2 Month Stats

 The babies had their 8 week appointment last week.  The nurses couldn't believe how big they are. Not only are they big for twins, but for singleton babies as well!  Daci wasn't this big until she was closer to three months. Livvi is already almost grown out of 3-6 month clothes!  She is bigger than Street, even though they eat the same amount at the same time all day long. I think its because Street spits up so much. Even though he spits a lot, he is still gaining weight great! Here are their stats:

Street:
           weight: 12 lbs (50th percentile)
           height: 22 3/4 inches (50th percentile)
           head circumference: 14 3/4 inches (15th percentile)

I think he still looks EXACTLY like he did when he was born. What do you think?

Livvi:
weight: 12 lbs 8 oz (85th percentile)
height: 23 3/4 inches (95th percentile)
head circumference: 15 1/4 inches (75th percentile)

She is a lot bigger than Street :) Its so funny because she came out so tiny and petite but she is a big rolly polly now! I think she has changed A TON since she was born.  When she was first born I thought she looked NOTHING like Daci when she was a baby. Now I think she looks almost identical to her.  I don't think she looks anything like she did when she was first born.

Yesterday I put Livvi in an outfit and I realized that Daci had worn it right around the same age and I had pics of her in it.  I thought I would take some pics of her and compare the two.  They are both exactly 9 1/2 weeks in the photos below.  Daci is on the left and Livvi is on the right. Do you think they look alike?

Gratitude

These first few pics were before the twins got too sick. Looking at them makes me wish they were completely over their sickness. They are still not back to normal yet.  You can see the sickness in their eyes, they are pale, they are full of snot, they cough nonstop and they still need breathing treatments to keep the wheeze to a minimum. On the bright side though, they aren't struggling for air and they don't have fevers anymore.  We are grateful that the steroid seems to be helping! I'm hoping that within a week they are back to their happy selves! I am really anxious to see what Street is like once he is better.  I noticed a slight difference in him with his reflux for two days and was really hopeful, but then he got sick and his spitting up and discomfort is worse than ever now. I can't wait to see if his reflux medicine is working and he is happier once this RSV is gone!

Livvi was chilling in the boppy while we were watching TV and we looked over and caught her smiling at the TV :)  We keep missing her full on smile on camera but trust me, it is so cute! We haven't seen her smile hardly at all since she got sick :(

Bath time! They both LOOOVE their baths!

Street also loves his bath, he was being a stinker and wouldn't look me in the eyes. Typical boy :)

I know I reported that Street smiled. Well, that was the second day he was sick and he was trying so hard, I wouldn't say it was even a full on smile. Since then, he has been so miserable that there hasn't even been a hint of a smile. I hope once he is feeling better we can get one out of him!

We haven't taken a whole lot of pics while they have been sick....I think we have been a little too busy and worried to think about the camera but here are a few to show how sad they look :(  They both had fevers one night so we put cool washcloths on their heads. Even though they are sick, they are still adorable!

The doctors wanted us to sleep them elevated so they could breathe better so we had them in the boppies in their crib but they kept sliding down in them and we would have to keep readjusting. I had to snap a pic of what they looked like before I readjusted them :)

And here is a random pic of Daci before she went to church last week (Thanks for taking her Car and Micah!).  Isn't she just so beautiful and grown up!?  I have to admit, we have been butting heads a lot lately but I look at these pics of her and I can't help but smile and cry happy tears. I am so grateful for my beautiful, sweet, spicy and STUBBORN little girl.  She has such a big heart.  She loves me no matter how many times I lose my cool and she is so in love with her babies.  If she is gone for a few hours at a playdate she will come in and run straight for the babies and hug and cuddle them until they scream from claustrophobia and I make her move :) She is always hugging me and saying, "I love you, Mommy" and she always asks when her daddy will be home.  There have been A LOT of changes around here and she has handled them like a champ.  I love you Doodle! Sorry I have been so uptight! I  promise to do better.

These pics will show you how much she loves being a big sister!  I snapped these yesterday and uploaded them to my computer and got the most overwhelming feeling of gratitude. I am SO blessed! I have three beautiful and wonderful children. I know I gripe and groan a lot (lets be honest, this is hard) but I couldn't be more grateful and love my children any more than I do. I need to remember this every time I want to run away :)

I am also SO grateful for my amazing husband.  He is such a great husband and father. He has been so supportive of me since giving birth. He recognizes that my "job" is hard and is constantly telling me "thank you, validating my feelings, and sending me sweet notes throughout the day.  He has been so amazing through the twins being sick. He and I sit on the couch all night and watch shows and cuddle babies that are struggling to breathe. I know he has so many things to be working on right now, but he has chosen to make this his priority and I am so grateful for him and his support.  He also recognizes how important it is for me to get out and have a break. Twice this week he let me leave the house and he took over three kids during their fussy time.  He is my hero!  I love you babe!

