Thursday, February 19, 2015
A few new words, including "fart"
We've been writing down all the sounds/words the girls say per the request of the speech therapist (ie- ma, da, ga, eh, etc.) They have said a few words over the past few weeks (uh oh, mama, dada, hi, go, roar, etc) but nothing made me more proud than Brooklyn's latest accomplishment. Bailey had a huge fart and I said, "Bailey you farted!" Brooklyn looked right at me and said "fart!"I was like DARREN DID YOU HEAR THAT? And then she said it again! AHAHAHAHA. Big accomplishments!
Ear infections galore
This is just the most ridiculous winter of all time. I can't handle all the non stop sickness.
We were all off Monday for President's Day. No work and no day care! Fun day right? Nope. Because this is the winter of sickness. So I went to urgent care in the morning since I still have a terrible cough and not really feeling better (my primary care doctor's office didn't seem to think being 30 weeks pregnant with asthma and difficulty breathing and persistent cough was reason enough to get me in that day, Screw them.) Doctor said my sinus infection hasn't gone away and wrote me another ten day prescription for augmentin. I am feeling kind of a little tiny bit better, sort of. Sigh.
So in the afternoon I took the girls to the pediatrician because their eyes were crusting over and coughing and what not. Ear infection and pink eye for both. They got put on an antibiotic I've never even heard of (cefdinir). So we hung out at home the rest of the day.
Then on Tuesday Darren got sick.
Wednesday Bailey got sent home for daycare with a fever of 102. She woke up from nap time with bad eye crusties again. Clearly the antibiotic was not working.
Took Bailey to doctor Thursday morning while Darren went and saw his doctor. Bailey's mild early ear infection in one ear turned into a nasty double ear infection. Doctor switched her to augmentin. Since this gives her super awful diaper rash, she suggested we try priobotics with it this time so giving that a shot. This is Bailey's FIFTH ear infection since October. If she gets another, doctor said it's time to see an ENT which I would assume would mean tubes in the ear. Poor baby girl was feeling a little better by tonight but still has the sick eyes and sick smell.
I hate this winter. I hate viruses. I hate illness. BRING ME SPRING!
We were all off Monday for President's Day. No work and no day care! Fun day right? Nope. Because this is the winter of sickness. So I went to urgent care in the morning since I still have a terrible cough and not really feeling better (my primary care doctor's office didn't seem to think being 30 weeks pregnant with asthma and difficulty breathing and persistent cough was reason enough to get me in that day, Screw them.) Doctor said my sinus infection hasn't gone away and wrote me another ten day prescription for augmentin. I am feeling kind of a little tiny bit better, sort of. Sigh.
So in the afternoon I took the girls to the pediatrician because their eyes were crusting over and coughing and what not. Ear infection and pink eye for both. They got put on an antibiotic I've never even heard of (cefdinir). So we hung out at home the rest of the day.
Then on Tuesday Darren got sick.
Wednesday Bailey got sent home for daycare with a fever of 102. She woke up from nap time with bad eye crusties again. Clearly the antibiotic was not working.
Took Bailey to doctor Thursday morning while Darren went and saw his doctor. Bailey's mild early ear infection in one ear turned into a nasty double ear infection. Doctor switched her to augmentin. Since this gives her super awful diaper rash, she suggested we try priobotics with it this time so giving that a shot. This is Bailey's FIFTH ear infection since October. If she gets another, doctor said it's time to see an ENT which I would assume would mean tubes in the ear. Poor baby girl was feeling a little better by tonight but still has the sick eyes and sick smell.
I hate this winter. I hate viruses. I hate illness. BRING ME SPRING!
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
3D Ultrasound of my big girl!
Had a growth scan earlier this week to make sure I wasn't having any placenta issues. Well baby girl is already at 3 lbs 11 oz, which puts her in the 89th percentile! I am going to have a giant baby. So I am currently 29 weeks, when I was 31 weeks with the girls they weighed in at 4 lbs (60th percentile) for Bailey and 3 lbs 13 oz (55th percentile) for Brooklyn. So this baby is a bit bigger.
Since she is growing so well it seems unlikely I am going to have any placenta issues so I won't have to have constant ultrasounds. Next appointment is at 32 weeks, then 34, the weekly starting at 36.
I also told my doctor how sick I have been since Christmas. I have a horrible cough currently. She called me in an antibiotic which I needed very badly. I'm on day 3 of augmentin, not feeling 100 percent yet but can feel some improvement. My death cough doesn't sound as violent at least.
Since she is growing so well it seems unlikely I am going to have any placenta issues so I won't have to have constant ultrasounds. Next appointment is at 32 weeks, then 34, the weekly starting at 36.
