Where Does Time Go?

As I go to bed at night everyday, I ask myself that.  It's amazing how much time is required to take care of two babies (and their sister).  To add to my plate, we decided to move this summer!  What were we thinking, right?  So we are living temporarily with my Mom until our place sells and until we can move into our new house (which is taking almost 4 months to purchase...long story).  It looks like we will be able to move into the new house just in time for our older daughter to start school...whew, let's hope so!

Moving in with my Mom.  Wahoo, instant babysitter!  Wrong!  Not so much the case when my Mom is a busy senior citizen (and she's the one who labeled herself that).  It's been an adjustment--living in boxes/suitcases, cluttering up my Mom's home which was already heavily populated with her things, getting used to stairs with babies (we lived in a ranch), having my Mom tell me what she would do to discipline my older daughter, and the list goes on!  All I can say, I love my Mom but there's a reason we don't live together permanently.  

Enough about my Mom.  The girls...they are doing amazing.  Last appointment at 6 months, they were officially in the 90th percentile for weight (without their 4 week handicap)!  I know I couldn't believe my ears when the doc said that.  Seraphina is a little shorter (about 2 inches) and Matilda is in the 90th percentile for height too!  I have myself some big girls!  They are starting to sit up on their own and interact more with each other.  Their big sister is still in love with them--just not when they scream. :)

I hope to start posting more in the Fall--maybe when settled in the new house.  There's so much to say, I can't believe these girls have entered my life.  They make life so much sweeter.  

(Photo to follow soon!)

Last Year

Last year at this time:
I was nervous but excited.
I was skeptical and hopeful.
We returned home from our second DE embryo transfer.
Relieved that the transfer went smoothly.
Then, we waited...for two long weeks.

Now: 
I am tired but happy.
I am amazed and grateful.
We hold our two miracles.
Knowing how far we have come.
Now, we are in love...forever.

3 Month Update

The girls are 3 months and 4 days today, so I thought I'd document their progress at 3 months. I can't believe the twins are already 3 months. I'm taking the format from Michelle at :http://hearts2match.blogspot.com. Love your updates, Michelle.

Weight: I'm estimating their weights based on our scale at home. The girls did not have a 3 month appointment. Seraphina is about 13 lbs and Matilda is about 13.5 lbs. Matilda is about an inch taller.

Eating: They eat about 4 oz every 3 hours. Sometimes, Matilda will eat 5 - 6 oz and she'll be able to stretch for 4 hours with that amount. Unfortunately, Seraphina usually can't eat more than 4 oz--though she wants to. She devours her bottle while Matilda takes it slow. Seraphina was spitting up quite a bit, so we started to add rice cereal to her bottles, which seems to help with her spit up. I've added cereal to Matilda's bottles too but not as frequently.

Favorite Things: They love attention! Sometimes, I think they are already fighting for attention. They love when we talk and sing to them. Seraphina likes to be tickled. It's so cute when she chuckles. Matilda loves her paci, especially when she is tired. Of course, they love to listen to their big sis who can be quite the drama queen.

Dislikes: Being hungry and gas. They also dislike the hours between 5 pm and 8 pm...can't figure out what's up with that time of day, but they are moody then.

Their Accomplishments: They smile like crazy! They are amazing with their neck control, especially since I've started putting them to sleep on their bellies. They are grabbing things and following our movements now. They found their hands and they like them very much, especially Matilda who will almost gag herself with them.

Our Accomplishments: I officially can juggle things a lot better now. I've learned to make dinners when I can because I can't always make dinner at dinnertime, especially if I have a needy baby. DH has even gone out of town for 3 to 4 days for work, and somehow I've managed to keep things running smoothly at home. I've learned to feed two babies at once. Just last week I started to really get the girls on a schedule; however, it's not perfect yet. I was the crazy mom when DH and older DD were sick with the flu--I wouldn't let them near the twins. Fortunately, the twins and me were able to stay healthy during that time. Thank goodness!

Sleep: Well, the trick to sleep was having them sleep on their bellies. Around 10 weeks, I started putting them to sleep on their bellies and I've seen a great improvement in their naps and sleep at night. That being said, I watched them like a hawk with their belly sleeping (started with naps) until I was confident that they could move their head/neck well. Just like our older DD, these girls love their bellies. I especially think this is the case for acid reflux babies. I know, I know...the "back to sleep" campaign would cringe at my actions. Before you know it they'll be saying babies should sleep on their bellies. Look at all the head conditions out there now because of back sleeping. From just 9-10 weeks, our twins already have a flat area on their heads from back sleeping. At night, we are getting 6-8 hours of sleep straight from the girls. Not bad, in my opinion. Sometimes, I wake on my own because I can't believe they are still sleeping. Last night, Matilda slept from 8:45pm until 4:30pm and Sera slept from 9:15pm until 6am (wahoo, almost 9 hours!) The girls are so cute. We lay them down in the same crib at separate sides of the crib for bedtime and within a couple hours, they are sleeping right next to each other, touching. They do sleep in separate cribs for naptimes, though.

Just Some Thoughts

Since I can't seem to find much time to post lately, I thought I'd share some of my current thoughts/events lately.

I love our girls (all three of them) more than anything.

Seraphina needs an MRI when she reaches 4 months and I know I will be a nervous wreck when they have to put her under for that. (update on that later)

I finally got the twins on a schedule today until we reached the dreaded 6:00 hour in the evening. What's with the evening hours where the twins just go crazy crying for no reason? I'm convinced they are just tired.

The twins were weighing in at 10 lbs even and 10 lbs 12 oz at their 2 month appt and had their first shots since the hospital. They were not happy at all with the shots and the entire event really wore them out. They slept almost all day.

