Twin + Life

An actual post...

2008-11-19T18:33:00.000-08:00

I AM alive. Our children are great and we are somehow in a routine. Granted it's a routine that ebbs and flows, but still, it's a routine. It feels like we "worked it out" with the girls, and less like it's something we imposed on them.

Around 9ish, tonight it is 8:30 we feed them in their car seats (love the person that invented the rocking car seat) and they fall asleep. We bring them into the bedroom in their car seats and they sleep until midnight, minimum. Last night I think they slept till 3am, which is rare. One of them cries out, squirms and coos loudly and we rise to meet them. Kate or I put on bottles (in water we heat in a pot)and then feed them a bottle (usually 3/4 or less). They usually get sleepy and then we swaddle them in the Miracle Blankets (Miracle is too strong a word for sure) and lay them in the co-sleeper crib next to our bed. They sleep until 6-7am most days.

Not very exciting, but our first routine no less. It's organic in how it came to be, which I like. Basically, it serves the girls best, but also works well for my lady and me.

Check out the picture above with the girls in their black glam onesies. Ruby Faye is on the left. Look closely at her left hand. That's my girl!

My new favorite picture...

2008-11-04T13:01:00.001-08:00

Grandma Cheryl took this one!

Old hardwood floors and sleeping babies

2008-10-21T08:42:00.000-07:00

So we are renting a cute little bungalow from a friend of ours at this time who is generous enough to give us a deal on the rent. We may be here a while.
Anyway, the house has hardwoods and of course we love hardwood floors. We had stained concrete in our house in Richardson. After two years we decided to never do stained concrete again. It's too cold and hard. Wood floors are the way to go, although I do like a nice berber carpet in the bedroom. Kate does not. When we build our dream house maybe we'll flip a coin.

In this house, it's all hardwoods. Old pine hardwoods that are charming. Except...
with sleeping infants. Our babies primarily sleep in a co-sleeper next to our bed. Most nights our routine is like this: feed babies, burp babies, stare and ooh an awe at babies for a while, drink a glass of wine or two, bathe babies (every other night), swaddle babies (Matt's job), play the YouTube of Hush Little Baby by the Horseflies between 4-8 times, slowly creep back to our bedroom with sleeping babies, set babies in co-sleeper, step away from co-sleeper gingerly.

This is where the problem is. As you step away from the co-sleeper, there is a spot you cannot avoid on the floor, unless you fall back on the bed, that as you are lifting your foot off the floor the floor creaks with the sounds of exploding fireworks. Many if not most times it sounds like a tiny person that lives under the house is shooting a tiny gun rapid fire. This, of course, is most frustrating as the babies will startle and wake up. Thankfully though, they are getting used to the sounds it seems. Less and less do the little firecracker sounds of our wood floors wake them.
Beware the old creaky wood floor with infants.

Grandma Cheryl is coming

2008-10-18T09:51:00.000-07:00

Grandma Cheryl is on a flight as we speak. She is going to stay a week with us. She is also coming for Christmas, but she decided she just had to see them now. They have changed so much since she last saw them.

We are thankful and excited about her visit.

First doctor's visit and Mono or Di?

2008-10-09T12:03:00.000-07:00

Ruby Faye and Violet had their first doctor's visit two days ago. Everything is perfect and they are now 9lbs each. Violet has passed Ruby Faye in weight, by one once.
We also visited our midwife for the last time and she said they are progressing perfectly as well.
They do have thrush in the their mouths and we are treating it with water and baking soda and a prescribed anti-fungal medication.

The the most important thing we are dealing with now though is that we do not think they are identical. We were told they were because there was only one placenta, but what I have found out is that many times one placenta can actually be confused with two fused together. The thing is that they do not look identical to us. They very clearly look different. So, we are probably going to get DNA testing done.

From what you see in this picture do you think they are identical?

Hush Little Baby

2008-10-05T20:45:00.000-07:00

There is a lot of catching up to do on this blog. It's been 7 weeks since Ruby Faye and Violet were born. It seems like a lot longer, honestly.
I am so tired by the time I can write in the evening and thus usually don't. But, here I am. I am not going to get into things too much tonight but I do want to post a song. We have been dancing and singing our babies to sleep with this one every night for the past few nights. After swaddling them, they wrestle like little Houdini wannabes trying to get out of the swaddle. This song has really helped get them to accept the swaddle and sleep.

I love the song obviously, but it has a sadness to it. I was wondering if the singer is singing from the perspective of the little "rich" baby that has a lot of things but still is not happy. What do you think?

New Pictures!