I also told my doctor how sick I have been since Christmas. I have a horrible cough currently. She called me in an antibiotic which I needed very badly. I'm on day 3 of augmentin, not feeling 100 percent yet but can feel some improvement. My death cough doesn't sound as violent at least.
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| Top left: Bailey, Top Right: Brooklyn. Bottom pictures are both new baby! They all look alike to me! |
Monday, February 9, 2015
Help Me Grow Follow Up
We met with the speech therapist to go over the girls results. As expected they are doing really well in all areas but behind in expressive language. (They really scored high in fine motor and social. Also their scores were identical.) She suggested we start speech therapy with one session every three
weeks (half hour per child). Pretty manageable schedule!
So we'll be starting in a few weeks. For now she gave us a few pointers on things we can be working with. She also asked us to make a list of all the different sounds the girls make (ba, da, ga, etc) so I've been keeping track. Most of the suggestions are things we are already doing (see list to the left) but we are really concentrating to help them.
Upon her suggestion, we also cut pacifiers down to nap and bedtime only. The first couple mornings were a little rough but now they hand their pacifiers to us as we leave the bedroom and we put them on the dresser. They do seem to be a lot more vocal without pacifier access (not that they used them non stop but they would periodically throughout the day have them). I debated for a second cutting them cold turkey, but they are already not great nappers and being in my third trimester, I need them to continue being good sleepers at night. We'll cross the pacifier elimination bridge some day.
So we'll be starting in a few weeks. For now she gave us a few pointers on things we can be working with. She also asked us to make a list of all the different sounds the girls make (ba, da, ga, etc) so I've been keeping track. Most of the suggestions are things we are already doing (see list to the left) but we are really concentrating to help them.
Upon her suggestion, we also cut pacifiers down to nap and bedtime only. The first couple mornings were a little rough but now they hand their pacifiers to us as we leave the bedroom and we put them on the dresser. They do seem to be a lot more vocal without pacifier access (not that they used them non stop but they would periodically throughout the day have them). I debated for a second cutting them cold turkey, but they are already not great nappers and being in my third trimester, I need them to continue being good sleepers at night. We'll cross the pacifier elimination bridge some day.
Tuesday, February 3, 2015
28 weeks!
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| Twin belly vs single belly, 28 weeks. |
Best part is not being on bed rest. Considering I was on bed rest at 26 weeks 6 days last time, I'm doing much better this time around. Starting to feel big and uncomfortable though. Mostly just big. I've been having a lot of pelvic pressure but seems pretty normal for this point in the pregnancy. Things seem to be going really well though.
I have been slacking on my blog writing but this has been the house of sickness since a couple days after Christmas. Aside from the pneumonia, the bronchitis, the high fevers, etc., we also had the stomach bug going around our house the last couple weeks. Started with Brooklyn. She puked all day Thursday. Seemed fine on Friday, puked on more time on Saturday. That was the first time we really had either of the girls throw up excessively (beyond minor baby spit ups). I felt really off all day Friday and Saturday. Weak and dizzy. Then super nauseous on Saturday. Puked my guts out Saturday right before my company holiday party (which we still went to...). Have been feeling a little funny since then. Darren got sick late Saturday night and spent the entire evening puking. Then my parents both got sick last night after watching the kids on Saturday. Somehow and thankfully, Bailey hasn't gotten sick yet this round.
I would love for spring to come and end all the viruses going around! Let's hope February is a more healthy month.
Monday, January 12, 2015
The bad virus that took us all out...
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| Bailey did not leave the couch for four days. |
Bailey had a 103.6 degree temp the weekend after NYE. This made me very, very nervous. She was pretty lethargic and in general not feeling well. I spoke to the doctor on call and she basically said just to keep an eye on it (they NEVER seem as worried as I am. I'm like, she is sick! With a fever! And a cough! Should I go to the emergency room???? And the doctor always says just to keep an eye on them.). The next day her fever was gone and she seemed to be recovering. So we sent her to daycare on Monday. Her fever spiked Monday afternoon and by the time Darren picked her up and I got home from work she was back to 102.6 and acting very sick again. I took her in Tuesday morning to the doctor - double ear infection AND pneumonia. Last week was the sickest I have ever seen either of my kids (apart I guess from the NICU). She was just miserable. Missed an entire week of day care. She FINALLY started feeling better after about four days on the antibiotics.
