So I headed back to work on Monday and this week has been quite the adjustment. Luckily, Jack has been home on paternity leave, which I think has helped our transition. But being away from them for 10+ hours is really tough. I am going in super early so I can get home by 5, but those couple hours in the evening before bed just aren't enough. I miss them quite a bit. Andrew has also decided that nighttime is no longer for sleeping and has been waking up every 3 or 4 hours again either to eat or just be awake and play. This does not make getting up at my 5:30 alarm very easy!
Being away from them more, I'm noticing their subtle changes each day. Paige just looks older and more mature to me lately - where did my newborn go?? And Andrew has really made great progress with his head control and now brings his hands to midline. We had our intake assessment yesterday afternoon with our case manager for the ITC (infant and toddler connection) program in Fairfax County. It took a couple hours for her to review the program and the process to get started, talk about our concerns and their strengths and weaknesses, and fill out all the paperwork to consent to things and agree to their policies. Next step is their eligibility meeting on Monday - we already know they are eligible simply based on the length of their NICU stay and the fact that from yesterday's assessment, are delayed in a couple areas. Then we schedule a long assessment with a big team of people including two developmentalists, speech pathologist, social worker, case worker and a couple other people I'm forgetting. This will help us focus on what services they will need and how often. From yesterday's meeting, we basically know that Paige needs to focus on communication with the speech pathologist and Andrew needs help with his gross motor. They will both likely need some help with fine motor, too. We're very anxious for the big assessment to get some expert opinions and guidance but it likely won't be for another month or so...
With me being at work, I haven't been as great with taking pictures....but we will take videos and new pics this weekend. Stay tuned!
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Friday, March 18, 2011
Happy Saint Patrick's Day!
As always, our children were very spoiled and got lots of Saint Patrick's Day gifts to help us celebrate yesterday!
Hope you all had a great day!
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| Kiss Us! We're very Irish! |
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| Paige loves the holiday! |
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| Thanks, Grandma for our cute onesies! |
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| Truly our Irish Hooligan! |
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| Thanks to our Great Aunt Anne for our awesome onesies and booties! |
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| And Paige in her's! |
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| Definitely our Irish Blessing |
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| Thanks Tess and Justin for our cute bibs! (Andrew is starting to lose patience with the photo shoot!) |
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| And we're done celebrating! |
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Georgetown Appointment
Yesterday was our appointment at the Neonatal Follow-Up Clinic. Of course, I had my list of things to cover:) But they were actually surprised at how short the list was in the end! I guess that means we are doing pretty well...
First off, their stats: Paige weighs 11 pounds, 11 ounces and is 23.7 inches (weight 54%, height 67% for adjusted age). Andrew weights 12 pounds, 11 ounces and is 22.6 inches (weight 55%, height 17%). Its amazing to think that our tiny, little baby boy has gained 10 POUNDS since birth! That is 5 times his birth weight! Amazing. Based on their growth, we talked about adjusting calories and introducing solids. The decision is to leave them on the preemie formula for a couple more months and to wait on solids until they are 7 months (5 months adjusted). They do believe that especially Andrew is still in the "catch up" phase from his growth restriction in utero and needs the extra nutrients. I guess this gives him an excuse for his ravenous (and I mean crazy ravenous!) behavior and needing to wake up every couple hours in the middle of the night to eat still...we won't complain for a couple more months:)
The big items on my list were mostly related to development. I was interested in gathering the Neonatologists' opinions about their progress and see their thoughts on Early Intervention. Their response: "Why wouldn't you try to get them services? You know they're delayed. Call now." So I went home and placed the call to Fairfax County's Infant and Toddler's Connection Program (ITC). I already got a call back from the intake coordinator and we will be hearing from our case manager by early next week. I was surprised at their efficiency after the rumors I had heard! But I also found out that Paige and Andrew automatically qualify for the program simply based on the time they spent in the hospital. This is awesome and really is how it should be. Fairfax is actually a little ahead of the game though because this is currently the push Nationally...its just most places haven't put it into practice yet. So the next step - meeting with our assigned case manager and evaluation by two independent developmentalists to determine what services they need and what our goals are. I'll keep you posted on our progress.
Overall, the appointment went really well and their group continues to be amazed at how well they are doing. They truly are our little miracles and Jack and I are so thankful every day for how lucky we are. I guess our long, stressful ordeal was worth it - I mean, look how cute they are!