2008-09-24T20:07:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone. I just uploaded more pictures. Select the album at the top right.

Cute!

-- M

Be back soon ...

2008-09-19T13:21:00.000-07:00

Hello all --

It's been a a fascinating sleep deprived transition to parenthood. Obviously it's taken a toll on my posting but I will be back soon. I am having some probs with my Powerbook, the computer that has all the photos on it. Anyway. Look for more posts soon.

-- M

So here's the final belly pic...

2008-09-06T14:18:00.000-07:00

I think this is the most amazing thing I have ever seen. What do you think?
Kate's belly at 37 weeks. It got even bigger than this.

The little angels

2008-09-06T08:05:00.000-07:00

My new favorite picture.

Grandma Cheryl

2008-08-30T06:53:00.000-07:00

Grandma Cheryl, Kate's mom, just left after a 1 month stay in Austin. She believed that the girls would be born on July 30 so she insisted on coming then. Of course, these things cannot be determined, only guessed at, and that guess was way off. So, she stayed here, at our place and a few others and waited it out. It was not easy, but she sure as hell was not going to miss the birth of her first grandchildren.

2 1/2 weeks later Kate gave birth to Violet and Ruby Faye and we were able to take them home after only two days in the hospital. Although our nurse staff was incredibly good it was the best feeling I have ever had leaving that place with my two daughters and recovering wife.
We made it home safely to Grandma Cheryl and a spotless, scrubbed and beautiful home.

This is the part that would take forever and probably be boring if I typed a list so I'll try and be concise and say that what Grandma Cheryl did for us the first two weeks of our children's lives now classifies her as my hero. She cooked, cleaned, fed, diapered, swaddled, bathed/sun-bathed, spent tons of money buying us groceries and other necessities, walked, fed and brushed pets (who now love her more than they do us), stayed up late to help console both crying babies, slept on a couch in our living room, and overall made our transition into parenthood one of the best experiences of our and our children's lives. Everyday Kate and I would look at each other and talk about how amazingly blessed we are to have her in our lives.

Thank you so much Grandma Cheryl for everything you did and do. Our lives are better for the time you spent here with us during the first weeks of Violet's and Ruby Faye's lives.

Sleep

2008-08-22T14:52:00.000-07:00

I write odes to sleep in my head all day. I never thought I'd think of 4 hours of sleep as a good night's rest. Now I do.

I always knew there was a "parent" gland that was dormant until one had children. Once the children come the gland kicks in, releasing that extra energy needed to perform things like 3am feedings and changings.

All is well in the Milliken household and Ruby Faye and Violet radiate beauty.

At home

2008-08-20T08:24:00.000-07:00

We arrived home yesterday at 6 pm. Kate, Violet and Ruby Faye are rapidly becoming breast feeding experts. We are supplementing with some formula to help before Kate's milk comes in.

We finally got a few 2 hour sleep stretches this morning and I feel like a different person. All is well and here are a few more pictures.

THE MILLIKEN TWINS!

2008-08-18T16:16:00.000-07:00

Violet Estelle Milliken, 5lbs 14 oz and Ruby Faye Milliken, 6lbs 1oz. Born 8pmish 8/17/08.

38 weeks now...

2008-08-13T19:11:00.000-07:00

So here we are. Kate originally predicted August 13th to be the babies birth date. For some reason, somewhere along the way we gave up on that date, thinking they would come much earlier. I can't remember exactly why, but today we are amazed and thankful that our babies are taking their time. It is best. The benefits of a 38 week gestation range from better lung development, a shorter learning curve for breast feeding to less of a chance for jaundice. All our care providers have told us getting to 38 weeks is ideal. At this point, going 40 weeks is only two weeks away and is highly possible. I do hope the girls come before then but I accept that they will come at the perfect time.

I attribute Kate's and the girl's incredible performance to several factors: diet, vitamins, exercise, the best midwife, OB and perinatologist care and Kate's not working, which has given her the time to rest and live relatively stress free during this time. This was a choice we made and is not without consequences, but those are mainly financial and can be resolved in due time. I am happy we made the choice to do everything we can to achieve a full term pregnancy.

The feeling now is surreal. You are so close to having your children in your arms, yet it feels so far away. There is a nervousness, like the kind you might have when meeting new people. It's a good, exciting feeling. Part of me feels the presence of old souls in our children. I feel that these babies are manifestations of a life force that is never ending. And I know deeply that we will learn as much from them as they will learn from us.

Dream Map

2008-08-10T15:18:00.000-07:00

All is well and they like it in there...

