Some more pics

Couldn't you just EAT these feeties!!














Zach and JJ. That dog is so compromising. Between being sick and needing time to take care of the twins, Zach has been watching MORE than his fair share of TV. I'm not happy about it, but you gotta do what you gotta do.













Nana and her grandbabies













Daddy and his boys

Poop, Feeding and Crying, Oh My!

Getting time to update is few and far between, so I apologize. You may start to see some posts with only pictures. There's not all that much happening here except for the description in the title.
We are getting as much sleep as we can. I try to take a nap in the day if it's been a rough night because I don't want sleeplessness to affect my milk supply. I am so, so SO sick of pumping. It seems it's all I do. My dad said the other day that it looks like about to be electrocuted. Yes, I pump in front of my dad. I have shit to do, no time for modesty. Besides, these boobs are half his DNA, so there you have it.
A little bad news to report (nothing MAJOR)...Zach came down with a cold. Of course I'm a nervous Nelly about the germs. We've been hand washing/sanitizing freaks over here. Well, it's been all for nothing. The twins have the sniffles. Yes, I feel extremely guilty. They haven't been home a week and my household has already contaminated them. UGH! Gotta love having a 2 year old in preschool. Zach wants to hold them all the time and touch them...I've had to tell him when his boogers go away he can hold them. He's been pretty good. We had one day when I thought the whining and crying (Zachary's) would drive me to drink, but you can't blame the poor guy. He feels like crap, and his brothers have invaded his life.

We've had some great meals lately, thanks to our friends who have stopped by and dropped off food. Our friend, Berit brought stuffed shells that were amazing. Our friend, Julie brought an enchilada casserole....YUM! Today, Amy and Donald brought over pasta with homemade sauce and meatballs and sausage, so delicious! At this rate, I'm going to GAIN weight instead of drop it!

Here are some pics:

Brothers...













My Dad's hands. Fun with a basket.













Trevor sucking on Dylan's foot.



















Channeling Anne Geddes. Poorly, I might add. But, cute subjects.

Welcome home, Dylan and Trevor

Finally, our lives can now really begin. It's been such a long road. How scary the first several days were. I most likely kept Starbucks in business this last month, what with my daily stops there on the way to the hospital. (I highly recommend the strawberry-blueberry parfait...yum!)

I got to know the nurses, occupational therapists, Dr.'s, nurse practitioners and discharge nurses so well, I actually got a little emotional saying goodbye.

This is how it all went down.

I had been told that the boys would be coming home soon, probably by the weekend. I had been told that before and was disappointed, so I didn't want to get my hopes up. By Friday, it looked good that we'd take both of them home at the same time. Then, Saturday they called. They said, very anti-climatically I might add, "Come get your boys". OMG! When I called Jeff to tell him, he said, "OMG, what do we do?" Sounds funny, but I was thinking the exact same thing. Deep down I think I half expected to visit my kids in the NICU when they were 2 years old. Well, an hour later, Trevor had another episode but this time it wasn't during eating. It worried the NP enough she reconsidered and wanted Trevor to stay one more night for observation. We were a little sad, of course, but ultimately wanted him to be in the NICU if he was going to have "episodes". Jeff's parents came over to watch Zach and we went down to pick up Dylan. It took a while because we were in the middle of feeding time and when we got home it was about 5pm.

Our first night was pretty uneventful. If we only had one baby coming home, it would actually be very do-able. I played with Zach, Jeff hung with Dylan. Then we'd switch off. Pretty easy, actually. When we added the third one the next day, we were outnumbered. Pretty much sca-rewed. Dylan wakes every 3-4 hours to eat and we just set our alarm clock to get us up because he wasn't waking. I'm still pumping away so that adds to the mix. He wakes, we change a dipe, he eats, he goes back to sleep. That's it. I forgot how simple newborns are.

The next morning (Sunday), the NP called and said that Trevor had no episodes and did great and we were free to come get him. Off we went after the IL's came over again to watch Zach. That was an even faster exit out of the NICU. Sign some papers, pack up the hospital grab bag, take some pictures and we were on our way.

My parents came that afternoon. They;ll stay for as long as we need them, but I think my Dad is going to go back home early. He's a little out of his element with the whole baby thing. Although he does love holding them. He looks like those pictures of the big gorilla holding the kitten. Too cute.

