Kids talk too much

Ever see the granola bar commercial where the kid goes up to the bride and says, "my mom can't believe you wore white?" (If no, click HERE to watch it).

That kid could VERY easily be MY kid.

We went to swim lessons tonight and Noah went the front desk to check in. The girl behind the counter asked him if he had already received his birthday cookie. I said yes, and Noah proceeded to tell her that today was my birthday. At which point the conversations went something like this:

"Today is my mommy's birthday and I sang to my mommy and my mommy went to get her hair cut and colored for her birthday because she doesn't want to to look old."

This was all said in one long, deep breath. And it was probably way more information than the kids behind the counter wanted.

And yes, I did get my hair done for my birthday and it looks FABULOUS!

And my hairdresser, in her expert opinion, thinks that the girls might be red heads like their mommy because their eyebrows are so fair. Score!

My Baby is FOUR!

My baby is FOUR today!


I can't believe how much time has passed. I know that every parent thinks this about their children, but Noah is such a wonderful little boy and there is nothing I take more joy in than watching him grow and change. Last night, completely unpromoted by me, he put his arms around me, kissed my cheek, and said, "mommy, I love you." Needless to say, I melted.

In honor of his birthday, I thought I would share his birth story. Enjoy!

I had a very normal and blissfully uneventful pregnancy. I am also living proof that you can be dilated and effaced for weeks without labor being imminent. At my 36 week appointment my doctor told me that I was 1-2 cm and 50% effaced. I walked around like this until Wednesday, September 8th, which was my 39.5 week visit. My doctor told me that I was 3-4 cm and 90% effaced and he stripped my membranes to see if that would speed things along. At the time, he thought that I would have Noah within the next few days but just in case he told me to make an appointment for the following week. His EXACT words were “I don’t think you’ll need the appointment but you better make it. If you don’t, you’ll probably need it.” I made the appointment, Dan’s mom flew out and we waited. Nothing happened. I went back to the OB on September 15th, hot and tired of being pregnant, and we decided to schedule an induction for Monday, September 20th.

I was 100% convinced that Noah was not going to come on his own. Dan and I had tried every trick in the book to induce labor (sex, spicy food, raspberries, pineapple, walking) and nothing worked. I woke up on Saturday, September 18th and noticed that I was having strange stomach pains. I went the entire pregnancy without having any Braxton-Hicks contractions so I wasn’t sure if this was labor or not. The contractions were noticeable, but not painful, and at the time they did not seem very consistent so I went about my day. That afternoon Dan and I went to the movies with our moms and my sister and during the movie the contractions were getting a bit stronger but were still somewhat irregular (Silver City, terrible flick BTW). We got home at 4:30 p.m. and I went into the bedroom to lie down. Dan was supposed to work that night and to be safe I decided to time the contractions.

The contractions were irregular (4 minutes apart, 7 minutes, 5 minutes, etc.) but they were getting more and more painful and lasting for about a minute each. I called Dan into the room at 6’ish and told him that we needed to call the doctor because I thought it was time to have the baby. By the time we got organized and got to the hospital it was about 6:45 p.m. and the contractions were coming one after the other and they were VERY painful. At 7:30 p.m. the nurse examined me, said I was 5-6 cm, and started the paperwork to get me in a room. I said I wanted an epidural.

The worst part of labor for me was waiting for the epidural. I was having 2-3 minute long contractions, still one right after the other, which made me vomit a couple of times (sorry, TMI). I kept making the nurse promise me that the anesthesiologist was physically in the building and on his way to my room. By 9pm I had received my epidural and I felt better almost immediately. I was SOO relaxed and for me it was worth every penny ($1,666.00 to be exact). I was complete by 9:30 p.m. and the nurse told me I did not have to push if I didn’t have the urge. So I didn’t. I got the urge to push at 10:30 p.m. so we got started. Those of you who know me know that when I get nervous I get chatty so the I was have a ball getting to know my nurse in between pushes. At the same time, my sister kept poking her head in the curtain to see what was going on. She was getting anxious in the waiting room so we finally invited her to come and watch the show. After about an hour of pushing and talking I decided to get serious about delivering Noah. I put my mind to it and Noah bounced into the world on Sunday, September 19 at 12:29 a.m.

And today, he is a my happy, healthy FOUR-year old.

