2 Months Old - July 21, 2011

Ellis is laying on Truett

Truett and Ellis

Now that the boys are three months old I should tell you about their two month appointment...  

We went to the doctor on their two month birthday and they got their shots.  It was a relief to finally get their shots and then to let people hold them at church.  It's somewhat of a milestone to accomplish.  I was unsure how the boys would take the shots, but then again they were used to being poked and prodded while they were in the NICU.  Thankfully, our doctor gave the boys tylenol before even giving the shots.  The boys were actually really good with the shots.  They cried so hard in the beginning you couldn't even hear the cry and their little faces turned beat red, but other than that they were not fussy the rest of the day.  

The doctor continues to be impressed with their strength as preemies.  For being 8 weeks early, they have incredible head strength and he feels that they will close the gap between their developmental and chronological age fast.  Not sure how fast that will be, but we'll just take each day at a time.  

They were weighed at their two month appointment....

Truett was 7lb 12oz  and Ellis was 8 lb 5 oz.  They are growing so fast and now that they are almost 3 months old, I believe that they are pushing 10 lbs for sure.  It's pretty crazy to think that they were only 4lb 1oz and 4lb 12oz when they were born.  

Our next doctor appointment is at 4 months.  Can't wait to see how much they have changed by then.

Ellis waiting for the inevitable shots

"yummy Tylenol," says Ellis.

My face is as red as a tomato - Ellis

Truett preparing for his shots

Truett taking it all in... ouch!

Ellis recovering...

Truett recovering from the trauma

As a side note, these little outfits that they are wearing no longer fit.  They were newborn outfits.  We are now wearing 0-3 and 3 month outfits.  Thanks to our friends Andrew and Benjamin we haven't really had to buy any clothes.  Our other twin friends, Mary and Amelia were born today, exactly 3 months younger than Truett and Ellis.  So excited for all these little ones to grow up with lots of playmates.  

Coming Home...

So we have been home for 5 weeks now, I thought it was about time to post something about our coming home day.  We were told just after they turned 1 month old that we would be coming home on Sunday, June 26th.  So on Saturday, June 25th, we prepared to "room in" at the hospital.  Saturday morning, Zach and I got up early to go to the hospital for their 8am feeding time.  Then we had our last meal without children after that at IHOP.  We would have gone out on Saturday night before rooming in, but Zach had to work 11am-8pm.  It was a perfect meal.  Saturday afternoon, I went back to the hospital at 2pm for their feeding and then my sister and I ran to Target sans kiddos for one last time.  We ran in to our favorite nurse, Lisa at Target where she was actually buying us a coming home present.  So sweet!  

We got to the hospital to room in at 8pm and started the process of their nightly weigh in and feeding.  Then they moved us into the hospital "hotel room" where we were then in charge of the babies.  It was such a strange feeling to be in charge of the boys all on our own and to be able to pick them up and carry them across the room without any cords attached.  It was a very freeing experience.  We nursed them every three hours and when I say we, I mean it took Zach's help to nurse them because I couldn't get them positioned to feed at the same time without his hands.  Lisa was our nurse for the night, and was very helpful in coming in to check on us and making sure that we were up to feed the boys at the right times.  We missed getting to say goodbye because we were fortunately sleeping at 7am during shift change.  It was a long night, only the first of many long nights, but it was successful and very rewarding to know that they were finally strong enough to come home.  

Nurse Lisa and Shavondra

We loved the nurses that we had at the NICU. Couldn't have asked for better care for our boys.  These two nurses were pretty special to us because we had them several times.  Lisa was our nurse when the boys were first admitted to the NICU, so it was extra special to have her on our coming home day.  

Truett Reid - 6lb 2oz

Ellis Jay - 6lb 11oz

On Saturday night, June 25th, the Truett and Ellis weighed in at 6lb 2 oz and 6lb 11oz, respectively.  They were both exactly two pounds over their birth weight in 5 weeks time.  Big boys!

We strapped them into their carseats for the first time that Sunday morning and headed home around 11am.  This was the last time that we would have to be buzzed in to the NICU doors and wash up for 3 minutes.  What a relief!!

When we got home, we were a little lost as to what we should do, so putting them in their beds seemed to be the best option.  They hung out there for a little bit and then they moved to their bouncy seats.

Truett

Ellis

Truett and Ellis

We spent the first couple of days in a daze.  Fortunately, Zach didn't go into work that Monday and we were able to begin to adjust to life with twin boys.  Our first outing with the boys was on Wednesday after they came home.  We made our first trip to the pediatrician to get our checkup.  This was the first time that we met our pediatrician since the consultation I had scheduled hadn't to be cancelled since they came early.  We were given a great report at that time and in a matter of 4 days the boys had gained 5 oz each.  I was thrilled that the breastfeeding was working and that the boys were growing and healthy.  The doctor was so impressed that he told us to just schedule an appointment for their two month checkup instead of the next week like he would normally with premature babies.  So we scheduled our next appointment for 3 weeks after that on July 21st, their two month bday.  What a great beginning to our life with these two precious little boys!!