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Of course the next day, we were well rested!

New Jammies From Aunt Judy and Jessica

Connor is left and Logan is right( with the post-bath hair)

We were happy for a moment, but alas, sleepiness set in and we weren't happy for very long.
Big brother Trevor tried to console us but we are just to tired.
Mom Snapped this just before we got fully worked up. They were crossing over the invisible dotted line with each other.
These jammies came from Aunt Judy and Jessica when we were jsut wee little things. So hard to believe we finally fit in them. They are just too cute and so very soft!

Quick updates.

The boys have had a touch of sickness after my 2 weeks of horrible bronchitis. I am thankful thiers is mild. They went to the DR on Thursday the 19th after a difficult night of coughing and breathing and Logan has bronchiolitis and a right ear infection and Connor has a viral upper respiratory infection. Logan was started on antibiotics and both boys are on breathing treatments three times a day. All in all this has been relatively mild in comparison to 5 months ago when they had 8 weeks straight of ear infections and were inconsolable. Both have been clingy and needy and irritable, but still very good babies. Both lost a smidge of weight. Connor is sitting very well now. He doesnt go for too long, but he has it down. Sometimes he will get excited and end up toppling backwards. He also will scoot on his belly backwards all over the place and he got up on his hands and knees and began rocking. It wont be too long before they are both mobile. Logan is a bit slower at this. he doesn't sit very well. We are putting him in the Bumbo seat more and hope to have him gain more upper body strength. We try to do tummy time with him but he just rolls right over and wants to be on his back. He will get there. Just a quick note to say, Big Brother Trevor turned 6 years old on Oct 17th. YAY! I will post some more pictures this evening as I am quite behind!

**********NEWS FLASH***************Connor sits for longer than 30 seconds!!!

Yes, Connor sat unassisted (except for the blanket) for about 5 minutes before toppling over. He did very well and was very proud of himself. LOGO isnt too far behind, but still needs some more time in the bumbo and boppy for help. He is getting stronger by the day!

quick update

The boys are growing so fast now. Aunt Diana weighed the boys and they are soo big! Logan- 15lb 6oz Connor-16 lb 5 oz Yay Boys!!!!

Boys sitting with the boppy pillows

Connor is left, Logan is right

Getting bigger by the minute

Logan left and Connor Right

The boys are getting so big now. I can't wait to have them weighed again. They have a 9 month check- up here soon. Both are loving thier foods. they are having 1-2 meals a day with thier bottles and the weight is really piling on. Look at Logan and how his little face is filling out. To me, they are looking even more identical.

Both will be getting flu shots and the RSV vaccine. Monthly we will have to get these vaccines (not the flu though- just 2 shots there). Logan has a follow-up with the pulmonologist on the 24th. He will have a repeat chest X-ray to see how his lungs are doing. As he is gaining weight, he is doing better with eating. I think we blew through a lot of the 3-6 months stuff and are now getting into the 6-9 months stuff.

I challenge the boys every night with all sorts of motor skills. They are really doing well sitting up with the boppy pillow supporting them. Logan still topples over, but is getting longer and longer in length at sitting up.

We had one quick bout of sniffles and coughs, but it was mild and we are thankful. Lets hope for a smooth winter with minimal illnesses!

The boys first "date"

Above: Connor, Ava, Logan

Trish called this the knights at the round table. So cute, they babbled like they have known each other forever.
Me with Trish and the babes
Connor, Ava, Logan

We drove to Columbus OH to meet Trish and little Ava (Sophia passed away at 2 weeks) and we had so much fun. WE are hoping to retun in December to visit them again. It was an instant hit and I think Connor is in love....but Ava is a little smitten with Logan. Hmmmmmmm.

I told Trish's story back in Feb. on the blog. Ava and Sophia were born just six days after the boys. They were 25 weekers. Sophia was a strong fighter, but lost her battle at 2 weeks and passed away. Our twins message board is tight, so we all felt the loss of Sophie. We are so happy to have been able to go meet Trish and Ava. We cant wait to go back!!!

Good News!!!

The boys had thier appointment with the ENT specialist and thier hearing tests. Everything was great and normal. There is no hearing loss. Perhaps they are just adjusted to a certain level of noise and they are not affected by normal husltle and bustle and have already learned to "tune out" what they dont want to hear. Either way, we are thrilled to have that behind us now and can relax knowing that they are doing well. They are now 8 months old (as of yesterday) and continue doing well. The boys have been spending some time each day with me sitting up with only the Boppy supporting them. They are doing well. We get Logan in the Bumbo mostly to help him get those trunk muscles stronger. They are still pretty wobbly, but in no time they will be sitting on thier own unsupported. Connor now has his feet and is rolling side to side when on his back. They are eating at least one meal a day. They hate cereal-Connor will waive the Hate if fruit is involved. They love all of the veggies, esp Logan loves green beans. Logan has really beefed up. I can tell he is much bigger, so it will be interesting to see thier gain at the next 9 month appointment. Both boys have experienced some hair loss again and now the hair is growing in with some blonde highlights. Too funny. They are cooing and laughing and giggling out loud. They like to "talk" and will sit and look at each other babbling like they know what they are saying. People ask how cloth diapering is going. It is going really well. WE resort to disposables for overnight as I am still working on the best absorbancy for nighttime, but we will switch as soon as I get it. We now have the best mix of dipes available, so we are very happy. Not only does it feel so good to save money, but to save the environment is awesome too. The boys are happy too. The thought of all that waste is disgusting. We are also using cloth wipes which I made myself by cutting up flannel recieving blankets. I use a natural solution and we keep them in a recycled wipes tub. This has been the biggest money saver of all. For the most part, I am proud of us for really sticking to it. Will get pix up later. We are going to meet a mama (Trish from my Twins website) in Columbus,OH tomorrow. The boys will get to meet her surviving twin Ava. Ava's sister Sophia passed away at 2 weeks old. They too were born very early at 25 1/2 weeks. We share our rough NICU journeys. WE are very excited to meet up for the first time in real life. Will post pictures after our visit!

