Tuesday, July 13, 2010

A Little Update!

Just a general update on The Green Gang:

We were able to take Benjamin and Alexander with us from the hospital when we were discharged Sunday night (7/11/10), which was a fantastic blessing for us all. I never imagined that we would be able to take home babies that were born at week 35.

We got home that night and Ethan was still awake to greet us. He was very excited to see us and I was very excited to see him. I missed him like crazy!! He waved at his new brothers and smiled and shrieked, running throughout the house in excitement.

We had the bassinet pack-n-play in the front room, so I took the babies and put them in there. Ethan was all excited to see them as he peered over the side. He was waving and got very excited and happy when Benjamin raised his arm as if to wave back!

That first night was crazy hectic. There was very little sleep the first night. Alexander seemed to think that nighttime was the right time to be awake. I guess I was under the mistaken impression that preemies slept a lot. HA!

On Monday, Ethan was rubbing Benjamin's head while we were feeding the babies. It was very cute. He also touched Alexander and just seemed very excited about the prospect of having two younger brothers (if he really even understands that is who they are!).

I starting feeling bad Sunday night after getting home and that continued into Monday. I was having some big time swelling in the lower extremities and having shortness of breath and a tightening feeling in my chest. I went to the ER after calling my OB.

I am in the cardiology wing of the hospital and had tests done. While there is no official word from my doctors yet, at the last visit they felt that I was experiencing a back up of fluid from the pregnancy. They told me my heart looked fine and there are no blood clots (which were two of the things they were concerned about). I am experiencing high blood pressure and my pulse goes from the 80s to the 40s, so I am waiting to hear about what to do with those issues. I am hoping to get back home either to day or tomorrow.

In the meantime, Rob is Super Daddy, even taking Benjamin and Alexander to their first pediatrician visit. My Mom and Mother-in-Law have really become quite invaluable to the functioning of the Green household, and I am beyond grateful to them both.

I cannot believe how blessed and fortunate I am to have such a fantastic family. I have my three beautiful boys who are the lights of my life. I have an amazing husband who loves his sons and does his best to support us all in many different ways. My family is always there if you need them and I love them very much. I am also blessed with friends (old and new) who continue to brighten my life in ways almost unimaginable.

Thank you everyone!

Friday, July 9, 2010

Day Two for the babies!

Today was a big day for the babies!

Both are off oxygen and are breathing room air. Their belly button IVs were removed earlier and standard IVs were placed. The nurses said that they believe that they will both be off the IVs tomorrow.

They were moved to a different section of the NICU (or the Special Care Nursery, as our hospital likes to call it!) so they are no longer under the heat lights and are in standard "beds" now.

They are also eating formula and evidently gobbling it down with gusto! At their last feeding tonight, they both had 1 ounce. They are ROCK STARS!!

I was also told initially that it looked like Benjamin had curly hair, but... It is thick, dark, and straight. Alexander had a complete bath today and his hair is straight and light brown.

Big brother Ethan got to see the boys through the window while Mommy held them earlier. I think he gets it that those are our babies.


(Grandma Gayle, Ethan, and Grandma)




Benjamin doing what he evidently loves best at this point: Sleeping!





Alexander: Mommy's Little Spitfire!

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Newest Arrivals!!

So, the boys are here, which was a HUGE surprise for me. I did not think that they would be coming today, but as long as they were ready... I was not going to complain. =)


Benjamin was born at 11.14am and weighed in at 6#10oz and was 20" long.


His little brother, Alexander, was born at 11.15a and weighed in at 6#14 oz and was 19.5" long

I am 35 weeks and 2 days today, so everyone was very happy about the sizes!

I was having contractions during my non stress test this morning. I think they were only the braxton hicks ones, but my perinatologist did the ultrasound afterwards and said, "ok, since you are having contractions, we are sending you to L & D." They called my OB and told me that they were either going to continue monitoring and give me fluids OR the babies would be born today. When I got to L & D, they moved me from an exam room to a real room, so I had a feeling... Sure enough, every nurse that entered my room was saying, "so I hear we are having babies today!"