Our First ER Trip

Okay, the latest chapter in the Sickie Saga goes a little something like this:  We woke up Friday morning to Livvi having rattling in her chest for the first time. Wonderful! I watched her and she just kept getting worse and worse :(  Her eyes were bloodshot and she just looked miserable. At about noon she started having problems breathing, like Street.  I decided to get her in to the Doctor so that if they wanted her on the nebulizer treatments as well, we could get started on them.

Before I continue in the Saga, let me first recap what happened in the previous chapters. And also, let me first just say how difficult this whole taking two sick babies to the dr has been.  Livvi started later than Street with her symptoms so she wasn't as bad as him to start out with. The first appt I took both of them, they said Street had bronchiolitis and Livvi just had a cough but there was nothing in her lungs.  They wanted Street to come back in two days for a follow up. I asked if I could bring Livvi then if she was sounding bad and kill two birds with one stone.  They said I would have to call that morning and see if they could get her in as well but there was no guarantee.  The morning of Street's follow up Livvi was doing a little bit worse and I KNEW it was progressing just as Street's had.  I called and asked if I could bring her with me.  They finally said "Yes" after a guilt trip of "Hmmm, lets see, I don't know if we can work her in.  Let me see if I can work something out." I took her with me, Street was even worse but the doctor acted like it was no big deal and that there was nothing we could do about it. Then he looked at Livvi and said she still wasn't bad enough to do anything about it.  I tried to tell him that it was JUST like what happened with Street, that I knew eventually it would be as bad as him, and can he please just prescribe me the Albuterol for when she does get that bad because it is SO HARD taking them both out! Nope. Not gonna happen.  That night Street was so bad I literally thought he might stop breathing all together and he had a 100.3 degree fever. AH! I was so frustrated!  I felt like the doctors weren't taking me seriously and weren't trying to help my babies at all. I called the doctor the next day, told him Street had had a fever and he ordered a chest X-Ray to see if it was pneumonia so I went back in with Street only this time and had the X-Ray done. Doctor calls 30 minutes later.  No Pneumonia, he's fine.  Grrr! I KNOW this is more serious than they are saying!  They don't see what happens to him at night time and they won't listen when I try to explain!

Okay, we are now caught up, continuing on with the latest chapter: Livvi is now really sick, wakes up with rattling. I get her in by herself (this is now day five of going to the doctor with sick babies) and had the WORST experience I have EVER had with a doctor.  She first took her oxygen.  The monitor said 89. Anything below 95 is bad, anything below 90 is admitted to hospital.  Livvi started screaming when the monitor was on her toe and it shot up to 97.  "Oh good!" The nurse says, "She's a 97." Wait, what!? When she wasn't screaming she was at an 89. Its not like she is screaming all day long so don't we want to know what her O2 is at when she is not screaming?  Totally didn't get that.  I made a mental note to ask the doctor about that.  Then, the doctor comes in, listens to her chest. "Yep, she has bronchiolitis." Big surprise there. I coulda told you that, just like I told the doctors the three other times I went in that she was starting to get it. She says she wants to do a treatment to see if it helps her and if it did, then she would prescribe it.  We do the treatment, the doctor comes back in, Livvi is calm and not screaming this time, O2 is at 85.  Ah!  Doctor says we need to do it one more time, if it isn't up over 90 then she has to spend the night in the hospital.  We do the treatment, Livvi starts screaming when they put the monitor on, 98.  "Yay!" says the doctor.  Well, she was crying again. How do we know that at rest her O2 wasn't too low?  I ask this question, very calmly I might add, and the doctor snaps, "It doesn't matter, we got it in the 90's." Ok, maybe I don't understand how this works.  I wish she would explain it to me. Doesn't matter, Livvi is getting what she needs.  Then she tells me Livvi needs to be on an oral steroid to clear it up. Perfect!  I have been wanting both of them on the steroid so that they could get better but no one would listen. They kept telling me Street wasn't bad enough.  HELLO! You haven't seen him at night! He is most definitely bad enough! If Livvi is bad enough, then Street is DEFINITELY bad enough because he is a million times worse. I try to explain this to the doctor and I can see her getting more and more annoyed. She kept saying, "He probably isn't worse than her, its probably just phlem and it isn't in his lungs." I calmly tell her that YES it is in his lungs, it has been since the very first appt! She basically tells me I don't know what the heck I'm talking about. I ask her if I can bring him in to her so that she can listen to him and then she will see how badly he needs it. "No, sorry, we don't have anymore appointments today." What!?  An 8 week old baby isn't breathing and you don't have any more appointments? By this point I am pretty mad, but still keeping my cool.  Then, she says, and this is the climax of the story, "Now, Mom, you need to stop being so stressed. Your babies are feeding off of it and its making them worse." AH! Ok, so now I'm making them sick. First I was just imagining that they were sick, and now I'm the cause of their sickness. Tears started streaming down my face and then she says, "And you really need to be napping when they are napping" and the hidden words that are going through her head are, "because you are a basket case and if you were sleeping you would know that this is no big deal". The clincher is that I had JUST told her that I have a three year old at home, so she should know that I CAN'T sleep when the babies sleep because I have another child to take care of. I can't even respond because I know I will burst into tears. After about 2 minutes of her typing away on her computer and me sitting silently in the corner, crying, and shaking because I'm so mad I say, "I have just seen so many doctors and they are all telling me different things and I'm not getting answers." She gives me an annoyed look and doesn't say anything.  I try to bring up Street one more time and she won't hear me.  She says, "If you think he is really bad you can try and get him in tomorrow if we have any openings." Then she quickly says, "Ok, I sent your prescription over, have a good day!" and walks out.  I leave fuming mad head over to the pharmacy and lo and behold, there is no prescription there.  The pharmacy says it probably just hasn't gone through yet and they will call me when it does.  Big surprise, never get a call, the stupid doctor didn't even send the prescription over for my struggling-to-breathe baby.

