Good Luck to Paige!

Last Friday, we had our big developmental assessment at Georgetown.  It was close to 4 painful hours and it involved lots of cooperation from the kids.  They were actually awesome.  They showed off and surprised us all with how much they actually know and can do!  For fine and gross motor, they both scored somewhere between their adjusted age (16 months taking into account their prematurity) and their chronologic age (from their birthday).  Andrew lagged a bit more in fine motor and Paige in gross motor.  They both scored around 16 months for expressive language (talking) and closer to 18 months for receptive language (understanding us).  We pretty much knew this already - they both follow directions beautifully and truly understand pretty much everything we tell them.  They aren't saying very many words though - Paige is saying around 6 words consistently and Andrew is saying about 2.  The place where they surprised us was the cognitive category - they scored at 21 months!! They shocked us putting together puzzles with multiple shapes, placing things in orders, and following advanced directions.  I guess we need to challenge them more at home!  Monday is our Fairfax County follow-up assessment, so we'll use this information as a guide to help make decisions about ongoing support.

Tomorrow is Paige's ear tube procedure.  The process for preparing for this has been insane!  At first, I thought the process was really efficient - they sent me to an online registration site to fill out our demographics, insurance info and clinical history. BUT since then, I must have talked to 5 different people from that surgical center "verifying" the information I put in!  What a waste of time and staff!  We also had to go do a clearance visit with the pediatrician yesterday.  You'd think she was having open heart surgery with what we've had to go through!:)  Anyway, the procedure is at 7:40 tomorrow morning and we have to be there at 6:30.  This means we have to leave the house by 5:45 and Andrew can't be dropped at daycare until 7:00am.  The surgical center is super strict and doesn't allow siblings, yet wants both parents in the car for the drive home so someone can sit in the back with her to make sure she's not too sleepy and floppy and doesn't get sick. So this means that Jack's mom has to come over to our house at 5:30 so she can watch Andrew and then drop him a daycare!  Thanks so much to Grandma!  I'm sure it will be quick and easy but I'll post a quick update tomorrow!

A few fun pictures from Nana and Papa's visit last weekend and our time at the park:

Our pretty girl banging on the slide!

Andrew loving the swing!

Getting a push from Papa!

Andrew's first ride!

Their first ice cream cones! And Andrew's new "smile"

Paige's cone and her crazy hair!

And our cool dude rockin' to the beat on his Sesame Street radio!