2008-08-09T18:30:00.000-07:00

37 1/2 weeks and all is well. The babies are healthy, Kate is healthy and so we wait. We did think they would come sooner, but I understand now why you don't guess and make predictions about these things. It only muddles your thoughts and energy. That said, we're going with the the original guess, the 13th.

The nurse midwife at the doctor's office said 38 weeks would be optimal as did our midwife MariMikel. So, all is well. The children are getting what they need: more time to develop and mature inside the womb. This will make life much easier for them and us. Kate can handle it. She is strong. She is my Queen.

Full term!

2008-08-06T06:01:00.000-07:00

Today marks 37 weeks of Kate's pregnancy. This is considered full term for twins by most resources on the subject. She and I are brimming with pride at her accomplishment. Faye and Violet should be over 6lbs each now.

There are many reasons why Kate was able to reach this goal: diet, vitamin regimen, mental toughness, exercise, prayer and positive thought and the great support she's had from our midwife, doctors, friends and family throughout her pregnancy. At this point I have stopped guessing when they will come and just letting it be. We ARE ready.

Cat escort

2008-08-04T19:26:00.000-07:00

Lila, our beautiful "Russian blue" cat really knows Kate is pregnant. She has always wanted to sleep near Kate and usually wants to be right on her belly. Last night she slept at Kate's feet. Kate usually wakes 3-4 times (CORRECTION: 9-10 TIMES) a night or more and eats or pees. Lila woke up every time with her, jumped off the bed and escorted her to where she was going. She would wait until she was done and then escort her back to bed. Only when Kate was back in bed would Lila get back near her feet and curl up to sleep again.

Update

2008-08-02T13:56:00.001-07:00

We visited the midwife today and she gave Kate an A+ and said if she was a betting woman she would bet on another week. Everyday they have in the womb the better. It's more likely they'll adjust to the "world of air" much faster if they mature more in the womb basically.
Kate is superwoman. :)

Kate's mom addrived yesterday from Tennesee. It's great to have her here. She sent us a link to a song she thought the girls would like. It's my new favorite. Enjoy.

She felt Violet's head...

2008-07-31T07:39:00.000-07:00

We visited the doc today and Kate had a cervical exam. The nurse midwife was able to feel Violet's head and Kate is 1cm dilated. Wow! She said there might be a little bit of blood so don't be worried. When Kate got up there was a medium size spot of blood. Kate started crying (more whimpering) and we asked again and they said it is normal. The fact that she was able to feel Violet's head made everything more real.

On our way out of the office, thankfully we ran into Dr Sebestyen on the elevator. She always has such a great energy. She assured us the blood is normal and there will be a lot more during labor.

Any day now...

2008-07-29T07:29:00.000-07:00

We are literally days away from the birth. Kate's contractions, while not regular, are more frequent. She is way more uncomfortable in general: back pains, belly aches, some nausea. These are all signs of the body preparing for birth.

No one ever told me, or maybe I did not listen, but sleeping for her is the worst part, or not sleeping. She just can't get comfortable in bed. She can't breathe well when laying down or even sitting up, really. So, the time when she normally rests the most is when she is the most uncomfortable. It's frustrating for her, but she is handling it well. I spend a lot of time scratching her back and that usually gets her snoring. Yes, she who never snored before except for cute little mouse-like sniffles, now snores like a sailor. It's cute too, but sometimes it's way loud and startling in the quiet of the night.

All is well and the little butterflies in my stomach are fluttering more each day in the biggest countdown of my life.

Random panoramic image

2008-07-27T17:12:00.000-07:00

I discovered a new feature on the Canon G9: panoramic images. This is me laying on the bed with the computer.

35 week sonogram

2008-07-26T12:10:00.000-07:00

We could only get an image of Faye's, Baby A, head and foot this time. I pieced them together in what I thought was the correct position.

And the tape says, 47 weeks

2008-07-25T14:48:00.001-07:00

So every time we (yes, I go to EVERY appointment with K) go to the doc she measures K's belly, vertically from pubic bone to sternum-ish area. The length of the tape tells how many weeks you are measuring. Normal stuff done every time. Well this time things were a little above normal you might say. Or longer than normal. She is measuring 47 weeks pregnant. The average gestation period for single babies is between 37-42 weeks. She is 5 weeks, in size, beyond that. With twins, that is par for the course. It is an amazing thing and I am so proud of her. It takes a great amount of strength and patience to do what she is doing and I see it everyday.

We are hoping for another week or so, but if they come now they'll be fine and it is likely they'll go home with us. In a week, there is a 90% chance they'll come home with us so that is our minimum goal.

No planning this stuff of course so when they come, that is their time. I am ready (because I know not).