Rick and I took care of the babies for the evening as they struggled to breathe and kept getting fevers. We fed them at 9:30pm and put them down. I crawled into bed at about 10:30pm. Next thing I know, its 4:30am and the babies hadn't gotten up to eat yet. We heard weird noises from the crib, we run over and Livvi is barely breathing. She is making these quick, short gasps. We grab her out of her crib, quickly turn on one of Street's treatments (because we didn't have Livvi's prescription.  AH!) and after a few minutes there was no progress. Rick threw her in the car and went straight to the ER.  I called Micah to come over (THANK YOU Carly and Micah!) and then threw Street in the car and headed over with him.  I don't care if he wasn't as bad as Livvi was in that moment, they were going to see him! By the time Rick pulled in Livvi was doing a little better.  I got there about 15 minutes later and we got Street hooked up next to his sister. They both had fevers, they both had chest retractions, their O2 was looking okay (thankfully!), but their lungs sounded awful! The ER doctor was amazing.  We should have just gone there the first night and saved us all this headache.  They immediately said Street needed an oral steroid, no doubt about it. It was crazy that he wasn't already on it!  The took chest XRays of both of them and the doctor came back and said that they both have bad RSV.  (Sidenote: I have been asking all the doctors if it was RSV and they wouldn't say it was, they just didn't want to check). They both got sent home with Albuterol treatments and oral steroids.  My favorite thing that the doctor said was "Just be vigilant like you have been doing. You know when something is wrong and you feel uncomfortable.  If you are worried, bring them in." THANK YOU! VALIDATION! I swear a mother's (or fathers) intuition is far better than a doctor who has never even seen your child.  (Another side note: I think most doctors are incredible, listen to their patients, and make great diagnoses. I am in no way saying doctors are dumb, I am just saying that the doctors I saw this week are dumb.  Ha!)  So, we are home now, babies are still really sick and have fevers and are coughing their heads off, but for the first time this week I feel calm. I feel that they are finally being taken care of the way they need to be.  Phew!

Here are some pics from the hospital. Luckily, Rick had his phone, because in my moment of sheer panic, I didn't think to grab my camera ;) Shocking, right? Sorry the quality isn't that great.

When I walked into the room, I saw this.  How sad is that!? A little tiny baby on a big hospital bed.

.....just got back from the pharmacy, the series of unfortunate events with the latest doctor continues.  Ya know how I said that she didn't call in Livvi's medication? Turns out she actually did call it in, only it was for the wrong baby!  Ya, she called it in for Street.  She saw Livvi, she wouldn't even talk to me about Street, and then she prescribes the medication for Street.  Oh, and she told me that Livvi should have a different mist called Zofranax instead of Albuterol. I asked the ER doctor about that and he laughed. He said there is hardly a difference and Zofranax is way more expensive.  I find this out when I go to pick it up and it is $150 instead the $8 that Albuterol is. Oh my goodness, my frustration with this doctor is getting worse and worse.

