Time for an Update

The boys are getting better, I spilled some amoxicillin the other day and had to wait almost two days before the pediatrician's office would fill it. But they are sleeping beautifully!! Yea!! Sing praises for sleep! As long as I feed them around 1 AM then I can sleep until 9 AM. That is almost eight hours of sleep, people! Holy Cow! Last night Cyrus slept through his 1 AM feeding and then was up at 5 AM screaming with hunger, which woke up Collin who decided that was time to play. *sigh* They were a little off their schedule today.

But the good news is that they are eating a little better during the day, not quite making up for losing that 4:30 AM feeding, but getting there. I realised the other day that I still feed them every three to four hours when they are awake. I am trying to put them on a more strict schedule; up at 9 AM with a bottle for breakfast, nap time starts at noon (ideally til lunch since they only take one nap a day), lunch at 2 PM, dinner at 6 PM, then bathtime and in bed by 9 PM. They have a bottle "snack" between meals and before bed. It seems to be working so far, at least to some degree. The bedtime routine seems to be the best thing for them. They are all over the house these days so need those nightly baths.

Tonight the boys were all excited for their nightly bath.
They were watching the tub fill with water.


Collin was blinded by the bright light of the sunny warm days of Texas January.
Freakin' 80 degrees in January, what is up with that?!


Just had to show everyone this adorable pic of Craig and Gaia alseep on the couch.
I found them like this when I got home from the grocery store Friday night.
(Yes, I spend my Friday nights at the grocery store these days...)

Feeling better, finally

It has been a difficult week for all of us and I have not had the energy to post. But things are finally looking up and we are feeling better. Tonight the boys did not have a fever at all, and I am not feeling as icky as I had been the past two days. Between the amoxicillin and the antihistamine/decongestant the boys are sleeping better. They have horrible snotty noses still and I think their noses are getting raw from all the running and wiping. Poor guys. Still not all into eating yet but... THEY HAVE SLEPT THROUGH THEIR 4 AM FEEDING TWO NIGHTS IN A ROW!!! Hallelujah! I even got the floors mopped today since Cyrus has figured out how to get around all the barriers that are not baby gates. I am going to feed Cyrus and go to bed now. Hope everyone is staying healthy.

Daddy was spending some quality time with the boys after work.
They always light up when they see him.

They are making their way to the living room after their bath.
It is good practice for them, Collin is really getting faster.

More Drugs...

After consulting the pediatrician nurse over the phone we set up an appointment to see Dr D. this afternoon. He checked them out and after determining that the boys do not have strep or an ear infection, he put them on amoxicillin hoping to get the bug that is causing all this. They are miserable and not sleeping except in the car (even that is interrupted with fits of coughing). And to top it all off I think I am getting it too...
So I pulled out the big guns and went to my parent's house for help. Hopefully the extra hands will give me a chance to rest up and get better before I get sick. I cannot afford to be sick right now (of course when can I?). Wish us luck! I hope everyone else is staying healthy, if my boys can get sick while staying home so much, then anyone is at risk!

Sicky Icky

All my men are sick, Craig came home from work early (meaning he left at his scheduled time) with all the same ickyness as the boys. The medicine that the pulmonologist just isn't cutting it anymore and I have had to go back to the OTC cough & cold stuff, including Tylenol for their fever. Poor Collin is coughing so hard that he cries and Cyrus being kept awake by coughing as well. I feel so sorry for all my guys, I am doing everything I can think of, I hope they can get some decent rest. The boys didn't want to go to bed because they weren't feeling good and have been coughing in their sleep. I know I am trying to get them to sleep through the night, but I may end up feeding them at 4:30 Am just to get some medicine down them. Now all I have to do is keep myself from getting this, whatever it is...

Almost there... Hurray!

Last night was even better than yesterday, at this rate they may be sleeping through the night by next week! *knock on wood* I tried to let Cyrus cry it out this morning, but could only take ten minutes or so if his crying. (I know I was weak, but it was so sad!) I held Cyrus for maybe two minutes and he was asleep again. Excellent! So I went back to bed and they did not wake up until 9:00 AM, AGAIN! Collin slept through the night (wonderful, thank you Collin!), and I am getting so excited that this may be the end of my sleep deprived insanity (Of course something else will cause me to go insane, but at least it won't be the lack of sleep.) And get this, after feeding the boys at 12:30 AM I got into bed by 1:00 AM and was so excited to be in bed that I could not go to sleep! What is up with that? LOL

Poor Collin is getting sick. His cold has progressed to a mild fever at night and a runny nose like a faucet. I have been suctioning him every few hours to help keep him as clear as possible. He is on a decongestant and antihistamine, but it does not seem to be helping. It has been great for Cyrus however. *shrugs* I am hoping he gets better over the next few days so I do not have to take him to the doctor. They will probably say he just has a virus anyway, and send us on our way.