I grope myself

Since I am nursing/pumping breast milk for the babies leaking boobs is a real issue. My body and pumping routine is such that I can go several hours without pumping, if necessary. When the babies were first born, I pumped every 2-3 hours. Now I can last 5-6 hours if I am in a pinch.

But when that happens, I find myself touching my chest. . .making sure that nothing is coming out that could cause me to be embarrassed publicly. I started doing this at Noah's class party on Tuesday. Thankfully there were plenty of other moms there who knew what I was doing and didn't care. I did it today at my parents, and yesterday at Toys R Us.

Seriously, someone is going to think I am pleasuring myself. I guess my social graces have fallen to the wayside.

An observation

How is it that:

I am the one who gained all the weight.
I am the one who swelled up the like the Pillsbury Dough Boy.
I am the one who literally went to the bathroom every 20 minutes for three months straight.
I am the one who was unable to sleep through the night for three months striaght.
And I am also the one who pushed out TWINS in 10 mintes.

And yet, I don't have a SINGLE picture of just me with my girls?

I have pictures of everyone else with the babies. And most of these pictures are beautiful.

But NONE of me.

Something is VERY wrong here.

I live with the Baby Whisperer

When Noah was an infant he struggled with reflux. In order to make him feel better (among other things), he slept in his car seat most of the time because it allowed him to sleep upright.

For the first three weeks of their lives, Hannah (a.k.a. Hannah-belle or Hannah-Boo) and Abbie (a.k.a. Abber-doodle) have been pretty good sleepers. We swaddled them in the blankets we swiped from the hospital (those crappy stripped blankets are awesome!) and put them down. Well, in the last week they've figured out how to break out of the swaddle so we've started using the SwaddleMe Adjustable blankets. They were working, but in the meantime we determined that Abbie also has reflux and when she fusses Hannah will sometime join her. It's made for some less than pleasant nights.

So Dan, in his infinate wisdom, says, "Why don't we put them in the carseats." Talk about an epiphany.

For the last two nights the girls have eaten around 8-9pm, again around 12:30 a.m. and then not again until 5-5:30 a.m. This may not seem like a big deal but it's HUGE for Dan and I. Midnight'ish until early morning is a nice chunk of sleep. In fact, Abbie slept from 12:30 a.m. until 8:15 a.m. this morning. I even tried to wake her to eat with her sister around 6am and she would not budge.Dan wants me to refer to him from now on as the "Baby Whisperer."

Hannah-Belle

Abber-Doodle

My peas in their pods.

How we tell the girls apart

Just about every day I get asked how we tell the girls apart. Let's just say it's hard.

Hannah has a small strawberry birthmark on her stomach. And wears a tiny bit of pink nail polish on her toe.

We also JUST discovered tonight that Abbie has an over shaped birthmark on her tushie.

And my mom wants to know why we don't dress the girls alike more often. We don't because they look VERY similar.

But since my mom keeps asking, tomorrow I am going to dress them alike. Because she is babysitting. Let's see how well she does at telling the girls apart.

In other news, the girls went to the pediatrician today for their one month check up. Hannah weighed in at a whopping 8 pounds 6 ounces and 21 inches. Abbie is 8 pounds even and 20.5 inches. Hannah also is getting a 48 hour holiday from breast milk and a trip to the hospital for blood work because she is now jaundiced. Apparently I have an enzyme in my milk that causes it. I am sure this will be the first of MANY things that they blame me for in therapy.

And now a word from Elsie. . .

This is how I feel every 3-4 hours. Round the clock. Like Elsie the f***ing cow.

I pump because breast milk is better for babies and because the girls are/were preemie's and probably are benefiting more from the breast milk than formula. I also pump because while Hannah and Abbie did seem to take to the breast better than Noah ever did, they were still preemie's and it was taking them longer to get used to latching onto the breast itself. Since I have the patience of a preschooler, it was easier for me to pump and give them them milk. I also pump because I am a WEE BIT competitive, and I pumped for six months with Noah. In all likelihood I won't be able to pump as long with the twins, I still feel compelled to give it the old college try.

Dan thinks I should consider quiting. Feeding twins is stressful as it is, especially when I am alone in the house. Pumping adds another 15-20 minutes to the process. Plus pumping in the middle of the night sucks. But it's also a good time to catch up on my TV shows as I DVR stuff and then watch it while I pump.

