Just As I Suspected and Other Fun Things...

After our first 2 nights and first car ride with Luke's new monitor, we have had ZERO alarms and/or problems - well other than Adam setting it off this morning because he forgot to turn it off, oops! It is as I suspected - he is breathing through the night - but it is nice to know that he is. I think that he has reflux, and once we started him on his meds, he hasn't been grunting at night and he's spitting up like a pro instead of trying to keep it down - probably because it doesn't hurt anymore!!
Other than that, we are on our first "vacation" with the boys! We drove up to Adam's sister's house in Duluth yesterday. (Then I realized that it was the same day as Leah's shower and I forgot to RSVP - SORRY ANNA!!) Our car ride was fantastic! The boys slept the WHOLE way, and were great last night and have been great today. Auntie Amy's dog and cat are nice to the boys, and the boys don't care either way.
Last night we had to watch the NCAA tournaments and the UMD hockey game. The Bulldogs beat Princeton and are playing tonight to try to go to the Frozen Four! (I really don't care that much about sports, but the out-laws do, so I'm sticking in there!!)
I start back to work on Monday, so I'm trying to get one last fun weekend in before I go - we even have babysitters tonight!

Our new machine

For the past couple of weeks, Luke has been choking on his own saliva, seemingly. He turns red, his eyes bug out and he can't catch his breath. Pretty scary. Last night he was laying in his crib with Andrew, getting ready for their baths, and Adam noticed that he was choking again. So, we yank him out of his crib and flip him over and hit him on the back to help him "cough up" whatever it is (saliva). Again, pretty scary. Since this was about the 4th time this has happened I decided to get him into his pediatrician today to see what was going on. I mean, if this has happened 4 times in front of us, what's going on when we're all asleep??
The doctor is not sure why this is happening. It could be a number of things; reflux (which I am convinced he has and have been sure of this since he was in the hospital as a baby), a cleft in his epiglottis, his esophagus is not working correctly, or apnea. Our first step is to go the reflux route, and Luke is now on a prescription for that. If that doesn't work, we will get a swallow study done.
In addition to the meds, Luke has also been put on an apnea moniter. Today Adam and I had to go to Children's Hospital to learn how to use the moniter and also take a CPR class. Lucky for us, he has never turned blue or anything, and we have him "plugged in" right now just to see what happens. So far nothing has beeped, which is a great sign. Tonight will be our first night and I'm totally freaked out as to what I will do if that thing goes off! Hopefully it never will...
It's a good thing to moniter, just so we know that he's ok during the night, but it's sad because he can't sleep with Andrew anymore, and poor Andrew if that thing beeps (and poor Shaggy - he'll totally lose it!).
At least it doesn't bother him. He's just as happy now as ever - hooked up to those wires, and he doesn't even realize what's happening. It will be very interesting to see what happens...

Prayers Needed

This week has been a week of bad news. My boys are healthy and fine (with the exceptional fuss over our new excursion of teething), but I have some friends that need your prayers. One of my friends from high school and her husband had their first baby last night. They had a little girl, who was due in mid-July. Their daughter is named Ella and weighs 1 lb, 3 oz. I haven't heard any updates, but if it so moves you, please pray for them and their little girl.
Also, a friend of a good friend of mine could use some prayers. Her son is sick and in the hospital with a heart condition. You can read her story here.
It all makes me so grateful that I have healthy little boys.

3 months old already

Time sure flies by! Here we are at the end of March already! The boys are 3 months old, and I have to go back to work on Monday...

Here are some of the latest pictures.

Good sitters on the couch - Dad's been practicing!

The bowling pin keeps getting smaller.

They got a little crazy in this picture!

We weighed the boys on the scale last week (this is on our home scale, so it's not exact). Drew was a little over 12 lbs. and Luke was over 13 lbs.!! It's all in the cheeks :) Our nurse comes on Thursday for our last RSV shot of the season - so far no one's been sick (knock on wood!).

We had a busy and exciting weeked. We took our first car trip to Adam's parents' house (an hour away). We stayed overnight, and the boys did very well. Well, they got up a couple of extra times in the night, and didn't sleep that great, but overall it went well. Even Grandma and Grandpa's dog, Kirby, was well-behaved!

That must've worn the boys out because on Sunday night after we got home, they slept from 9pm to 5am (8 hours!!). I hoped and prayed that it would stick, but of course not. They were back on their 'normal' schedule again last night - which really isn't that bad - they only get up once a night and are efficient eaters now, so it takes no time at all.

Recent developments in the past month include the following:
Luke started sucking on his hand (not his thumb, not his fingers, his entire hand). He may be teething?? He's being fussier and droolier than normal, but so far has no fever and no red cheeks, and we can't feel anything on his gums - we'll see.

Andrew has decided that he never wants to sit or be put into a seated position. He would like to stand up at all times (assisted of course). Downside, he will NOT sit in a swing or on the couch without some coercing - upside, he is getting very strong legs and can hold his head up very well. Soon, they will be able to go into their jumpy toys, which I have a feeling they will just LOVE.

Both boys have started talking a LOT and you can hear all sorts of screams, coos, and outbursts from them at any given time. They also both enjoy being entertained and having a lot of "face time" with us. This is a little tricky when I'm the only one home, but gets pretty fun when dad's around!