Just wanted to share this adorable pic of Cyrus. He was begging for Cheerios.

Better than the last...

Night two is over and they did great! I gave them their midnight feed, went to bed by 1 AM, and like clockwork Cyrus woke up at 4:30 AM. I offered him water and then held him before putting him back into bed, doing the same for Collin immediately after. This time, however, I did not go back in when they woke up at 5:00 AM, I gritted my teeth, turned the monitor down a bit and just waited. They went back to sleep and did not wake up again until almost 9:00 AM! Thank you Universe! The power of prayer is amazing!

I felt refreshed and almost as if I had a good night's sleep when I got up to feed them. Wow. I forgot that I could wake up and feel like I could stay awake a while. Of course now that the boys are down for their nap, I am feeling the need to go lay down too. I am trying to put them on a more strict schedule, and perhaps that will help as well. Noon to 2:00 PM is nap time. Let's see if the boys agree...

Over the weekend my friend Tara came into town and she brought gifts for the boys.

Tara is reading the first book she brought for them, Cyrus is listening intently, you can tell by his concentrating thumb sucking technique.


Collin is helping Tara read the other book she gave them. He loves books. Thank you so much Auntie Tara! We loved playing with you this weekend. :)


Tara and Mommy getting in one adult picture for the weekend.
I had such a good time with her, come back any time Tara!

First Down...

Ok, so I don't know jack about football, but my first night of trying to get the boys to sleep through the night is over. I gave them their midnight feed and Cyrus woke up at 4:15 AM to eat, or at least so he thought. I offered him some water, which of course he refused, and then I held him a few minutes before laying him back down. He went back to sleep and then went through the same process with Collin about a half hour later. That happened a few more times until 6:30 AM or so, when I let them cry a while. Collin went back to sleep on his own and I had to go hold Cyrus a bit before he fell asleep. They slept until just after 8:30 AM where they ate four ounces for breakfast! I think that is the most they have ever had so early in the day. They even took another three ounces before going down for their nap at noon. Wow! :)

It was not as bad as it could have been, and overall I was pretty happy with how the night went. My mother has counseled me that getting them to sleep through the night means eight hours without eating, so last night was perfect in that respect and great for my sleeping schedule. So tonight will be a repeat of last night, hopefully with less resistance from the boys.

Check this out... Collin pulled himself up on his own today!

Yea Collin! I am so proud of him!! He wanted the board books on the coffee table.


After their bath, the boys were playing in the nursery before getting ready for bed.
They like the Tiger puppet that sings "London Bridge."

Weight Problem

Today was our monthly Synagis (RSV) shot and to my dismay, neither one of them has gained any weight since their last visit. We spoke to the Pulmonologist Nutritionist who said that giving them healthy vegetables is working against us right now since they are so low in calories. She recommends that I put vegetable oil in their baby food and Polycose (a powder made mostly of cornstarch)in their Pediasure. She even said give them french fries if they will eat them! Oh the horror (I said I would never give my infants fast food)!!
Since they are eating so little and since I am going to try and get them to sleep through the night I am torn about what to do. Tonight starts "Hell Week" where I plan to stop feeding them at night, first few days taking away the 4 AM feed and then taking away the midnight feed. They get water, hugs, and singing but no Pediasure. Hopefully the first thing that changes is that they will eat more than an ounce or two in the mornings. Wish us all luck, I am not looking forward to this...

After this weekend...

I spoke with my pediatrician's nurse today asking for help about getting the boys to sleep. She recommended giving them water, since they probably wont like it. If after a few nights that doesn't work then, just hold them, do not feed them, and if necessary put them in different rooms for a while. That way if they need to cry it out, they will not wake the other. Wonderful. Just wonderful news. This weekend may not be the best time to start this since I have company coming in, but I will start this big fun on Monday I guess. Not the magic pill I was hoping for, but perhaps it will get them to eat more during the day in addition to sleeping through the night.

Shawn, it is probably very similar to your girls suddenly having "broken" pacifiers. They will suffer for a little while but once it is over life will be much better. Wish me luck everyone, I will let you know how the first night goes...

Sleep Deprivation Taking Its Toll

My boys are not quite a year old, based on adjusted age... So I have a question to everyone: When do most twins start sleeping through the night? I have not slept more than three to four hours in a row in almost a year now. Granted I have had a day here and there, but one night every two months or so is not cutting it. Friends, I think I am going to lose it if these little guys do not start sleeping soon.