I know that I am doing for my kids, but it in no way shape or form changes the fact that I feel like a cow. If you think I am kidding you are more than welcome to come over and watch. I wonder if cows leak, too?

The Baby Update

Both girls are doing really well. As of last week Hannah was 6 pounds 12 ounces and Abbie was six pounds 14 ounces. This is wonderful when you consider that both girls have exceeded their birth weights.



Hannah tested positive as a carrier for cystic fibrosis and as a result we're going over to Children's Hospital in a few weeks for a something called a sweat test. The test will see if she actually has the disease but it's unlikely given that Dan is not a carrier. According to our pediatrician, if you test positive as a carrier the sweat test is required by the State. I'm not looking forward to the test, but I'd rather go through the test and know that she does not have the disease. The reality of being a carrier is that when she gets married her partner will need to be tested, especially if he is Jewish since cystic fibrosis is often found in Jews of Eastern European descent (which we are).



And then there is Abbie. He jaundice numbers started inching up again and she also seemed to have a hard time tolerating breast milk. The solution for both these problems (which are unrelated) is to temporarily take her off breast milk and give her formula. While she seems to tolerate the formula better, it smells terrible and has made her constipated. Fun times all around. We also get to take her back to the hospital on tomorrow (Saturday) for yet more blood work. It's just one of those things I guess.

In Noah news, the kids were talking about the people in their family this past week. The teacher asked Noah who was in his family and he went into great detail talking about his mommy, daddy, and dogs. He forgot about his sisters until prodded by his teachers. Oops.

Cheese Making: Our New Hobby

So, I noticed today that Hannah smelled funny. I sniffed around and thought it was me actually. And then I sniffed so more and realized that the rancid odor was emanating from my gorgeous daughter's neck. Apparently breast milk has rolled into the skin folds around her neck and, well, now we have cheese.

It's disgusting. And I am embarrassed. Although obviously not that embarrassed since I am posting it here. You could call it family tradition since my mom said the same thing happened to me when I was a baby.

Needless to say, I got a washcloth and tried cleaning her. And bath's are in the near future of both babies.

The Birth Story: Toby's Version (with pictures)

Since Hannah and Abbie arrived three weeks ago today, I thought it was appropriate to FINALLY finish and publish their birth story. With pictures.

Monday, August 11
I worked a half-day and had more or less decided at that point that I needed to start maternity leave. I had a non-stress test later that day as well as an OB appointment, but I was 35 weeks pregnant at that point. Between the heat, and the size of my growing belly, the physical demands of a twin pregnancy were taking the toll. I literally had enough energy every day to go to work, and maybe pick Noah up from school. It was difficult to walk, stand, and do much of anything. I figured I would wait and see what Dr. Carter had to say and then make things official later in the day.

At my appointment with Dr. Carter, my blood pressure was a little high and he told me that I was 3 centimeters dilated, 50% effaced, and he stripped my membranes hoping that would start something. I also begged him to put me out of my misery and delivery these girls. He told me that he doesn't like to induce before 37 weeks without reason, but he wants to keep and eye on my symptoms (specifically my blood pressure) and see what happens. He also told me to come back on Thursday, August 14 at 9am. A day that he's on call. When he said that, I started to think that maybe we'd be having these babies soon.

Thursday, August 14
Per Dr. Carter, I went for a non-stress test at 7:30 a.m. I made Dan come with me, and Noah went to my parent's house since we (re. I) was hoping/praying to be induced. I even packed my bag and brought it in the car. I was so excited about the possibility of being induced that I couldn't fathom that it might not happen. . . that I might have to wait a few more days. To say I was anxious was an understatement. I really thought I was going to lose it if a decision was not made to deliver the girls.

The NST was fine and when we went to the office at 9am there were big pads draped over the exam table which made me think that today was the day. Maybe my water was about to be broken? Dr. Carter examined me, said that he was still concerned about my blood pressure, and told us to proceed over to the hospital for an induction. To say I felt relief was an understatement. We talked about the risks involved and, according to Dr. Carter, the risk to my health of staying pregnant outweighed the benefits to the baby. In addition to the swelling of my feet and hands, he was concerned about me developing toxemia or pre-eclampsia. At this point, we giddily made our way back over to the hospital. We also called our parents and let them know what was going on.

