Triumph on the scale!

Today (Wed.) we had a pediatrician appointment to do a weight check with both kids. Hope now is weighing in at 6 lbs 9 oz (gaining 10 oz from last Wednesday). Jack weighed in at 5 lbs 4 oz (up 12 oz from last week's appointment). I couldn't be prouder of my little champs. Great job Guys - keep up the good work.

Things are going fine in twin central. Everything revolves around their eating schedule. They mostly sleep between feedings so I am finding some time to do other things - like eat, shower, and check my email - esp. on days when Kevin and/or his mom are around to tag team the bottle feedings. I was alone on Monday while Kevin was at work, at my request so I could see what it is like to care for them on my own - first feeding Hope, then Jack (or vice versa of course), and then to pump, only to get to repeat it 3-4 hours later (from when I start). The whole process takes somewhere between 1.5-2 hours which is not terrible. I survived, but was very thankful both that Kevin is a school teacher and his work day ends at 3pm and that we'd set it up so his mom was coming the next day to help for the rest of the week. I am still working towards the goal of breast feeding both kids at the same time as I have grand visions of it freeing up all this time! A lactation consultant (who is also a parent to twins) is coming tomorrow so we will find out if the kids have gotten any better at breast feeding.

Other than that, here are some new photos. Today, Kevin's mom and I got a kick out of how much Hope squirms and moves in the crib. It doesn't seem to matter how far from Jack we place her, as she always manages to squirm her way closer to him. If she keeps this up, they will be in separate cribs a lot sooner than my estimated 4 month date (based on what I've read/heard from other twin moms is common). Luckily Jack does not seem to mind her kicking, cuddling, and/or screaming in his ear. I think he is used to it!

Here they are both peacefully sleeping and then one of them not so peaceful, having broken free of their swaddles and demanding to eat!
This is a sequence of photos highlighting Hope's crib adventures.
inching a little closer to Jack . . .
finally tucking her hand underneath him
so you can see how far she squirmed her way over, swaddled and all. We typically lay them down in the middle of the burp cloths to catch any spit up.

This was a different nap on Wednesday where we found her with her head by Jack's feet (initially she was placed perpendicular to him), clutching his blanket tightly in her hand and screaming at the top of her lungs. Not sure why?? And through it all, he did not wake up!

"Could I be any cuter?" says JackYes, I can!
After a busy nap of squirming in the crib, someone did not want to wake up to eat!!!
But she does look rather cute in brown and pink!
And so peaceful when asleep . . .
Jack from a couple days ago -- with a secret smile in Dad's arms!

XOXO to you all!

Busy week of parenthood

Hey all --

A lot has happened in the last week and all has prevented me from finding much if any time to put up an update and post new photos. Hope came home last Monday night. It's been fantastic having her home. Initially, I thought it would be great to test the waters with one baby before trying do handle both at the same time. But after a couple days/nights of taking care of Hope, I realized that one baby is a TON of work and immediately became frightened at the idea of juggling two at once. Regardless of my parenting fears, nothing was stopping my boy Jack who decided to become a great eater overnight, had his feeding tube removed mid-week and joined his sister at home on Saturday afternoon. Since then, life has been consumed with feedings and naps (both by the kids and Kevin and myself). Overall things are going okay. The nights have been tough as they eat every 3 hours followed by a date with my pump so I am working with multiple chunks of sleep in the 1-1.5 hour range. Kevin has (of course) been helping as I don't think I would get any sleep if I bottle fed eat baby on my own back to back and then pumped. Ugh. Kevin's mom is here as well to help so I am sure between the three of us we will figure this out . . . eventually.

And on to the photos . . .

First off, the babies were photographed by a professional at the hospital before Jack's discharge. They are pretty good and you can access a slideshow of the proofs at www.bellababyphotography.com (password: 0422johnhopegrugan)


Here is Hope on her discharge night in the car seatFirst ride in the mini-van
Trying out the bouncy seat
After Hope's first bath
Jack post-removal of his feeding tube (the more he fills out, the more we think they look alike)

After their photo shoot, we left them in this basket for over an hour where they happily cuddled and slept together. Kevin took over 100 pictures with our camera in addition to the professional ones. They were so cute.
Dad and his two babies
Jack in his car seat to come home
Both kids leaving the NICU together. (Thanks for the blankets Auntie Court!)
In the pack n play, checking each other out once at home . . .

