Friends with Twins!

There must be something in the water around here! Parker and Presley have several twin friends! Yesterday we decided to have some of  their twin friends over to play. ;) All three of these girls went to high school with me. Erica has twin boys- Taylor and Tyler born in May at 35 weeks. Lindsey has boy/girl twins Wyatt and Ellie born one day after Parker and Presley at 36 weeks. Jennifer (one of my very best friends!) is 30 weeks pregnant with boy/girl twins Griffin and Gracyn! We can't wait for Griffin and Gracyn to join our play dates (but not too soon!) :)  It was great talking with the other Mommy's of twins and we can't wait for the babies to get together again soon!
Here are some pictures:

Speaking of Griffin & Gracyn (Jennifer's twins)...we had a shower for Jennifer a couple weekends ago

Here's the cute Momma

This is the diaper cake I made her :)

Parker enjoys Jennifer's belly as a seat ;) *taken a few weeks ago

Another Weekend....

has come and gone! What a great one it was...of course it's always nice having Daddy home with us! Friday evening when the babies went to sleep (7:30) Eric and I made pizza and watched a movie together. Saturday morning Aunt Pam and Jennifer came over to see the babies. It was great seeing them and I can't believe I forgot to take pictures! Sunday morning we had planned on going to church but the timing just wasn't right to leave the house with the babies...hopefully next Sunday! Sunday afternoon before Eric's basketball game I went out to do a little shopping while the babies were napping. Ahh.. Can't wait for the 3 day weekend coming up!
Here are some pictures from the weekend

They supported the Cowboys Saturday night

Parker has his serious football face in this one below  =)

They played...

until Presley got bored ;)

Uncle Kyle (my brother) stopped by to show us his new car and I had to get a picture of him with Parker since they matched

Kyle and Eric going for a ride in the Corvette

And lastly, Eric and I made this chicken dish last night. It was delicious and SO easy! Oven baked chicken with chili, black beans, and onion served with white rice.

Busy Babies!

We've been pretty busy around here lately! Here's what we've been up to-

We did a little shopping at the mall and ate lunch...typical- Parker's asleep- bored by the shopping and Presley didn't close her eyes until the car ride back home.

They were worn out on the car ride home =)

Playing with their Glow Sea Horses from Nana

One afternoon we 3 went to Sonic and to run an errand

We went to Daddy's work and went to lunch with him. I caught Eric while chewing. Opps! =) Daddy loved us coming to see him! He asked us to come back once a week.

Hanging out at home

AND Daddy had an idea...on the websites we read about over stimulation it talked about the toys we have today and how it can ruin attention spans because of how busy they are. So for a break from all the lights and noise Eric opened the curtains and moved this little pecan tree in front of the window for the babies to watch the leaves blow in the wind. Notice the small fan in the bottom of the picture- it's there because prior to tree watching (hehe) Eric had the fan blowing the curtains. Both of these activities were suggestions in the article.

I'm loving my time home with you Parker and Presley!!

He Loves Her!

Oh my goodness! Watching the babies interact is the sweetest thing! Parker smiles, smiles, and smiles at his sister. It's so sweet! Even if she just slightly looks in his direction he lights up! I was spying on them the other day and here's some of the pictures I got. I have to take pictures from a far or else they will look at me instead of each other. ;)
                                  Pardon the bottle I told you I was zooming ;) Look at that face

Opps Presley caught me! hehe

He always wants to put his hands on her...and Presley isn't so fond =)

Haha look at Presley

Livin' the Preemie Life

I've been researching Preemies online when the babies are asleep. There are many things Eric and I worry about. Sometimes I wonder if we are worrying too much or if we have true concerns. It's so difficult and we are learning that worrying comes along with being a parent. Just as a precaution I've contacted ECI- Early Childhood Intervention to evaluate the babies. The NICU suggested this to all parents and all NICU babies qualify for a free evaluation. We just want to make sure everything is going along as it should be and if not we'd like to learn things we can do to help. A case worker should be calling me hopefully late next week.