That's about it for us here. I have to go back to work on Monday and I have a feeling that I will be exhausted! I was in last week for 2 1/2 hours and left feeling like I was totally drained! I am very nervous for that "beginning of the year" feeling. You teachers know what I'm talking about! The rest of you think we have it easy having the whole summer off, but it's a lot of work getting back into the swing of things those first few weeks back at school, and now I get to do it again while I'm worn out and not getting enough sleep because I have these two fellers. I am hoping that they will soon sleep through the night and that I am not stupid when I return to work. Wish me luck!

The Visitor

Yesterday, the boys had a friend come to visit! Their (2nd?) cousin, Grant, came to play for the day. Grant is my cousin Erica's 3-week old baby. They were all originally due on the same day, but my boys came 2 months early, and Grant decided to come 1 week late. Since we had all the boys together, we decided on a photo opportunity. Drew and Luke really liked looking at Erica instead of their boring old mom, and Grant had to be propped up because he is too little to sit between the big boys. We were laughing so hard!

Someone's tipping

Now someone else is tipping

Erica must be funny over there

Woah, everyone looks tippy here.

We had a nice afternoon with snacks and talking. My boys took a nice nap, and I got to hold the baby, and he is so cute and little (comparatively - he's 10 lbs himself!)

What A Weekend!

First of all, this weekend was fantastic! The weather was gorgeous and most of the snow melted in our yard (which always makes me so happy). We were also very busy! On Saturday, my friends from graduate school came over and had a little shower. We had a very fun afternoon. When you get that many SLP's together, there is a minimum of 3 conversations going on at any given time, so it was both exciting (since I never get to talk to adults anymore) and also very exhausting! The boys got some very nice gifts.

Here is a picture of Luke (wearing his name shirt from Nikki - thanks Nikki!) modeling his new Bumbo seat! Adam is worried he won't fit into it very soon :S

Drew is modeling one of his new BumGenius 3.0 cloth diapers. Yes, I use cloth diapers most of the time. The reason is not only does it seem so ridiculous to throw away that much garbage, but also do you know how many chemicals are in disposable diapers (sposies to the eco-friendly :) )? Infertility is linked to chlorine in disposable diapers, and who wants their kids' little butts sitting in all that?? If you think about it, my generation was the first that were really sitting in disposables most of the time, and you don't even know how many people I know (including myself) that have/had infertility issues. Plus, it's much more cost-effective for diapering 2 kids to use cloth. Ok, off of the soap box, now look how cute he is! After all the partying, Drew was worn out and sleepy the rest of the day.

Luke was happy, but fought naps the rest of the day and has been doing so ever since!

On Sunday we had another shower from the ladies that I sing with at my church. We had another very nice afternoon and got more books and gifts. One of the ladies made this cake for the boys - yes, she made it herself - Anne you know who it is - and she makes a good cake!

So, all in all, a wonderful weekend!

P.S. I also started making my own baby wipes because my boys were getting actual tears in their skin from even the "sensitive" wipes - also many chemicals - so I make my own. Here's the recipe if you are interested:

Baby Wipes

1 roll Bounty paper towels

2 cups water

1 TBSP. baby oil

2 TBSP. baby wash

4-5 drops tea tree oil (optional) - acts as an antibacterial agent

*Cut paper towels in 1/2 with a serrated knife so you get 2 shorter rolls. Take center tube out and pull the towels up from the middle. Put in round air-tight canister (I got one at Cub). Mix together water, baby oil and baby wash (and tea tree oil). Pour over paper towels. It'll soak in after 10 min.

This lasts us about a week, and the boys haven't had any problems with it yet. I am not using tea tree oil because it is toxic when ingested and I worry too much that I'm poisoning my kids (yes, I'm crazy). I use Aveeno baby wash and shampoo (lightly scented) because it's less toxic than other brands (go to Skin Deep to check toxicity of products). My friend who also does this uses Daisy Blue or Arbonne Baby products for her wipes.

Also, yes, I'm planning on making my own baby food and I use organic produce/food when possible. What have I become?? (I still drink diet mtn. dew which I am sure is poisonous!)

T minus 3 weeks

In just 3 weeks, I have to go back to work. I am SO not excited for this and would much rather stay home, but unfortunately we have not won the lottery yet, so I have to keep working. (BTW have you ever played Lucky Lines? Adam got me hooked when I was in the hospital, now we have "date night" and do scratch-offs - I'm not kidding. This is my life).

There are about 5 million reasons why I don't want to go back to work, but here is the main reason:

We tried to get them to smile - that didn't work. They apparently think we are crazy.

Dad got Luke to smile for him.

They are probably trying to eat each other, but I like to think they're talking. :)

Look who FINALLY started smiling at us!

As you can see, they are pretty cute kids if I do say so myself! How am I going to leave them all day?? I did get them on a pretty good schedule, so they will hopefully be awake in the evenings when we get home. Then we can spend time with them for a little while at least.

FYI: The schedule is working great so far! The boys have been taking 2 naps during the day, are happier in the evenings, and have been sleeping from 8:45-2:15am at least! Then they usually get up around 6:00-6:30 for the day. Someday I hear they will sleep through the night. Won't that be wonderful!!