First Mother's Day and potentially big news!!

Hey All,
Both Hope and Jack have had a great week and made a lot of progress in the NICU. Jack has gained 1.0 oz per day over the last 7 days and is now 3 lbs 13.3 oz. He is up to eating 88% of his feedings by mouth and is only days away from getting his feeding tube taken out. He was moved to an open air crib at the end of the week and is doing a great job maintaining his body temp outside of his igloo. He is definitely more alert and awake these days as he packs on the ounces. Hope is currently 5 lbs 9.2 oz and has gained 1.3 oz per day over the last 7 days. She has had her feeding tube out for the last few days and has been eating a ton from the bottle. She passed her car seat test and it is rumored she will be discharged tonight. I won't believe it until she is in the car with us going home, but our chances look good to having her home with us. It will be tough to leave Jack behind and to separate the twins (tough on me, not sure they will notice the separation themselves), but luckily Jack has been doing so well on his feedings and body temp lately and I am hopeful he is just days from joining Hope at home.

Here are a couple shots of the nursery. There is still nothing on the walls, but we are otherwise all set up and ready to go. The second crib is currently in our bedroom, but will eventually go along the same wall with the current crib. I hope to put them in one crib together initially, but we will have to wait and see how they do together as they may be adjusted to being apart after the NICU time.
Our first complete family shot ---
Mother's Day surprise from the night shift nurses!!!
First shot of Jack in an open air crib
My first Mother's Day and the first time I held both Jack and Hope at the same time. :-)

NICU update

Hey all,
Both kids are doing well and each is making progress every day. Hope was in clothes all week which means that she is regulating her body temp on her own and yesterday was moved from her "igloo" into an open air crib. She is getting about 40% of her feeding volume by nipple (bottle/breast) and the rest by her feeding tube. Once she is getting 100% of her feedings by nipple, she will be ready to come home. She has gained weight every day and is almost back up to her delivery weight. Jack is still hanging in his igloo, but was put in clothes on for the first time on Friday. He is regulating his body temperature on his own, which is quite impressive as he is just over 3 lbs. He will be ready to move to an open air crib after he spends a few days in clothes inside the igloo and continues to gain weight daily. Jack takes 28% of his feedings by nipple and the rest with his feeding tube, so he is catching up with his sister. The rules are the same for Jack - once he is in an open air crib, gaining weight regularly, and eating 100% of his feeding volume by nipple, he can come home. Kevin and I do not ask the doctors for a prediction of when each baby will be ready to come home and are just happy that baby steps are made each day toward that goal.

I am also doing well - off the pain meds from the c-section and better adjusted to my NICU visiting and milk pumping schedule. Kevin and the nurses are constantly praising me for the amount of breast milk I am able to bring in. That plus the daily weight gains by Jack and Hope really help when I am awake at 3 am. They have started adding something called "human milk fortifier" to the breast milk which increases the calorie content and adds a few additional vitamins and minerals. On another note, I drove our new mini-van this morning for the first time. Right now it feels a bit like a bus, but I know once I have two babies in the back, I will be happy to have the van with all its bells and whistles. It was strange to be back behind the wheel for the first time in over 3 months, but I am happy to add back another aspect of independence.

And now for the photos:

A couple shots of Hope content in her igloo in the cute outfits from the NICU. They have a stash of preemie clothes donated so it is always a treat to see what they are wearing on any given day.
Above - our first look at Hope in the "open air" crib. It definitely makes changing her diaper a lot easier. Below - a couple shots of Hope after one of her feedings last night.


Super Dad and Hope!
Jack getting a special visit with his Pop.

We love all the different poses we find Jack in while sleeping.


Jack's first day in real clothes!!!

Homeward Bound!

Despite the falling rain and the fact that we were leaving Hope and Jack behind in the NICU, it was hard to wipe the smile off my face as I waved goodbye to Bryn Mawr Hospital room 2006, climbed into our new mini-van, and drove home to Havertown (as a passenger, of course). Everything was so green and the azalea bushes are in bloom so there was color everywhere --- a rainy beautiful drive!!!!

