Category Archives: Milestones

June 27, 2010

Chocolate Explosion

Search officially hit the three-pound mark today. Destroy is close behind at 2.9 pounds – he should catch up to his brother in the next day or so. And tomorrow the boys will be one month old. Already!

We’ve had a lot of help getting them here. The nurses at the NICU are amazing. Each day they let us know how our muppets are doing and provide the advice on how best to care for them. We’re learning their little quirks and developing personalities right alongside their nurses.

So to celebrate their one-month birthday, I made the NICU nurses cupcakes. Behold: my baking brilliance.

While I was mixing the bowl of soon-to-be Devil’s Food cupcakes, I remembered a tremendously chocolatey adventure from my childhood. I was in middle school. My brother, Paul, was just about to finish up elementary school. It was summer vacation and Mom was already back at work.

Paul and I decided the only thing missing from a perfect summer’s day was a chilled bowl of chocolate pudding. With the help of the JELL-O instant mix and the blender – this was an easily remedied situation. So we set to work.

What happened next is one of life’s timeless mysteries. My working hypothesis is that the cord of the mixer caught the bottom of the freshly mixed pudding bowl – sending it spinning through the air.

Suddenly I heard Paul yell, “Hit the deck!!!” as he flattened himself behind the island in the kitchen. When he stood back up, the kitchen was brown. Utterly covered in chocolate. He stared at me as I wiped a sightline out of pudding from my face. Pudding slowly dripped from the ceiling onto Paul’s head.

We stared at each other in shock a few moments longer, surveying the explosive damage. “We’re going to need to clean this up before Mom gets home,” Paul observed. I concurred.

Four very long hours later, we were still mopping up chocolate and emptying countless murkey buckets of water. Mom returned home. We heard the garage door open and, without even a hello, Mom shouted, “I smell chocolate.”

Busted.

Years later we were still finding bits of chocolate throughout the kitchen. Truly, it was an impressive spill. Gramma J is now redoing the kitchen. So just remember, when the contractor removes an old appliance and questions the odd pattern of dirt spatter – it’s probably the remnants of a summer’s afternoon experiment with chocolate pudding.

Search

Destroy

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June 20, 2010

Fathers Day

Happy Fathers Day. Normally, I’m not a big fan of Hallmark holidays, but this is Jon’s first Fathers Day. And what a ride it’s been. So, HAPPY FATHERS DAY JON!!!

I’ve always known Jon would make a phenomenal father. Ne’er an animal or child have I met that hasn’t instantly been taken with Jon. It’s pretty amazing to think how crazy the journey to fatherhood has been – and we’ve only had the muppets in our world for three weeks.

At the very start of this muppet caper Jon brought home an adorable little black dress for me. It was my first piece of maternity wear. “You can wear it to your shower,” he stated proudly. I’ve gotten to wear it once.

Jon sat next to me at the doctor’s office, mouth agape, when we first heard the babies heart beats. He sat stoically as we realized they were plural – a pair of babies.

During the first trimester, he tried to cook non-arf inducing foods. He never complained as he took away a dish on Friday that I’d loved on Tuesday. He stayed in on his 30th birthday because even the thought of a restaurant made me arf a little bit.

Jon was with me at 16 weeks when we learned we were having two boys. He took that afternoon and discovered the names for our boys.

He made it to the hospital in five minutes flat at 22 weeks when I was admitted to Labor & Delivery. He sat with me as the doctor refused to give us good news. He shuttled back and forth from home to the hospital during the next six weeks – spending mornings and afternoons with me and taking care of our home during the evenings.

Jon sat awake all night on May 27 in an uncomfortable chair. He apologized to the nurses when I had a mild tantrum over the accessibility of water. He was by my side while I informed him that I did not like the contractions at all. He was the first to post on Facebook that we were about to meet the muppets when the doctors started prepping the OR.

He was the first to meet them after the whirlwind surgery circus. And he wheeled me over to meet them the next day.

I’ve seen him smile with a little man in his arms. And I couldn’t agree more with Jon’s assessment that “they’re pretty much the neatest things I’ve ever seen.”

To all those first time Fathers Day fathers – may your kiddos bring you all the joy in the world (and a decreasing level of stress as they grow).

  • The Catalano’s and little Jackson
  • The Cooperman’s and little Molly and Wyatt (Twins Rule!)
  • The Dersom’s and little Emmarie
  • The Francesconi’s and little Leila
  • The Schulman’s and little Luke
  • The Wright’s and little Jason
  • All our fellow NICU parents – whoever you are we’re with you in hoping your babes grow up big and strong.

And these are just the little ones I know about.