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| Finally starting to feel better. Day 3 antibiotic vs day 4. Still on the couch. |
Two sick toddlers and a sick pregnant mama made the last couple weeks hard. I am really nervous about taking anything when pregnant so I was resisting. I felt AWFUL. Finally talked to the doctor on call asking what I could take and she says "literally any cold medicine is fine." Oh. So I took sudafed. I am pretty sure I had bronchitis through all of this. I didn't have time to go to the doctor (I know how bad that sounds, but I was trying to still work AND take my kids to doctor's appointments, and I had to take one day off to be with Bailey when she was really, really sick). So I never went. I was having a lot of shortness of breath and I've had bronchitis in the past so I knew what to expect. All they usually give you in an inhaler anyway (which I have for my asthma) so I just used that as needed. I also had my sister listen to everyone's lungs. Since she is a nurse on the pulmonary ICU, I figure she is just as qualified. She confirmed the bronchitis wheeze sound. And she also monitored Bailey to make sure the fluid was leaving her lungs. And she let Brooklyn play with her stethoscope. Fun times for all!
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| Dr. Brooklyn. |
So this week everyone is better, back at day care, and I can't wait for spring to kill all these germs and viruses hanging around!
Somehow Darren hasn't really gotten sick yet. Either he already had it (Darren was sick for basically two months in October and November) or he is a lucky, lucky man. Or it's coming!
Wednesday, January 7, 2015
24 weeks!
Here is my 24 week photo (from Saturday) compared to 24 weeks with twins! Baby is about as long as an ear of corn and weighs about 1 1/3 lbs. She is really starting to move around a lot!
Friday, January 2, 2015
18 month check up and Help Me Grow referral
Girls went in for their 18 month well child visit (which was actually two days shy of turning 19 months) last week. Both are little peanuts - Brooklyn weights 21 lbs 4 oz and measures 31 inches long (7th percentile for weight, 20th for height), Bailey weighs 22 lbs 6 oz and measures 31.75 inches long (22nd percentile for weight, 25th for height). I have no idea if that is on the normal or the adjusted scale either. I think they stop using that at the 2 year mark so they are pretty close to caught up.
Anyway, my main concern has been the girls delay in speech. According to the baby books, they should say around 50 to 100 words by 18 months. The girls say one. They are really good at "uh oh." They have said a couple others but not on a regular basis (mama, dada, hi, bye, kitty, light, dog, jacket, cracker) and even then I'm not 100 percent sure on some of those since it was a one time deal. Mostly they just babble and point. They are very vocal, just not forming real words.
It's not unusual for twins or preemies to have speech delays. The doctor said she's not terribly worried about it until 2 years, but she did refer us to a free state program called Help Me Grow. Basically they will come into our house and evaluate the girls to see if they need any early intervention. So a case worker, a developmental specialist and a speech pathologist will all come over. Got a confirmation call from them today, just waiting on our case worker to call and set up a time.
I'm not that worried about it, but figure a free program wouldn't hurt anything!
Here's a video of the girls doing that twin talk back and forth (shot in the Target parking lot so it's dark, just listen to the audio):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrSYFA
Anyway, my main concern has been the girls delay in speech. According to the baby books, they should say around 50 to 100 words by 18 months. The girls say one. They are really good at "uh oh." They have said a couple others but not on a regular basis (mama, dada, hi, bye, kitty, light, dog, jacket, cracker) and even then I'm not 100 percent sure on some of those since it was a one time deal. Mostly they just babble and point. They are very vocal, just not forming real words.
It's not unusual for twins or preemies to have speech delays. The doctor said she's not terribly worried about it until 2 years, but she did refer us to a free state program called Help Me Grow. Basically they will come into our house and evaluate the girls to see if they need any early intervention. So a case worker, a developmental specialist and a speech pathologist will all come over. Got a confirmation call from them today, just waiting on our case worker to call and set up a time.
I'm not that worried about it, but figure a free program wouldn't hurt anything!
Here's a video of the girls doing that twin talk back and forth (shot in the Target parking lot so it's dark, just listen to the audio):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrSYFA
Tuesday, December 30, 2014
Abnormal quad screening, negative maternit21
So what would pregnancy be without a little drama?
Overall things have been much easier this pregnancy and going really well. Then I got an abnormal quad screening result.
The quad screening checks for downs syndrome and other neural defects in the baby by looking at your age, the NT ultrasound at 12 weeks, a blood test around 12 weeks and an additional blood test around 18 weeks. After the NT scan and the 12 week blood work, our chance of the baby having downs syndrome was 1 in 10,000. With the twins, I never got the 18 week blood work b/c the numbers aren't very accurate for twins. But I went ahead and got it this time. Wish I hadn't!