Collin is doing okay, usually waking only once in the middle of the night and has on a couple of occasions slept through the night. He sleeps when he is tired and goes down easily. I have hope for Collin, but Cyrus is the real problem. He does not like to sleep, period. He will only take one nap during the day and if I am lucky, it will be an hour long or so. Today he went down for an hour and a half, however it was not until 3:30 PM. Before his shunt problem he was getting close to sleeping through the night, but he has regressed significantly. He gets up at least twice a night. Last night he was up and awake from 3:30 AM to almost 5:00 AM.

I feel my ability to remember things is failing (yes, even more than normal) and my energy levels are failing. The state of my house is failing and I fear that one day I will overlook something involving the boys that would affect their health. Does anyone have any advice on getting more sleep? A vacation is on the top of my list, but it is a short term solution. I am eager to listen to any ideas you have to offer, and let me also offer my mirror of this blog on Blogger so anyone can post comments without having to get an account for anything. It is not as pretty as this one, but I have had a year to tweak the template.

Big sister Gaia stayed with us over the weekend.

Collin and Cyrus love it when she is around.

Daddy spending a little QT with the boys before bed. They are mesmerized.

Collin is proud of himself for pulling up onto the windowsill. He has come so far so quickly!

Feeling Justified, instead of Paranoid

Tanner's mother sent me a very informative article today stating that RSV is on the rampage right now in North Texas... thought I would share it since I cannot link to the source without getting a member login. Made me feel very proud that I have been so careful about the boys going out this season, shows that our caution was not overstated. Thanks Teri Lyn, I bet you feel pretty good too!

Babies at risk from contagious virus

12:54 AM CST on Saturday, January 7, 2006 By JANET ST. JAMES / WFAA-TV

RSV information
from CDC

Doctors say a severe outbreak of a highly contagious virus is affecting the most vulnerable in North Texas. Thousands of children have already become sick, with many who are hospitalized.

Non-stop coughing prompted Marie Pardo to bring her seven-week-old daughter Alexa to the hospital. "She had a hoarseness; she could hardly cry," Pardo said.

Alexa was diagnosed with RSV--respiratory syncytial virus--and she's not alone.

"We have seen 450 cases of RSV bronchiolitis, which is a large number," said Dr. Octavio Ramilo, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at Children's Medical Center Dallas. "The majority are very young babies, as you can imagine, and we've had a lot of hospitalizations."

Dr. Ramilo said this is a serious outbreak, and that assessment was brought into sharp focus at the hospital's asthma treatment room--packed with little patients getting breathing treatments for a virus that looks like a common cold in adults, but can be very dangerous in babies.

RSV infects almost every child before they turn two years old. Some 125,000 children are hospitalized each year, and 500 of them die. Ten percent of those who get RSV have long-term respiratory problems, including asthma.

Especially vulnerable are those born prematurely or with other health conditions.

The signs of serious infection include:

*difficult or rapid breathing
*wheezing
*irritability
*poor appetite

RSV causes airways to close and lungs to become cloudy and inflamed. Pneumonia can set in.

RSV is common during the winter season, when viruses spread because people are confined indoors. But doctors say they're baffled by the current outbreak considering the unseasonably warm weather in North Texas.

"Try to protect those babies," Dr. Ramilo urged. "During this season, don't let a lot of the family members manipulate the babies."

Marie Pardo is grateful she got her little girl to the hospital in time. "As soon as she gets to get this oxygen off, she gets to go home."

E-mail jstjames@wfaa.com

First Pics of the New Year

I got a couple of great shots today that I wanted to share. They were sleepy and therefore a little goofy, and right after became very grumpy. They are napping right now. *Whew* But oh these pictures are the best! I have to say that the Baby Paparazzi has very photogenic children. Just for posterity, Collin now weighs 18 lbs. 6 oz. 28 inches & Cyrus weighs 20 lbs. 3 oz. 28 5/8 inches long. They are 14 months old, and their adjusted age makes them 10 1/2 months old now.

This is the one I put on the website thumbnail to replace the pea pod picture.
Look at those amazing smiles! They were both laughing hysterically of course.


Another wonderful shot of the boys laughing at the toy I was tickling them with.
They are getting so big!


Cyrus got a hold of the toy I was using to make them smile.
The feet jingle. This was after both of them started going after
Collin's glasses, so I figured I needed a distraction.

(Pretty easy to copy & paste from one site to the other.)

Just for you... and for me.

I am starting this blog, in part for my friend who cannot access my xanga site, but also because I want to try the Blogger setup. For now, until I decide what to do, I may just copy the posts from my xanga site to here instead of sending them via email. Just for you Bobbie! :P

I will personalize the template more when I have time (aka- when the boys are sleeping!)