So, we are all home. Zach is being adorable with his new brothers. He wants to hold them and touch them. He's very gentle around them, too. I'm pretty surprised he's such a pussycat with them, considering he's usually jumping off the ceiling.

Ok, enough of the rhetoric. Let's get to the pictures!

Home at last! Dylan and his first few moments home.
Zach holding Dylan for the first time. He climbed up next to me and said, "Hold Dylan!" Cute!
Proud Grandma and Grandpa!
Ok, I will give credit where it's due. I did not come up with the clever onesie idea. My friend, Heather had her first son in the NICU and made him a "NICU alumni" onesie. I totally stole the idea. Thanks, Heather!

I'm gonna be ripped carting these two around!

My Dad awkwardly holding Trevor

Trevor holding my Dad's hand

Proud Nana holding Dylan

Milk. It does a body good.

Last week I had another appointment with the lactation consultant while at the NICU. I've worked with her before and I don't really need all that much help since I've breastfed before. I did, however want to try nursing both babies at the same time with her there. I figured she could give me some tips and/or techniques that I'm not aware of. Several of the other nurses said they could also help and so did the occupational therapist. The OT lady (Astri is her name) is a twin and her sister has twins. One of the nurses also has 13 year old twins. I had a lot of experience coming at me from all angles. I was very excited.

Ok, let me set the stage.
I'm sitting down and I decide to just take off my shirt so it won't be in the way. I'm behind a screen in the area that is dedicated to Trevor and Dylan. I'm so ready for this. Haven't pumped in three hours so the girls are massive. I take the nursing flap down so now I look like I'm in Madonna's concert bra...minus the gold tassels. Somebody hands me Trevor, who is always more of a challenge to latch. I try to get him to latch for a good 5 minutes. He's now crying. Loudly. He's probably thinking, "what the hell...just feed me. No more gymnastics."
Somebody else hands me Dylan. I'm now doing the football hold with each baby, which is baby under the armpit with my hand under the head(s).

I now have no hands...each hand is under a baby's head. Trevor is still crying, slowly creeping towards a scream. I am hand less so I can't pinch my boob to make it easier for them to latch. This is the part where, out of the wings, 2 women on each side of me come at me with hands outstretched. All of them grab my boobs, trying to pop it into an awaiting mouth. The boys weren't having it. They wanted the nice smushed boob sandwich I make them...but again, no free hands. They were out of luck. So, as 2 women on my left and 2 women on my right try to squeeze, smush, twist and sandwich my boobs into these infants' mouths, my head starts ping-ponging back and forth from one twin to the other. I start trying to aim my boobs into the proper place, but that just makes my entire body go stiff and I can feel my shoulder rise into my ears. Then I tried to change positions and do a standard cradle hold with both. Well, Dylan apparently did not want Trevor touching him or laying on him while he ate, so he threw a fit about that. Finally, after who knows how long we ALL tried to do this, I finally said, "That's it! I'm done!".
Everyone dropped my boobs and stepped away. Slowly.
I gave Trevor back, who was still screaming, and fed Dylan. I looked at Tamara, who has the 13 year old twins and I said, "THAT was freakin' ridiculous."
She said, "Yes, it was."

I guess I had unrealistic expectations about how this was all going to play out. I had the sweet picture of me in my head beautifully nursing both boys at once. HA!

HA, HA, HA!

NOT gonna happen! It's not going to happen until they can find the boob on their own and latch on like it's second nature.
Dude, I was sweating. Astri even came back and gave me a quick massage to help dislodge my shoulders out of my earlobes.
Tamara said the way she did it in the beginning was to nurse one, and pump the other side at the same time. Hand over the pumped BM, (breast milk, NOT bowel movement, people!) and hubby feeds the other one. Next feeding, switch boobs and babies. So, that's my plan...in case any of you were wondering how I was going to do it.

I almost (almost) wished I'd You-tubed it. It was pretty comical.

New Twins Update!!

Sorry I've not blogged in a while. It's absolutely crazy how fast the days are going. I'm at the hospital for 4-5 hours a day, come home, have a small window to either do an errand or two, clean the house or nap. The nap part happens the least often. Then it's time to pick up Zach from preschool and dinner/bath/nite-nite occurs pretty rapidly after that. The day is over before I know it.