First off, their stats: Paige weighs 11 pounds, 11 ounces and is 23.7 inches (weight 54%, height 67% for adjusted age). Andrew weights 12 pounds, 11 ounces and is 22.6 inches (weight 55%, height 17%). Its amazing to think that our tiny, little baby boy has gained 10 POUNDS since birth! That is 5 times his birth weight! Amazing. Based on their growth, we talked about adjusting calories and introducing solids. The decision is to leave them on the preemie formula for a couple more months and to wait on solids until they are 7 months (5 months adjusted). They do believe that especially Andrew is still in the "catch up" phase from his growth restriction in utero and needs the extra nutrients. I guess this gives him an excuse for his ravenous (and I mean crazy ravenous!) behavior and needing to wake up every couple hours in the middle of the night to eat still...we won't complain for a couple more months:)
The big items on my list were mostly related to development. I was interested in gathering the Neonatologists' opinions about their progress and see their thoughts on Early Intervention. Their response: "Why wouldn't you try to get them services? You know they're delayed. Call now." So I went home and placed the call to Fairfax County's Infant and Toddler's Connection Program (ITC). I already got a call back from the intake coordinator and we will be hearing from our case manager by early next week. I was surprised at their efficiency after the rumors I had heard! But I also found out that Paige and Andrew automatically qualify for the program simply based on the time they spent in the hospital. This is awesome and really is how it should be. Fairfax is actually a little ahead of the game though because this is currently the push Nationally...its just most places haven't put it into practice yet. So the next step - meeting with our assigned case manager and evaluation by two independent developmentalists to determine what services they need and what our goals are. I'll keep you posted on our progress.
Overall, the appointment went really well and their group continues to be amazed at how well they are doing. They truly are our little miracles and Jack and I are so thankful every day for how lucky we are. I guess our long, stressful ordeal was worth it - I mean, look how cute they are!
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| 3 Months Adjusted on Saturday |
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| Big girls put their hands together:) |
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| And big boys wear sweaters:) |
Monday, March 14, 2011
Catching Up
Wow am I behind with blogging! I was actually sick last week and didn't get out of bed for three days. Needless to say, things like blogging got put on hold. Thank goodness for my Mom who came and took care of me AND the babies! Don't know what I would have done without her!
Despite me being sick, we have had some fun over the past 10 days. Paige and Andrew's Uncle Josh was home from college to celebrate his 19th birthday and we spent the day at Grandma and Grandpa's two weekends ago. To add to that excitement, Uncle Will and their cousins Mac and Carson also came to town, so the kids finally got to meet! It was a fun day and it was great to see all of them.
They also finally got to meet their Uncle Thomas last week, too. He was home on spring break from UVA and we met for lunch. Let's just say the babies did not enjoy the restaurant very much and we all took turns walking and rocking them:)
We have also been very busy working on our exercises and have made great progress with tummy time! Paige is now consistently holding her head off the ground for long periods and will push up with her arms. This is HUGE considering she wouldn't lift her head off the mat two weeks ago. Andrew continues to lift his head for brief periods, but that darn thing is just SO big that it takes a lot of effort. They did both ROLL from tummy to back for the first time though! They aren't purposeful rolls and can't do it consistently, but both have flipped more than once. Can you believe that?!? Pretty much on track with their adjusted age -- three months as of next weekend.
Big appointment at Georgetown tomorrow - stats and updates after that!
Despite me being sick, we have had some fun over the past 10 days. Paige and Andrew's Uncle Josh was home from college to celebrate his 19th birthday and we spent the day at Grandma and Grandpa's two weekends ago. To add to that excitement, Uncle Will and their cousins Mac and Carson also came to town, so the kids finally got to meet! It was a fun day and it was great to see all of them.
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| Happy birthday Uncle Josh! |
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| So great to see Mac & Carson! |
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| Andrew - happy as long as he's held! |
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| Check me out! |
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| I'm starting to like my belly! |
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| But playtime is HARD work! |
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| Even though its FUN! |
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| And we're getting SO BIG! |
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| And even more beautiful! |
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Thursday Fun!
We left early this morning and headed to Nana's for the day. What was the plan??? Shopping! We had our first mall adventure and let's just say we had a little too much success in the baby stores:) When we got home, Paige decided to model one of her new summer outfits!
When we got home, we enjoyed some playtime together at Nana's...
Our Papa gave us a new flip video. Very cool because you'll get to see them "live" now! Hope you had a great Thursday, too!
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| It'll look fabulous in the summer when it actually fits! |
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| I'm all ready for the pool! |
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| And I'm ready for my first baseball game! |
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| Happy together |
Our Papa gave us a new flip video. Very cool because you'll get to see them "live" now! Hope you had a great Thursday, too!
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Developmental Appointment
Yesterday was our appointment with the developmentalist. Things went pretty much as expected.