Emma has doubled in size in my absence! Addy has spent the evening letting me know that she was not happy about the fact that I've been gone for a month. I hope to repair our relationship before the babies come home and I throw another wrench into things.

The babies' room is gorgeous. I hope to take some pictures tomorrow to post. I've set up a breast milk pumping station by our new glider chair so I can think of the babies during my pumping sessions. It is exhausting work and they have me on a pretty crazy schedule so that I produce enough milk to feed both babies, but things seem to be working and it gives me a lot of happiness to hand over my bottles to the NICU nurses and have them use that to feed the babies in my absence instead of formula.

We found Hope dressed in a purple sleeper today which was exciting. I guess she is regulating her temperature good enough that she can start wearing clothes inside her igloo (that is what Kevin and I call the incubators). She is a pretty good eater and hopefully with a little more time, she will do a better job at remembering to breathe while eating.

Jack is also doing well. Because of his smaller size, he is not as interested in eating as his sister and is more content sprawled out sleeping in his house getting his breast milk or formula through a feeding tube. As he gains weight, the doctors and nurses assure us that he will take a more active role in eating. He had been spending time under a UV light being treated for jaundice, but they stopped that last night and his bloodwork looks good so far - thus no more sunglasses and tanning for our little boy. Jack and I did kangaroo care today where he laid on my chest skin to skin snuggling (they have screens in the NICU for some privacy during such sessions and breast feeding). Kevin joined us and I passed Jack over to him where my sleepy boy suddenly woke up and was quite interactive with his dad.

Due to my c-section recovery, I am not allowed to drive for another week, so we are working on arranging rides for me to visit the NICU. I plan to make it in time for Hope's noon feeding (both babies are on a 3 hour feeding schedule, with Jack's staggered 1 hour after Hope) and hang out there all afternoon until Kevin comes after school.

Here is Hope's igloo with its festive cover down to give her some privacy to nap.

Jack and his sunglasses. Not sure why he wasn't happy in this shot, most of the time he seemed to enjoy the tanning sessions. Jack sprawled out comfy last night.
Hope - being cute
Hope - content after a feeding

Hope and Jack are here!

We got word at 9 am on Thursday April 22 that they were ready for me downstairs.

and by 10:20 am, I was all stitched up and on my way back to recovery - now a mother. I was a little scared about the surgery and the first few moments in the operating room sprawled out on the table with 13 people moving busily about the room as my legs faded away were nerve-wracking. But soon they brought in Kevin, all gowned up and telling jokes, and I was fine.

Seconds later, Hope was out.

and immediately followed by Jack.

Kevin got to cut both of their cords and take some photos. It was great. Despite his smaller size, Jack came out screaming immediately showing his tough guy personality. Hope had a harder time initially with her breathing and required some oxygen, but luckily is doing much better with that now.

The last 48 hours have been wonderful, busy, emotional, exhausting, -- really a lot of different emotions. The babies are doing pretty well. Kevin has spent a lot of time in the NICU escorting grandparents in/out, learning about diaper changing and burping, and helping with their feedings. He is already an amazing over-achieving father. I haven't been able to spend as much time down there, but have gotten in a few quality visits with multiple holding and feeding opportunities with both kids. Yesterday I think I did a little too much and ended the night in a lot of pain and a bit of an emotional mess (apparently normal for post-delivery moms and esp. those with NICU babies). Today I am hoping to stay on top of my pain meds and be a little more realistic of what I am up for. But until the babies are both home with us, my life will consists of a combination of time spent visiting the NICU and time spent hooked up to hospital grade breast pump with naps and meals worked in somewhere in between. I am sure I will find a balance and a schedule that works, and hopefully my hormones will calm down.

There are really no words to describe what it feels like to have Jack and Hope here.

In a lot of ways, it still does not even seem real. Having them in the NICU is both wonderful and difficult. I want to be with them all the time, but they are small and I feel completely clueless in terms of how to care for them. I am jealous the NICU nurses who get to be with them all the time and for the fact that they have the experience to know how to care for them. But as Kevin reminded me last night, we are new parents and feeling clueless is to be expected.