Little Colts fans!

The boys were all geared up to root Payton Manning on to victory last Sunday for the Colts first game of the season!

Logan discovering his feet. He thinks he is so cool that he can grab his toes. He is admiring his newfound skill in the mirror above him.

Connor, liking his walker. I remember when I first got these and thier feet didnt touch the ground. Now they "stand up" in them and just squeal out loud like they accomplished something big.

Early intervention- football spectators at early age!

"I just can't stand it! Will Manning go long for a touchdown?"

Our Happy Heiny's

Connor: "I like that orange on you"

Logan: "I like yellow on you too!"

Connor in the Bumbo seat
Logan in the Bumbo seat.

This is our newest wonderful product ever. It is called a Bumbo seat and it is made of a foam-like material that hugs the body as the baby is placed in the seat and baby's weightpushes down on the bottom. It is a great support and babies can use it once they can hold thier heads up. It is so nice because it gives the babies a new perspective and helps them to work on thier trunk muscles. It also doubles as a booster seat once the babies get older.

Our new fashion are our colorful Happy Heiny's diapers. We have about every color of the rainbow. Right now we are using these because they are so Daddy friendly and velcro shut. We want to get some more Fuzzi Bunz, so we are hoping to get some of those for Christmas. They are on our list. (Grandparents-hint hint!)

Those first bites of cereal......priceless

Well, the boys were given the go-ahead to start cereal and progress from that. Connor does so well, but Logan isn't too sure. Here is Logan exploring his new texture-rice cereal. There was a lot of gagging and priceless faces.

Just hanging out!

Logan(up)

Connor(down)

We had a lot of fun taking these pics today. I did a similar one with Trevor, so I had to do them with the boys.

Well, update from the pediatrician is that ther eis a definate concern over the boys hearing. they are just not responsive to low noises and do not turn thier heads to seek out the source of a noisse. We do not suspect total loss since they startle with loud noises. The pediatrician is trying to find a good ENT to do the testing which will be a very involved hearing test. The concern is that they were on Gentamyacin in the NICU for sepsis. Even though they monitor blood levels of the drug and dose it based on the amount in the blood stream, there is still a very big risk of hearing loss. Honestly cant say i would have done anything different as our boys are here and alive and thriving.

Both boys gained exactly 2 pound since the last appointment 6 weeks ago. Logan weighed in at 13lb 3 oz and Connor 14lb 8 oz. Dr is pleased that Logan is gaining about an ounce a day with his new formula concentration. We get to start real food now. Cereal first and then progressing on to greens, yellows and oranges. She said every 3 days try something new as long as they are tolerating it. They gagged on the cereal I gave them, so I think it is just the texture.

We will keep everyone posted on the progress and the hearing test findings.

Best Friends

Lastly, this picture was just too cute NOT to put in...It shows them reacting to each other almost like they are understanding each other. (It' s a twin thing, you wouldn't understand-hehe)

New skills- they are coming at us like bullets!

Logan says: "Look mom, I can hold my own bottle and put myself to sleep"

Connor rebuts: "Oh yeah, well I'm so big, I can practice my skills and stay awake!"
Connor learned how to hold his bottle first and has been doing it for the last couple of days. Logan just started to yesterday. It is funny now, they see the bottle coming and get all excited and pull it in. Ahhhh....I feel life getting a little easier.

Learning to sit up

"This is hard work"

Connor posesses the most upper body strength, so he is practicing sitting up in the boppy. As you see it isn't as easy as it looks and finding the center of gravity is very hard.
"I figured it out!!!" "oops, not for long..."

Discovering each other

The boys are just now really noticing each other and playlaying next to each other. Connor likes to touch faces though, which Logan doesn't think is so fun. Hee hee. Logan is on the Left and Connor is on the right.

Update from the pulmonologist.