Got to the hospital around 10-10:30. We were quickly whisked into a room and the fun got started with pitocin. But there were a few snags along the way.

The IV: It REALLY hurt when it went in, it was not very comfortable in my hand. Because I had so much swelling in my hands the nurse was worried that she might have perforated the vein. We left the IV where it was but she told me that if my hand/arm started to swell they would have to move it. Well, about two hours into the induction my hand started to burn and it was determined that the IV needed to be moved. Once it was moved I was fine.

Monitoring/breaking of the water: When you have twins you have to get two babies on the monitor, which is hard considering how much they move around. And if you're on pitocin they absolutely have to be monitored in case there are complications. Problem was that we couldn't get both babies on the monitor. They kept moving me into different positions and by the time they got the babies on the monitor I was in such an awkward position that they wouldn't stay on the monitor. The nurses wanted to put an internal monitor on Baby A, but to do so meant breaking my water. It was about 1:30pm and Dr. Carter didn't want to break my water until after office hours were over (5'ish) because "he wanted to see what I could do on my own." I think he was hoping that by waiting it would break on it's own. After some back and forth between his office and the nurses, another doctor at the hospital came in to break my water so we could monitor the babies. I was told that it would feel like "an aggressive internal exam." I don't know what it feels like to be sexually violated (thankfully) but I have to think it feels similar to having your bag of water broken. Let's just say that "aggressive" is a polite term and leave it at that."

The Epidural: I made it crystal clear to Dr. Carter and the nurses that I did NOT want to feel anything with this labor. I wanted the maximum amount of drugs allowable by the State of Arizona and I wanted them administered in the parking lot, if possible. I felt pain delivering Noah. And I didn't feel like I need to relive the experience this time around. The way I see it, whether you have drugs or not, the reward is still the same: a healthy baby. You don't get a gold star for being a martyr and doing it drug free.

My contractions at this point are not very painful (or noticeable) but contractions tend to pick up in terms of frequency and intensity once your water is broken. So Dr. Lu, the anesthesiologist was summoned shortly after my water was broken. Here's the thing, I personally think that THE WORST PART OF GIVING BIRTH is getting the epidural. I know that might scare some people, but the epidural freaks me out more than the idea of pushing out a baby. Perhaps it's the fact you're in pain and they are putting a large needle into my spine while at the same time saying "don't move!" Anyway, Dr. L came, put the epidural in, and it didn't take. They kept asking me if my legs felt warm and I wasn't sure how to answer them. Dr. Lu offered to repeat the epidural and I declined thinking that it would magically kick in. Well, we waited and waited (all of 30 minutes) and to make a long story short we had to repeat the epidural. I guess they did it twice because I was having twins, right? That's the bad news. The good news was that it worked well enough the first time that it didn't hurt nearly as badly the second time. Once it was in, I understood what they meant about feeling warm. My entire lower body was numb and warm. Not a bad feeling. At this point I was having regular contractions and not feeling anything. My idea of labor.

By about 4:30-5pm things were great. I couldn't feel any of the contractions, which were getting stronger and more regular, I had Internet access in the room, and Dan and I just relaxed and watched TV. Around dinner time Dr. Carter came to check me (YEAH!) and I was about 6cm dilated. He then left to go have dinner with his wife (a pediatrician also on call. I asked if I could get two Dr. Carter's for the price of one). My parents came by with Noah and I was thrilled to get to visit with them. Everyone then left for dinner and then I had some quiet time to myself.

I should mention here that the only thing I was allowed to eat during this process was ice chips. Which was fine, except for the fact that I was craving water. When you're thirsty, which I was was despite the constant IV fluid drip, all you want it a big gulp of water. And looking at the jumbo bottle of water from Costco sitting on the table was making me crazy. Seriously, I have never wanted water so badly in my life. Around dinnertime I was offered a small cup of apple juice because my blood sugar was dipping, but even then I was told to sip, not guzzle. And when those 8 ounces were gone I wasn't allowed more.