Andrew was in a great mood and was very cooperative. This is key to getting a good evaluation since you really want to see what they can do. He tracked beautifully, cooed and laughed, had good tone, started showing an interest in reaching for objects, and lifted his hips off the mat. Tummy time and head control are a little behind, which we knew, but he is starting to weight-bear on his arms to push up and lift his chest. Considering his growth restriction and lengthy hospital stay with readmission, they were very pleased with how he looked overall. But he has specific exercises to work on his strength and head control. His biggest issue is that his head is SO big and hard to move. This will improve as he grows and with lots of work at home!
Paige was not as cooperative but did participate some. We knew her head control was lacking more than his and that definitely showed. She will not push up with her arms at all on her tummy and only has strength enough to lift her chin for a few seconds. They thought this was about at a one month level. She did track and hold attention better though, and brought her hands to midline and grasped objects for longer. Her biggest issue is that she is slightly hypotonic (a little floppy) and just doesn't have the overall strength yet to support herself. We have different exercises to work on with her and despite her hatred of tummy time, we will continue to push it all the time!
None of these findings were surprising. We have been told since the beginning that development would be our obstacle. And I was aware of most things she pointed out just by playing with them each day. We talked about getting services (physical therapy and occupational therapy) but she thinks that exercises at home at this point will work. The problems they are having are common preemie issues that usually resolve over several months. She reminded us that they are just two months old adjusted (which is hard to remember since it seems like they've been around forever!) and that they really are doing amazingly well. She explained to us that babies born at their gestational age often develop cognitive skills closer to their chronologic age and are more behind in motor skills. This is definitely true for them.
We have LOTS of homework to do (much of which we were already doing) and I am just so grateful that they will be at home with personal attention for the rest of the year. Jack will be home starting in three weeks (when I go back to work) for a month and then my mom will be with them for the remainder of the year. We couldn't be luckier to have this gift and the developmentalist was thrilled that this was our plan. I know that the three of us will be diligent in working with them and ensuring that we get on the right developmental track quickly.
So the next step - We will have an earlier follow-up appointment with the developmentalist to ensure we are making progress in two months. We are also seeing the Georgetown clinic in a little over two weeks, so we will see what their opinion is. If we aren't taking steps in the right direction, we will ask for an evaluation from Fairfax County for Early Intervention....or we'll look at private services.
Some pics for the week (those on facebook have already seen two of them):
Andrew was in a great mood and was very cooperative. This is key to getting a good evaluation since you really want to see what they can do. He tracked beautifully, cooed and laughed, had good tone, started showing an interest in reaching for objects, and lifted his hips off the mat. Tummy time and head control are a little behind, which we knew, but he is starting to weight-bear on his arms to push up and lift his chest. Considering his growth restriction and lengthy hospital stay with readmission, they were very pleased with how he looked overall. But he has specific exercises to work on his strength and head control. His biggest issue is that his head is SO big and hard to move. This will improve as he grows and with lots of work at home!
Paige was not as cooperative but did participate some. We knew her head control was lacking more than his and that definitely showed. She will not push up with her arms at all on her tummy and only has strength enough to lift her chin for a few seconds. They thought this was about at a one month level. She did track and hold attention better though, and brought her hands to midline and grasped objects for longer. Her biggest issue is that she is slightly hypotonic (a little floppy) and just doesn't have the overall strength yet to support herself. We have different exercises to work on with her and despite her hatred of tummy time, we will continue to push it all the time!
None of these findings were surprising. We have been told since the beginning that development would be our obstacle. And I was aware of most things she pointed out just by playing with them each day. We talked about getting services (physical therapy and occupational therapy) but she thinks that exercises at home at this point will work. The problems they are having are common preemie issues that usually resolve over several months. She reminded us that they are just two months old adjusted (which is hard to remember since it seems like they've been around forever!) and that they really are doing amazingly well. She explained to us that babies born at their gestational age often develop cognitive skills closer to their chronologic age and are more behind in motor skills. This is definitely true for them.
We have LOTS of homework to do (much of which we were already doing) and I am just so grateful that they will be at home with personal attention for the rest of the year. Jack will be home starting in three weeks (when I go back to work) for a month and then my mom will be with them for the remainder of the year. We couldn't be luckier to have this gift and the developmentalist was thrilled that this was our plan. I know that the three of us will be diligent in working with them and ensuring that we get on the right developmental track quickly.
So the next step - We will have an earlier follow-up appointment with the developmentalist to ensure we are making progress in two months. We are also seeing the Georgetown clinic in a little over two weeks, so we will see what their opinion is. If we aren't taking steps in the right direction, we will ask for an evaluation from Fairfax County for Early Intervention....or we'll look at private services.
Some pics for the week (those on facebook have already seen two of them):
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| Andrew working on reaching on the jungle mat! |
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| Trying to find ways for Paige to happily lay on her belly! |
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| Relaxing with a little Sesame Street:) |
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| Enjoying playtime and all smiles! |
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