Thursday, February 4, 2010

Twins 2 Month Low-Down

Nora Grayce Burns

~my wide-eyed beauty and her sweet mohawk~



After yesterday’s appointment we found out that Nora now weighs 8.7 lbs! that is 4 pounds in 2 months and close to doubling her weight. Although she is still under the 5th percentile in her weight, she is right on track for the amount of grams gained per day, it may just take her a little while to catch up! She is now about 22 inches long, which is 3 inches longer than she was at birth—that puts her around the 15th percentile for a 2- month old, so she’s doing a little better there. Our little Nora is long and lean!


The doctor was pleased with her development, she is very strong and starting to push her head up and when you hold her she has decent head control. She is watching everything around her and can follow movement with her eyes.



As far as clothing is concerned, she totally doesn’t fall into a size category. We’ve already had to take in a pair of bloomers so she could wear them for her picture day. In actuality her waist still fits best in preemies, but she is much too long for them. Her pants are now more like capris! Mostly, she just wears onesies and the couple of dresses that have super little neck holes because she also has very narrow shoulders and all her dresses slide off. I am trying to be as patient as I can for her to wear all the cute clothes that she has…I guess I should be glad that she is getting good wear out of all her clothes instead of blowing through them after only 1 or 2 wears. Good news is her head and hair are growing and her bows fit much better these days!

She is still eating exclusively breast milk. Time between feedings range from, on average every 3 hours during the day to more like 4-6 hours at night. Over the weekend we did have a freak incident where she slept for almost 8 hours one night. I woke up super confused and then had a sudden rush of worry flow through me as I quickly sent Mike into the room to make sure they were okay (I was too scared to go myself!) This eating schedule is good for everyone in the house, although I look forward to a bit more time in between feedings during the day, I really can’t complain because of how well the nights are going.

Speaking of sleep, night time has been running much more smoothly the past month. We are trying to establish bedtime routines that teach them to expect bed every night and get them ready for sleep. Nora has always done well sleeping in her crib, it seems to really calm her down when she gets over-stimulated. Even if she isn’t ready to go to sleep, she is fascinated with her crib aquarium and can stare at if for over an hour! After night-time feedings she goes down right away with minimal to none crying. This has really been a blessing. Sleep is such a key element for every family member to feel well and function every day!

As far as her personality, she is still a fire-cracker when she wants to be. Grandma Anne calls her “small and mighty” and I think that fits her well. When she wants something everyone around her is aware of it. She is very easily stimulated, many times the stimulation gets to be too much. Mike and I are learning more about this each day. I have read this is a result of her prematurity. She can’t handle more than one face close to hers at a time. Loud noises and lots of movement can set her off real quick. Mostly though, I have learned that Nora can only handle 20-30 minutes of awake/interaction time and then she needs to lay down and be left alone. Most times she goes right to sleep and if she doesn’t, I’ll go in and get her after she’s rested and “desensitized”. My favorite new thing about her though is her beautiful smile that she has just started gracing us with the past few days. We get glimpses of this sweet innocent little girl, and I can’t wait for the day when some of the “preemie issues” we have with her disappear and we can just play and love on our little girl and enjoy her personality. Her brief periods of happiness are what can instantly bring joy to a hard day.


~look at that smile!~

Nora’s Likes Include:

-sleeping in her swaddle blankets
-her pacifier
-bath time
-walking
-lights
-crib aquarium
-being held
-listening to music while eating
-laying on her back so she can look around

Nora’s Dislikes Include:

-having to wait on brother to eat
-too much stimulation
-tummy time
-the nose aspirator
-shots


Holden Reece Burns

~he found his thumb, lets see if he sticks with it~

Holden now weighs…drum roll please…..10.3 lbs!!!!! He has now officially entered the double digits and can’t be called a little newborn anymore! He is between the 5th and 10th percentile for weight now and according to the doctor gaining more than what is expected per day! He is a super good and excited eater! We are very proud of his 3 lb weight gain in the past month, it makes Mommy feel like she is doing her job! Holden measured 22 ½ inches long—in the 15th percentile for his actual age. So there isn’t much difference in length between him and Nora--he’s just much thicker. He’s all solid though, not so many rolls, at least not yet. It seems he is taking after the Reece side of my family, I guess he was rightly named!