I guess they were concerned that if the contractions got strong enough, it *might* rip open the scar on the uterus from the first c-section, so why take any chances since they are a good gestational age.

I was by myself while all this news was being thrown at me and so shocked/scared/unprepared. Rob, my Mom, and mother in law managed to get here before I was taken to the OR, so that was good. It all happened SO fast that I almost think it was a dream, you know?

They have me sitting up in the rocking chair at the moment and I am on some good pain meds. I am tired, but still wired from the excitement of it all.

Benjamin is now off the ventilator and both boys (I believe!) are still getting a low dose of oxygen through the nasal tube thing. They have IVs in their belly button/umbilical cord area to get blood from and to feed them sugar water as their veins were still too immature to attempt to put in an IV anywhere else. When they were born, they both had the same blood sugar level, which I take it from the nurses' reactions that was an odd thing... They were both 31 and needed to be 50 or over, but they rebounded alot faster than Ethan did with that issue, and now are both in the 70s, which is really good.

I have not been able to go to the NICU yet to see them myself, so I only got to see them while I was in the OR and now through pictures. Hopefully tomorrow... =)

I do not know yet how long they will have to be in the NICU... I will, of course, update with more information as I get it!

I am SOOOOOOO excited and am feeling really, really good at the moment. I think this is the best I have physically felt in a few months. Of course after the drugs wear off... Lol~

Saturday, June 19, 2010

First Haircut!

Today, Grandma and I took Ethan to KidSnips in Naperville for his first haircut.

He was scared and cried, but sat in Mommy's lap during the haircut. It was SO hard on Mommy to see the transformation from my "baby" to my "little man," but he still looks super adorable, only less slightly hippy-ish.

Here is a before from this morning:




And during (poor baby!):


And the end result:


"Hello, Ladies..."

The next stop will be the cover of Baby GQ...

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

32 weeks and counting...

I am officially at the 32 week mark for this twin pregnancy.

It really seems to have flown by all too quickly.

My OB said that if I go into labor before 34 weeks, they will do everything they can to stop it, but after 34 weeks, they will proceed with delivery.

It feels surreal to me to think that in as little as 2 weeks or as much as 7 weeks (for my scheduled 39 week c-section), I will have Benjamin and Alexander.

I have known I was carrying twins since before Christmas, but I find I am still in disbelief over that fact. I would like to think that by now I would have come to grips with it, but I find I am still having trouble wrapping my brain around this.

Of course, the thought of preterm labor really frightens me. Every little twinge of pain or anything that seems odd has me running through my mental list of preterm labor symptoms. I then clear my mind and sort of hold my breath as if I am going to get some official, "IT'S TIME!!!!" message from my body. Lol~

The pain and discomfort is getting even worse than I thought it could. I am fairly certain it will continue to get worse from here on out. I have such a hard time walking even! I am certain it is a comical sight to see me attempting to get up out of bed or from a seated position. And the times that I actually do get down on the floor to play with Ethan? I am grateful that I have been able to still get up each and every time.

The one thing I forgot about from my first (singleton) pregnancy? Not realizing how far my belly sticks out. My OB told me I am measuring past the 40 week mark and not looking back! Lol...

Despite the fact that this has been going on for several weeks now, I still am momentarily perplexed when I open doors and they hit my stomach; I thought for certain that I left enough room for clearance~!

The kicker was what happened last night... I put my full cup of ice water on the foot board of my bed, which makes that at belly height... and I turned to reach for the phone and knocked water down everywhere. hahaha....

Monday, June 14, 2010

New Blog Address and Direction!

I have been hemming and hawing over a new blog that would incorporate many different things in my life as it is now. I currently have one blog for my son, Ethan. I also have another personal blog (since way before Ethan!) that I have long since given up on updating.

With the new changes on the horizon (such as the impending arrival of twins!), I wanted to have a blog that could be an all encompassing one... I want to be able to update about my children, my family, my life, and my thoughts or other things that are going on in my life and the world around me.

I imported my Eagmommy.blogspot.com posts to this location as I do not want to lose that to the dead space in the internet.

Hopefully, I will find the time to update this regularly!

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

New Accomplishments for June!

Well, Ethan has been off to a busy start this month!