So I hadn't really thought much about my blood work until I got a voice mail from a "genetics counselor" in the high-risk doctor's office wanting to discuss my blood work results. My heart sank. I knew this wouldn't be a good call.
My AFP (alpha fetoprotein) numbers were low (0.4) which can suggest a possibility of down syndrome. So that 1 in 10,000 chance dropped to 1 in 120. If the numbers are lower than 1 in 250, they are considered positive for a screening. So technically my test was "positive" not meaning the baby would have downs syndrome, just that my screening showed a higher likely hood.
The genetics counselor explained about the 1 in 120 results. Keeping in mind that this is still very low odds (less than 1 percent), she explained I had a few options.
1. Do nothing. Less than 1 percent is still very low.
2. Amnio: Doctors can take a sample of amniotic fluid to determine with 100 percent accuracy if baby has downs syndrome. However, it does have a chance of miscarriage. I declined this option.
3. Maternit21 test: A blood test that can determine with 90 to 96 percent accuracy if baby has downs syndrome. A blood test didn't seem too bad - I opted for this option.
So I had the Maternit21 blood test done the day after Thanksgiving and it took about ten days for results to get in. Baby does not have downs syndrome! Hooray!
The only hiccup in this entire drama? Because my quad screen was a false positive, there is a connection between having these kind of results and having placenta problems in the pregnancy, specifically with preeclampsia and IUGR (intrauterine growth restriction). Basically it would mean the baby wasn't growing correctly and combined with high blood pressure and the risk of preeclampsia turning into eclampsia, there would be a possibility of needing to deliver early.
That's a lot of scary shit.
BUT, all this means is that I have a slightly higher chance of developing preeclampsia and IUGR. So they are going to monitor me closely and hopefully I don't have any issues. I'll have a growth scan at 28 weeks, then starting at 32 weeks I'll have a weekly (or bi-weekly if needed) growth scan.
I felt absolutely crushed at first. I have been determined with this pregnancy to not have a baby come early, to avoid the NICU at all costs, and to keep my baby growing inside as long as possible. I also felt bummed because if I was having any problems, they would have to induce me which would mean no vbac (apparently being induced after a c-section has a high risk of rupturing and both baby and mama could die). So it's not like a c-section is the end of the world, but my heart is set on delivering vaginally and holding my baby right away. I still feel a little traumatized by the girls birth when they were taken immediately and I didn't even see them for four hours, let alone hold them for days!
As I've had time to process this and talk to my doctor, I feel okay about the situation. First off, it's only a CHANCE that I could develop these problems, and an unlikely one at at that. My doctor said they get about three false-positive quad screenings a year and NONE of them have ever had IUGR/preeclampsia problems. (I like those odds!) So while the extra monitoring is annoying, it's just extra monitoring. At least I get to see the baby more with extra ultrasounds.
Baby is doing really well, kicking up a storm and growing well. Let's hope this continues! And for what it's worth - I would suggest to anyone not to get these tests. Not worth the stress of having a false positive.
Overall things have been much easier this pregnancy and going really well. Then I got an abnormal quad screening result.
The quad screening checks for downs syndrome and other neural defects in the baby by looking at your age, the NT ultrasound at 12 weeks, a blood test around 12 weeks and an additional blood test around 18 weeks. After the NT scan and the 12 week blood work, our chance of the baby having downs syndrome was 1 in 10,000. With the twins, I never got the 18 week blood work b/c the numbers aren't very accurate for twins. But I went ahead and got it this time. Wish I hadn't!
So I hadn't really thought much about my blood work until I got a voice mail from a "genetics counselor" in the high-risk doctor's office wanting to discuss my blood work results. My heart sank. I knew this wouldn't be a good call.
My AFP (alpha fetoprotein) numbers were low (0.4) which can suggest a possibility of down syndrome. So that 1 in 10,000 chance dropped to 1 in 120. If the numbers are lower than 1 in 250, they are considered positive for a screening. So technically my test was "positive" not meaning the baby would have downs syndrome, just that my screening showed a higher likely hood.
The genetics counselor explained about the 1 in 120 results. Keeping in mind that this is still very low odds (less than 1 percent), she explained I had a few options.
1. Do nothing. Less than 1 percent is still very low.
2. Amnio: Doctors can take a sample of amniotic fluid to determine with 100 percent accuracy if baby has downs syndrome. However, it does have a chance of miscarriage. I declined this option.
3. Maternit21 test: A blood test that can determine with 90 to 96 percent accuracy if baby has downs syndrome. A blood test didn't seem too bad - I opted for this option.
So I had the Maternit21 blood test done the day after Thanksgiving and it took about ten days for results to get in. Baby does not have downs syndrome! Hooray!