To Grandpa Gary – for giving me the father of my children.

To Grandpa Gustavo – for decorating the house in pink streamers and blasting “Thank Heavens for Little Girls” when I was born, for putting up with me during my teenage years, for lasting no more than 15 seconds before bursting into tears when I call to tell you about your grandsons.

To Jon – here’s to our family. You were born to play this game.

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June 17, 2010

Rubber Ducky You’re the One

Well, let’s be serious – obviously no actual rubber duckies were involved. They’re about the same size as our pint-sized water baby.

Search had a bath earlier this week. This wasn’t his first foray into the suds, but it was the first such adventure with Mom and Dad. He is one slippery little dude. But it is clear that he is a fan of the water. Someday I bet it will only take one parent to bathe the baby, but for now it takes two (and the added advice from the nurse).

First, you wash the babies hair. My babies have lots of hair – enough to visibly have bed head. I have never seen Search looking so relaxed. He remained calm and cozy in his blanket while we massaged his little head. His body language clearly expressing the thought, “Yes, they all cater to ME.”

They all cater to ME

After ensuring the quality of his luxurious locks, we lowered the little man into his tub. Ever the fan of his food, he assisted by holding tightly to his feeding tube. One of us held the slippery squirmer as best we could and the other applied soap and water. I have no doubt that as he gets older, splashing will be de rigueur when it comes to bath time.

We did have to endure a bit of screaming. At first I thought he was scared or getting too much stimulation. But one of the bath rituals in the NICU involves removing the sensors. Since they’re attached with stickers, I imagine this part of tub time is a lot like having multiple band-aids ripped off. Yeah, I’d be cranky too.

Search – I apologize now. I’m sure you will be less than thrilled with these photos when you’re older. And I promise to take photos of Destroy’s first bath with Mom and Dad as well. Because who in the world could resist such precious soggy bottom boys.

During his prior dunking, the never satisfied to be still Search, gripped the sides of his tub so tightly that his nurse had a dickens of a time prying him loose. He then attempted to stand up. Search’s aqua affinity from his bathing adventures present three possibilities: (1) You are currently reading about the next Michael Phelps, (2) Search feels his crawling efforts are beneath him and it’s time to walk or (3) how difficult could it really be to walk on water?

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June 14, 2010

The Big 3-0

Jon hit it in February. I’m rushing toward it in November. But today, it’s all about the twins. The big 3-0. Search and Destroy are 30 weeks along today. Even though they’re only two weeks old, they’re considered 30 weeks since preemies have an adjusted age based on their expected due date.

Both show extreme spirit, so if all continues along this path health-wise we hope to have them home in about six weeks. This morning Destroy was sleeping soundly on his tummy when the doctor came to examine him. Much to Destroy’s dismay, the doc put him back on his back. Destroy proceeded to squirm and fidget up the side of his bunting to return to his tummy. His half cries/squeaks clearly stated, “Put me back the way you found me!”

In contrast, his brother is working to perfect his little angel eyes. During Kangaroo time, Search likes to pull his head back and look up at us. It’s sweet, but it also correlates to a drop in his heart rate so we discourage it. Today when I went to turn his head, he looked up at me – eyes wide open and both tiny hands tucked under his chin – with a perfect “I could never do anything wrong” expression. Apparently, no one told our little inchworm Search (who decided to celebrate today by bringing his weight up to 1,030 grams) that he’s still too young to leave the NICU.

Search has also progressed from merely scootching his little tushy straight up in the air to adding an arched back and pressing himself forward. He is developing quite a repertoire, what with the previously acquired tube-ripping-out talent. Naturally, he still can’t crawl (though he’s sure trying) so he has turned himself into the Hungry Caterpillar. At this rate, I highly doubt he’ll be all that far behind his peers in the mobility category.

Both boys continue to tolerate their feedings extremely well. Out of all the wires they keep trying to rip out, the one they don’t seem to mind is the feeding tube. Instead of pouting and pulling at it, they simply lovely wrap their little fingers around the feeding tube and hold on tightly. I am envisioning many future trips to Costco with two growing boys in the house. Rumor has it bottle feeding may be as soon as two weeks away.

Luckily, we seem to be trending upward in size. We’ve been expecting their weight to start rising since they’re doing so well with their food. (Well, the nutrients they retain and don’t poop out.) As I mentioned, Search has plumped up to 1,030 grams and Destroy is up to 1,055 (about 2.3 pounds each).

