The last couple weeks have been super busy - I feel like I am so far behind with updates. So brace yourself, this will be a long post:)
First off, we had our big appointment at Georgetown almost two weeks ago. I am always anxious for that appointment, as they are the pros at tracking preemie growth, the best at managing reflux, and the big decision makers for nutritional changes. The stats from that visit were amazing - Andrew weighed 15.8 lbs and his length was 25.5 inches, Paige weighed 13.9 lbs and her length was 26 inches. They both plotted very nicely on the NORMAL growth curve (not adjusting for prematurity)! Obviously, we were all very pleased. There were a couple issues I wanted to discuss with them though. Both Paige and Andrew were having serious constipation issues and I was having to manage stools with suppositories - not fun for any of us! Andrew has also had a recurrence of his reflux and was having a very hard time sleeping. He was refusing to sleep in his crib or anywhere that required him to lay back at all. They made some recommendations which seem to be working so far....first, we switched their formula from the 22cal/oz preemie formula to regular ole' Enfamil! This made me SO happy, as its much easier to find and a little cheaper:) We are hoping this helps with their constipation. We also decided to start solids (see previous post) and chose oatmeal and sweet potatoes to start to hopefully get things moving if ya know what I mean:) We of course had reinstated all of Andrew's reflux precautions when his symptoms starting coming back but they also put him back on twice daily prevacid and we start maalox. He has been doing better with all of these changes and has successfully sleep in his crib the last two nights only getting up once. HUGE improvement! We'll head back to Georgetown in mid July.
Immediately after the Georgetown appointment, Jack and I left town for the weekend, as I was in a good friend's wedding (also Paige's godmother!) in Charleston, South Carolina. Here we are:
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| At the reception! |
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| Ashley & Jason! |
Leaving the babies for the first time was way harder than I anticipated. Luckily, my parents stayed at our house and kept them in their routine, so I knew they were in good hands...but this was the first time I'd been separated from them since they were in my belly 13 months ago. We survived and had a great time, but I'd be lying if I told you we didn't think about them ALL the time:) Vacations really will never be the same - they will either be with us (which will be crazy!) or they won't be (and we'll be thinking about them non-stop!). Thanks Mom & Dad for giving up your relaxing weekend, losing sleep with Andrew, and tolerating non-stop action/feeding/diaper changes for 3 whole days. We owe you big time!!!
This past week, we also had our first visit from a Fairfax County Occupational Therapist. The county is currently short permanent therapists, so they sent the woman that did our assessment to get us started. She is great and taught us all sorts of exercises to work on sitting, weight bearing, muscle tone, Paige's tongue problems, and even massage for constipation. We've already noticed a big difference - esp with Paige on her sitting ability and weight bearing. I cannot tell you how much easier our lives will get when these two can SIT independently and HOLD their own bottles! It will actually be possible for one person to bathe, feed and get the kids down for bed. That will be HUGE!
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| Our BIG babies in Mommy & Daddy's Bed |
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| Sitting in the laundry basket! |
Last weekend was also crazy and one thing the babies and I did was go to the Congenital Heart Walk downtown with my work. It was a great event with a good turnout and a huge amount of money was raised for research and care of patients with congenital heart disease.
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| Paige ready to walk! |
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| Andrew right before his meltdown:) |
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| And now we're happy and ready to walk! |
Last Sunday was Paige and Andrew's seven month birthday. Time really is flying and I cannot tell you how fun they are both becoming! All you have to do is look at Paige and she smiles and often screams and laughs out loud. She has the sweetest disposition and you cannot help but be so happy when you're around her. Andrew is constantly babbling and has big stories to tell. He has the greatest belly laugh and is so much fun and such a joy to be around.
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| Paige - 7 months |
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| Screaming and laughing in her swing! |
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| Andrew - 7 months |
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| Curious and into EVERYTHING already! |
Despite how busy we are, and how hard things are sometimes with balancing work, the babies, and all of our other responsibilities, we continue to remind each other each day how lucky we are. We've got two amazing babies who are doing SO well and have overcome SO much!