Dan's mom arrived from California around 7pm and she was just happy to have have made it before the babies, as we had called her that morning when we were on our way to the hospital. Eventually, Dan and I settled in with our mom's for the evening. And because I was the one in labor I got to hold the remote so we watched the Olympics (gymnastics, women's all-around. Under-age Chinese girl with tacky blue eye shadow). The nurse checked me at 9:45 p.m. and told me I was 9 cm and said she would be back in hour to check me again. Now I started getting excited. Progress! Well, progress comes with a price because during this time my beloved epidural from Dr. Wu also started to wear off on my left side which meant I was now feeling the contractions. I was able to give myself a few extra jolts of medicine from the pump next to my bed but it still hurt. As a result, I starting watching the clock WAITING for someone to come check me.

At 11:15 I was checked (finally!) and I was 10cm. Now this is when things started getting really interesting. The next 15 minutes were filled with doctors and nurses getting me ready for the operating room (in case there were complications Dr. Carter wanted to be able to get the babies out as fast as possible, which is why I delivered in the OR instead of in my room). Dr. Carter came and talked me (about what I don't remember) and there was just a lot of buzzing around me. I do remember one conversation: because it was so close to midnight Dr. Carter wanted to know if we were aware of the fact that the babies MIGHT have two different birthday's depending on when they were born. He asked if we had a preference one way or another and Dan and I were adamant that they be born on the same day. I envisioned spending the next 18 years explaining to people that yes, we have twins, but they have different birthdays. Ummm, no thank you.

Around 11:30 p.m. I was wheeled into the OR. The trip to the OR was exciting. The process of being moved from the bed to the operating table bordered on humiliating. What little modesty I had left was gone, I can't move anything from the waist down, and physically, I am HUGE. It took a small army of people to move me. Although the medical staff could have cared less, I was mortified. I literally closed my eyes and waiting for the humiliation to end. Dan told me it wasn't a big deal at all, but I was embarrassed nonetheless.

Dan was next to me in scrubs and I remember that there was really good music playing in the OR (classic rock). Major props to whomever made that selection. Everyone was busy doing their thing and before I knew it I was told to push. A side note, I pushed for two hours with Noah and was determined not to repeat that again. When I was told to push this time, I pushed like there was no tomorrow. Literally MINUTES later, Hannah Eve arrived at 11:54 p.m. and weighing in at 6 pounds, 4 ounces. I remember pushing, and then feeling her body slip underneath my pelvis and then out my body. It was surreal and the rest of the delivery went by in a blur. Within minutes I was being told to push again, and again I pushed like no tomorrow. By this point it was dangerously close to midnight and I was determined that both girls to have the same birthday. As with Hannah, I felt something slip underneath my pelvis and then out my body. This time it was Abigail (Abbie) Eden at 11:59 p.m., weighing in at 6 pounds, 7 ounces.

No wonder I was so miserable being pregnant, I had over 13 pounds of baby inside of me!

Each girl had their own team of pediatricians and there was a neonatologist in the middle going between the two. I don't remember his name, but Dan said he was really nice. It was like something from the Discovery Channel, with each baby being whisked away by a separate team. I delivered the placentas (I'll spare you the pictures but if you're interested let me know) soon after and then in a blink of an eye it was over. I had a bit of tearing (not unexpected) and then we just waited for the babies to get checked and cleaned up. Dr. Carter at this point did something which I thought was very cool. Since he had finished things up on his end, he took the camera from Dan and started taking pictures of us with the newest members of the family. In hindsight I am so grateful that he did this because now I have pictures of myself with the girls and Dan too.

Once we got the "all clear" that the girls were okay I was wheeled back into the room where my mom and Dan's mom were waiting. Dr. Carter was still behind the camera so I commented that it was like being chased by the paprazzi. When we got back to the room all of the doctors and nurses said the same thing. That they could not believe I delivered twins naturally (no c-section) and that I did it so quickly. In the end, I pushed for about 10 minutes, and this includes the break we took in between Hannah and Abbie. Apparently the idea of having twins with two different birthday's was a strong motivator. We got settled back into the room with everyone fussing over the babies (our mom's were LITERALLY tickled pink). The nurses got me settled and two things happened. I got to guzzle an entire bottle of water and I got to eat a much earned midnight snack (hot dog and salad with more water).

And that my friends, is how Hannah Eve and Abigail Eden came into the world.

Before

Before, side view

9 cms.

Hannah Eve

Abigail Eden

Dan and the girls

Me and my water