All these feedings bring us right back around to pooping. The twins also excel at pottying. (Oh, are they going to love me for this blog when they’re older.) Regularity shows the nurses and doctors that their little gastrointestinal tracts are functioning properly. Both my little men are in big boy diapers. At first I worried that their gastrointestinal tracts were functioning too well – I thought they might never gain weight based on the not-so-little gifts wrapped so nicely in the aforementioned big boy diapers.

Yesterday, I changed Search’s diaper after I held him – he was quite wet. The nurse suggested we turn him onto his tummy to tuck him in for the night. (Both Search and Destroy love sleeping on their tummies and can do so because of the 24/7 monitoring in the NICU.) In the few seconds it took me to flip the little squirmer, his diaper was fully soiled. And I do mean that literally. His diaper was full – practically soaked through the outside. The nurse took one whiff, smiled and said, “That’s all you mom.”

Jon and I are getting quite good at diaper changing. But the boys are also getting more creative. When changing Destroy’s wet diaper yesterday, I put a new diaper under him and picked up the wipes. When I looked back, his bed bunting was soaked. Not just one small area – the entire bunting was a misty yellow. The fresh diaper, on the other hand, completely bone dry. Little Destroy had managed to pee out the side of his diaper. Medical professionals say they’re too young for emotions and that it’s likely just gas – but I still say Destroy smiled. He seemed pretty pleased with the mess he made.

It’s still rough – being in parenting limbo. But with each day, I’m starting to feel more like a parent. We’ve got our routine down and I’m learning the boys signs (like an apnea episode is a pretty clear sign that someone needs their diaper changed). Both are opening their eyes a lot more. And even if they can still only see hazy shapes, it’s heartwarming to think they’re looking to see that their parents are visiting.

Although, Search may also be looking to find the best escape route…

Search: 30 Weeks

Destroy: 30 Weeks

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June 5, 2010

One Week

It’s been one week since the twins arrived. The time has passed by in the blink of an eye and taken forever at the same time.

The routine we have developed is as follows:

9 a.m.: Pump milk for the boys.
9:30 a.m.: Morning visit to the NICU. Quiz the nurses on Search and Destroy’s progress and spend some family time with our boys.
12 p.m.: Pump milk for the boys.
12:30 p.m.: Attempt to run errands and eat lunch.
3 p.m.: Pump milk for the boys.
3:30 p.m.: Afternoon visit to the NICU. Call the NICU, letting them know we’re in the lobby and would like to be let in to see our boys. Kangaroo Kare! (Depending on how the boys are doing.)
6 p.m.: Pump milk for the boys.
6:30 p.m.: Pause to see if I will have a stress breakdown about how unfair life is for my babies.
7 p.m.: Attempt to clear items of household to-do list. (Usually a futile attempt.)
9 p.m.: Pump milk for the boys.
9:30 p.m.: Dinner-ish (Cereal counts.)
10 p.m.: Crash on whichever soft furniture item happens to be closest. Think about trying to muster energy for a blog post.
11 p.m.: Get ready for bed.
12 a.m.: Pump milk for the boys.
12:30 a.m.: Nap.
3 a.m.: Pump milk for the boys. Try in vain to remain upright and awake for said process.
3:30 a.m.: Nap.
6 a.m.: Become very confused about why an alarm is going off. Fall out of bed and pump milk for the boys.
6:15 a.m.: Discover Scout has been eating apples from our tree again by way of the doggie vomit on the nursery rug.
6:20 a.m.: Clean and curse.
6:30 a.m.: Nap.
9 a.m.: Rinse and repeat.

The boys routine changes slightly depending on their daily interaction with the neonatologist. The vast majority of their day is spent sleeping, although recently they’ve taken to opening their eyes quite a bit more. Today during Kanga time, Search would try to lift his head and look up at me with his eyes wide open. I know all they can allegedly see are out-of-focus hazy shapes, but I prefer to comfort myself with the thought that my boys are already little geniuses.

They also eat (via their feeding tube) every three hours, and an hour after mealtime is the standard coffee break. (Yes, the boys get dosed with caffeine. After all those months that moms spend avoiding it, it’s the first thing a preemie gets.)

Search and Destroy are doing very well. All the doctors and nurses warned us, as par for the course in a preemie’s development, parents should expect to see two steps forward and one step back. During these first weeks, the lesson is breathing.

Due to their young age and tiny size, apnea and bradycardia are very common. Medically, this means an interruption in breathing and a slow heart rate, respectively. In reality, this means they forget to breathe on their own. Each of the twins is currently dealing with the aforementioned problems. Destroy currently has no air assistance, while Search has gone forward and back needing a little extra aid. Apparently, their lungs work fabulously but the extra help is a bit like a personal trainer helping them to strengthen the muscle tissue.

