and Abby were so cute - running across the bridge and peering into the water. Abby even added a new word to her vocabulary = "wahwah"! She just said it all on her own. Natalie didn't say it, but she did sign it. This is also new for her. They were watching Baby Signing Time earlier today and every time they seem to pick up a new word. I guess today it's "water".
The girls also really enjoyed the swings. They just smiled and laughed. They had so much fun!
We had a little lunch at Chick-Fil-A and were slightly disappointed to find that the girls are too little for the play area there. It would have been a great additional indoor play space. Oh, well, maybe in a few years.
The girls napped late, although I think I use the term nap lightly. It sounded more like a lot of laughing and playing to me. I took a little snooze myself, so I'm not sure if they ever actually went to sleep.
Tonight was also Daddy Date Night - this time with Natalie. They went to the mall for play time and then had burgers at the food court. Ben said she ate them quite well.
It was a busy day, but fun. The girls will have more special time with Poppy tomorrow. It's going to be even nicer - 69 degrees. Oh, this weekend - 74. Crazy NC weather!
(I'll try to add pictures later)
The park was great. Natalie just wanted to explore. She was particularly interested in heading to the large mud/water puddles. Poppy had to keep chasing her and reigning her back in. Abby was interested in climbing, but not as much usual. They both went down the slides a few times, but mostly they wanted to wander.
The park has a little hiking path and a bridge that takes you there. We headed out over the bridge to see where it would go. Mostly it lead to very wet ground, so we just stayed on the bridge. Natalie and Abby were so cute - running across the bridge and peering into the water. Abby even added a new word to her vocabulary = "wahwah"! She just said it all on her own. Natalie didn't say it, but she did sign it. This is also new for her. They were watching Baby Signing Time earlier today and every time they seem to pick up a new word. I guess today it's "water".
The girls also really enjoyed the swings. They just smiled and laughed. They had so much fun!
We had a little lunch at Chick-Fil-A and were slightly disappointed to find that the girls are too little for the play area there. It would have been a great additional indoor play space. Oh, well, maybe in a few years.
The girls napped late, although I think I use the term nap lightly. It sounded more like a lot of laughing and playing to me. I took a little snooze myself, so I'm not sure if they ever actually went to sleep.
Tonight was also Daddy Date Night - this time with Natalie. They went to the mall for play time and then had burgers at the food court. Ben said she ate them quite well.
It was a busy day, but fun. The girls will have more special time with Poppy tomorrow. It's going to be even nicer - 69 degrees. Oh, this weekend - 74. Crazy NC weather!
(I'll try to add pictures later)
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