Holden is much easier to dress… and although we are so happy with his growth, it saddens me a bit to say he has almost outgrown all his newborn clothing and instead he is wearing primarily 0-3 month sizes. My little baby is growing up! ;)

Holden also is exclusively breastfed and he, like Nora, eats on average every 3 hours during the day and then longer at night. I don’t really allow their eating times to vary from each other—their schedule is of utmost importance to me and our daily routine. Holden does still eat for about 10 minutes longer than Nora and when bottle-fed about .5 oz -1 oz more than she does.


My baby boy is what warms my heart each day. He loves to cuddle with me and for the past week he smiles at me whenever I kiss him. He watches me wherever I go in the room and loves to just stare at me while I hold him. He is starting to move from just being a newborn baby and being only focused on his needs, to trying to connect and interact with those around him. He has longer periods of awake and happy times than Nora and stimulation doesn’t seem to be as much of a problem for him. He’s still a bit of a “wimpy boy” though—he hates being alone or messed with—sometimes I think he’d rather sit in his poopy diaper all day than being undressed and changed!
~all smiles~

~my big boy, sitting up and looking around~
Holden's Likes Include:
-cuddling/being held
-being swaddled
-kisses and hugs
-conversation time
-tummy time
-sit and watch
-eat

Holden’s Dislikes Include:
-bath time
-being alone
-waiting on sister to eat
-loud music
-shots


As far as all of our doctor’s appointments went today, everyone checked out fine. I am now cleared to resume all normal activities—I am much looking forward to soaking in a bath or hot-tub sometime soon! That also means though I need to get into a more regimented exercise routine, which really doesn’t excite me too much…but still it’s definitely needed!


Nora handled her doctor’s exam like a little champ…she was in a good mood and let the doctor do whatever she needed with no tears…well that is until it was time for her immunizations! Holden on the other hand did his usual cry the minute we layed him on the exam table routine…like I said, he’s a big baby, so of course you can imagine what the shots were like!
Mommy and Daddy handled the shots like pros…of course I hate to see my little one’s hurt, but it wasn’t too heart-wrenching or anything…I mean, you gotta do what you gotta do, ya know?

Here are some pics from the doctor’s office, enjoy…or maybe you should skip to the end if you're a softy and don’t want to see the shots! ..yes, I had to take pictures! I want to record everything I can and their first shots are definitely noteworthy!

getting his vitals checked


that's cold!

what ya doing???


first immunization is an easy one...
Nurse provides the meds...Daddy provides the hugs

oh no, it hurts Daddy!


kisses and support

Daddy's best at calming our little baby!


Holden's turn

mmm...he likes it!

Mommy's the support this time

okay Holden, here we go...hold on tight

so sad!

close up



whoa Daddy, we don't want to see that!

Holden's first bandaid


still crying....



but Mommy's hugs make it all better!




and now if you would like to see some growth, check these out!

Nora in the carseat at 2 weeks old

Nora in the carseat at 2 months old


Holden in carseat at 2 weeks old


Holden in carseat at 2 months old

babies in the swings on their first day at home

Holden in his swing at 2 months...sorry about the blur...best and most current pic i had

Align Centerand Nora at about 1.5 months in the swing

WOW LOOK HOW MUCH THEY HAVE GROWN!

7 comments:

Thumbs Up? Thumbs Down? said...

Ya'll they are so beautiful! So tickled to know ALL your check ups went well and each of you are moving on. Thanks for the great update. We are all so very blessed! Have a terrific day! Love, Grandma Anne

MoDLin said...

Your babes are beautiful and WOW have they grown! Thanks for sharng the adorable photos. It's wonderful to hear all the good news and see their chubby faces. Keep up the good work!

Kimberly and Jordan said...

Glad things are going well! I've been thinking about you guys and girls every day!

NoPermanentAddy said...

Jessi- Chris' birth weight is what Holden's is today. I guess I'd better watch out! ay ay ay!

You have such a cute family! And the twins are ADORABLE!

Megan Tetter said...

They look so much bigger! Congrats on good bills of health and all. So weet

Emory Moore Swindle said...

Thank you so much for posting all of this. It is so great to hear that the babies are both doing so well. They are gorgeous and we are so happy to see that everything is A-ok! Great pics! LOve them!

Lou Ann said...

Thank You so much for everything you do.I LOVE this blog! I check it every day. I can tell both of you are enjoying this new phase of life.