We are very focused on this lesson right now – breathing is very important. The NICU staff assures us that they fully expect Search and Destroy to pass Lung Functionality 101 by simply growing. Growing is to be expected when they start tolerating more and more milk. We expect eating to be heavily involved during the next phase – they need to convince their tiny tummies to process food. Multi-tasking won’t take place until NICU graduate levels.

Destroy: One Week

Search: One Week

It’s been one week. We’re hoping the next 7-11 weeks go smoothly. Then we can finally all be together as a family. And I can make the boys read this post when their teenagers and confident that they know everything – reminding them that at one point they didn’t even know they should keep breathing.

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June 4, 2010

One Big Happy Family

No witty repartee on the blog today. The twins are a week old and I’m exhausted.

So without further ado, may I present to you the first Stream family photo:

Mom and Search, Dad and Destroy

Additional in-depth analysis of this week shall resume some time this weekend.

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June 2, 2010

Kangaroo Kare

I didn’t plan to write a post today. I thought perhaps I’d take a day off to try and accomplish some of the items on my to-do list. But then Kangaroo Kare became a part of my new routine. This just had to be shared.

For those of you expecting an off-the-wall rant or adventure involving marsupials, you may be shocked to learn Kangaroo Kare is actually a medically proven technique. (It’s even listed in my new preemie dictionary.

Since the boys arrived last Friday, my to-do list has been steadily growing. I’ve even had to organize my lists into a list to keep everything straight. Six weeks of bedrest, four spent locked in a hospital, gave me lots of time to realize what we needed to do before the boys come home. In addition, now that I’m home (and very sadly my muppets are not), nesting fever has fully encompassed me.

I’d like to straighten out several of our rooms: clean out my medicine cabinet (since I have oodles of extra pre-term birth prevention, which worked oh so well…), organize the office and categorize my digital files (since the boys will be top paparazzi targets) and put the nursery in order.

I have lists of items to get like basic household necessities in Costco bulk, groceries, baby needs (we’ve ordered preemie pacifiers based on the boys attitude toward sucking on their food lines and impressive attempts at thumb sucking) and books I think the boys may enjoy hearing now.

I’ve got paper work to fill out for my maternity leave, insurance, new dependants and Thank You cards to write for all of you who have been so wonderfully generous during this seriously stressful period. And Gramma J keeps heavily hinting that perhaps we should be looking at new (larger) vehicles. (I have become the lone supporter for my trustworthy 12-year-old Honda.)

I’ve got pampering issues to deal with. I’d love to get my hair cut and perhaps even a massage since my back still hurts. Ideally, I’ll be out walking and enjoying beautiful weather – something I was dearly deprived of during lockdown. (This is doctor ordered to help heal a C-Section and muscle atrophy from long-term bedrest.)

Babywise, I am in process of crocheting each of my sons a unique baby blanket. Yet, since this takes time, I am also looking for a simple sewing pattern to make them small quilts. One of the practices in the NICU is to place a blanket over the isolettes.

Totally radical waves dude!

Yee-haw!!!

(This helps keep the environment darker for the boys as they’re already getting enough stimulation as it is.) Right now, Search’s blanket is blue with surfer dudes. Destroy’s is green/tan with John Deere tractors. Neither is appropriate – I just can’t seem them as “brahs” hangin’ 10 or country-boy farmers.

So what does this have to do with Kangaroo Kare? And how does that add to my current commitment and dedication to being the Dairy Queen every three hours and visiting their temporary home twice a day? Simple. All those activities in the previous five paragraphs – so what, who cares? They may or may not get done some time in the future, possibly before Search and Destroy graduate college and move out.

We got to hold Destroy today (hopefully Search will be Joey-ready tomorrow). For the first time, I held my tiny baby in my arms, cradled him and felt his heart beating against mine. He opened his little eyes before falling into what I perceived to be a tremendously content and peaceful nap.

Kangaroo Kare is the technique of skin-to-skin contact between baby and parent. Our nurses have repeatedly told us how much the babes enjoy the experience and that it makes them thrive. Studies state this marsupial method offers significant benefits for preterm infants such as increased ability to regulate their own temperature, decreased apnea occurrences and increased weight. Additional studies also suggest that Kangaroo babies have improved cognitive development, decreased stress levels, reduced pain responses, normalized growth and positive effects on motor development. Maybe this means earlier release home is a possibility?

Going back to yesterday’s post, today gave me yet another new perspective – realizing how small they are and the expansive intensity of a parent’s ability to love. I would happily spend every moment of the next several months holding my babies. It’s true. I’d voluntarily commit myself back to the hospital for this.

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