He is working on his artistic abilities by drawing on...

- Walls
- His baby dolls' heads and faces
- Paper pad
- Coloring Book
- Toys

Guess which of the above are the only two genuine "accepted" drawing outlets for a young tot in the Green household?
Yeah... you got it.

In addition to expanding his artistic abilities, Ethan is also working on his vocalization. In May, he said "Mama" and "No," (and no, not together, thank you!), however he really does not feel like repeating himself. He must think I am so dense when I keep asking him, "Who am I? Who am I? Am I 'Mama?'" Lol~

He loves doing his ear-splitting high pitch screaming. My guess is he is trying to communicate with his brothers in utero. I have no idea what message he is trying to relay, but I am thinking it is something along the lines of, "I can't wait to draw on you two when you get out!!!"

He has mastered the fine art of opening and closing the doors in our house, thanks to our usage of levers instead of round knobs as door handles. Guess which Grandma was surprised yesterday when she was in the bathroom...

He also started holding his index finger up now when you ask him how old he is. He doesn't do it every single time, though. I guess he decided that he had better start keeping track of the important stuff like his age and all, given his Mommy's lack of identity retention. Sheesh. He does have to grow up fast, doesn't he?

Ethan is busy working on his gymnastic skills as well. He loves attempting a head stand. He hasn't quite gotten the idea that the legs need to go straight in the air, but soon enough he will be proficient at it and giving Mommy all sorts of scares...

Finally, Ethan is working on his mad dance skills because all the ladies love a dancer.

What a busy 17-month old... and the month is JUST getting started!

Friday, May 21, 2010

Harpo Marx reincarnated.

I am beginning to think that Ethan might be the reincarnated Harpo Marx! Lol~

Why?

Ethan still is not big on talking. He has said "Mama" and "No" on separate occasions, but then he doesn't repeat himself.

But this little guy loves to whistle and he is REALLY good at it. Better than some adults I know, even! He likes to whistle if there is a show theme song that is on the TV that he likes and he also just walks around the house whistling.

He does remind me of when Harpo Marx would whistle and gesture to get his point across. You always knew what Harpo was talking about without him having to say a word. Ethan has used similar training methods on his family to great sucess. =)

The other day, he reminded me of a dwarf (Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs) as he was carrying these containers out of his bedroom to stick on the sofa in the front room and he was whistling while he was working.

<3

Thursday, May 20, 2010

The One Who Shall Remain Nameless

Poor Grandma....

Mommy made the mistake of mentioning the 'Forbidden Name' before leaving for a doctor's appointment this afternoon while Grandma was going to be watching Mr. Ethan.

This 'Forbidden Name' causes Ethan to go into such a tizzy lately!

What is this 'Forbidden Name,' you might ask? Simple. Kai-Lan.



Ethan has one Nihao Kai-Lan book. He also LOVES watching Nihao Kai-Lan on nickjr. This weird obsession of his has started over the past week or so. You cannot say 'Kai-Lan' without seeing Ethan do a happy dance and point to the TV.

Evidently, he believes that every time you utter her name, you summon her to your television.

He will not give up on pointing and grunting to the TV until she is put on.

I am not sure if he adores Kai-Lan, or Rintoo. Who knows? All I know is this baby is nuts for the show.

The other day, he actually tried to speak Chinese at her request. She asked us to say 'dig' in Chinese, so naturally Mommy said it. Ethan got excited and did his best to say it as well... Well, as close as he could get. It was cute and he was so proud of himself.

I love him, but am slightly saddened that there is already another special lady in his life besides me. Boo-hoo!!!

Saturday, April 24, 2010

What a big boy!

Yesterday was a great day to be Ethan.

Grandma brought over a "booster" style chair for Ethan so he could sit at the grown-up's table instead of in his high chair. He loved it.



Of course, this move to a big boy booster seat MUST have gotten him thinking... What else can he do now that he is a 'big boy?'

At dinnertime, he wanted Mommy's grown-up bowl and fork. He also wanted to drink from Mommy's glass, which he did successfully. The first time. He drank all the water I put in it initially. Then, I refilled. He took a few sips, then reverted back from a big boy to a toddler and decided it would be a hoot to dump it out on the carpet.