Sorry to rant and rave. This experience has been very frustrating! Also, I wanted to document how their illnesses progressed for future reference. I'm sure not many of you are still reading :)

My Sickies are 8 Weeks Old!

My babies are so sick and it is just killing me to watch it!  Street is definitely way more sick than Livvi. He started with a cough last Wednesday and it has just gotten worse and worse.  He was sounding  really rattly in his chest from all the phlem so I decided to take him into the doctor on Monday.  Livvi had a much milder cough that started Friday so I took her in with him.  The doctor said that Street had bronchiolitis which is swelling and mucus buildup in the tiniest air passages in the lungs. The doctor wanted us to start doing breathing treatments with albuterol every 4-6 hours for him.  Livvi was clear in her lungs so she didn't need to do the treatments.  He was supposed to come back on Wed for a follow up to see if he was sounding any better. Well, he was doing much worse Tues and Wed. Night times are scary.  He gets to where he is just gasping for breath.  It is so sad to watch! I took him in on Wed and of course he wasn't that bad when I took him in (isn't that how it always goes?), the doctor said his rattly chest had turned into a wheeze and his oxygen levels were slightly lower than they were on Monday but it still wasn't bad enough to do anything else.  He didn't have a fever or anything. He said we just needed to wait it out and continue with the treatments. We came home, he did fine during the day, and then last night at about 8pm he started in with his really labored breathing. By 10pm I thought he felt warm, I checked his temperature and it was at 100.3!  Ah! Can you say panic? Rick ran to Walgreens and got him Infant Tylenol and we put a cool washcloth on his head and luckily it brought it down.  He is still hovering right around 99.0 right now but at least it isn't as high as it was last night.  Livvi still just has a yucky cough.  I just want them to get better!  Babies this small shouldn't be sick!  

Despite them being sick, they are still adorable :)  Street has started to try to smile. You can tell in his eyes he is trying and his mouth is making the funniest shapes trying to form into a smile. Its really cute :)  Livvi has been changing a lot the last two weeks or so, I think she is starting to look a lot like Daci did as a baby and she is starting to look a lot more like Street. When they were first born they couldn't have looked more different, but they are starting to look more alike now. They also pull the same facial expressions, which is hilarious. I'll be playing with Livvi and she will pull a face that Street makes and I'll get confused with who I am holding for a second :) Here are my babes at 8 weeks:

You can tell in his eyes that he is sick :(

Of course the photo shoot wouldn't be complete without Daci begging to be in some too :) She sure loves her babies!

Here is my ever-growing Daci bug. I can't believe how big and grown up she is getting!!  We've decided to try and grow her bangs out.  It is taking so much restraint to not just chop them off again because they are at a really scary length right now :)  I'm gonna try and stick it out though!

A funny story about Daci: Yesterday I FINALLY got dressed in something other than sweats and Daci walks in and says, "Ooooh, Mom!  That looks pretty! Now, could you take that pony out?" Haha!  I have had my hair in a pony tail or knot everyday for who knows how long.  You know its bad when your three year old notices that you don't get ready anymore :)  She is really into dressing up and wearing makeup and having her hair done and she always wants me to put my makeup on. Its a good thing I have her to keep me in line :)

7 Weeks

The last few days have been extremely stressful. Daci came down with a nasty virus.  It started out as a cough on Sunday and has progressively gotten worse with a runny nose, red and puffy eyes, and the last three days she has had a fever.  It has been the biggest challenge trying to comfort her and still keep the germs away from the babies.  Of course, she wants lots of cuddles with mommy when she doesn't feel well and then I get covered in the germs.  I am now officially not feeling well and my hands are cracked and bleeding from washing them so often!  How is it possible to keep the babies healthy!?  Its not like I can say, "Daci, go lock yourself in your room til you are better" or "Sorry babies, you have to stay locked in my bedroom til Daci is better".  I have to take care of all three and give them all the loves and attention they need.  I took her to the doctor yesterday with 101 degree fever.  She was just miserable!  She came home and for the first time in her life she laid on the couch for a WHOLE movie.  About 30 mins into it I looked over to ask her how she was doing and she was fast asleep!  This means she REALLY didn't feel well because even when she is sick she is still going, going, going!  Its also so sad to have to continually tell Daci, "Move away from the babies.", or "Don't touch the baby stuff.", or "No honey, I'm sorry you can't hold the babies right now." She loves them so much and loves helping out with them and I can tell it is just breaking her heart that I won't let her touch them.  I feel so bad!  I'm just hoping and praying she gets over this thing quickly and that the babies don't catch it.  How awful would that be!?