The boys are doing really well. We thought Dylan might come home last week, but that didn't happen. The are both still working on their suck/swallow/breathe skill. They have to have all feedings by bottle for 2 days straight...and do it well in order to come home. Trevor is having some "episodes" where he chokes or gets fatigued and decides to stop breathing. He turns pale and goes limp. Pretty scary, but he just requires some stimulation to remember what to do...we just sit him up and burp him or rub his legs and he recovers. Not abnormal for where they are at gestationally. Scares me to death, though.

As of yesterday, Dylan is on all bottle feedings, as tolerated. He's been doing well, so he may come home this weekend. I don't want to jinx it or get my hopes up again, so I'll get more excited as the week progresses and we see how he does. Trevor is up to every other feeding is a bottle, which is great! They have both gained over a pound. Trevor is weighing in over 6 lbs. and Dylan is well over 5lbs. They have changed so much now that they have filled out a bit.

I have to wrap this up, off to do my running, but wanted to get some pics in.

They look like little puzzle pieces! Dylan on the left, Trevor on the right. Notice how different their skin tone is! Dylan is so olive/yellow (like me), and Trevor is more ruddy, like Jeff.














Dylan might get his feeding tube out tomorrow.













Jeff trying to get the whole "holding two babies at once" thing down.













Holding Trevor. Such a little bug.

Santa Monica Pier

On Sunday, we had a nice family day down at the beach. We opted for Santa Monica so Zach could also enjoy the rides on the pier. I apparently don't get out much, because I had no idea the side with rides even exsisted. Go figure. They also have (for those of you who don't know) carnival games and food...it's like a fair. Jeff had taken Zach there once before when I was on bedrest.

Zach on the choo-choo. Jeff was going to ride with him and the carni-guy told him to get off. Ha ha. This is the first ride Zach has ever gone on by himself! I was afraid my 2-second attention span kid was going to climb out of the car in middle of the ride. He surprised me, though and stayed put until the very end!













Zach and I and my chins on the car ride. It went up and down as well as going around in a circle....Zach wanted to go "high, high!"













Jeff and Zach on the balloon ride. The were giving each other high fives the entire time!













The submarine ride. This went up in the air and back down again. Pretty lame.













After the rides, we went to the beach. It was packed and we thought we'd accidentally gone over the border to Rosarito. There were people selling anything from beach umbrellas to sand toys to cut up fruit. It was just like being at the border waiting to cross...the people walk inbetween the cars selling all sorts of stuff. This takes place on the Mexico side.
Now, I don't want to sound like a racist...I don't care who is at the beach with me. I just didn't care for the salesmen, the spanish speaking kids taking MY kids toys, (my spanish is not good enough to explain to a 5 year old that he has to bring my kid's stuff back), the dead seagull lapping in the waves (while all the kids stood waaaay too close to it, daring each other to touch it...yuck!), and the homeless people hanging out....right next to us...and they smelled like pee.
Note to self...go to a different beach.
But it was a nice day, nonetheless.

How much are those doggies in the window?

Jeff talked to the insurance people at the hospital to make sure out I's were dotted and our T's were crossed with all of our info and insurance cards, etc. He asked the lady how much a night in the NICU costs, just out of curiosity. The woman said they had the boys totals thus far if he was interested.
Hell yes, was my Jewish husband interested! He wanted to see
A: How much these kids are already costing him
and
B: How much we wouldn't have to pay because we have medical coverage (savings!)

So far, are you ready....

Dylan's bill for a 2 week stay is...
$174,000

Trevor's bill for his luxe stay is...
$241,000

Yes, that's right...their total is almost half a million dollars. And they will probably be in the NICU for another 2 weeks. Granted their care now is much less involved but still...
This of course doesn't include my costs.
SCARY.

Side Effects of Having Twins

Thought I'd share this little funny with you...

On Sunday, Jeff and I took Zach to see the movie, "Up". It was cute, but I think Zach would've preferred to see "Ice Age" again. He ate so much popcorn and even carried the large tub to the car with us. He told Jeff last night that he had a tummy ache...wonder why!