At bathtime, he wanted to rinse himself off. Who needs Mommy anymore?



Friday, March 12, 2010

My son is a lolcat...

Ethan as a "lolcat:"






reference:

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

March 9, 2010 Update

(hmm... don't you think I could be a little more creative with these blog titles? Honestly, by the time I get around to actually typing these, my brain is mostly shot and I cannot spend time trying to come up with something clever...)

Ethan cut his 8th tooth yesterday! Hip hip hooray! It was his upper right lateral incisor. Gosh... I feel like such a dentist when I write things like that. Lol~ He has had a runny nose which I HOPE is just from his tooth coming in. We have been pretty lucky with colds... he is 14 months old and only has had 3 colds in his short lifetime. I thought I read somewhere that the average baby/child gets 8-10 colds a year. Ugh. Of course, since he isn't in daycare and doesn't regularly interact with other children to swap germs...

Right now he is having dinner and on the menu for tonight is pasta with butter & parmesan cheese, string cheese, and his current favorite, grapes. My little chef has decided that it would be a fantastic combination to add his grapes to his pasta. Mmm... looks... rustic. He is also using one of his cute little toddler forks, which he adores.

One Sunday at family breakfast, Ethan had a baby fork and was eating. Well, Ethan likes to "gimme five" (as there is a fist-bump boycott currently underway in our house because my husband does not like that...), so silly Grandpa held his hand out to Ethan, which everyone knows is the international symbol for "gimme five,"and Ethan proceeded to ATTEMPT to give Gramps five... with his fork. Thank goodness Grandpa moved his hand quickly or that would have made for an interesting story to tell the ER.

We have been taking advantage of this pre-Spring weather and going out for walks and playing outside as well. It is so nice to get out of the house without really going anywhere.

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

March 3rd, 2010 Update

Jeez... the last post was August 4th... What gives with the slacker Mommy?

Today was a trying day so far. It is only 12.30pm, mind you.

I have started keeping a bowl of clean de-stemmed red grapes in the fridge for Ethan. Anytime the fridge is open and he wants to grab some, he can and does. Well, this morning when I opened the door to get his milk, he tried to slide in and grab some grapes, but there weren't many left, and I wanted them to be available for his breakfast instead. So, I said "No."

Now, I guess in some strange way, I expected him to understand my reasoning. Save these last grapes for later. Who am I kidding? All I can say in my defense is it was early and it sounded reasonable to me.

To Ethan, not so. He hollered and cried big, fat tears. He threw himself onto the ground. Mega Tantrum-style. He babbled incoherently about the grand injustice of being denied his right to grapes.

I know it will get old at one point. I know I will get fed up with the tantrums. But it is still at the point where he is SO adorable... I can't help but smile and think I should run and grab the camcorder to preserve this for future generations. Or at least to show his future love interests for my amusement.

He did get over it, but decided he did not want to sit in my lap while drinking his milk. He did not want me to hold the bottle for him. He is a big boy now and can do it himself (while stabbing me in the heart, nonetheless).

Later, I decided to take him to our very first Lapsit at the public library for kids 3 and under. There were many kids there. He did not know what to think at first, but as we sang songs and had books read to us, things were going well.

Ever concerned about everyone, Ethan was handing out books to people who did not have them. That was cute, right? It was until he started getting very excited and throwing them. Then he did not want to sit in my lap.

The best part was the end... when the woman brought out the bubble machine. She was like the Baby Pied Piper... I am convinced those kids would have followed her ANYWHERE. Who needs candy to lure kids? Just buy a bottle of bubbles and you are set. You could see it in all the kids' eyes: "Mommy who?? I LOVE BUBBLES NOW!!!"

It was pretty adorable and it was great to see a bunch of zombie babies and toddlers trying to catch the bubbles.

One more mini-meltdown for Ethan after leaving and walking into the house (just who do I think I am anyway, trying to stop him from dragging a large bucket and snow brush into the house?!) and probably the MILLIONTH mini-meltdown for Mommy... and I was happy to see naptime come.

"Ahh....."