In other news....my babies are 7 weeks today and Livvi decided to celebrate by giving me her first smiles!  It made my day and was much needed after the stress I've been feeling.  She is such a sweet baby! My heart just melts when I look at her. Just when I thought it wasn't possible to love her anymore, she comforts me with her amazing open-mouthed grin! What a doll.  She is kind of a pill during the day though.  Livvi refuses to take naps in the afternoon.  She is so tired and I will finally coax her into sleep and then within five minutes she is up again.  So frustrating! The nice thing about Livvi though is that she is never very fussy, so even if she hasn't slept all day, she isn't too hard to handle.

I snapped a few pics today. I was trying so hard to get the smile but kept getting either right before or right after it :( Heres my happy girl at 7 weeks:

Right before

Right after

Right After

Right before

And then there is Mister Street.  This little rascal makes me so happy!  He is so adorable, even when he is screaming :)  I have finally started noticing a difference on his reflux medicine!  Hooray!  About half way through the day on Tuesday (that would be day 10 on the medicine), I started noticing a difference.  He was actually happy and calm for more than 5 minutes out of the day!  I had to get Daci dinner so I put them down on the floor to play.  Normally, he starts screaming immediately when I do that, but after about 15 minutes of preparing Daci's food I realized I hadn't heard any screaming yet!  I quickly turned the corner to make sure everything was alright and he was just laying there, looking around, content, and playing with his little tongue. Ah!  Such a breakthrough moment :)  Since then, he has gotten more and more mellow.  Don't get me wrong, he is still a demanding little bugger when he wants something.  If he needs food, a diaper change, has spit up, or is tired he will most definitely let you know.  He is a little drama queen (king?), you would think he was dying.  BUT if all of his needs are taken care of, he is FINALLY happy playing by himself or interacting with you.  Before, he would shut his eyes, arch his back, and scream bloody murder.  Its so fun to have him look in my eyes and actually interact with me!  Yesterday he was on his tummy on the floor playing next to Livvi and he had decided he had had enough and wanted a change in scenery.  For the first time EVER he wasn't screaming to get what he wanted, instead he was slowly working up to a scream.  He started going, "Maa, Maa, Maa" and then "Baa, baa, baa" in a whiny tone.  Daci goes, "Mom!  Street sounds like a lamby!"  Haha!  We called him our little lamb the rest of the day.

Here are his 7 week pics. So opposite of Liv. Not even a hint of a smile on his face :)

I just love his little body :)

A little about the two of them:

They usually wake up at 7:30am or 8am and that is when I get up for the day (Daci gets up earlier but I have her play in her room until that time), I feed them and pump, change their diapers, get Street dressed and then flip him on his tummy to play (he loves tummy time and he loves my bed!) while I get Livvi dressed.  By the time Livvi is dressed, Street is fast asleep!  I know you aren't supposed to sleep babies on their tummies, and I don't at night, but I do let Street sleep on his tummy for his nap.  Don't worry, I put the video monitor right on his face and watch it the whole time he is sleeping :) After Livvi is dressed, I put her back in the crib and she falls right to sleep.  They take an awesome morning nap everyday, like 4 hours long, and I am able to clean the house, workout, and play with Daci.

I pulled out the play mat that Daci had when she was a baby the other day and they both really like it!  Street loves to play with the crinkly flower and butterfly while he is on his tummy and they both LOVE to kick the rattle by their feet when they are on their backs.  The first time I put them on it Livvi fell right to sleep on her tummy, she has never done that before! She will lay there for like a full hour kicking at the rattle and watching whatever show Daci has on at the time.  Street will last about a half hour playing now that his medicine is starting to kick in.  The mat has been my lifesaver when I need to do something for Daci or pick up the house.

Very typical of these two. He has had his head up since day one and she just chills. No sense of urgency to work for it with Liv :)

This wasn't a real smile yet but so funny that I caught the gas bubble :)

Livvi conked out while Street played

Daci decided to lay down and play next to sleeping Liv

Sometimes it gets squishy and they smack each other :)

Daci loves to play with them! This is before she got sick :)

They hardest time of the day is from about 5:30-9:30 at night, they both refuse to sleep and they cluster feed.  They want a bottle every hour and a half during that time!  Little piglets! Luckily Rick usually gets home at about 6:30 each night to help out with that time.  I try to give them their last bottle at 9:30pm and then they are down for the night at 10pm.  They are still not being very nice to their mommy at night.  They are up every 2.5-3 hours to eat. Occasionally they will give me a good first stretch of sleep, by good I mean they go 4 hours before the next feeding instead of 3 :)

And then we start all over again!