So, as the movie ends, we get to the corridor that takes you out of the theatre and into the lobby. There's no body around and Zach asks Jeff if he can run. "Sure," he says. Zach takes off running (after handing the precious tub of popcorn to Daddy), and runs into the side of the wall, hits his head on the railing, and proceeds to run into the other side and hits the other side of his head on the OTHER railing. He looked like a pinball machine! Jeff and I start laughing and all of a sudden my kid hits the Turbo Boost button that is sewn into his leg and he takes off out the door into the lobby, where we can't see him! Jeff says, "OMG! Zach come here!" and starts running after him. Between the two scenes that have been played out in front of me, I get a major case of the giggles. Giggles turn into downright laughter, and all of a sudden I realize.....

I'M PEEING MY PANTS!!

Not a trickle, not a "whoops, just had babies and sneezed" moment....I full on wet my pants. At the movies. And now I have to walk into the lobby, through the courtyard where every teenager in Santa Clarita hangs out, and through the parking garage.
In all the peeing hysteria, I dropped the two trays of popcorn I was carrying and was now on my hands and knees, still laughing but not peeing anymore. Jeff comes back in and says, "What happened?"
I say, "I just peed my pants!"
He checks out the damage and says, "Oh, you can't even tell. It looks like you sat in something."
Yeeeeeaaaaaaahhhhhhh. Sure it does. It looks like I sat in pee. And yes, you could tell.
He tells me to go into the bathroom and dry my pants off under the hand dryer.
What?? There is no way I'm leaving this corridor and there is also no way I'm putting my ass and crotch under the hand dryer.
Jeff finally comes up with a better plan. I strip the sweatshirt off of Zach and Jeff tucks the sweatshirt into my pants. He says it looks like I tied a sweatshirt around my waist.
Yeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaahhhhh. Sure it does. It looked like I peed my pants and was using my son's teeny tiny sweatshirt to cover up my gaffe.
Apparently I did NOT do enough Kegels.

More Pics of the Brothers!

The boys are doing better and better every day!
I go down to see them at least once a day, sometimes twice. I've been staying longer and longer (usually about 3 hours) because I'm able to hold them for a longer period of time. The NICU is very pro-breastfeeding and very pro-kangaroo holding. What that is is me (or Daddy) holding the naked baby against our naked chest. It is supposed to familiarize the babies with our scent, and to let those animal instincts kick into gear. I used to love, love, LOVE doing this with Zach. I called it "doing the bug" because he would nestle up on his belly against me and sleep. The best thing ever! Well, I have to say that the newest best thing ever is to hold my TWO babies this way!
They are so content to stay on my chest like that, yesterday I did it for almost 2 hours and today I did it for 3 hours.

Other good news, they have graduated out of their incubators and have moved into a crib, together! Co-bedding them like that is supposed to facilitate healing and contentment. It's also freakin' adorable! Dylan's jaundice levels have come down and he is no longer under the billi lights. I hope he gets his little velcro circles off his head soon. They are both gaining weight and eating more and more. Dylan breast fed today and did even better than last time, and Trevor just wanted to hang out by my boobs. Such a breast man, apparently.

The goals they need to accomplish now are:

-Need to maintain their body temperature on their own.
-Learn to suck, swallow and breathe.
-Take all feedings by bottle.

Here's Dylan, modeling the famous velcro circles.













Trevor modeling the same circles. His came off several days ago.













Daddy and Dylan. He had his little hand wrapped around Daddy's finger.

This is my "I'm in Heaven" look. I'm holding Trevor.

The following pictures are from today. Jeff holding his baby boys together for the first time.
Forgive my awesome fashion in this terrible picture of me. It's our first family photo. New shirt, since I can't fit into anything I own and I obviously didn't check for bra strap coverage nor bend down status. I was mostly concerned about it fitting not too tightly around my tummy. Yikes.
This is the skin to skin kangaroo hold. This is actually my "I'm in Heaven" look. They were completely zonked out and did not a muscle for 3 hours like this.
This is the best picture I could get of them co-bedding. We had this lens on the camera that doesn't zoom so this is the best I could do. The crib itself is this huge stainless steel thing that looks straight out of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest". Dylan is on the left, Trevor, the right. This is the first time they'll have been together since they were born, aside from the holding we've been doing.