The girls are cooing and smiling like crazy, even at 5:00 in the morning when I want them to go back to bed.

I have had stretches of 6-7 hours of sleep from each girl, but it's not consistent yet. Of course, they both don't have their long stretches of sleep at the same time. I've had 5 hours of sleep straight a couple of times. Yay Mommy!

The girls have been eating 4 oz every 3 hours lately and I swear, they are on a growth spurt. They rather eat than sleep lately.

Naps are still a challenge. I have to separate them during naps. Otherwise, they wake each other up. They do sleep in the same crib at night and seem to do okay then. We do have to use a white noise to help them sleep; they hear every little thing.

Speaking of sleep, I started sleeping them on their bellies lately (as I did with my first daughter) and they are sleeping better since. I know my Mom used to put me on my belly and she said that's what was recommended when I was a baby.

It's difficult to believe that I used an egg donor for our twins. It really doesn't cross my mind much, and if it does, I have no negative feelings about using an egg donor nor do I have any regrets about our choice to use one.

I feel so incredibly lucky for my family.

A Good Roller Coaster Ride!

Wow, it's been a while since my last post! I really wish I didn't wait so long to post, for so much has been going on--I might forget the last few weeks! Sleep deprivation will add to that forgetfulness!

I don't know where to start! I'll start by saying how in love I am with our girls! They melt my heart e.v.e.r.y.d.a.y. It's amazing how big they are getting and they are only 7 weeks old! They were weighed last week at 6 weeks: 8lbs 10 oz and 9lbs 5 oz. So why the 6 week weigh-in? Sera had tested positive for cystic fibrosis in her newborn screening. I was a mess after the news, but the doctor assured me that most tests have a false positive. She told me NOT to google it and just have her re-tested along with her sister. What did I do then? I googled the crap out of it! I started to feel a little better once I saw (with my google search) that both sides have to be carriers of the disease, and I was pretty sure our clinic tested for this disease. Even if you have two carriers, only 1 in 4 will have an offspring with cystic fibrosis. Still, I couldn't help but worry until I got the results. The second screening showed that both girls were fine and nothing tested positive. Thank goodness!

Despite the small scare, it has been a roller coaster of fun. Sera has already spit up her formula all over Matilda, and DH and I just laughed. Maybe the laughing was due to lack of sleep. Things seem so much funnier when you're tired. I love all their grunts and interesting noises. Sometimes their noises and facial expressions are in response to my questions, so I think they are. I once said out loud, "who wants to eat first?" Matilda literally raised her hand! (no joke) I take photos of them daily and I usually get a hand over the face, as if they are saying, "that's enough, Mom!"

Did I mention how in love our daughter is with them? The first weeks were rough. Our six year old wanted to pick out their clothes everyday. Problem: I wanted to pick out their outfits too! :) I did give our daughter numerous opportunities to pick out their clothes, and I am happy to say that she only asks to pick out their clothes maybe once every couple of days now. She tells me constantly that her two favorite girls are her 2 sisters. She says good morning and goodnight to them everyday. It really is sweet. I love seeing the sisterly love. I hope it lasts forever!

There have been many challenges in these short 7 weeks. Breastfeeding was the first. The girls had problems with latching in the first couple days and Matilda had to be in the nursery for 24 hour observation with a tube going into her stomach and an iv in her little arm. In the end, she was fine and healthy. I tried pumping in the hospital, but with someone coming into the room every 15 minutes, it was difficult to get on a schedule. When we got home, pumping was even more difficult with trying to recover from the c-section (I was in a lot of pain for about a week) and then trying to care for the babies. I either had time to pump or time to sleep, and I often chose sleep! DH tried to help out as much as possible, but bottle feeding two and then pumping was not working out well. And, then when DH went back to work after a week at home with me, I couldn't do it. I'd cry because I wanted to breastfeed or at least pump, and I was so exhausted. So, that was the end of breastfeeding. I was sad, but I had to let go of the fact that it wasn't going to happen. I tried my best and that's all I could have done.

The next challenge was acid reflux. Sera had some huge spit ups once we got home and I noticed that she was getting more and more irritable. She'd arched her back and act really uncomfortable. She'd scream out of nowhere at times. Based on her symptoms, I knew she had acid reflux like our six year old DD had. I called her doctor and told her what I thought. She agreed and put her on a medication right away. She appeared to be doing better while on the medication, but I'm not totally convinced that she's feeling okay after feedings. The doctor said we might have to switch her dosage (frequency) or try a different type of medication. Not sure what we'll try next, but it just breaks my heart to see Sera upset.

Our most recent challenge is Mommy (that's me :-)) is feeling under the weather, and to top it off, I think the girls are sick too. They have a slight fever tonight and I'm hoping they are better by tomorrow. They have been sleeping a lot today; however, they still seem to have their appetite, which is good. DH had off work today, so he let me sleep 8 hours straight last night! What a sweetheart he was!

Speaking of sweethearts, here's my girls at 6 weeks.

Introducing...

This is long overdue! It's been a crazy busy couple of weeks, but what an amazing ride it's been! I love being a mom to three girls, but wow, it's a lot of work!

Here's our sweet baby girls...Seraphina and Matilda

One Single Sperm

Since I don't have much time to post lately, I wanted to share a story that I saw on the internet. My first DD is a miracle, for it only took one egg (and we are almost positive that was my last egg). Egg sightings have not occurred in my body in the last 5 years due to POF. This story is about a miracle baby from one single sperm:
http://todayhealth.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/19/10191182-miracle-baby-born-from-single-frozen-sperm

Ironically, this story is local for us. We did not go to the Cleveland Clinic for our donor egg cycle, but it was our second option.