The only hiccup in this entire drama? Because my quad screen was a false positive, there is a connection between having these kind of results and having placenta problems in the pregnancy, specifically with preeclampsia and IUGR (intrauterine growth restriction). Basically it would mean the baby wasn't growing correctly and combined with high blood pressure and the risk of preeclampsia turning into eclampsia, there would be a possibility of needing to deliver early.
That's a lot of scary shit.
BUT, all this means is that I have a slightly higher chance of developing preeclampsia and IUGR. So they are going to monitor me closely and hopefully I don't have any issues. I'll have a growth scan at 28 weeks, then starting at 32 weeks I'll have a weekly (or bi-weekly if needed) growth scan.
I felt absolutely crushed at first. I have been determined with this pregnancy to not have a baby come early, to avoid the NICU at all costs, and to keep my baby growing inside as long as possible. I also felt bummed because if I was having any problems, they would have to induce me which would mean no vbac (apparently being induced after a c-section has a high risk of rupturing and both baby and mama could die). So it's not like a c-section is the end of the world, but my heart is set on delivering vaginally and holding my baby right away. I still feel a little traumatized by the girls birth when they were taken immediately and I didn't even see them for four hours, let alone hold them for days!
As I've had time to process this and talk to my doctor, I feel okay about the situation. First off, it's only a CHANCE that I could develop these problems, and an unlikely one at at that. My doctor said they get about three false-positive quad screenings a year and NONE of them have ever had IUGR/preeclampsia problems. (I like those odds!) So while the extra monitoring is annoying, it's just extra monitoring. At least I get to see the baby more with extra ultrasounds.
Baby is doing really well, kicking up a storm and growing well. Let's hope this continues! And for what it's worth - I would suggest to anyone not to get these tests. Not worth the stress of having a false positive.
Monday, December 29, 2014
Nine days in a row at home!
Our daycare closes for two weeks each year - during July 4th week and during Christmas week - so I took some vacation days and had an entire nine days (including the weekends) at home with my girls. It was awesome.
Outdoor walks: We had really unusually warm weather for December.We let the girls walk around outside (which more of a frantic run). They even pushed their baby doll strollers for a bit. Super cute.
Zoo: We also took advantage of one of the warm days to take the girls to the zoo with our zoo pass. Highlight of the trip was seeing both tigers out and hearing the one tiger roar (loudly!) several times.
Botanical Gardens: We went to the all aglow at Botanical Gardens on Christmas Eve morning. Saw the lights, the Christmas trees, the ginger bread houses and all the flowers. Girls really liked the canopy view in the main indoor exhibit.
Double engagement - Both my brother AND sister got engaged on Christmas Eve! This made for a super fun celebration that night. Girls even got to enjoy the champagne toast (with sparkling apple juice).
Here are some of the things we've been up to:
- Christmas cookie making: The fourth annual sister cookie making night expanded to a new generation to include the girls this year. They actually had a really good time eating the raw dough and sprinkles. Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZlh4R9c158 and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXUKtbS5-Qk
- Pedicures and dance parties: Brooklyn is obsessed with the polish on my toe nails (Darren got me a pregnancy spa package for my birthday so I had a pedicure, facial and massage, which was amazing.) She wouldn't stop pointing to my toes so I got out the polish and did hers too. She was so excited. Then I tried to do Bailey's. She screamed! Not a nail polish fan. I got two toes done on Bailey. The girls are also obsessed with spinning in circles to the Frozen soundtrack and Taylor Swift videos so we did a lot of that that, too. And I totally caught Darren dancing with them to T. Swift.
- Family parties: We did a Christmas exchange with Darren's family before Christmas, Christmas Even with my family and Christmas Day with Darren's extended family. So many nice gifts! The girls really started to get the hang of opening presents too. (Watch Christmas morning time lapsed in 25 seconds). They had a lot of favorites but really loved the fold out couches from Darren's sister, the kitchen set from my parents and the twin cabbage patch dolls from us.
- A visit to the farm: Darren's grandma lives on a farm. The girls got to see cows up close. Bailey wasn't a fan of the dark barn, but both girls liked watching the cows eat outside in the daylight.
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| Cookies! |
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| Brooklyn top, Bailey bottom |
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| Couches |
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| Cows! |
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| Twins pushing twins! |
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| Zoo |
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| Canopy view |
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| Double engagement! |
- Swimming - We also took the girls swimming at my aunt's apartment. They haven't been swimming since this summer so it took them a bit to warm up to it. Lots of splashing!
More pictures from Christmas!
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