Here's what I found about growth in pregnancy and development after birth for twins...
For the first two trimesters twins manage to grow at the same rate as a singleton, but from weeks 26-28 the growth rate decreases and continues to decrease for the duration of the pregnancy. Due to the cramped space within the uterus, and possible unequal sharing of maternal nutrition, there can be slight developmental/physical differences between the babies (e.g. minor speech differences, delayed sitting up, walking, etc.). It is agreed that multi-ple birth children tend to be developmentally slower than singleton children, during the early stages of growth.
(from The Nature and Nurture of Twins. by Dr. Elizabeth M. Bryan)

Another article I found that seems to be very true to the babies is about over stimulation. We've noticed that both babies get overstimulated very easily...lately it seems to be showing up more in Parker.  The NICU talked to us about "over stimulation" and this is the reason we limited activities and visitors when we came home.

Preemies come into the world and to a lot of handling and procedures and stimulus before their neurological system is matured. In the NICU they try to block out stimulus somewhat. But it is impossible, really, with all they have to do to keep them alive and healthy. As a parent the best thing you can do for your child is to pay attention to her cues that she is overstimulated. At first the baby will avert their eyes from you if the stimulation is getting to be too much. (My son, Gabe would avert his eyes if there was more than one face before him, or if the face was too animated -- it was just too stimulating.) They might just close their eyes and try to go to sleep to block it out. Then the baby will start to stick out their tongue as an aversion response, then yawning, and finally start to show agitation in their bodies, arching her back, squirming to get away, fussing, crying, etc.

The trick is to really pay attention and then respond to their signal by reducing stimulus. If you are rocking, patting and singing to your child in a brightly lit room with the TV or radio on and she seems to become more agitated, then stop and recognize all the stimulus in her environment. You could first turn down the lights or stop the singing. You can try a soft repetitive sound, "bababa" that might be more rythmic and soothing. If she is still agitated, crying and arching her back, then stop the patting, etc. until you find the "just right" amount of stimulus from you.
 Babies who don't have mature neural systems are "disorganized." They can't synthesize all the sensations and stimulus they are receiving, and they need help to get organized. This work to organize is important to the brain development, so your job is to help give her an environment that will allow her to do the work, create the neural pathways in her brain that will be the building blocks for later complex activity.
(from prematurity.org)

This article explains why Parker and Presley immediately relax when I take them back to their rooms before their naps or bedtime. We keep their rooms dark, cool, and quiet. Eric and I are trying hard to create an environment that won't overstimulate the babies. There is still so much for us to learn! I feel awful that my babies had to come into the world so early. I know one day this will all be passed us and their lives will be much easier. They've already come SO far!

Pictures!

I had been going back and forth about whether to have the babies pictures taken now or wait until they can sit up...Well Saturday I decided instead of paying someone I'll just do it myself. =) Parker was a perfect little model and Presley too but she runs out of patience faster. It was almost impossible to get pictures of them together so I only have a few. Parker wore one of Daddy's ties and Presley wore a bow and Mommy's pearls (given to me by my Mom who bought them in Japan.)

Here are my favorites: 5 months/ 3 months corrected age

My World

Look at Parker's little lip in the one below...this is the face he makes before he starts to cry. Sweet baby

First Visit to Church

his weekend we took the babies to church for the first time. Eric and I were SO nervous!! We sat in the back and the babies did great! Not one peep out of them! They were so intrigued by the lights, singing, and music! I started out holding Parker and Eric held Presley. Parker fell asleep after about the first 15 minutes so Eric and I switched... I knew Eric would feel a little more relaxed holding the sleeping one. =) About half way into church Eric and I looked at each other both recognizing a familiar stench...haha. We both thought it was Presley so I got up and took her to be changed. To my surprise it wasn't Presley! So, we decided since Parker was sleeping to let him sleep and change him after church.

Playing before we left

Excited to go!