Well, the boys saw a new specialist for the lungs yesterday, Dr. Chowdary. He was very pleased with Connor's progress and his ease of breathing. He prescribed Prevacid for his reflux (the Zantac is disgusting!), but wants us to thicken his formula with cereal for now and try tht first. His weight was up to 13lb 10 oz! He was a bit displeased with Logan's progress, however. He had wondered why he hadn't been referred sooner. He was able to observe Logan eat and how it took him 45 min to eat the 6 oz bottle and he was retracting and breathing hard whenever he got excited or mad. He noted Logan pooping out at the end of his feed. Soooooooooo.. On review of his last chest Xray, he believes this is all related to the cardiac issues going on. He is failing to gain weight as he continues to use his calories to function. If he doesnt gain weight, he doesnt build healthy lung tissue and his heart works harder. Small Fry was just at 12 lbs yesterday. He is on a fluid restriction of sorts and is not allowed more than 6 oz at 4 feeds/day. Instead we have to increase his calories per ounce from 22cal/oz to 24 cal/oz by concentrating his formula more. He also was able to observe Logan reflux and spit up so Prevacid was prescribed for him as well. He also increased his diuretic Lasix again and introduced another diruetic (he had this in the NICU too) Aldactone as this is supposed to spare potassium. He is also to have regular lab work to make sure his electrolytes remain balanced. We talked about the possibility of open heart surgery if his VSD doesnt close on it's own, but that is later down the line. We are hoping he will gain some weight, but if his heart continues to compromise that, it may be necessary to help him grow. He will follow him closely. Both boys have to get flu shots and get the synygis shot to prevent RSV. We may not see much of people this winter as we have been advised to avoid all exposure to persons who are symptomatic of colds and viruses or who are being treated for colds. WE are also not to be around any form of cigarrette smoke too. PAKA, now would be a good time to quit- for our sake!!! Thank you Grandad for quitting!!! That is all for now, we will keep you posted of other things as they come up. Our next Dr appt with the pediatrician is on Sept 6. (more shots-crud!).

Big brother started kindergarten!

Trevor in uniform. He began his school journey for the next 13 years on 8/21/06.

He is so proud of himself.

7 months old

Wow, how time flies! I can't believe the boys are 7 months old. They are still so tiny and still in 0-3 months clothes. We are just getting into the 3-6 month range.

Logan is moving all about. He rolls everywhere and is playing with his feet. He wakes up in the middle of the night, finds his feet and is ready to play. 1/2 the time he is in thier cooing instead of crying. He usually goes right to sleep after a bottle, but it cracks us up to see him in there playing.

Connor lets his belly get in his way and he has a hard time rolling. Ha Ha! This picture is so much thier little personalities. They are so cute and funny.

We see the pulmonologist tomorrow for a follow-up on chronic lung disease. Both are a bit congested, so we will see what he has to say. Both are doing fine otherwise.

Trevor starts kindergarten today (tears). He is officially a big boy. We will try to post pix of him in his uniform tonight!

Unfortunately we have been subject to "comment SPAM". Please continue to leave comments, but you have to do a word verification before it posts. Darn Spammers!

Our Happy Heiny's

Some new cloth to sport about in. These are called Happy Heiny's. Theya re so irrisistable!!!!!

Update from the surgeon and early intervention team.

Both boys saw Dr Smith, the surgeon, yesterday for follow-ups on thier hydrocele/hernias. To refresh, both boys had umbilical (belly button) hernias and hydroceles and Connor had a bilateral(both sides) inguinal hernia (groin). Connor had surgery May 31 to repair his hernias and hydrocele. He also had his little extra thumb removed. Good news!!! Both boys have healed thier umbilical hernias. Connor got a clean bill of health from the post-op standpoint with no return of his hydrocele. Logan's hydrocele is gone. Both boys only need to return on an as needed basis. He told us preemies are susceptible to hernias in the toddler years so to report any bulges. All is good! They both gained a little more weight and Logan is at 11.5 lb and Connor is at 13lb 3 oz.

Both saw the First Steps early intervention team of physical therapists and occupational therapists Thursday. Connor scored just above his corrected age at 4 months and Logan just behind at 3 months. There was a concern that Logan had some muscle shortening on the side where his incision is, probably due to him favoring it post op. We were instructed to gently stretch and massage that area to help the muscles lengthen. Also there was a small concern regarding hearing as niether really turned toward noise. WE know both startle at loud noises, but she though maybe there was still some fluid from ear infections causing an impairment. We will follow up with the pediatrician. They will do a repeat evaluation in 3 months to see where they are then. For now, no PT or OT.

The boys just love thier Nanny!!

two of a kind...

The boys goofing around. (Logan is left and Connor is right)

Trevor and Logan sharing some brotherly love!

Our outfits from our cyber aunt Susie (aunt Judy's sister)

We agree that piano at an early age is imperative!!
Logan enjoying tummy time on the tummy- time Boppy. (ok, we really just wanted a picture of his little behind!)
Connor is on the left and Logan on the right. We just love our new outfits from Aunt Susie! Thank you,it is so good to finally fit in them!

The boys have been all smiles lately now that we are through the shots pain. It was rough with no sleep for a couple of days. Both are doing well, getting big and making new milestones. We think Connor will cut his first tooth soon as you can feel it just below the gum line. He is the drool master as you can see on his bib.

More pictures to follow!